This afternoon, their Majesties the King and Queen of Spain inaugurate the exhibition, Ibn Khaldun, between Algeria and al-Andalus, at the Culture Centre in Algiers. It aims to uncover not only the life and work of Ibn Khaldun himself, but also the political, economic and social framework of the 14th century, between West and East, between Europe and North Africa, united by the Mediterranean. The inauguration of this exhibition, which coincides with Algiers’ year as Arab City of Culture, takes place as part of the Spanish King and Queen’s State Visit to Algeria, which starts tomorrow.
The exhibition also aims to emphasise the close historical, social and cultural ties that united Algeria and Spain in the 8th-14th centuries. In this broad geographical region united by the Mediterranean Sea, European and Muslim states are represented through their cultures and conflicts, the commercial exchange between them and their economic organisation, and also through the artistic heritage that marked the period.
At the same time, the exhibition also tries to demonstrate the contributions of al-Andalus and Algeria to different fields, their political, commercial, intellectual and philosophical evolution, and their projection within the Mediterranean.
The exhibition is organised by the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, and the Algerian Ministry of Culture. The exhibition concept is the work of the El Legado Andalusí Foundation (Regional Government of Andalusia), the Algeria Agency for Cultural Promotion and the Algerian National Centre for Prehistoric, Anthropological and Historical Research. Collaborating institutions include the following: From Algeria: Musée National des Antiquités d’Alger, Musée de Tlemcen, Musée de Bejaïa, Office du Palais de la Culture Moufdi Zakaria, Office de Gestion et d’Exploitation des Biens Culturels, Office National des Droits d’Auteurs et Droits Voisins. From Spain: El Legado Andalusí Foundation.
After spending May-September 2006 at the Real Alcázar Palace in Seville, and receiving more than 500,000 visitors, one part of this exhibition now travels to Algeria. The exhibition is held as part of the celebrations for the 6th centenary of the death of Ibn Khaldun – the best-known Arab-Muslim thinker of the 14th century – held last year. Born in Tunisia of al-Andalus ancestry, Ibn Khaldun knew and visited Andalusia, living for a time in the Nasrid court of Mohammed V. He was a historian preoccupied with the logic of empires, their expansion and decline, and he made a considerable contribution to thinking on the formation of states. The life and work of this “father of historical sociology” – as he is known by some major thinkers – is valid at any time and place. Ibn Khaldun also spent part of his life living in Algeria, where he began work on his famous book Muqaddima in Qal`at Bani Salama. Al-Ubbad, Tlemcén, Biskra and Bejaia also figured in his travels.
Pieces on display at this exhibition include: a fragment of an Almoravid pulpit from the Nedroma Mosque (Algeria) (Musée National des Antiquités d’Alger), a glass bottle from the Mameluk period (14th century) (Musée National des Antiquités d’Alger), an Almohad “cuerda seca” (dry cord) vase (Sétif Museum, Algeria), a measure for distribution of alms (Mudd) from Tremecén (Algeria) (Musée National des Antiquités d’Alger), a Mameluk Coran (El Legado Andalusí Foundation) and a facsimile edition of the Lubab al-Muhassal fi usul al-din manuscript by Ibn Khaldun, personally dated 752/1351 (Royal El Escorial Monastery Library, Madrid). In this handwritten manuscript you can see Ibn Khaldun’s North African calligraphy. The book is a summary of two theological works of similar content.
