The Khalili Collections | Khalili Foundation

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PROFESSOR SIR NASSER D.

KHALILI phd kbe kss kcss founder the khalili collections khalili foundation



“In reality everything in life belongs to the lord above; we are but temporary custodians” Professor Sir Nasser David Khalili



professor sir nasser d. khalili phd kbe kss kcss founder the khalili collections khalili foundation


Published by The Khalili Family Trust London, 2022 ©The Khalili Family Trust P.O. Box 2827, London w1x 5 nl www.khalilicollections.org www.nasserdkhalili.com www.khalili.foundation All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the prior permission in writing of The The Khalili Family Trust. Within the UK, exceptions are allowed in respect of any fair dealing for the purpose of research or private study, or criticism or review, as permitted under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988, or in the case of reprographic reproduction in accordance with the terms of the licences issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency. Enquiries concerning reproduction outside these terms and in other countries should be sent to The Khalili Family Trust at the address above.


THE KHALILI FAMILY TRUST the khalili family trust was established to manage the affairs and assets of the family, including the eight collections, and to fulfil five criteria which define the word ‘collector’, namely, to collect, conserve, research, publish and exhibit

NOUR AND KIBO FOUNDATIONS the nour foundation and the kibo foundation are part of the khalili family trust

the khalili family trust is responsible for the publication costs of all its catalogues


THE EIGHT COLLECTIONS professor sir nasser d. khalili has been a passionate art collector since 1970. after five decades of collecting and fourty years of publishing, the khalili family trust will be represented in a series of more than 100 books and exhibition catalogues, of which 80 have already been published, showcasing some 35,000 works of art from the eight khalili collections.

islamic art

700–2000

hajj and the arts of pilgrimage aramaic documents

700–2000

353–324 bc

japanese art of the meiji period

1868–1912

japanese kimono

1700–2000

swedish textiles

1700–1900

spanish damascene metalwork enamels of the world

1850–1900

1700–2000


islamic art 700–2000

Silver-inlaid casket with remains of a combination lock Jazira, northern Iraq, early 13th century 20.5 × 19.5 × 16 cm


hajj and the arts of pilgrimage 700–2000

Ivory figurine of a camel and rider Iraq or Syria, 8th–9th century 25.5 × 24.5 cm


aramaic documents 353–324 bc

Letter from Akhvamazda to Bagavant, by the scribe Nurafratara, in ink on leather Bactria, mid-4th century bc 22.7 × 31.5 cm


japanese art of the meiji period 1868–1912

Silver figurine of a dragon with gilding, shakudo, copper and crystal ball by Kuninori Japan, c. 1900 11.7 cm


japanese kimono 1700–2000

Outer kimono for a young woman in silk and metal thread Japan, 1840–70 173.5 × 123 cm


swedish textiles 1700–1900

Carriage cushion cover Sweden, 1800–50 52 × 88.5 cm


spanish damascene metalwork 1850–1900

Iron shrine, with gold and silver, to the Virgin and Child by Plácido Zuloaga (1834–1910) Spain, 1880 47.3 × 25 cm


enamels of the world 1700–2000

Silver-gilt and enamel bread and salt dish by Pavel Ovchinnikov Russia, 1882–3 62.8 cm diameter 12

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contents

biography

Honours and Awards Key Lectures French Honour Personal Information The Eight Collections

khalili foundation Global Partnerships Faith in the Commonwealth GCED Toolkit UNESCO 37 Promoting Cultural Diversity The World Day for Cultural Diversity The Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity Prince’s Trust Maimonides Interfaith Initiative Interfaith Explorers House of Peace Visions of Splendour Gifts and Grants University Endowments Cultural Heritage Gifts Gifts to the British Museum Gift to the Ashmolean Museum Holy Qur’an presented by Sir David to President François Hollande Gifts to UNESCO Gift to School of Oriental and African Studies Gift to United Nations Global Humanitarian Positions Global Hope Foundation UNESCO Interpol Foundation for safer world

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32 33 34 38 39 40 44 47 49 53 62 64 64 66 66 68 69 70 72 73 74 74 75 78


contents

publications of the eight collections

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ISLAMIC ART (700–2000)

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VOLUME i The Abbasid Tradition: Qur’ans of the 8th to 10th centuries ad ii The Master Scribes: Qur’ans of the 10th to 14th centuries ad iii After Timur: Qur’ans of the 15th and 16th centuries iv The Decorated Word: Qur’ans of the 17th to 19th centuries Parts One & Two V The Art of the Pen: Calligraphy of the 14th to 20th centuries VI Bills, Letters and Deeds: Arabic papyri of the 7th to 11th centuries VII Learning, Piety and Poetry: Manuscripts from the Islamic world VIII Paintings from India IX Cobalt and Lustre: The first centuries of Islamic pottery X A Rival to China: Later Islamic pottery Parts One & Two XI Brasses, Bronze and Silver of the Islamic Lands in Four Parts XII Science, Tools and Magic Part One, Body and Spirit, Mapping the Universe Part Two, Mundane Worlds XIII Seals and Talismans Parts One & Two XIV Textiles, Carpets and Costumes Parts One & Two XV Glass: From Sasanian antecedents to European imitations XVI Ornament and Amulet: Rings of the Islamic lands XVII The Art of Adornment: Jewellery of the Islamic lands Parts One & Two XVIII Gems and Jewels of Mughal India: Jewelled and enamelled objects from the 16th to 20th centuries XIX Dinars and Dirhams: Coins of the Islamic lands Part One, The early period XX Dinars and Dirhams: Coins of the Islamic lands Part Two, The later period XXI The Arts of War: Arms and armour of the 7th to 19th centuries XXII Lacquer of the Islamic Lands Parts One & Two XXIII Occidentalism: Islamic art in the 19th century

88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98

99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110


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XXIV Monuments and Memorials Carvings and tile work from the Islamic world XXV The Tale and the Image Part One, History and epic paintings from Iran and Turkey XXVI The Tale and the Image Part Two, Illustrated manuscripts and album paintings from Iran, Turkey and Egypt XXVII A Compendium of Chronicles: Rashid al-Din’s illustrated history of the world Turcoman Jewellery The Khalili Falnamah The Khalili Portolan Atlas A Facsimile Edition with text: Piri Reis and Turkish mapmaking after Columbus

Academic monographs: Studies in the Khalili Collection I Selected Arabic Papyri II Piri Reis and Turkish Mapmaking after Columbus III Bactrian Documents from Northern Afghanistan Part I: Legal and Economic Documents, Revised edition Bactrian Documents from Northern Afghanistan Part II: Letters and Buddhist Texts Bactrian Documents from Northern Afghanistan Part III: Plates IV Arab-Byzantine Coinage V Arabic Documents from Early Islamic Khurasan

HAJJ AND THE ARTS OF PILGRIMAGE

A series of 10 volumes Hajj and The Arts of Pilgrimage

ARAMAIC DOCUMENTS (353–324 bc)

Aramaic Documents from Ancient Bactria

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114 115 116 117

119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126

128 141 144

145 150


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JAPANESE ART OF THE MEIJI PERIOD (1868–1912) Meiji No Takara – Treasures of Imperial Japan I Selected Essays II Metalwork, Parts One & Two III Enamel IV Lacquer, Parts One & Two V Ceramics, Part One: Porcelain V Ceramics, Part Two: Earthenware VI Masterpieces by Shibata Zeshin Japonisme and the Rise of the Modern Art Movement The arts of the Meiji period Embroidered Wonders Meiji era textiles in the Khalili Collections

JAPANESE KIMONO (1700–2000) Kimono: The Art and Evolution of Japanese Fashion from the Khalili Collection English Edition French & Italian Editions Images of Culture: Japanese Kimono 1915–1950 in the Khalili Collections

SWEDISH TEXTILES (1700–1900)

Swedish Textile Art: Traditional marriage weavings from Scania

SPANISH DAMASCENE METALWORK (1850–1900) The Art and Tradition of the Zuloagas English and Spanish editions

ENAMELS OF THE WORLD (1700–2000) Enamels of the World: 1700–2000 English and Russian editions

151 159 160 161 162 163 164 165 166 167

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175 176 177

178 183

184 189

190 197

INTERNATIONAL EXHIBITIONS

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LOANS TO MUSEUMS AND GALLERIES

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EXHIBITION CATALOGUES Empire of the Sultans: Ottoman art from the collection of Nasser D. Khalili Marvels of the East: Indian paintings of the Mughal period from the Nasser D. Khalili Collection The Arts of Islam: Treasures from the Nasser D. Khalili Collection Japanese Imperial Craftsmen: Meiji art from the Khalili Collection Treasures of Imperial Japan: Ceramics from the Khalili Collection Shibata Zeshin: Masterpieces of Japanese lacquer from the Khalili Collection Splendors of the Meiji Treasures of Imperial Japan Masterpieces from the Khalili Collection Splendors of Imperial Japan: Arts of the Meiji period from the Khalili Collection Wonders of Imperial Japan: Meiji art from the Khalili Collection Japan: Meiji-Kunst & Japonismus aus der Sammlung Khalili Beyond Imagination: Treasures of Imperial Japan from the Khalili Collection, 19th to early 20th century Ornament and Malta: An Introduction

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PUBLICATIONS BY NASSER D. KHALILI

The Timeline History of Islamic Art and Architecture Islamic Art and Culture

Khalili – Google Digitisation Initiative

Wikimedia UK Partnership Art UK Partnership Europeana Partnership

AUTHORS AND CONTRIBUTORS

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COMMENTS AND REVIEWS

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biography

PROFESSOR SIR NASSER D. KHALILI is a world-renowned scholar, collector, and philanthropist, who has often been called the ‘cultural ambassador of Islam’ by Muslim leaders worldwide. He was born in Iran in 1945, and after completing his schooling and national service there, moved to the United States in 1967, where he continued his education. He graduated in 1974 from Queens College, City University of New York, with a BA degree in Computer Science. Thereafter, in 1978 he moved to the United Kingdom, where he completed his PhD on Islamic Lacquer from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London, in 1988. Since 1970, Sir David has assembled, eight of the world’s finest and most comprehensive art collections in their field: Islamic Art (700– 2000); Hajj and the Arts of Pilgrimage (700–2000); Aramaic Documents (353–324 bc); Japanese Art of the Meiji Period (1868–1912); Japanese Kimono (1700– 2000); Swedish Textiles (1700–1900); Spanish Damascene Metalwork (1850– 1900); and Enamels of the World (1700– 2000). Together, these eight collections comprise some 35,000 works, and each collection is on its own merit the largest and most comprehensive in the world. Eventually, the Khalili Collections will be fully represented in more than 100 books, including exhibition catalogues, of which 80 have already been published. These eight collections have been shown in more than 44 major museums worldwide. Furthermore, the Khalili Collections have been major contributors to more than 70 international exhibitions. Selections from the eight collections have been exhibited in museums such as the British Museum, London (1994), the Victoria and Albert Museum, London (1997), Somerset House, London (2004), the Alhambra Palace, Granada (2001), the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (2003), the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Washington, dc (2005), the Portland Art Museum, Portland, or (2002), and the Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam (2006), among many others. Also, The Arts of Islam, Treasures from the Nasser D. Khalili Collection was shown in 2007 at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney, in 2008 at the Emirates Palace, Abu Dhabi, in 2009 at the Institut du Monde Arabe, Paris, and in 2010 at De Nieuwe Kerk, Amsterdam. In addition, in 2009, Enamels of the World 1700–2000 opened at the State Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg, while the Japanese Meiji collection was exhibited at the Kremlin Museums, Moscow, in 2017.

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biography

Sir David is also a frequent lecturer and has made notable contributions to the scholarship of Islamic art. In 1989, he founded the Nasser D. Khalili Chair of Islamic Art and Archaeology at SOAS, the first of its kind in the world devoted to the decorative arts of Islam. He has supported a research fellowship in Islamic art at the University of Oxford, and in 2005, thanks to the significant endowment of the Khalili Family Trust, whose sustaining support continues to the present day, The Khalili Research Centre for the Art and Material Culture of the Middle East at the University of Oxford was opened by its Chancellor, Lord Patten. Furthermore, in early 2011, the Khalili Family Trust endowed The Nasser D. Khalili Visiting Professorship in Islamic Studies at Queens College, City University of New York, where he had earlier graduated in 1974. In addition to his cultural and educational interests, Sir David is also a leading voice in the global movement to advance mutual respect and understanding among the nations of the world. Building bridges has been a consistent theme throughout his life’s work and he has been recognized globally for his contributions in this field. Sir David’s mission to connect people through the power of art, culture, education and the natural environment over the past three decades has resulted in his active involvement in a number of ambitious and innovative projects. One of the most purposeful of these is ‘Faith in the Commonwealth’, a unique collaboration with the Commonwealth Secretariat to support religious literacy among young people in the Commonwealth countries and beyond so that they are empowered to address the challenges that face the world today. Sir David is a co-founder and member of the Global Leadership Council of ‘The Global Hope Coalition’. It is a global platform which seeks to empower courageous individuals who stand up to terror and violence, preserve heritage and build bridges across cultures. The Khalili Foundation has co-funded, designed and delivered a Global Citizenship Education programme for the Prince’s Trust Young Leaders. In collaboration with UNESCO, the Foundation is

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also funding, producing and publishing the landmark publication to mark the 20thanniversary of the Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity. Other projects delivered through the Khalili Foundation include the House of Peace, Maimonides Interfaith Foundation and Maimonides Interfaith Explorers. It has always been Sir David’s dream to see peace and harmony between the three great monotheistic faiths become reality, and the House of Peace painting series, specially commissioned in the1990s exemplified his belief in the power of combining art with interfaith understanding. Comprising of five large-scale works by the renowned British artist Ben Johnson, the House of Peace offers a powerful vision of the Holy City of Jerusalem in all its magnificent diversity. The Maimonides Interfaith Foundation, which launched in 1995, has since become a pioneer in the field of interfaith and is at the forefront of interreligious dialogue, with projects involving sports, arts and education. Finally, Maimonides Interfaith Explorers, an ambitious educational project supported by UNESCO, offers all primary schools in England and Wales a Web-based educational curriculum to enhance religious literacy, while also helping children respect and embrace religious and cultural diversity. Solely funded by the Nasser D. Khalili Charitable Settlement, Maimonides Interfaith Explorers was launched at the Central London Mosque to coincide with the celebrations of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II’s Diamond Jubilee in 2012. Sir David also has long-standing connections with several of the world’s most respected centres of learning. He is a graduate, Associate Research Professor and Honorary Fellow of the University of London, and he was the longest serving governor in the history of SOAS. He is also an Honorary Fellow of Wolfson College, University of Oxford, and a Member of the Chancellor’s Court of Benefactors, also University of Oxford, while in May 2005 he received an Honorary Doctorate from the University of the Arts London. In the United States, he was appointed to the International Board of Overseers at Tufts University in 1997, and in 2003 received the honorary degree of Doctor of Humane Letters from Boston University, where he also served as a member of the Board of Governors.

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Numerous awards and honours have been bestowed on Sir David. In 1996 he became a Trustee of the City of Jerusalem, and in 2003 he was conferred as a Knight Commander of the Royal Order of Francis i (KCFO) for his services to charity and interreligious understanding, while in 2007 he received the High Sheriff of Greater London Award for his cultural contribution to London. Sir David is exceptional in having received knighthoods from two pontiffs, Pope John Paul II honouring him as a Knight of the Pontifical Equestrian Order of St Sylvester (KSS) in 2004 and Pope Benedict XVI further elevating him to Knight Commander in the said order (KCSS) in 2009 for his work in the pursuit of peace, education, and culture among nations. Other honours have included, in 2012, being conferred with the title of Goodwill Ambassador by Irina Bokova, the Director-General of UNESCO, while in 2014 he was the recipient of the Laureate of the Dialogue of Cultures Award at the French National Assembly, and in early 2016 he was awarded the Rank of officier in the National Order of the Legion of Honour – the highest French order of merits by French president François Hollande at the Elysée Palace in Paris. In 2018 he was appointed as a member of the Honorary Board at the INTERPOL Foundation for a Safer World. In 2019 he was elected to the prestigious Eurasian Academy and honoured with the Eurasian Legend Award for his contribution to art, culture and education. In 2020, his years of dedication have resulted in being invested with a knighthood from Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and he was included in the Queen’s Birthday Honours “for services to interfaith relations and charity”.

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honours and awards 2020 2019 2018–2019 2016 2015

Awarded knighthood in the Queen’s Birthday Honours list “FOR SERVICES TO INTERFAITH RELATIONS AND CHARITY” Eurasian Legend Award, Eurasia Academy, Baku, Azerbaijan Member of the Honorary Board, INTERPOL Foundation for a Safer World Rank of officier in the Ordre national de la Légion d’Honneur by French president François Hollande Honorary Degree, Doctor of Humanities, Honoris Causa, Franklin University, Lugano, Switzerland

2014

Laureate of the Dialogue of Cultures Award at the French Assembly

2013

Queens College President’s Medal in Recognition of His Outstanding Service

to Humanity

2012

UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador

2010

Queens College president’s award

2009

Knight Commander of the Pontifical Equestrian Order of St Sylvester (KCSS)

2007

High Sheriff of Greater London Award

2007

Citation of Honour – Borough of Queens, City of New York

2006

Member of Chancellor’s Court of Benefactors, Oxford

2005

Honorary Fellow of Wolfson College, Oxford

2005

Honorary Doctor of the University of the Arts, London

2004

Knight of the Equestrian Order of Pope St Sylvester (KSS)

2003

Knight Commander of the Royal Order of Francis I (KCFO)

2003

Honorary Degree Doctor of Humane Letters, Boston University

1996

Trustee of the City of Jerusalem

1991

Honorary Fellow, School of Oriental and African Studies,

1988 1974

University of London Doctor Of Philosophy, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London Bachelor of Arts, Queens College

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key lectures 2020

Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies, Hajj and The Arts of Pilgrimage 700 – 2000

2018

Opening address of the SOAS Graduation Ceremony 2018

2018

Keynote speech as UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador at the Arab-Mediterranean

Cultural Conference in Palermo, Sicily.

2016

SOAS, University of London. ‘The Art of Collecting’

2016

Asia House, London, ‘The Art of Collecting’

2016

Sainsbury Institute, Norwich, ‘Japonisme: the Arts of Meiji and the Rise of

2015

the Modern Artist’ Franklin University, Lugano, Switzerland, Class of 2015 Commencement

Ceremony 2015

Corpus Christi College, University of Oxford, ‘The Art of Collecting’

2015

UNESCO Day of Reflection on Intercultural Dialogue and Fragmented

2014

Societies, Paris, ‘The Real Weapon of Mass Destruction is Ignorance’ Euro-Mediterranean Meeting of Projet Aladin–Dialogue Among Cultures Award 2014 Acceptance Speech, Paris

2014

Institut Français London, ‘The Art of Collecting’

2013

Launch of the UNESCO Forum on Building Knowledge Societies for

Sustainable Human Development, Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, ‘Knowledge to

Harness Human Development and Peace’

2013 2013 2013 2013

Launch of the International Decade for the Rapprochement of Cultures (2013–22) UNESCO International Forum, Astana, Kazakhstan, ‘Art and Culture and their Role in Fostering Understanding’ UNESCO International Congress, Hangzhou, China, ‘Culture: Key to Sustainable Development’ Queens College, City University of New York, Class of 2013 Commencement

Ceremony 2012

United Nations, New York, UNESCO International Day of Peace,

‘Contemporary Challenges and Approaches to Building a Lasting

Culture of Peace’

2011 2008 2007 2005

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De Nieuwe Kerk, Amsterdam, ‘Passion for Perfection: Islamic Art from the Khalili Collection’ HRH Mohammed Bin Zayed, Majlis, Al Butten Palace, Abu Dhabi, ‘A Glorious Tradition: Islamic Art through the Ages’ Queens College, City University of New York, ‘The Art of the Possible: Bridging Cultural Divides’ Queens College, City University of New York, ‘Art and Culture of Islam and its Contribution to the West’


biography

2004

Roscoe Lecture at Liverpool Cathedral, ‘The Art of Islam: a Glorious

Tradition’ 2001

SOAS, University of London, ‘The Art of Collecting’

2001

Portland Art Museum, Portland, or, ‘The Art of Meiji’

2000

Bilbao, Spain, ‘History of Spanish Damascene 1850–1900’

1999

Wilmington, de, ‘Splendors of Meiji: the Era of Enlightenment’

1999

Tel Aviv Museum, Tel Aviv, ‘Indian Miniatures’

1996

Malmo, Sweden, ‘The History of Swedish Textile Art’

1996

Israel Museum, Jerusalem, ‘Arts of the Ottoman Empire’

1995

Victoria and Albert Museum, London, ‘Islamic Art through the

Centuries’ (under the auspices of The Board of Deputies of British Jews to

mark the First Anniversary of the Israel–Jordan Peace Treaty)

1995 1992

Musée d’Art et d’Histoire, Geneva, ‘The Art and History of Islam’ Islamic Seminar in Kuching, Malaysia, ‘Art of the Islamic Lands’

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FRENCH HONOUR At a special ceremony in the Elysée Palace, Paris, on 11 April 2016, French President François Hollande decorated Professor Sir Nasser D. Khalili with the French Republic’s highest honour, the rank of officier in the National Order of the Legion of Honour. Sir David received the decoration for his work in the ‘pursuit of peace, education and culture among nations’. Professor Khalili joins an esteemed list of British recipients of the Legion of Honour that includes Winston Churchill, Graham Greene, Paul McCartney and J.K. Rowling. Other distinguished non-French recipients around the world include Emperor Akihito, Amitabh Bachchan, Stephen Spielberg and Ratan Tata.

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NASSER D. KHALILI PhD KBE KSS KCSS

founder, the khalili collections khalili foundation

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Name Date of Birth Residence Place of Birth Nationality Education

Nasser David Khalili 18 December 1945 United Kingdom Iran British BA in Computer Science, Queens College, City University of New York, 1974 PhD in Islamic Lacquer, School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London, 1988

Marital Status

Married Marion Easton, 1978

Sons

Daniel Khalili Benjamin Khalili Raphael Khalili

Websites

www.khalilicollections.org www.nasserdkhalili.com www.khalili.foundation

Born 5 August 1981 Born 2 May 1984 Born 2 May 1984


biography

the eight collections the nasser d. khalili collection of islamic art (700–2000)

The Khalili Family Trust was originally set up by Sir David’s late father, Settlor, to act as an ‘umbrella’ for his son’s growing collection of Islamic art, which started in 1970 and today includes more than 28,000 objects covering every Muslim country worldwide.

The Khalili collection of Hajj and the Arts of Pilgrimage (700–2000) The Khalili Collections contain the largest and most important groups of objects relating to hajj and the arts associated with it after the collection in the Topkapı Palace Museum, Istanbul. Over 5,000 objects in this collection range in date from the period of the Umayyad Caliphate (661–750) to the mid-20th century and represent the entire Muslim world. They include textiles, scientific instruments, manuscripts, coins, paintings, photographs, prints and postcards, as well as rare printed books and historical documents. They have been collected with the aim of providing a comprehensive overview of the subject, illustrating the various religious, Spiritual, Cultural and Artistic aspects of pilgrimage to the holy cities of Islam and the cosmopolitan nature of hajj.

the khalili collection of aramaic documents (353–324 bc) The Khalili Collections contain the world’s largest group of Aramaic and Bactrian Documents (353–324 bc), which has been fully researched and published.

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The Khalili Collection of Japanese art of the Meiji period (1868–1912) The Khalili Collections hold the world’s greatest collection of Meiji decorative art, comprising more than 1,500 pieces of metalwork, enamels, lacquer work, ceramics and textiles including works by most of the known masters and court artists of the period 1868–1912.

The Khalili Collection of Japanese Kimono (1700–2000) The Khalili Collection of Kimono (published in two volumes) is the largest group of its type outside of Japan comprising more than 450 pieces, including textiles of cultural distinction, and represents the full scope of its history during the last three centuries. The word ‘kimono’, means ‘the thing worn’ and was coined to define t-shaped garments as opposed to Western-style ones. The collection contains stunning examples of kimono commissioned by the elite classes in complicated and diverse fabrics, in rich silk brocades and fine gauze weaves, using new forms, bold images and vibrant colours. It was researched by a group of eminent academics headed by Anna Jackson, Keeper of the Asian Department at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, and was published in 2014.

The Khalili Collection of Swedish Textiles (1700–1900) Upon realizing the similarities with Roman, Byzantine and Asian art, Sir David started collecting Swedish textiles. The collection now comprises 100 pieces, and its extraordinary patterns are not only of interest to collectors, connoisseurs and contemporary weavers, they also represent a comprehensive design source.

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The Khalili Collection of Spanish Damascene Metalwork (1850–1900) Sir David has expanded his collection to include Spanish damascene metalwork, and this collection is now unrivalled in its quality and depth. Of nearly 100 pieces, some 35 are signed by the master Spanish damascener Plácido Zuloaga, and include such well-documented pieces as the magnificent casket and pair of so-called Alhambra vases from Fonthill, made by Zuloaga for Alfred Morrison. The first exhibition of this collection was at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, in 1997–8, and was opened by the Spanish Ambassador H.E. Señor Don Alberto Aza.

The Khalili Collection of Enamels of the World (1700–2000) This pioneering collection of more than 1,350 works presents a breathtaking overview of the art of the enameller during the past three centuries. Global in its vision, it covers all the major locations of activity, including Europe, America and the Orient. It provides an unequalled opportunity to consider the subject in detail, such as the work of an individual artist, as well as in a broader context, both national and international.

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khalili foundation

KHALILI FOUNDATION Professor Sir Nasser D. Khalili is a leading voice in the global movement to advance peace, unity and mutual respect worldwide. His philanthropic and humanitarian work, channelled through the Khalili Foundation, has been recognised globally. Over the past three decades, the Khalili Foundation has become a world leader in promoting intercultural relations. The Foundation has donated several million pounds to support and drive a number of internationally recognised projects that use the power of art, culture and education to bring people together. Our partners include international organisations such as UNESCO and the Commonwealth as well as leading research and education establishments such as the University of Oxford and the School of Oriental and African Studies. The main initiatives of the Foundation are: • • • •

Global Partnerships Maimonides Interfaith Initiative Gifts and Grants Global Humanitarian Positions

Aside from these core initiatives, donations have been made regularly and anonymously to a number of charitable causes worldwide. Through its expertise and network, the Foundation has also developed and facilitated a number of successful charitable initiatives led by other notable organisations such as Oxford University, SOAS and Turquoise Mountain Foundation. www.khalili.foundation opposite page Professor Sir Nasser D. Khalili with Baroness Scotland, Secretary-General of the Commonwealth, promoting Faith in the Commonwealth at Lords Cricket Ground. 32


khalili foundation

GLOBAL PARTNERSHIPS faith in the commonwealth “Faith in the Commonwealth is investing in young people as change-makers so that they are equipped with the skills and support needed to build peace in their communities through grassroots social action that encourages constructive dialogue and mutual understanding. This would not have been possible without the generous donation from the Khalili Foundation.” The Rt Hon Patricia Scotland QC Secretary-General of the Commonwealth

Faith in the Commonwealth is a joint initiative between the Commonwealth and the Khalili Foundation to deliver Global Citizenship Education (GCED) and religious literacy in an interactive, practical and contemporary way. It builds on the Commonwealth’s investments in youth development and entrepreneurship, and in developing young people’s skills to build peace and prevent and counter violent extremism.

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khalili foundation

Global Citizenship Education builds understanding, knowledge and skills to help people build a just, inclusive, sustainable and peaceful society. The initiative has two streams: a GCED toolkit for university education, delivered in partnership with Commonwealth universities; and Youth Training of Trainer workshops, where young leaders learn practical facilitation skills to lead interfaith and intercultural dialogue and social action projects in their communities.

GCED Toolkit More and more, universities and technical schools are emphasizing internationalization and ensuring that education prepares students for lives and careers as global citizens, who are able to navigate the multiple dimensions and complexities of modern life. The GCED toolkit supports the establishment of formal GCED learning, adoption of new teaching approaches and uptake of GCED learning by Commonwealth students. Partner universities are provided with the course material and instructor training. The toolkit and teaching method uses cross-disciplinary, peer-based and hands-on learning with local case studies from current events, student journals and scholarly research. While accreditation of the toolkit is underway, the pilot universities will award students a certificate of completion. The GCED Toolkit is piloted in partnership with Bangladesh Open University, Maseno University (Kenya) and T he University of the West Indies (St Augustine Campus).

