Cataloging is complete for two new collections from Yemen: the libraries of the al-Sirājī (Maktabat al-Ḥasan ibn Qāsim al-Sirājī) and al-ʻAntharī (Maktabat al-ʻAntharī) families. Images were provided by the Zaydi Manuscript Tradition project at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey.

The al-Sirājī library includes 62 manuscripts on a variety of topics such as Zaydī law, hadith, and theology, along with numerous examples of poetry. The oldest dated manuscript in the collection is a commentary on the Qurʼan from 1426 (ZMT 02999), but there are several undated manuscripts that are likely significantly older. On the other hand, some manuscripts in the collection were produced as recently as 2002 (ZMT 02973), generally containing texts by members of the al-Sirājī family themselves. The al-Sirājī family originates from the town of Ḥūth, and several manuscripts contain important genealogical information on the notable families of Ḥūth, accompanied by complex family tree diagrams. View now

The al-ʻAntharī collection includes 13 manuscripts of important texts on law, hadith, and theology, with dates ranging from 1588 (ZMT 03062) to 1862 (ZMT 03059). Both collections are entirely Arabic, with the exception of one manuscript in the al-Sirājī library (ZMT 02965) that contains a small amount of Ottoman Turkish.  View now