Artefacts of cultural fusion
Today I visited the Islamic Arts Museum Malaysia which has an excellent collection of artefacts not just from Iran and the Middle East, but also China, India and Southeast Asia.
I was particularly impressed by a set of Chinese pottery painted with Islamic calligraphy as I had no idea Chinese Islamic art existed, particularly as far back as the Ming Dynasty (1368–1644).
One of the fascinating things I’ve encountered during my stay in Malaysia are instances of unique hybrid cultures: the Nyonya of Melacca and Penang are good examples (descendants of Chinese migrants of the 15th and 16th century during the colonial era).
It became vivid to me in the museum that these beautiful objects are not just revered for their aesthetic qualities, but because they connect us with our ancestors. Births, deaths, marriages, cultural alliances and so on are recorded on these objects, and are so treasured in our desire to understand from where we came.