Dragon and Phoenix

Two worlds rich in culture, arts and sciences: China, and the Islamic world. Reaching far beyond their horizons, this is the untold story of how China, ‘the dragon’, and the Islamic world, ‘the phoenix’, exchanged ideas between 8th ‐ 18th century. When the Dragon and the Phoenix met, who could have predicted the impact on global trade, art and history? As a museum with a universal viewpoint, Louvre Abu Dhabi explores stories of cultural connections. In this exhibition we see a new perspective on the meeting of two great cultures, and in this story, Europe is not the central character. From Arabia and Africa to the far reaches of Asia, along ancient trade routes ‐ on both land and sea ‐ people, technology and luxury goods travelled for more than 800 years. Through a display of 240 masterpieces, we explore the remarkable and little‐known history of these cultural exchanges.