The Art of the Qur’an: Treasures from the Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts
The Freer | Sackler, Washington DC
October 15, 2016 - February 20, 2017The Freer | Sackler, Washington DC
Qur’an
Afghanistan, Herat, Timurid period, 1434
Ink, color, and gold on paper
Each page 35.3 x 25 cm
Istanbul, Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts, TIEM 294
Afghanistan, Herat, Timurid period, 1434
Ink, color, and gold on paper
Each page 35.3 x 25 cm
Istanbul, Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts, TIEM 294
Qur’an folio
Near East, Abbasid period, 10th century
Ink, gold, and color on parchment
20.9 x 28.3 cm
Istanbul, Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts, SE 611
The first major exhibition of Qur’ans (Korans) in the U.S., “The Art of
the Qur’an: Treasures from the Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts,” will
open at the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Oct. 15 and continue through Feb.
20, 2017.
The exhibition was organized by the Sackler in collaboration with the Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts in Istanbul. It will feature more than 60 of the most important Qur’an manuscripts ever produced from the Arab world, Turkey, Iran and Afghanistan.
Celebrated
for their superb calligraphy and lavish illumination, these manuscripts
span almost 1,000 years of history—from eighth-century Damascus, Syria,
to 17th-century Istanbul. Many of the works, which will be on view
outside of Turkey for the first time, are critical to the history and
appreciation of the arts of the book.This landmark exhibition
tells the individual stories of some of these extraordinary manuscripts,
their makers and their owners. Visitors will learn how the Qur’an was
transformed from an orally transmitted message to a written, illuminated
and bound text produced by highly accomplished artists from the Islamic
world.
These Qur’ans were originally created for some of the
most powerful rulers of the Islamic world. As the finest examples of
their kind, long after their completion the manuscripts were sought out
and cherished as prized possessions by the Ottoman ruling elite, whose
power once extended from southeast Europe to northern Africa and the
Middle East. They were offered as gifts to cement political and military
relationships or recognize special acts, and they were also given to
public and religious institutions to express personal piety and secure
political power and prestige. Donations of Qur’ans to libraries and
public institutions by royal women expressed their commitment to
contemporary religious and social life.
Qur’an
Calligrapher: Abd al-Qadir b. Abd al-Wahhab b. Shahmir al-Husayni
Iran, Shiraz, Safavid period, ca. 1580
Ink, color, and gold on paper
Each page 58 x 39 cm
Istanbul, Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts, TIEM 247
Qur'an (juz)
Iraq, Baghdad, Il-Khanid period, 1307-8
Gold, color, and ink on paper
70.8 x 48.5 cm
Istanbul, Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts, TIEM 538
Shortly before 1914, when the Ottoman Empire was in political
turmoil, its government decided to transfer to Istanbul all valuable
works of art that had been donated to mosques, schools, shrines and
other religious institutions across the empire. These included thousands
of the most ornate Qur’an manuscripts and loose folios, which are
housed today in the Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts, located in the
heart of the historical city, opposite the so-called Blue Mosque.
“This exhibition offers a unique opportunity to see Qur’ans of different origins, formats and styles and begin to appreciate the power and beauty of the calligraphy as well as intricacy of the illuminated decoration,” said Massumeh Farhad, the Freer and Sackler’s chief curator and curator of Islamic art. “Although each copy of the Qur’an contains an identical text, the mastery and skill of the artists have transformed it into a unique work of art.”
“The Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts in Istanbul has one of the most extraordinary collections of Qur’ans in the world, yet its holdings are little known even to many experts,” said Julian Raby, The Dame Jillian Sackler Director of the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery and Freer Gallery of Art. “This exhibition provides an unparalleled opportunity for audiences in the United States to appreciate the artistry of Muslim scribes and craftsmen over more than a millennium, in regions from North Africa to Afghanistan.”
Qur’an
Calligrapher: Khalil Allah b. Mahmud Shah
Turkey, Ottoman period, September 1517
Ink, color, and gold on paper
Each page 37 x 29 cm
Istanbul, Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts, TIEM 224
A multi-author, full-color catalog published by the Freer and Sackler will feature a series of essays on the Qur’an, its calligraphy, illumination and organization as a text, as well an introduction to the formation of the Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts. The catalog will also include detailed discussions of each of the artworks in the exhibition.
A website will offer additional resources on the art of the Qur’an for online and on-site visitors. These include videos, “closer looks” at several manuscripts, an interactive map and curriculum plans. In addition to extensive public programs, an international symposium on the art of the Qur’an will be held December 1–3.
“The Art of the Qur’an: Treasures from the Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts” is organized by the Freer and Sackler and the Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts in Istanbul. Koç Holding is the exhibition’s principal sponsor, with major support provided by Turkish Airlines and Roshan Cultural Heritage Institute and additional support from the El-Hibri Foundation. It has been curated by Farhad and Simon Rettig, assistant curator at the Freer and Sackler.
The Freer and Sackler have presented other major exhibitions featuring important religious objects and publications, including “In the Beginning: Bibles Before the Year 1000” in 2006 and “The Tibetan Shrine from the Alice S. Kandell Collection” in 2010. The museums most recently collaborated with the Topkapi Palace Museum in Istanbul on “Style and Status” in 2005.
The Freer and Sackler Galleries
www.asia.si.edu
