International Events: "Prophets and Heroes. Arab Popular Prints of the XIX-XX centuries" exhibition opened in Moscow, marking the Russia-Egypt Cross-Cultural Year 2020

On March 6, 2020, the State Museum of Oriental Art (Moscow) presented the "Prophets and Heroes. Arab Popular Prints of the XIX-XX centuries" exhibition. It is marking the Russia-Egypt Cross-Cultural Year 2020.

The exposition features unique examples of Arab folk popular prints of the XIX-XX centuries. Printed images of the Quranic prophets, sheikhs, and saints, as well as heroes of early Islamic history and Arabic epic legends, decorated public spaces, private houses (they covered the walls of the inner premises of the dwelling during important holidays such as weddings and the birth of a child). They also used for attracting buyers and located in prominent places in the shops.

In total, the exhibition showcases about 30 folk popular prints from Egypt of the early XX century, including 5 items issued in Algeria, as well as three manuscript paintings of the 1930s from the territory of modern Iraq (images of Shiite relics in Karbala).

These unique exhibits originate from the collection of the famous Russian orientalist Yuri Zavadovsky (1909-1979), preserved by the State Museum of Oriental Art and the Alexander Solzhenitsyn House of Russia Abroad, as well as from the collection of the famous Russian artist Ivan Bilibin (1876–1942) from the Ivangorod Museum.