Digital Archive of the Middle East

Items

• 18th century map of Arabia
  Folding map of Arabia, engraved by Richard William Seale (1703-62), and bound in an edition of George Sale's translation of the Qur'an: 'The Koran, commonly called the Alcoran of Mohammed' (London: Hawes &c., 1764). In addition to delineating the Arabian Peninsula, the map shows the Mediterranean, Indian and Red seas, Palestine, Syria, Iraq, Persia, parts of Egypt and Ethiopia, as well as a small insert illustration of ‘The Temple of Mecca, as it was formally, from a draught in the Bodleian Library.'
• 19th century manuscript copy of 'Hikayet-i Dikyanus'
  Manuscript volume in Ottoman Turkish containing copy of 'Hikayet-i Dikyanus', a treatise on 'The Seven Sleepers of Ephesus'. According to a note opposite the title page, the manuscript was written by Syed Mohammed, Persian Secretary to the Bagdad Residency, March 1821. This treatise is based on the popular tale 'The Seven Sleepers of Ephesus' [As'hab al-Kahf] which is recounted in the Qur'an (18:9-22). In this story, a group of young men, persecuted for believing in one God in times before Islam, take refuge in a cave, where they slept for many years in an act of grace from God. Of the questions put to the Prophet by the Quraysh in order to test his prophetic knowledge, one was about how long the sleepers had slept. The volume bears the signature of D.C. Bell, the British resident surgeon and Assistant Resident in Baghdad, who was appointed ca. 1820.
• A decorative illustration of verses of the Qur'an.
  A decorative illustration of verses of the Qur'an, created in the year 1347 of the Hijri calendar (1928-1929).
• A photograph of a mahmal, Damascus.
  A photograph of a mahmal (ceremonial vehicle), to be carried by camel during hajj, or pilgrimage to Mecca. Damascus. Caption: Lé Drapeau du Prophète, Damascus (The Flag of the Prophet, Damascus).
• Al-Da'wah Chronicle. The Voice of the Iraqi Mujahideen No.44 (December 1983)
  Issue No.44 (December 1983) of 'Al-Da'wah Chronicle. The Voice of the Iraqi Mujahideen', published in London by the Information Committee of the Islamic Da'wa Party (Europe). Topics discussed include the recent bombings of American and other embassies in Kuwait, Ba'athist crimes in Iraq, Islamic political struggle, and 'the Martyrdom of the Five Scholars' in Baghdad in December 1974.
• Al-Da'wah Chronicle. The Voice of the Iraqi Mujahideen. Issue No.22 (February 1982)
  Issue No.22 (February 1982) of 'Al-Da'wah Chronicle. The Voice of the Iraqi Mujahideen', published in London by the Information Committee of the Islamic Da'wa Party (Europe). Topics discussed include the ongoing massacres of Muslim Brothers in Hama, Syria, Ba'athist crimes in Iraq, the anniversaries of the uprisings in Iraq (February 1977) and Iran (February 1979), Islamic political struggle and relations between different Islamic organisations.
• An illustration depicting Omar Ibn Al-Khattab, companion and father-in-law of the prophet Muhammad, and the second Caliph of Islam, conquering Bayt Al-Maqdis (Jerusalem).
  An illustration depicting Omar Ibn Al-Khattab, companion and father-in-law of the prophet Muhammad, and the second Caliph of Islam, conquering Bayt Al-Maqdis (Jerusalem).
• An illustration depicting the She-Camel of the prophet Saleh.
  An illustration depicting the She-Camel of the prophet Saleh, mentioned in the Qur'an [7:73] and believed to have prophesied to the tribe of Thamud at Hegra [Al-Hijr] in ancient Arabia - and therefore commemorated in the name Mada’in Salih.
• An illustration of the Buraq, the horse-like creature who - according to certain Islamic hadiths - carried the Prophet Muhammad from Mecca to Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem during his Night Journey
  An illustration of Buraq, the horse-like creature of the prophet Muhammad, on which Muhammad rode from Mecca to Jerusalem, up through the seven heavens to God and back.
