Makkah's Historical Milestone: Oldest Recorded Quran Recitation - 1885/1302H

Quran Recitation – Journeying Back in Time to Experience the Earliest Echoes of Quranic Verses (Quran Recitation ) in the Heart of Makkah” It was an explorer, a scholar, and possibly a spy, but he was also an early multimedia journalist, as Dutchman Christiaan Snouck Hurgronje showed with his mysterious 1885 photographs and audio recordings of Mecca.

Before this year’s Hajj journey, which brought Snouck to the center of Islam in the first place, his amazing collection of photos taken in sepia-toned colors of Mecca in the past will be on exhibit in Dubai.
In addition to the unsettling crackling noises that Snouck captured using Thomas Edison’s new wax cylinders. The exhibition presents an alternative viewpoint of the ornate and polished Mecca that modern visitors are so accustomed to.

One of the newly restored platinum photos, taken from a neighboring hill, shows the Kaaba, the famous cubic building that Muslims consider to be the most sacred place on earth.

The garish compound that encircles it is mirrored in the modern layout of Mecca; the austere city from Snouck’s day bears only a passing similarity to the simple tents that the campers set up on the dusty plains outside the city.

Elie Domit, creative director of Dubai’s Empty Quarter gallery, which is holding the display, said that the pictures are even more amazing given the lengths he went to in order to acquire them.

“People tend to forget about the issue because today’s cameras are so flexible and lightweight,” he stated to CNN. “In the day of Snouck, they weigh around 40 kg and he was required to carry all the necessary chemicals to develop and he could have done on-site.”

“And He recorded sound in addition to taking pictures. Do you think it would be worth it to go through all the anguish and suffering to freeze the moment in time? It’s intriguing.”

Domit as Domit argues that the life story of Snouck himself is equally fascinating. He was an early traveler and a rare Westerner in Mecca, but before adopting to Islam, he enthusiastically embraced the faith and culture of his hosts.

The five-year trip recorded the preparations for the Hajj. He had intended to stay for the Hajj pilgrimage, but he was forced to depart because of unfounded rumors that he was part of a scheme to pilfer a historical artifact.

Being among the very first Europeans there was a suspicion of his ideas, and especially because he gained the trust that of Ottoman chief,” said Domit.

“So when they learned of the story that he was a burglar He had to flee and leave his camera equipment left behind.”

Quran Recitation – There was no need to throw away the camera. Following Snouck’s exit, Mecca’s first native photographer may have been Al-Sayyid Abd al-Ghaffar, a physician who worked with the Dutchman and was the first to utilize the camera.

Al-Ghaffar kept sending Snouck, in the Netherlands, his photos for publication. Although most of the images were originally given sole credit to Snouck, they are now shared credit, and experts are unable to identify the photographer.

Four years after Snouck’s visit, the photos, which were kept at the Leiden University Library, were made public. According to the museum, original copies are on sale for about $45,000.
Domit claimed that there was more to Snouck than just audio and visuals.

“He has never claimed that the spy was him because there was not Hollywood to fork over a lot of money to hear his tale, but there have been numerous documents and even historians who have claimed this.”He was most likely serving as an informer for the Dutch, who were looking for information on Muslim insurgents attempting to topple Dutch colonial authority.

Netherlands. However, he was also very intelligent and committed, and he had great confidence in the situation of Islam today. He was a paradox in a way. A man was given an assignment, but after he arrived at the mission, he was persuaded to convert to Islam.

“I’m certain in terms of his persona, it was difficult.”

Quran Recitation – According to Domit, Snouck left his pregnant Ethiopian bride behind when he fled Mecca and later remarried while working in what is now Indonesia. “As I recall, he was married several times. When the Dutch government covers your bill, it is quite convenient.”

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