RIYADH, 25 September 2004 — King Fahd National Library (KFNL) will participate in the Frankfurt international book fair next month. This major book fair, to open on Oct. 6, will feature the KFNL titles and references that focus on a range of subjects related to Saudi Arabia.
The library, which has a number of books written by German authors besides references and compilations in the German language, will also display a number of rare German books on the history of Islam and Arabs and the Arabian peninsula. KFNL, whose participation in the book fair, will help to promote Islamic values and Arab traditions in their right perspectives, is the biggest library in the Middle East with an expanded facility to stack an additional 3.3 million books, periodicals and manuscripts.
KFNL boasts 800,000 books; 100,000 stamps; 24,000 coins; 25,000 audio-visual dics and 15,000 microfilms including titles in German. The library, which has a collection of some 4,000 rare Arabic manuscripts, has received recently the oldest historical document of the Kingdom belonging to late King Abdul Aziz dating back to 1320 H. The document was written 140 days after conquering Riyadh and is stamped by King Abdul Aziz.
This historical document, which has a hole in the middle as this was kept folded for a long time, has now been restored to the library’s special section. This rare manuscript is a message from late King Abdul Aziz calling on Muslims to unify their ranks and rally behind the banner of monotheism and ensure good behavior and deeds. In fact, the patronage of the royal family, particularly Prince Salman, governor of Riyadh, has led to the enrichment of the library’s collection through the years.
