"At the age of 91, Pei had to be coaxed out of retirement to undertake this enterprise. He traveled throughout the Muslim world on a six month quest to learn about Muslim architecture and history and read Muslim texts to draw inspiration for his design."
The museum officially opened to the public on December 1, 2008. Below are some of the treasures we were able to view. My eye is always drawn to shades of red and blue ...
Some items I photographed along with their descriptions ...
... while some I took pictures of purely for their aesthetic appeal.
'
"History is the witness that testifies to the passing of time; it illumines reality, vitalizes memory, provides guidance in daily life and brings us tidings of antiquity." Cicero (106 BC - 43 BC), Pro Publio Sestio
Wishing you all a wonderful week! Friendship blessings, Tammy
8 comments:
Pretty amazing to know this wonderful place is in our back yard. We have enjoyed the exhibits a lot, even the boys. Your pictures made the different artifacts look wonderful. We are so glad you were able to come and enjoy them with us!!
LOVE YA,
Renee
Dearest Tammy,
I.M. Pei was indeed a great Chinese American architect.
When I did my blog about Damascene work from Toledo on October 26 I came across this site about Muslim Heritage http://bit.ly/aaF36W
That site shows some of the beautiful Moorish tiles in Spain/Portugal (page 2) and others. The Damascene work is incredible too.
Damascus, Syria, was flourishing a couple of thousand years before Rome was founded in 753 BC, making it the oldest continuously inhabited city in existence.
For us at least the mosque in Córdoba, Spain was such a treasure for Moorish art. Maybe you've been there? We loved it, as well as the Alhambra and the hanging gardens of the Generalife... Dreamy memories!
Thanks for sharing this today.
Besides artwork, we owe it to the Arabs for having Algebra... one of my favorites at High School!
Have a great week,
MariettesBacktoBasics
Dear Tammy
An amazing building and artifacts.
It's so important to learn about the past of our civilizations.
I've just done a short post on our Coal mine explosion in New Zealand last Friday.
Tammy please pray for the 29 men still trapped underground, it is a stressful and worrying time for their families still uncertain as to whether they are alive.
God bless
hugs
Shane
Don't you love museums?! I do!!! I'm intrigued by past lives, and what was "normal" and "every day" for them...it's just fascinating. Thank you for sharing!
have a great day!
The building is outstanding, isn't it? The interior seems to be just as impressive as the exterior, if that's possible!
And the rugs and pottery are so pretty. I can see why you are drawn to the colors that you are. They are just striking.
What a treasue this was to visit! Don't you love a good museum or art gallery?
Thanks SO much for sharing ~ as always, it is inspiring and beautiful!
Warm hugs,
Jan
Thanks for showing this beautiful building as well as the gorgeous items. Hope you've had a good Monday. Diane
Looks like an amazing place to visit. The building itself never mind the treasures looks worth the trip.
THEIR BUILDINGS ARE SOMETHING.
YOU REALLY MUST HAVE ENJOYED YOURSELF LOOKING AT ALL THE
ARTIFACTS, HOW SPECIAL.
RIZZI
Post a Comment