Youth Training of Trainers Workshops These workshops equip young leaders with the knowledge, capacity and tools to train and engage peers and community leaders around global citizenship thinking, and to facilitate intercultural/interfaith understanding, peacebuilding and social cohesion. Each workshop creates 26 youth trainers with the resources to deliver training workshops. Participants build confidence in their abilities and gain practical experience in facilitating training, methods and tools. Young people leave the workshops with the knowledge, skills and confidence to act as a catalyst of youth-led action. So far, we have seen

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over 100 social action activities emerging from the workshops, covering social cohesion, peace-building, education, gender equity, human rights and inter-faith dialogue.

Main Achievements Within its first year (2017-2018), the initiative has showcased the extraordinary potential of young people and educators across the Commonwealth. During this year, Faith in the Commonwealth partnered with four Commonwealth universities to deliver the GCED toolkit and trained 80 young people through Training of Trainer workshops in Bangladesh, Kenya and Trinidad and Tobago. The GCED toolkit for undergraduate students is now being piloted in three universities in the 2018/19 academic year. The toolkit comprises an Educator Guide and Student Reader, and focuses on eight global issues (climate, education, gender equality, the global economy, health, migration, peace and security, and the technological revolution), in the context of the Sustainable Development Goals. Delivered face to face during the pilot, we are planning for online delivery in 2018/19 so that it is available to as many Commonwealth universities as possible. Over 80 young people representing five Commonwealth nations have attended Youth Training of Trainers workshops. Participants design a social action project for their community using the tools and techniques taught in the workshop. Some of these projects include: • • •

Building the capacity of youth groups at the grass roots level to tackle radicalisation and the potential for violent extremism (Kenya) Arranging interfaith dialogue workshops and no hate speech campaigns across a network of universities (Bangladesh) Gender and Identity Awareness workshops for Evangelical churches, enabling youth leaders to understand the issues affecting LGBTQI youth and how to work inclusively with the community (Trinidad and Tobago)

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Sir David with Baroness Scotland, Secretary-General of the Commonwealth, launching the Peace at the Crease cricket initiative, which seeks to use sport to foster community cohesion across the Commonwealth. The matches – played at Lords and Gymkhana – were between a touring Vatican XI and a Commonwealth interfaith XI.

Khalili Foundation’s Support As the founding partner of this important initiative, the Khalili Foundation has provided (and is continuing to provide) support in the following ways:

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Developing the initiative from idea conception to delivery Providing the start-up seed funding required to recruit a dedicated team to the project, develop the GCED Module and implement Youth Training of Trainers workshops in three countries across the Commonwealth Offering expertise on the interfaith, cultural and educational aspects of the project – for example by chairing the global committee to develop the GCED Module Providing on-going strategic, communications and fundraising support


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unesco Professor Sir David Khalili, The Khalili Foundation and its initiatives have had the longstanding support of UNESCO. “UNESCO will continue to support your ongoing efforts to bring people of different cultures, faiths and beliefs together through the power of art, culture and education… I look forward to our continuing cooperation and commend you once again on your indispensable work in the pursuit of peace, education and culture among nations.” Irina Bokova, UNESCO Director-General (2009-17)

Interfaith Explorers, developed by the Khalili Foundation, has been acknowledged by UNESCO as one of the leading learning resources relating to Global Citizenship Education (GCED), and it has been integrated into the official UNESCO Clearinghouse on GCED. “Today, more than ever, we believe that your Interfaith Explorers Programme, which is available free to primary schools across England and many other countries, remains an important way to promote mutual respect that is so essential for living together peacefully in our increasingly diverse societies. I am glad that through your foundations, you are able to uphold this commitment.” Firmin Edouard Matoko, UNESCO Assistant Director-General (on behalf of current Director-General, Audrey Azulay)

The UNESCO Clearinghouse on GCED responds to the demands from UNESCO’s Member States for good quality and evidence-based information and resources on GCED under one umbrella. It is expected to facilitate information sharing and enhance knowledge and understanding of GCED. Policy-makers, planners, curriculum developers, researchers, practitioners, educators, parents and learners as well as the general public can access resources on GCED from all over the world, of various nature and in any language available.

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The Clearinghouse includes written documents and audio-visual material including policy, pedagogy, academic papers, teaching and learning material and other relevant resources on GCED. The search function is available in English, French, Spanish, Korean, Arabic, Russian and Chinese.

PROMOTING CULTURAL DIVERSITY The Khalili Foundation has conceived, funded and driven a number of projects that promote cultural diversity worldwide. Among these are a campaign to promote the World Day for Cultural Diversity and the production of a milestone publication to mark the 20th Anniversary of the UNESCO Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity.

UNESCO Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity book (Khalili Foundation 2021)

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THE WORLD DAY FOR CULTURAL DIVERSITY

António Gueterres Secretary General of the United Nations delivering a message as part of The Khalili Foundation campaign on the World Day for Cultural Diversity The Khalili Foundation spearheaded a high-level celebration of the World Day for Cultural Diversity For Development and Dialogue with a video campaign featuring: António Guterres, Secretary General of the United Nations Baroness Patricia Scotland, Secretary-General of the Commonwealth Jonathan Townsend, CEO of Prince’s Trust Baroness Valerie Amos, Masters of University College, Oxford Sir David Khalili, Chairman of the Khalili Foundation

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THE UNIVERSAL DECLARATION ON CULTURAL DIVERSITY The UNESCO Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity was adopted unanimously at the UNESCO General Conference’s 31st session. It was an opportunity for States to reaffirm their conviction that intercultural dialogue is the best guarantee of peace. Twenty years on, the protection and promotion of cultural diversity has never been more important. On the occasion of its 20th anniversary, the Khalili Foundation published a landmark book with contributions from leading cultural figures, diplomats, scholars, faith leaders, heads of international organisations and other relevant dignitaries

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Comments about the book Sumi Jo, Soprano and UNESCO Artist for Peace “Culture transcends class, gender, age, occupation and so on, and embraces the diversity of people as members of the human society. This year, on the 20th anniversary of the UNESCO Declaration of Cultural Diversity, I thank the Khalili Foundation for shining a light on this.” Baroness Patricia Scotland, Secretary-General of the Commonwealth “Our pioneering Faith in the Commonwealth project, delivered with generous support from, and in partnership with, the Khalili Foundation, is designed to promote global citizenship and religious literacy.” Jonathan Townsend, CEO of Prince’s Trust “The Prince’s Trust is proud to join the Khalili Foundation, UNESCO, the UN’s Family of nations, and organisations worldwide in marking the 20th anniversary of the Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity.” Baroness Valerie Amos, Masters of University College, Oxford “My thanks to the Khalili Foundation for promoting a global discussion on cultural diversity and to UNESCO for continuing to promote dialogue on these matters.” Paul Owens, Director of the World Cities Culture Forum “On behalf of the World Cities Forum, I would like to congratulate UNESCO on the 20th anniversary of the UNESCO Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity, and the Khalili Foundation on producing this milestone publication.” Professor Akbar S. Ahmed “It is not surprising that the Khalili Foundation is behind this milestone book on cultural diversity… Such initiatives must be fully supported if we are to achieve the harmonious future we long for.” Ernesto Ottone Ramirez, Assistant Director-General for Culture UNESCO “I welcome the initiatives of Sir David Khalili, UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador, and his Foundation to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Cultural Diversity through this publication. This is an important opportunity to reflect on where we have come from, where we are today, where we are going, and most importantly, where we want to go.”

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INTRODUCTIONS

THINK

WAQAS AHMED

Editor Preface

PROFESSOR FELIPE FERNÁNDEZ-ARMESTO

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PROFESSOR SIR DAVID KHALILI Chairman, Khalili Foundation and UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador Introduction

Physicist, ecologist and systems theorist Diversity, growth and development 10

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Anthropologist Preserving our indigenous heritage 13

FEATURED DOCUMENTS The Convention for the Protection and Promotion of Cultural Expressions

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International affairs scholar Beacons of light in the history of interfaith harmony

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PROFESSOR ADAM HABIB

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PROFESSOR VERÓNICA BOIX MANSILLA

Political scientist and Director, SOAS The intercultural approach to complex world problems

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PROFESSOR TARIQ MODOOD MBE

Cognitive scientist and educationalist Perspective-taking as a way into each other’s worlds

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PROFESSOR HAMLET ISAKHANLI

Sociologist Multiculturalism and the institutionalisation of cultural diversity

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PROFESSOR GAYATRI CHAKRAVORTY SPIVAK

Scholar, poet and founder, Khazar University Regional diversity: A view from the Caucasus

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PROFESSOR SEYYED HOSSEIN NASR

Literary and political theorist Toward a Truer diversity

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PROFESSOR AKBAR S. AHMED 16

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PROFESSOR WADE DAVIS

Philosopher Finding a metaphysical unity in diversity The Universal Declaration on Culture Diversity

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PROFESSOR VANDANA SHIVA

Environmental scholar and activist Diversity as the organising principle of all life

ERNESTO OTTONE RAMIREZ

Assistant Director-General for Culture, UNESCO Foreword

World historian Culture: An unconscionably brief history

PROFESSOR FRITJOF CAPRA

HE ANTÓNIO GUTERRES Secretary-General, United Nations Special message

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CREATE

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DEEYAH KHAN

Filmmaker and UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador Diversity of thought and the freedom of expression

HE MICHELLE BACHELET JERIA

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DANIEL BARENBOIM

Composer and founder of the East-West Divan Orchestra Music as a shared, lived and reflected practice 75

PETER GABRIEL

Musician and founder of WOMAD World music as an antidote to bigotry

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SUMI JO

Soprano and UNESCO Artist for Peace A soprano’s song to the world

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SAMI YUSUF

Composer and musician The last note: Preserving traditional music

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TAN DUN

Composer and UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador The power of cultural synthesis in music

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AMIT SOOD

Director, Google Cultural Institute Harnessing technology to explore humanity’s culture 104

HARRY VERWAYEN

Executive Director, Europeana Foundation Sharing and promoting Europe’s cultural diversity online

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GUY RYDER CBE

Director-General, ILO Valuing diversity in building a human-centred recovery

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DR CARLA BARNETT CBE

Secretary-General, CARICOM Caribbean culture: A regional perspective

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JONATHAN TOWNSEND

CEO, The Prince’s Trust Supporting young global citizens

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Founder, Wikipedia Towards knowledge equity online

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Master, University College, Oxford Influencing a culture of diversity

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MARC DE SWAAN ARONS

Founder, Institute for Real Growth How corporations can foster cultural diversity

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Equality, Diversity and Inclusion,The Open University Tackling cultural inequalities in higher education

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PAUL OWENS 112

JEREMY GILLEY

Founder, Peace One Day Making peace with our differences

Secretary-General,The Commonwealth Harnessing a commonwealth of culture

LURRAINE JONES

EUNICE OLUMIDE MBE

Model and activist From cultural bias to cultural diversity in the fashion industry

BARONESS PATRICIA SCOTLAND

BARONESS VALERIE AMOS

HARRIET WENNBERG

Executive Director, INTBAU Safeguarding traditional building and urbanism

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JIMMY WALES

SIR DAVID ADJAYE OBE

Architect Architecture as the intertwining of cultures

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Cultural expression as a fundamental human right

Director, World Cities Culture Forum World cities as beacons of culture

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ROB NAIL 114

Associate Founder and former CEO of Singularity University The future of culture 152

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Copies of the book are being donated by the Khalili Foundation to international organisations, charities and libraries worldwide. The book is also available for purchase. All proceeds will go to charitable causes promoting cultural diversity. 43


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prince's trust The Khalili Foundation and The Prince’s Trust, through the Mosaic Initiative, together launch an exciting new social integration and youth leadership project. The partnership began with a yearlong pilot programme which enable young people and young professionals to co-design and co-deliver training and Prince’s Trust programme activity. The pilot run with the Khalili Foundation will adopt the principles underpinning the Mosaic initiative to build cohesive societies through the power of relatable connection and aspirational mobility. Serving to help young people and young professionals to lead dialogue and discussion around global citizenship: issues of difference, intercultural relations and resilience to difference and change – particularly pertinent in a period of global social and economic uncertainty. The Trust will identify and recruit young leaders – aspirational and role models in their own right – and will link them to the tried and tested international interfaith and intercultural citizenship programme developed by the Khalili Foundation. This content will also be the foundation for new modules that will be embedded across the range of Prince’s Trust educational, employability and careers programmes. The partnership will see the embedding of intercultural training content within programme resources and will be trialled within the Mosaic mentoring programme, including through the training of Mosaic volunteer mentors. Moreover, the partnership will seek to imbed the Interfaith Explorers programme – a pioneering digital learning resource for primary and

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secondary school children focused on building greater interfaith and intercultural understanding – into the Prince’s Trust network of schools and learning places. The Khalili Foundation is a pioneer in the field of interfaith and intercultural education. The Foundation has partnered with the Commonwealth Secretariat to produce and evaluate learning methods and materials aimed at promoting global citizenship and religious and cultural literacy. Professor Sir Nasser David Khalili, founder and chairman of the Foundation, was recently recognised by Her Majesty The Queen with a knighthood in the 2020 Birthday Honours list for services to Interfaith Relations and Charity and referred to by HM Government as “the embodiment of interfaith harmony”. Sir David said: “This partnership with the Prince’s Trust serves our longstanding mission to foster greater harmony between young people of different faiths and cultures. The Prince’s Trust is a global pioneer in youth engagement and development, and we are proud and excited to join forces with them to deliver grassroots education and training that has real impact.” Commenting on the new partnership, CEO of the Prince’s Trust Jonathan Townsend said: “We are delighted to be working with the Khalili Foundation on the exciting new global citizenship and youth leadership project, connected to Mosaic and the forthcoming Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.” The need for interfaith and intercultural education has never been greater, given recent events that have highlighted the importance of tackling prejudice based on faith, culture and race. Beyond the young leaders, volunteer mentors will now also have access to inter-cultural training that can link back to their communities and add value, whilst simultaneously connecting diverse communities deeper into the Trust. About The Prince’s Trust The Prince’s Trust helps young people all over the UK to build their confidence and skills and supports them into jobs, education and

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training. Founded by The Prince of Wales in 1976, the charity supports 11 to 30 year-olds who are unemployed, struggling at school and at risk of exclusion. Many of the young people helped by The Trust’s youth support workers and mentors are in or leaving care, facing issues such as homelessness, mental health problems, or have been in trouble with the law. The courses offered by The Trust give young people the practical and financial support needed to stabilise their lives, helping develop selfesteem and skills for work. Three in four young people supported by The Prince’s Trust move into work, education or training. The Trust has helped over a million young people to date. Further information about The Prince’s Trust is available at princes-trust.org.uk or on 0800 842 842. About Mosaic Founded by HRH The Prince of Wales in 2007, Mosaic formally joined The Prince’s Trust in 2016. Mosaic’s mentoring programmes create opportunities for young people growing up in our most deprived and diverse communities, with a vision that all young people be supported to realise and fulfil their potential whatever their circumstance or background. With the help of volunteer mentors acting as positive relatable role models, Mosaic aims to bridge the aspirations-attainment gap. By linking young people with inspirational role models in this way, we boost their confidence, self-efficacy and long-term employability, helping The Prince’s Trust reach a million more young people.

The Khalili Foundation is planning two further partnerships focusing on interfaith and intercultural development with: Cambridge University (Centre for Resilience and Sustainable Development) Aspen Institute (UK)

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Maimonides Interfaith initiative ‘If we are to live in a peaceful world, we have to learn about each other’s ways of life, and mutually respect each others beliefs’ Professor Sir Nasser D. Khalili The Maimonides Interfaith Initiative, a project of the Khalili Foundation and supported by UNESCO, promotes understanding and respect between people from the three Abrahamic faiths through a series of grassroots projects relating to art, culture and education. The initiative is named after the 12th century philosopher Moses Maimonides, whose ideas epitomised Abrahamic unity. As one of the first initiatives to champion interfaith dialogue in the UK, its supporters have been some of the world’s most highly respected leaders in religion, culture and diplomacy including His Holiness Pope Francis, world renowned scholar of religions Karen Armstrong FRSL, HRH the Duke of York, HH Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak al Nahyan, and the Director-General of UNESCO Irina Bokova. Since 1995, the initiative has helped drive discussions around key issues and challenges relating to the role of faith, religion and pluralism in the world today through a variety of arts, cultural, sporting and academic programmes. These include: • • •

Interfaith Explorers House of Peace Visions of Splendour

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Interfaith Explorers Tensions existing in the world today are largely the result of ignorance and lack of understanding. If ignorance is the problem, then education must be the answer. With this premise, the Maimonides Interfaith Initiative launched Interfaith Explorers – a free, UNESCO supported, online learning resource designed to support the delivery of RE, PSHE and citizenship education in schools, alongside effective SMSC development. The programme helps pupils explore cultural diversity, understand and respect differences and embrace similarities. The Learning Unit at the heart of the Interfaith Explorers is designed to give teachers everything they need to plan a comprehensive programme of learning. It fulfills the need for a trustworthy bank of resources for pupils to explore different faiths and cultures in the world around them. It is also linked to other subjects aligned to the National Curriculum 2014, such as English, mathematics, computing, history and geography. That means that the materials can be used in a variety of religious and non-religious contexts as part of your pupil’s journey of intrigue, wonder and discovery about the world around them.

opposite page, top An audience with His Holiness Pope Francis, December 2013: Sir David discussing the activities of the Maimonides Interfaith Foundation. bottom An audience with His Holiness Pope Francis, December 2013: Sir David showing his Holiness the House of Peace paintings.

There is guidance for teachers on how it can be used to support the development of core social skills that can help your pupils become confident individuals, successful learners and responsible citizens. Interfaith Explorers also provides pupils with a set of universal skills – underpinned by an ethical and moral compass, which promotes dialogue and harmony. With these skills, they can then better understand the world around them and engage with other young people regardless of particular faiths and beliefs. Initially designed for Key Stage 2 pupils (Years 5 & 6) at primary school, teachers can easily adapt the materials for other pupil groups, and it can also be used with pupils making the transition to Key Stage 3. Consequently, we encourage teachers to adapt and enrich it according to their particular school contexts. The Interfaith Explorers resource can be approached in a variety of ways and there are a number of entry points that teachers can use to help their pupils start their journey of discovery. For instance:

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Video clips on the Home Page provide teachers and pupils with a general introduction to the resource Three Interfaith Explorers robots – Ci, Sul and Rul – who exemplify the characteristics that pupils can develop when using the resource are there to encourage pupils in their challenge to becoming successful Interfaith Explorers themselves A number of supporting video resources, which pupils can use to discover the similarities and differences between the three Abrahamic faiths – Judaism, Christianity and Islam

www.interfaithexplorers.com

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Sir David explaining the curriculum to school children at the opening of Maimonides Interfaith Explorers, 2012

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House of Peace The Western Wall, acrylic on canvas, 200 × 200 cm

The House of Peace is a project that seeks to use the power of visual art to convey the message of interfaith harmony. Towards this aim, the Khalili Foundation commissioned five large paintings from renowned British cityscape artist Ben Johnson, which together create a vision of peace between the three Abrahamic faiths. By exhibiting the House of Peace worldwide, the Foundation hopes it might, in some small way, bring together Jews, Muslims and Christians and show them that there is far more that unites than divides them. The first four include a panorama of Jerusalem, the Western Wall, the Christian Quarter and the Dome of the Rock. The fifth painting, designed by Sir David himself, depicts a Circle of Peace, a kaleidoscope of the word “peace” in Hebrew, English and Arabic. The Circle centers on the eternal light surrounded by the name of the Almighty in the same three languages. 53


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Panoramic view of Jerusalem, acrylic on canvas, 400 × 200 cm

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The Christian Quarter, acrylic on canvas, 200 × 200 cm

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The Dome of the Rock, acrylic on canvas, 200 × 200 cm

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The Circle of Peace, acrylic on canvas, 200 × 200 cm Designed by Sir David Khalili Full (above), detail (right)

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house of peace – Concept

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Visions Of Splendour As one of the great preservers of Islamic cultural heritage, Sir David has always considered it a responsibility to showcase the contribution of Islamic art and culture to the world. So in 2005, the Khalili Foundation published Visions of Splendour: The Timeline History of Islamic Art and Architecture – a book written by Sir David that tells the story of Islamic civilisation through the art it produced. It was launched with Lord Adonis, the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State to the Department for Education and Skills in the presence of dignitaries including Ambassadors from Muslim and non-Muslim countries. The Khalili Foundation distributed 20,000 free English copies of the book to schools in the UK and internationally in order to popularise Islamic culture in the non-Muslim world. Moreover a further 20,000 free Arabic copies were distributed to schools in Muslim countries (including the Palestinian Territories) in order to inspire the next generation by reconnecting them with their own cultural heritage.

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GIFTS AND GRANTS Over the last three decades, the Khalili Foundation has given a number of substantial grants and gifts to various international organisations, educational establishments and charities. These serve to encourage the excellent work being done by the respective organisations – both at the research and practitioner levels – and to mark occasions of cultural significance. UNIVERSITY ENDOWMENTS

With the Chancellor of Oxford University, Lord Patten, at the opening of The Khalili Research Centre for the Art and Material Culture of the Middle East, July 2005

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A significant endowment was granted to the University of Oxford for the establishment of the Khalili Research Centre for the Art and Material Culture of the Middle East. It was opened by the Chancellor of Oxford University, Lord Patten, in July 2005. The Khalili Foundation has continued its support for the Centre, notably with another substantial donation in 2011. www.krc.web.ox.ac.uk


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The Brunei Gallery, SOAS, London

An further endowment was granted to the University of Oxford for a Research Fellowship in Islamic Art. A significant endowment was granted to establish The Khalili Chair of Islamic Art at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London, with the provision of a further grant in 2003 for the refurbishment of the Khalili lecture theatre. In the early 1990s, the Khalili Foundation was responsible for securing £10million from H.M. the Sultan of Brunei to build the Brunei Gallery at SOAS. The Brunei Gallery has since become one of London’s preeminent art and culture venues. www.soas.ac.uk/gallery

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Cultural Heritage Gifts Gifts to the British Museum Two fine sitarahs, made for the Prophet's Mosque in Medina, were gifted to the British Museum to mark the occasion of the hugely successful Hajj exhibition. (January – April 2012).

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Gift to the Ashmolean Museum Sir David gifted another equally fine sitarah, also made for the Prophet's Mosque in Medina to The Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, in May 2012.

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Holy Qur’an presented by Sir David to President Hollande On the occasion of the opening of the Hajj exhibition at the Institut du monde arabe. It was subsequently given by the President to the Institute du monde arabe for permanent display. 22nd April 2014

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Illuminated closing spread with the last three chapters of the Holy Qur’an. The Qur’anic text is copied in black naskh within cloud lines reserved against gold ground. Persian interlinear translations and commentaries are in a smaller hand, in red, while reading notations are in blue.

Illuminated page – the remaining half of a double frontispiece – inscribed in gold thulth. The text refers to the tafsir (commentary) used by the scribe. The gold floral decoration around the oval medallion is of a later date, possibly added in the late 18th century.

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Gifts to UNESCO Pair of large bronze vases Japan, Meiji period, 1880 152cm high and 105cm in diameter Presented by The Khalili Family Trust in honour of UNESCO 70th anniversary 30th June 2014

A pair of large Meiji-era Japanese metalwork vases in high relief, the bodies and necks of concave form ending with lips shaped as petals. Elements in relief include birds, some with wings outstretched, perching on thick branches, as well as foliage covering most of the feet and the branches. These pieces, previously part of the Vanderbilt estate, are truly rare examples of Japanese metalwork. Usually reserved for Imperial commissions and world expositions, bronze pieces of this magnitude rarely ever appeared in the form of vases. Known, and costly for the sheer amount of material and work, as usually being made into large koros (incense burners) and decorative sculptures, is it very unusual for a workshop to choose the vase form. The high relief and detail on these vases add to the artistic value of this complex and unusual work.

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Pair of enamel vases, Japan, Meiji period, 1885 145cm high and 52cm in diameter Presented by The Khalili Family Trust in honour of Her Excellency DirectorGeneral, Irina Bokova 30th June 2014

A pair of large Meiji-era Japanese cloisonné enamel vases with ovoid bodies and long trumpet shaped necks. The bodies decorated with large pink and white chrysanthemums, brown and green foliage and grey stems worked in gold and silver wire against a dark blue ground. Applied with copper alloy rims and feet. This is a rare example of a piece of cloisonné enamel by one of several workshops in Japan that specialized in this type of ware. These were usually made under Imperial patronage and received high praise and accolades in Industrial Expositions. It is rare to find pieces of this size due to the practicality of the enameling process, which, in this case, would have required very large kilns. Mistakes and wasted material being costly on vases of this proportion, pieces of this type had to be worked out in fine detail in order to achieve the quality demonstrated here.

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Gift to the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London Sir David Khalili with Baroness Valerie Amos, Director, SOAS, University of London, 2016

Pictured is a monumental bronze incense burner, with stylized ho-o bird (phoenix) handles and adorned with dragons, bamboo, and a rakan on the cover. Made by the imperial court artist, Suzuki Masayoshi of Tokyo, and signed with Tokyo ju, Suzuki Masayoshi zo (made by Suzuki Masayoshi of Tokyo). Produced during the early reign of the Meiji Emperor (1868–1912). Height 265 cm. Presented by Professor Sir Nasser D. Khalili in honour of SOAS Director Baroness Valerie Amos on the occasion of SOAS’ Centenary, 2016.

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Gift to United Nations A French Imperial ormolumounted Japanese cloisonné enamel jardinière (Japan, Meiji period, circa 1870-1880) 39 length × 24 wide × 36 height cm – presented by the Khalili Foundation and SOAS to Antonio Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations on his first visit to the United Kingdom in 2018.

Of bulbous form, lavishly decorated with flying herons and swallows on either side amongst flowering branches, in alternating blue and pink ground cartouches, surmounted by a pierced frieze above a waisted rim. Flanked to the sides by dragon handles, and applied with stylized feet bearing a repeat of the frieze found on the rim. Although unsigned, the enamel can be soundly attributed to Namikawa Yasuyuki (1845–1927), one of the most revered and innovative court artists to the Meiji Emperor, through its design, style and motif. Sir David presenting the gift to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres at a special dinner hosted by Sir David and Baroness Valerie Amos, Director of SOAS

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GLOBAL HUMANITARIAN POSITIONS As Chairman of the Khalili Foundation, Sir David has been honoured with a number of global humanitarian positions. These high-profile platforms allow him to promote the ideals of peace, unity and cultural preservation to audiences at the grassroots and decision-making levels worldwide. GLOBAL HOPE FOUNDATION Sir David is Co-Founder and Chairman (Europe) of The Global Hope Coalition, a network of three not-for-profit foundations based in New York, Zurich and Hong Kong, which is establishing a global platform to empower courageous individuals who stand up to terror and violence, preserve our heritage and build bridges across cultures. The Global Hope Coalition was launched at the New York Public Library on September 18, 2017, chaired by UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova at a star-studded special ceremony bringing together 550 government and business leaders, cultural icons, philanthropists, and human rights activists with the avowed aim of “taking the fight against extremism and intolerance to the next level.” At the event, ten men and women from around the world who are taking great risks to oppose extremists, wherever they spread lies, bigotry, and hatred, were honored as Everyday Heroes. The Global Hope Coalition is taking action to engage, mobilize and strengthen the global network of Everyday Heroes by: • • • • •

Creating and fostering a support network Establishing training programs Setting up a results-based evaluation, monitoring and reporting system Enhancing fundraising capabilities Facilitating academic and leadership outreach

www.globalhopecoalition.org

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Sir David speaking at the 2018 Global Hope Coalition Annual Awards Dinner

UNESCO In 2012, Sir David was honoured by UNESCO as a Goodwill Ambassador for his work in the pursuit of peace, education and culture amongst nations. In his role as Goodwill Ambassador, Sir David spreads the ideals of UNESCO through his position as a world-renowned scholar, collector and philanthropist. He helps galvanize public interest and support for the purposes and principles of UNESCO to significant audiences, including decision makers.

