This unbound manuscript contains one of the most copied texts of
the Śvetāmbara Jaina tradition, the Kalpasūtra, which was very
popular all over India from the 14th century on. It is a collection
of life stories of the great Tīrthaṅkāras. The present
manuscript, written in Devanāgarī script, begins with the life of
Mahāvīra Jīna, and continues with the biography of
Pārśvanātha and Neminātha. The text is incomplete, missing
folios 32, 85, 97, 103, and 125, which contained paintings that
were sold separately. Their subject, however, can be restored
through comparison with similar manuscripts. The paintings still in
the manuscript (1v, 7r, 9v, 16v, 17v, 21r, 45v, 47v, 51r, 58r, 62v,
70r, 71v, 72v, 77v, 78r, 81v, 92r) depict the most important events
of the lives of the Kalpasūtra’s figures. Based on the painting
style, the manuscript is close to the 15th century.
