Smithsonian's Sackler Gallery presents first major United States exhibition of Qur'ans

ARTDAILY

Single-volume Qur’an. Copied by Khalil Allah ibn Mahmud Shah; Illuminated by Muhammad ibn Ali; Turkey, Istanbul, September 1517; Ink, color, and gold on paper; Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts, Istanbul, TIEM 224

WASHINGTON, DC.- The first major exhibition of Qur’ans (Korans) in the U.S., “The Art of the Qur’an: Treasures from the Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts,”will open at the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Oct. 22 and continue through Feb. 20, 2017. The exhibition was organized by the Sackler in collaboration with the Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts in Istanbul. It will feature more than 60 of the most important Qur’an manuscripts ever produced from the Arab world, Turkey, Iran and Afghanistan. Celebrated for their superb calligraphy and lavish illumination, these manuscripts span almost 1,000 years of history—from eighth-century Damascus, Syria, to 17th-century Istanbul. [link]