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Launch of the UNESCO forum on Building Knowledge Societies for Sustainable Human Development, Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, 2013

He has addressed high-level dignitaries, politicians, civil society leaders and religious authority figures at a number of UNESCO events and on a range of themes including, ‘The role of interfaith harmony in the rapprochement of cultures and nations’; ‘The importance of fostering and strengthening intercultural dialogue and understanding at the international, regional and national levels’; and ‘How does culture drive and enable social cohesion and inclusion’. Sir David’s many keynote addresses as UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador include: • • • •

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the launch of the International Decade for the Rapprochement of Cultures (2013 – 2022) the UNESCO International Forum in Kazakhstan the UNESCO International Congress in China the King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture in Saudi Arabia to mark the launch of the UNESCO forum on Building Knowledge Societies for Sustainable Human Development Intercultural Dialogue in Fragmented Societies at the UNESCO headquarters Arab-Mediterranean Cultural Conference in Palermo, Sicily

www.unesco.org/new/en/goodwill-ambassadors/nasser-davidkhalili

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The Director-General

Professor David Khalili UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador Nour House 2 Old Burlington Street London W1S 3AD United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

Ref:

DG/16/9785

28 December 2016

Dear Professor Khalili, On the occasion of your designation as UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador in 2012, I noted that you were more than a collector, art historian and businessman from a diverse cultural background. Indeed, you are a ‘humanist’ and that word describes everything about you and your vision. At a time when the world seems more uncertain, more complex, more dangerous than at any time in recent memory, your tireless efforts to build bridges across cultural divides and turn our common heritage into a guarantor of shared humanity are needed more than ever. Selections from the thirty-five thousand objects in your eight diverse and unparalleled collections have been shown in over forty major museums and institutions worldwide. You have also been a major contributor to over fifty other international exhibitions to date. UNESCO will proudly support your future exhibitions around the world and continue to support your ongoing efforts to bring people of different cultures, faiths and beliefs together through the power of art, culture and education. The values that underpin your ceaseless endeavours are deeply shared by our organization. I was only recently reminded of your initiative back in the 1990s to establish the House of Peace - a global interfaith art project that offered a powerful vision of the Holy City of Jerusalem in all its magnificent diversity. The project underlined the strong ties that bind Jerusalem to Judaism, Christianity and Islam through five specially commissioned paintings. I look forward to our continuing cooperation and commend you once again on your indispensable work in the pursuit of peace, education and culture among nations. Yours sincerely,

Irina Bokova 7, place de Fontenoy 75352 Paris 07 SP, France Tél. : +33 (0)1 45 68 10 00 Fax : +33 (0)1 45 67 55 55 www.unesco.org

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Sir David Khalili designated as a goodwill Ambassador by The Director General of UNESCO Ms. Irina Bokova, 2012

From left to right Nassir Abdulaziz Al-Nasser, President of the 66th session of the United Nations General Assembly; Professor Sir Nasser D. Khalili, UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador; Irina Bokova, Director-General of UNESCO; HRH Prince Turki Al Faisal Al Saud, Chairman, board of directors, King Faisal Centre for Research and Islamic Studies, 2012

INTERPOL Foundation for a Safer World In 2018 Sir David was appointed as a member of the Honorary Board at the INTERPOL Foundation for a Safer World. The INTERPOL Foundation for a Safer World promotes a more secure, open world where global heritage is protected, where economies allow citizens and companies to flourish, and where men, women and children can live and travel without the threat of crimes. www.interpolfoundation.org

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The

Khalili Collections

Presenting the definitive publications of eight of the world's finest art collections 79


biography

Islamic Art 700 –2000

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The Nasser D. Khalili Collection of Islamic Art is an unprecedented 47 volume series of which 37 are now published, and when completed will form a unique survey of the field. The General Editor is Dr Julian Raby, previously Lecturer at Oxford University and former Director of the Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. Eminent academics and specialists around the world have been commissioned to write the volumes. With holdings of more than 28 ,000 objects documenting the range of artistic production of the Islamic lands over a period of some 1,400 years, the Collection now ranks among the best in the world and represents a new generation of Islamic art collections. Calligraphy, which plays an essential role in the art of the Islamic world, has been given a central place in the Collection, which includes an outstanding array of manuscripts of the Holy Qur’an and of illustrated and illuminated manuscripts. The coverage of the decorative arts – ceramics, carpets and textiles, carved stone and wood, glass, lacquer, jewellery, and metalwork – as well as arms and armour, coins, scientific instruments, and seals is comprehensive.

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Emerald-set box Mughal India c. 1635 4 × 5 cm

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Saddle fittings Central Asia or western frontiers of China c. 1200 l 55 cm, w 45 cm, h 30 cm


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Bifolio from a large vertical-format Qur’an North Africa Early 11th century 45 × 30 cm

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Bowl with lustre decoration Iraq 9th or 10th century 8 × 26 cm

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left Silk textile Spain, 15th century 87 × 45 cm (maximum)

above Folio from a Siyer-i Nebî of Erzurumlu Mustafa Darir Turkey, Istanbul, 1594–5 37.5 × 25.7 cm

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VOLUME I

THE ABBASID TRADITION Qur’ans of the 8th to 10th centuries François Déroche 1992

The Collection contains the largest and most comprehensive range of Qur’anic material in private hands. This, the first of four volumes devoted to the subject, covers the three major styles of Qur’anic calligraphy that came into existence before ad 1000. The catalogue contains 98 items, which are described and illustrated in colour. Included among these are a significant number of complete manuscripts, some with their original bindings; two folios from the famous 9th-century Qur’an written in gold on blue parchment; and two quires from a 10th‑century Qur’an, the only copy known to have been produced in Sicily. The introduction includes a survey of the codicology and illumination of early Qur’ans, and discusses problems of classification and dating. The author’s system of classifying early Qur’anic scripts is set out in five tables, and the calligraphic styles themselves are discussed in three essays (Hijazi script; Early Abbasid scripts; and the New Style).

Folio from the Blue Qur’an North Africa or Spain, 10th century 28.3 × 37.7 cm

191 pages fully illustrated in colour, several line drawings, tables and diagrams hardback with dust jacket (slipcased) 36 × 26 cm Isbn: 1-874780-51-X

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VOLUME II

THE MASTER SCRIBES Qur’ans of the 10th to 14th centuries David James 1992

This is the second of four volumes cataloguing the Qur’anic material in the Collection; it covers the period from 1000 to 1400 and includes examples from Iraq, Iran, Syria, Egypt, Anatolia, India, Spain and North Africa. The 56 items presented here include a Qur’an section written in gold in 12th-century Iraq; one of a small group of Qur’ans known to have been produced in Valencia in the same period; and what may be the earliest surviving Qur’an from India. Even more remarkable is a section from a 30-part Qur’an written by Yaqut al-Musta‘simi, the greatest Islamic calligrapher of the later Middle Ages: other sections from the same Qur’an are in Istanbul and Dublin, but this is the only one to retain its original illumination. These important items are the subject of substantial new studies and other essays that cover Qur’an production in Damascus and manuscript patronage in Shiraz under the Inju‘ids and Muzaffarids. The detailed catalogue entries are complemented by multiple colour illustrations, and colophons and other significant documentation is reproduced with full translations.

Qur’an section copied by Yaqut al-Musta'simi Iraq, 1282–3 24.5 × 17 cm

240 pages fully illustrated in colour, several line drawings section on documentary inscriptions hardback with dust jacket (slipcased) 36 × 26 cm Isbn: 1-874780-52-8

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VOLUME III

AFTER TIMUR Qur’ans of the 15th and 16th centuries David James 1992

This is the third of four volumes cataloguing the Qur’anic material in the Collection; it covers the period from 1400 to 1600 and presents 60 items from Iran, Central Asia, Syria, Egypt, Turkey and India. Most notable among them is a Qur’an that was kept in the women’s quarters of the Mughal imperial residence in the 17th and 18th centuries. This exquisite manuscript may have been produced for Shah Tahmasp, the greatest patron of the arts of the book in 16th-century Iran. Besides detailed catalogue descriptions, colour illustrations and a section on documentation where colophons are reproduced with translations, the volume contains substantial new studies. These cover the monumental Qur’an previously associated with the Timurid prince Baysunghur ibn Shahrukh; Ruzbihan Muhammad, the most eminent calligrapher and illuminator of Shiraz in the early 16th century; and the great Ottoman calligrapher Ahmed Karahisari.

Qur’an section India, 15th century 38.5 × 31.5 cm

256 pages fully illustrated in colour section on documentary inscriptions hardback with dust jacket (slipcased) 36 × 26 cm Isbn: 1-874780-53-6

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VOLUME IV

THE DECORATED WORD Qur’ans of the 17th to 19th centuries Part One Manijeh Bayani, Anna Contadini and Tim Stanley 1999

Part Two Manijeh Bayani, J.M. Rogers and Tim Stanley 2009

This is the fourth and final volume cataloguing the Qur’anic material in the Collection; it is published in two parts and includes over 150 Qur’ans produced in the period after 1600. Part One deals mainly with Ottoman, Iranian and Indian Qur’ans of the 17th and 18th centuries. It also includes a range of material from areas outside the Islamic empires, such as China and the Swahili coastlands of East Africa, and there are sections on later Qur’ans from Morocco and from the Sahel regions to the south. Part Two covers the 19th century in Iran and the Ottoman empire, showing that the period was one of sumptuous brilliance with respect to Qur’an production. In several cases the essays that introduce each group of manuscripts break new ground. No previous study of Chinese Qur’an production has been published, and the essay on Ottoman Qur’ans from the 17th and 18th centuries offers an original explanation of the development of Qur’anic calligraphy in this period.

Qur’an Iran,1689–90 31.8 × 18.7 cm

Part One: 272 pages fully illustrated in colour hardback with dust jacket (slipcased) 36 × 26 cm Isbn: 1-874780-54-4 Part Two: 300 pages fully illustrated in colour hardback with dust jacket (slipcased) 36 × 26 cm Isbn: 978-1-874780-76-2

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VOLUME V

THE ART OF THE PEN Calligraphy of the 14th to 20th centuries Nabil F. Safwat with a contribution by Mohamed Zakariya 1996

The demanding discipline of calligraphy, centring on the power of the written word and transmitted from master to pupil through the ages, is fundamental to Islamic cultures and is the source of one of the world’s richest artistic traditions. The 174 examples of the art published in this volume represent the scope and continuity of calligraphy over a period of six centuries. They include works by many of the most celebrated calligraphers, beginning with the influential Yaqut in the 14th century, and by such distinguished amateurs as the Ottoman sultans Abdülmecid I and Mahmud II. This is the most comprehensive study yet made of the subject, examining many fundamental aspects of a calligrapher’s activity for the first time. The author discusses the artists’ training and the key elements of the calligraphic repertoire, including albums of sample work, stencils and miniature script, cut-out work and gilded leaves. To complement the text, examples of all of the principal types of historical script have been provided by an eminent modern calligrapher.

Calligrapher’s licence Turkey, 1864 40 × 31.5 cm

248 pages fully illustrated in colour compendium of Arabic scripts section on documentary inscriptions hardback with dust jacket (slipcased) 36 × 26 cm Isbn: 1-874780-55-2

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VOLUME VI

BILLS, LETTERS AND DEEDS Arabic papyri of the 7th to 11th centuries Geoffrey Khan 1993

Most of the Arabic documents that have survived from the first three centuries of the Islamic era were written on papyrus, the most commonly used writing material in the Near East during this period. The Arabic papyri in the Collection date mostly from the 8th and 9th centuries, and include official and legal documents, receipts, accounts and private letters. Most come from Fustat, and a few originate from Upper Egypt, but pride of place goes to the only extant Arabic papyrus from northern Mesopotamia, an account of expenditure drawn up in a Nestorian monastery under Abbasid rule c. ad 855. The papyri are an invaluable source of information on scripts, grammar and literary styles, as well as on social and economic life in the early Islamic period. Of the 258 in this catalogue, 108 are illustrated in colour, while the rest, which are of a more fragmentary nature, are reproduced in black and white. The history of the use of papyrus and the methods of its manufacture are discussed in the introduction.

List of alms paid Egypt, 8th century 28.2 × 11.1 cm

292 pages 108 colour plates, 150 halftones, line drawings hardback with dust jacket (slipcased) 36 × 26 cm Isbn: 1-874780-56-0

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VOLUME VII

LEARNING, PIETY AND POETRY   Manuscripts from the Islamic world Deborah Freeman and Francois de Blois with contributions by J.M. Rogers, Elaine Wright, Alison Ohta, Manijeh Bayani, Stephen Hirtenstein and Shireen Ellinger 2022

This volume is devoted to the illuminated but largely unillustrated Arabic, Persian and Turkish manuscripts in the Collection. The manuscripts cover a wide range of topics, from religious scholarship to personal prayer books, esoteric and scientific works, anthologies and narrative poetry. Particularly significant is a large group of Shi‘i devotional manuscripts produced in Iran and India from the 16th to the 19th centuries, probably the largest collection of such material outside of Iran. These small manuscripts contain invocations, pious poetry and maxims, including some attributed to the Imam ‘Ali ibn Abi Talib. Finely illuminated, and copied by some of the most notable calligraphers of their day, these works are considered as a body of literature in an art historical context for the first time. A number of illuminated prayer books and other devotional works better known among Sunni Muslims include copies of the Dala’il al-khayrat and of al-Busiri’s poem in praise of the Prophet Muhammad, the Qasidat al-burdah. Important manuscripts include a volume of poetry by the great 13th-century mystic Ibn al-‘Arabi and an early 14th-century Persian translation of Kitab al‑masalik wa’l-mamalik. Ottoman manuscripts include a Mathnavi of Jalal alDin Rumi copied in Sarajevo and two endowment deeds of female Ottoman dynasts.

Qasidat al-burdah of al-Busiri Egypt, c. 1365 28 × 18 cm

fully illustrated in colour section on documentary inscriptions hardback with dust jacket (slipcased) 36 × 26 cm Isbn: 978-1-874780-84-7

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VOLUME VIII

paintings from india Linda York Leach 1998

This volume is devoted to painting in India under the Mughals. The material presented here ranges in date from the 16th to the 19th centuries and comprises 76 illustrated manuscripts, album pages and detached folios, many of which were commissioned by the Mughal emperors. These include a page from Akbar’s monumental Hamzah-namah; two folios from the Ramayana commissioned by Akbar for his mother; a page from the Padshahnamah prepared for Shah Jahan; a Khamsah of Nizami prepared for Aurangzeb; and a painting of the dynastic line from Timur to Aurangzeb. Librarians’ notations on others indicate that they were kept in the royal libraries for generations, and a group of miniatures bears the inventory numbers of the Mewar Collection. Pride of place among the large group of Deccani paintings goes to one of the few complete copies of the Falnamah, which has 37 magnificent paintings. This forms the basis of one of many detailed studies in the volume. Other subjects covered range from painting under Akbar, to the influence of European painting, provincial Mughal painters and painting under British rule.

Folio from an Akbarnamah India, c. 1595–1600 35.6 × 23.7 cm

260 pages fully illustrated in colour hardback with dust jacket (slipcased) 36 × 26 cm Isbn: 1-874780-57-9

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VOLUME IX

COBALT AND LUSTRE   The first centuries of Islamic pottery Ernst J. Grube with contributions by Manijeh Bayani, Derek Kennet, Peter Morgan, Nahla Nassar, Alastair Northedge and Cristina Tonghini 1994

This is the first of two volumes cataloguing the ceramic holdings in the Collection – nearly 2,000 objects produced all over the Muslim world. It concentrates on the beauty of the work of the early Muslim potters through a selection of 406 items. The Collection contains many remarkable objects, including masterpieces with few, if any, parallels. Amongst these is a 9th-century relief-decorated dish, one of only a dozen in existence and arguably the most beautiful; an underglaze-painted openwork ewer from Iran – a technical tour-de-force with only one known counterpart; and a signed bottle which is the earliest known dated ceramic from Iran. The various wares produced from the 7th to the 13th centuries are discussed at length in art historical and technical essays, which incorporate the latest archaeological evidence. The items are illustrated in colour, with profile and detail drawings; the decipherable inscriptions are reproduced with translations; and a full scholarly apparatus provides references to comparative items and to further reading.

Laqabi-ware dish Syria, c. 1200 30 cm diameter

348 pages fully illustrated in colour, numerous line drawings section on inscriptions with translations hardback with dust jacket (slipcased) 36 × 26 cm Isbn: 1-874780-58-7

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VOLUME X

A RIVAL TO CHINA Later Islamic pottery In two parts Peter Morgan and Pedro Moura Carvalho with contributions by J.M. Rogers, Rosalind Wade Haddon and Melanie Gibson 2023

This volume is the second of two devoted to the ceramics in the Collection. Here, nearly 400 works produced after the Mongol conquests are presented, dating from the 13th to the 19th centuries and originating in lands both inside and beyond the Islamic world. The volume is a two-part set. The first part starts with the Ilkhanid pottery, which is extensive; it is particularly strong in blue-glazed lajvardina and lustre tilework, although virtually all types are represented (only a sample of the tilework is included, for most will appear in vol. XXIV, Monuments and Memorials). Judicious collecting has also created an important research resource for understanding the transition from Ilkhanid to Timurid styles. The pottery from Timurid Iran and Central Asia of the 15th century is noteworthy both because it is barely represented in other collections and because it enables links between Chinese and Islamic wares to be explored. The first part also includes a small but important group of vessels and sherds from Mamluk Egypt and Syria. The second part comprises mostly the large Safavid holdings, particularly blue‑and-white, which allows the east-west links to be further addressed. The pottery from the Ottoman realm contributes significantly to further understanding the period. Smaller groups – from Qajar Iran, later Central Asia, the Indian subcontinent, China and Japan – demonstrate similarity and diversity in the Islamic world of the 17th–20th centuries and influence beyond. Stonepaste basin Iran, 17th century 56.1 cm diameter

set of two parts fully illustrated in colour, numerous line drawings section on inscriptions with translations hardback with dust jacket (slipcased) 36 × 26 cm Isbn: 978-1-874780-87-8

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VOLUME XI

BRASSES, BRONZE AND SILVER OF THE ISLAMIC LANDS In four parts Michael Spink with contributions by Doris Behrens-Abouseif and Melanie Gibson 2022

The metalwork in the Collection comprises nearly 1,000 objects, from across the Islamic world, Sicily to India, and dating from the 6th to the early 20th centuries. It is an extraordinary resource for the depth and breadth of object types represented, especially from pre-Mongol Iran; 13th-century Jazira; Ilkhanid, Timurid and Safavid Iran; and 17th- and 18th-century India. Several unique and important pieces are significant for their named patrons, or for bearing dates or artist signatures, which are rare on Islamic metalwork. The volume is a four-part set. The first part includes metalwork from Sasanian Iran and the Islamic world up to the Mongol invasions in eastern Iran in 1220. The second concludes the pre-Mongol section, and continues with Ilkhanid Iran and metalwork from the Jazira, with short sections on Muslim Sicily and Christian Armenian Cilicia, concluding with a short essay on astrological motifs as depicted on metalwork. The third part opens with Timurid Iran, and discusses the metalwork of Mamluk Egypt and Syria, Ottoman Turkey, concluding with Mughal India, and the Deccan. The fourth part covers Safavid and Qajar Iran, together with a series of Mamluk revival objects, and concludes with a discussion on aspects of Islamic metal technology and production.

Pair of cast and engraved copperalloy door handles Southeastern Turkey, early 13th century 33.7 × 39.5 cm, 33.5 × 40.5 cm

set of four parts fully illustrated in colour, numerous line drawings section on inscriptions with translations hardback with dust jacket (slipcased) 36 × 26 cm Isbn: 978-1-874780-88-5

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VOLUME XII

SCIENCE, TOOLS AND MAGIC Part One Body and Spirit, Mapping the Universe

Part Two Mundane Worlds

Francis Maddison and Emilie Savage-Smith 1997

Emilie Savage-Smith with contributions by Francis Maddison, Ralph Pinder-Wilson and Tim Stanley 1997

This two-part volume contains a large and important group of objects and manuscripts that may be broadly categorised as scientific instruments, tools or magical implements. Many objects of this kind have never before been systematically catalogued, and this volume brings together much information previously scattered to present a corpus of material for future comparative study. The astronomical instruments are those primarily connected with the fundamental concerns of Islamic astronomy – determining the times of prayer and the direction of Mecca – and the teaching and practice of cosmology and astrology. The Collection includes important individual pieces, among them a fine celestial globe made in 1285–6 and a unique Judeo-Arabic astrolabe of c. 1300. Another 218 entries include medical manuscripts, magic bowls, amulets and other magical or geomantic devices that reflect different aspects of medieval Islamic medical care, while a group of mortars, a selection from the large collection of locks, and miscellaneous tools such as scissors, scales and weights, complete this survey of objects which embody the varied preoccupations of Islamic culture. The information presented includes a groundbreaking study of leather workers in medieval Iran.

Bronze astrolabe inscribed in Judaeo-Arabic, signed by Abraham Spain, c. 1300 22 cm diameter

set of two parts 439 pages fully illustrated in colour, numerous line drawings section on documentary inscriptions with translations hardback with dust jacket (slipcased) 36 × 26 cm Isbn: 1-874780-59-5

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VOLUME XIII

SEALS AND TALISMANS In two parts Manijeh Bayani and Ludvik Kalus with contributions by J.M. Rogers and Chris Cavey 2023

There are more than 3500 seals and talismans of the Islamic era in the Collection, including a large number mounted in rings, set in varieties of bases and framed as pendants. It is the largest group in the world, by far outstripping its nearest rival, in the State Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg. Formed into numerous shapes – from oval, round, oblong and octagonal to others more unusual – and carved in a variety of materials – such as precious and semiprecious stones, metal and clay – they are inscribed in Arabic, Persian, Turkish, Hebrew and Latin. The styles of writing and the legends change from one period and geographic area to another and include quotations from the Qur’an, other religious quotations, invocations to God, varieties of phrases affirming the bearers’ Muslim faith, benedictory phrases, verses in Persian or Arabic, and for seals, the offices and officials credited with a title and posts. There is a noteworthy 9th-century lapis lazuli talisman in a gold mount with undotted Kufic. Later royal seals include those of the first Qara Qoyunlu ruler, Qara Muhammad, and the Safavid shahs Tahmasp and Sulayman. That of Tahmasp is rock crystal and the inscription can be read in positive from the back. Lapis lazuli talisman Middle East, 9th century 4.6 cm width

set of two parts fully illustrated in colour, section on inscriptions with translations hardback with dust jacket (slipcased) 36 × 26 cm Isbn: 978-1-874780-77-9

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VOLUME XIV

TEXTILES, CARPETS AND COSTUMES In two parts Steven Cohen, Georgette Cornu, Jacqueline Coulter, Walter Denny, Layla Diba, Hero Granger-Taylor, Rahul Jain, Marielle Martiniani-Reber, Mary McWilliams, Nahla Nassar, Milton Sonday, Elena Tsareva and Marie-France Vivier 2022

The Collection includes more than 250 textiles, embroideries, carpets and costumes from across the Islamic lands dating from the 6th to the 19th centuries. This volume is in two parts, the first covering early Central Asia, Iran and Egypt, the Ottoman Empire and North Africa; the second covering later Iran and Central Asia, as well as India. The earliest textiles, of c. 6th-century date, show Sasanian influence, while a group of Abbasid and Fatimid tiraz bands represent the emergence of an alternative tradition. More outstanding artistically are the Safavid and Ottoman gold brocades and velvets, and individual pieces such as a section of a silk and silver chasuble from Ottoman Bursa. A beautiful group of woven silks from Sultanate and Mughal India is of particular importance. The ‘classical’ carpets include examples from Mamluk, Safavid, Ottoman and Mughal royal workshops. Notable among the Ottoman carpets is a spectacular star Ushak. The Iranian carpets include a 16th-century Kashan medallion type in near perfect condition. The Collection is particularly rich in costumes, not often represented in other collections. These range from Ottoman shirts painted with talismanic inscriptions to the famous Kashmir shawls to some spectacular ikat coats and embroidered mantles from 19th-century Central Asia.

Medallion carpet Iran, 16th century 248 × 199 cm

set of two parts fully illustrated in colour, numerous line drawings section on inscriptions with translations hardback with dust jacket (slipcased) 36 × 26 cm Isbn: 978-1-874780-78-6

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VOLUME XV

GLASS   From Sasanian antecedents to European imitations Sidney M. Goldstein with contributions by J.M. Rogers, Melanie Gibson and Jens Kröger 2005

The Collection contains more than 300 objects that encapsulate the history of Islamic glass from its Byzantine and Sasanian antecedents to late 19th- and early 20th-century revivals. It contains an unparalleled group of mould-blown and pattern-moulded objects – no fewer than seven of which are of the rare inscriptional type – and this wealth of material has allowed comparisons to be made between vessels from the same or similar moulds. Other significant groups comprise vessels with relief-, linear- or facet-cut decoration, while the patterns on others are pincered or applied in the form of trails and medallions. Cold- or lustre-painted and enamelled vessels are also included, the latter represented by a group spanning the entire period when this technique was in fashion. Glass with scratched decoration – a category known mostly through small fragments – is represented here by four complete vessels, and these form the basis of a major new study of the type.

Mosque lamp with the blazons of Sultan Barquq Egypt, c. 1385 33 × 25 cm

384 pages fully illustrated in colour, numerous line drawings hardback with dust jacket (slipcased) 36 × 26 cm Isbn: 1-874780-50-1

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VOLUME XVI

ORNAMENT AND AMULET   Rings of the Islamic lands Marian Wenzel 1993

The remarkable material presented in this volume – more than 600 rings from the Islamic lands and beyond – has provided a rare opportunity to survey the history of this form, ranging from two Hellenistic glass rings of the 2nd or 1st century bc to a signet ring made in India in 1920. Rings with metal bodies predominated in all periods and an outstanding variety in gold filigree, made in Fatimid Egypt in the 10th and 11th centuries, is represented here by five exquisite examples. Many of the rings are set with seals and the majority bear the names of men, but exceptions include a ring made for Zubaydah in 11th-century Egypt. Other important groups include rings with religious inscriptions intended to protect the wearer from harm, rings carved fromsemiprecious stones, archer’s thumb rings and a striking group of thimbles from Anatolia. This wealth of evidence has allowed the author to present a typology of Islamic rings within a broad chronological framework. The detailed entries include analysis of materials and techniques as well as readings and translations of the inscriptions, and the colour illustrations have been supplemented by several drawings of each ring.

Gold filigree ring Egypt, 11th century 3.1 × 2.5 cm

304 pages fully illustrated in colour, numerous line drawings hardback with dust jacket (slipcased) 36 × 26 cm Isbn: 1-874780-60-9

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VOLUME XVII

THE ART OF ADORNMENT   Jewellery of the Islamic lands Part One Michael Spink and Jack Ogden with contributions by J.M. Rogers and Manijeh Bayani 2013

The magnificent holdings of Islamic jewellery in the Collection are more comprehensive than any other published collection. This two-part volume includes virtually every form of personal adornment – head, hair and headdress ornaments; earrings; nose rings; pendants; beads; necklaces; bracelets, armlets and anklets; armband elements; amulets and amulet cases; pins and brooches; buttons; belts and belt fittings – as well as harness fittings – in a wide range of materials and techniques – gold, silver and copper alloys with niello, enamel and inset gems. There are nearly 600 catalogued pieces dating from the 7th to the 20th centuries, and from across the Islamic world, from Spain to Malaysia, North Africa to the Eurasian steppes. Outstanding within the Collection are the Fatimid filigree objects of Egypt or Syria; Iranian bracelets of the 10th–13th centuries, of gold sheet with set gems, niello and granulation; and a two-headed eagle from18th-century Morocco, in gold filigree and set gems. The catalogue examines the role of jewellery in Muslim societies and attempts to place certain forms in the context of other cultures, from Byzantium to Liao China. Gold filigree and enamel pendant Egypt, 11th century 2.5 cm width

set of two parts 702 pages fully illustrated in colour, numerous line and colour drawings section on inscriptions with translations hardback with dust jacket (slipcased) 36 × 26 cm Isbn: 978-1-874780-86-1

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Part Two Michael Spink with contributions by Jack Ogden, J.M. Rogers, Mark Kramarovsky and Pedro Moura Carvalho 2013


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VOLUME XVIII

GEMS AND JEWELS OF MUGHAL INDIA Jewelled and enamelled objects from the 16th to 20th centuries Pedro Moura Carvalho with contributions by Henrietta Sharp Cockrell and Stephen Vernoit 2010

The nearly 200 Indian jewelled and enamelled luxury objects in the Collection add significantly to the corpus of Mughal art and to the history of goldsmiths’ work and hardstone-carving in the Indian subcontinent. Most other collections of Indian jewelled and enamelled work hold mainly later or post-Mughal pieces but the Collection includes outstanding objects and personal ornaments from 17th- and early 18thcentury royal Mughal workshops. Prominent among the Collection holdings are a unique enamel-painted gold huqqah, likely an early product of a Rajasthani court workshop; a ruby engraved with the names and titles of the emperors Jahangir and Shah Jahan; a gold box overlaid with 103 carved emeralds from the period of Shah Jahan; and a gold enamelled box and tray of unparalleled quality and refined decorative repertoire. The Collection also includes fine later 18th- and 19th-century objects, and a wide range of items of personal jewellery, which trace the Mughal legacy in the provincial territories of northern India, Rajasthan and Gujarat, the Deccan and southern India into the 20th century.

