This collection was very rich and included some 40 000 printed books, 7 000 manuscripts, prints by Albrecht Dürer, and antiquities from across the world. To these were added three valuable libraries.
One of the highlights of these libraries is a letter from King Henry IV (1367 – 1413) to Timur (1336 – 1405) congratulating him on his victory over the Ottomans in 1402 and agreeing to an offer of free trade.
You can learn more about the topic in the book-album “The Cultural Legacy of Uzbekistan in the Collections of Great Britain” (Volume XLVI) in the series "Сultural legacy of Uzbekistan in the world collections".
The main sponsor of the project is the oilfield services company Eriell-Group.
A museum created according to the will of a famous Anglo-Irish physician
The British Museum was founded by an Act of Parliament on 7th June 1753 following the will of a famous Anglo-Irish physician, Sir Hans Sloane (1660 – 1753), that his extensive collection of 71 000 books and antiquities be bequeathed to the nation in return for a payment of £20 000 to his daughters.