Journal of Ottoman Calligraphy

OTTOMAN ARCHIVES
prepared by Necati Aktaş, İsmet Binark;
translated by Salih Sadawi Salih;
edited and preface by Ekmeleddin İhsanoğlu,
published in cooperation with the University of Jordan, Centre for Archives and Manuscripts,
Amman, 1986 (in Arabic)

This book contains a brief history of the Ottoman Archives, a description of the present classification systems used in the archives, explanations of archival regulations and procedures of research.
Out of stock (available on CD-ROM)

THE THULUTH AND NASKH MASHQS OF MEHMED ŞEVKI EFENDI
prepared by Mohammed Tamimi
Istanbul, 1999 (in Arabic, preface in English and Turkish)

The exercise book prepared by calligrapher Mehmed Şevki Efendi (1829-1887) for the thuluth and naskh calligraphic:sfj useful tool for those who wish to upgrade their sfcij This publication will be followed by exercise booji other styles of calligraphy.

ISBN 92-9063-087-6

Source: http://www.ircica.org/

SALNAMELER VE NEVSALLER OTTOMAN YEARBOOKS (SALNAMES AND NEVSALS)
compiled by Hasan Duman Istanbul, 1982

Union catalogue and bibliographic work about state and provincial yearbooks (Salnames) published by the Ottoman State between the years 1847-1918. It gives general and specific information about a wide geographical area, where there are presently more than 20 states. Preface, explanations and annotations in English, Arabic and Turkish.
Out of stock (available on CD-ROM)

Ottoman Yearbooks (Salnames and Nevsals): “The book presently under review supersedes by far any previous attempt to catalogue the salnames and nevsals.” Kemal Karpat, International Journal of Middle East Studies, 16 (1984)

“This catalogue should interest demographers as well as historians. We join H. Duman in his request that researchers send IRCICA their own set of references so that one day we may hope to see a truly comprehensive union catalogue of this important set of statistical yearbooks.” L. Bisharat, MESA Bulletin, Vol. 18, July 1984

Source:http://www.ircica.org/

TURKISH ART AND ARCHITECTURE,
by Oktay Aslanapa, translated by Ahmad Issa,
Istanbul, 1987 (illustrated, in Arabic)

This book is a comprehensive encyclopedic work on the history of Turkish art and architecture, covering various branches of art such as carpet-making, the arts of the book including calligraphy, miniatures and binding, etc. Originally published in English. A glossary of 600 art terms has been added to the work.
ISBN 92-9063-352-2

IRCICA is an international institution active in the fields of research, publishing, documentation and information. Its mandate covers multifarious themes in the fields of the history of Muslim nations, history of arts and sciences in Islam, and other subject areas in Islamic culture and civilisation. By means of these activities, IRCICA aims at studying and better introducing the Islamic culture and civilisation throughout the world and acting as a catalyst for research and cooperation in these areas to promote mutual understanding between Muslims and with other nations and cultures of the world. (more…)

The Middle East Librarians Association is a private, non-profit, non-political organization of librarians and others interested in those aspects of librarianship which support the study of or dissemination of information about the Middle East. The area signified is considered to include those countries from Morocco through Pakistan as well as other areas formerly included in the Arab, Ottoman, or Mughal empires.

Source: http://www.mela.us/

The origins of this library lie in the former manuscript holdings of the Iraqi Museum Library, which were started in 1940, and subsequently became a prime national repository for manuscripts, growing from a total of about 4,000 in 1968 to about 38,000 in 1988. In that year, following the example of the former British Museum Library in London, ownership was transferred to a separate library institution, the Saddam Manuscripts Library. This occupied a group of houses in central Baghdad, near the Museum, and its holdings by 2003 have been variously estimated at about 50,000 (Deeb, Albin and Haley) and about 70,000 (Metenier). This rapid expansion resulted from the incorporation of numerous private and smaller institutional collections throughout the 1980s and 1990s. Numerous catalogues of the manuscripts were published, both before and after the transfer from the Museum; they are listed, with a brief survey of the holdings up to 1992, in the Iraq sections of al-Furqān Foundation’s World Survey of Islamic Manuscripts (written by Dr Naqshabandi himself).

