Archives, Museums and Collecting Practices in the Modern Arab World

Sonja Mejcher-Atassi is Assistant Professor in the Civilization Sequence Program at the American University of Beirut, Lebanon. Her research focuses on modern Arabic literature and art, interarts studies and book art. John Pedro Schwartz is Assistant Professor in the Department of English at the American University of Beirut, where he specializes in modern British and American literature.

• Contents: Introduction: challenges and directions in an emerging field of research, Sonja Mejcher-Atassi and John Pedro Schwartz; Part I Local Representations of Modernity: Collecting the nation: lexicography and national pedagogy in al-nahda al-'arabiya, Nadia Bou Ali; Between looters and private collectors: the tragic fate of Lebanese antiquities, Hélène Sader; Tawfik Canann - collectionneur par excellence: the story behind the Palestinian amulet collection at Birzeit University, Vera Tamari. Part II Collecting Practices, Historiographic Practices: The good, the bad and the ugly: collector, dealer and academic in the informal old-paper markets of Cairo, Lucie Ryzova; The reform of history school textbooks in Lebanon: collecting conflict memories in a peace-building process (1996-2001), Betty Gilbert Sleiman; The Beit Beirut project: heritage practices and the Bakarat building, Sophie Brones. Part III From Institutional to Artistic Practices of Collecting: The formation of the Khalid Shoman private collection and the founding of Darat al Funun, Sarah A. Rogers; The ecstasy of property: collecting in the United Arab Emirates, Emily Doherty; Collecting modern Iraqi art, Nada Shabout; Collecting the uncanny and the labour of missing, Walid Sadek; Index.

'This is a pioneering book that sheds light on a wide-ranging view of collecting practices in the Arab world. Readers interested in the cultural history of the region, the origins of modernity and the making of a national identity would find it a vital source. With the recent boom in the art market and the fever of collecting raging in the oil-rich Gulf countries, this work offers a critical reflection and an essential reading for art historians, collectors, art dealers, academics and students of art. It shall remain a key reference for years to come.' - Kamal Boullata, Author of Palestinian Art from 1850 to the Present