(CUL)
ISTANBUL - A Louvre collection exhibition drew more than 50,000 visitors to an Istanbul museum, the museum authorities said on Tuesday.
Sakip Sabanci Museum in Istanbul has been hosting an exhibition titled "Istanbul, Isfahan, Delhi-Three Capitals of Islamic Art Masterpieces from the Louvre Collection" since February 19th.
More than 50,000 people visited the exhibition since it was inaugurated by Turkey's President Abdullah Gul in February.
Approximately 220 masterpieces from the Louvre Museum's Division of Islamic Art are on display in the exhibition.
The exhibition, consisting of treasures collected and preserved in one of the Louvre's most important collections, the Division of Islamic Art, encompasses works from the Ottoman Empire (1299-1923), the Safavid State (1501-1722) founded in Iran at the beginning of the sixteenth century, and the Mughal Dynasty that ruled over India during the same period (1526-1858), has been organized in cooperation with the Louvre Museum and with the participation of the Museum of Decorative Arts.
Open till June 1st, this exhibition presents a reflection of the historical relationship among three mighty Empires, the Ottoman, the Safavid in Iran and the Mughal in India, in terms of its cultural aspects, emphasizing both the common and differing artistic attributes of their shared heritage of the Timurid culture that dominated the vast geography of Iran from 1396 to 1510.
"Picasso in Istanbul" exhibition, hosted at the same museum from November 2005 to March 2006, was visited by 254,000 people.
Also, the Sakip Sabanci Museum will host an important collection in September. The "Salvador Dali: A Surrealist in Istanbul" exhibition can be viewed at the museum from September 19th, 2008 to January 19th, 2009.
(BRC-AÖ)