Pilgrimage Certificate of Hajj 'Abbas Kararah

The certificate – which is part of Kararah's series entitled 'Collection [of drawings] of Islamic Holy Sites' – has views of the Holy Sanctuaries at Mecca and Medina as well as the Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem. According to the text printed under the images, Hajj 'Abbas 'Abd al-'Aziz Kararah visited Mecca on 29 dhu'l-Qa'dah 1348 (28 April 1930 ) and Medina almost a year later on 19 dhu'l-Hijjah 1349 (7 May 1931). There is no date given for visiting Jerusalem on this certificate. Given that several examples of Kararah's own pilgrimage certificates are known (including a number in the Collection) and that dates for visiting Mecca and Medina are printed and not written by hand, it is very possible that these certificates were printed and distrubuted by him as samples to advertise his work. In an almost identical certificate in the Collection (ARC.ct 39), the date for Kararah's visit to Jerusalem, 20 dhu'l-Hijjah 1350 (27 April 1932), is added by hand.