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New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani has announced that the Ottoman-era Quran manuscript he used while taking the oath of office is now being put on display at the New York Public Library (NYPL), opening to visitors as of Jan. 7, 2026. Mamdani has framed the manuscript as part of a “new era” for the city, while also underlining that the volume should be seen as belonging to all New Yorkers.
Mamdani took office on Jan. 1, 2026, placing his hand on a Quran dating to the 18th century and produced in Ottoman-era Syria. He later shared that the manuscript had once been owned by historian Arturo Schomburg and is now held through the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, which is part of NYPL. He described the text as being written mostly in black ink, with parts highlighted in red.
Mamdani, a 34-year-old Democrat born in Uganda, has been described as the first Muslim to serve as New York City mayor, as well as the first South Asian and first African-born person to hold the position.
Reporting cited from The Associated Press said Mamdani marked his swearing-in with three different Qurans. During a ceremony held in a private, long-closed subway station beneath City Hall, a small Schomburg Quran was placed on top of a larger red Quran that had belonged to his grandfather. Later the same day, at a public ceremony outside City Hall led by U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, Mamdani took the oath using another Quran inherited from his grandmother, with his wife Rama Duwaji holding the book during the event.
Mamdani said the Qurans were picked out through consultations involving his first adviser, Zara Rahim, his wife Rama Duwaji, and Hiba Abad, a curator in the Middle East and Islamic Studies division at NYPL.
NYPL has also presented the public display as a limited-time exhibition titled “The People’s Quran: Making History at City Hall,” hosted in the library’s main hall at its Fifth Avenue main building.
NYPL’s description of the oath manuscript places it in the late 18th or early 19th century and says it was produced in Ottoman Syria. The library notes that the volume lacks lavish ornamentation and is written in clear naskh script, a widely used and easily legible form of connected Arabic calligraphy, which suggests it was intended for everyday use rather than ceremonial display. The identity of the original owner is not known, but the manuscript is said to have reached NYPL through Arturo Schomburg, a major figure linked to the Harlem Renaissance.
Barry Brown, curator of manuscripts, archives, and rare books at the Schomburg Center, said: “Displaying the Quran gives New Yorkers an opportunity to be part of this historic moment.”
Mamdani won New York City’s mayoral election held on Nov. 4, with CBS News data describing participation as more than 2 million voters and calling it the highest turnout since 1969.
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