Gold and enamel huqqah India, c. 1700 43 cm height

315 pages fully illustrated in colour hardback with dust jacket (slipcased) 36 × 26 cm Isbn: 978-1-874780-72-4

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VOLUME XIX

Dinars and Dirhams: Coins of the Islamic lands Part One, The early period Aram R. Vardanyan 2023

The Islamic coinage in the Collection is among the most outstanding in private hands, with over 15,000 issues in gold, silver and copper. The coins were issued across the Islamic world, from North Africa to Central Asia and India, in the 7th to the 20th centuries. Many series are represented in larger numbers and in greater variety than in any other collection. The entire Collection is currently being prepared for an e-publication. In the meantime, some 2,000 rare and important coins have been selected for publication in a two-part catalogue which will constitute an indispensable reference work for both scholars and students of Islamic numismatics. Part One includes some 1200 coins and covers the 7th–13th centuries. Among the most important holdings are the earliest Arab-Latin gold coins from North Africa, with more than a dozen of the first issues, in ah 85 and 86 (ad 704 and 705). Also of special interest among the early gold coins is a superb dinar of ah 77 (ad 696–7); a rare Hijaz dinar of ah 105 (ad 723–4); and a rare Abbasid dinar of the year the family assumed the caliphate, ah 132 (ad 749–50). The silver coinage is similarly extensive and contains many unparalleled series. The bronze coins include impressive assemblages, particularly the early Arab-Byzantine and the expressive Artuqid of the Jazira and eastern Anatolia in the 12th–13th centuries.

Gold dinar Damascus, ah 77 (ad 696–7) 19 mm diameter

fully illustrated in colour hardback with dust jacket (slipcased) 36 × 26 cm Isbn: 978-1-874780-82-3

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VOLUME XX

Dinars and Dirhams: Coins of the Islamic lands Part Two, The later period Aram R. Vardanyan 2023

The Islamic coinage in the Collection is among the most outstanding in private hands, with over 15,000 issues in gold, silver and copper. The coins were issued across the Islamic world, from North Africa to Central Asia and India, in the 7th to the 20th centuries. Many series are represented in larger numbers and in greater variety than in any other collection. The entire Collection is currently being prepared for an e-publication. In the meantime, some 2,000 rare and important coins have been selected for publication in a two-part catalogue which will constitute an indispensable reference work for both scholars and students of Islamic numismatics. Part Two covers the 13th–20 centuries. Gold coinage highlights from the later period include a unique dinar minted during the brief reign of the Ilkhanid Musa Khan (1336–7); Mughal dinars of Jahangir’s reign (1569–1627) with signs of the zodiac on the reverse; and a five-piece Qajar treasury set of 50, 20 and 10 tomans. The silver coinage is also extensive.

Gold muhur Agra, 1622 22 mm diameter

fully illustrated in colour hardback with dust jacket (slipcased) 36 × 26 cm Isbn: 978-1-874780-83-0

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VOLUME XXI

THE ARTS OF WAR Arms and armour of the 7th to 19th centuries David Alexander 1992

The arms and armour in the Collection range in date from the 7th to 19th centuries. Particularly important, however, are a group of belt fittings from the medieval period which convey the role of ceremony among the military classes of the Islamic world. Display was also a major factor behind the creation of the Collection’s two sets of elaborate horse trappings from the 13th and 14th centuries, one of which includes a complete gold saddle. Among the most dramatic items is a 15th-century war mask, which still inspires a sense of awe, and the impressive array of horse chamfrons includes the only known example from Sultanate India. The descriptions are supplemented by a section on the inscriptions and drawings of details and arsenal marks. The presentation avoids the strictly typological classification of most previous works on the subject, and aims to give a full sense of the panoply of warfare: the stirrup, the drum, the talismanic shirt, and the banner were as important to the Muslim warrior as the sword and the mail shirt.

Steel or iron war mask Anatolia or western Iran, 15th century 20 × 16.5 cm

240 pages fully illustrated in colour, line drawings section on documentary inscriptions hardback with dust jacket (slipcased) 36 × 26 cm Isbn: 1-874780-61-7

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VOLUME XXII

LACQUER OF THE ISLAMIC LANDS Part One Nasser D. Khalili, B.W. Robinson and Tim Stanley 1996

Part Two Nasser D. Khalili, B.W. Robinson and Tim Stanley with a contribution by Manijeh Bayani 1997

This two-part volume presents the Collection’s more than 500 examples of Islamic lacquer – predominantly papier‑mâché wares with painted and varnished decoration – which is probably the largest holding of its kind in any single collection. The forms include not only the more common book‑bindings, pen boxes, caskets and mirror cases, but also spectacle cases, fans and a splendid backgammon table. Part One follows Islamic lacquer production from the late 15th century onwards, from Istanbul to India, tracing the development of decoration, from Chinese to European influence. The Collection contains works by almost every known lacquer painter, including Muhammad Zaman, ‘Ali Ashraf, Muhammad Sadiq, Abu Talib alMudarris and Lutf ‘Ali Khan Shirazi; some previously unrecorded, such as Muhammad Amin; and masters celebrated for work in other media, such as Mu‘in Musavvir and Ahmad Nayrizi. Part Two concentrates on the period with which Islamic lacquer is usually associated – Iran in the Qajar period (1779–1924) – and includes a ground‑breaking study of the seals of pen-box makers.

Lacquer instrument case by Muhammad Baqir Iran, 1772 23 × 15.8 cm

Part One: 276 pages fully illustrated in colour, several line drawings section for halftone enlargements of signatures hardback with dust jacket (slipcased) 36 × 26 cm Isbn: 1-874780-62-5 Part Two: 271 pages fully illustrated in colour; sections for pen-box makers and halftone enlargements of signatures hardback with dust jacket (slipcased) 36 × 26 cm Isbn: 1-874780-63-3

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VOLUME XXIII

OCCIDENTALISM Islamic art in the 19th century Stephen Vernoit 1997

Islamic art of the 19th century has received very little attention, and this is the first work devoted entirely to the subject. Through a series of essays and the entries on 188 objects in various media, the catalogue reflects the issues confronting Islamic artists and their patrons in the 19th century, namely the desire to maintain traditional forms of expression with their requisite skills, while acknowledging a need to develop new modes of expression suitable for the modern world. The first section of the book examines objects related to the Muslim faith and its expansion through Africa and South-east Asia. The second discusses the effect of royal patronage on the arts of the Ottoman empire, Iran and the Muslim courts of India. Domestic items are the subject of the third section. The concluding chapters examine Islam’s interaction with the West through objects made both in Europe and in the Islamic lands, including the revival of Mamluk and Safavid styles.

Order of the Lion and Sun by Ja‘far Iran, 1826–7 Collar 35.6 × 25.4 cm Plaque 8 × 9 cm Star 15.2 × 12.5 cm

256 pages fully illustrated in colour hardback with dust jacket (slipcased) 36 × 26 cm Isbn: 1-874780-64-1

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VOLUME XXIV

Monuments and Memorials   Carvings and tile work from the Islamic world Ralph Pinder-Wilson and Mitchell A.K. Crites with contributions by Rudolph Abraham, Manijeh Bayani, Javad Golmohammadi, Roberta Marin, Peter Morgan and Martina Rugiadi 2023

This volume is devoted to architectural decoration and tombstones in the Collection from across the Islamic world, from the Iberian peninsula to the Indian subcontinent, and datable from the 13th to the 19th centuries. The largest holdings are of glazed ceramic tiles, which would have decorated a range of secular and religious buildings, including a comprehensive lustre group from Ilkhanid Iran, and other smaller but important groups of cuerda seca from 15th-century Spain and blue, turquoise and white tiles from Multan in the 18th–19th centuries. Among the many fine tombstones of various materials and origins are: a marble pillar tombstone measuring over a metre high from Tunisia, with a carved foliated Kufic inscription including the date, 2 Safar 436 (29 August 1044), and the name of the deceased; a magnificent carved wooden cenotaph from a shrine in the Caspian area of Iran dated ah 902 (ad 1496–7), which includes the names of the donors and signature of the craftsman; and a marble stela nearly two metres high from Mughal northern India, with exquisite carved floral and calligraphic ornament. The Collection also includes fine carved sandstone window grilles (jali) from Mughal India and a remarkable group of marble carvings from Ghazni.

Marble stela India, 17th century 180.3 × 55.8 × 4.2 cm

fully illustrated in colour, numerous line drawings section on inscriptions with translations hardback with dust jacket (slipcased) 36 × 26 cm Isbn: 978-1-874780-85-4

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VOLUME XXV

The Tale and the Image Part One, History and epic paintings from Iran and Turkey Eleanor Sims with contributions by Manijeh Bayani and Tim Stanley 2022

This volume is devoted to the Collection’s illustrated manuscripts and detached folios of the early 14th to the 18th centuries produced in Iran – religious, historical and heroic epic. Many images are of major artistic importance and come from texts of equal importance. One painting of great significance is a later 15thcentury vision of the Prophet Muhammad and his companions in the company of Moses and the Virgin and Child. The Collection also has illustrated folios from several dispersed works of universal and dynastic history, including two from the earliest surviving illustrated copy of the Zafarnamah of Sharaf al-Din Yazdi, datedah 839 (ad 1436). A number of folios in the Collection were detached from manuscripts of Firdawsi’s Shahnamah. Among these is one from the Ilkhanid ‘Great Mongol’ Shahnamah, perhaps the most remarkable of a large group of Shahnamah volumes produced in the 14th and 15th centuries. In Iran, the art of manuscript illustration reached its zenith in the Safavid period (1501–1722). Pride of place among the holdings belongs to the 10 folios from the Shahnamah executed for Shah Tahmasp. There are also complete illustrated manuscripts of Firdawsi’s Shahnamah. One splendid copy, with 62 paintings, is dated ah 1011 (ad 1602).

Folio from the Shahnamah of Shah Tahmasp Iran, c. 1535 47 × 31 cm

fully illustrated in colour section on documentary inscriptions with translations hardback with dust jacket (slipcased) 36 × 26 cm Isbn: 978-1-874780-80-9

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VOLUME XXVI

The Tale and the Image Part Two, Illustrated manuscripts and album paintings from Iran, Turkey and Egypt J.M. Rogers and Manijeh Bayani with contributions by Emily Shovelton and Behnaz Atighi Moghaddam 2022

This volume is mainly devoted to the Collection’s illustrated manuscripts and detached folios with painted illustrations – primarily romantic poetry and anthologies – and single page compositions – mostly portraiture and genre painting – from Iran, dating from the 14th to the mid-19th centuries. Many items are of major artistic importance. The volume also includes significant works from Mamluk Egypt and late 15th-century Ottoman Turkey. Illustrated Persian manuscripts include several copies of the Khamsah of Nizami and a Divan of Hafiz dated ah 975 (ad 1567–8) with superbly illuminated margins and two exquisite paintings, one by Muhammadi and the other by ‘Abdallah alMudhahhib al-Shirazi. The large group of detached folios from Iran includes several of the late 15th century in the style of Muhammad Siyah Qalam (otherwise best represented in albums in the Topkapı Palace Library). Particularly strong in drawings from 17th-century Isfahan, it includes works by its most famous painters, Riza-yi ‘Abbasi, Muhammad Qasim, Mu‘in Musavvir, and the eclectic artists Muhammad Zaman, ‘Aliquli Jabadar and Shaykh ‘Abbasi. Ottoman paintings include two folios from the Siyer-i Nebi (‘Life of the Prophet’) made for Sultan Murad III, and an exquisite 16th-century drawing of a dragon in foliage in the style of Süleyman the Magnificent’s court painter, Shah Quli.

Frontispiece to a Divan of Hafiz Iran, 1567–8 37.5 × 20.5 cm

fully illustrated in colour section on documentary inscriptions with translations hardback with dust jacket (slipcased) 36 × 26 cm Isbn: 978-1-874780-81-6

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VOLUME XXVII

A COMPENDIUM OF CHRONI CLES Rashid al-Din’s illustrated history of the world Sheila S. Blair 1995

The Collection owns a section of what is, without doubt, one of the most important illustrated medieval manuscripts from either East or West. The Jami‘ al-tawarikh or ‘Compendium of Chronicles’ was written by the 14th-century court historian Rashid al‑Din, under the patronage of the Ilkhanids. The 59 folios in the Collection – reproduced here in colour for the first time after their recent restoration – together with those in the Edinburgh University Library, form a fragment of the earliest surviving Arabic copy of the work. An appendix in this volume reintegrates these folios and reconstructs their original order. The author discusses the identity and techniques of the calligraphers and painters involved, analyses the sources for the illustrations, and reveals the importance of this manuscript in the history of the Persian book. The author also traces the manuscript’s journey from Rashid al-Din’s scriptorium in Tabriz, through Timurid Herat, through the 19th-century Mughal court and the East India Company, to its acquisition by the Royal Asiatic Society. The volume also includes a translation by W.M. Thackston of the articles of endowment of the Rabi’ Rashidi.

The Mountains of India Iran, 1314–15 12 × 14 cm The Death of Moses on Mount Nebo Iran, 1314–15 11 × 25.5 cm

126 pages numerous colour and halftone illustrations, plus full colour facsimile of the Khalili manuscript hardback with dust jacket (slipcased) 36 × 26 cm Isbn: 1-874780-65-x

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TURCOMAN JEWELLERY From the Khalili Collection Nada Chaldecott 2023

Strong traditions and a particular lifestyle define the Turcoman of Central Asia. This long-established worldview found its most expressive artistic representation in the carpets and textiles they are known for, and equally so in their jewellery. Made primarily of silver and often massive in scale, the jewellery is characterized by its use of abstract designs, often mirrored or repeated, enhanced with the use of gilding and colourful semiprecious stones. The Khalili Collection includes some 150 pieces of Turcoman jewellery from the late 19th to mid-20th century. Most are of the Tekke, Yomud and Ersari tribes; others are from the urban centres within the region. Among the latter are a magnificent pair of cuffs with rings, made in Bukhara and stamped with a Russian mark dated 1883. They are inscribed with a dedication in Persian bearing the date 1912 to the daughter of a high ranking official of the Amir of Bukhara. The group of Turcoman jewellery in the Collection includes headdresses, headbands and temple ornaments; earrings and nose rings; hair and plait ornaments; neckbands, necklaces, pendants and various other pectoral ornaments; fasteners or clasps; and bracelets, cuffs and rings. In addition, there are some costumes and horse and camel ornaments. The material is presented in its historical, geographical and cultural contexts, with a strong emphasis on the important role played by traditions and beliefs in determining the artistic vocabulary of the Turcoman.

Enamelled cuffs Uzbekistan, late 19th century 22 cm (cuffs)

hardback 36 × 26 cm Isbn: 978-1-874780-93-9

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the khalili falnamah Rachel Parikh 2022

Originally commissioned by the Safavid ruler Shah Tahmasp in the mid-16th century, the Falnamah, or ‘Book of Omens’, is the only illustrated manuscript solely dedicated to the subject of divination. The stories illustrated, drawn from sacred and secular sources, were used to cast horoscopes and interpret one’s future. Five copies of the work survive, but the Khalili manuscript, which was produced in Golconda in the early 17th century under the auspices of the Qutb Shahi dynasty, is the only one known to have been made in India. It bears some similarities to Shah Tahmasp’s volume, but the majority of its content is distinct to it. In this volume, Dr Rachel Parikh first traces the origins of the Falnamah and discusses the ‘Book of Omens’ as a genre. She then examines the Khalili volume by providing a codicological study; analyzing the sources for, and the iconography of, its 37 illustrations; and surveying the context of its creation in Golconda and its subsequent impact. The volume will also include a facsimile reproduction of the entire manuscript and a translation of its text.

The building of Noah's ark folio 26b from the Khalili Falnamah India, Deccan, 1610–30 41 × 28.4 cm

numerous colour illustrations plus full colour facsimile of the Khalili manuscript hardback 36 × 26 cm Isbn: 978-1-874780-94-6

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THE KHALILI PORTOLAN ATLAS Facsimile edition with text: Piri Reis and Turkish mapmaking after Columbus Svat Soucek 1992

Columbus’s discoveries in the New World quickly became known in the Muslim lands around the Mediterranean, and the man who played a leading role in transmitting them was the Ottoman naval commander and cartographer Piri Reis in the early 16th century. His work is known from fragments of two world maps, and from his Kitab-i bahriye (‘Book of Seamanship’), which he devoted to the problem of sailing the Mediterranean and illustrated with hundreds of charts. The charts in the Khalili Portolan Atlas are largely based on this work, but the manuscript includes a number of important additions such as the series of city views – among them Istanbul, Venice and Cairo – which reflect the vitality of Ottoman topographic painting. The publication of this beautiful facsimile is an important contribution to cartographic history: its accuracy is such that there will be no barrier to scholars and collectors in attaining a full appreciation of the work. The facsimile is accompanied by a study in which the author outlines the successes and failures of Piri Reis’s career, analyses his contribution to the history of mapmaking and provides a detailed account of the contents of the late 17th‑century Khalili atlas.

text volume 180 pages facsimile map 62 sheets limited edition of 750 Solander-boxed sets 37 × 26 cm Isbn: 1-874780-70-6

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The island of Kandelioussa and its winch Folio 17b from the Khalili Portolan Atlas 36 × 25 cm

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islamic art – Academic monographs

Academic monographs: Studies in the Khalili Collection

Studies in the Khalili Collection is a second series of publications related to the Islamic art collection, presenting more detailed analysis of certain objects. Five volumes in this series have been published: one on Arabic papyri from Egypt; one on Arabic documents from Khurasan; one (in three parts) on Bactrian documents, some of which name the same people or places cited in a few of the contemporary Khurasani documents; one on the Portolan Atlas of Piri Reis; and one on Arab‑Byzantine coinage. All these monographs have been written by the leading scholars in their fields.

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VOLUME I

SELECTED ARABIC PAPYRI Geoffrey Khan 1992

This volume contains a detailed examination of 36 of the papyri in the Collection, all written between the 8th and 10th centuries, before the Fatimid conquest of Egypt in 968. The documents, which consist of accounts, legal transactions and letters, were selected because they were preserved in a reasonably complete form or, when of a more fragmentary nature, because of the importance of their content. The papyri documents constitute a valuable source of information on a wide array of subjects, especially social and economic history, topography and diplomacy. They are also important for the study of the Arabic language. The documents are fully illustrated, and the texts are reproduced in their original language with full translations and detailed commentaries on the script and the contents. The introduction includes a thorough, illustrated analysis of the scripts.

262 pages halftone illustrations hardback 31 × 22 cm Isbn: 1-874780-66-8 0ut of print

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SEL ECTED ARABIC PAPYRI Geoffrey Khan


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VOLUME II

PIRI REIS AND TURKISH MAPMAKING AFTER COLUMBUS Svat Soucek 1996

Columbus’s discoveries in the New World quickly became known in the Muslim lands around the Mediterranean, and the man who played a leading role in transmitting them was the Ottoman naval commander and cartographer Piri Reis in the early 16th century. His work is known from fragments of two world maps, and from his Kitab-i bahriye (‘Book of Seamanship’), which he devoted to the problem of sailing the Mediterranean and illustrated with hundreds of charts. The Khalili Portolan Atlas is a fine example of the cartographic tradition Piri Reis established and, in addition, it includes a series of city views – among them Istanbul, Venice and Cairo – which reflects the vitality of Ottoman topographic painting. This book, which includes a detailed analysis of the late 17th-century Khalili Portolan Atlas, was first issued as a limited edition and accompanied by a facsimile of the manuscript. The aim of this edition is to make more widely available the author’s important contribution to our understanding of Piri Reis and his work.

STUD IES IN THE KHAL IL I COL L ECTION VOLUM E II

PI R I R E I S A ND TU R K I S H M A PM A K I NG A F TE R C OLU M BU S Svat Soucek

194 pages halftone illustrations hardback 31 × 22 cm Isbn: 1-874780-67-6

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VOLUME III

BACTRIAN DOCUMENTS FROM NORTHERN AFGHANISTAN Part I, Legal and economic documents Nicholas Sims-Williams 2012 (Revised edition)

During the last twenty years, more than 150 documents in Bactrian, the language of pre‑Islamic Afghanistan, have come to light. These documents, which have been deciphered and published by Nicholas Sims‑Williams, provide unique information on the history and culture of Afghanistan and neighbouring lands in the 4th to the 8th centuries, as well as revealing a Middle Iranian language which was hardly known before. The first edition of Part I of this volume was published in 2001, containing all the legal and economic documents that were known up to that time. The present, substantially revised, edition includes a number of additional documents as well as incorporating significant improvements to the text and translation. Some sections of the earlier edition have been omitted, in particular the glossary, because they have been superseded by the equivalent sections in Part II of this volume (published in 2007).

171 pages hardback 31 × 22 cm Isbn: 978-1-874780-92-2

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BACT RIAN DOCUME N TS I R EV I S ED ED I T I O N

Nicholas Sims-Williams


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VOLUME III

BACTRIAN DOCUMENTS FROM NORTHERN AFGHANISTAN Part II, Letters and Buddhist texts Nicholas Sims-Williams 2007

During the last twenty years, more than 150 documents in Bactrian, the language of pre‑Islamic Afghanistan, have come to light. These documents, which have been deciphered and published by Nicholas Sims‑Williams, provide unique information on the history and culture of Afghanistan and neighbouring lands in the 4th to the 8th centuries, as well as revealing a Middle Iranian language which was hardly known before. Part II of this volume includes letters, both official and personal, and Buddhist texts, as well as an outline grammar and a comprehensive glossary.

STUD IES IN THE KHAL IL I COL L ECTION VOLUM E III

BACT RIAN DOCUME N TS II Nicholas Sims-Williams

326 pages hardback 31 × 22 cm Isbn: 978-1-874780-90-8 0ut of print

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VOLUME III

BACTRIAN DOCUMENTS FROM NORTHERN AFGHANISTAN Part III, Plates Nicholas Sims-Williams 2012

During the last twenty years, more than 150 documents in Bactrian, the language of pre‑Islamic Afghanistan, have come to light. These documents, which have been deciphered and published by Nicholas Sims-Williams, provide unique information on the history and culture of Afghanistan and neighbouring lands in the 4th to the 8th centuries, as well as revealing a Middle Iranian language which was hardly known before. The purpose of Part III of this volume is to illustrate the new documents as comprehensively as possible. In addition to 230 pages of photographs, the volume contains a complete catalogue of the documents.

270 pages halftone illustrations hardback 31 × 22 cm Isbn: 978-1-874780-91-5

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BACT RIAN DOCUME N TS III Nicholas Sims-Williams


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VOLUME IV

ARAB-BYZANTINE COINAGE Tony Goodwin 2005

The coinage of Syria and Palestine issued during the first 50 years of Islamic rule is of exceptional interest, but until recently has been little studied. The images on the coins were initially loosely based on Byz antine prototypes, but soon developed new iconographic features, including the earliest known Islamic human images. This development was cut short by caliph ‘Abd al-Malik’s reforms of the 690s in which purely epigraphic coinage was introduced. Arab-Byzantine coins are therefore an almost unique survival of the birth of Islamic art. The book starts with a comprehensive survey of the coinage, with examples of all known mints and types illustrated and described. The author then presents three separate in-depth studies, on the coins of Ba‘albak, Jerusalem and Yubna. The first of these includes the results of the first comprehensive die study to be published for an Arab-Byzantine mint. The second and third studies concentrate particularly on the unusual iconography which developed in the Palestinian mints and the author also demonstrates how the Yubna coinage, hitherto practically unknown outside specialist numismatic circles, must now be regarded as one of the most complex in the Arab-Byzantine series.

STUD IES IN THE KHAL IL I COL L ECTION VOLUM E IV

ARABB Y Z A N T IN E CO IN AG E Tony Goodwin

168 pages halftone illustrations hardback 31 × 22 cm Isbn: 1-874780-75-7 0ut of print

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VOLUME V

ARABIC DOCUMENTS FROM EARLY ISLAMIC KHURASAN Geoffrey Khan 2007

The history of Eastern Iran (Khurasan) in the Abbasid period has so far been based on literary sources, which, regrettably, tell us practically nothing of its administration, and the documentary material in Arabic has related almost entirely to papyri from Egypt. The lacuna has now, however, been dramatically filled by the discovery of the documents published in this volume, apparently from a private archive of landowners in northeastern Afghanistan dating between 755 and 777. They appear to complement many contemporary Bactrian documents also in the Nasser D. Khalili Collection of Islamic Art, published by Nicholas Sims‑Williams in Volume III of this series, which mention many of the persons and place-names in the Arabic documents. Together the two collections are of prime importance for the history of daily life in early Islamic Khurasan. right Quittance relating to the dowry of Hamra, the daughter of Mir ibn Bek Dhu’l-Hijja 147 (January–February 765) ink on light-coloured parchment; clay bulla with seven seal and thumbnail impressions 16.2 × 9.6 cm

184 pages halftone illustrations hardback 31 × 22 cm Isbn: 978-1-874780-71-7

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ARA B I C D O C U M E N TS

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hajj and the arts of pilgrimage (700–2000)

“Hajj is a great gathering of human beings. Dressed in their white ritual garments, the pilgrims stand shoulder to shoulder, toe to toe, equal before God, regardless of sect, race, gender, wealth or rank: this is Islam at its most harmonious and pure” Nasser D. Khalili The Khalili Collections include one of the largest and most important groups of works relating to hajj and the arts associated with it. The collection is the largest in private hands and ranks in importance alongside that of the Topkapi Saray Museum in Istanbul. The works range in date from the Umayyad period to the late-20th century spanning 1400 years of Islamic history and come from all over the Muslim world. They include scientific instruments, coins, manuscripts, paintings, textiles, photographs, prints and postcards, as well as rare printed books and historical documents. They have been collected with

top Umayyad gold dinar struck ‘in the mine of the Commander of the Faithful’ Hijaz, ah 105 (ad 723–4) 20 mm diameter

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the aim of providing a comprehensive overview of the subject, illustrating the various religious and artistic aspects of pilgrimage to the two holy cities of Islam andthe cosmopolitan nature of hajj. This collection contains over 5000 objects including more then 300 textiles and many other related objects associated with Mecca and Medina. The objects have been fully conserved and are currently being researched and catalogued by the world’s leading experts on the Hajj, for publication in a multi-volume series. The Khalili Collection has been a major contributor to the following museums and institutions worldwide: Nieuwe Kerk, Amsterdam; the State Hermitage, St Petersburg; the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney; the Emirates Palace, Abu Dhabi; Institut du monde arabe, Paris; Museum of Islamic Art, Doha; Los Angeles County Museum of Art; British Museum, London; Rijksmuseum Volkenkunde, Leiden; Museum Catharijneconvent, Utrecht; The Cincinnati Art Museum, Ohio; Tropenmuseum, Amsterdam.

bottom Silver and silver-gilt metal and thread embroidered panel from the hizam(or belt) of the Ka‘bah. The text consists of a Qur’anic verse that mentions Bacca and Abraham Mecca, early 20th century 90 × 590cm


View of Mecca (detail) Mecca, c. 1845 62.8 × 88 cm The earliest known accurate eye witness record of Mecca

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Section from a cover of the Maqam Ibrahim, a stone with the imprints of the feet of Abraham, made, it is believed, when he was building the Ka‘bah Cairo, late 19th century 200 × 125 cm

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Curtain for the door of the Ka‘bah Egypt, 1606 500 × 270 cm

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above A cotton talismanic shirt with extracts from the Qur’an and prayers, as well as depictions of the two Holy Sanctuaries at Mecca and Medina Turkey, 17th century 87 × 101 cm

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right Detail from a cotton talismanic shirt with a view of the Holy Sanctuary at Mecca


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A complete cover for the mahmal, ordered by the Ottoman Sultan Muhammad IV Istanbul or Cairo, dated ah 1076 (ad 1656–7) 355 × 190 × 175 cm

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Mahmal cover Egypt, 1867–76 400 × 130 × 102 cm

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mployees of Dar al-Kiswah, Cairo E 1900–50 36 × 25.3 cm (sheet)

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top Pilgrims at ‘Arafat; albumen print signed Sadiq Bey, 1880. Muhammad Sadiq Bey (1832–1902) was an Egyptian army engineer and surveyor and the first person to take photographs of the holy cities of Mecca and Medina and the Hajj. 15.5 × 22 cm

bottom Magnetism III, by Ahmed Mater ‘The idea is simple and, like its central element, forcefully attractive… [Matar’s] circumambulating whirl of metallic filings mirrors in miniature the concentric tawaf of the pilgrims and their sevenfold circling of the Ka‘bah’ (Tim Mckintosh-Smith). Photogravure, 2012 42 × 63 cm

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top Views of the Holy Sanctuary in Mecca (left) and the Prophet’s Mosque in Medina (right), from a copy of the Kitab Futuh al-Haramayn of Muhyi Lari, a handbook for pilgrims to Mecca and Medina Mecca, 1582 21.6 × 13.9 cm (page)

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bottom The ritual of collecting pebbles at Muzdalifa; pilgrims in the town of Mina, being shaved, making sacrifices and casting pebbles. This day corresponds to ‘Id al-Adha on 10 dhu’l-Hijjah, the feast commemorating the Sacrifice of Abraham. From a copy of Safi ibn Vali’s Anis al-Hujjaj (‘Pilgrims’ Companion’). Gujarat, India, c. 1677–80 33 × 23 cm (page)


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‘Alexander Visits the Ka‘bah’, Folio from a Copy of Firdawsi’s Shahnamah Shiraz, Iran mid-16th century

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hajj and the arts of pilgrimage

HAJJ AND THE ARTS OF PILGRIMAGE From the Khalili Collection A series of ten volumes Nasser D. Khalili, Qaisra Khan and Nahla Nassar with contributions by 25 major scholars in the field 2023

One volume of this multi-volume publication will include a translation of Jacques Jomier’s seminal work, Le Mahmal et la caravane Égyptienne des pèlerins de la Mecque, as well as some of the mahmal-related material from the Collection. Another volume, comprising a number of essays by leading authorities in the field, will present a comprehensive overview of the various religious, spiritual and artistic aspects of pilgrimage to the holy cities of Islam and the cosmopolitan nature of hajj. Other volumes in the series will present the Collection’s holdings. Four will be devoted to the group of some 300 textiles associated with Mecca and Medina and the Dar al-Kiswah, the workshop in Cairo where many of the pilgrimage-related textiles were woven and embroidered. The rest will be devoted to the cities of Mecca and Medina and representations of the two holy sanctuaries by Muslim and European artists and photographers; to the Hijaz railway; and to subjects such as the life of the Prophet Muhammad; the rituals of hajj, its administration and the upkeep of the two holy sanctuaries.

top Ewer for Zamzam water gilded copper (tombak) Turkey, second half of the 18th century, height 33cm bottom Gold medallion Turkey or possibly the Hijaz, c. 1845 37 mm diameter

Reverse with the view of Medina

Obverse with the view of Mecca

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Ten volumes

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HAJJ AND THE ARTS OF PILGRIMAGE Qaisra M. Khan 2022

Since the advent of Islam, Hajj has been one of the most remarkable religious gatherings in the world. A compulsory act for Muslims, if they are able, the annual observance of Hajj has always had a great impact on the Muslim world and for centuries, pilgrims and rulers alike have held a deep love for the Holy Sanctuaries of Mecca and Medina. Yet until recently this ritual has remained largely unfamiliar to the Western world. Featuring insightful chapters on the Islamic principles of Hajj, travel, rituals, sacred manuscripts, textiles, souvenirs and western perspectives, this wonderfully illustrated volume narrates and reveals the broad spiritual, cultural and artistic aspects of the pilgrimage to Mecca and Medina, told exclusively through the Khalili Collection of Hajj and the Arts of Pilgrimage. This book will significantly enrich all people’s understanding of this important practice.

