The Islamic World in the British Museum in London

12/10/2019

Arts ■
Do you like culture and history? And do you see any chance to be in London? Then it’s worth to pass by in the British Museum an discover the recently opened gallery ‘The Islamic World’.

BY HANAN, 2 minutes read

The ‘Albukhary Foundation Gallery of the Islamic World’ represents an exciting new vision, displayed across two magnificent refurbished galleries at the heart of the British Museum. The British Museum’s Islamic collection comprises a broad and diverse spectrum of the material culture produced from the seventh century to the present day in the Islamic world, a series of regions stretching from West Africa to Southeast Asia. From archaeological material to contemporary art, from the paintings and vessels made for royal patrons to the evocative objects of daily life, this new gallery brings together the stories of interconnected worlds across time and geography.

Two rooms

The gallery comprises two rooms presenting the cultures of the Islamic world. They highlight both the diversity of peoples and their traditions, and the connections between them.

The first room covers the period up to 1500 through chronological and thematic displays featuring topics such as global trade and exchange and luxury arts. The second room covers the period from 1500 to the present day. It features courtly culture, textiles and jewellery, arts of the book and contemporary art. The objects in these two rooms reflects perfect the strength of the museum’s wide-ranging collection.

Pioneering

The gallery is the result of several years of planning and detailed research. The aim has been to rethink how the Islamic world could be displayed to present the collection in new and exciting ways for the visitors, and to show the cultural diversity of this vast region.

The gallery is pioneering for many reasons. It offers creative ways for visitors to engage with the cultures of the Islamic world, from listening to music and stories, to films about how objects were made. They worked with a group of digital specialists, filmmakers and sound engineers to help bring audio-visual context to the objects on display, giving the galleries a new richness. In addition, light sensitive works such as paintings, calligraphies and textiles are on display for the first time, thanks to the expertise of conservators, scientists and mount-makers. These displays will rotate regularly, offering something new to see in the gallery on each visit.

Albukhary Foundation

The British Museum’s gallery ‘The Islamic world’ and the corresponding website, was made possible thanks to the donation from the Albukhary Foundation. The Albukhary Foundation is a non-profit organisation based in Malaysia with an international presence. For the past forty years, it has been promoting goodwill through education and cultural heritage.