Guadalajara: Sharjah’s iconic House of Wisdom (HoW) is showcasing rare titles from its ‘Ettinghausen Collection’ at the ongoing Guadalajara International Book Fair 2022 in Mexico.
On display at the Sharjah’s pavilion are nine titles from the precious collection of prominent Islamic arts researcher and German professor Richard Ettinghausen, incluidng “Moorish Cabinet from Toledo: A Descriptive Note,” by Emilio Camps Cazola; “Excavations of the National Plan in Medinat Alzahra (Córdoba)” by Rafael Castejon and Martenez De Arizala; “Arab Ivories of the West” by Jose Ferrandis; “The Godman Collection of Oriental and Spanish Pottery and Glass” by Fredrick Du Cane Godman; and “Spanish Arab Art Up to Almohad’s Era: Mozarabic Art” by Manuel Gomez-Moreno.
Other rare books are: “Silk Textiles of Spain, Eighth-Fifteenth Century” by Florence Lewis May; “Bayad and Riyad Love Story: An Oriental Chantefable in Persian Style” by A.R. Nykl; “Hispano-Moresque Minarets” by Spanish writer and archaeologist Leopoldo Torres Balbas; and “Hispano-Moresque Ware of the XV. Century” by Albert Can De Put.
The titles on display are part of a rare collection of 12,000 books donated to the HoW by His Highness Dr. Sheikh Sultan bin Mohammad Al Qasimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Sharjah, covering a wide variety of topics on Islamic arts and architecture in more than 10 languages, including Arabic, English, German, Japanese, Urdu and Russian.
Folktales reimagined
Meanwhile, in an effort to consolidate cultural relations with Mexican institutions, the HoW, in cooperation with the UAE Board on Books for Young People, will be launching the 2nd edition of “Folktales Reimagined”. The first edition received widespread acclaim at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair and the Sharjah International Book Fair in 2022.
HoW is currently hosting the “Frida and Me” exhibition that will run until January 8 to introduce the UAE public to Mexico’s most influential artist, Frida Kahlo.
