900-year-old Quran manuscript ‘written on Papyrus’ found in Pakistan

Islamabad, May 22(ANI): A Pakistani archaeologist has found a 900-year-old manuscript of the Quran.


Archaeologist Ghulam Akbar Malik found the valuable manuscript of the Quran, dating back to the 12th century, during an excavation trip to the Pakistani city of Jhelum.

The salt range and its adjacent territory have been home to many archaeological discoveries, and Malik incidentally came across this valuable scripture there, The Express Tribune reports.

Malik was taking a break after the day's work to recite Quran, when an old man gave him this historic manuscript to read.

"An old man gave this to me as a gift at a shelter in the hills," said Malik. "He told me that they had had this scripture in the family for centuries and their ancestors used to recite from it."

This 900-year-old manuscript is written on Papyrus, which was first invented and used by the Chinese before the invention of modern paper.

According to the archaeologist, this ancient script of the Quran has been written by Sirajuddin abu Tahir Muhammad bin Muhammad bin Abdur Rasheed during the 12th century.

"It is the first time that I have seen such an ancient Quranic manuscript in such good condition," added Malik.

This calligraphic object of art weighs around five kilogrammes and consists of 1,200 pages, although in some places the handwritten text has faded as a result of aging.

Experts estimate that this manuscript is the work of three calligraphers that produced the copy of the Quran in just over a year.

Full text and source here

This manuscript weighs almost 5 kilogrammes and contains 1200 pages!
I don't know how it is possible for such an old object made of papyrus to travel through the ages and to be still "in such good condition". I'm pretty sure that 900 years later our old-paper books will not be that intact...

reply to post by elevenaugust


Interesting find but....

Papyrus was used in ancient Egypt all the way back to 3500 BC.

Linky here

History of Paper Types
Interesting Facts:


* 5000 BCE - Sumerians write on clay tablets that are then dried in the sun.

* 3500 BCE - Egyptians develop the skills of making papyrus.

* 1600 BCE - Ancient Chinese use thin bamboo strips to make important notes.

* 200 BCE - Parchment is used in ancient Greek city Pergamum. It is a thin material made from calfskin. In some countries it is called pergament or pergamentum in honour of Pergamum city.

* 100 CE - Chinese learn to make paper... a proper paper from wood pulp.

Interesting find though.

So this manuscript should reflect the Quran that is widely published today shouldn't it? Isn't it supposed to be one of the only holy books that hasn't been edited over the ages?

Awesome! Maybe we will learn something, or maybe it is just another elaborate hoax. *sigh*

I don't know how it is possible for such an old object made of papyrus to travel through the ages and to be still "in such good condition". I'm pretty sure that 900 years later our old-paper books will not be that intact...

I hear you on that matter friend. On a sci-fi note, perhaps ancient sentient beings are using time travel to send some old holy books back to us? It is very odd that paper survived that long because the Declaration of Independence would not have survived even 100 years without the proper protection, and it is still decaying to this day even with all the fancy tech we encase the Dec of Ind in.

reply to post by elevenaugust

I don't know how it is possible for such an old object made of papyrus to travel through the ages and to be still "in such good condition". I'm pretty sure that 900 years later our old-paper books will not be that intact...

Because hemp paper lasts about forever whereas paper made from wood doesn't last long without turning yellow and the fibers breaking apart.

Well it certainly would be interesting to compare the 900yo version to the Quran published today.
I wonder how much of it was changed over the centuries...

reply to post by SLAYER69

Yes, main source came from Asian News International (ANI)

Still waiting for any independant (and scientific/archaelogy) confirmation.