The Bibliotheca Alexandrina (BA), the iconic modern-day incarnation of the 3rd-century BC Library of Alexandria, has received a rare books gift of great value.
Dr Moustafa Elfeki, Director of the BA, was handed a remarkable donation from Dr Essam Khadra, a doctor and an intellectual of Palestinian origin, who has been living in Austria for the last fifty years, and who has been friends with Dr Elfeki since the latter was Egypt’s Ambassador to Austria in the 1990s.
The donation consists of three encyclopedias: two on the history of art in Europe in the 19th and 20th centuries that includes rare photos, and one from the 14th century.
Austrian-based Lebanese novelist Sonia Boumad, hand the books to Dr Elfeki on behalf of Dr Khadra.
Dr Elfeki expressed his gratitude for this valuable donation, which strengthens the status of the BA as a cultural institution that attracts masterpieces of art and literature from all cultures.
Watani International
7 June 2022