The filming of the documentary “The Beginning of the Golden Age of Islamic Civilization: Caliph Ma’mun and Bayt al-Hikmah,” authored by Prof. Dr. Bekir Karlığa, scripted by Bekir Kerem Kurt, and produced by the Istanbul International Society for Civilization Studies (MED-AR), took place at the Konya Chamber of Commerce (KTO) Karatay University Film Studio.
The documentary film unfolds the story of the rich accumulation of science and thought that reached its peak with the establishment of Bayt al-Hikmah (House of Wisdom) in Baghdad by Caliph Ma’mun, following the rapid development under the famous Abbasid Caliph Harun al-Rashid, featured in the tales of One Thousand and One Nights. Led by the renowned Islamic philosopher Al-Kindi, this intellectual endeavour resulted in the translation of a significant portion of works from ancient Mesopotamia, Babylon, Greece, Iran, Egypt, and India into Arabic, saving them from obscurity.
“A Grand Transfer of Knowledge, Thought, and Culture Comes to the Screen”
Shot at the KTO Karatay University Film Studio, the docudrama documentary explores the sidelining of philosophers by the Roman and Byzantine Empires, particularly after the acceptance of Christianity, and the closure of the last Athens Philosophy School by Byzantine Emperor Justinian. The documentary delves into the lost works of the ancient civilization that had been on the verge of disappearing entirely after all philosophers interested in these topics were expelled from the Roman and Byzantine Empires, portraying one of the significant transfers of knowledge, thought, and culture witnessed by history.
“Journey to the Glorious Period of Islamic Civilization”
The docudrama documentary, featuring the participation of Syriac Nestorian, and Jacobite translators, as well as numerous Muslim scientists, discusses the translation of works by ancient thinkers such as Pythagoras, Plato, Aristotle, Galen, and Euclid into Arabic. Hosted by the KTO Karatay University film studio, the documentary aims to bring the story of the greatest cultural initiative in history and the journey leading to the glorious period of Islamic civilization to contemporary audiences.
