Table of contents
About the Conference
The Thesaurus Islamicus Foundation in
association with the Centre for Middle
Eastern and Islamic Studies at the
University of Cambridge will host a
conference entitled The Islamic
Manuscript: Conservation, Cataloguing,
Accessibility, Copyright and
Digitisation from 4th-6th
July 2005 at King’s College, University
of Cambridge, United Kingdom. 
This conference will address some of the
issues related to the conservation and
accessibility of the immensely rich
corpus of Islamic manuscripts to be
found across the world in public and
private collections. In the absence of
comprehensive catalogues, the very
existence of many manuscripts is a
well-kept secret. In many parts of the
world, lack of funding means that they
are in a poor and deteriorating
condition. However, even when
manuscripts are well-preserved and
catalogued, their rarity and fragility
often present serious problems of access
for scholars. It is the aim of this
conference to assess the current state
of Islamic manuscripts and to explore
how modern technologies in general and
digitisation in particular can assist in
the conservation of manuscripts, render
them more accessible to scholars and
offer new tools for codicology and
textual criticism. The organisers intend
the conference to act as the basis for
the creation of an international
association to facilitate the
digitisation, accessibility and study of
Islamic manuscripts. Papers presented at
the conference will likely be published
as the first issue of a journal to be
prepared by this new association. We
welcome the participation of scholars,
libraries, museums, research centres and
other organizations and institutions
interested in manuscript and book
studies, literacy, the transmission of
knowledge and related disciplines.
Judging from the early response 
to our invitations, we look forward to
hosting a large number of the most
important representatives from these
fields. The names of participating
individuals and institutions will be
announced shortly. The working languages
of the conference will be Arabic,
English, Persian and Turkish.
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Thesaurus Islamicus Foundation |
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The Thesaurs Islamicus Foundation is
a not-for-profit educational trust
established to advance, support and
promote the protection,
preservation, study and
dissemination of the Islamic
intellectual, cultural and artistic
patrimony by any means deemed
appropriate. It prepares the highest
quality critical editions of works
of traditional Islamic literature
and strives for the revivification
of all Islamic arts, particularly
those of the book. The Foundation’s
highly praised works of Qur’an
illumination have been displayed at
the Frankfurt Museum for Applied
Arts in Germany, and will be
exhibited at the Biblioteca
Ambrosiana in Milan, Italy; the Beit
Al Qur’an in Manama, Bahrain; the
Smithsonian Museum in Washington,
DC, USA; and the Turkish and Islamic
Arts Museum in Istanbul, Turkey.
Participants in the conference will
be able to attend a concurrent
exhibition at Clare College.
The Foundation’s founder and
chairman is Mr. F. R. Gouverneur.
Mr. Gouverneur is an elected member
of the Islamic Research Academy of
Al-Azhar and a member of the board
of directors of the Al-Azhar Center
for the Sunna and Prophetic Sira. He
is also a visiting scholar at the
Centre of Middle Eastern and Islamic
Studies at the University of
Cambridge. |
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Contact Information |
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Anyone interested in joining the
organizing committee as well as
anyone seeking further information
concerning the conference is kindly
invited to contact Mr. Davidson
MacLaren, Director of Manuscript
Research, Thesaurus Islamicus
Foundation c/o The Secretary, Centre
for Middle Eastern and Islamic
Studies, University of Cambridge,
Sidgwick Avenue, Cambridge CB3 9DA,
United Kingdom. Telephone: +44 (0)
1223 335103, Fax: +44 (0) 1223
335110. Website:
www.cmeis.cam.ac.uk or
Tradigital, 21 Misr Helwan al-Zira‘i
St., al-Ma‘adi, Cairo, Egypt.