• Arabic Manuscript Relating to Water
  Arabic manuscript treatise on Islamic teaching regarding water, including ritual ablutions and drinking. The manuscript is bound in leather and is possibly from Oman.
• Holy Islam
  Issue No.3 of 'Holy Islam', a Kurdish-language bulletin published by the Kurdish Islamic movement, featuring articles on religious and political topics, Ba'athism, the peshmerga, poetry, along with photographs of Sheikh Mohammed Hatami, Navvab Safavi and Saddam Hussein.
• Internal formations of the Kurdish Islamic Army
  30-page photocopied booklet on the 'Internal formations of the Kurdish Islamic Army', providing details of the military and civil structures, the roles of the Shura council, and other matters. Dated 18/4/1982 with the Islamic date of 23 Jumada al-Thani written alongside.
• Iraqi Islamic Party: Principles and Concepts
• Kitāb aqrab al-wasāʾil li-idrāk maʻānī muntakhabāt al-rasāʻil
  Book of prayers and devotions by the Libyan Sufi scholar, and member of the Shadhili Order, Sheikh Muhammad Zafir al-Madani (1828-1903), mentor to Sultan Abdul Hamid II.
• Kitab Mujarrabāt
  Kitab Mujarrabāt, aka Fath-al-malik al-majid, is a manuscript treatise of 36 chapters on healing magic, written by 18th century Egyptian legal scholar of the Shafi'i school, Al-Shaykh Aḥmad ibn ʻUmar Dayrabī (1651-1738), who taught at al-Alzhar. The manuscript is incomplete, and is lacking the final pages.
• Mosque of Mohamed Ali, Cairo
  Photograph by the Zangaki Brothers of the Mosque of Mohamed Ali in Cairo
• Photograph by Paul Dittrich showing the interior of the dome of the Mosque of Muhammad Ali in Cairo.
  Photograph by Paul Dittrich showing the interior of the dome of the Mosque of Muhammad Ali in Cairo.
• Photograph by the Zangaki Brothers of the Citadel and the Mosque of Muhammad Ali, Cairo, taken from the Mokattam hills.
  Photograph by the Zangaki Brothers of the Citadel and the Mosque of Muhammad Ali, Cairo, taken from the Mokattam hills.
• Photograph of five porters [?] in river
  Photograph of five porters [?] in river On the reverse are handwritten notes by Frank Dean, although these are partly concealed by the traces of green card where the photograph has been pasted down and then torn away. He mentions that the men carrying charms made of verses from the Qur'an, sewn up in leather pouches tied to their bags.
• Photograph of fountain at Sultan Hasan mosque, Cairo
  Photograph by J.P. Sebah of the water fountains in the courtyard of Sultan Hasan mosque in Cairo, captioned 'Mosq. Sultan. Fontaines des ablutions (Hassan)'. On the reverse, Frank Dean has written in pencil 'Sultan Hassan Mosque. Fountains for Ablutions. All Mohammedans wash themselves before beginning to pray, in Mosques.'
• Photograph of Hasham Fayaz playing the role of Imam Hussein in a Ta‘zīye performance, Iran 1991.
  Photograph by Edith Maubec, taken in Iran in 1991, of a Ta‘zīye performance in which Hasham Fayaz - seated and veiled - plays the role of the martyred Imam Hussein.
• Photograph of man praying in the street at the University of Tehran, 1985
  Photograph of man praying in the street at the University of Tehran, beneath a mural showing students at a mosque, taken by Edith Maubec in 1985.
• Photograph of mosque in Nuqub, Yemen
  Photograph of mosque in Nuqub, in the province of Beihan, Yemen
• Photograph of Ramazan family in Tehran acting out a Ta‘zīye performance in their home, 1994.
  Photograph by Edith Maubec, taken in Iran in 1994, of the Ramazan family acting out a Ta‘zīye performance in their home in the south of Tehran, with an effigy of Hussein (or possibly one of the other Shi'ite martyrs) on their floor.
• Photograph of simple mosque in Libyan desert
  Glass plate photograph by W.J. Harding King of a simple stone mosque in the desert, with a mihrab or niche at one end to indicate the direction of Mecca.