The Museum of Islamic Art (MIA) has received the ‘Orient Stars’ Collection, one of the most significant, privately-owned carpet and textile compilations of its kind in the world.

German collectors Heinrich and Waltraut Kirchheim – considered two of the most prolific carpet collectors of their time – assembled the collection of early nomad tribal rugs and carpets mainly from Turkey, Iran and Central Asia.

Qatar Museums Chairperson HE Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, said it is an exceptional honour for Qatar Museums to add the Orient Stars to MIA’s remarkable textile collection as part of a national acquisition for the museum. Through the safeguarding of masterpiece collections such as this, MIA is proud to serve as a centre of knowledge and dialogue on past civilisations.

Noteworthy addition to MIA’s carpet collection

The Orient Stars Collection, comprising more than 90 pieces, is a noteworthy addition to the already significant carpet and textile collection at MIA, which will become a key centre for carpet studies. The collection will form part of MIA’s permanent collection of some of the most exquisite carpet and textiles collections internationally with splendid examples from Egypt, Turkey, Iran, and South Asia.

Heinrich and Waltraut shared a particular passion for nomad tribal rugs, which they adored for their simplicity in design. They initially had an interest in Caucasian carpets, but their focus soon shifted to Anatolian carpets following eye-opening visits to the Turkish and Islamic Arts Museum and the Vakiflar Carpet and Kilim Museum in Istanbul, which houses some of the most important Anatolian carpet collection in the world.

The Kirchheim collection reached international fame through their exhibition in Hamburg in 1993, considered a turning point for the scholarly carpet community. The exhibition coincided with the publication of The Orient Stars. A Carpet Collection by Michael Franses which has become a milestone in rug literature since. Franses’ companion volume entitled Anatolian Tribal Rugs 1050–1750: The Orient Stars Collection, features many of the pieces in the Orient Stars Collection, and which now is added to the MIA collection.

MIA proudly owns several Kirchheim carpets from a previous acquisition, including the Eskenazi Confronting Creatures carpet (MIA CA 77), one of the earliest Anatolian carpets remaining today. The State of Qatar acquired Orient Stars specifically for MIA’s permanent collection.

MIA is currently carrying out an enhancement project to reinstall its permanent collection galleries to provide a more accessible, engaging and educational experience. Many newly acquired and conserved works of art will be on view with a large percentage displayed in the MIA’s permanent galleries for the first time, alongside the masterpieces for which the museum is known internationally.


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