Empire of the Sultans

Empire of the Sultans: Ottoman Art of the Khalili Collection

Kitab al-Hadi al-Muhammadi fi'l-Tibb al-Nabawi (Treatise on Prophetic Medicine) with the tughra (monogram, left) of Suleiman the Magnificent, 1520
Date	1995–2004
Venue	Locations in Switzerland, the UK, Israel, and the US
Type	Art exhibition
Theme	Ottoman Empire

Empire of the Sultans: Ottoman Art of the Khalili Collection was a 1995–2004 touring exhibition displaying objects from the Khalili Collection of Islamic Art. Around two hundred exhibits, including calligraphy, textiles, pottery, weapons, and metalwork, illustrated the art and daily life of six centuries of the Ottoman Empire. Many of the objects had been created for the leaders of the empire, the sultans. Two of the calligraphic pieces were the work of sultans themselves.

In the 1990s, the exhibition was hosted by institutions in Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and Israel. It visited thirteen cities in the United States from 2000 to 2004, a period when Islam became especially controversial due to the September 11 attacks and the subsequent wars in the Middle East. Critics described the exhibition as wide-ranging and informative. They praised it for showing beautiful art works – naming the calligraphy in particular – and for presenting a fresh view of Islam. Catalogues were published in English and French.