Contact: Trudi Rishikof, Exec. Dir., SQCC
trishikof@sqcc.org
Tel: 202-261-1690, Fax: 202-261-1690
For immediate release

Sultan Qaboos Cultural Center Sponsors
“The Indian Ocean from Muscat to the Spice Islands”
at Smithsonian

Washington, DC, December 5, 2006  The Sultan Qaboos Cultural Center (SQCC) announced today that it will sponsor “The Indian Ocean from Muscat to the Spice Islands” in the upcoming Smithsonian exhibition “Encompassing the globe: Portugal and the World in the 16th and 17th Centuries.”

This segment is one of six thematically linked exhibitions highlighting the important cultural exchanges brought about by Portugal’s early intercontinental explorations in the Indian Ocean, Brazil, Japan, China and West Africa. Muscat, the capital of Oman, played a central role in these exchanges in the Indian Ocean region. “Encompassing the Globe,” the largest exhibition ever mounted by the Freer and Sackler Galleries, will open on June 23rd at the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery and the neighboring National Museum of African Art and will run through September 11, 2007.

The SQCC, founded in 2005 and named in honor of His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said al Said, aims to educate the people of America and the Gulf Region about the breadth and richness of each of our cultures, to promote understanding between our peoples and to educate a new generation of culturally sensitive and knowledgeable citizens in each society. Building on more than 200 years of relations between the US and Oman, the SQCC promotes the culture and heritage of Oman and the Gulf Region through outreach programs, lectures, educational materials and information sharing.

“The role of Oman and Muscat during the 16th and 17th centuries was one of bringing peoples together through trade, commerce, and cultural exchange,” according to Omani Ambassador to the United States, H.E. Hunaina Al-Mughairy. “In that spirit, the Sultan Qaboos Cultural Center works to expand mutual understanding and appreciation in order to enrich and inform both our societies.”
                       
“The generosity of the Sultan Qaboos Cultural Center as the sole supporter of ‘The Indian Ocean from Muscat to the Spice Islands’ speaks to its commitment to history, cultural heritage, and the friendship of nations. Their support has enabled us to present the fascinating history of the Indian Ocean region during the two centuries covered by our exhibition,” said Julian Raby, Director, Freer and Sackler Galleries, Smithsonian Institution.

The Sultan Qaboos Cultural Center is a program of the Middle East Institute, headquartered in Washington, DC.

For more information about the Sultan Qaboos Cultural Center, please go to www.sqcc.org.
For more information on “Encompassing the Globe,” please go to the Exhibitions section at www.asia.si.edu.

For more information about the Middle East Institute, please go to www.mideasti.org.

Page last updated 05/07/2007