TEHRAN – An Iranian craftsman has started creating a delicate copy of the Holy Quran applying the techniques of engraving and stone inlay.

“That would be the first [copy of the] Holy Quran being made of stone using the techniques of engraving and stone inlay…. and all processes of this artwork are being carried out by hands,” ISNA quoted the tourism chief of Qom province, Alireza Arjmandi, as saying on Saturday.

“The diameter of the pages is two millimeters… So far, no such similar work has been made with this volume,” the official said.

The artwork is being created in Qom province by Seyyed Hossein Mirehei, the report said.

The second-holiest city of the country after Mashhad, Qom is home to both the magnificent shrine of Hazrat-e Masumeh (SA) and the major religious madrasas (schools).

Apart from sightseers and pilgrims who visit Qom to pay homage at the holy shrine, the city is also a top destination for Shiite scholars and students who come from across the world to learn Islamic studies at its madrasas and browse through eminent religious bookshops.

The antiquity of Qom goes back to the Sassanid era (224 CE–651) and several historical mosques, mansions, and natural sceneries have been scattered across the city as well as towns and villages nearby.

AFM