Jami' al-tawarikh
The lavish illustrations and calligraphy required the efforts of hundreds of scribes and artists, with the intent that two new copies (one in Persian, and one in Arabic) would be created each year and distributed to schools and cities around the Ilkhanate, in the Middle East, Central Asia, Anatolia, and the Indian subcontinent. Approximately 20 illustrated copies were made of the work during Rashid al-Din's lifetime, but only a few portions remain, and the complete text has not survived. The oldest known copy is an Arabic version, of which half has been lost, but one set of pages is currently in the Khalili Collection, comprising 59 folios from the second volume of the work. Another set of pages, with 151 folios from the same volume, is owned by the Edinburgh University Library. Two Persian copies from the first generation of manuscripts survive in the Topkapı Palace Library in Istanbul. The early illustrated manuscripts together represent "one of the most important surviving examples of Ilkhanid art in any medium", and are the largest surviving body of early examples of the Persian miniature.
List of National Treasures of Japan (writings: others)
Collections of exemplary calligraphy, or "tekagami" (lit. "mirror of the hands"), were created by cutting pages and sections of old books and scrolls of sutras, poems and letters, which were arranged in albums in a chronological order or according to social status. By the early-16th century, calligraphic connoisseurs of the Kohitsu house had practiced activities aimed at preserving ancient calligraphic works. "Tekagami" production appears to have started in the Momoyama period. These albums served as model books for calligraphy practice, the emulation of old styles, and as reference works for authentication in the growing antique market. Today, the selection of calligraphers, and the type of calligraphies in a "tekagami", show the changing tastes in classical Japanese-style calligraphy over the years. Four "tekagami" containing works from the 8th century Nara to the 15th century Muromachi period have been designated as National Treasures.
In Japanese calligraphy the term originally referred to works by ancient calligraphers, or poets, on scrolls or bound books, created from between the 8th to 15th centuries. In today's use, the term mainly describes copies of poetry anthologies from the Heian to mid-Kamakura period. Since they were made as artful daily items for the nobility, in addition to having a beautiful script, attention was given to the choice of paper (which was often decorated), the binding, mountings and even accompanying boxes. Stylistically, kohitsu were written in Japanese kana in cursive script ("sōgana"). In the Momoyama and early Edo period, surviving kohitsu were often cut (kohitsu-gire), mounted on hanging scrolls and displayed in a tea room. Five scrolls of kohitsu poetry collections from the mid-Heian period have been designated as National Treasures. They were made by two calligraphers: Fujiwara no Yukinari and Ono no Michikaze.
There are three National Treasures writings that do not fit in any of the above categories, all originating in China. Two are 7th century works: a copy of the Thousand Character Classic by Zhi Yong both in formal and cursive scripts, and a tracing copy of a letter by the famous Chinese calligrapher Wang Xizhi. The former work is said to have been imported to Japan by the legendary scholar Wani in ancient times. One is a 13th-century set of large-scale letters (2 or 3 each) to be displayed on walls or above doorways.