Telephone: +20 2 380 1764, Fax: +20
2 380 2171. E-mail:
davidson@tradigital-cairo.com. |
Invitees |
Institution |
Country |
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Aligarh Muslim University, Maulana
Azad Libray
Dr. Shakeel Ahmad Khan, Director |
India |
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Andhra Pradesh Government Oriental
Manuscripts Library and Research
Institute |
India |
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Astan-e Qods-e Razavi Library |
Iran |
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Bayerische Staatsbibliothek
(Bavarian State Library)
* Dr. Helga Rebhan |
Germany |
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Beit Al Qur’an
* Dr. Abdul Latif Jassim
Kanoo, Founder |
Bahrain |
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Beit Al Qur'an
* Dr. Samar Al Gailani,
Director |
Bahrain |
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Beyazıt Devlet Kütüphanesi (Beyazıt
State Library) |
Turkey |
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Bibliotheca Alexandrina
* Dr. Youssef Ziedan,
Director, Manuscript Center and
Museum |
Egypt |
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Bibliothèque Générale et Archives du
Maroc (General Library and Archive
of Morocco)
* Dr. Abdelati Lahlou,
Assistant Director |
Morocco |
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The British Library
* Dr. Muhammad Isa Waley,
Curator of Persian and Turkish
Collections |
United Kingdom |
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Centre for Arabic Manuscripts
Dr. Ahmad Khan, Director |
Pakistan |
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The Chester Beatty Library
* Dr. Elaine Wright, Curator
of Islamic Collections |
Ireland |
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Dar al-Kutub al-Misriyya (National
Library and Archives of Egypt)
* Dr. Saber Arab, Chairman |
Egypt |
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DecoType, Inc.
* Mr. Thomas Milo, President |
The Netherlands |
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Embassy of the Islamic Republic of
Iran in France
* H.E. Amb. Mr. Seyed
Mohammad Sadegh Kharazi, Member of
Iran's Cultural Heritage Governing
Board |
Iran |
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Embassy of the Kingdom of Saudi
Arabia in the United Kingdom
* H.R.H. Amb. Prince Turki
al-Faisal al-Saud |
Saudi Arabia |
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Al-Furqan Islamic Heritage
Foundation
* Dr. Mohamed Drioueche,
Head, Publications and Cataloguing
Department |
United Kingdom |
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Gazi Husrev Begova Biblioteka (Gazi
Husrev Bey Library)
* Dr. Mustafa Jahic, Director |
Bosnia |
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Golestan Palace Museum Library |
Iran |
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Great Library of Ayatollah Mar'ashi
Najafi |
Iran |
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The Hill Museum and Manuscript
Library
* Mr. Walid Nabih Mourad,
Director of Field Operations, Middle
East Region |
United States and Lebanon |
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Islamic Consultative Assembly
Library, Museum, and Documentation
Center |
Iran |
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İstanbul ـniversitesi Kütüphanesi
(Istanbul University Library)
Dr. Meral Alpay, Director |
Turkey |
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Khuda Bakhsh Oriental Public Library
* Dr. Imtiaz Ahmad, Director |
India |
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King's Digital Consultancy Services,
King's College London, University of
London
* Mr. Simon Tanner, Director |
United Kingdom |
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T. C. Kültür ve Turizm Bakanlığı
(Ministry of Culture and Tourism)
* Ms. Ayda Perçin,
Director, Manuscripts and Rare Works
Branch, General Directorate of
Libraries and Publications |
Turkey |
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Ma‘had al-Makhtutat al-‘Arabiyya
(Institute of Arabic Manuscripts)
* Dr. Faisal Al-Hafyan,
Director |
Egypt |
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Maktaba al-Asad al-Wataniyya
(Al-Assad National Library)
* Dr. Ali Al-Aydi, Director |
Syria |
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Maktaba al-Malik ‘Abd al-Aziz
al-‘Ama
bi’l-Madina
al-Munawwara (King Abulaziz Public
Library)
Dr. ‘Abd al-Rahman al-Mazini,
Director |
Saudi Arabia |
