TURKISH AND ISLAMIC ARTS MUSEUM

Description

Essentials about the Turkish and Islamic Arts Museum in brief

If you are interested in Middle Eastern art, you should definitely visit the Turkish and Islamic Arts Museum. It is located right in the historic center of Istanbul at the Hippodrome, opposite the Sultan Ahmed Mosque. The museum houses an extraordinary collection of Islamic art from all over the Middle East from the 7th to the 20th century.

The history of the Turkish and Islamic Arts Museum

The museum is housed in the Ibrahim Pasha Palace, which Sultan Suleyman I the Magnificent gave to his Grand Vizier Ibrahim Pasha at the beginning of the 16th century. In 1536, the sultan had the vizier, who had apparently become too powerful, assassinated. Ibrahim Pasha’s entire property was then confiscated. From then on, the palace served various purposes, including as a diplomatic residence, textile workshop, barracks and prison. Over the years, the palace building fell into disrepair. It was not until the 1970s that it was restored and the premises were made available to the Museum of Turkish and Islamic Art in 1983.

The collection of the Turkish and Islamic Arts Museum

General information

The museum contains a rich collection of almost all periods of Islamic art from almost all regions of the Middle East from the 7th to the 20th century. Especially carpet lovers will get their money’s worth here. With about 1,000 pieces, the museum houses the world’s most extensive and, due to their quality, one of the most important collections of carpets.

Scripts

Furthermore, the museum displays illuminated manuscripts, calligraphy, Quranic manuscripts, Persian miniature paintings, Ottoman Ebru art, pulpit writings, and many more, which come from all areas of Islamic cultures between the Umayyads and the Ottomans.

Woodcarving Art

The woodcarving collection ranges from the 9th century through extremely rare Seljuk exhibits of the 10th century to the Ottoman period, including Quran stands, minbars, doors, columns and furniture.

Stonework

Among the stone works there are mainly calligraphies of the Umayyads, Abbasids, Mamluks, Seljuks and Ottomans. However, there are also some remarkable pictorial works and reliefs, especially among the Seljuk ones, which show figurative.

Ceramics

The ceramics department displays Iznik ceramics, faience, mosaic and plaster art as well as ceramic ware from Samarra (Iraq), Kashan (Iran), Raqqa and Aleppo (Syria), Seljuk and Ottoman to Kütahyaware and Çanakkaleware. This collection is rounded off by a glass collection, starting with works from the 9th century, through Mamluk glass ampoules to Ottoman rosewater bottles.

Metalwork

The metalwork of the museum allows to get an overview of the development of 800 years, from Almohad astrolabes, Seljuk door knockers in the shape of dragons, Anatolian candlesticks, Mamluk water basins to Ottoman turban jewelry, incense burners, jugs, standards and table settings.

Furnishings

And last but not least, the ethnological section displays living quarters and furnishings of different Turkish ethnic groups from different eras. In addition, the exhibition rooms provide space for national and international special exhibitions.