'Riyadh Reads' is the Motto of Riyadh International Book Fair 2024

The motto aims to emphasize the importance of reading in enhancing the quality of life and broadening the intellectual and cultural horizons of readers
The motto aims to emphasize the importance of reading in enhancing the quality of life and broadening the intellectual and cultural horizons of readers
TT

'Riyadh Reads' is the Motto of Riyadh International Book Fair 2024

The motto aims to emphasize the importance of reading in enhancing the quality of life and broadening the intellectual and cultural horizons of readers
The motto aims to emphasize the importance of reading in enhancing the quality of life and broadening the intellectual and cultural horizons of readers

The Saudi Literature, Publishing, and Translation Commission has announced the motto for the Riyadh International Book Fair (RIBF) as "Riyadh Reads."

The fair, organized by the commission, will be held from September 26 to October 5 at King Saud University, with the participation of leading figures in culture, literature, and thought from the Kingdom, the region, and the world.

The motto aims to emphasize the importance of reading in enhancing the quality of life and broadening the intellectual and cultural horizons of readers. It also highlights Riyadh as a city that promotes reading, featuring images of people holding books and reading with the words "Riyadh Reads," reflecting the spirit of the fair and expressing its cultural, intellectual, and literary content.

An awareness campaign for the RIBF motto was launched to attract the attention of the public, including adults, adolescents, children, readers, and publishers. The campaign includes billboards in the streets of Riyadh and King Khalid International Airport featuring images of people holding books with the slogan "Riyadh Reads."
Over 2,000 publishing houses and agencies from the Kingdom, the region, and the world will participate in this year's fair, distributed across 800 pavilions and representing over 30 countries. This reflects the significant importance of the RIBF as one of the most prominent and important book fairs at the regional and global levels.

The new edition of the fair offers a rich cultural program that includes over 200 events suitable for all ages. The events encompass various seminars, panel discussions, lectures, poetry evenings, and workshops presented by a select group of writers, intellectuals, and cultural figures from Saudi Arabia and other countries.

The topics discussed will cover various fields, and the outdoor area of the fair will feature numerous interactive shows and distinctive cultural, artistic, and theatrical events presented by a group of artists and theater professionals.



British Museum Explores ‘Silk Roads’ Trade Routes in New Exhibition

People walk in front of the British Museum in London, Britain, on September 28, 2023. (Reuters)
People walk in front of the British Museum in London, Britain, on September 28, 2023. (Reuters)
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British Museum Explores ‘Silk Roads’ Trade Routes in New Exhibition

People walk in front of the British Museum in London, Britain, on September 28, 2023. (Reuters)
People walk in front of the British Museum in London, Britain, on September 28, 2023. (Reuters)

A new exhibition exploring the vast network of the Silk Road trade routes opens at the British Museum in London this week.

Showcasing a range of artifacts including Chinese ceramics, Byzantine jewellery and the earliest known group of chess pieces, "Silk Roads" focuses specifically on the period AD 500 to 1,000, amid the rise of different empires and religions.

"This exhibition is presenting a rather different vision of the Silk Road than some people might be expecting... Rather than a single trade route between east and west, we are showing the Silk Roads plural... as a series of overlapping networks that link communities across Asia, Africa and Europe," exhibition co-curator Sue Brunning told Reuters.

"We're showing that it was not just silk and spices... but also people, objects and ideas moving sometimes great distances, not just by land, but also by sea and river and exchanges taking place in all contexts."

Highlights include loans from central Asia such as a large mural found in the reception hall of an aristocratic house in Samarkand, Uzbekistan and a gilded silver cup from the Galloway Hoard, on loan from the National Museums Scotland.

"Silk Roads" opens on Thursday and runs until February.