Qatar Museums (QM) will highlight the cultural and artistic interactions between the Ottoman, Safavid, and Mughal empires in one of its major exhibitions at the Museum of Islamic Art (MIA).

MIA curator Dr Mounia Chekhab told a press briefing that the ‘Imperial Threads: Motifs and Artisans from Turkey, Iran and India’ exhibition at MIA will feature 110 objects, including 25 large-scale carpets, from March 15 to November 4.
“The idea is to show that these three empires, Ottoman, Safavid, and Mughal, used to be in war historically but they also have cultural and artistic exchanges and connections,” she noted.
Travelling to Turkey, Iran and India, Abudaya stressed that they want to show how motifs were used from one region to another.
Apart from the cultural interaction and artistic influence, the exhibition will also highlight the materials exchanged between these major empires, mainly from the 16th to the 18th centuries. It will include carpets, manuscripts, metalwork and ceramics, and other objects that have never been displayed before.
Abudaya said the exhibition is specially designed to show the diplomatic interactions and connections between these three regions of the Islamic world during the modern period.
“It will completely look different from any other exhibitions we had in the past in the museum,” she noted. “I hope the visitor will feel as an ambassador going from one place to another from Turkey to Iran, then India, feeling that they are visiting the main palaces of these three empires.”
QM will also hold a series of film screenings, educational programmes, workshops, and some lectures from international scholars who will talk about these three empires.
As part of QM’s ‘spring exhibitions and programmes,’ Abudaya said they are planning to present the arms and weaponry collection of Qatari collector Fahad al-Mansouri.
“He has a very interesting collection, and we think it would be such a great venue for him to display his collection here at MIA.”
Abudaya said they want to show how private collections are an important part of their community outreach and how museums interact with private collectors.
In addition, QM is also continuously restoring historical and archaeological sites across Qatar to help preserve the country’s architectural identity and historical legacy while balancing progress and embracing the future.

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