MUHAMMAD AL-MUʿTA AL-SHARQAWI (d. 1180 H./1766 A.D.): DHAKHI - Lot 79

Lot n° 79
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MUHAMMAD AL-MUʿTA AL-SHARQAWI (d. 1180 H./1766 A.D.): DHAKHI - Lot 79
MUHAMMAD AL-MUʿTA AL-SHARQAWI (d. 1180 H./1766 A.D.): DHAKHIRAT AL-MUHTAJ FI AL-SALAT ‘ALA SAHIB AL-LIWA’ WA-L-TAJ, MOROCCO, CASABLANCA, 1321 H./1905 A.D. Large Arabic manuscript on vellum, comprising 152 folios and 4 endpapers, laid out according to the mistara system, copied at a rate of 19 lines per page within a frame. Text in black ink enhanced with alternating polychrome (pinkish red, mauve, green, and blue); the repetitive prayers are arranged in tightly spaced blocks punctuated by yellow triangles; the layout is elaborate and highly decorative; a polychrome opening banner in Maghribi Thuluth script bearing the name of Sheikh al-Muʿṭā, extended into the margin by a circular vignette with a cross motif. At the end of the volume: a colophon dated Saturday, 26 Shawwāl 1321 (January 3, 1905), indicating a copy by Muḥammad b. al-Hādī al-Khadāwī b. Sīdī Aḥmad b. al-Ḥasan, for Sīdī Muḥammad b. Qāsim b. al-ʿArabī al-Zarhūnī of Casablanca. Garnet-colored leather flap binding stamped in gold, with a central medallion decoration. Notes in French on the endpapers mentioning the discovery of the manuscript in a grain silo at the Zāwiya al-Makkī on February 6, 1908, and its concealment following the fighting on February 2, 1908, with reference to a lieutenant named Ricard. Foliate dimensions: 33 × 23 cm; Thickness: 4 cm; Text area: 24.5 × 14.5 cm. This manuscript is part of the monumental work of Sheikh Muḥammad al-Muʿṭā b. al-Ṣāliḥ al-Sharqāwī (d. 1180/1766), master of the zāwiya of Bejaad, in the Atlas. Titled *Dhakhīrat al-Muḥtāj fī al-ṣalāt ʿalā Ṣāḥib al-Liwāʾ wa-l-Tāj* (literally: The Treasure of the Needy Concerning Prayers for the Bearer of the Standard and the Crown), this work constitutes one of the most extensive collections devoted to prayers and prophethood regarding the Prophet Muḥammad. It was composed by the sheikh over a period of approximately thirty years and spans more than sixty volumes, published separately. The majority of the manuscripts preserved today date from the 19th century. The manuscript was commissioned and copied in 1905 in the Casablanca region. The scribe was the son of Sīdī Aḥmad ibn al-Ḥasan, a figure known for founding the Ahl al-Khamsa brotherhood, whose tomb is located near the kasbah of Médiouna in Casablanca. Barely three years after its completion, as the French army approached, the manuscript was hidden in a grain silo in the town of Zāwiya el-Mekkī, in the Casablanca region, shortly before the battle known as Sīdī el-Mekkī, which took place on February 2, 1908, and was lost by French forces. The note added at the end of the manuscript was most likely written by one of the soldiers who took part in the battle; it appears to allude to the death of Lieutenant Ricard (Azan, *Souvenirs de Casablanca*, Paris, 1911). Condition Report: Very good condition overall. Some water stains on the binding; torn headband and detached spine; pieces of leather have come loose inside the reinforcement. The edges of the endpapers are damaged. Inside the text: protective sheets have been inserted between almost every page to prevent ink transfer. Rare small tears and a few scattered small water stains.
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