Literary Bookcase

Jo SalisburyNews Leave a Comment

The AIIT has recently been presented with an elegant glass-fronted bookcase which now gracefully adorns the landing at the top of the stairs. It was given to us by Trust friend Dr Dido Davies who inherited it from her stepfather Charles Dudley Massey (1905-1980), a key figure in the antiquarian book trade from 1923 until his death. Massey embarked on his long career in 1921 at Pickering & Chatto and became joint managing director of it on his father’s death in 1928. He thus became, at the early age of …

The Library of Sir Roger Stevens

Jo SalisburyBook Notes 1 Comment

The Trust has recently been given a collection of books on Iran owned previously by Sir Roger Stevens (1906-1980). Sir Roger went to Iran in 1954 as Britain’s first ambassador after a two year break—the result of nationalization of the oil industry—and played a key role in rebuilding diplomatic relations. Although he served there for only four years, his enthusiasm for the people, art and history of Iran never left him. His main work was The Land of the Great Sophy (1962), but he also wrote on European travellers in …

Frantz Grenet (Paris) on the Qarakhanids – Friday 10th December

Jo SalisburyNews Leave a Comment

The Trust is hosting this coming Friday’s lecture (10th December), by Professor Frantz Grenet (Paris – excavator of Afrasiab) at the Faculty of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies. The event starts at 5pm. There will be a reception to follow. The talk is entitled: The rediscovery of the court culture of the Qarakhanids (11th-early 13th centuries): recent results of the French-Uzbek Archaeological Mission at Afrasiab (Samarkand) The Qarakhanids, the first Muslim Turkish dynasty, who ruled Transoxiana or part of it from 999 to 1212 AD, have not, until now, enjoyed …

Exhibition at Fitzwilliam Museum: Epic of the Persian Kings: The Art of Ferdowsi’s Shahnameh

Jo SalisburyNews

This exhibition at the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge runs until Sun 9 January 2011. For those who are not able to visit in person, a virtual exhibition can be seen at http://www.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/gallery/shahnameh/index.html. Divided into 5 sections examining different aspects of the Shahnameh, it includes images and detailed descriptions of 72 of the 104 exhibits. Events connected with the exhibition include: The Shahnameh and Persian Poetry With Professor Richard Davis, Ohio State University 8 December 2010 17:00 to 18:00. Admission Free. NB at the Faculty of Classics, Sidgwick Avenue, Cambridge, CB3 9DA …

Lasting Impressions: Seals from the Islamic World

Jo SalisburyStories from the Collection Leave a Comment

A travelling photographic exhibition from the British Library and the British Museum (Supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund) at the Ancient India & Iran Trust, 10.30am-3pm Monday-Friday, 24 November-8 December 2010 Curators: Annabel Gallop, British Library & Venetia Porter, British Museum Seals have functioned as symbols of authority from the earliest days of Islam. According to tradition, in 628 the Prophet Muhammad had a seal ring made of silver, carved with the words Muhammad Rasul Allah, ‘Muhammad is the Messenger of God’. Ever since, the inscription has been the main …