Page with illuminated calligraphy, Hadith (Sayings of the Prophet Muhammad)

Ottoman calligraphers often demonstrated their skills by writing different styles and sizes of Arabic script on rectangular sheets of paper, which were then illuminated and mounted on pasteboard. Known as qit'a, these calligraphic panels were commonly bordered withcolored and marbled papers and assembled into accordion fold albums, known as muraqqaʿ. This calligraphic panel was composed by Ottoman calligrapher Hamdi Efendi (d. 1784), whose nickname, Karalamacı, literally translates to "Hamdi the scribbler." The nickname refers to the calligraphic exercises (karalama) intended to maintain the calligrapher's dexterity, for which Karalamacı Hamdi was most well known. In this calligraphic panel containing Hadith, or sayings of the Prophet Muhammad, Karalamacı Hamdi used thuluth for the large text and naskh for the five small lines. An illuminator added verse markers that resonate visually with the round floral motifs in the decorative side panels. The calligraphic panel is bordered by gold margins and marbled papers speckled with gold leaf.