For anyone with an interest in Turkish art, be it Ottoman or Timurid, a pilgrimage to the great Museu Calouste Gulbenkian is essential. Gulbenkian, an oil millionaire, was born in Üsküdar (Scutari), Istanbul, in 1869, and spent the second world war in neutral Portugal. The collection of Oriental Islamic Art in the museum he created includes Ottoman textiles, carpets, costumes and ceramics, particularly Iznik pottery. Lisbon's own wonderul ceramics can best be appreciated in the The Museu Nacional do Azulejo (National Tile Museum) in the former convent of Madre de Deus.