Section from a pilgrimage scroll depicting the sanctuary at Mecca probably painted by Indian artists Mecca, 17th-18th century opaque watercolour, gold, silver and ink on paper 65 x48 cm

408 pages fully illustrated in colour hardcover in a luxury slipcase 28 x 35.5 cm ISBN: 9781649801029 published by Assouline www.assouline.com

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aramaic documents (352–324 bc)

The 48 Aramaic documents from Ancient Bactria occupy a special place among the treasures of the Khalili Collections. The group are for the most part letters and accounts connected with the court of the satrap of Bactria, Akhvamazda, and with his governor, Bagavant. This is the first time that parts of the internal correspondence of the administration of Bactria and Sogdiana have come to light. The documents are written in Official Aramaic, a term that describes both the language and the script. They may be placed in or near Balkh, the capital city of Bactria in antiquity, and span a period of less than thirty years, from 353 to 324 bc. This was, however, a

period of great turmoil with far-reaching consequences for the history of the East, particularly of Central Asia. During this period, which begins with the reign of Artaxerxes III, the Achaemenian Empire came to an end when the kingdom was captured by Alexander the Great. One document is dated to year 7 of his reign. In this extraordinary document, corresponding to 8th of June 324 BCE, his name appears clearly as `Iksndrs’ on the top right. All known documents previously had always referred to him as `Iksndr’, which makes this document the first time Alexander the Great became ‘Alexandros’ for which he was known throughout history.

List of disbursed supplies, in ink on leather Bactria, 8 June 324 bc, and continuing for three months 29.1 × 49.6 cm

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Sealed document, announcing the dispatch of sheep, in ink on leather; with a clay seal written in Official Aramaic Bactria, year 1 of an unspecified reign, possibly that of Alexander the Great, corresponding to 330–29 bc 7.4 × 23cm

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Fragmentary letter, in ink on leather written in Official Aramaic Bactria mid-forth century bc, 10.2 × 9.5 cm

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Seal on document, announcing the dispatch of sheep (detail)

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aramaic documents from ancient bactria Joseph Naveh and Shaul Shaked 2012

This is the first publication of a group of 30 documents on leather in Official Aramaic, dating to the 4th century bc and reflecting the practice of the Achaemenian administration in Bactria and Sogdiana. Eighteen inscribed wooden sticks, for use as tallies, dated to the third year of King Darius III, are also included. They are considered to be the second most important discovery of its type known. Two of the leather documents relate to the fall of the Persian Empire: one mentions Bessus, the usurper of the Persian throne, travelling to Warnu (Greek Aornos); the other is a long list of supplies in the year 7 of King Alexander. In addition to their valuable historical contents, the documents enrich our knowledge of Aramaic and its lexicon. The documents are given in Aramaic with translation, introduction, commentary and glossary. The volume is lavishly illustrated.

Letter from Akhvamazda to Bagavant, by the scribe Hashavakhshu, in ink on leather Bactria, 353 bc 14.6 × 32.2 cm

294 pages fully illustrated in colour hardback with dust jacket 32 × 25 cm isbn: 978-1-874780-74-8

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japanese art of the meiji period (1868–1912) ‘ In a way, all my work is founded on Japanese art…’ Vincent Van Gogh, 1888

ARAMAIC DOCUMENTS FROM ANCIENT BACTRIA In the 50 years leading up to the dawn of the 20th century, Japan transformed itself from an isolated feudal nation to a world power. The traditional arts seemed doomed to extinction as the country raced to modernize its industries. However, after the young Meiji Emperor assumed the throne in 1868, Japan’s new leaders realised that the historic skills of the metalworker, lacquerer, enameller and ceramic artist could play a vital part in the struggle to compete in international markets. Before long, visitors to international exhibitions in Europe and America were confronted with astonishing displays of Japanese artistic creativity and technical virtuosity. Joseph Naveh and Shaul Shaked 2012

The masterpieces of Meiji art, in a unique style blending the best of traditional design with prevailing international taste, are unrivalled in the quality of their craftsmanship and were avidly sought by Western collectors. In more recent times, however, they have been neglected by scholars and collectors alike. The Khalili Collection of Japanese Art, the world’s most comprehensive collection of Meiji decorative art, comprises over 1,500 pieces including works by most of the known masters from the middle of the 19th century to the early 20th century. Comparable in its extent only to that held by the Japanese Imperial family, the Collection houses many objects created by artists who had received the outstanding honour of becoming Artists to the Imperial Household and these masters, together with other sublime artists represented in the Collection, frequently won gold medals as participants in the great world expositions of that time. In many ways, it is no exaggeration to say that many of the intricate and technically accomplished objects in the Collection would be impossible to replicate today. Furthermore, echoes of the ground-breaking art produced in the Meiji period can be witnessed since the birth of the Avant-garde in Europe to this day. From the heavy influence on the Impressionists during the hayday of ‘Japonisme’ right up to the most cutting edge digital art of the 21st century, the influence of Meiji art on the contemporary world is unparalleled.

Repoussé silver vase with translucent enamels Japan, c. 1910 60.3 cm height

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Pair of inlaid Samurai figures by the Miyao Company Japan, c. 1890 223 cm and 226 cm height (overall), 99 cm and 104 cm (figures)

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Vase Japan c. 1905–10 Earthenware, painted and gilded Signed Kinkozan and red seal of Chokusai Made by the Kinkozan Workshop Height 30.2 cm

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Panel signed and sealed Zeshin by Shibata Zeshin (1807–91) Japan, c. 1888–1890 32 × 119 cm

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Vase Japan, Kyoto c. 1905–10 Signed with a stamped mark Kyoto, Namikawa Made by the Namikawa Yasuyuki Workshop height 24.5 cm

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Textile Panel Japan c. 1910 Silk Embroidery 79.5 × 105 cm

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Figure of a goose cloisonné enamel, silver wire, shakudo, gilt bronze by Namikawa Sosuke Tokyo, 1880-1885 height 41.3 cm

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Incense-burner and cover (koro) bronze and gilt by Suzuki Chokichi Japan, 1870s 280 × 130 cm

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VOLUME I

MEIJI NO TAKARA – Treasures of Imperial Japan Selected Essays Oliver Impey and Malcolm Fairley with contributions by Gunhild Avitabile, Ellen P. Conant, Rupert Faulkner, Hida Toyojiro, Janet Hunter, Anna Jackson and Sato Doshin 1995

This collection of six illustrated essays provides essential background information on the history of the Meiji period (1868–1912). Janet Hunter of the London School of Economics describes the drastic changes brought by the Meiji revolution. Sato Doshin of Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music analyses the Meiji bureaucrats’ efforts to promote the craft industries, and Hida Toyojiro of the National Museum of Modern Art investigates the motivations and working methods of Japanese entrepreneurs. The next two essays, by Gunhild Avitabile and Ellen Conant, celebrate the lives of two Westerners, the German Gottfried Wagener and the Irishman Captain Frank Brinkley, who profoundly influenced the course of Meiji-period craft industries. The last essay, by Rupert Faulkner and Anna Jackson of the Victoria and Albert Museum, explores the formation of that museum’s extensive Japanese holdings during the 1870s and 1880s. This volume will serve as an invaluable startingpoint for the further study of the Meiji period and its art.

Portrait of the Emperor Meiji (1852–1912)

210 pages fully illustrated in colour hardback with slipcase 40 × 30 cm isbn: 978-1-874780-01-4

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VOLUME II

MEIJI NO TAKARA – Treasures of Imperial Japan Metalwork Parts One & Two Oliver Impey and Malcolm Fairley with a contribution by Victor Harris 1995

This volume introduces 161 examples from the greatest group of Meiji-period masterpieces in metal ever assembled, decorated in an astonishing variety of virtuoso techniques and drawing on a vast store of subject matter derived from Chinese and Japanese history, legend, and religion. It includes a vast and hitherto unknown bronze incense-burner by Suzuki Chokichi (1848–1919), an exquisitely decorated elephant incense-burner by Shoami Katsuyoshi (1832–1908), a large group of iron pieces decorated in gold by the Komai family of Kyoto, and ornaments commissioned from leading artists by the Ozeki company. Kano Natsuo (1828–98), the outstanding decorative metalworker of 19th-century Japan, is represented by a table-screen in shibuichi, and there is another screen of Shoki the demonqueller, by his great contemporary Unno Shomin (1844–1915). The sculptural highlight of the entire Collection is a group by Otake Norikuni (b. 1852) representing the deity Susanoo no Mikoto receiving the sacred jewel.

Silver and enamel vase with cover by Ozeki Company Japan, c. 1885 44 cm height

Set of two parts 500 pages fully illustrated in colour, hardback with slipcase 40 × 30 cm isbn: 978-1-874780-02-1

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VOLUME III

MEIJI NO TAKARA – Treasures of Imperial Japan Enamel Oliver Impey and Malcolm Fairley with a contribution by Jack Hillier 1994

Japanese cloisonné enamels were a technical triumph of the Meiji (1868–1912) and Taisho (1912–26) periods, and the 107 examples reproduced in this volume offer an unrivalled panorama of achievement centred around the work of three artists: Namikawa Yasuyuki, Namikawa Sosuke, and Ando Jubei. The Collection includes a large number of works by each of them, making it possible to establish the first reliable chronology for the development of enamelling in Japan. An introductory essay traces the history of the craft from the first experiments of Kaji Tsunekichi in the 1840s and 1850s and identifies three strands of stylistic evolution that took place from the 1860s; the conservative, the pictorial and the exotic. An essay by the great British scholar Jack Hillier traces the relationship between Sosuke and the painter Watanabe Seitei. This volume, combining magnificent colour reproduction with pioneering scholarship, will serve as the essential guide to a little-known facet of Japan’s artistic achievement.

Enamel vases by Namikawa Yasuyuki Japan, c. 1905 27.6 cm height

320 pages fully illustrated in colour hardback with slipcase 40 × 30 cm isbn: 978-1-874780-03-8

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VOLUME IV

MEIJI NO TAKARA – Treasures of Imperial Japan Lacquer Parts One & Two Oliver Impey, Malcolm Fairley and Joe Earle with contributions by Goke Tadaomi, Julia Hutt and Edward Wrangham 1995

Due to strong continuities of type and style in this most characteristically Japanese of arts, the first of the two parts making up this volume includes several pieces dating from the 17th to the 19th century. The revival of the classical style is covered in depth, with major works by such revered figures as Nakayama Komin (1808–70) and Shirayama Shosai (1853–1923) and there is a large group of examples of shibayama work which combines lacquer with other materials to create a rich and exotic effect. The centrepiece of the Collection is an extravagantly decorated cabinet by Harui Komin (b. 1869) presented by the Japanese Crown Prince to the future King Edward VIII of England in 1921. An introductory essay by Julia Hutt of the Victoria and Albert Museum chronicles the development of lacquer in response to Western demand, while Edward Wrangham, one of the world’s foremost lacquer collectors, contributes an article on the Rimpa style.

Lacquered cabinet by Harui Komin Japan, c. 1908 110 × 51.5 × 103 cm

Set of two parts 556 pages fully illustrated in colour hardback with slipcase 40 × 30 cm isbn: 978-1-874780-04-5

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VOLUME V

MEIJI NO TAKARA – Treasures of Imperial Japan Ceramics Part One, Porcelain Oliver Impey and Malcolm Fairley with contributions by Clare Pollard and Vibeke Woldbye 1995

This volume is published in two parts dealing with the development of, respectively, porcelain and earthenware. The first part concentrates on Miyagawa (Makuzu) Kozan (1842–1916), illustrating more than 80 examples of his virtuoso work in porcelain. Kozan brought the medium to heights of technical perfection not seen before and, ever responsive to market forces, produced wares with shapes and decoration in Japanese, Chinese, and European styles. An essay by Dr Oliver Impey and Malcolm Fairley traces the part played by Japanese porcelain in the international exhibitions of the period, while Clare Pollard contributes an artistic biography based on documentary research in Japan. By assembling such an outstanding group of ceramics and presenting them in the light of groundbreaking new research this volume makes a major contribution to the study and appreciation of Meiji art.

Porcelain vase by Kato Yutaro (1851–1915) Japan, c. 1910 39.3 cm height

248 pages fully illustrated in colour hardback with slipcase 40 × 30 cm Isbn: 978-1-874780-05-2

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VOLUME V

MEIJI NO TAKARA – Treasures of Imperial Japan Ceramics Part Two, Earthenware Oliver Impey and Malcolm Fairley with a contribution by Yamazaki Tsuyoshi 1995

The second part of the catalogue of the ceramic holdings of the Collection focuses on another great artist-entrepreneur, Yabu Meizan (1853–1934), and illustrates 168 of his earthenwares and those of his contemporaries and imitators, minutely decorated in enamels and gold over a characteristic crackled ground. These wares, under the misleading name of ‘Satsuma’, were the most popular of the Japanese craft products which dazzled the Western world in the era of the great exhibitions. A further essay by Impey and Fairley demolishes the various myths about the origin of ‘Satsuma’ put about by Japanese and Western writers in the late 19th century, while a biography of Yabu Meizan by Yamazaki Tsuyoshi, illustrated with copious examples of his work from the Yabu family archive and from contemporary illustrations, sheds fascinating light on the evolution of his style and working methods.

Gilded and painted vase by Suwa Sozan (1851–1922) Japan, 1908 55 cm height

300 pages fully illustrated in colour hardback with slipcase 40 × 30 cm Isbn: 978-1-874780-06-9

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VOLUME VI

MEIJI NO TAKARA – Treasures of Imperial Japan Masterpieces by Shibata Zeshin Joe Earle with a contribution by Goke Tadaomi 1996

The Khalili collection of 100 works by Shibata Zeshin (1807–91) is the finest in the world. Combining unparalleled technical skill with a highly individual decorative style, Zeshin’s paintings and lacquers are imbued with traditional humour, energy and grace, but are fully in tune with the innovative spirit of Meiji-period Japan. This volume has been written by Joe Earle with an introduction by Japan’s foremost expert on Zeshin, Goke Tadaomi. In addition to extensive catalogue entries, it includes a detailed discussion of Zeshin’s work and a fully-annotated translation of the biography of Zeshin written by his son Ryushin in 1927. Illustrated with over 350 colour plates including details of signatures, certificates and storage boxes signed by Zeshin’s sons and pupils, Masterpieces by Shibata Zeshin will be seen as the authoritative study of one of the greatest artists of 19th-century Japan.

Lacquer tiered box by Shibata Zeshin Japan, c. 1880 17 × 17.7 × 15.9 cm

288 pages fully illustrated in colour hardback with slipcase 40 × 30 cm Isbn: 978-1-874780-08-3

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JAPONISME AND THE RISE OF THE MODERN ART MOVEMENT The arts of the Meiji period With superlative examples from the Khalili Collection Gregory Irvine with contributions by Tayfun Belgin, Hiroko Yokomizo, John House, Axel Rüger and Kris Schiermeier 2013

From the 1860s through to the 1890s the rise of Japonisme and the Art Nouveau movement meant few could resist the obsession with all things Japanese. Superbly crafted and often highly decorated Japanese objects – lacquer, metalwork, ceramics, enamels and other decorative items rich in new and exotic subject matter – stimulated and inspired Western artists and craftsmen to produce their own works. Arts of the Meiji period (1868–1912) were displayed at international exhibitions, in the galleries of influential dealers and at fashionable stores in London, Paris and Vienna. Artists from Van Gogh, Whistler, Monet and Manet to Klimt and Schiele were all, to varying degrees, influenced by the arts of Japan. Van Gogh himself stated that he owed his inspiration to Japanese art, but he was probably not conscious of the full extent to which art in Europe had already been greatly influenced by that of Japan. Here, six renowned scholars and specialists examine the wider influence of Japanese art and design in Europe with superlative examples from the Khalili Collection, the world’s finest collection of works from the Meiji period. They demonstrate that the Japanese influence on modern Western art has been far more penetrating than has been widely recognised.

Enamel vase by Namikawa Sosuke (1847–1910) Japan, c. 1883 55.2 cm height

240 pages hardback with dust jacket 34 × 24 cm Thames & Hudson Isbn: 978–0-500–23913-1

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EMBROIDERED WONDERS Meiji era textiles in the Khalili Collections

Clare Pollard and Hiroko T. McDermott 2022

The Meiji period of 1868 to 1912 in Japan is renowned as a period of genius, inventiveness and phenomenal success and influence in the West. The prosperous textile industry of the period, which has receive little attention until recent years will be fully traced and explored in this forthcoming publication, showcasing for the first time the ravishing and comprehensive textile trove in the Khalili Collection of Japanese Art, considered to be the largest in private hands worldwide. Dazzling works of embroidery, resist-dyed silk and velvet, and tapestries brimming with innovative techniques – from the award-winning and flamboyant to the intimate and private – the Collection will appeal to all those interested in Japanese art, textile design, Japonisme, and Japanese history. Written by Clare Pollard and Hiroko T. McDermott and featuring over 250 examples (of over 300) from the Collection, this major new publication will be a landmark survey of this magnificent art form in scope, style, and technique.

Silk embroidered panel, depicting a waterfall cascading onto rocks through autumnal maple trees. Within the original black lacquer frame. With original label of Nishimura Sozaemon of Kyoto, Circa 1900. W 76 x 51.5 cm F 88 x 73 cm

fully illustrated with numerous colour images hardback

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japanese kimono (1700–2000)

The Khalili Collection of kimono comprises more than 450 garments and spans three hundred years of Japanese textile artistry. It is one of the world’s most outstanding private collections of traditional Japanese kimono. The form of the T-shaped, straight-seamed, frontwrapping kimono has changed very little over the centuries, yet the Collection reveals an astonishing variety of designs. In Japanese dress it is the surface

Outer kimono for a woman Japan, c. 1800 172 × 129.5 cm

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decoration, not the cut and construction, that is important and indications of gender, age, status, wealth and taste are expressed through the choice of colour and pattern. Represented are the sophisticated garments of the Edo period (1603–1868); the shifting styles and new colour palette of Meiji (1868–1912); and the bold and dazzling kimono of the Taisho (1912–26) and early Showa (1926–89).


japanese kimono

Underkimono for a man (juban) Flowers and birds Plain weave cotton; freehand wax resist-dyeing (batik) Java/Japan, Edo period 1800–50 135 × 135.5 cm

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above Outer kimono for a woman (uchikake) Scenes from the Tale of Ise Plain weave crepe silk (chirimen); freehand pasteresist dyeing (yūzen) Japan, Edo period, 1830–70 165.0 × 124.5 cm left Underkimono for a man (juban) Passionflowers Plain weave cotton; printing Britain or France, Edo period, 1835–60 142.5 × 129.0 cm

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Outer Kimono for a Young Woman (Uchikake) Japan 1840–1870 171.5 × 125.0 cm

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Child’s kimono Pattern of airplanes against blue and white stripes Cotton, printed Taishō- Shōwa period, 1920 – 1940 81 × 89 cm

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Juban Intricate industrial cityscape pattern with cranes, ships and factories Silk, kata yuzen dyed Taishō- Shōwa period, 1920 – 1940 124.5 × 129.5 cm

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KIMONO

The Art and Evolution of Japanese Fashion (English edition) Anna Jackson with additional texts by Nagasaki Iwao, Timon Screech, Christine M. E. Guth and Kendall H. Brown 2015

The Khalili Collection of kimono, which comprises more than 450 garments and spans 300 years of Japanese textile artistry, brilliantly conveys the remarkable creativity of designers who used the surface of the garment to produce a wearable work of art. An enormous range of patterns and motifs were executed in an often complex combination of weaving, dyeing and embroidery techniques, some garments requiring the expert skills of a number of different artisans. The Khalili Collection includes formal, semi-formal and informal kimono, undergarments and jackets, worn by women, men and children. Represented are the sophisticated garments of the imperial court, samurai aristocracy and affluent merchant classes of the Edo period (1603–1868); the shifting styles and new colour palette of Meiji-period dress (1868–1912); and particularly the bold and dazzling kimono of the Taisho (1912–26) and early Showa (1926–89) periods which utilized innovative techniques and drew fresh inspiration from both past traditions and the modern world. Kimono for a young girl Wisteria, trellises and stream Gauze weave silk (ro); freehand pasteresist dyeing (yu-zen), stencil imitation tie-dyeing (suri-hitta) and embroidery in silk and metallic threads Edo period, 1800–50 95.5 × 86.0 cm

English 319 pages fully illustrated in colour hardback with dust jacket 2015 Thames & Hudson 30 × 24 cm Isbn: 978–0-500–51802-1

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KIMONO: L’art Japonais des motifs et des couleurs (French edition) L’arte del bello nella cultura giapponese (Italian edition) Anna Jackson with additional texts by Nagasaki Iwao, Timon Screech, Christine M. E. Guth and Kendall H. Brown

Woman’s kimono Japan, 1920–1940 137 × 137 cm

French 319 pages fully illustrated in colour hardback with dust jacket Translated by Anne de Thoisy-Dallem Editions La Bibliothèque des Arts 2015 30 × 24 cm Isbn: 978-2-88453-194-8 Italian 319 pages fully illustrated in colour hardback with dust jacket Translated by G. Atripaldi 2016 Mondadori Electa 30 × 24 cm Isbn: 978-88-918-0836-3

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images of culture Japanese kimono 1915–1950 from the Khalili Collections Jacquie Atkins with forward by Anna Jackson 2022

Omoshirogara (‘interesting’ or ‘novelty’ garments) is a genre of kimono design all onto itself. The designs on the many types of garments in this Collection, such as children’s kimono and men’s haori (kimono jacket) represent snapshots of Japanese life during a period of major transformation – political, social, technological, and cultural. From kimono featuring trains, cars, jazz music, and film to those depicting newspapers, political subjects and famous battles, the scope and breadth of this Collection offer the only resource available today which is wide enough for an in depth exploration of these ingenious and original designs. Written by Dr. Jacqueline M. Atkins, and featuring numerous examples from the Khalili Collection of Kimono, this major new publication will be the first dedicated solely to the exploration of these fascinating and important garments to date. Underkimono (Juban) Japan, 1920–1940 130 × 130 cm

fully illustrated with numerous colour images hardback 30 × 25 cm Isbn: 978-1-874780-16-8

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swedish textiles (1700–1900)

For almost 100 years from the middle of the 18th century, a little-known and very beautiful art flourished in Scania, the southernmost region of Sweden. This was expressed in small textile panels that were mostly made for wedding ceremonies. While these textiles were functional in that they were an essential part of the ceremony, they were also made in order to demonstrate the artistry and skill of the weaver.

Carriage cushion cover Sweden, c. 1800 52 × 115 cm

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Their designs were often symbolic of fertility and long life, and a sense of hope and joy can clearly be seen in these objects. Their extraordinary patterns are not only of interest to collectors, connoisseurs and contemporary weavers, but also represent a comprehensive design source, foreseeing many modern aesthetic concerns and contemporary visual language.


hajj and the arts swedish of pilgrimage textiles

Carriage Cushion Cover (Two Reindeer in Octagons with Birds) Sweden, Scania, Herrestads district first half of the 19th century Interlocked Tapestry 55.5 × 99 cm

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Carriage Cushion Cover (Reindeer in Octagon with Birds and Hearts) Sweden, Scania, Herrestads district first half of the 19th century Interlocked Tapestry 52 × 76.5 cm

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Carriage Cushion Cover (Bands of Rosettes and Stars) Sweden, Scania, Jerrestads district first half of the 19th century Interlocked Tapestry 55 × 102 cm

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Carriage Cushion Cover (Birds in Octagons and Standing Women) Sweden, South-east Scania first half of the 19th century Interlocked Tapestry 54 × 98 cm

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SWEDISH TEXTILE ART

Traditional Marriage Weavings from Scania Viveka Hansen 1996

Swedish Textile Art is the first book for more than a decade to present some of the best examples of textile art from southern Sweden, small panels that were mostly made for wedding ceremonies. The 95 textiles from the Khalili Collection illustrated in the sumptuous colour plates of this volume are woven in a variety of techniques, and display the full range of the traditional designs of Scanian marriage weavings. The large format in full colour allows the reader to examine the textiles at close hand. The main text by Viveka Hansen is the result of many years of meticulous research, during which time she examined almost 2,000 examples in Swedish museums and other collections. The author discusses with lively detail the social conditions in Scania and the lives of the weavers, as well as the techniques, designs and materials that they used. A preface by Sir David Khalili and an introduction by Michael Franses highlights the international appeal of Swedish textile art, placing it in a wider context. Full technical analyses of the textiles appear in the appendices. This publication is intended to serve both as a dazzling picture book illustrating the finest examples of Swedish textile art and, with its thorough and enjoyable text, as an essential reference work. This book is a result of a collaboration between the Nour Foundation, Textile and Art Publications and IK Foundation.

