The V&A in London recently announced Constantinople to Istanbul: One City, Two Empires, a major exhibition opening in November 2026 that will explore 1,600 years of extraordinary artistic production in one of the world's most influential cities. Spanning AD 330 to 1922, it will bring together remarkable works of art, design and architecture to reveal the enduring creative legacy of an imperial capital that shaped the Mediterranean world and far beyond. The first exhibition in the UK to tell this story in full, it offers a compelling new perspective on a city defined by artistic excellence across more than a millennium.
The city once called Constantinople and now called Istanbul was the imperial and religious capital at the heart of two successive empires: the Byzantine (AD 330 1453) and the Ottoman (1453-1922), and the exhibition will explore their distinct yet connected traditions of art and design, built across sixteen centuries. It will follow changes in patronage and production that reflect the ups and downs of the city's history, and the lasting impact its creative output had in the Christian and Islamic worlds.
Tim Stanley, Curator of Constantinople to Istanbul, said: "Creating this exhibition has been an exciting adventure, bringing together two worlds that are usually kept well apart - the Byzantines and the Ottomans. Their capital - known first as Constantinople and then as Istanbul - was and is one of the greatest cities in the world, and the artistic ideas generated there in its double history as an imperial capital still play a major role in the world. By combining the stories of these two empires and the amazing art they both produced, we have been able to release the stories of Constantinople and Istanbul from their separate boxes and let them enjoy the limelight together."
The exhibition showcases over 200 objects across four main sections, including rarely seen decorative arts such as fine silks and textiles (including historical dress), ceramic tiles, mosaics and tableware, precious metalwork and jewellery, as well as sculpture and architectural furnishings, works on paper, manuscripts and paintings. The exhibition will bring together famous and rarely seen objects from the V&A collection and significant national and international loans, with many on display in the UK for the first time, including the Museum of Turkish and Islamic Art in Istanbul, Vehbi Koç Foundation's Sadberk Hanım Museum, Benaki Museum, Treasury of San Marco in Venice, British Museum and British Library.
Through creative staging and immersive design, the exhibition will transport visitors to the bustling streets of the city, evoking key sites of leisure, culture, trade and worship, from the Hagia Sophia and the Hippodrome.
- Will take visitors on a journey across one of the world's great cities, dropping in on its best-known landmarks, from the Hippodrome and Hagia Sophia to Topkapı Palace and the Galata Tower
- Rarely seen objects dating back to 4th century, drawn from the V&A collection as well as national and international loans
- Tells the story of an imperial city over more than a millennium through its globally important art, its everyday luxuries and the staging and re-staging of power
- Reveals the awe-inspiring past of the largest city in Europe, capital to two great empires in unbroken succession, the first Christian, the second Muslim
Constantinople to Istanbul: One City, Two Empires Gallery at 39 and North Court 7 November 2026 - 9 May 2027
In partnership with Koç Holding with support from the Huo Family Foundation.
