Van Cleef & Arpels partners Louvre Abu Dhabi for exhibition on fables

Held in partnership with Bibliothèque nationale de France and France Muséums along with the generous support of Van Cleef & Arpels, this groundbreaking exhibition at Louvre Abu Dhabi showcases a remarkable collection of ancient tales and illustrated fables

Louvre Abu Dhabi has opened its first exhibition of the year, ‘From Kalīla wa Dimna to La Fontaine: Travelling through Fables’, following its inauguration by H.E. Mohamed Khalifa Al Mubarak, the museum’s Chairman. Running until July 21, 2024, the exhibition will showcase the literary genre of animal fables, promising to captivate visitors as they embark on a unique journey through time.

Curated by Annie Vernay-Nouri, Former Chief Curator, Oriental Manuscripts Department, Bibliothèque nationale de France, the exhibition draws inspiration from traditional illustrated fables and delves into the mystical world of animal tales embedded within historical manuscripts. With more than 132 artworks on display, the exhibition features an eclectic collection of rare manuscripts, paintings, contemporary works, and more.

The exhibition traces the origins of this genre in India and Greece, following its evolution through the contributions of two key figures: Aesop in the Greco-Roman world and Ibn al-Muqaffa in the Arab-Islamic world. It highlights how the Arabic translation of Ibn Al-Muqaffa (ca 720-756 CE) played a pivotal role in the translations that followed, such as the Persian and French versions that Jean de La Fontaine based his translations on.