Koranic Writing Board

In Somalia and elsewhere in Africa, Muslim children between the ages of 6 and 13 are taught to read and write Arabic and to recite passages from the Koran in madrasas –often outdoors. Traditionally they practice their calligraphy on planks of wood that are periodically washed. Their ink is little more than soot and water, sometimes with a little of gum arabic as a binder. While the practice varies little across the continent, the form of the tablets are distinctive to a geographical area or ethnic group. The Somali of Ethiopian Ogaden, Puntland and Somalia own the largest tablets on the continent. Like this beautiful example, they are long and narrow, with a pair of feet at the bottom and a nub of a handle at the top. Unmounted. (Field photo, Reuters).

61″

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