Syrian antique collector Mousallam Sakka Amini’s stall packs in an overwhelming stash of very rare books and offers a tantalising glimpse into the rich realm of antique artefacts housed at Amini’s store, writes Anand Holla
In a seemingly endless giant maze of stalls overrun with books, educational toys, manuscripts, and more books at the 26th Doha International Book Fair, a particular one stands out for its ingenious set-up and even more so for the timeless treasure trove that it holds.
Syrian expat and expert antiques collector Mousallam Sakka Amini’s stall, modelled upon the décor and the wealth of rare artefacts that his shop Islamic and Global Arts and Antiques Company located at the Ramada Intersection holds, is clearly one of the top stars of the book fair at the Qatar National Convention Centre, which is on until tomorrow (Saturday).
By making clever and judicious use of space, this stall packs in an overwhelming stash of very rare books, choicest of manuscripts, special interest literature, and even a great variety of fiction and non-fiction books, priced rather reasonably. But that’s just half of the stall — the remaining half offers a tantalising glimpse into the rich realm of antique artefacts housed at Amini’s store.
“We sell all kinds of antiques such as swords, helmets, glassware, earthenware, furniture, carpets, embroidery items and pottery,” says Amini, sitting in his stall, taking a break from greeting and conversing with a steady stream of curious visitors, “At our store near Ramada Intersection, we really do have a museum’s worth of treasures.”
The collection covers such an expansive range of objects and areas of interest that merely mentioning them would take time. After all, Amini’s collection holds more than 500,000 titles and some manuscripts are around six centuries old. “Some of the objects are from 16th, 17th, 18th century Europe and related to specialities like medicine, science, literature, etc. We have a collection of Islamic manuscripts, books on astronomy and medicine, and old religious tomes,” he elaborates, “We also have a wide collection of history books written in Arabic and some even in Persian. Our unique collection of stone-printed Arabic books, which date back to 19th and early 20th century, is rather special, as is our range of vintage English books, most of them from early and mid-20th century.”
Amini, who holds a PhD in Architecture, is the Head of Architectural Department at Global Mimar Architectural and Engineering Consultancy firm. The book fair serves as an interesting platform to interact with book lovers and the local community at large, feels Amini.
“Our participation in this fair is to introduce our company to more people and enhance the cultural atmosphere of Qatar,” he shares, “That’s why I ensured that our stall is unique. Alhamdulillah, a lot of people visited us these past few days, and we enjoyed discussing with them about old books and history. We hope to continue enlightening Qataris and the expats living here, in this aspect.”
Sourcing such old and rare books and artefacts is quite a challenge. However, for Amini, who is an international expert in Islamic Architecture and Historic Preservation and has been in this field for close to 35 years now just as his company, there are more solutions than problems.
“There are several methods to build our collection,” he says, “Sometimes, we buy directly from the owners in families, pieces that have been inherited from generation to generation. Sometimes, they sell what they have and we buy. At times, there are auctions. Besides, we also have a personal collection nurtured for years. We buy from all over the world and hence our shop has objects from Syria, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, England, France and the US.”
While the variety has to be seen to be believed, the focus of Amini’s collection rests mainly on Islamic objects. “To acquire artefacts related to the Gulf region are important here in Qatar, in terms of business, because they sell very quickly,” says Amini.
Apart from the rise in demand for old books, manuscripts and artefacts in Doha — Qatari government has emerged as the biggest buyer of these in a bid to preserve the history of the Islamic world — there has also been an increase in the trend of collectors in Qatar. There are close to 2,000 small-size collectors and around 100 medium-size collectors in Qatar, apart from about 10 Qatari collectors of the highest standard, shares Amini.
This is perhaps why Amini and his team are trying to establish some kind of centre that will help restore old manuscripts and rare books. “In Qatar, the problem that most collectors face is that they have large quantities of old books but don’t have any restoration centre,” Amini explains, “It’s very hard to take these valuable books that are in desperate need of restoration, to UAE or Turkey, and bring them back here; it’s logistically difficult. So, we are now in the process of establishing the first private restoration centre for old books and manuscripts in Qatar, sometime in the second half of 2016.”
Some of Amini’s personal favourites from the collection are old copies of Holy Qur’an. “I am proud of our collection possessing a Qur’an that belonged to Turkey’s Sultan Abdul Hamid. We also have a pot that Queen Elizabeth would use and an ink holder that belonged to Napoleon Bonaparte,” says Amini.
As chaos took over his country, it was around three years ago that Amini moved his business and passion from Syria to Qatar. “I have spent almost all my life in this field,” Amini says, pointing his hands at the cupboards filled with rarities, “I don’t deal with this field as a merchant. I deal with it as a scientist. I write a lot about what I have and its nuances for publications and in books, explaining to people the value of these artefacts, how to preserve them, and how to choose a good piece of antique.”
In fact, that’s what keeps Amini driven. “That truly is my passion,” he says, “Buying and selling constitutes perhaps, 20 per cent of my work. What is most special to me is that I have found an amazing field to practice my experience, my speciality, my love. Dealing with antiques is not just a business or hobby, it’s my life, my soul. It’s my everything.”
RARITY: Some of the rare books at the stall. Photos by Anand Holla
