The book restoration exhibition, organised by Istanbul Research and Education Centre (ISAR), brings to light the works in the library of Tivnikli Hacı Faruk Efendi of Erzurum origin, consisting of more than three hundred volumes from different branches of science.
Muharrem Kalenci, who meticulously carried out the restoration process and reintroduced nearly a thousand works to the world of science, shared details about ISAR Book Restoration Centre and the exhibition with AA correspondent.
– “Most of the works are in Ottoman Turkish and some of them are works printed in Latin letters in the Republican period”
Kalenci stated that the Mücellithane (Book Restoration Centre) was established in 2017 with the aim of presenting the works in ISAR Library, which were written in the Ottoman period but became unusable due to wear and tear, to the readers again: “All kinds of documents, including documents and maps, as well as binding and paper restoration of Ottoman or Western-style printed and manuscript works are carried out within the Mücellithane. We have completed the restoration of hundreds of works so far. Whenever we have the opportunity, we try to bring these works together with enthusiasts through various thematic exhibitions according to the period and nature of the works. ‘Two Covers One Treasure’ was opened as the second exhibition of ISAR Mücellithane.”
Ömer Said Güler, Lecturer at Istanbul Medeniyet University, Department of Turkish Language and Literature, who made the catalogue works of the exhibition, made the following statements:
“In its first years, our library continued to work on the renovation of individual works that were not included in a specific collection. However, a more organised project was initiated with the ‘Tivnikli Hacı Faruk Efendi’ collection donated to our library recently. Hacı Faruk Efendi is a scholar from the gentry of Erzurum. He came to the fore with his identity as a mudarris, opened his house and home to students, and was known as the father of the poor in Erzurum. In parallel with his identity as a mudarris, his library also has a rich nature. Among his books, there were works that were seriously damaged. Muharrem Kalenci carried out the repair of these books with a work of about 3 years.”
Güler continued by mentioning that educational books stand out in the collection, “In the exhibition collection, Sudi-i Bosnevi’s ‘Hafız Divanı’ commentary, which dates back to about 200 years ago and was printed in Bulak Printing House, and the ‘Nusha-i Sultaniye’ edition of Sahih-i Bukhari published by Abdulhamid II, Imam Rabbani’s Mektubat, Ibn Khaldun’s Muqaddime, Erzurumlu İbrahim Hakkı’s Marifetname, Persian and French grammar books, İlm-i İktisad Lessons, Mebadi-i Felsefe and the first editions of many other valuable works attract attention. “
The exhibition, curated by Abdusselam Ferşatoğlu, can be visited at ISAR Library in Sultantepe Uzbekler Tekke until 13 December.
