TEVFIK, Ebüzziya.

Inquire · Offered by Peter Harrington

1317 Sene-i Hicriyesine Mahsûs Takvîm ün-Nisâ ("Women's Almanac for the Hijri Year 1317"). A very rare issue of this Ottoman almanac, published by the renowned polymath Ebüzziya Tevfik (d. 1913). Designed exclusively for women, this diary exemplifies the broadening of the Ottoman print market in the late 19th century and demonstrates how the press shaped popular ideals of womanhood. We locate only two copies on Worldcat, and a further copy at the Turkish Historical Society.In addition to including a weekly calendar, the almanac offered its readers notes and remarks on a diverse range of female figures from history, such as the Prophet Muhammad's wives, Khadija and 'Aisha, Queen Victoria, and Nur Jahan (c.1577-1645), the queen consort of the Mughal emperor Jahangir. A further illustrated section at the end of the diary surveys the women of the European royal houses at the time of publication and celebrities, such as Sarah Bernhardt. Collectively, the portrayals of women in the volume exemplify Tevfik's ideal of femininity, which he borrowed from Benjamin Franklin. Tevfik was a journalist, a writer, and "the most important Ottoman publisher of the late nineteenth century" (Türesay, p. 234). From his publishing house, Matbaa-i Ebüzziya (The Ebüzziya Press), he published his own magazine and a series of biographies and pamphlets on topical subjects. In all, he compiled and released 14 almanacs, including the present volume and a special Christian diary. The diaries are renowned f

Found via Rare Books Intel, a search across rare-book dealers, auction houses and marketplaces worldwide.