Hajj and the Arts of Pilgrimage showcases over 5,000 objects from the collection of Nasser David Khalili, exploring Hajj’s artistic and cultural legacy from the 8th century to today.
Learn more: https://tinyurl.com/4ya46n5z
#khalilicollections #khalilipublications #books
#EidMubarak Today we’re sharing a folio from Firdawsi’s Shahnameh, created in the 1520s in Tabriz for Shah Tahmasp. Often described as the finest illustrated Persian manuscript ever produced, this work reflects the artistic ambition of the early Safavid court.
https://khalilicollections.org
This #MothersDay we shared a portrait of a Court Lady with a Narcissus from our Islamic Art Collection. Painted in Mughal India around 1630, it shows a court lady holding narcissus flowers, a motif popular during the reign of Shah Jahan.
Learn more: https://tinyurl.com/579f74ne
#KhaliliCollections
13 March marks the anniversary of the Battle of Badr (624 CE). Today we share a pendant from our collection set with stones gathered from Mecca, the valley of Badr and Gar Hara’, places closely linked to the early history of Islam.
Learn more: https://tinyurl.com/bdzaa54k
NEW BOOK OUT NOW: A Rival to China showcases 400 ceramics from the 13th–19th centuries, from Ilkhanid and Timurid to Safavid and Ottoman wares, highlighting cross-cultural exchange across the Islamic world.
Learn more: https://tinyurl.com/mr2syj53
All proceeds support the Khalili Foundation.
📜 #ManuscriptMonday
Folio 135b, Rustam and the Seven Warriors at the Hunting Ground of Afrasiyab, from the Shah Tahmasp Shahnamah.
Created in 16th century Safavid Tabriz, this masterpiece blends Timurid and Turcoman styles in radiant colour, gold and silver.
#Shahnamah
It’s #InternationalDayofPeacefulCoexistence, and today we’re sharing Jonah and the Whale from the Jami‘ al-Tawarikh. Created in the early 14th century by Rashid al-Din, it depicts Jonah, a figure honoured in Jewish, Christian, and Islamic traditions
https://tinyurl.com/bdexuma5
#khalilicollections
Today we continue celebrating Seijin no Hi with this stunning Outer Kimono for a Young Woman (Uchikake) from the Khalili Japanese Kimono Collection. A symbol of culture, heritage, and new beginnings for young adults.
Learn more: https://tinyurl.com/6sussw99
Today we present Meiji No Takara – Treasures of Imperial Japan, Volume 2: Metalwork. Showcasing 161 exceptional works by master artisans, this richly illustrated volume celebrates Japan’s finest craftsmanship.
All proceeds support the Khalili Foundation.
Learn more: https://tinyurl.com/muhx63b
For #InternationalTeaDay, we’re sharing this 19th-century Russian tea caddy from our Enamels of the World Collection. With tea sourced from China, its decoration reflects 18th-century chinoiserie and Chinese pith paper watercolours from the Treaty ports.
#KhaliliCollections
In 2007, Professor Sir David Khalili gave Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II a personal tour of the Royal Collection at Windsor Castle. His knowledge led The Queen to remark, “It’s scary how much this gentleman knows about art.”
Learn more about his journey:
https://sirdavidkhalili.com
#Peace
On #WildlifeConservationDay we are sharing this Elephant Aquamanile created in Syria in the twelfth or early thirteenth century which is formed from moulded stonepaste and finished with a softly opacified white glaze enhanced by turquoise and cobalt blue.
‘From Bauhaus to Mecca’ explores Dr Mahmoud Bodo Rasch’s journey from Bauhaus beginnings to major designs for Mecca and Medina. With over 200 works and rare Khalili Collection textiles, it highlights a unique meeting of modernism and Islamic architecture.
Learn more: https://tinyurl.com/3326h35v
This #Thanksgiving we’re highlighting this tiered jubako from our Japanese Art of the Meiji Period Collection. Created in 1889 or earlier and attributed to Shibata Zeshin, this work’s harvest imagery offers a fitting reflection for the season.
Learn more: https://tinyurl.com/383p7um9
It’s #RoadSafetyWeek and we’re buckling up with these 9th–10th century belt fittings from our Islamic Arts Collection. Originally gilt and crafted in eastern Iran — possibly Nishapur — these 37 pieces held together a soldier’s important gear.
