Artist hopes for Guinness record with 700-metre Quran

Self-taught Egyptian man spent three years reproducing the Muslim holy book on a huge paper scroll.

Mohammed wants to submit his Quran for inclusion in Guinness World Records [Mohamed Abd El Ghany/Reuters]

by Al Jazeera

An Egyptian self-taught artist has spent three years creating what he hopes is the world’s biggest Quran and wants to submit it for inclusion in Guinness World Records.

Saad Mohammed, who has hand-painted Islamic motifs on the walls and ceilings of his home in the town of Belqina, north of the capital, Cairo, has reproduced the Muslim holy book on a paper scroll 700 metres long.

He displays the intricately decorated manuscript in a large wooden box with rollers at each end.

Mohammed spent three years reproducing the Quran on a huge paper scroll [Mohamed Abd El Ghany/Reuters]

“This Quran is 700 metres long, and of course that’s a large amount of paper,” Mohammed told Reuters Television.

“I self-funded this project for the past three years – and I’m an average person. I don’t have assets or anything.”

Guinness says that while there is a record for the world’s biggest printed Quran, there is so far no record holder for the largest handwritten version.

Mohammed says he is hoping for help with the costs of applying to Guinness from the government or any other interested party.

Mohammed says he is hoping for help with the costs of applying to Guinness [Mohamed Abd El Ghany/Reuters]