Qur'anic writing tablet, on wooden panel [probably Morocco, early 20th century]

Qur'anic writing tablet, for use of students memorising verses of the Qur'an, in Arabic, ink on long narrow wooden panel with handle [West Africa (probably southern Morocco), early twentieth century]single large wooden board, with 17 lines and 24 lines of informal maghribi respectively to each side, curved base and handle at the top with string hole, a little rubbed with slight loss through fading to text (as common with such objects due to ritual use: see below), total c. 580 by 120 mm.Writing tablets of this nature were a very popular method for teaching the Qur'an and often used by students as practical school-room method of learning the Qur'anic verses. They were commonly produced in the Hausa regions of West Africa, however, the style of maghribi script present on this example suggests that it was probably of Moroccan origin instead. These tablets were not only used for scholarly purposes, but also reportedly carried magical properties in their ink. Therefore they are often faded and worn down, as they were ritually washed down and the resultant water with tiny traces of their ink consumed as a form of spiritual medicine.