Today, on Remembrance Day, we pause to reflect on memory and sacrifice with this Silk Rug from Mughal India, created around 1630–40, whose intricate design features delicate red poppies, flowers that have come to symbolise remembrance and peace.
#RemembranceDay
Over 50 years in the making, the Khalili Collections embody a lifelong devotion to preserving and sharing human creativity, with nearly 100 volumes celebrating Swedish textiles, the Hajj, Japanese craftsmanship, Islamic art, and the universal ideals of peace.
#KhaliliCollections
As fireworks light up the sky this #GuyFawkesNight, we’re thinking about the invention behind both spectacle and revolution: gunpowder.
This 17th-c. Ottoman flintlock pistol, crafted with gold, silver, and intricate calligraphy, is a rare masterpiece where art meets innovation.
#KhaliliCollections
A simple List of Supplies from ancient Bactria tells a story of empire in transition. Written in Official Aramaic on leather, it records flour, wine, and vinegar for workers, everyday needs that kept the Achaemenid world running in 329 BC.
Learn more: https://tinyurl.com/2yjnv4x7
#WednesdayWisdom
As we adjust to shorter days, we’re reminded of this Timepiece from our Enamels of the World Collection. Unveiled at the Paris Exposition Universelle of 1889, this clock was among celebrated works earning the Vever brothers a Grand Prix for jewellery design.
Learn more: https://tinyurl.com/bdf6286f
Sir David Khalili’s The Art of Peace is available on Amazon. Discover how the power of art can foster understanding, peace, and unity across cultures. Few are better placed to share such a vision.
Learn more: http://sirdavidkhalili.com
#TheArtOfPeace
It’s #SpaceWeek 🌌 & we’re sharing an astrolabe-quadrant from our Islamic Arts Collection, made in Ottoman Turkey in 1840–41.
Crafted from walnut with ink inscriptions, brass, and a housed plumb-line weight, it guided astronomical calculations with remarkable precision.
#KhaliliCollections
📢 New release: Learning, Piety and Poetry: Manuscripts from the Islamic World (Vol VII, 2025). Featuring rare Arabic, Persian & Turkish works incl. Ibn al-‘Arabi’s autograph & al-Mutanabbi’s diwan.
🔗 https://tinyurl.com/4ua5r5p4
Here you can purchase all available volumes published exclusively by the Collections:
https://khalilipublications.com
For a fuller list of publications including forthcoming volumes and books published by others see our Collections:
https://khalilicollections.org/publications
For this week’s #ManuscriptMonday we’re highlighting Al-Shajarah al-Nabawiyyah by Yusuf ibn Hasan ibn ʿAbd al-Hadi, a detailed biography of the Prophet Muhammad, his family, companions, and the first four caliphs. This manuscript was copied in North Africa during the 17th century.
#OttomanArt
This week marks the beginning of autumn and soon we’ll need to start raking up all the fallen leaves. We’re sharing this remarkable 19thC calligraphic composition written on the delicate skeleton of a horse chestnut leaf from our Islamic Arts Collection.
Learn more: https://tinyurl.com/bdf6z4tm
An 18th-c silk curtain from the Prophet’s Tomb, woven in Ottoman Turkey, carries prayers, blessings, and the words: “Prayers and Peace be upon you, O messenger of God.” From our Hajj and the Arts of Pilgrimage Collection.
Learn more: https://tinyurl.com/chp7pafd
#InternationalDayOfPeace
As #LondonFashionWeek unfolds, we spotlight a boy’s kimono ensemble from 1930s–40s Japan. Made of silk with yuzen dyeing & metallic embroidery, it features samurai helmets, swords & arrows wishing the wearer strength, valour & honour.
The Discovery Tour App: Medieval Baghdad lets you explore 9th-century Baghdad during the Abbasid Caliphate, featuring artefacts from The Khalili Collections.
Learn more and download the app here:
https://tinyurl.com/yd53tz5y
On #InternationalDayofCharity we share this Pair of Phoenixes from our Enamels of the World Collection, China (1736–1795). A symbol of the empress, counterpart to the emperor’s dragon, the phoenix signified prosperity, beauty and charity.
