Maqamat al-Hariri – A 13th Century Arab Manuscript

Member Events

Maqamat al-Hariri – A 13th Century Arab Manuscript

Instructor: 
Heather Elgood
When: 
October 28, 2014
Time: 
2pm-4pm
Place: 
Samsung Hall
Fee: 
$15 Society members, $20 non-members (after Museum admission)

Al-Maqamat, a book written by the author al-Hariri, comprises fifty short stories (maquamat = settings or sessions) told by a merchant named al-Harith. The book recounts the adventures of Abu Zayd, a roguish hero who lived by his wits in a town in northern Syria. The tales use humor to exhibit subtle and indirect criticism of the existing social order. These tales are valued not only for their humor, but also for their linguistic ingenuity and complex grammar, which revealed the sophisticated wealth of the Arabic language. The illustrations in the Maqamat are an incomparable mirror of medieval Arab society.

Dr. Heather Elgood is the Course Director for the Postgraduate Diploma in Asian Art at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) in London. Her expertise is Persian and Indian manuscript paintings, early Hindu sculptures, and the ritual arts. She was one of the professors for our very own Deputy Director, Pedro Moura Carvalho, when he was studying at SOAS.

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