Record Price For 13th Century Quran

LONDON - A Quran written in 1203, believed to be the oldest known complete copy, has sold for more than $2.3 million at an auction.
The holy book, which had been estimated to sell for up to $715,000, fetched $2,327,300 at Tuesday's auction in London, Christie's said.

That was a record auction price for a Quran or any type of Islamic manuscript, the auctioneer Christie's said.

A nearly complete, 10th-century Kufic Quran, thought to be from North Africa or the near East, sold $1,870,000.

Both were offered for sale by the Hispanic Society of America, and were purchased by trade buyers in London, Christie's said.

The record-setting Quran was signed by Yahya bin Muhammad ibn 'Umar, dated 17 Ramadan 599 (June 1203).

It was acquired in Cairo in 1905 by Archer Milton Huntington, who founded the Hispanic Society in New York City in 1904. Huntington, the adopted son of railroad and ship-building magnate Collis P. Huntington, died in 1955.

The calligraphy in the manuscript was done in gold outlined in thin black lines, and the marginal notes are in silver outlined in red.

The kufic Quran bridges a gap between the earlier style, copied on parchment of horizontal format, and the later style of vertical composition, often on paper, Christie's catalog said.

The kufic script takes its name from Kufah in Iraq, an early center of Islamic scholarship, according to the British Library.

Because the script's vertical strokes were very short but the horizontal strokes elongated, it was written on papers in a landscape format.

Sony's 'Sackboy'

Sony's 'Sackboy' game delayed amid fears background music may offend Muslims

PlayStation game LittleBigPlanet featuring Sackboy has been delayed amid fears music lyrics may upset Muslims

It seems impossible that a console game featuring a cute boy made out of discarded sack could possibly offend anybody.

But the release of Sony's PlayStation title starring the lovable character Sackboy has been delayed amid fears it may upset Muslims.

The eagerly-awaited game LittleBigPlanet mistakenly included a background music track containing expressions from the Koran.

It was reported the game would be re-programmed without the offending song by Mali-born singer Toumani Diabate.

A statement on the LittleBigPlanet website said: 'We're sure that most of you have heard by now that one of the background music tracks that was licensed from a record label for use in the game contains two expressions that can be found in the Koran.

'We have taken immediate action to rectify this and we sincerely apologise for any offence this may have caused.

'We will begin shipping LittleBigPlanet to retail in North America the week of October 27.'

The British-created game features a rag doll hero called Sackboy.

Players can customise the toy and then control it to run and jump through a world designed to appeal to all ages.

The concept was developed by games designer Media Molecule, based in Guildford, Surrey, and allows players to design their own level in detail and share it with friends over the internet.

A statement on Media Molecule's website said they were 'shell-shocked and gutted' by the delay.

Big hopes: A scene from the eagerly-awaited game which is expected to help Sony win the games console war

'We learnt... that there is a lyric in one of the licensed tracks which some people may find offensive, and which slipped through the usual screening processes,' it said.

'Obviously MM and Sony together took this very seriously. LBP should be enjoyable by all.'

Experts say the game, one of the most eagerly awaited for Sony's PlayStation console, could see the company taking a lead over rival Microsoft - who make the Xbox.