HAWAII'S SHANGRI-LA continued...

Our maverick connoisseur was not above commissioning artists and craftsmen to create original pieces, even copies of original Islamic artwork. A dabbler in art herself, she loved to work alongside her hired craftsmen on designs and restoration. Friends still remember her, toothbrush in hand, digging debris out of the smallest crevices.

As her reputation for collecting grew, the most prestigious international art dealers would alert Duke to their rarest finds, like the magnificent twelve-foot-high thirteenth-century blue and white mihrab, a prayer niche from the tomb of Imamzada Yahya at Veramin, Iran. Signed by its maker, it is made up of more than 60 unique luster tiles, each twice fired to achieve its alluring sheen. And the surface is covered with painted inscriptions from the Quran, speaking of the presence of God.

“Most tiles of this sort have been sold off one by one,” our guide informed us. So it's a triumph
to find a mihrab preserved in its entirety. None other than the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York was after this one.” Obviously, deeper pockets won out.
Now the focal point of the house, this mesmerizing treasure stands just outside the spacious living room, which is furnished with a long, low 1950s style sectional sofa. Just another example of the mix and match approach that makes us feel that though in a fantastic Islamic museum, we're really visiting Doris at home.

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