Iranian maps and book enrich UNESCO’s Memory of the World

TEHRAN,June 20(MNA) -- An Iranian collection of maps dating back to the 19th century and a reference book on traditional Iranian medicine were added to UNESCO’s Memory of the World Register list on Tuesday. “Maps from the Qajar Period” and “The Reserve of the Khwarizmshah Dynasty” (“Zakhire-ye Kharazmshahi”) along with 52 other items from other countries were registered on the list during the 11th session of the International Advisory Committee (IAC) for UNESCO’s Memory of the World Programme in Gwangju, South Korea, the director of the Public Relations Department of the Iranian National Commission for UNESCO announced on Wednesday. “The IAC began studying the documentation of the two items about six months ago and found some problems in the materials Iran had sent to the committee,” Farhad Etemadi said. “Iran resolved the problems and now the world will be familiar with the Iranian maps and book by UNESCO’s decision to register the items on the list,” he added. “Maps from the Qajar Period” consists of 500 unique hand-drawn and lithographic geographical maps that are kept at the Center for Documentation and Research Services of the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Most of the maps refer to Iran and nearby regions. Some of the maps show the lands that have been split from Iran over the past centuries as result of political events. Some of the maps bear the signatures of officials, and political and cultural figures of the time in the margins. “The Reserve of the Khwarizmshah Dynasty” is a Persian reference book on traditional Iranian medicine, which has been authored by Seyyed Ismael Jurjani (c. 1042-1136 CE), mostly known as Hakim Jurjani. Topics from speech therapy to varieties of pesticides are discussed in the book that is kept at the library of the Shahid Motahhari School and Mosque in Tehran. There are several other versions of the book in Iranian libraries, but the version kept at the library of the Shahid Motahhari School and Mosque in Tehran is the most intact one. Five other works have already been registered on UNESCO’s Memory of the World Register list. A collection of Iranian documents dating back to the Safavid era was added to the list in 2009. In addition, the Shahnameh of Baysunqur, one of three ancient copies of Ferdowsi’s epic masterpiece, and the Endowment Deed of Rab-e Rashidi are two other Iranian works, which were registered on the list in 2007.