“The Art of Scania is a monument of love and hope” Nasser D. Khalili

Carriage cushion cover Sweden, late 18th century 51.5 × 51.5 cm

248 pages fully illustrated in colour hardback with slipcase 37 × 30 cm isbn: 978-1-874780-07-6

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spanish damascene metalwork (1850–1900)

The preservation of damascening in Spain was almost entirely due to the genius of a single family, the Zuloagas. The Khalili Collection of Spanish damascene metalwork contains some the most important pieces commissioned by the great 19th‑century English collector Alfred Morrison from Plãcido Zuloaga (1834–1910), the supreme damascener of that family. The Morrison pieces, such as the magnificent casket

Pair of iron urns with gold and silver by Plácido Zuloaga Spain, 1877 108 cm height

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and pair of alhambra-shaped vases from Fonthill House, establish a benchmark by which we may evaluate all that follows. With over 100 pieces, 22 of which are signed by Plácido Zuloaga himself, the collection provides an excellent perspective on the art and industry of Spanish damascening during the latter half of the 19th century.


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Cassone forged iron and chiseled and engraved iron repoussé, silver with niello, gold and silver damascene Signed ‘plácido zuloaga/en eibar año/1870 y 1871’ Spain, Eibar, 1870-1871 121 × 201 × 86 cm

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Casket gilt, bronze, baked enamel engraved ‘plácido zuloaga/eibar 1891–1892’ Spain, Eibar, 1891–1892 42 × 61.5 × 37 cm

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Table clock forged iron, gold and silver damascene by Plácido Zuloaga Spain, Eibar, c. 1880 55.7 × 58 (base) × 22.7 (clock) cm

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THE ART AND TRADITION OF THE ZULOAGAS Spanish damascene from the Khalili Collection Catalogue in association with the exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London James D. Lavin with a contribution by Ramiro Larrañaga 1997 The art of damascening in precious metals on iron is of great antiquity, and was the decoration of choice on arms and armour from prehistory through to modern times. Through the efforts of the Zuloaga family the remote mountain town of Eibar in the Basque Country became the centre of European damascening in the 19th century. Interestingly, the impact of the Zuloagas was even greater in England than in Spain itself. The renowned works of the Zuloagas are well-recorded in the Basque region, and to a lesser degree in the rest of Spain. In 1925 Ignacio, the son of the great Plãcido Zuloaga, opened the family museum in Zumaia to the public, where today one can view the paintings, sculptures, damascene metal and ceramics made by members of this most creative of dynasties. To date, however, little has been written about Spanish damascene outside the country of its origin and the subject is relatively unknown in the rest of the world. After extensive research, the Khalili Collection has been published in a high-quality all-colour volume in both English and Spanish. It contains an original history of Spanish damascening to 1840, a comprehensive essay on the Zuloagas of Eibar and a complete catalogue by James D. Lavin; an in-depth essay on the techniques of damascening written by a local Basque historian and one-time artisan; and an introduction by the great-granddaughter of Plácido.

Black iron vase with gold and silver by Plácido Zuloaga Spain, 1870–80 41 cm height

English 215 pages fully illustrated in colour 31 × 24 cm softcover isbn: 978-1-874780-11-3 hardback with dust jacket isbn: 978-1-874780-10-6 out of print Spanish softcover isbn: 978-8-486827-16-8 out of print

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enamels of the world (1700–2000)

The formation of the enamels collection was based upon an understanding of the significance of enamelling in global rather than parochial terms. With over 1,300 pieces, it seeks to explore this unique art form with a wider scope. As a subject of study, enamel has generally been examined with a particular focus – its history in a certain country or geographical zone, its flowering during a specific era, or as a technique – either in practical manuals or in scientific papers that seek to analyse in exacting

Silver landau carriage India, 1915 208 × 470 × 175 cm

190

technical terms what craftsmen in the past had achieved in an empirical, and perhaps haphazard, way. This collection provides the opportunity to compare enamelling between defined geographical areas. Although each location is examined in isolation, with reference to technique and style, it soon becomes evident that external influences are a constant element in the evolving story, and that the wider spectrum of the times is reflected in their detailed histories.


enamels of the world

Large kovsh silver-gilt, opaque and painted filigree enamel, cabochon amethysts 29.8 × 38.3 × 24 cm maker’s mark Carl Fabergé (with Imperial warrant) overstamping workmaster’s mark Feodor Rückert 91 zolotniks Russia, Moscow, 1899-1908

191


enamels of the world

Pair of covered bowls with stands gilt copper, painted enamel with gilding covered bowl height 13 cm; stand diameter 14.3 cm China, Qing dynasty, c. 1730–1740

192


enamels of the world

Timepiece France, Paris 1793–94 Painted Marble and Gilt-Metal, Copper With Opaque, Translucent and Painted Enamel With Paillons 40.8 × 26 × 16 cm

193


enamels of the world

Miniature of a Still Life copper, painted enamel, gilt-metal frame signed Philippe Parpette France, Sèvres, dated 1779 15.8 × 13.7 cm

194


enamels of the world

Covered Cup France, Sèvres, the vessel, possibly Burgundy 1858–60, the vessel, possibly 14/15th century Rock Crystal, Silver-Gilt And Gold With Translucent, Opaque And Painted Enamel, Cabochon Rubies height 20.8 cm

195


enamels of the world

Massive silver-gilt and shaded cloisonné enamel charger Centred with the enamelled arms of Empress Elizabeth I and the town of Tsarkoye Selo. Bound by the Cyrillic inscription: ‘To the President of the French Republic Emile Loubet from the Residents of Tsarkoye Selo, 3 May 1902’ Pavel Ovchinnikov, maker’s mark below the Imperial warrant, assaymaster PO Moscow, 1896, 84 zolotniks Diameter 67 cm

196


enamels of the world

ENAMELS OF THE WORLD 1700–2000 Haydn Williams with contributions by Jack Ogden, J.M. Rogers, Rose Kerr, Oliver Impey, Malcolm Fairley, Pedro Moura Carvalho, Julia Clarke, Tatiana Fabergé and Daniela Mascetti 2009

This volume presents over 300 pieces from the ‘Enamels of the World 1700–2000’ collection, the most comprehensive private collection known dedicated to this unique art form. The survey starts with an account of the evolution and refinement of the different enamelling techniques. Thereafter, it studies the subject thematically, considering the impact of patronage and travel, as well as the role of nationalism in the development of historical revivalism. The enamelwork of China, Japan, the islamic lands and Europe is examined both in terms of local development and the assimilation of foreign influence. The history of three firms is reviewed in greater focus – Jean George Rémond, Fabergé and Cartier. Representing different periods within the 300 years covered by the Collection, the character of these firms, though largely shaped by the genius of their directors, was also formed by the era in which they flourished. Whether looking at the subject in general or in detail, the reader is presented with an illuminating display of the great technical skill and creative ingenuity of the enamellers of the world. The volume is accompanied by a CD that presents a larger selection of pieces than is included in the book, thus giving the reader an opportunity to explore the Collection in depth.

Gilt copper and enamel throne table with Qianlong seal mark China, 1736–95 37 × 90.5 × 42 cm

English 450 pages fully illustrated in colour hardback 33 × 25 cm Isbn: 978-1-874780-17-5 Russian 2009 267 pages fully illustrated in colour hardback 25 × 18 cm Isbn: 978-5-93572-378-1

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International exhibitions Drawn exclusively from the Khalili Collections

Islamic art Empire of the Sultans: Ottoman Art from the Khalili Collection July – Sep 1995 Musee Rath, Geneva, Switzerland July – Oct 1996 Brunei Gallery, School of Oriental and African Studies, London, UK Dec 1996 – June 1997 Israel Museum, Jerusalem, Israel Feb – Apr 2000 Society of the Four Arts, Palm Beach, Florida, USA Marvels of the East: Indian Paintings of the Mughal Period from the Khalili Collection May – July 2000, Tel Aviv Museum of Art, Israel Empire of the Sultans: Ottoman Art from the Khalili Collection July – Oct 2000 Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit, Michigan, USA Oct 2000 – Jan 2001 Albuquerque Museum of Art & History, Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA Jan – Apr 2001 Portland Art Museum, Portland, Oregon, USA Aug – Oct 2001 Asian Art Museum of San Francisco, San Francisco, California, USA Oct 2001 – Jan 2002 Bruce Museum of Arts and Science, Greenwich, Connecticut, USA Feb – Apr 2002 Milwaukee Art Museum, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA May – July 2002 North Carolina Museum of Art, Raleigh, North Carolina, USA Aug 2002 – Jan 2003 Museum of Art, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah, USA Ornements de la Perse: Islamic Patterns in 19th Century Europe Oct – Dec 2002 Leighton House Museum, London, UK Empire of the Sultans: Ottoman Art from the Khalili Collection Feb – Apr 2003 Oklahoma City Museum of Art, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA May – Aug 2003 Frist Center for the Visual Arts, Nashville, Tennessee, USA Aug – Nov 2003 Museum of Arts and Sciences, Macon, Georgia, USA Nov 2003 – Feb 2004 Frick Art and Historical Center, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA The Arts of Islam: Treasures from the Nasser D. Khalili Collection June – Sep 2007 Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia Jan – May 2008 Gallery One, Emirates Palace, Abu Dhabi, UAE Oct 2009 – Mar 2010 Institut du monde arabe, Paris, France Passion for Perfection: Islamic Art from the Khalili Collection Dec 2010 – Apr 2011 Nieuwe Kerk, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Japanese art Japanese Imperial Craftsmen: Meiji Art from the Khalili Collection Sep 1994 – Jan 1995 British Museum, London, UK Treasures of Imperial Japan: Ceramics from the Khalili Collection Oct 1994 – Jan 1995 National Museum of Wales, Cardiff, UK Shibata Zeshin: Masterpieces of Japanese Lacquer from the Khalili Collection Apr – Oct 1997 National Museums of Scotland, Edinburgh, UK May – June 1998 Mishima Taisha Museum of Art Treasures, Mishima, Japan Splendors of Meiji: Treasures of Imperial Japan Apr – Oct 1999 First USA Riverfront Arts Centre, Wilmington, Delaware, USA 198


international exhibitions

Shibata Zeshin: Masterpieces of Japanese Lacquer from the Khalili Collection Oct – Nov 1999 Toyama Sato Art Museum, Toyama, Japan Nov 2000 – Mar 2001 Roemer and Pelizaeus Museum, Hildesheim, Germany Splendors of Imperial Japan: Arts of the Meiji Period from the Khalili Collection June – Sep 2002 Portland Art Museum, Portland, Oregon, USA Splendors of Imperial Japan: Masterpieces from the Khalili Collection Sep 2004 – Feb 2005 Israel Museum, Jerusalem, Israel Wonders of Imperial Japan: Meiji Art from the Khalili Collection July – Oct 2006 Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam, Netherlands Meiji-Kunst & Japonismus: Aus der Sammlung Khalili Feb – June 2007 Kunsthalle Krems, Krems, Austria Beyond Imagination: Treasures of Imperial Japan from The Khalili Collection, 19th to early 20th century July – October 2017 Moscow Kremlin Museums, Moscow, Russia Splendours of Imperial Japan October 2018 – January 2019 Musée national des arts asiatiques – Guimet, Paris, France

Spanish damascene metalwork Plácido Zuloaga: Spanish Treasures from The Khalili Collection May 1997 – Jan 1998 Victoria and Albert Museum, London, UK El Arte y Tradición de los Zuloaga: Damasquinado Español de la Colección Khalili May – Aug 2000 Museo de Bellas Artes, Bilbao, Spain Feb – Apr 2001 Alhambra Palace, Granada, Spain May – Sep 2001 Real Fundacion de Toledo, Toledo, Spain Plácido Zuloaga: Meisterwerke in gold, silber und eisen damaszener – schmiedekunst aus der Khalili-Sammlung Apr – Aug 2003 Roemer und Pelizaeus Museum, Hildesheim, Germany Metal Magic: Spanish Treasures from the Khalili Collection Nov 2011 – Apr 2012 Auberge de Provence, Valletta, Malta

Swedish textiles Swedish Textile Art: The Khalili Collection Feb – Mar 1996 IK Foundation, Pildammarnas Vattentorn, Malmo, Sweden Textiles de Scanie des XVIII et XIX Siècles dans la Collection Khalili Mar – May 2000 Swedish Cultural Centre, Paris, France A Monument to Love: Swedish Marriage Textiles from the Khalili Collection Sep – Oct 2003 Boston University Art Gallery, Boston, Massachusetts, USA

Enamels of the world Enamels of the World 1700–2000 from the Khalili Collection Dec 2009 – Apr 2010 State Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg, Russia 199


Loans to museums and galleries

Jan – Apr 1992

Jüdische Lebenswelten, Martin-Gropius-Bau, Berlin, Germany

Nov 1993 – Mar 1994

Worlds Beyond: Death and Afterlife in Art, Cartwright Hall, Bradford, UK

Oct – Nov 1997

The Quick and the Dead: Artists and Anatomy (a touring exhibition organized by the Hayward Gallery for the Arts Council), Royal College of Art, London, UK

June – Sep 1998

Corps à vif: art et anatomie, Musee d’art et d’histoire, Geneva, Switzerland

Oct 1998 – Jan 1999

Royal Persian Paintings: The Qajar Epoch 1785–1925, Brooklyn Museum of Art, New York, New York, USA

Feb – May 1999

Royal Persian Paintings: The Qajar Epoch 1785–1925, Armand Hammer Museum of Art, University of California, Los Angeles, USA

July – Sep 1999

Royal Persian Paintings: The Qajar Epoch 1785–1925, Brunei Gallery, School of Oriental and African Studies, London, UK

Nov 1999 – Feb 2000

Orakel: Der Blik in die Zukunft, Museum Rietberg, Zürich, Switzerland

Dec 1999 – Apr 2000

Earthly Beauty, Heavenly Art: The Art of Islam, Nieuwe Kerk, Amsterdam, Netherlands

May – Oct 2000

La Beauté in natura, Avignon, France

June 2000 – Sep 2001

Earthly Art, Heavenly Beauty: The Art of Islam, State Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg, Russia

Sep 2000 – June 2001

Have a Nargileh: Water-pipes from the Islamic World, Israel Museum, Jerusalem, Israel

Sep 2000 – Feb 2001

Fabergé: Imperial Craftsman and His World, River Front Arts Center, Wilmington, Delaware, USA

Jan – Mar 2001

Court and Conquest: Ottoman Origins and the Design for Handel’s “Tamerlano” at the Glimmerglass Opera, Brunei Gallery, School of Oriental and African Studies, London, UK

Oct 2001 – Apr 2002

Pearls: A Natural History, American Museum of Natural History, New York, New York, USA

Oct 2001 – May 2002

Spirit Of Islam: Experiencing Islam through Calligraphy, Museum of Anthropology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada

Oct 2001 – Mar 2002

L’Orient de Saladin au temps des Ayyubides, Institut du monde arabe, Paris, France

July – Nov 2002

The Nature of Diamonds, Midland Center for the Arts, Midland, Michigan, USA

June 2002 – Jan 2003

Pearls: A Natural History, Field Museum, Chicago, Illinois, USA

Oct 2002 – Feb 2003

The Legacy Of Genghis Khan: Courtly Art and Culture in Western Asia, 1256–1353, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, New York, USA

200


loans to museums and galleries

Nov 2002 – Mar 2003

Chevaux et cavaliers arabes dans les arts d’orient et d’occident, Institut du monde arabe, Paris, France

Nov 2002 – Apr 2003

The Art of Love: Love’s Lust and Sorrow in World Art, Museum Rietberg, Zürich, Switzerland

Apr – July 2003

The Legacy of Genghis Khan: Courtly Art and Culture in Western Asia, 1256–1353, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, California, USA

Oct 2003 – Jan 2004

Hunt for Paradise: Court Art of Safavid Iran, 1501–76, Asia Society and Museum, New York, New York, USA

Mar – June 2004

A caccia in Paradiso: Arte di corte nella Persia del Cinquencento, Museo Poldi Pezzoli and Palazzo Reale, Milan, Italy

Mar – Aug 2004

Heaven on Earth: Art From Islamic Lands – Selected objects from the Khalili Collection and The State Hermitage Museum, Hermitage Rooms, Somerset House, London, UK

June – Sep 2004

Goa and the Great Mughal, Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, Lisbon, Portugal

Oct – Dec 2004

Asia, Body, Mind, Spirit, Brunei Gallery, School of Oriental and African Studies, London, UK

Oct 2004 – Jan 2005

Asian Games: The Art of Contest, Asia Society and Museum, New York, New York, USA

Nov 2004 – Mar 2005

The Jews of Europe in the Middle Ages, Historisches Museum Der Pfalz, Speyer, Germany

Dec 2004 – Apr 2005

Iraq and China: Ceramics, Trade and Innovation, Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C., USA

Feb – May 2005

Asian Games: The Art of Contest, Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C., USA

Apr – Aug 2005

The Jews of Europe in the Middle Ages, Deutsches Historisches Museum, Berlin, Germany

Sep – Dec 2005

Asian Games: The Art of Contest, Middlebury College Museum of Art, Middlebury, Vermont, USA

Oct 2005 – Mar 2006

L’Age d’or des sciences arabes, Institut du monde arabe, Paris, France

May – Sep 2006

Ibn Khaldun, The Mediterranean in the 14th century: Rise and Fall of Empires, Real Alcazar, Seville, Spain

Sep 2006 – Feb 2007

East-West: Objects Between Cultures, Tate Britain, London, UK

Oct 2006 – Feb 2007

Venise et l’Orient 828 – 1797, Institut du monde arabe, Paris, France

201


loans to museums and galleries

Mar – July 2007

Moments of Vision: Venice and the Islamic World, 828 – 1797, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, New York, USA

July – Nov 2007

Venezia e l’Islam 828 – 1797, Palazzo Ducale, Venice, Italy

Feb – June 2009

Shah ‘Abbas: The remaking of Iran, British Museum, London, UK

Mar – Jun 2010

The Indian Portrait: 1560–1860, National Portrait Gallery, London, UK

Sep 2010 – Jan 2011

Epic of the Persian Kings: The Art of Ferdowsi’s Shahnameh, Mellon Gallery, Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, UK

Oct 2010 – Mar 2011

Al-Mizan: Sciences and Arts in the Islamic World, Museum of the History of Science, Oxford, UK

Dec 2010 – Feb 2011

India’s Fabled City: The Art of Courtly Lucknow, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, California, USA

Jul – Sep 2010 Apr – July 2011

Kyoto–Tokyo: from Samurai to Manga, Grimaldi Forum, Monaco Une cour royale en Inde: Lucknow (XVIIIème – XIXème siècle), Musée national des arts asiatiques-Guimet, Paris, France

June – Sep 2011

Gifts of the Sultan: The Arts of Giving at the Islamic Courts, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, California, USA

Oct 2011 – Jan 2012

Gifts of the Sultan: The Arts of Giving at the Islamic Courts, Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Texas, USA

Jan – Apr 2012 Mar – June 2012

Hajj: Journey to the Heart of Islam, British Museum, London, UK Gifts of the Sultan: The Arts of Giving at the Islamic Courts, Museum of Islamic Art, Doha, Qatar

Sep – Dec 2012 Sep 2013 – Mar 2014

Bronze, Royal Academy of Arts, London, UK Longing for Mecca: The Pilgrim’s Journey, Rijksmuseum Volkenkunde, Leiden, Netherlands

Oct – Dec 2013

The Everlasting Flame: Zoroastrianism in History and Imagination, Brunei Gallery, School of Oriental and African Studies, London, UK

Feb – May 2014

Court and Craft in Medieval Mosul: A Masterpiece from Northern Iraq, Courtauld Institute of Art, London, UK

Mar – Jun 2014

Kings and Pawns: Board Games from India to Spain, Museum of Islamic Art, Doha, Qatar

Apr – Jul 2014

India: Jewels that enchanted the world, Moscow Kremlin Museums, Moscow, Russia

Apr – Aug 2014

Hajj: le pèlerinage à La Mecque, Institut du monde arabe, Paris, France

Sep 2014 – Jan 2015

Sacred Places, Sacred Books, Museum Aan de Stroom, Antwerp, Belgium

202


loans to museums and galleries

Sep 2014 – Jan 2015

Ming: 50 Years that changed China, British Museum, London, UK

Oct 2015 – Jan 2016

The Fabric of India, Victoria and Albert Museum, London, UK

Apr – Sep 2016

Jardins d’Orient: De l’Alhambra au Taj Mahal, Institut du monde arabe, Paris, France

Apr – July 2016

Court & Cosmos: The Great Age of the Seljuqs, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, USA

Apr – Aug 2016

Sicily: culture and conquest, British Museum, London, UK

Sep 2016 – Jan 2017

Jerusalem 1000–1400: Every People Under Heaven, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, USA

Oct 2016 – Jan 2017

Power and Protection: Islamic Art and the Supernatural, Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, UK

Nov 2016 – Feb 2017

Aventuriers des mers: de Sindbad à Marco Polo. Méditeranée – Océan Indien, Institut du monde arabe, Paris, France

Apr – July 2017

Trésors de l’Islam en Afrique de Tomboctou à Zanzibar, Institut du monde arabe, Paris, France

June – Oct 2017

Aventuriers des mers: de Sindbad à Marco Nov Polo. Méditeranée – Océan Indien, Musée des civilisations de l’Europe et de la Méditerranée (MuCEM), Marseiile, France

Sep 2017 – Mar 2018

Hajj: Memories of a Journey, Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque, Abu Dhabi, UAE

Oct 2018 – Jan 2019

Splendours of Imperial Japan, Guimet Museum, Paris, France

Oct 2018 – Jan 2019

Fabric of India, The Cincinnati Art Museum, Cincinnati, Ohio, USA

Oct 2018 – Feb 2019

Relieken, Museum Catharijneconvent, Utrecht, The Netherlands

Feb 2019 – Jan 2020

Longing for Mecca, Tropenmuseum, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

Feb 2020 – Jun 2020

“Kimono: Kyoto to Catwalk” Victoria and Albert Museum, London, UK

203


Exhibition catalogues empire of the sultans Ottoman art from the collection of Nasser D. Khalili J.M. Rogers

Musée Rath, Geneva English and French 1995 285 pages 32 × 24 cm Musée d’art et d’histoire, Geneva & The Nour Foundation Isbn: 2-8306-0120-3 (English softcover) Isbn: 1-898592-04-7 (English hardback) Isbn: 2-8306-0119-X (French softcover) out of print Brunei Gallery, London Israel Museum, Jerusalem English 1996 285 pages softcover 32 × 24 cm The Nour Foundation, in association with Azimuth editions Isbn: 1-898592-07-1 out of print S touring exhibition U English 2000 304 pages softcover 32 × 24 cm Arts Services International, Alexandria, Virginia & The Nour Foundation, in association with The Khalili Family Trust Isbn: 0-88397-132-1 (First edition) Isbn: 0-88397-143-7 (Second edition) out of print

204


exhibition catalogues

MARVELS OF THE EAST Indian paintings of the Mughal period from the Nasser D. Khalili Collection Catalogue in association with the exhibition at the Tel Aviv Museum of Art, Tel Aviv, Israel Doron Lurie 2000 This was the first in a series of exhibitions dealing with Islamic art at the Tel Aviv Museum of Art. Mughal art, perhaps originally considered somewhat eclectic by all but specialists in the field, has gained widespread recognition over the last 100 years. Inspired by the various artistic traditions prevalent in India in the 16th century as well as those of Iran, Mughal art is now appreciated for the great skills of its artists and the high level of their achievements in a variety of disciplines, from miniature painting and calligraphy to jewellery and enamelling, as well as architecture. The exhibition included 180 manuscripts, paintings, and a variety of enamelled, jewelled or lacquer-painted objects from the Khalili Collection. Ranging in date from the 16th to the middle of the 19th century, the objects illustrate the wealth and diversity of Mughal art and will appeal as much to those who are unfamiliar with the subject as to art collectors and connoisseurs. Maharana Sangaram Singh of Mewar out hunting India, c. 1720–30 49.5 × 40.9 cm

98 pages 27 × 21 cm out of print

205


exhibition catalogues

THE ARTS OF ISLAM Treasures from the Nasser D. Khalili Collection J.M. Rogers

Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney English 2007 296 pages softcover 28 × 24 cm Art Gallery of New South Wales Isbn: 1-74174-008-8 out of print mirates Palace, A E bu Dhabi English and Arabic editions 2008 400 pages over 650 colour illustrations hardback 28 × 24 cm Tourism Development & Investment Company [TDIC] Revised and expanded edition of the book first published in 2007 out of print I nstitut du monde arabe, Paris French 2009 399 pages over 650 colour illustrations hardback 32 × 24 cm Institut du monde arabe / Hazan Isbn: 978-2-754104-01-2 out of print The Arts of Islam Masterpieses from the Khalili Collection Reprint of 2008 catalogue English 2010 400 pages over 650 colour illustrations hardback 28 × 24 cm Thames & Hudson Isbn: 978-0-500515-54-9 out of print

206


exhibition catalogues

JAPANESE IMPERIAL CRAFTSMEN Meiji art from the Khalili Collection Catalogue in association with the exhibition at the British Museum, London Victor Harris 1994

The first exhibition of the Khalili Collection of Japanese Art was held in the Japan Gallery of the British Museum in 1994–1995 and opened by Mr Sadaaki Numata, Minister Plenipotentiary at the Embassy of Japan.The possibility of holding an exhibition of Meiji period art in the Japan Gallery had been considered for some time, and would have taken place with pieces borrowed from public collections in Japan, the USA and Europe had not the Khalili Collection in its entirety been made available. Such a collection could not possibly be duplicated or even approached by any museum in the world today. The metalwork, lacquer and enamel pieces in the exhibition show the extraordinary level of skill of the artists themselves, and the range and depth of the traditional Japanese art forms, which are intrinsic in their work. It is of particular significance that about a quarter of the pieces are by members of the elite group of artists appointed by the Meiji Emperor as Imperial Craftsmen, and that many others are by their pupils and associates. They remain today as monuments to the pride of Japan in her traditional art, which emerged after the restoration of Imperial rule in 1868, and as examples of a level of workmanship which is unlikely ever to be excelled. This inaugural exhibition of the Khalili Collection included 102 pieces that are reproduced in full colour in the catalogue written by Victor Harris, former Keeper at the Department of Japanese Antiquities at the British Museum.

Two-fold shibayama lacquer screen, possibly by Haruye Japan, c. 1885 230 × 210 cm

144 pages softcover 28 × 22 cm British Museum Press Isbn: 978-0-714114-63-7 out of print

207


exhibition catalogues

TREASURES OF IMPERIAL JAPAN Ceramics from the Khalili Collection Catalogue in association with the exhibition at the National Museum of Wales, Cardiff Oliver Impey and Malcolm Fairley 1994

The ceramic section of the Khalili Collection was exhibited at the National Museum of Wales, in Cardiff, in 1994, and opened by HRH The Prince of Wales. This is a unique opportunity to see and appreciate the work of the greatest ceramic artists of the period, Makuzu Kozan and Yabu Meizan. All 98 pieces exhibited are reproduced in full colour in this catalogue.

Earthenware vase by Yabu Meizan (1853–1934) Japan, c. 1890 37 cm height

80 pages softcover 30 × 21 cm The Kibo Foundation Isbn: 978-1-874780-12-0 out of print

208


exhibition catalogues

SHIBATA ZESHIN Masterpieces of Japanese Lacquer from the Khalili Collection Catalogue in association with the exhibition at the National Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh Joe Earle 1997 Shibata Zeshin (1807–91) was one of the finest exponents of lacquerware in the history of Japanese art. His supreme artistry and technical innovations are celebrated in this catalogue which accompanies the exhibition of some 70 works from the Khalili Collection, shown at the Ivy Wu Gallery, Royal Museum of Scotland, 1997. The catalogue, written by the exhibition curator Joe Earle, formerly Keeper of the Far Eastern Department at the Victoria and Albert Museum, includes some of the finest examples of Zeshin’s art to be found anywhere in the world and offers a fascinating survey of the artist’s unprecedented mastery of this intricate medium, ranging from writing boxes and sake-cups to decorative panels and lacquer paintings.

