Heritage, Islam, Europe Entanglements and Directions. An Introduction

Heritage from the Muslim world has been entering European collections since the time of the Crusades, accumulating over centuries in vast collections in museums, libraries and private homes across the continent. The longstanding presence of Islam in Southern and Eastern Europe gives an alternative potential for heritagisation than does the more recent presence in Western Europe. Islamic heritage has also played a part in building distinctive identities in the post-socialist and post-Balkan-War period. Islam in Europe is connected beyond the imagined geographical borders of Europe through multiple kinds of entanglements. Putting ‘heritage’ into Asad’s argument shows how the ideas of Europe with which he is concerned can be disseminated and naturalised. ‘European heritage’ turns Europe not just into an idea but also into a landscape filled with material and immaterial ‘evidence’ of an identity-relevant past.