WWI - Miniature Islamic Koran printed for Muslim Soldiers - Koran, printed around 1900. Copies were frequently issued to Muslim soldiers fighting with the Allied troops during World War I. Measures 27mm (1.1") by 20mm (0.75") by 10mm (0.3") thick. Tens of thousands of Muslim soldiers were sent from India (Pakistan) overseas. Religious artefacts, such as Korans and Brahminical threads, were of particular importance to Indian soldiers. A charity, the Indian Soldiers' Fund, was set up in Britain to supply such items. Religious artefacts and ritual occasions, such as the Guru's birthday (for Sikhs) or the end of the fast of Ramadan (for Muslims), perhaps took on greater significance because the men were so far from home. 1,105,000 Indian personnel had been sent overseas as part of the allied forces, 138,000 to France, 657,000 to Mesopotamia (most of which is now contained within modern-day Iraq), 144,000 to Egypt and Palestine. Smaller contingents to Aden, East Africa, Gallipoli and Salonika.