Baharİye Dervish Lodge in the Eyüp district of Istanbul is getting ready to host several academics and art lovers for a symposium and exhibition titled "In the Light of the Sacred Trust" on May 7.Operating under the theme of humans and civilizations, the Bahariye Workshops of Art will be hosting an exhibition displaying the works inspired by the Sacred Trust.The coordinator of the Bahariye Workshops of Arts and project guide, Meryem Güney, spoke to Anadolu Agency (AA) explaining that they conducted an event like this two years ago, under the name "Long-lasting Heritage-Seljuk Era."Affirming that both the artists of the workshop and the masters will attend the exhibition, Güney also talked about the significance behind the event's date and how it coincides with the 500th anniversary of the arrival of the Sacred Trust in Turkey.Explaining that the works were completed over several months, Güney said: "The Sacred Trust consists of the belongings of the Prophet Muhammad, his companions, important figures belonging to the Islamic world, and relics from the sacred cities of Mecca and Medina. The collection and conservation process of these important belongings began while the Prophet Muhammad was alive. The tradition of conserving the Sacred Trust continued after the era of four great caliphs, as well as the Omayyad and Abbasid caliphs."The works of 19 artists will be displayed in the exhibition with pieces featuring the traditional Turkish-Islamic arts of calligraphy, illumination, miniature, mosaic, hand carving, wood carving and bookbinding, all of which were inspired by the Sacred Trust.Explaining the title of the exhibition, "In the Light of the Sacred Trust," Güney said the name was carefully chosen and reflects the impossibility of making shadow copies of the sacred relics. "Those who want to see the original versions of the relics can visit Topkapı Palace. The works that will be displayed in this exhibition are directly inspired by the Sacred Trust. The aim of this exhibition is to show respect to the Sacred Trust," she said.Detailing the meticulous preparation process, Güney said: "I consulted Professor Raşit Küçük about the issue of whether it is ethical to make artwork that reflects the holy relics. I directed the artists according to his answers. For example, one of the leather binding artists wanted to recreate the leather shoes of the Prophet Muhammad, however, we rejected his project saying that it would not be appropriate, and he designed another work later on. However, these sacred relics can be studied in other branches of art. For example, there is a coffer in wood carving style that belonged to Fatimah az-Zahra, the youngest daughter of the Prophet Muhammad. I adapted it to Kat'ı art, a branch of traditional Turkish Islamic art, based in paper filigree."Stressing that the Islamic world is slowly disintegrating, Güney added that they want to revive Islamic culture through these kinds of projects.The artists participating the exhibition include: calligraphers Hasan Çelebi, Ferhat Kurlu, Faruk Dinçer Eratlı and Ayşegül Tekmen, illumination artists Mahmure Öz, Mustafa Çelebi, Serap Bostancı and Hacer Sönmez, marbling artists Hikmet Barutçugil and Alparslan Babaoğlu, miniature artists Özcan Özcan and Gülçin Anmaç, hand-carving artists Semih İrteş and Kaya Üçer, Sedef artist Salih Balakbabalar, bookbinding artists Ali Kunduracıoğlu and Serra Güney and Meyçem Ezengin in the branch of mosaic.With 40 works from a variety of traditional Turkish-Islamic art branches, the exhibition will be open until May 16.