Daniel Lowe and Lucia Noor Melita- A new fragment of the Blue Qur’an in the British Library’s collection?

About the Talk

In this talk, Lucia Noor Melita and Daniel Lowe examine a manuscript fragment recently discovered at the British Library. This previously unidentified fragment of blue parchment bearing Qur’anic text in gold Kufic script was found in the Library’s storage in spring 2024. At first glance, it appears to belong to the famed 9th or 10th-century Blue Qur’an, whose folios and bifolios are dispersed among institutions and private collections across the globe, and which continue to surface periodically at auction.

Despite the extensive documentation and scholarship on the Blue Qur’an, the British Library is not known to hold any of its folios or bifolios, and this fragment appears to be unrecorded in the Library’s catalogues. The talk compares the fragment with documented examples of the Blue Qur’an through an examination of its textual, palaeographic, and material features, as well as its page layout, condition, provenance, and custodial history. It will also present the results of a recent first phase of scientific analysis undertaken on the fragment, comparing its material features with those observed in the Blue Qur’an. In doing so, the speakers aim to offer new insights into the fragment’s possible origins and significance, introduce it to the scholarly community, and reflect on the circumstances under which it appears to have eluded both curatorial and academic attention.

About the Speakers

Lucia Noor Melita is the Lead Conservation Scientist at the British Library, where she manages the analytical and imaging labs, guiding the technical examination of the Collection and supporting the scientific and conservation research programme. She completed her PhD in Materials Science at UCL. She has expertise in the analysis of a wide range of materials, both traditional and modern, and of museum and library objects, including books and manuscripts, paintings, works on paper, photographs, plastics and decorative art. Prior to joining the British Library, Lucia worked as a scientist on modern materials at the V&A and held post-doctoral positions at the British Museum and in the Material Studies Laboratory at UCL.

Daniel Lowe is Curator of Arabic Collections at the British Library, where he works across manuscript and printed materials. His curatorial practice and research engage both historical and contemporary collections, with a particular focus on the visual culture of the Middle East and North Africa. In 2022, his work was recognised with the Art Fund’s New Collecting Award. He has curated exhibitions including Comics and Cartoon Art from the Arab World (2017), Passports and Documents in the Hands of Artists (2024–25), and Fighting to Be Heard (2025), part of Bradford UK City of Culture. Prior to joining the British Library in 2012, he worked on museum, library, and cultural heritage projects across the Middle East.

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