World Survey of Islamic Manuscripts Volume I, English edition
Edited by Geoffrey Roper
Year 1992
ISBN 1 873992 01 7
Pages 569
Price £ 50.00

Contents

This volume is one of 4 resulting from al-Furqan’s pioneering project to conduct a comprehensive survey of Islamic manuscript collections throughout the world. One hundred and six countries were eventually covered, including hitherto unknown collections in African countries such as Benin, Chad, the Comoro Islands, Ethiopia, Gambia, Guinea, Kenya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Sierra Leone, South Africa and Togo. European countries whose collections have been described for the first time include Albania, Cyprus, Greece and some countries of the former Soviet Union, such as Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. Information about collections of Islamic manuscripts in Bangladesh, China, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines and Thailand was also gathered for the first time. Any manuscript written in the Arabic script was included in the survey. The largest proportion of manuscripts were in Arabic, followed by Persian and Turkish. There was no restriction on the language of the manuscripts; the survey contains descriptions of collections containing manuscripts written in Urdu, Swahili, Punjabi, Hindi and Kurdish. This volume covers Afghanistan, Albania, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Belarus, Belgium, Benin, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Brazil, Brunei, Bulgaria, Cameron, Canada, Croatia, Czechoslovakia, Denmark, Egypt, Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Hungary, Indonesia and Iran. There are also indices of languages and names. (more…)

Al-Furqan Islamic Heritage Foundation was established in London in 1988 by the Yamani Cultural and Charitable Foundation. It is housed in a historic Jacobean manor: Eagle House. The Foundation has as its aim the documentation and preservation of the Islamic written heritage. It is pursuing this aim principally through its work in surveying, cataloguing, editing and publishing Islamic manuscripts. (more…)

The Faculty of Arts has been launched during the academic year 2001-2002. It is still receiving the new students. The lectures start in the very near future. The faculty of Arts has as objective to teach Islamic Arts such as Calligraphy in terms of their characteristics and developments throughout the Islamic history. (more…)

The L.A. Mayer Museum was founded by the late Mrs. Vera Bryce Salomons, realizing her long-standing idea of giving expression to the impressive artistic achievements of Israel’s Muslim neighbors. Mrs. Salomons dedicated the Museum to her friend and teacher, Prof. Leo Arie Mayer. The Museum was opened to the public in 1974. (more…)

The Beit al-Qur’an collection of Qur’anic manuscripts is one of the most comprehensive of its type in the world. This great collection includes magnificent calligraphic works from as early as the first century hijra (7th / 8th CE) to the present day, from all regions of the Islamic world, from China to Andalusian Spain. Manuscripts from 1st and 1st/2nd century of hijra are available at this website. It is a privately-owned collection. More information about Beit al-Qur’an and other museums in Bahrain is also available.

BEIT AL QUR’AN,
P.O. BOX 2000,
MANAMA, BAHRAIN

TEL. (973) 17290101
FAX (973) 17292709
Email alquran@batelco.com.bh

Timings are:
Saturday to Wednesday:
Morning : 9.00 a.m. to 12.00 Noon
Evening : 4.00 p.m. to 6.00 p.m.

Thursday : 9.00 a.m. to 12.30 p.m.

The Qur’an Manuscripts in the al-Haram al-Sharif Islamic Museum, Jerusalem
2001 • 206 pages • 290 x 230 mm • 179 colour photographs • Cased• ISBN 1 85964 132 6

Khader Salameh

Of the many ways in which Muslims through the ages have sought to express their faith, none is more impressive than that of Qur’anic calligraphy and illumination. The legacy of this elaborate art forms a comprehensive yet cohesive whole which has both assimilated and adapted to the cultural differences that exist over the vast distances separating the regions of the Islamic world. In this beautifully illustrated book Khader Salameh shows how the art has developed over time as he studies a selection of Qur’an manuscripts held in the al-Haram al-Sharif Islamic Museum in the al-Aqsa Mosque, Jerusalem. (more…)

This museum was established in 1923 by the Islamic Legal Council in Palestine. The manuscript collection of the Islamic Museum consists entirely of masahif of the Qur’an, numbering 644, donated over centuries to Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock. Some were presented by rulers and private individuals, and others have been donated by such Palestinian cities as Hebron and Nablus.