Lacquer writing box by Shibata Zeshin Japan, c. 1865 4.8 × 20.5 × 22 cm Lacquer wood panel by Shibata Zeshin Japan, c. 1881 49 × 77 cm

80 pages softcover 28 × 22 cm The Kibo Foundation in association with the National Museums of Scotland Isbn: 978-1-874780-09-0 out of print

209


exhibition catalogues

Splendors of Meiji – Treasures of Imperial Japan Masterpieces from the Khalili Collection Catalogue in association with the exhibition at the First USA Riverfront Arts Centre, Wilmington, Delaware, USA Joe Earle 1999 The second major exhibition of the Khalili Collection of Japanese Art to be shown outside the UK and the first on the east coast of the USA was held at the First USA Riverfront Arts Centre, Wilmington, Delaware in 1999. This exhibition featured over 350 masterpieces from the brilliant Meiji Period (1868–1912), during which Japanese craftsmanship reached levels of perfection never equalled before or since. Drawn from the largest and finest concentration of Meiji-period art to be found anywhere in the world, Splendors of Meiji is rich in masterpieces of metal, lacquer, enamel, ceramics, porcelain and textiles.

Vase Makuzu Kōzan Japan, late 1890s height 47 cm

384 pages; hardcover; 32 × 24 cm; Broughton International Publications. isbn-13: 978-1-87478-013-7 isbn-10: 1-874780-13-7 out of print

210


exhibition catalogues

SPLENDORS OF IMPERIAL JAPAN Arts of the Meiji period from the Khalili Collection Catalogue in association with the exhibition at the Portland Art Museum, Portland, Oregon, USA Joe Earle 2002

The second major exhibition of the Khalili Collection of Japanese Art to be shown outside the UK and the first on the West Coast of the USA was held at the Portland Art Museum in Oregon in 2002. This exhibition featured over 350 masterpieces from the brilliant Meiji Period (1868–1912), during which Japanese craftsmanship reached levels of perfection never equalled before or since. Drawn from the largest and finest concentration of Meiji-period art to be found anywhere in the world, Splendors of Imperial Japan is rich in masterpieces of metal, lacquer, enamel, ceramics, porcelain and textiles.

Silvered bronze figurine of a cockatoo by Nishimura Toshihiko (1889–1947) Japan, 1911 61 cm height Red lacquer vase and stand Japan, c. 1880 58 cm height

468 pages softcover 31 × 24 cm The Khalili Family Trust Isbn: 978-1-874780-19-9 out of print

211


exhibition catalogues

WONDERS OF IMPERIAL JAPAN Meiji art from the Khalili Collection Catalogue in association with the exhibition at Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam, Netherlands Kris Schiermeier and Matthi Forrer 2006

The Meiji period (1868–1912) was one of the most remarkable developments in Japanese art. Meiji art was based on traditional Japanese forms, decorations and techniques, and to Western eyes it has a refinement and perfection bordering on the improbable. This exceptional Japanese craftwork, which can be seen in porcelain, lacquered boxes, vases, panels and cabinets, had an influence on several 19th-century artists, Vincent van Gogh among them. The Khalili Collection is the world’s largest and most-multifaceted treasure-trove of decorative Japanese art, with such works as bronzes by Suzuki Chokichi, earthenware by Yabu Meizan, ceramics by Makuzu Kozan, and cloisonné enamel by Ando Jubei. Contents include an examination of the world exhibitions and the Japanese art showcased in the West, porcelain, ‘Satsuma’ pottery, enamel, lacquer, metalwork, motifs used in Meiji art (seasons, mountains, rivers and bridges, historical and religious figures, myths and legends) and design manuals.

Plaque with lacquer and inlaid gold and silver by the Komai Company Japan, c. 1895 37.8 × 30.3 cm

128 pages hardback 31 × 25 cm Waanders Publishers & Van Gogh Museum Isbn: 978-90-400-8225-2 out of print

212


exhibition catalogues

JAPAN. MEIJI-KUNST & JAPONISMUS Aus der Sammlung Khalili Catalogue in association with the exhibition at Kunsthalle Krems, Krems, Austria Kris Schiermeier and Matthi Forrer 2007

The Kunsthalle Krems exhibition was a joint venture with the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam and the Khalili Collection of Japanese art of the Meiji period.

Bronze incense burner by Suzuki Chokichi (1848–1919) Japan, 1870–5 154.5 × 66.5 cm

German 128 pages softback 30 × 24 cm Waanders Publishers, Van Gogh Museum & Kunsthalle Krems Isbn: 978-3-901261-34-3 out of print

213


exhibition catalogues

Beyond Imagination Treasures of Imperial Japan from the Khalili Collection, 19th to early 20th century Catalogue in association with the exhibition at Moscow Kremlin Museums, Moscow, Russia. Gregory Irvine, Anna Jackson, Kris Schiermeier, Matthi forrer, Svetlana Amelekhina, Feodor Panfilov 2017 This latest exhibition features over 80 pieces including kimono, metalwork, enamel, and textiles, formed entirely from the Khalili Collection of Japanese art, including some of the most important pieces produced during the Meiji period. Marking the first major public display of kimono from the Collection, the exhibition explores the relationship these garments bear to other masterpieces of Meiji, as well as themes varying from myths, legends, and nature to social status, gender, and class.

Vase Japan, Japan,Nagoya Kawade Shibataro Meiji, c. 1905 height 40.2 cm

Russian and English 300 pages hardback 30 × 24 cm Moscow Kremlin Museums Isbn: 978-5-88678-308-7

214


exhibition catalogues

ornament and malta An Introduction Catalogue in association with the exhibition Metal Magic: Spanish Treasures from the Khalili Collection, The Auberge de Provence, Valetta, Malta Sandro Debono, Robert Cassar 2012 The art of damascening in precious metals on iron is of great antiquity, and was the decoration of choice on arms and armour from prehistory through to modern times. Both Eastern and Western tradition have placed its origin in what are now Islamic lands-a tradition as current in the Mongolia of Kublai Khan as it was in the Castile of El Cid. Damascened arms proclaimed the status of their bearer and this function was no less important than the efficacy of the weapons in combat. This exhibition which took place in Malta in 2011 included over one hundred pieces from the Khalili Collection. Most were made by, or at the workshop of, Placido Zuloaga in the small town of Eibar in northern Spain. Different metals were fused together, hammered and chiselled to create precious treasures of fine metal craftsmanship including chests, vases, jewellery and objects from everyday life. Some of the pieces were commissioned by the Spanish Royal Family and contemporary collectors. The collection has been brought together by Professor Sir Nasser D. Khalili and is considered to be the best Spanish nineteenth-century damascene collection both in quality and extent.

Handled Urn Spain, Eibar 1900–1920 Iron, Gold Damascene height 157 cm

84 pages softcover 29.5 × 21 cm; Midsea Books. isbn-13: 978-9-99327-386-8 isbn-10: 9-993273-86-4

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Publications by Nasser D. Khalili THE TIMELINE HISTORY OF ISLAMIC ART AND ARCHITECTURE Nasser D. Khalili

The history of Islam stretches from the 7th century to the present and encompasses an area from Spain to Indonesia, North Africa to China. More than 50 of the recognised countries of the modern world are of the Muslim faith, with Muslims numbering more than 20% of the total world population. The material culture of the Muslim peoples is accordingly rich and varied. In the past, written histories of the art of the Islamic lands have either been very general or highly focused on particular regions or types of artifacts. The spectacular format of The Timeline History of Islamic Art and Architecture allows the reader to view the magnificent sweep of the arts of Islam in a unique and accessible way. Diverse developments throughout the Islamic world can be compared simultaneously across time and place, and specific objects and buildings seen in the light of key events in Muslim

English edition 2005 189 pages hardback 38 × 26 cm Worth Press isbn: 1-903025-17-6

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history. From calligraphy to carpets, armour to architecture, this book lavishly reveals the immense heritage handed down through Islamic artists over the centuries, and examines their relationship to their Western peers. Following the Timeline, according to both the Western and Islamic calendars, are fourteen illustrated chapters devoted to calligraphy, Qur’ans, miniature painting, bookbinding, lacquer, pottery and ceramics, glass and rock crystal, metalwork, scientific instruments, arms and armour, jewellery, carpets and textiles, coins and architecture. Further pages provide the histories of the major dynasties of the Islamic world, with lists of the most important rulers. A four-page colour fold-out map gives the locations of historical and cultural sites, and the Muslim calendar and dating system are explained.

Arabic edition 2006 189 pages hardback 38 × 26 cm The Nour Foundation isbn: 1-874870-89-7


publications by nasser d. khalili

Dutch edition 2006 189 pages hardback 38 × 26 cm Salomé – Amsterdam University Press isbn: 90-5356-804-2

Egyptian edition 2008 186 pages hardback 32 × 22 cm The American University in Cairo Press isbn: 978-977-416-194-0

French edition 2006 189 pages hardback 38 × 26 cm Éditions Solar isbn: 2-263-04201-6

US edition 2006 186 pages hardback 38 × 26 cm Overlook Press isbn: 1-58567-839-2

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digitisation

Khalili – Google Digitisation Initiative PHASE 1: khalili DIGITISATION project Sir David’s vision is to use to the power of art and culture to foster peace and unity worldwide. He believes it is the responsibility of the collector to make works of art available to all people for their cultural enrichment. So over a period of decades, the Khalili Collections has undergone a major digitisation project in order to make Eight Collections more accessible to the general public. The majority of approximately 35,000 works in the Collections have now been photographed (and in some cases filmed) in high definition; these digital assets are used for a variety of projects such as publications and catalogues, exhibitions, websites, social media campaigns and other digital initiatives.

PHASE 2: GOOGLE ARTS & CULTURE PARTNERSHIP In 2018, the Khalili Collections partnered with the Google Cultural Institute to optimise its digitisation project and to launch its own page on the Google Arts and Culture platform, planned for launch in early 2019. Google Arts and Culture is the world’s foremost online platform through which the public can access high resolution images of artworks belonging to its partner institutions. These institutions include some of the most reputed international museums such as the Tate Gallery (London), the Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York) and the Uffizi (Florence). The Khalili Collections is exploring a number of projects with Google on how to leverage the latest advances in artificial intelligence, machinelearning and high-definition technology to optimise the digital experience relating to its Collections. These include: • • • •

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Microscopic View Virtual Reality Exhibition View Digitisation of Books Video Content


digitisation

WIKIMEDIA UK PARTNERSHIP Wikipedia is the world’s leading website through which people learn about history and culture. It is the number one informational site on the web, and gets many times more use than museum websites. There are 260 million views on English Wikipedia per day, with about 70 million users per day. Whilst it is hard to know what proportion are for “cultural” articles, it is fair to say there is the equivalent of at least one Exposition Universelle (9 million attendance) every single day thanks to Wikipedia. In partnering with Wikimedia – the world’s farthest-reaching digital ecosystem for cultural knowledge – the Khalili Collections is keeping with its ethos of making its art and knowledge available to as many people as possible globally. “At Wikimedia, we are actively seeking to diversify our cultural content, and the Khalili Collections is one of the most geographically and culturally diverse collections in the world, spanning some two and a half millennia, with masterpieces from Europe, the Middle East, Scandinavia, East Asia, Russia, South Asia, North Africa and beyond”, said Lucy Crompton-Reid, CEO of Wikimedia UK. “We are proud to be partnering with one of the world’s great preservers of global cultural heritage”. “We are delighted to be working with Wikimedia UK, undeniably a pioneer in delivering free access to cultural knowledge worldwide”, said Sir David. “The partnership is an important part of our wider, long-standing strategy to make the Collections – and the five decades of expert research dedicated to them – more accessible to art and culture lovers worldwide”. Key milestones have already been achieved. The Khalili Collections is now one of the leading cultural institutions documented on Wikipedia, both in terms of the size and quality of its articles. Khalili Collections articles have achieved a quality comparable to all major museums, and tens of millions of people worldwide have been exposed to the Khalili Collections through links and images on Wikipedia’s front page.

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digitisation

ART UK PARTNERSHIP Given the restricted access to exhibitions and galleries during the COVID-19 pandemic and the significantly growing demand for digitised content relating to art and culture from around the world, The Khalili Collections formed a milestone partnership with Art UK – the online platform that enables global audiences to learn about the UK’s art collections. Art UK reaches 3 million website users and 12 millions page views a year. The Khalili Collections will share high-definition images of its many masterpieces from its Eight Collections, which together represent the majority of the world’s regions. This artwork will be used to tell important stories about cross-cultural influences in the history of world art. 220


digitisation

Regarding the partnership, Sir David said: “It is our great pleasure to partner with Art UK, given our shared mission to make art accessible to everyone via digital experiences. This partnership serves as an important component of our digitisation strategy, and I am delighted that masterpieces in our Collections will contribute to the enrichment and education of millions of people across the UK and beyond”. Andrew Ellis, Director of Art UK said: “All of us at Art UK are absolutely delighted that the Khalili Collections will be joining our platform. Whilst Art UK will always be driven by providing digital access to the UK’s 3,000+ public art collections, we have started to invite selected private institutions to participate too. This great art collection assembled by Professor Sir Nasser David Khalili over five decades will bring stunning artworks from the Middle East, North Africa, Russia, Japan and the Far East to Art UK and allow us tell stories to our global audience about their making and the diverse cultures that inspired them.”

EUROPEANA PARTNERSHIP A key strategic partnership between Europeana Foundation and the Khalili Collections has been established to develop projects together relating to open access policy and practice for digitised cultural heritage. Co-financed by the Connecting Europe Facility of the European Union, Europeana works with leading European archives, libraries and museums to share cultural heritage for enjoyment, education and research. It provides access to millions of books, music, artworks and more – with sophisticated search and filter tools to help viewers find what they’re looking for. The collaboration with the Khalili Collections involves developing editorial content which combines openly licensed digital material from the Khalili Collections with other open collections to tell important stories, such as the influence of Islamic art on European culture, interfaith harmony in art and the role of art in Women’s history. A key objective is to enhance inclusion and diversity in the cultural heritage sector Sir David said: “Our partnership with Europeana is an important milestone in our commitment to embracing the best and most creative technological platforms for sharing the vast heritage in our eight Collections. We are excited by what we can achieve together in ensuring that as many people as possible are enriched with beauty from all over the world. After all, art is a universal language that transcends all boundaries.” 221


authors and contributors

Authors and contributors to the catalogues of the eight collections

ISLAMIC ART GENERAL EDITOR Dr Julian Raby Director of the Freer Gallery of Art and the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C.; leading authority on Islamic art EDITORIAL BOARD Professor Sir Nasser D. Khalili Professor J.M. Rogers Ralph Pinder-Wilson † B.W. Robinson † Robert Skelton Nahla Nassar Tim Stanley Dr Rebecca M. Foote Dr Pedro Moura Carvalho

AUTHORS AND CONTRIBUTORS Rudolf Abraham Former Deputy Curator, Nasser D. Khalili Collection of Islamic Art, London David Alexander Former Research Associate, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; specialist in Islamic arms and armour Manijeh Bayani Specialist in Persian and Arabic epigraphy; contributor to most of the catalogues in the Nasser D. Khalili Collection of Islamic Art series Professor Doris Behrens-Abouseif Former Nasser D. Khalili Chair of Islamic Art and Archaeology, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London; specialist in Mamluk arts and history Professor Sheila S. Blair Norma Jean Calderwood University Professor of Islamic and Asian Art, Boston College, Boston, Massachusetts; specialist in Persian arts Dr François de Blois Senior Research Associate, University College London; specialist in Semitic and Iranian languages and on the history of religions in the Near East in pre-modern times

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Christopher Cavey Former Curator, Gemmological Association of Great Britain collections and member of its governing council; special interest in the history of gemstones Nada Chaldecott Art historian with a special interest in the arts of Central Asia and India Henrietta Sharp Cockrell Former specialist in the Islamic Art Department, Christie’s, South Kensington, London Dr Steven Cohen Independent textile historian, researcher, lecturer and writer specialising in the carpets and textiles of the Indian subcontinent Professor Anna Contadini Professor of the History of Islamic Art, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London; specialist in Islamic works on paper Georgette Cornu † Specialist in the technical analysis of textiles from the Arab world Mitchell Abdul Karim Crites Art historian whose research primarily focuses on Mughal art, architecture and garden design; instrumental in a major revival of Indian and Islamic arts and crafts across West and South Asia Jacqueline Coulter Formerly a Senior Director at Sotheby’s, London; specializes in carpets and textiles of the Islamic world Professor Walter B. Denny Professor of Islamic Art, University of Massachusetts, Amherst; Charles Grant Ellis Research Associate in Oriental Carpets, The Textile Museum, Washington, D.C.; specialist in Ottoman arts and Islamic carpets and textiles Professor François Déroche Fellow of the French Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres; Director of Studies, Ecole pratique des hautes études, Paris; specialist in early Qur’ans and the history of the handwritten book in the Islamic world


authors and contributors

Dr Layla Diba Former Director, Negarestan Museum, Tehran; former Hagop Kevorkian Curator of Islamic Art, Brooklyn Museum of Art, New York; independent curator and art advisor, with a special interest in the arts and culture of Qajar and modern Iran Shireen Ellinger Special interest in art and architecture of the Mamluk period, especially textiles and metalwork Dr Rebecca M. Foote Head of Publications, Nasser D. Khalili Collection of Islamic Art; specialist in early Islamic archaeology

Dr Rosalind Wade Haddon Researcher on the Samarra Finds Project, Victoria and Albert Museum, London; specialist in Islamic ceramics of the 14th century Stephen Hirtenstein Publications Director, Muhyiddin Ibn ‘Arabi Society; co-founder of Anqa Publishing; specialist in the life, thought and writings of Ibn ‘Arabi Rahul Jain Textile researcher and historian, New Delhi; specialist in technical and historical aspects of the Indian drawloom, the woven silks of Sultanate India, as well as court velvets, sashes and luxury fabrics of Mughal India

Deborah Freeman Former Assistant Curator, Al-Sabah Collection, Dar al-Athar al-Islamiyyah, Kuwait; specialist in Arabic and Persian manuscripts

Dr David James † Former Islamic Curator, Chester Beatty Library, Dublin; specialist in manuscripts of the Qur’an

Dr Melanie Gibson Participates in a range of academic activities that include teaching and publishing; series editor of the Gingko Library Art Series; specialist in ceramics and glass of the Islamic world

Professor Ludvik Kalus Honorary Professor of the History of the Medieval East, University of Paris-Sorbonne; founder and director of the Thesaurus of Islamic Epigraphy project; specialist in Arabic epigraphy

Dr Sidney M. Goldstein Former Associate Director, St Louis Art Museum, St Louis, Missouri; specialist in early Islamic glass

Dr. Doron Lurie Senior Curator, 16th-19th Century Art, Tel Aviv Museum of Art,Tel Aviv, Israel

Dr Javad Golmohammadi Former Lecturer, Department of Archaeology and History of Art, Tehran University; independent Islamic art historian based in London working on a publication on wooden religious buildings and carved woodwork of Islamic Iran

Dr Derek Kennet Lecturer, Department of Archaeology, Durham University; archaeologist working in India and the Middle East

Tony Goodwin Specialist in Byzantine and Islamic coinage of the 7th century Hero Granger-Taylor Historian of early textiles, London; recent work centres on excavated finds, particularly from desert sites in Egypt and the Near East Professor Ernst J. Grube † Professor Emeritus in the History of Islamic Art, Università Ca’ Foscari di Venezia, Venice; first Curator of Islamic Art, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; specialist in Islamic painting and ceramics

Professor Sir Nasser D. Khalili Founder of the Khalili Collections; Honorary Fellow of the University of London; Visiting Professor, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London Professor Geoffrey Khan Fellow of the British Academy; Regius Professor of Hebrew, Cambridge University; fields of expertise include Arabic papyrology Dr Mark G. Kramarovsky Senior Researcher, State Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg; archaeologist in the Crimea and authority on the arts of the Golden Horde

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authors and contributors

Dr Jens Kröger Former Curator, Museum für Islamische Kunst, Berlin; specialist in Islamic glass Dr Linda York Leach † Specialist in Indian painting; author of a major catalogue of the Indian paintings in the Chester Beatty Library, Dublin Mary McWilliams Norma Jean Calderwood Curator of Islamic and Later Indian Art, Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Harvard University Art Museums; specialist in Safavid textiles Francis Maddison † Former Curator, Museum of the History of Science, University of Oxford; specialist in scientific instruments and their makers Roberta Marin Assistant Curator, Nasser D. Khalili Collection of Islamic Art; tutor of the post-graduate Diploma in Asian Art, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London Marielle Martiniani-Reber Chief Curator, Applied Arts Department, Musée d’art et d’histoire, Geneva; special interest in textiles of the Arab world Behnaz Atighi Moghaddam Curator and research assistant at the Victoria and Albert Museum; specialist in calligraphy and painting from Iran and South Asia up to the 19th century Dr Peter Morgan Former Director, British Institute of Persian Studies, Iran; research interests include Ilkhanid ceramics Dr Pedro Moura Carvalho Former Deputy Director, Art and Programs, The Asian Art Museum, San Francisco; specialist in Mughal art and European contributions to the arts of India, Iran, Japan and China post 1500 Nahla Nassar Curator and Registrar, Nasser D. Khalili Collection of Islamic Art and the Hajj and the Arts of Pilgrimage Collection; special interest in the history of Islamic pilgrimage-related textiles

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Professor Alastair Northedge Professor of Islamic art and architecture, Université de Paris-Sorbonne, Paris; archaeologist specialising in early Islamic material culture Dr Jack Ogden Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries; former Chief Executive, Gemmological Association of Great Britain; specialist in the historical development of jewellery materials and techniques Dr Alison Ohta Director, Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland; specialist in the technique and ornament of Mamluk bookbinding Dr Rachel Parikh Currently the Calderwood Curatorial Fellow of South Asian Art at Harvard Art Museums; specialist in South Asian and Islamic works on paper as well as arms and armour Ralph Pinder-Wilson † Former Keeper of the Department of Oriental Antiquities, British Museum, London; specialist in the arts of Iran, India and Afghanistan B.W. Robinson † Former Fellow of the British Academy; former Keeper of Metalwork, Victoria and Albert Museum, London; specialist in Islamic painting and the arts of Qajar Iran Professor J.M. Rogers Fellow of the British Academy; Honorary Curator, Nasser D. Khalili Collection of Islamic Art; Former Deputy Keeper of the Department of Oriental Antiquities, British Museum, London; inaugural Nasser D. Khalili Chair of Islamic Art and Archaeology, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London; specialist in many aspects of Islamic culture and history, especially Seljuk and Ottoman arts Dr Martina Rugiadi Assistant Curator, Department of Islamic Art, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; specialist in Ghaznavid stonework Dr Nabil F. Safwat Former Lecturer, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London; specialist in Islamic calligraphy and the arts of the book


authors and contributors

Professor Emilie Savage-Smith Fellow of the British Academy; Professor of the History of Islamic Science, Oxford University; specialist in Islamic science, medicine and magic

Professor Wheeler M. Thackston Professor Emeritus of the Practice in Persian and Other Near Eastern Languages, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts

Dr Emily Shovelton Independent researcher and lecturer, currently tutor for the Islamic Art module at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London; specialist in illustrated Persian and Indo-Persian manuscripts

Dr Cristina Tonghini Lecturer in the History of Islamic Art, Università Ca’ Foscari di Venezia, Venice; archaeologist in Syria and specialist in its Islamic ceramics

Dr Eleanor Sims Editor, Islamic Art for the East-West Foundation, New York (originally Co-editor with her late husband, Professor Ernst J. Grube); special expertise is eastern Islamic painting Professor Nicolas Sims-Williams Fellow of the British Academy; Research Professor of Iranian and Central Asian Studies, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London; specialist in Middle Iranian languages of Eastern Iran and Central Asia, including Sogdian and Bactrian Robert Skelton Former Keeper of the Indian Department, Victoria and Albert Museum, London; specialist in the arts of India

Dr Elena Tsareva Leading researcher, Peter the Great Museum of Anthropology and Ethnography of the Russian Academy of Sciences, St Petersburg; specialist in textiles and costume of northern Eurasia Dr Aram R. Vardanyan Curator of Islamic coins in the History Museum of Armenia as well as a senior scientific researcher in the Institute of Oriental Studies NAS in Yerevan; specialist in Islamic coinage and history Dr Stephen Vernoit Former Assistant Professor, Al-Akhawayn University, Ifrane, Morocco; former Lecturer, Institute for Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies, Durham University; specialist in the art and cultural history of the Islamic world in the 17th–20th centuries

Milton Sonday Former Curator of Textiles, Cooper-Hewitt Museum, New York; specialist in the structures and continuous patterns of textiles of all cultures

Marie-France Vivier Head of the Magreb section, Musée du quai Branly, Paris; specialist in North African textiles

Professor Svat Soucek Professor Emeritus of History, Princeton University, New Jersey; specialist in historical cartography

Dr Marian Wenzel † Islamic art historian with a special interest in Islamic jewellery

Michael Spink Independent researcher, lecturer and writer on Islamic and Indian art; Fellow of the Gemmological Association of Great Britain

Dr Elaine Wright Curator of the Islamic Collections, Chester Beatty Library, Dublin; specialist in Islamic manuscript production

Tim Stanley Senior Curator, Middle Eastern collection, Victoria and Albert Museum, London; specialist in Islamic manuscript production, calligraphy and the decorative arts and has a longstanding interest in Ottoman culture

Mohamed Zakariya Distinguished contemporary calligrapher, now working in Washington, D.C.

