Holy heritage on display at Istanbul's Sultanahmet

ISTANBUL – Hürriyet Daily News

Mimar Sinan University academic Ali Rıza Özcan is the advisory of the exhibtion, which is displaying the handwritten copies of the Quran. AA photo

A new exhibition opened on Aug. 2 at Istanbul’s Sultanahmet Madrasah is displaying 99 Mushaf-ı Şerif (handwritten copies of the Quran) from between the ninth and 18th centuries. The exhibition titled “Mukaddes Miras” (Holy Heritage) is being organized under the artistic consultancy of Mimar Sinan
University Faculty of Fine Arts member Associate Professor Ali Rıza Özcan.

The exhibition includes 99 copies of the Quran written by famous calligraphers such as Hafız Osman, Mehmet Emin Üsküdari, Mahmud Sivasi, Hafız Yusuf and Derviş Mehmed in the whole Islamic geography from China to Mongolia and from Abbasis to Emevis.

Also in the exhibition are the hüsni-hat calligraphy works by significant names like Şeyh Hamdullah, Sami Efendi, Mahmud Celaleddin, Yesarizade Mustafa İzzet, Ömer Vasfi Efendi, Hulusi Yazgan, Kamil Akdik and Mehmet Şefik.

For the exhibition “Mukaddes Miras,” which is reported as Turkey’s largest Mushaf-ı Şerif exhibition so far, all of the works have been gathered from private collections. Speaking to Anadolu Agency, Özcan, who closely followed the organization of the exhibition, said that the works were from a wide Islamic geography, led by the Ottoman Empire.

He said that Qurans with a rich content were on display in the exhibition, adding, “There was an exhibition in Hagia Sophia, titled ‘Hattı Sultanları’ (Master of Calligraphy). The Islamic Culture and Arts Platform organized it and they proposed us to help for the organization of this exhibition. We have been inspired by the 99 names of God and put 99 works in the exhibition. We planned one Quran for each name.”

Unique works

Özcan said that he had chosen the unique works for the exhibition from the Bilal Sütçü collection. “We also display works by Şeyh Hamdullah, who is known as the father of calligraphy. The center of calligraphy moved from Baghdad to Istanbul with him. Those following him have created significant works. This is why this exhibition is very important,” he added.

Speaking at the opening of the exhibition, the sponsor of the event, Yıldız Holding Executive Board Chairman Ali Ülker said, “Rare works are on display in the exhibition. It will be useful for visitors of the exhibit to get a catalogue and make search on the Internet. These are very valuable works and they are not open to public all the time. As Yıldız Holding, we collect works from time to time but mostly display them in our workplace. We have previously organized a Quran exhibition and a Hilye-i Şerif in its 1400th year. This time we sponsor our traditional arts.”
The exhibition will run through Sept. 2.

Calligraphy works in Istanbul

World-famous Iranian calligraphy artist Amir Ahmad Falsafi’s exhibition “The Magic of the Pen and Calligraphy” opened in Istanbul July 18.

The Istanbul Classic Arts Center and the Islamic History, Art and Culture Research Center are supporting the exhibition at Dolmabahçe Art Gallery. The exhibition features many works of calligraphy by the artist.

Speaking at the exhibition, Falsafi said he was very content to see the interest in calligraphy art. There are many joint artistic and cultural values between Iran and Turkey, Falsafi said. “Not only religion, but also art makes the two countries collide.” Falsafi has become established as a master of nestaliq calligraphy.He has dedicated 30 years to calligraphy and has also spent 22 years teaching at the Iranian Society of Calligraphers. His published works include: “Divan-e Baba Tahir,” 1984; “Sa’di’s Gulistan and Divan-e Hassanzadeh Amoli,” 1985.