Mírzá Ḥusayn-i-Isfahání (surnamed Mis͟hkín-Qalam () meaning "jet-black pen"; 18261912) was a prominent Baháʼí and one of the nineteen

Apostles of Baháʼu'lláh The Apostles of Baháʼu'lláh were nineteen prominent early followers of Baháʼu'lláh, the founder of the Baháʼí Faith. The apostles were designated as such by Shoghi Effendi, head of the religion in the earlier half of the 20th century, an ...

, as well as a famous

calligrapher Calligraphy (from el, link=y, καλλιγραφία) is a visual art related to writing. It is the design and execution of lettering with a pen, ink brush, or other writing instrument. Contemporary calligraphic practice can be defined as "t ...

of 19th-century

Persia Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

. He is the author of a calligraphic rendering of the Greatest Name, used by Baháʼís around the world.

Background

Mishkín-Qalam was born in Shíráz but was a resident of Isfahán, which is where he first heard of the

Baháʼí Faith The Baháʼí Faith is a religion founded in the 19th century that teaches the essential worth of all religions and the unity of all people. Established by Baháʼu'lláh in the 19th century, it initially developed in Iran and parts of the ...

. A few years later he travelled to

Baghdad Baghdad (; ar, بَغْدَاد , ) is the capital of Iraq and the second-largest city in the Arab world after Cairo. It is located on the Tigris near the ruins of the ancient city of Babylon and the Sassanid Persian capital of Ctesiphon. I ...

and learned in more detail from

Zaynu'l-Muqarrabín Mullá Zaynul-ʻÁbidín (May 1818 − 1903) was a prominent Iranian Baháʼí who served as a secretary to Baháʼu'lláh, was listed by Shoghi Effendi as one of nineteen Apostles of Baháʼu'lláh, and biographied by ʻAbdu'l-Bahá in ''Memorial ...

and Nabíl-i-Aʻzam, but was not confirmed until he later travelled to Adrianople and met Baháʼu'lláh. Before becoming a Baháʼí, he was a Súfí of the Ni'matu'lláhí order.

Imprisonment

Mishkín-Qalam was sent by Baháʼu'lláh to Constantinople (

Istanbul ) , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = 34000 to 34990 , area_code = +90 212 (European side) +90 216 (Asian side) , registration_plate = 34 , blank_name_sec2 = GeoTLD , blank_i ...

), where he began attracting people through his art and vigorously teaching the Baháʼí Faith. The Persian ambassador began to complain to the Sultan's vazirs and soon had him arrested. When Baháʼu'lláh was exiled to ʻAkká, Mishkín-Qalam was exiled to Cyprus with the followers of

Subh-i-Azal Ṣubḥ-i-Azal (1831–1912, born Mírzá Yaḥyá) was an Iranian religious leader of Azali Bábism, known for his conflict with his half-brother Baháʼu'lláh over leadership of the Bábí community after 1853. In 1850, when he was just 19 ...

, where he remained a prisoner in Famagusta from 1868 to 1877. Cyprus eventually left Ottoman control and Mishkín-Qalam was released. He made his way to ʻAkká in 1886, and remained there until Baháʼu'lláh died in 1892, after which he travelled to Egypt, Damascus and India. He remained in India until 1905, and then returned to Haifa until his death in 1912.

Calligraphy

Mishkín-Qalam was a renowned calligrapher.

ʻAbdu'l-Bahá ʻAbdu'l-Bahá (; Persian: ‎, 23 May 1844 – 28 November 1921), born ʻAbbás ( fa, عباس), was the eldest son of Baháʼu'lláh and served as head of the Baháʼí Faith from 1892 until 1921. ʻAbdu'l-Bahá was later canonized as the ...

called him a second Mír ʻImád, a 16th-century calligrapher of the Safavid dynasty who is perhaps the most celebrated Persian calligrapher. Mishkín-Qalam enjoyed a special position among the court ministers of Tihrán, and he became widely known for being adept at every calligraphic style. When E.G. Browne was in Persia, he was told that Mishkín-Qalam's works :"would be eagerly sought after by Persians of all classes, were it not that they all bore, as the signature of the penman, the following verse: ::Lord of calligraphy, my banner goes before; ::But to Baha'u'llah, a bondsman at the door, ::Naught else I am, Mishkín-Qalam. When visiting Baháʼu'lláh in Adrianople, he would often write out the phrase Yá Baháʼu'l-Abhá (O Glory of the All-Glorious) in many different forms, some taking the form of a bird, and send them everywhere. One of his renderings of this phrase is now one of the three common symbols of the Baháʼí Faith, known as the Greatest Name.

Gallery

File:Mishkin-Qalam-01.JPG File:Mishkin-Qalam-10.JPG File:Mishkin-Qalam-15.JPG File:Mishkin-Qalam-87.JPG File:Mishkin-Qalam-40.JPG File:Mishkin-Qalam-23.JPG File:Mishkin-Qalam-83.JPG File:Mishkin-Qalam-21.JPG

Notes

References

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External links

The Conservation and Restoration of Calligraphy by Mishkín Qalam
by Shingo Ishikawa and Patrick Ravines. {{DEFAULTSORT:Mishkin-Qalam 1912 deaths Apostles of Baháʼu'lláh Iranian Bahá'ís Iranian calligraphers People from Shiraz 1826 births 19th-century Bahá'ís 20th-century Bahá'ís People of Qajar Iran Iranian emigrants to the Ottoman Empire