Copy of Quran Handwritten by Prominent Calligrapher Donated to ISESCO

IQNA – The Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO) has received a copy of a rare Quran in the handwriting of Abu al-Hasan Ali bin Hilal bin Abdul Aziz, a prominent calligrapher of the Islamic world.

This copy of the Quran, handwritten by Abdul Aziz, known as “Ibn Bawab”, was donated to ISESCO by Ratiba al-Safrioui, a retired professor at a university in Morocco.

According to ISESCO, al-Safrioui donated this copy in appreciation of the organization’s pioneering role in preserving and promoting the manuscript heritage of the Islamic world.

ISESCO Director General Salim bin Mohammed al-Malik hailed the move, saying this action is worthy of appreciation because it is a good tradition in supporting the manuscripts of the Islamic world and encourages the dissemination of knowledge.

He added that this move also strengthens the role of ISESCO, which seeks to preserve cultural elements from destruction and damage and to introduce the heritage of Muslim societies and their cultural, scientific and civilizational contributions.

Al-Safrioui explained about the Quran at the ceremony of donating it, saying this copy was received by her late brother, Sayyid Abdul-Hayy Al-Safrioui, and includes an introductory booklet and a translated version of the meanings of some of the Quran’s Surahs in French.

Ibn Bawab is considered one of the most prominent calligraphers of the third and fourth centuries AH, who developed the principles of writing in Naskh script and formulated the aesthetic proportions between the components of each letter.

He wrote sixty-four Qurans, the most famous of which is the only surviving copy of his Qurans, which was written in Baghdad in 391 AH. This copy is kept in the Chester Beatty Library in Dublin, the capital of Ireland, and the copy presented to ISESCO was taken from it.

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