6-7 December 2023: MprinT project workshop Mombasa

The MPrint Project hosted its regional workshop in the beautiful premises of National Museums of Kenya Heritage Training Institute in Mombasa on 6-7 December 2023. This was the first occasion where the MPrinT teams from Zanzibar and Lamu came together to share experiences from the mapping, digitizing and cataloguing efforts in the two locations.

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Mombasa
Lamu and Zanzibar teams together at last. From left to right: Hassan Ali Mohamed, Khaulah Abdulkadir, Habibu Mustafa Fatawi, Thwaiba Abdullah Mohamed, Khadija Issa Twahiru, Moza Zahran Mohamed, Khatib Suleiman Khatib, Mohammed Mwenje, Maryam Mansab, Adam Bakari. Photo: Anne K. Bang

Many good discussions ensued on the challenges faced by the teams who conduct excellent work in the field – building trust with custodians, handling books and manuscripts and the technical aspects of the digitizing process.It was also an occasion for MprinT researchers and regional scholars to share results from the project so far and to engage with leaders of the National Museum of Kenya and the Zanzibari Department of Museums and Antiquities.Overall, the workshop highlighted the shared scriptural heritage of coastal East Africa and the importance of joint efforts to make this available for research in the region. 

Lamu
Lamu team en route to Mombasa. Photo: Raphael Michaeli. Photo: Raphael Michaeli

Thank you to all who attended, to the National Museum of Kenya for being gracious hosts and to all who kept us well fed and in the right place at the right time.

Group photo
Photo: Hassan Ali Mohamed, NMK Lamu
Afternoon break
An afternoon break in Mombasa. From left to right: Hideaki Suzuki, Mohamed Aidaroos Noor, Aimana Assouani, Anne K. Bang, Maryam Mansab, Khadija Issa Twahiru, Rapahel Michaeli.Photo:Hassan Ali Mohamed, NMK Lamu. Photo: Hassan Ali Mohamed, NMK Lamu
VoA
Photo: Anne K. Bang