New standard for academic publishing using computer-aided Arabic typography

Laban Kaptein’s critical text edition of the Dürr-i meknûn is arguably the first academic monograph in history with computer-aided Arabic typography, and bespoke page layout, composed with Winsoft Tasmeem, (Grenoble, France), advanced software that does ample justice to the calligraphic variations in the Ottoman script. Indeed, the graceful cadence and atmosphere of the original texts is brought to life.

To see more, visit the sample pages.

Remember, this book is self-published, so please order only directly through my website. Thank you for your understanding.

The composition revives a quality that was assumed to have been lost to academic publishers since the demise of hand compositing and lithography.

Among various additional characters that were designed specially for this book are a small capital scharfes S and a double paragraph symbol:

Typographer and type designer Eyal Holtzman also produced several custom Arabic forms:

 

Each page is carefully arranged for maximum reader convenience. The complex, multilingual text creates a restful impression throughout. The chapter titles form a particularly elegant feature, with Holtzman’s proprietary typeface Kristal used to great effect as initial letter:

The book is bound in deerskin leather, alluding to Bican’s struggle against the deer worship of his time, which figures prominently in the Dürr-i Meknûn: