29 Oct 08

This early 14th century AD enamelled and gilded glass mosque lamp made for the Sultan Muhammad ibn Qala'un in Eqypt is one of the objects that will feature in the online collections.

The Yousef Jameel Online Centre will enable global access to the University of Oxford’s Islamic and Eastern Art Collections held at the Ashmolean Museum. The Centre itself will be launched in autumn 2009 but the Ashmolean Museum is showcasing the development of the Centre on a website where you can find out more about the work that is currently underway to design and establish the Yousef Jameel Online Centre.

The collections encompass art from the Islamic world, the Indian subcontinent, Southeast Asia, China, Japan and Korea, and they comprise ceramics, textiles, sculpture, metalwork, paintings, prints and other arts. As an educational resource, the online centre will be an invaluable guide for archaeologists, historians and students to use for research purposes, for craftsmen and designers seeking inspiration, and for an interested and curious public.

This project is part of the redevelopment of the Ashmolean, Britain’s first museum. Initially the Centre will focus on the objects and themes featured in the new galleries for the Islamic and Eastern Art Collections, making the Ashmolean’s great treasures of Eastern Art, along with research and educational material, universally accessible online.

The project involves many different areas of activity from the offline photography and documentation of the collections to the development of the structure and technologies for the Online Centre, through which the collections will be accessed and explored. The design and content of the Centre is being carefully developed to provide an accessible, informative and innovative resource.

As a philanthropist of the arts and education, Yousef Jameel Hon. LHD, says: ‘Knowledge should be accessible to everyone, everywhere, at any time. The Online Centre for the Study of Islamic and Eastern Art will be a major step towards achieving this goal. I envisage the Centre as the hub of a future worldwide network exploring how different cultures learnt from each other and enriched peoples’ lives as a result.’

The Director of the Ashmolean, Christopher Brown said: ‘The Yousef Jameel Online Centre aims to explore the artistic cultures of Asia collectively. By determining their similarities and differences the user will learn that art from the Islamic world exists not in isolation, but alongside the other great Asian artistic traditions, from India to Japan. We are extremely grateful to Mr. Jameel for his support which will enable the Ashmolean to present these collections to a wider audience than ever before.’

As one of the world’s oldest and most famous university museums, the Ashmolean has always placed the greatest emphasis on education – not just serving as a resource for scholars, but seeking to awaken a lively interest in cultural history in visitors of all backgrounds and ages.

Supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund, the Ashmolean is currently undergoing a £61 million redevelopment. The new design will double the existing gallery space, provide environmental control, and create a dedicated Education Centre and conservation facilities. The Ashmolean will, at long last, have a world-class building to match its world-class collections.

You can find out more about the work that is currently underway to design and establish the Online Centre by visiting the publicity website. The Centre itself will be launched in autumn 2009.