Catalogue of Arabic Manuscripts in the Library of the Institute of Ismaili Studies, Vol. 2
Islamic Publications
This second volume of the Catalogue of Arabic Manuscripts contains descriptions of over 255 manuscripts covering various subjects from Qurʾanic sciences to alchemy. The great majority of these works were composed and transcribed by people of Shiʿi persuasion.
The same method and technique as in Volume I has been followed. The present volume is preceded by an introduction, which brings together the more important codicological and palaeographical characteristics of this collection. The volume has been richly illustrated. It contains over 90 half-tone illustrations, as well as five colour plates of specimens of calligraphy and illumination.
Preface
Transliteration table
Introduction
References
Title sequence (A–Z)
Indexes
a. Titles
b. Authors
c. Copyists, former owners and others
d. ‘Incipits’
e. Subjects
f. Concordance of shelf and catalogue numbers
g. Concordance of dates and catalogue numbers
h. Watermarks
i. Place names
Plates nos.1-5
Born in a small town in the south of Poland, A. Gacek specialised in Arabic Philology at the Jagiellonian University of Kraków. After having been awarded his Post-Graduate Diploma in Librarianship at The Polytechnic of North London in 1977, he worked at The School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, on two large collections of Arabic manuscripts.
Since 1982 he has occupied the post of the Librarian of The Institute of Ismaili Studies. His recent publications are: Catalogue of the Arabic Manuscripts at the Library of The School of Oriental and African Studies (1981, repr. with corrections 1985), ‘A note on a Maghribi manuscript at The School of Oriental and African Studies, London”, The Maghreb Review (1984) and “Library resources at The Institute of Ismaili Studies, London’, British Society for Middle Eastern Studies Bulletin (1984).