The Qur’anic manuscripts vary in type, age and size. Many are rab`at (i.e., they were copied in thirty fascicles and stored in a chest, or rab`a). The oldest is Kufic, from the end of the second century after hijra, while the most recent is a copy from the thirteenth century after hijra. Sizes range from 16 x 11.5 cm. to the massive second volume of the Qur’an of the Mamluk Sultan Qa’t Bay (r. 872-901/1468-1496), which measures 110 x 90 cm. and is 15 cm. thick. The majority of the Qur’anic manuscripts are splendidly illuminated and decorated , the exceptions being for the most part the copies of the late Ottoman period. (more…)

This library has one of the oldest (established in 861 AH/1457 CE) collection of Islamic manuscripts in the Muslim world and the most important in Iran.It has about 29,000 manuscripts in Arabic, Persian and Turkish. Of the 29,000 manuscripts it possess, 11,000 are manuscripts of the Qur’an, thus making it the largest Qur’anic manuscript collection in the world. It is also important in that it contains a large number of magnificent, old and illuminated Qur’anic manuscripts, including several old Kufic Qur’anic manuscripts written on deer skin, other with marvellous illuminations from 3rd century hijra (9th century CE) onwards, and some written by famous calligraphers. The manuscripts are catalogued in various publication as can be seen in the reference below.

[1] G. Roper (ed.), World Survey Of Islamic Manuscripts, 1992, Volume I, Al-Furqan Islamic Heritage Foundation, London, pp. 481-486.

The manuscript collection in Dar al-Kutub is regarded as one of the largest and most important in the world. The total number of manuscripts in this library are 50,755 out of which 47,065 are in Arabic, 996 in Persian and 2,150 in Turkish. (more…)

The Great Mosque of San`a’, established in 6th year of hijra when the Prophet(P) entrusted one of his companions to build a mosque. It is considered to be the first mosque in Yemen and among the oldest in Islamic world. The mosque was extended and enlarged by Islamic rulers from time to time. The manuscript collection (ca. 7,000) of the Great Mosque is housed in three libraries in the mosque complex. (more…)

by Efim A. Rezvan
(St.Petersburg, Katta-Langar, Bukhara, Tashkent)

Since the late 15th century, the Qur’anic manuscript, one of the most important in the world, was preserved in the memorial complex of the ‘Ishqiyya Sufi brotherhood in the small village of Katta-Langar, some 100 km to the south of Samarqand. It was venerated for centuries as a genuine copy of the ‘Uthmanic Qur’an, written in the hand of the third righteous caliph and bearing traces of his blood.

Ninety seven large parchment folios in Hijazi script dated to the 8th century A.D. are held now in St. Petersburg, Katta Langar, Bukhara and Tashkent. They contain approximately half the text of the Qur’an. The history of the manuscript spans at least twelve centuries and tells a remarkable tale of dynasties and states, cities and people. It is, in essence, the story of Islamic civilisation itself, from its emergence in Arabia in the seventh century to the triumph of Islam, which survived and outlasted communism in the Muslim republics of the former USSR.

Prof. Efim Rezvan, author of the project, is the well known specialist in Qur’anic studies, Deputy Director of the Kunstkamera Museum and Editor-in-Chief of “Manuscripta Orientalia”, International Journal for Oriental MSS Research. His latest book “The Qur’an and Its World” received the UNESCO award (”for the important contribution to the culture of non-violence and dialogue among the civilisations”), the title of the best book published in Russia in 2001 and the World Prize for the Book of the Year of the Islamic Republic of Iran (2002).

New monograph of the scholar presents a thorough study of the manuscript, viewing it historically through the prism of how the Qur’anic text was gradually established. The study is equipped with a facsimile reproduction of the manuscript (black and white in the book and in full colour in the DVD). The DVD also contains video film by Efim Rezvan and Sasha Abashkin “Searching for the Qur’an of ‘Uthman” (52 minutes). The story of the Muslim scripture based on the unique manuscript and field materials could be very important for mutual understanding and inter-confessional dialogue both in Russia and world-wide.

