‘Peasant librarians’ vs. the desert

In Mauritania, in the village of Chinguetti gradually overcome by sand, the inhabitants are fighting to save centuries-old manuscripts, among the oldest of Islam.

These \”peasant librarians\” are struggling to save this treasure from wind and sand, an account of the time when Chinguetti was a flourishing city along the caravan route, a cultural lighthouse for poets and scholars alike.

A gallery of photos by Remi Benali.