“Each tinted fragment sparkles in the sun; a thousand Colours, but the light is One”
– Jami (15th century Persian poet)
Professor Sir Nasser David Khalili is a British scholar, collector, philanthropist and UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador. He received his PhD in Islamic Art from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London, where he was also awarded an Honorary Fellowship in 1992. He is also an Honorary Fellow of Wolfson College, University of Oxford, where he is a Member of the Chancellor’s Court of Benefactors.
Sir David left Iran in 1967 and since 1970 has assembled eight of the world’s finest art collections comprising some 35,000 works, each being one of the most comprehensive in its field. including: Enamels of the World, Islamic Art, Hajj and the Arts of Pilgrimage, Aramaic Documents, Japanese Art of the Meiji Period, Japanese Kimonos, Swedish Textiles, and Spanish Damascene Metalwork.
Sir David has ensured each work has been meticulously conserved, researched, catalogued, published and digitised by the world’s leading experts as part of what is considered to be one of the most ambitious art scholarship projects in modern history.
Sir David is also a pioneer of cultural philanthropy and cultural diplomacy. He is founder and chairman of the Khalili Foundation, which has supported and driven a number of projects that use the power of art, culture and education to foster peace and unity. Key partners include UNESCO, the Commonwealth, The Prince’s Trust, Aspen Institute and the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations.
Sir David’s many honours and awards include Trustee of the City of Jerusalem and the High Sheriff of Greater London Award, as well as Knighthoods from Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI. He also received the rank of Officier in the National Order of the Legion of Honour from the French President François Hollande at the Élysée Palace as well as a knighthood in the 2020 Queen’s Birthday Honours.
Khalili Collection Hajj and Arts of Pilgrimage: Pilgrims crossing the Sea of Oman, from the Anis Al-Hujjaj
An audience with His Hollines Pope Francis, to explain the activities of the Maimonides Interfaith Foundation – Rome, December 2013
Former President of the USA Bill Clinton had a private view of the exhibition Heaven on Earth at the Hermitage Rooms, Somerset House, London on 12th July 2004. NOT FOR PUBLICATION
Sir David with His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces at the opening of the exhibition; ‘The Arts Of Islam’, Abu Dhabi January 2008
French President Francois Hollande decorating Sir David with the French Republic’s highest honour, the rank of officier in the ordre nationale de la legion d’Honneur. Elysée Palace, 11th April 2016.
His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales at the official opening of the exhibition; Treasures of Imperial Japan, Ceramics from the Khalili Collection, National Museum of Wales, Cardiff 1995
