Papyrus, parchment and paper trails

Phys.org ^ | January 24, 2014 | unattributed

[SunkenCiv]

The Arabic Papyrology Database (APD) is a unique resource which makes a wealth of historical documents written in Arabic freely available online. The collection includes letters, marriage contracts and rental agreements dating from the seventh century, accounts of tax revenues received and wages paid out, and texts inscribed on amulets. "The documents give us unparalleled insights into daily life, particularly in Egypt, from the time of the Arab conquest up until the 16th century," says Professor Andreas Kaplony, who holds the Chair of Arabic and Islamic Studies at LMU, and is supervising the compilation of the database.

The work of Kaplony and his colleagues is being made possible by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, which has just approved a grant of over 450,000 dollars for the coming two years. The database is expected to be complete by the end of 2015, and will bring together all 2500 documents previously published in the literature. In addition, the researchers at LMU are constructing a second database which consists of metadata on texts that have not previously been published elsewhere. When complete, this will provide information on a further 15,000 documents.

[SunkenCiv]

[SunkenCiv]

[1010RD]

Very interesting. Here’s an Econtalk podcast that is also about paper, writing, words, etc. Tell me what you think.

http://www.econtalk.org/archives/2013/05/bernstein_on_co.html

[SunkenCiv]

Thanks, I’ll check it out.

[colorado tanker]

Little known translation from a 15th Century document:

"Allah has blessed us with the invention of gunpowder. Now, we will finally have the strength to defeat the infidel Byzantines.

More than that, I envision the day when Caliph's martyrs will strap bombs under their clothing and move among the European infidels and kill them without mercy, thereby gaining Paradise."