Deception and Disrobing: The Schefer Maqamat

Odysseus was a legendary Greek hero famous for his cunning, complexity, and cleverness. Abū Zayd, the main character of the Maqāmāt, shares these exact qualities. Written by Abū Muḥammad al-Ḥarīrī between 1054 and 1122, this famous work follows Abū Zayd as he travels across the Middle East. While Odysseus wanted to return home to his wife, Abū Zayd had a simpler, immediate goal: to make money. The Maqāmāt, often translated as "Assemblies" or more recently "Impostures," tells fifty distinct stories about the life of this con artist and trickster.

A narrator, who acts as both the observer and the victim, meets Abū Zayd repeatedly during his travels. These meetings take place in places ranging from Sanaa in Yemen to Kufa in Iraq, Alexandria in Egypt, and even Samarkand in Uzbekistan. In each encounter, Abū Zayd executes his latest scam. The narrator feels a mix of disgust and fascination, unable to look away from the spectacle. While the plot is thrilling, the true reason for the Maqāmāt's lasting popularity is al-Ḥarīrī's masterful command of the Arabic language. In one specific episode, known as maqāma 6, Abū Zayd dictates a letter using only undotted letters. This feat effectively uses only half of the alphabet to show off his linguistic skill.

Over one hundred medieval manuscripts of al-Ḥarīrī's Maqāmāt still exist today. They were copied in regions ranging from West Africa to the Indian Ocean. However, only thirteen of these ancient texts are illustrated. Among them, the "Schefer" Maqāmāt, housed in the Bibliothèque Nationale de France (manuscript BNF Arabe 5847), is the most famous and spectacular. A note on the final page, folio 167v, reveals that this specific copy was completed just over a century after the original text was written. It was finished on the sixth day of Ramadan in the year 634 of the Hijri calendar, which corresponds to May 9, 1237, on the Gregorian calendar. The scribe and calligrapher was Yaḥyā b. Maḥmūd al-Wasiṭī, an Iraqi artist who likely created the work for the Turkic emir shown in the left-hand frontispiece on folio 1v. This emir was a lieutenant of the Abbāsid caliph al-Mustanṣir, who ruled from 1226 to 1242; his name appears inscribed on a building shown on folio 164v.

Al-Wasiṭī painted ninety-nine exquisite miniatures that follow Abū Zayd as he swindles his way across the Islamic world. These illustrations allow the reader to travel alongside the protagonist. We join processions and caravans depicted on folios 19r and 94v, board ships on folios 61r and 119v, help the queen of Oman give birth on folio 122v, and visit the slave market of Zabid, where a young man argues for his freedom on folio 105r. Yet, the most captivating element is watching Abū Zayd bewitch his audiences with his performance.

The manuscript also contains a moment of shocking revelation. While one illustration on folio 57r depicts a pair of dropped pants, another scene on folio 74v has been deliberately blacked out by a later reader. In this altered scene, the onlookers are left staring into an empty doorway. Even when the images are present, it remains difficult to recognize Abū Zayd in a fixed way. He is a master of ambiguity, capable of speaking out of both sides of his mouth simultaneously. In four specific episodes—maqāma 8, 35, 43, and 44—Abū Zayd recites stories or poems composed almost entirely of words with double meanings. His speech is constructed so that it could mean two completely different things to different listeners. In another instance, a speech can be read either forward or backward, creating diametrically opposed interpretations. All of these linguistic tricks serve a single purpose: to deceive people into giving him money.