Sultans, Merchants, Painters

Pera Museum, in collaboration with the Amsterdam Museum, organized an exhibition titled Sultans, Merchants, Painters: The Early Years of Turkish - Dutch Relations, exploring the commencement of four hundred years of fruitful cooperation between Turkey and the Netherlands. The exhibition was not intended as a complete survey of four centuries of diplomatic ties, but rather to provide a striking insight into the historical ties between Amsterdam and Istanbul, from 1612 to the present day.

Istanbul and Amsterdam, Turkey and the Netherlands, have been and continue to be important bridges between Europe and Asia; major players in the international world of commerce, diplomacy, art and migration. The exhibition was firstly exhibited at Pera Museum, before travelling to the Amsterdam Museum, highlighted the connection between Turkish and Dutch history; stimulating mutual (multi-) cultural understanding for today.

The exhibition catalogue includes works from the East Chamber of Commerce in the City Hall (Palace at Dam Square) from the early 17^th to the early 19^th century, as well as a comprehensive series of portraits from Jean-Baptiste Vanmour's Rijksmuseum collection in Amsterdam.

Date of Publication: 2012
Number of pages: 193
ISBN: 97-8975-91-2397-0