Copyright © 2000-2004 by Thesa Publishers. All Rights Reserved.

by E.A.Rezvan

In the early 1960s, a collection of exquisite, enamel-encrusted gold cigarette cases adorned with diamonds, sapphires, rubies was bequeathed to the Musee des Arts Decoratifs in Paris. They were the gift of a somewhat mysterious elderly man named Charles Antoine Roger Luzarche d’Azay. Nearly every cigarette case bears a strange Arabic inscription. Many of them were decorated with ornaments based on Islamic art traditions. (more…)

The history of the St. Petersburg Branch of the Institute of Oriental Studies can be traced back to 1818, when the Asian Museum of the Imperial Academy of Sciences was founded in St. Petersburg. The Museum was keeping the Eastern antiquities and books of the famous collection of the Russian Tsar Peter the Great. The collection was enhanced during the XIX century through the voluntary donations of the personal libraries and archives of envoys, travellers, statesmen, merchants and scholars. In 1930 the Institute of Oriental studies was organized on the base of the Museum, in 1951 it moved to Moscow, keeping the Branch in Leningrad, now St. Petersburg. From 1996 to 2003 St. Petersburg Branch of the Institute of Oriental Studies was headed by a famous specialist on history of China and Central Asia Professor Evgeny I. Kychanov. (more…)

By Leonid Kulikov

One of the most striking peculiarities of the infrastructure of Russian science as a whole and Oriental Studies in particular consists in the subdividing of scientific activity into two main “streams”, namely the so-called “academic” science as opposed to university (high school) science. All the academic institutes are dominated by the Russian Academy of Sciences, the main co-ordinator of scientific activity in Russia. Most importantly, most of the scholars affiliated to academic institutes do not teach at all, some of them have only a few (max. 3-4) post-graduate students (”aspirants”), so they do not need to distribute their working time between teaching and research proper. In some periods, the staff of such large institutes as the Institute of Oriental studies in Russia reached about 1,000 researchers.

One more striking feature of the Russian science (at least of the Humanities) consists of a clear-cut concentration of scientific activity in the two chief cities of European Russia, Moscow and St.Petersburg. This is due to the fact that the major budget assignation for scientific research is forwarded to the academic institutes, of which almost all are situated in Moscow and St.Petersburg. Furthermore the great majority of recent scientific publications from all over the world are received by only two or three main libraries situated in these two cities. This creates a situation which is very unusual for such countries as the USA or Germany where the scientific resources are distributed more or less proportionally among various centres (in particular, small university cities). (more…)

The Skilliter Centre for Ottoman Studies supports research into the history, literature and culture of the Ottoman Empire. It seeks to encourage knowledge and understanding of a major Muslim empire with large European and Mediterranean territories, and to assist scholars from many disciplines in exploring connections between their own work and Ottoman studies. It is the only research centre devoted purely to Ottoman Studies in the UK and Western Europe and has an international profile. The Skilliter Centre, which has no political affiliations or agenda, is administered by Newnham College, Cambridge, and receives support from a generous legacy from Dr Susan Skilliter, formerly University Lecturer in Turkish. (more…)

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Notable Museums:

Turkish and Islamic Works Museum is the first Turkish museum covering the Turkish and Islamic art works wholly. The establishment works that have been started at the end of 19th century have been completed in 1913 and the museum has been opened for visit in the soup kitchen building located in Süleymaniye Mosque complex, which is one of the most important works of Mimar Sinan, with the name of “Evkaf - ı İslamiyet Müzesi” (Islamic Foundations Museum). After the announcement of the republic, it has taken the name “Turkish and Islamic Works Museum”.

The museum has been moved to İbrahim Pasha Palace from the soup kitchen building in 1983. Ibrahim Pasha Palace, which is one of the most important samples of 16th Century Ottoman civil architecture samples is on the stages of the historical hippodrome, the history of which goes back to the Roman Period. This building, the precise construction reason and date are not known, has been presented to İbrahim Pasha by Kanuni Sultan Süleyman in 1520, who would be his grand vizier for 13 years. (more…)