Leading museums in Turkey and
Western Europe are joining forces for a sensually stimulating
exibition. The collection of the Topkapi Palace alon - home of the
Ottoman sultans - apeals hugely to the imagination. Unique pieces from
the Louvre, The Kunsthistorisches Musium in Vienna, the museums of
Berlin and the most important Turkish museums complete the picture.
Together all these art treasures make Mothers, goddesses and sultanas a
must for those who wish to immerse themselves in the origins of both
eastern and western civilisation. The visitor will also gradually
increase his acquaintance with contemporary Turkey.
We encounter the peoples who have left their traces
in Anatolia in the course of 9000 years. The journay takes us througt
such renowned cultures as Hittites, Greek and Roman antiquity,
Byzantium and the Ottomans. In each of the four main cultural periods
women come forward to be our guide. The Hittite Queen Ptukhipa for
example shows us her daily activities, the last empress of Byzantium
evokes the part she played at court and Hurrem Sultan introduces us to
Suleman the Magnificent. From prehistoric
mother-goddess to empress of Byzantium, from slave to sultana, from
priestess to mais: each in their own way influenced the destiny of
their native country and helped define our contemporary view of 'woman'
and femininity. Nazım Hikmet February, 1948
Trans. Randy Blasing and Mutlu
Konuk - 1993
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