Nice site with photos of the discovery of King Tut’s tomb in 1922.
King Tut’s Tomb in Color
Category Archives: Countries
Varisco on the Baghdadi Ratl
On Thursday, July 8 , 2021 (4 pm Berlin time, 10 am New York time) I will be giving an online presentation on my search for the metric weight of the Baghdadi ratl, the most widespread measure for international trade in the Red Sea/Indian Ocean network during the Abbasid and Mamluk/Rasulid eras. Although several Western scholars since the mid-19th century have suggested the metric measure of the dirham, a basic unit of the ratl, there is disagreement. Most of the research has focused on the numismatic use of weights with much less on use in the market. Western scholars have ignored the Islamic legal interpretation of two measures used by the Prophet Muhammad (the sa‘ and mudd), which were later interpreted by Muslim religious scholars according to the Baghdadi ratl for zakat and alms. My talk is more of a prolegomena to future study of Islamic metrology than a definitive rendering. I would be pleased to send a copy for comments to anyone interested.
Baghdad and Iraq in 1901
The British traveler Sir Edgar Collins Boehm was one of many travelers up the Persian Gulf and elsewhere more than a century ago. His narrative is rather meager, but he does include several photographs of Iraq, which I note below:
Traditional Seafaring in the Gulf
The online event “Under the Sails – Maritime Conversation on Trade and Seafaring. Perspectives from Iran and Kuwait” held on May 26, 2021 is now available to view on Youtube. This is a fascinating set of interviews with both Kuwaiti and Iranian ship captains of the past. It is well worth watching.
Baghdad Postcards #2
Here are several early 20th century postcards showing life in and around Baghdad.
Baghdad Postcards #1
Baghdad was featured in a number of early 20th century postcards. Several of these were printed by A.a.K Naman… Here are images of two of Baghdad’s mosques.
Iran Exhibition in London
There is a new exhibit on Iran at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London through 12 September. If you cannot make it to the exhibition, there is a brief trailer. You can also learn about the exhibition here and there is a slide show of 15 objects over 5,000 years here.
One of the rather silly parts of the coverage of the event on the website is having images with a woman or two women (perhaps to encourage masks…) observing the items, as in the following.
Yemen in 1917
The British Government issued an official handbook on Yemen in 1917. This has recently been uploaded to the Qatar Digital Library. One of the sections gives a general description of life in Yemen during the first part of the last century.
