The original version of the famed ‘One Thousand And One Nights’, otherwise known as the ‘Arabia Nights’ is on sale for $250,000 (Dh918,250) at the Eqtna Rare Manuscript stall, at the ongoing Sharjah International Book Fair (SIBF). The first full edition of the book comprises two volumes.
The Eqtna Rare Manuscript stall covers an area of no more than a meter filled with such specialized books, manuscripts and maps, displays 150 rare works for SIBF visitors, ranging in prices from the most expensive – the aforementioned $250,000 to a little less than $1,000.
The original ‘Arabian Nights’ has only eight copies of it around the world in public libraries and its rarity is said to stem from the fact that the religious scholars of Azhar issued a fatwa to burn and destroy all the copies of the book.
When it was re-printed in Egypt, it was sold for quarter of a million dollars. The fabled collection of stories, which has captured readers’ imaginations around the world, has long been considered a treasure house of different literary styles, because it was compiled over a period of several centuries and incorporates material from Arab, Persian, Turkish, Greek and Indian sources, among others.
Mohammed Assif, the owner of Eqtna, said that he acquired the Arabian Nights’ original edition – named the most important edition by the Central Digital Library from Paris. The Saudi nationalist claimed that his stall contains many ancient and rare manuscripts he collected from auctions in Europe, and some from European libraries and bookstores. Assif’s fascination with collecting old manuscripts began when he was 20 years old, while he was still living with his parents in Al Madina Al Munawarah. His first collection was a manuscript bought in Makkah. “I began collecting as a hobby, but when I realised people were interested in buying it, I decided to make it into a profitable business.”
His collection includes the first atlas published in the Islamic world, printed and published in Istanbul in 1803. The atlas contains a single celestial map and also 24 maps of the world in various formats – colored, hand-printed and engraved on copper. Costing $150,000, there are only 20 copies of it (rumors of only 10 copies) in the world, belonging to personal collectors and public libraries.
Other manuscripts available at the stall are rare books on geography, like the third edition of a book printed in Strasbourg in 1522, the first printed version which appeared in Rome in 1477. The work contains 27 maps, each printed on two separate pages and is estimated at $95,000.
Also was the book Jahan Namha, an important work by the geographer and Ottoman historian Haji Khalifa. “This book draws the attention of many visitors because it contains the oldest maps printed in the Islamic world and includes an important map of the Arabian Peninsula. It’s priced at $75,000.”
The Eqtna stall also presents the first multilingual edition of the Book of Psalms – a part of the Bible – in the 16th century. The book is the second book printed in Arabic after the book of Al-Sawa’i prayer printed in 1514, which makes this edition very important in the history of Arabic publishing. The rare work is priced at $45,000.
Mohammed Assif’s patrons are not ordinary people, but those who know the true meaning and historical value of a rare manuscript. “Some books derive their price from their historical value,” he noted.
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