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Malek National Library |
Iran |
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Markaz al-Bahth al-‘Ilmi wa-Ihya
al-Turath
al-Islami (Centre
for Scholarly Research and Revival
of the Islamic Heritage) |
Saudi Arabia |
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Markaz Jum‘a al-Majid li’l-Thaqafa
wa’l-Turath (Juma Al-Majid Centre
for Culture and Heritage)
* Dr. Mohamad Gaad |
United Arab Emirates |
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Massachusetts Institute of
Technology
* Dr. Omar Khalidi,
Librarian, Aga Khan Program in
Islamic Architecture |
United States |
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McGill University
* Mr. Adam Gacek, Head,
Islamic Studies Library |
Canada |
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National Library of Iran
* Dr. Habibollah Azimi,
General Manager for Manuscripts |
Iran |
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National Mission for Manuscripts
* Dr. Sudha Gopalakrishna,
Mission Director |
India |
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Peter the Great Museum of
Anthropology and Ethnology, Russian
Academy of Sciences
* Dr. Efim Rezvan, Deputy
Director |
Russia |
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Rampur Raza Library
* Dr. W. H. Siddiqui, Officer
on Special Duty |
India |
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Royal Holloway, University of London
Dr. Julia Craig-McFeely, Project
Manger, Digital Image Archive of
Medieval Music |
United Kingdom |
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Salar Jung Museum and Library |
India |
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H.H. Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al
Maktoum IT Education Project
* Mr. Moen Makki, Project
Manager, H.H. Sheikh Mohammed Bin
Rashid Al Maktoum's Project for the
Conservation and On-line Publication
of the Manuscripts of Al-Azhar
Al-Sharif |
United Arab Emirates |
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Süleymaniye Kütüphanesi (Süleymaniye
Library)
* Dr. Nevzat Kaya, Director |
Turkey |
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Topkapı Sarayı Müzesi (Topkapı
Palace Museum)
* Ms. Gülendam Nakipoğlu,
Curator of Manuscripts |
Turkey |
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Topkapı Sarayı Müzesi (Topkapı
Palace Museum)
*
Ms. Zeynep اelik Atbaş, Curator of
Manuscripts |
Turkey |
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Türk ve İslâm Eserleri Müzesi
(Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts)
Mr. Seracettin Şahin, Director |
Turkey |
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Türkiye Diyanet Vakfı İslâm
Arastırmaları Merkezi or İSAM (The
Turkish Religious Foundation’s
Center for Islamic Studies)
* Dr. Ertuğrul Boynukalın,
Fellow |
Turkey |
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Uludağ ـniversitesi (Uludağ
University)
* Dr. İbrahim Hatiboğlu,
Associate Professor of Hadith |
Turkey |
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Universiteit Leiden,
Universiteitsbibliotheek (Leiden
University Library)
* Prof. Dr. Jan Just Witkam,
Head, Middle East Collections |
The Netherlands |
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University of Cambridge
* Dr. Charles Melville,
Director, Shahnama Project |
United Kingdom |
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University of Cambridge Library
* Ms. Yasmin Faghihi, Near
East Specialist |
United Kingdom |
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University of Durham
* Mr. Shahriar Sabet Saeidi |
United Kingdom |
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University of Oxford, Bodleian
Library
* Ms. Lesley Forbes, Keeper
of Oriental Collections |
United Kingdom |
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University of Tehran, Central
Library |
Iran |
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*
These persons have confirmed their
attendance.
Provisional Schedule of Events |
Monday, 4 July 2005 |
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9.00 – 9.20 |
Registration | |
9.20 – 10.00 |
Welcome and Statement of Objectives
of the Conference
Dr. Amira Bennision, Director,
Centre of Middle Eastern and Islamic
Studies, University of Cambridge
Mr. Faarid Gouverneur, Chairman,
Thesaurus Islamicus Foundation | |
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10.00 - 10.30 |
Lecture 1
Mr. Adam Gacek, Head, Islamic
Studies Library, McGill University -
Islamic Manuscript Studies: An
