GabyNot long ago, a peculiar package arrived at the manuscript department of the Saltykov-Shchedrin Public Library in Leningrad from Central Asia. It was too small and too heavy to be a book. But when they opened the package, their surprise only grew: inside lay a small clay brick. The mystery was revealed in a letter accompanying it: through the cracks in the brick, sheets of paper were visible.
For about six months, restorers in Leningrad worked diligently to uncover the manuscript hidden within the brick. Their meticulous, almost jewel-like craftsmanship paid off. They extracted a handwritten book—a copy of the “Divan-i Hikmet,” a collection of wisdom written by Ahmad Yasawi, who lived in the 12th century AD. Scholars determined that the manuscript was crafted over two hundred years ago.
