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Richly illuminated 17th-century Koran manuscript. Pictured here are the first two chapters, or suras, of the 114 that make up the Holy Koran, the sacred book of the Islamic faith. The Arabic text of the two suras, both of which begin “In the name of Allah, the beneficient, the merciful… ” is written in black ink. Gold leaf illuminations of the manuscript consist of floral and geometric designs— consistent with Islam’s prohibition of anthropomorphic respresentations.