Overview | |
10.30 – 10.50 |
Refreshments | |
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10.50 - 12.50 |
Panel 1: Manuscripts and Manuscript
Libraries in India
Dr. Sudha Gopalakrishna, Director,
National Mission for Manuscripts -
The National Mission for
Manuscripts: Towards Saving and
Promoting Access to the Manuscript
Wealth of India
Dr. Omar Khalidi, Librarian, Aga
Khan Program in Islamic
Architecture, Massachusetts
Institute of Technology -
Manuscript Libraries in India
Dr. Imtiaz Ahmad, Director, Khuda
Bakhsh Oriental Public Library -
Documenting and Preserving Islamic
Manuscripts: Problems and Prospects
Dr. Waqar Siddiqui, Officer on
Special Duty, Rampur Raza Library -
Rare Islamic Manuscripts of the
Rampur Raza Library | |
12.50 – 2.20 |
Lunch | |
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2.20 - 3.50 |
Panel 2: Manuscripts and Manuscript
Libraries in Turkey
Ms. Ayda
Perçin,
Director, Manuscript and Rare Works
Branch, General Directorate of
Libraries and Publications, Republic
of Turkey Ministry of Culture and
Tourism - TBA
Dr. Nevzat Kaya, Director,
Süleymaniye Library - TBA
Ms. Zeynep اelik Atbaş, Curator of
Manuscripts, Topkapı Palace Museum -
TBA | |
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3.50 - 4.10 |
Refreshments | |
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4.10 - 5.10 |
Panel 2: Manuscripts and Manuscript
Libraries in Turkey (Continued)
Dr. İbrahim Hatiboğlu, Associate
Professor of Hadith, Uludağ
University - The Missing Link of
the Chain: Some Observations on
Ottoman Hadith Manuscripts
Dr. Ertuğrul Boynukalın, Fellow, The
Turkish Religious Foundation’s
Center for Islamic Studies (İSAM) -
TBA | |
5.10 - 5.15 |
Closing Remarks of the Day and
Announcements | |
6.00 - 6.30 |
Pre-Dinner Drinks at King's College | |
6.30 - 8.00 |
Dinner at King's College | |
8.30 – 10.00 |
Exhibition and Concert at Clare
College |
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Tuesday, 5 July 2005
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9.00 - 10.10 |
Panel 3: Manuscripts and the
Digital Library
Mr. Walid Nabih Mourad, Director
of Field Operations, Middle East
Region, The Hill Museum and
Manuscript Library - The
Hill Museum and Manuscript
Library's Preservation Work in
Lebanon and Elsewhere in the
Middle East: Digital
Preservation of Manuscripts and
Digital Access
Mr. Simon Tanner, Director,
King's Digital Consultancy
Services, King's College London,
University of London - Model
for Protecting Stakeholders in
an Islamic Manuscript Internet
Resource for Study and
Enlightenment | |
10.10 – 10.30 |
Refreshments | |
10.30 – 12.30 |
Working Meeting:
Establishing the Islamic Manuscript
Association
Moderators: Mr. Faarid Gouverneur,
Chairman, Thesaurus Islamicus
Foundation and Mr. Simon Tanner,
Director, King's Digital Consultancy
Services, King's College London,
University of London | |
12.30 – 1.45 |
Lunch | |
1.45 - 3.15 |
Panel 4: Manuscripts and Manuscript
Libraries in Egypt
Dr. Saber Arab, Chairman, National
Library and Archives of Egypt -
The Manuscripts of the National
Library and Archives of Egypt
Dr. Youssef Ziedan, Director,
Manuscript Center and Museum,
Bibliotheca Alexandrina - The
Manuscript Heritage of Alexandria
Mr. Moen Makki, Project Manager,
H.H. Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al
Maktoum IT Education Project -
H.H. Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al
Maktoum's Project for the
Conservation and On-line Publication
of the Manuscripts of Al-Azhar
Al-Sharif | |
3.15 – 3.35 |
Refreshments | |
3.35 –
5.25 |
Panel 5: Multimedia Publishing
Mr. Faarid Gouverneur, Chairman,
Thesaurus Islamicus Foundation -
Tradigital Editions
Dr. Efim Rezvan, Deputy Director,
Peter the Great Museum of
Anthropology and Ethnology, Russian
Academy of Sciences - Three
Dimensional Publishing: A New
Approach to the Presentation of the
Manuscript
Dr. Charles Melville, Director,
Shanama Project, University of
Cambridge - Cataloguing
Illustrated Persian Manuscripts: The
Shahnama Project | |
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5.25 - 5.30 |
Closing Remarks of the Day and
Announcements | |
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7.00 |
Pre-Dinner Drinks at King's College | |
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7.30 |
Dinner at King's College |
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Wednesday, 6 July 2005 | |
9.00 - 9.30 |
Lecture 2
Dr. Mohamad Gaad, Juma Al-Majid
Centre for Culture and Heritage -
TBA | |
