Name of Object:

Interior of a school, Cairo

Location:

London, United Kingdom

Holding Institution:

Victoria and Albert Museum

 About Victoria and Albert Museum, London

Date of Object:

1865

Inventory Number:

68-1890

Provenance:

United Kingdom

Description:

In this scene depicted by Lewis, the Hoja or teacher is listening to his assistant rhythmically reciting the Quran (while beating time), as some children pay attention and others not. Some commentators have regarded the presence of a young girl as inauthentic, but young girls were able to attend Quran schools, according to the artist Charles de Tournemine, the scholar Edward Lane and the translator Richard Burton. Certainly not all women were illiterate, and some female descendants of the prophet were noted for their ability to read and recite the scriptures.

Type of Object

Watercolour

Citation of this web page:

Victoria and Albert Museum "Interior of a school, Cairo" in "Sharing History", Museum With No Frontiers, 2026.
https://sharinghistory.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=object;AWE;uk;76;en

Prepared by: Victoria and Albert Museum

MWNF Working Number: UK 076