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Distributed for Hirmer Publishers

A Collector’s Fortune

Islamic Art from the Collection of Edmund de Unger

Masterpieces from the world-renowned Keir collection of Islamic art are comprehensively shown, for the first time, in this publication. A selection of 112 exquisite objects instills an appreciation for the wealth and magnificence of oriental art, with a focus on filling gaps between more widely represented styles and periods with particularly rare and unusal finds.

Assembled over a period of fifty years, the collection - internationally known as the Keir collection - of Hungarian Edmund de Unger, encompasses almost all the periods and artistic landscapes of Islamic core-countries, the Mediterranean and central Asia. In its stylistic breadth and archaeological value, the collection measures up to those of all major museums of Islamic art. De Unger has made it his objective to systematically select objects which are rarely represented and styles which still cause controversy among researchers. With a discerning eye, he has tracked them down at markets and, above all, in famous old collections. Among the treasures shown in the volume are calligaphies, books and manuscripts, dating back up to six centuries, along with ceramics, metal art, silk and velvet brocades and awe-inspiring rock crystal objects made during he reign of the Fatimids in Egypt (969-1171). With its illuminating texts and vibrant images, the book makes for a fascinating and inspiring read.


132 pages | 125 color plates | 9 1/4 x 10 3/4 | © 2007

Art: Middle Eastern, African, and Asian Art


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Table of Contents

Foreword: The Prussian Cultural Foundation and the collectors
     Klaus-Dieter Lehmann and Peter-Klaus Schuster
Introduction
     Edmund de Unger

The Art of Islam, collected and explored in the occident
     Claus-Peter Haase
Calligraphy and book art
     Claus-Peter Haase
Islamic bookbindings
     Filiz Çakir Phillip
Islamic rock crystal objects
     Jens Kröger
Unusual ceramics
     Jens Kröger
Brocade and velvet
     Gisela Helmecke
Classical carpets
     Annette Beselin
Islamic metal art
     Almut von Gladiss

Literature

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