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9.30 - 10.00 |
Lecture 3
Dr. Ahmad Khan, Director, Centre for
the Protection of Arabic Manuscripts
- The Present Position of Arabic
Manuscripts in Pakistan | |
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10.00 - 10.30 |
Lecture 4
Dr. Habibollah Azimi, General
Manager for Manuscripts, National
Library of Iran - Innovative
View to the Cataloguing of Islamic
Manuscripts | |
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10.30 - 11.00 |
Lecture 5
Mr. Thomas Milo, President,
DecoType, Inc. - Arabic Text
Representation in the Light of
Information Technology | |
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11.00 - 11.30 |
Refreshments | |
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11.30 - 12.30 |
Panel 7: Manuscripts and Manuscript
Libraries in Continental Europe
Prof. Dr. Jan Just Witkam, Head,
Middle East Collections, Leiden
University Library - The Islamic
Manuscripts in Leiden University
Library
Dr. Mustafa Jahic, Director, Gazi
Husrev Bey Library - Manuscripts
in the Gazi Husrev Bey Library | |
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12.30 - 2.00 |
Lunch in King's College | |
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2.00 - 3.00 |
Panel 8: Manuscripts and Manuscript
Libraries in the United Kingdom
Dr. Muhammad Isa Waley, Curator of
Persian and Turkish Collections, The
British Library - TBA
Ms Yasmin Faghihi, Near East
Specialist, University of Cambridge
Library - The Manuscripts of the
University of Cambridge Library | |
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3.00 - 3.30 |
Closing Remarks of the Conference | |
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Press Release: The Islamic Manuscript
Conference,
4-6 July 2005
Through its important work on The Sunna
Project, the Thesaurus Islamicus
Foundation has become aware of the
problems facing scholars trying to
access manuscripts in libraries around
the world. Many catalogues ― where they
exist ― are out of date; many
manuscripts are stored in poor
conditions; there are large
discrepancies in charges for microfilms
between libraries; and in some cases,
scholars are denied access to key
manuscripts altogether.
Libraries and scholarly institutions
face their own problems in turn ― in
North America and
Europe as well as the Muslim
World. Many libraries lack the required
expertise and funds to both catalogue
and conserve their collections with the
care and diligence due to the Islamic
patrimony. Sadly, unique manuscripts
continue to be lost through corruption
and conflict.
By means of The Islamic Manuscript
Conference to be held at King’s College,
the
University of
Cambridge from
4-6 July 2005, the Thesaurus Islamicus
Foundation will bring together scholars
and directors of the world’s most
important Islamic manuscript collections
to discuss problems of access and
conservation as well as manuscript
digitisation. The ultimate aim of the
conference will be the creation of The
Islamic Manuscript Association, whose
members will work towards the eventual
standardisation of Islamic manuscript
cataloguing, access and charges, whilst
protecting each institution’s legal
rights. A further aim of this
association is to assist its member
institutions in fundraising for projects
central to its work.
These include -
conservation
-
accessibility
-
cataloguing
-
digitisation
-
library and information science
education
The problems facing libraries and
scholars are undoubtedly great and will
take many years to solve, but this
conference is the first step in
assessing current difficulties and
setting future goals. A new scholarly
journal to be published by the
association will provide librarians and
scholars with a platform for debate and
an opportunity to propose innovative
ideas and solutions, as well as provide
information about successful projects
already in progress.
Anyone seeking further information
concerning the conference is kindly
invited to contact Mr. Davidson MacLaren,
Director of Manuscript Research,
Thesaurus Islamicus Foundation c/o The
Secretary, Centre
for Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies,
University of Cambridge, Sidgwick
Avenue, Cambridge CB3 9DA, United
Kingdom.
Telephone: +44 (0) 1223 335103, Fax: +44
(0) 1223 335110.
Website: www.cmeis.cam.ac.uk
or Tradigital, 21 Misr Helwan al-Zira‘i
St., al-Ma‘adi,
Cairo,
Egypt.
Telephone: +20 2 380 1764, Fax: +20 2
380 2171.
E-mail:
davidson@tradigital-cairo.com.
Lectures
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