BAHTİYAR ABDÜLKERİMOV – The copy of the Holy Quran, known as the “Katta Langar Musfah” in Uzbekistan and one of the oldest and unique manuscripts of the Turkish-Islamic world, will be exhibited for the first time at the Louvre Museum in France.
Known as one of the oldest manuscripts of the Qur’an in the world, the “Langar Mushaf on Katta” will be included in the exhibition titled “Treasures of the Oases of Uzbekistan at the Crossroads of Caravan Roads”, which will start at the Louvre Museum in France in November.
168 historical and cultural assets related to the history and culture of Uzbekistan, 137 belonging to Uzbek museums and 31 of the world’s leading museums, will be exhibited at the Louvre Museum between November 24, 2022 – March 6, 2023.
Among the historical and cultural assets of Uzbekistan that will be exhibited in the museum, the 8th century Katta Langar Quran Mushaf, one of the most precious manuscripts of the Turkish-Islamic world, stands out.
The “Katta Langar Musfah”, which was determined to be written on animal skin in the Kufi-Hijaz style of Arabic in the last quarter of the 8th century, has a page size of 53×35 centimeters.
It is unknown how and by whom it was brought to Central Asia, but only the last 100 years of history are known. After being preserved for many years in the mosque in the village of Katta Langar in the Kashkadarya region of Uzbekistan, it is kept in the Library of the Religious Administration of Muslims of Uzbekistan, where it was given as a gift in 2003.
One page of the Katta Langar Mushaf is in Uzbekistan Orientalism Institute Manuscripts Center, two pages are in the Bukhara Provincial Library, and 13 pages are in the Uzbekistan Muslims Religious Administration Library, and 16 pages are in Uzbekistan. The fate of the mushaf pages, 67 pages of which were kept from the mosque where it was kept by the Soviet Union authorities in 1984, is still unknown.
In 1936 the Russian Academy of Sciences in St. The 81 pages of the Katta Langar Mushaf, purchased from an unidentified woman by the Oriental Manuscripts Institute in St. Petersburg, are still preserved at the institute.
Head of the Religious Administration of Muslims of Uzbekistan, Chief Mufti and Honorary Doctor of the International Islamic Academy of Uzbekistan, Nuriddin Haliknazarov, commented on the “Katta Langar Mushaf” to AA correspondent.
Noting that the Katta Langar Mushaf is a unique manuscript of the Islamic world, Haliknazarov said, “The mushaf known as ‘Katta Langar’, which is still kept in the Library of the Religious Administration of Muslims of Uzbekistan, is the oldest and rarest of the Qur’an in the world. one of the manuscripts.” said.
Stating that the scientists who conducted research on the manuscript determined that the mushaf was written in the last quarter of the 8th century, when the rules of Arabic grammar were established, Haliknazarov said that the mushaf, which was previously preserved by the sheikhs of the Ishiye Sect, was called by this name because it was kept in the mosque in Katta Langar village for the last 100 years. recorded.
Haliknazarov said that the mushaf was written in the Kufi-Hijaz style, one of the oldest writing types in Arabic, on polished animal skin.
Explaining that the Langar Mushaf on the floor was restored by different people in different years and filled with ornaments and dots, Haliknazarov said, for example, that the torn corners of some pages were patched, the Qur’an periods on the patches were written in Nasih script, patterns were drawn between the periods on some pages, and the name of the period and the duration were written on it. He stated that the number of verses was written.
Haliknazarov noted that the Great Langar Quran Mushaf preserved in the Library of the Religious Administration of Muslims of Uzbekistan was restored with the initiatives of President Şevket Mirziyoyev and cleaned from centuries-old dust and harmful bacteria. He stated that it was carried out in three stages in 2019, 2020 and 2021.
Stating that only two pages of the Katta Langar Mushaf, one of the rarest manuscripts of the Islamic world, will be exhibited at the Louvre Museum, Haliknazarov added that due to its historical importance and value in the Islamic world, it will be preserved for centuries as the spiritual wealth of not only Uzbekistan, but perhaps all humanity.