Islamic art had not yet become commercialized and consequently was free from negative side effects such as counterfeits, looted art, and price inflation driven by speculation.
Manfred Bumiller was born on 16 June 1928 in Neuss, Germany. Manfred Bumiller immediately established his priorities as a collector: his collecting interests were concentrated on the period of early Islam up to 1600. He started investing primarily in small pieces which were used in the past as objects of everyday life. He was intrigued by the uniqueness of these pieces. Bumiller was particularly interested in metal art objects, and this part of the collection may be said to be the largest in the world. As a result, over time an extensive collection was formed boasting an assortment of exhibits reflecting diverse aspects of everyday life. In terms of its geographical scope, the collection includes the region known in those days as Khurasan. It once was at the epicenter of cultural developments in the Islamic world.
In 1995 the collection was moved to Bamberg to a large building acquired specially for the purpose in the immediate vicinity of the University of Bamberg, which has the only Chair in Islamic Art History and Archaeology in Germany. In order to promote scholarly research on the collection and its use as a resource for educating students, Bumiller signed an agreement with the University of Bamberg in 2008, whereby the collection would belong to the university and obtain the status of a university museum. Manfred Bumiller was awarded the title of Honorary Senator of the University.
At present the Berlin branch is directed by Manfred Bumiller’s daughter Jill Bumiller and the Bumiller Art Foundation is headed by the companion of his life for many years, Gertrud Sackerlotzky.
You can learn more about the topic in the book-album "Collections of the Federal Republic of Germany" (volume XI) in the series "Cultural Legacy of Uzbekistan in the World Collections".
The main sponsor of the project is the oilfield services company Eriell-Group.
Do you know the history of the Bumiller collection?
Senator (hon.) Manfred Bumiller began to collect treasures of Islamic art in 1980.