“Beyond the Silk Road: Ottoman, Safavid and Mughal Cities and Courts

Join us for a joint presentation by Professors Roberta Micallef and Sunil Sharma who will introduce the cultures of the Silk Road and its legacy on the three early modern Eurasian empires: Ottoman, Safavid, and Mughal. The complex literary and political connections between the three courts and capital cities, Istanbul, Isfahan, and Delhi, of these polities will be explored through the viewing and discussion of video clips from popular historical fiction productions. Courtly and Sufi musical traditions, as well as cuisines, will be presented in a comparative perspective. The emphasis will be on the memory of the three great empires in the Middle East and South Asia.