Persian poetry: how the precious manuscript of Hafez's "Divân" was found

A rare copy of a collection of the Persian poet Hafez was found by a Dutch art expert after a hunt across several countries, under the gaze of the Iranian authorities. The precious object had disappeared from the collection of an Iranian antique dealer installed in Germany and died in 2007.

The work, dated from the 15th century, inlaid with gold leaf and whose value is estimated at around one million euros, is one of the oldest copies of the "Divân", bringing together the works of the famous poet Hafez ( born in 1315 and died in approximately 1390).

After years of research in the underground circuits to find the work, Arthur Brand, nicknamed the Indiana Jones of the art world for his investigative exploits, got hold of the precious manuscript. The object was seen by AFP in an apartment in Amsterdam.

"It's a discovery that means a lot to me because it's such an important book," says Arthur Brand. According to experts, the calligraphic manuscript found is one of the "rare to still exist". "Even if it is not the oldest, it is an extremely early edition of Hafez's 'Divân', which makes it very rare and precious," observes Dominic Parviz Brookshaw, assistant professor of Persian literature at Oxford University.

In Iran, the tomb of Hafez is always visited by thousands of admirers each year and the "Divan" of Hafez (also written "Diwan", which means "collection of poetry" in Arabic and in Persian), throne in almost all homes. It is traditionally read during the feast of Norouz, the New Year of the Persian calendar. Hafez's works have inspired many Westerners, such as the German novelist Goethe and the American writer Ralph Waldo Emerson.

Yalda's night is also the time for a "fal-e hafez", which allows the poet Hafez to be asked a question. We open a random page of his collection "Le Divân" and the poem we come across is the answer to our question

An "extremely nervous" man

The theft of the copy, which dates from 1462-1463, was discovered by the family of the bookseller Djafar Ghazy after the latter's death in Munich in 2007. The man had in his lifetime amassed a large collection of Islamic writings , but all were then untraceable.

Although part of the collection was found by German police in 2011, "the most important piece, one of the oldest and most faithful copies of the famous 'Divân' by Hafez, is still missing," says Arthur Brand. Tehran then promised to use "all possible legal means" to ensure the return to Iran of all the stolen documents, according to German media.

At the end of 2018, an Iranian art dealer living in Germany contacted Arthur Brand, asking him to come "urgently". The man said he was approached by officials from the Iranian embassy. "My informant was clearly scared and felt threatened," says Arthur Brand. "I knew that Iran was also looking for the missing 'Divân' and I started a race against the clock to see if I could find it first, because the book belonged to Ghazy's family," he continues.

The Dutchman's research then took him to London, where he met an "extremely nervous" man at the sight of a cover of the stolen collection. He admits that the manuscript was sold by one of his friends to an art collector. "The buyer was shocked and furious. After all, he was sold a book stolen and wanted by everyone, including the Iranian government," says Arthur Brand.

The collector gave him the book via an intermediary at the end of 2019. The Dutchman is going to Munich on Wednesday to hand over the work to the German police. "The next steps are currently being discussed with the heirs" of bookseller Djafar Ghazy, said Ludwig Waldinger, spokesman for the German police, to AFP.

With AFP

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