Nineteenth-century Islamic Manuscripts and Printed Books: Revisiting a survey of the Michael Abbott Collection, State Library Victoria

Abstract

The Michael Abbott Collection of Islamic manuscripts and printed books was donated to State Library Victoria (SLV) in 2012 and comprises Qur’ans and religious texts. An initial collection survey in 2014 documented a variety of materials and techniques, but also highlighted challenges in describing Islamic bindings using existing bookbinding terminology. The Michael Abbott Collection is unique within the broader SLV collection, which is largely concentrated on the history of Western book production and trade, reflecting the primary cultural background and professional expertise of SLV specialist library and conservation staff. Subsequently, the author attended an Islamic Bookbinding Workshop at the Islamic Arts Museum of Malaysia in July 2017, presented by Dr Karin Scheper, where participants deepened their understanding of binding structures, regional variations and conservation approaches. The workshop has provided a crucial frame of reference for the Michael Abbott Collection, and revealed some Indonesian manuscript traditions, from where the majority of manuscripts originated. Revisiting the survey in 2018 identified previously overlooked structural features that have been reconsidered within the context of the collection. This is a case study of ‘revisitation’ in conservation practice, responding to the challenges of preserving dissociated cultural collections and acquiring knowledge to give original observations greater depth and meaning.