The Museum of Islamic Culture and Art in Sarajevo, founded by the Islamic Community in Bosnia and Herzegovina, has been officially opened. The museum opens its doors to visitors starting tomorrow, presenting a permanent exhibition through three gallery units, the Gazi Husrev-beg Hanikah, the Kuršumlija Medresah and the Gazi Husrev-beg Library.
The new museum institution collects, preserves, researches and presents Islamic cultural heritage, with a special emphasis on the authentic Bosniak experience of Islam shaped through centuries of living on European soil.
In his address, the Reis-l-ulema Husein-ef. Kavazović spoke about the significance of the establishment of the Museum and the preservation of the cultural and spiritual heritage of Bosniaks.
“For all of us, this is an extremely important day that we have been waiting for almost a century,” said the Reis-l-ulema.
He recalled that the establishment of the Museum is just the beginning of a long-term process of collecting, preserving, researching and presenting Islamic cultural heritage. Its purpose, as he emphasized, is to preserve from oblivion the cultural and spiritual treasures that have shaped the identity of the local people for centuries and connected them to the rest of the world.
“With this act, we are trying to snatch from oblivion, or rather we want to show, the treasury of priceless cultural and spiritual treasures that have shaped our identity for centuries and connected us to the rest of the world,” said the reisu-l-ulema Kavazović.
Speaking about the place of Islamic art in the Bosnian and Herzegovina heritage, the reisu-l-ulema pointed to Sarajevo and Bosnia and Herzegovina as spaces of encounter and interpenetration of diversity. Islamic art, with its aesthetics, geometry, calligraphy and spiritual meanings, has left a lasting mark on the cultural space of the country, and the Museum should provide this heritage with the home it deserves.
Its collections span centuries of creativity, from unique manuscripts of the Quran and valuable calligraphic works to objects made of wood, metal and canvas. These exhibits testify to the skill of Bosnian and Herzegovina’s artists and craftsmen, but also to their aspiration to connect human creativity with spiritual inspiration.
“This museum is not intended to be a silent guardian of the past. We placed it in the architectural environment of Gazi Husrev Bey’s endowments: mosque, clock tower, hanikah, madrasah and library, with the intention that it too will become a living center of culture, education and dialogue”, said Reis Kavazović, expressing the expectation that the Museum will become a gathering place for researchers, students and tourists from all over the world.
The opening of the Museum was preceded by many years of professional, scientific and research work. The idea of its formation goes back to the period between the two world wars, while in recent years the work on its realization has intensified.
Professor Prof. Dr. Dževad Hodžić, director of the Directorate for Education and Science of the Rijaset Islamic Community in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
“I consider the Museum project, on which the Directorate of Education and Science has worked devotedly for six full years, to be the most significant project of our Directorate and one of the most significant projects of the Riyaset and the Islamic Community as a whole,” said Hodžić.
One of the most significant exhibits is the manuscript of Ghazali’s work “Ihya ulumiddin”, the oldest book in the Gazi Husrev-beg library, copied in 1106, five years before the author’s death. In addition to presenting Islamic cultural heritage, the museum will also work on its research, documentation and preservation, MINA writes.
