Book Launch | “Sea of Ink, Forest of Pens: The Art of the Qurʾan in the Hossein Afshar Collection”
Date & Time
Location Main Campus | Beck Building
Drop off at Beck Building
Email Your Questions [email protected]
Book Launch | “Sea of Ink, Forest of Pens: The Art of the Qurʾan in the Hossein Afshar Collection”
Date & Time
Location Main Campus | Beck Building
Drop off at Beck Building
October 30, 2025
Author David J. Roxburgh, the Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Professor of Islamic Art History at Harvard University, joins Tina Tan, conservator for works on paper, in conversation for the book launch of Sea of Ink, Forest of Pens: The Art of the Qurʾan in the Hossein Afshar Collection.
Spanning more than a millennium, from the 7th through 19th century, Sea of Ink, Forest of Pens sheds new light on the production of deluxe Qurʾan manuscripts produced across Islamic lands by highlighting works in the Hossein Afshar Collection, which are on long-term loan to the MFAH. Roxburgh and Tan discuss the development, materials, and conservation of these historical manuscripts.
A book signing and optional gallery tour follow.
This program is part of a series accompanying a special installation on the art of the Qurʾan in the Hossein Afshar Galleries for Art of the Islamic Worlds.
Sea of Ink, Forest of Pens is the second in a series of publications edited by curator Aimée Froom highlighting masterworks in the Hossein Afshar Collection. The first volume, Bestowing Beauty: Masterpieces from Persian Lands—Selections from the Hossein Afshar Collection, and Sea of Ink, Forest of Pens: The Art of the Qurʾan in the Hossein Afshar Collection can be purchased at the MFA Shop.
Plan Your Visit
- Admission is free. The discussion takes place in the Hirsch Library on the lower level of the Beck Building. Seating is available on a first-come, first-served basis.
- Parking Information | Museum Hours | MFAH Campus Map
About the Speakers
David Roxburgh is the Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Professor of Islamic Art History at Harvard University, where he has taught since receiving his Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania. Roxburgh has co-curated exhibitions including Traces of the Calligrapher: Islamic Calligraphy in Practice, c. 1600–1900 at the MFAH and Turks: A Journey of a Thousand Years at the Royal Academy of Arts in London. He has published two books—Prefacing the Image: The Writing of Art History in Sixteenth-Century Iran and The Persian Album, 1400–1600: From Dispersal to Collection—and is working on two more that address the study of medieval Iranian architecture, and the art and literature in Herat in the early 1400s.
Tina Tan is the head of the paper conservation lab at the MFAH and a professional member of the American Institute for Conservation. With an interest in inks and organic dyes, she has collaborated with artisans and experts from East Asia, the Islamic world, and Europe, shaping her approach and expertise in preserving cultural heritage.
MFAH World Faiths Initiative
This program is part of the MFAH World Faiths Initiative, which seeks to highlight themes of faith, religion, and spirituality in the collections of the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston. Focusing on the many expressions of faith in these collections, the initiative honors the diverse communities of Houston and inspires connections among cultures and beliefs.
Email Your Questions [email protected]
THE HOSSEIN AFSHAR GALLERIES
in memory of his mother, Fatema Afshar
Gallery renovations have been supported
by generous grants from:
Ambassador and Mrs. Hushang Ansary
Nancy and Rich Kinder
Adel and Maureen Chaouch Family
Rania and Jamal Daniel
Franci Neely
Jay Jones and Terry Wayne Jones
Lead Corporate Underwriter:
Aramco Americas
The World Faiths Initiative is made possible by a grant from Lilly Endowment Inc.
All Learning and Interpretation programs at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, receive generous support from H-E-B; Institute of Museum and Library Services; Sempra Foundation; the Brown Foundation, Inc.; the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo; the John M. O'Quinn Foundation; the Joe Barnhart Foundation; the Cockrell Family Fund; the CFP Foundation; Macey and Harry Reasoner; the Texas Commission on the Arts; and the Junior League of Houston, Inc.
Endowment funds are provided by the Louise Jarrett Moran Bequest; Caroline Wiess Law; Windgate Foundation; the William Randolph Hearst Foundation; Cyvia and Melvyn Wolff; the National Endowment for the Humanities; the Fondren Foundation; BMC Software, Inc.; the Wallace Foundation; the Neal Myers and Ken Black Children’s Art Fund; the Eleanor and Frank Freed Foundation; Medha and Shashank Karve; Virginia and Ira Jackson; Jesse H. Jones II; the CFP Foundation; the Favrot Fund; gifts in memory of John Wynne; Neiman Marcus Youth Arts Education; gifts in memory of Peter Lotz; and gifts in honor of Beth Schneider.
On Thursdays, admission to the MFAH Permanent Collections is free, courtesy of Shell USA, Inc.