Detail: In June of 2011, ICOC will offer a veritable smorgasbord of unexpected discoveries, receptions and festive cultural events that are sure to appeal to enthusiasts and aficionados, expert collectors, scholars and dealers from around the world.
The 12th ICOC will be held in beautiful Stockholm from June 16-19, 2011. An art-filled pre-conference tour takes you to Copenhagen. And a post-Conference tour to St. Petersburg, Russia will cap off your unforgettable ICOC experience. June is an excellent time to visit these wonderful cities with their rivers, canals, cultural sites and architecture.
The conference in Stockholm, June 16-19, is the ideal destination and the perfect season to enjoy educational lectures from international experts, a robust International Dealers’ Fair and several exhibitions of rugs and textiles from private collections. A special exhibition of rare Turkmen carpets and trappings is being organised. The hotels that we recommend are situated very close to the central train station and are within easy reach of the conference centre.
Your evenings will be filled with receptions and visits to exhibitions at several museums and the Royal Palace. Feast your eyes on the world famous ‘Marby’ rug, as well as 17th century Transylvanian rugs, glorious ‘Polonaise’ carpets, colourful 18th century Swedish folk art textiles, and the widely published Safavid silk velvet coat that belonged to Queen Christina. And this is just a sampling!
The pre-conference tour to Copenhagen, June 14-15, features the stunning new installation of the David Collection, which has one of the finest collections of Islamic Art in Europe, including a small Mamluk rug, a large Seljuk carpet, a ‘Salting’ rug, a millefleurs Mughal rug, an early Persian Safavid carpet and fabulous early Islamic textiles, as well as many outstanding European works of art.
See the wonderful Rosenborg Royal castle built by King Christian IV in 1606. In the "The Knights' Hall”, twelve tapestries from 1675-1679 show the King's victories in the Scanian War. This Hall also holds all the 17th century Coronation ‘Polonaise’ carpets and they will be on view together exclusively for our group.
Copenhagen’s Museum of Applied Arts will display some Islamic textiles and we will visit a Royal apartment at Amalienborg Palace where the Royal family lives today. A leisurely boat tour under the bridges of Copenhagen will give you a sea-view of this remarkable Danish city and its harbor.
The post-Conference tour to St. Petersburg, Russia, June 21-24, promises to be one of the most remarkable highlights of all previous ICOC events. You will have rare private access to many famous carpets and textiles in the storage rooms of the world famous Hermitage Museum. Marvel at the venerable Pazyryk Carpet and the splendid Scythian material right before your eyes.
The Russian Museum of Ethnography will give us rare entry to its storage areas and a special rug exhibition, organized exclusively for the ICOC tour group by its renowned former curator, Dr. Elena Tsareva, now at the Kunstkamera Museum. A boat tour of the River Neva and St. Petersburg’s canals will give you a unique perspective on Peter the Great’s ideal city and its historic architecture. We will also visit one of the splendid Summer Palaces.
Please join us in making the 12th ICOC an exciting and educational destination in June next year. Soon we will announce our special conference website where you may register for all of these great events!