Hidden Histories: Arabic and Hebrew Manuscripts in Victoria
Professor Guy Geltner
Hailperin Collection, The State Library of Victoria’s Rare Books Collection
A copy of the Qur’an, The Islamic Museum of Australia’s Collection
About the project
Hidden Histories: Arabic and Hebrew Manuscripts in Victoria
Victoria is home to a surprisingly large number of pre-modern manuscripts predominantly located in private libraries - many of which are in Arabic and Hebrew scripts (referred to throughout this note as Arabic and Hebrew MSS). The volume and calibre of these collections was only recently appreciated when, in 2021, a research team led by Professor Guy Geltner began a process of locating and inventorying these manuscripts and creating a centralised database to serve as a resource for researchers. The project exceeded expectations: Prof. Geltner's team located hundreds of manuscripts previously unknown to researchers - many more than had been originally anticipated. In the project’s final report, the findings were summarised in broad strokes, and it was strongly recommended that these extensive collections be the subject of further research.
This project is an intermediate step, expanding upon the initial findings to the extent that within the next twelve months the project will be appropriate for a Linkage Grant, or for comparable ARC and private grants.
The impact of this project is broad. It will yield deep insights into the histories of religious and cultural minorities in Australia, and the ways in which they carried their deep histories into their new homes; and it will provide communities throughout Australia with access to those histories.
If you would like more information about this project, please contact
leila.alhagh@monash.edu or merav.carmeli@monash.edu
Treasure quest: Researchers embark on a pre-modern manuscript mission (Monash Lens)
Project team
Head of project
Professor Guy Geltner, School of Philosophical, Historical and International Studies, Monash University
Steering committee
Dr Aydogan Kars, School of Philosophical, Historical and International Studies, Monash University
Dr Kathleen Neal, School of Philosophical, Historical and International Studies, Monash University
Professor Carolyn James, School of Philosophical, Historical and International Studies, Monash University
Dr Andrew Connor, School of Philosophical, Historical and International Studies, Monash University
Dr Anne Holloway, Monash University Library
Associate Professor Michael Champion, Biblical and Early Christian Studies, Institute for Religion and Critical Inquiry, Australian Catholic University
Dr Matthew Champion, Medieval and Early Modern Studies, Institute for Religion and Critical Inquiry, Australian Catholic University
Dr Anna Welch, State Library of Victoria
Associate Professor Andrea Rizzi, School of Languages and Linguistics, The University of Melbourne
Dr. Raphael Dascalu Adjunct Research Associate at Monash University
Project coordinators
Dr Leila Alhagh and Dr Merav Carmeli
Database builder
Dr Robert Turnbull