Memory of the World Register
Egypt - The National Library of Egypt's Collection of Mamluk Qur'an Manuscripts
One hundred and forty Mamluk Qur'an manuscripts and bindings that can be securely dated to the Mamluk period (1250-1517 CE) by colophons and endowment and dedicatory statements. During this time, Cairo became the cultural, religious, and intellectual centre of the Islamic world. The manuscripts are almost unmatched for splendor, opulence, and size in the history of the Islamic arts of the book and they are key to our understanding of developments in Islamic calligraphy, illumination and bookbinding not only in Mamluk Egypt but throughout the Islamic world.
Photos: © National Library and Archives of Egypt