HAJJ AND THE ARTS OF PILGRIMAGE Qaisra Khan Independent curator; Joint editor of ‘Hajj and the Arts of Pilgrimage’ in the Khalili Collections

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authors and contributors

Nahla Nassar Curator and Registrar, Nasser D. Khalili Collection of Islamic Art and the Hajj and the Arts of Pilgrimage Collection; special interest in the history of Islamic pilgrimage-related textiles

JAPANESE ART OF THE MEIJI PERIOD

Professor Sir Nasser D. Khalili Founder The Khalili Collections Honorary Fellow of the University of London; Visiting Professor, Department of Art and Archaeology, School of Oriental and African Studies, London

Svetlana Amelekhina Head of the Textile Department at the Moscow Kremlin Museums

joint editors Dr Oliver Impey and Malcolm Fairley

Tayfun Belgin Director of the Osthaus Museum, Hagen, Germany

contributors Dr Bilal Badat Dr Sami De Giosa Ms Shireen Ellinger Mr Seif El Rashidi Dr Sabiha Gologlu Professor Alastair Hamilton Dr Edmund Hayes Dr Jan Loop Dr Michael Christopher Low Dr Sergio Carro Martín Professor Ulrich Marzolph Professsor Richard McGregor Dr Luitgard Mols Dr Harry Munt Mr James Nicholson Mr Seif el Rashidi Mr Yousuf Saeed Mr Saarthak Singh Dr John Slight Dr Mehmet Tütüncü Dr Aram Vardanyan Dr Arnoud Vrolijk Dr Muhammad Isa Waley Dr Peter Webb Mr Michael Wolf

ARAMAIC DOCUMENTS

John House former Emeritus Professor, Courtauld Institute, London Dr Oliver Impey † Senior Curator, Ashmolean Museum; Reader in Japanese Art, University of Oxford Malcolm Fairley Formerly of Sotheby’s and Barry Davies Oriental Art; now co-owner of the Asian Art Gallery, London Matthi Forrer Curator for Japanese Arts at the National Museum of Ethnology in Leiden, the Netherlands Professor Sir Nasser D. Khalili Founder The Khalili Collections Honorary Fellow of the University of London; Visiting Professor, Department of Art and Archaeology, School of Oriental and African Studies, London Feodor Panfilov Researcher at the Moscow Kremlin Museums Axel Rüger Secretary and Chief Executive of the Royal Academy of Arts

Joseph Naveh † Former Professor Emiritus of West Semitic epigraphy and palaeography, Hebrew University, Jerusalem

Kris Schiermeier Director of the Japan Museum SieboldHuis, Leiden, the Netherlands

Shaul Shaked Professor Emeritus of Iranian Studies and Comparative Religion, Hebrew University, Jerusalem

Hiroko Yokomizo Associate Professor (Curator), Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music

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authors and contributors

honorary advisers Dr Barbara Ford Associate Curator of the Department of Eastern Art, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York B.W. Robinson † Former Keeper of Metalwork, Victoria and Albert Museum, London Lawrence Smith Former Keeper of the Department of Japanese Antiquities, British Museum, London authors and contributors Dr Gunhild Avitable Director of the Japan Society Gallery, New York; former Curator of Far Eastern Art, Museum of Applied Art, Frankfurt-am-Main Ellen P. Conant Independent art historian, New York Joe Earle Senior Consultant for Japanese Works of Art, Bonhams, London; former Director of the Japan Society Gallery, New York and Chair of the Department of the Art of Asia, Oceania and Africa, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Massachusetts Dror Elkvity Curator of the Japanese, Enamel, Spanish, Swedish and Aramaic collections Dr Rupert Faulkner Senior Curator, Japan, Asian Department, Victoria and Albert Museum, London

Dr Janet Hunter Saji Professor of Economic History, London School of Economics Julia Hutt Curator, Japan, Asian Department, Victoria and Albert Museum, London Greg Irvine Honorary Curator of the Japanese art of the Meiji period in the Khalili Collection; Senior Curator, Asian Department, Victoria and Albert Museum, London Anna Jackson Keeper of the Asian Department, Victoria and Albert Museum, London Major Andrew Keelan Former Chief Coordinator of the Khalili Collection Professor Sir Nasser D. Khalili Founder The Khalili Collections Honorary Fellow of the University of London; Visiting Professor, Department of Art and Archaeology, School of Oriental and African Studies, London Dr Hiroko T. McDermott Independent researcher based in Cambridge Clare Pollard Curator of Japanese Art, Department of Eastern Art, Ashmolean Museum, Oxford; former art historian and Curator of the East Asian collections at the Chester Beatty Library, Dublin Sato Doshin Former Professor of Japanese art history, Faculty of Fine Arts, Tokyo University of the Arts

Goke Tadaomi Former Professor, Faculty of Domestic Sciences, Kyoritsu Women’s University

Vibeke Woldbye Former Curator, Danish Museum of Decorative Arts, Copenhagen

Victor Harris † Former Keeper of the Department of Japanese antiquities at the British Museum, London

Edward Wrangham † Author and collector of Japanese lacquer specialising in inro

Hida Toyojiro President, Akita University of Arts; Curator, Crafts Gallery, National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo

Yamazaki Tsuyoshi Professor of History and Craft, Kanazawa University of Arts; former Curator at the Fine Arts Division of the Agency for Cultural Affairs of Japan; former Curator, Osaka City Museum

Jack Hillier † Renowned art historian and author of many publications on Japanese art

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authors and contributors

JAPANESE KIMONO

Dr. Jacqueline M. Atkins Art historian with a special interest in Japanese textile history Professor Kendall Brown Professor of Asian Art, California State University, Long Beach Dr Christine Guth Asian Specialism Tutor, Royal College of Art, London Professor Iwao Nagasaki Kyoritsu Women’s University, Tokyo Anna Jackson Keeper of the Asian Department, Victoria and Albert Museum, London Professor Timon Screech Professor of the History of Art, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London

swedish textiles

Viveka Hansen Stiftelsen Institutet for Kulturforskning, IK Foundation

SPANISH DAMASCENE

Dr James D. Lavin † Former Professor of Spanish, College of William & Mary, Williamsburg, Virginia Ramiro Larrañaga † Former master engraver and damascener; Basque historian and author Claude Blair † Leading authority on European armour

ENAMELS OF THE WORLD

Julia Clarke Deputy Director and Senior Specialist, Objects of Vertu, Sotheby’s Tatiana Fabergé Member of the Fabergé Heritage Council, and greatgranddaughter of Peter Carl Fabergé Malcolm Fairley Formerly of Sotheby’s and Barry Davies Oriental Art; now co-owner of the Asian Art Gallery, London

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Dr Oliver Impey † Senior Curator, Ashmolean Museum, Oxford; Reader in Japanese Art, University of Oxford Rose Kerr Former Keeper of the Far Eastern Department, Victoria and Albert Museum, London Daniela Mascetti Senior Director, International Senior Specialist, Jewellery, Sotheby’s Dr Pedro Moura Carvalho Former Deputy Director, Art and Programs, The Asian Art Museum, San Francisco; specialist in Mughal art and European contributions to the arts of India, Iran, Japan and China post 1500 Dr Jack Ogden Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries; former Chief Executive, Gemmological Association of Great Britain; specialist in the historical development of jewellery materials and techniques Professor J.M. Rogers Fellow of the British Academy; Honorary Curator, Nasser D. Khalili Collection of Islamic Art; Former Deputy Keeper of the Department of Oriental Antiquities, British Museum, London; inaugural Nasser D. Khalili Chair of Islamic Art and Archaeology, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London; specialist in many aspects of Islamic culture and history, especially Seljuk and Ottoman arts Haydn Williams Former Head of Portrait Miniatures, Objects of Vertu and Russian works of art, Sotheby’s


Comments and Reviews

“We have borrowed some remarkable objects not only from Japan, but from museums and private collections in the UK, Europe and America. Special thanks are due to Professor Nasser David Khalili – a great friend of the V&A – for his enormous encouragement of the exhibition, and for being so generous in lending pieces from his collection”. Tristram Hunt, Director of Victoria and Albert Museum, on the occasion of the opening of – Kimono: Kyoto to Catwalk exhibition, V&A, London, 26 February 2020

“At Wikimedia, we are actively seeking to diversify our cultural content, and the Khalili Collections is one of the most geographically and culturally diverse collections in the world, spanning some two and a half millennia, with masterpieces from Europe, the Middle East, Scandinavia, East Asia, Russia, South Asia, North Africa and beyond. We are proud to be partnering with one of the world’s great preservers of global cultural heritage”. Lucy Crompton-Reid, CEO of Wikimedia UK at the Wikimania Conference in Stockholm, August 2019

“[The Khalili Hajj Collection] has a really wide scope geographically and chronologically. Collecting art of the Islamic world, and in the specific case of the Hajj, is so important to enable a bridge between cultures. What we actually notice in exhibitions like this is that they stir dialogue. Combining our objects with the Khalili objects, which are of monumental size and which are more historical, gives multilayer dimensions to this exhibition. It is extremely generous of the Khalili Collections to offer us this opportunity”. Dr Luit Mols, Curator at the Tropenmuseum, Amsterdam on the opening of the Longing for Mecca Exhibition in February 2019

“I wish to thank one of our most dynamic UNESCO Goodwill Ambassadors, Professor Nasser D Khalili, for his passion and unfailing commitment to the values of heritage. He has spent considerable time and effort safeguarding Islamic heritage and is now the custodian of the largest group of objects related to the Holy City of Makkah”. Irina Bokova, Director-General, UNESCO Holy Makkah, A Celebration of Unity (First, 2017)

“Professor Nasser D Khalili, for the last five decades has made it his mission to safeguard the cultural and religious heritage of Makkah through collecting, preserving and conserving over three thousand objects representing the entire history of the Holy City since the birth of Islam”. The Rt Hon Patricia Scotland QC, Secretary-General of the Commonwealth Holy Makkah, A Celebration of Unity (First, 2017)

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comments and reviews

“Our role is to promote the common good in society and solidarity among the peoples. In our troubled times, interfaith harmony and cooperation couldn’t be more important, which is why Professor Nasser D Khalili, the famous Jewish collector, scholar and preserver of Islamic art and culture, was honoured with papal knighthoods from Popes St. John Paul II and Benedict XVI for his work in the pursuit of peace, education and culture amongst nations”. Cardinal Renato Raffaele Martino, Honorary President, Dignitatis Humanae Institute, Vatican Holy Makkah, A Celebration of Unity (First, 2017)

“Professor Nasser Khalili, one of the world’s foremost collectors of Islamic art, frequently named the “cultural ambassador of Islam”, has assembled the collection, “Hajj and the art of the pilgrimage”, elements of which have been displayed in such prestigious institutions as the British Museum. This collection has even been praised by the Mayor of Makkah himself”. Dr Akbar S Ahmed, Ibn Khaldun Chair of Islamic Studies, American University Holy Makkah, A Celebration of Unity (First, 2017)

“Professor Nasser D. Khalili is not only a prominent art collector of international standing but also an outstanding scholar and benefactor, incidentally custodian of the greatest collection of objects related to Makkah and the Hajj. He has also been championing interfaith dialogue between the Abrahamic faiths for decades”. Baroness Valerie Amos, Director of SOAS, University of London Holy Makkah, A Celebration of Unity (First, 2017)

“The Khalili collection of Meiji art of Japan is only comparable as acknowledged by many scholars and museum directors, in terms of quality and size to the collection of the Japanese Imperial family”. Dr. Helena Gagarina, General Director Moscow Kremlin Museums. Extract from the forward of the catalogue, Beyond Imagination Treasures of Imperial Japan from the Khalili Collection 19th to Early 20th centuries, July 2017

“It would be impossible to create such a collection today, even with the ultimate time and funds”. Gregory Irvine, Senior curator, Japan, Asian department, Victoria and Albert museum, London, UK. Extract from the forward of the catalogue, Beyond Imagination Treasures of Imperial Japan from the Khalili Collection 19th to Early 20th centuries, July 2017

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comments and reviews

“Professor Nasser Khalili is, of course, an extraordinary individual who has invested millions of pounds over half a century to amass what is perhaps the world’s greatest private collection of Islamic art. I have personally seen much of his collection at various exhibitions, most notably during the Hajj Exhibition at the British Museum in 2012. I have great admiration for Professor Khalili, and thank him for his great work in preserving Islamic heritage and making it accessible to people worldwide”. Doctor Osama Fadl al-Bar, Mayor of Mecca Comment made in a television interview in 2016.

“Above all, this show simply would not be possible without the extraordinary contribution of Professor David Khalili and the Khalili Collection and Family Trust and indeed one third of the exhibits up there are from the extraordinary collections of Islamic Art Professor Khalili has assembled and frankly without his particularly energetic, full-hearted and enthusiastic collaboration this project could not have ever got off the ground”. Comment delivered by Alexander Sturgis, director of Asmolean Museum in Oxford on the occasion of opening the exhibition Power and Protection 19 October 2016

“You are a man who works for dialogue and peace”. Comment made by President François Hollande on the occasion of awarding Prof. Khalili the Rank of officier in the Ordre national de la Legion d’Honneur at the Elysée Palace, 11 April 2016

“Professor Khalili’s contribution to the world of art and culture is unparalleled, and for him to be called the Medici of the 21st century is no exaggeration”. ––– “What makes Khalili’s story an especially remarkable one is the simple fact that as a Jew he is probably doing more than anyone to promote Islamic art and culture worldwide”. FIRST Magazine, September 2014

“We salute you Prof. Khalili, for enabling us to stage this unique exhibition”. Comment made by President François Hollande on the occasion of the opening of the exhibition Hajj, le pèlerinage à La Mecque, Institut du monde arabe, Paris, France, April 2014

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comments and reviews

“David Khalili’s collection covers the full breadth of Islamic material culture, not just the parts that have interested Western collectors in the past. You can see this especially in his collection of calligraphy and related materials – he is someone looking at Islamic culture from the inside. David has also invested in his collection by inviting specialists in a wide range of different fields to publish catalogues of his holdings. Many of these catalogues are the first publications in the field and have become vital tools for further research. He has also helped to raise the profile of Islamic art and design through a rich series of exhibitions across the world, collaborating with venues as august as the British Museum and as remote as Provo, Utah”. Tim Stanley, Senior Curator, Middle Eastern collections Victoria and Albert Museum, 2014

“The Khalili collection of Hajj and the Arts of Pilgrimage (700–2000) ranks in importance alongside the collections of the Topkapi Saray Museum in Istanbul, and includes major objects, many of which are unique and irreplaceable and have no parallel in any other collection, private or public”. Edward Gibbs, Chairman, Sotheby’s Middle East and India, July 2014

“We thank Khalili for his contribution to this exhibition”. Dr Faisal Bin Muammar, Director General of The King Abdulaziz Public Library, Saudi Arabia on the occasion of the Prime Minister of France, Manuel Valls, visiting ‘Hajj, le pèlerinage à La Mecque’at the Institut du monde arabe, Paris, 26 June 2014

“I am particularly pleased that the 2014 Award for the Dialogue of Cultures goes to Professor Nasser David Khalili. In the person of Professor Khalili, we are honouring a truly remarkable leader in reaching out boldly across cultural and religious divides and proving that, as he has said himself, what we have in common is far greater than what divides us. He is the perfect laureate for the Aladdin Award for the Dialogue of Cultures”. Gerhard Schröder, former Chancellor of Germany, June 2014

“Professor Khalili, of Jewish Iranian heritage, is today one of the world’s greatest ambassadors of culture and Islamic arts. We are honoured that he is with us tonight at the National Assembly”. Claude Bartolone, President of the French National Assembly, during the ceremony of the Dialogue of Cultures Award, 12 June 2014

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comments and reviews

“Tonight we are celebrating the outstanding achievements of a deeply humanist man of culture and science, without whom the major exhibition on Hajj at the Arab World Institute (Institut du monde arabe) could never have taken place. Professor Khalili has shown a unique determination to forge dialogue between cultures and religions and to improve the mutual knowledge of people of different cultures”. Jack Lang, President of the Institut du monde arabe and former French Minister of Culture, during the ceremony of the Dialogue of Cultures Award at the French National Assembly, 12 June 2014

“From Jerusalem, the city of Light and Hope, I send you the expression of my admiration. I pay homage to the Board of Directors of the Aladdin Project for choosing you as the 2014 laureate of the Dialogue of Cultures Award; it is a truly merited act of gratitude for all that you have done in the domain of intercultural and interfaith dialogue, as well as your significant contribution to the effulgence of Islamic arts”. René-Samuel Sirat, Chief Rabbi emeritus of France, Vice-President of the Conference of European Rabbis, 12 June 2014

“I was so pleased to learn that Professor Khalili was to receive the ‘MaimonidesAverroes Award’. I cannot think of anyone more deserving of this award”. ––– “David is passionate about the cause of peace and has made a remarkable contribution to improving dialogue, understanding and respect between those of different faiths. I have discussed these issues with David many times over the years and it is his dedication to the cause and his rational and compassionate thinking that has always been apparent”. ––– “He has given much; and it is clear he still has so much to give. I can’t think of anyone who better represents the values encompassed by the Maimonides-Averroes Award for mutual knowledge and respect than David”. The Right Hon. Tony Blair, former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, May 2014

“Though religious conflict and intolerance often claim center stage, throughout the world there are people working tirelessly for interfaith peace and understanding. Nasser David Khalili is a leader among them”. ––– “In recognition of his services to humanity through art, culture and philanthropy, and in acknowledgement of his exceptional journey as one of our most distinguished alumni, we are proud today to present Nasser David Khalili with the Queens College President’s Medal”. President James Muyskens, Queens College, New York, Commencement 2013, 30 May 2013

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comments and reviews

“There are frequent flashes of generosity of spirit that cannot be scripted…” “Like most great philanthropists, he is passionate but there is a certain timeless wisdom about him too”. B Beyond Magazine, January 2013

“...what Prof. Khalili (David) represents... he is more than a collector, art historian, business man, of diverse cultural background... he’s just a HUMANIST and this is what is so wonderful about him”. ––– “...In 17th Century France, there is a very interesting description of people (such as David) – an HONEST MAN, meaning a man of passionate intellect and great culture, a man of balance and reason... (showing) an intellectual and moral spirituality towards humanity”. ––– “Dear Professor Khalili, you have always been an ambassador for the values that inspire UNESCO’s action”. Irina Bokova, Director General of UNESCO, on the occasion of the designation of Prof. Khalili as UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador, Paris, 16 October 2012

“Professor Nasser D. Khalili, who has amassed what is almost certainly the greatest collection of Islamic art in existence”. Andrew Mckie, From an article: The British Museum’s Pilgrimage, The Wall Street Journal, January 27, 2012

“Items from the archive – as well as the spectacular embroidered textiles themselves – were recently on show at the British Museum’s exhibition Hajj: Journey to the Heart of Islam. Indeed the Khalili Family Trust was the largest lender to this landmark show… After Topkapi Serayi in Istanbul, the trust also holds the world’s largest group of textiles and objects – among them scientific instruments, maps and miniatures – relating to Mecca and Medina”. Susan Moore – Financial Times, 12 May 2012

“It would have been impossible to tell that story without those great Works of Art from David’s collection”. ––– “On behalf of all of us at the museum and thousands of people who will see this exhibition, I would like to thank you, David, and your family for your amazing generosity, especially for this exhibition, which will allow, I hope, a new set of people to understand what Hajj is”. Neil MacGregor, Director, The British Museum, on the occasion of The Hajj, an exhibition at The British Museum, 2012

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comments and reviews

“From The Khalili Collections – perhaps the greatest and grandest assemblage of Islamic art in private hands – comes a wonderfully vivid manuscript illustrating the rites of Hajj in richly… detailed sequence. And, at the heart of the show, is a marvellous display of the magnificent textiles traditionally offered to the Kaaba…” Rachel Campbell-Johnston – The Times, 24 January 2012, on the occasion of The Hajj, an exhibition at the British Museum, 26 January to 15 April 2012

“He’s an unparalleled Art Collector”. Ernest Veen, Director of De Nieuwe Kerk and Hermitage Amsterdam, December 2010

“His Islamic treasures include a 14th-century Iranian world history by Rashid al-Din Fadlallah, which he says cost him £12 million in 1990. It’s one of the greatest illustrated manuscripts in the world”. Tim Stanley, Senior Curator for the Middle East at London’s Victoria and Albert Museum. Bloomberg Magazine, May 2010

“ ‘His collection is certainly the best in private hands’ says Edward Gibbs, Sotheby’s head of Middle Eastern art. ‘He is the man who has everything. He’s come to define the market.’ ” Bloomberg Magazine, May 2010

“The Public will be astounded by the diversity of the Khalili material”. Geoffrey Munn, managing director of Wartski, an art and antique dealer in London International Herald Tribune, 10 December 2009

“The most impressive feature of The Khalili Collection, which covers the history of Islamic art from its beginnings in the 7th century to the present day, is the quality andrarity of most of the items. many of which can indeed be considered priceless in the sense that they cannot be replaced and it is highly unlikely that similar items will appear in the same frequency as they used to on the open market in the foreseeable future”. Nabil Saidi, former Director of Islamic department Sotheby’s London, December 2009

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comments and reviews

“It is one of the most important Islamic collections in the world – not just one of the most important in private hands, but in museums, too. It includes all aspects of Islamic art. It’s very spectacular”. –– “It’s an absolutely superb collection of Enamels. It’s fantastically interesting. It brings together different cultures, and it works together in very important ways. It’s a dialogue of cultures, and it has unique pieces... He has chosen a field not so much visited by other collectors. The art market comes in waves, and he knows how to gauge the weather”. –– “All great collectors are very unusual, but Prof. Khalili is very special. His attitude is: ‘I am not the owner. I am the keeper of the collection for the next generation and the next century.’ It’s a very important philosophy”. –– “The Khalili Collection ‘Enamels Of The World 1700 – 2000’, which includes spectacular masterpieces from all the major centres of enamelling, is pioneering in its focused study of the subject. Unique in its scope, the Collection reveals the remarkable technical achievements of the enamellers and encourages a greater awareness of the range of their activity. For these reasons I was convinced that the first public showing of the Collection should take place in the galleries of the State Hermitage Museums in St Petersburg”. –– “The State Hermitage Museum has worked with Nasser D. Khalili on three occasions and in each case approximately half the pieces were drawn from the Khalili Collection”. Professor Mikhail Piotrovsky – Director, The State Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg, Russia, December 2009

“My Dear David, what can I say – here stands a Galileo. I have known you for many years when the late holy father Pope John Paul II of blessed memory created you a Knight of St. Sylvester. I said of you at that time, if you remember, that you had in one person the great wisdom of 3 religious leaders: a Chief Rabbi, a Cardinal and Grand Mufti. This was true then and it’s true today”. Words of the holy father Pope Benedict XVI (read by his representative) on the occasion of presenting the honour of Knight Commander of the Pontifical Equestrian Order of St Sylvester (KCSS), 2009

“Rencontre avec le plus grand collectionneur du monde, Nasser David Khalili, collectionneur de légende”. –– “Meeting with the Greatest Collector in the world, Nasser David Khalili – legendary collector”. Stephanie Bélpêche, Le Journal du Dimanche, 4 Octobre 2009

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comments and reviews

“Professor David Khalili is one of the great collectors of the world. He has formed one of the finest private collections of Islamic art that the world has ever seen”. –– “The industry and scholarship that David Khalili has brought to his collection, is without precedent in the modern world. This is revealed by the astonishing series of catalogues which create a new benchmark of standards for private collections”. –– “It would be impossible today to put together the Islamic Collection formed by Professor Khalili but equally impressive is the way he has studied and revealed it through scholarship”. James Stourton, Former Chairman, Sotheby’s, London, December 2009

“The collectors of the art of the past have shown a shift towards making the contents of their collections a matter of public record... the leviathan is Nasser D Khalili’s astonishing 32 volumes and rising”. ‘Great Collectors of our Time’ by James Stourton, Chairman, Sotheby’s UK, 2008

“David Khalili puts most collectors to shame. In an age in which so many rich men call themselves collectors and seem more interested in displaying their wealth than the art they have acquired through it, Khalili has done rather more than simply raise a paddle in the saleroom”. –– “Abu Dhabi is hosting the most comprehensive exhibition of Islamic art ever staged in the Middle East”. Susan Moore, Apollo Magazine, March 2008

“An attempt to value the Nasser D. Khalili collection of Islamic Art would be an impossible task. Even with an infinite budget one would noºt be able to rebuild such a collection; hence it is literally priceless”. Claire Penhallurick, Director, Islamic & Indian art, Bonhams, 2008

“The Arts of Islam exhibition is a copious and precious record of Islamic masterpieces and artistic achievements. It is a fertile and inexhaustible treasure house that recounts the history of a community that had a mighty role in building human civilization and enriching it with knowledge, art and culture. I highly value the efforts of Professor Nasser al-Khalili and what he has done to promote this valuable cultural heritage, to care for it and to preserve it, and to present it to current and future generations so that all who see it will learn about the brilliance of the noble and deeply-rooted Islamic civilization”. Translation of the comment made by His Highness General Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, on the occasionof the opening of the Arts of Islam Exhibition in Abu Dhabi, 22 January 2008 237


comments and reviews

“Many items in the Nasser D. Khalili collection are completely unique – without parallel in museums let alone the market. It is a collection that would be impossible to recreate”. William Robinson, International Specialist Head, Department of Islamic Art, Christie’s, London, January 2008

“Nasser D. Khalili is a born collector and a great ambassador for Islamic art”. Edward Gibbs, Chairman, Middle East and India, Sotheby’s London, January 2008

“Professor Khalili is an established world figure in the domain of Islamic art. His academic contributions to understanding Islamic culture are significant and his collection is among the best in the world. It was natural for us to seek him out and establish a personal relationship and friendship between us. Last year, we sent out a team to Sydney, Australia, to see his exhibition at The Art Gallery of New South Wales and we decided that, in view of our wider vision to anchor our Cultural District in its Islamic tradition, it would be important to cooperate with him on a long-term basis”. His Highness Sheikh Sultan Bin Tahnoon Al‑Nahyan – Chairman Abu Dhabi Tourism, The Arts of Islam Exhibition, Canvas Magazine, January 2008

“This collection is without a doubt the largest and most comprehensive collection of Islamic Art in the world and we consider ourselves very lucky to be able to host it in our Museum”. Edmund Capon, AM, OBE, Director NSW Gallery, Sydney, Australia, Summer 2007

“Few men have made such an impressive contribution to the preservation and understanding of Islamic art as Nasser David Khalili, one of the world’s foremost collectors. Driven by passion to share the riches of the past with the modern world for more than three decades, his quest to assemble an unparalleled collection has played a central role in his life”. Philippa Scott and Lisa Ball-Lechgar, Canvas Magazine, January 2007

“The main reason for the exhibition of Wonders of Imperial Japan at the Van Gogh Museum was its connection to Van Gogh’s painting. It was Van Gogh who said in his letter to his brother Theo in 1888 ‘In a way all my work is founded on Japanese art…’ ” Axel Rüger, Director, Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam, July 2006

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comments and reviews

“The Nasser D. Khalili Collection of Islamic Art is unrivalled. It is the only collection in existence which has been fully researched, published and exhibited in major museums. In my opinion, the value of the collection is inestimable”. Letter from Edward Gibbs, Chairman, Middle East and India, Sotheby’s London, June 2006

“David Khalili is the Born Collector”. Martin Gayford, ARTnews, The Global Art Boom, May 2006

“David Khalili is the Ambassador of Culture”. Mahmud Al-Rashid, Emel The Muslim Lifestyle Magazine, January 2006

“Professor Khalili has spent the last 35 years promoting the art and culture of Islam so perhaps it is more appropriate for us to call him ‘a cultural ambassador of Islam’”. His Excellency Dr Adeli, The Iranian ambassador to London, at the Launch of The TimeLine History of Islamic Art and Architecture, The Banqueting House, London, November 2005

“...We are treated to an admirably concise but wide ranging and, in many respects, ground‑breaking overview of Ottoman culture”. Susan Moore, Financial Times, July 2005

“…Khalili is a most unusual collector – and also an extraordinary man”. –– “Healing the world with art”. Martin Gayford, ‘The Independent: Arts & Books Review’, 16 April 2004

“Everyone should look at the art of Islam. It confounds every stereotype… This is art – staggering art”. Jonathan Jones, The Guardian, 13 April 2004

“Dr. Khalili is a man of obvious rare taste, and his collection of Islamic art is a very important collection, and very wisely collected”. Herbert Mason in the article – ‘Authority and collector Khalili to explore glories of Islamic art’by David J. Craig in Boston University Bridge, Vol. VI, No. 20, February 2003

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comments and reviews

“…the appreciation of all the Zuloaga descendants [goes] to Prof Khalili… for this superb collection of damascene art, and… for having given the world the opportunity to admire the works, not only of the Zuloagas, but of all the Basque artisans like them”. Mariá Rosa Suárez Zuloaga, Zuloaga Museum, Spain, Summer 2000

“The aim of Professor Khalili and the Nour Foundation to put together a scholarly survey of Islamic art in all its facets has certainly been achieved in this catalogue... Taking these two well-produced volumes from their slip-case is like opening a two-dimensional virtual museum with all the scientific wonders of the Islamic World spread before us”. Willem Hackmann, Bulletin of The Scientific Instrument Society, No. 61, 1999

“The Medici, Lady Charlotte Schreiber, J. Paul Getty – all names inscribed on the roll of honour of those who had an overwhelming urge to collect… Such collectors are spread as thinly today as ever, but one such as Dr Nasser D Khalili who, unusually, is more than willing to share his passion with a wider public”. David Battie, Masterpiece, Winter 1999

“Today I am speechless and proud to be Japanese”. His Excellency Kunihiko Saito, Japanese Ambassador to Washington on the occasion of the Official Opening of the Delaware Exhibition, 10 April 1999

“… A landmark in the study of nineteenth century Spanish decorative art”. Dr Alan Borg, Director, Victoria and Albert Museum, on the occasion of the opening ofthe Zuloaga exhibition, 1997

“This series is a monumental celebration of the material culture of the Islamic peoples, the so called ‘people of the Book’. For their production values, for their very substantial scholarship, and of course for the collection itself, these volumes can only be seen as a landmark series..”. Phil Baker, The Art Book, December 1995

“One of the most lavish publications ever produced on Japanese art… the tomes feature… stunningly exquisite artistic treasures..”. John Chipperfield, Wings of Gold, In-flight Magazine of Malaysian Airlines, November 1995

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comments and reviews

“At that time we could not have guessed the existence of Professor Khalili’s collection… a feat which could not possibly be duplicated or even approached by any museum in the world today…” Dr Robert Anderson, Director, British Museum, talking on the exhibition: Japanese Imperial Craftsman, 21 September 1994 – 15 January 1995

“Professor Nasser D. Khalili... one of the world’s leading collectors of Japanese art from the Meiji period”. Museums by John Russell Taylor, The Times, 2 November 1994

“His collection is superlative and to have it on permanent display in this country would be phenomenal. …others such as David Khalili are engaged in a life-long quest to build bridges between world communities through philanthropy… This is philanthropy on a grand scale… He regards himself as the custodian rather than owner of the ancient artefacts..”. Peter Stock of the British Library in an article by Ian Birrell and Robina Gibb, Sunday Times, 13 September 1992

“In its breadth and vision, Dr Khalili’s magnificent survey of the arts of the Islamic lands must be regarded as one of the outstanding publishing achievements of the century”. Dr Julian Raby, Director, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution, Washington DC, in a Presentation Ceremony at the Locarno Suite, British Foreign Office, London, 1992

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islamic art

hajj and the arts of pilgrimage

aramaic documents

japanese art of the meiji period

japanese kimono

swedish textiles

spanish damascene metalwork

enamels of the world




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