1. EARLY ISLAMIC c. 633-1258 EARLY CALIPHS c. 633-661 UMAYYAD DYNASTY c
EARLY ISLAMIC c EARLY CALIPHS c UMAYYAD DYNASTY c , ABBASID DYNASTY c LATE ISLAMIC c FATIMID DYNASTY c SELJUK OF RUM DYN. c. 11TH-14TH century SELJUK DYNASTY c NASRID DYNASTY c MAMLUK DYNASTY c TIMURID DYNASTY c OTTOMAN EMPIRE c
The Islamic world is complex. Above are listed various selected dynasties associated with different places and/or times when each was powerful. For the Slide Identification section of the exam, know the images’ periods by the broader periods in boldface above.

2. The Prophet Muhammad and His Companions Traveling to the Fair, copy of 14th century Siyar-I Nabi (Life of the Prophet) of al-Zarir, Istanbul, Turkey (1594)
Carefully read pp. 343, 344, 345 and the inset on 348 & 349 for a general introduction into Islam. Be sure you understand these words:
Ramadan, 610 CE, al-Amin, Mount Hira, Mecca, “Night of Power & Excellence”, Gabriel, Muhammad, Islam, Koran, Arabic, calligraphy, aniconic, arabesques, abstraction, organic, Medina, hijra, 622 CE, 632 CE, caliph, Shiite, Sunni, monotheism, Five Pillars of faith, mosque (masjid), The Prophet, the Kaaba, minbar, imam, Ishmael, Abraham, Beduin (Bedouin), Khadija, Yathrib, Aisha, surah, Hadith, Allah.
P. 349 OTTOMAN EMPIRE

3. In less than two centuries after its founding in 610, the Islamic world spanned from India to Spain to Africa. Some of the prominent cities you need to know (location of) are these: Cordoba, Granada, Erdine, Istanbul, Damascus, Mshatta, Medina, Mecca, Jerusalem, Cairo, Kashan, Isfahan, Herat and Samarkand. Of course, you should also know the general areas of Spain, Syria, Egypt, Arabia, Iraq, Persia (Iran), Afghanistan and India; and the Mediterranean, Red and Arabian Seas and the Persian Gulf.
THE ISLAMIC WORLD

4. 8-2a (UMAYYAD) EARLY ISLAMIC
Dome of the Rock (exterior), Jerusalem, Israel (c )
Can you find any calligraphy? Note the people at far left for a sense of scale.
8-2a (UMAYYAD) EARLY ISLAMIC

5. 8-2 (UMAYYAD) EARLY ISLAMIC
Dome of the Rock (interior), Jerusalem, Israel (c )
What Rock? Find four reasons why this site is holy to Muslims, Jews and/or Christians? What architectural influences do you see? How is the interior decorated?
Ruling from Damascus, the Umayyad dynasty was comprised of leaders who essentially were desert chieftains with little interest in art – except for poetry and architecture, the latter representing the power and authority of Islam.
8-2 (UMAYYAD) EARLY ISLAMIC

6. 8-3 (UMAYYAD) EARLY ISLAMIC
Cutaway drawing of the Dome of the Rock
What kind of plan is this? Remember these terms? drum, arcade, piers, columns, aisle, ambulatories, frieze?
8-3 (UMAYYAD) EARLY ISLAMIC

7. 8-4 & 5 (UMAYYAD) EARLY ISLAMIC
Façade (drawing), frieze (detail) and plan of the Palace at Mshatta, Jordan (begun 740s) Be sure to locate the position of the frieze detail in the façade drawing. The image of the frieze in our book is clearer (and different); look at it closely. The large floral design is called a rosette, common in many cultures before & after.
Contrary to Muhammad’s teachings, Umayyad caliphs built monumental hunting palaces on the edge of the desert; above is one. Huge at 470 feet square (a football field is 300 ft. long), the palace at Mshatta is virtually a fort. In what ways was it contrary to Muhammad?
Though its primary purpose may not have been sacred, it did contain a mosque in addition to bayts, courtyards and an basilica-plan audience hall (see p. 88 for Persian proto-type).
8-4 & 5 (UMAYYAD) EARLY ISLAMIC

8. 8-6 & 7 (UMAYYAD) EARLY ISLAMIC
L) Prayer Hall, Great Mosque, Cordoba, Spain (begun , extension of 987)
R) Dome in front of the mihrab, Great Mosque, Cordoba, Spain (965)
The mosque, or masjid, is the Islamic place of communal worship, the virtual equivalent of the Christian church. The inspiration for its primary features was the home of Muhammad in Medina (see p.345), and its developmental phase occurred mainly during the Umayyad Dynasty. (See p. 351 for mosque plans and terminology.)
And it is to the relocation of the Umayyads in Spain, yes, Spain, that we turn our attention. Spain, or Al-Andalus, is where the deposed Umayyad ruler, Abd ar-Rahman, fled and established himself as emir in his new capital in Cordoba. The Umayyad dynasty flourished and patronized the arts. The Great Mosque in Cordoba was one of the recipients of that patronage. Read all about on pp. 348 & 349; photos on p. 350.
8-6 & 7 (UMAYYAD) EARLY ISLAMIC

9. Be able to describe & locate qibla, mihrab, maqsura, minbar, minaret, hypostyle hall, prayer hall, iwan, sahn. Page 347 will help, too.
P. 351 Mosque Plans

10. See inset on p. 352. Aren’t those muqarnas wild? See fig. 8-11.
P. 352 Arches and Muqarnas

11. 8-1 (ABBASID) EARLY ISLAMIC
Page from Koran (surah 47:36) in kufic script, from Syria (9th century)
As mentioned in the introduction, calligraphy (from the Greek: ΚΑΛΙ + ΓΡΑΦΟΣ, literally “beautiful writing”) is an extremely important art form in Islam. After all, for Muslims, the Koran is the Word of God. Kufic scripts were applied to vellum within the book form, but Kufic was also used in many other mediums, such as stone, wood, metalwork, coins, etc. Calligraphers, or scribes, were the most respected of all Islamic artists. Kufic was also used almost exclusively on Samarkand ware, a type of ceramic seen in figure 8-8.
8-1 (ABBASID) EARLY ISLAMIC

12. 8-8 (ABBASID) EARLY ISLAMIC
Bowl with kufic border, Samarkand, Uzbekistan (9th-10th centuries)
8-8 (ABBASID) EARLY ISLAMIC

13. 8-9 (ABBASID) EARLY ISLAMIC
Textile with Elephants and Camels, Khurasan, Persia (c. 960)
Kufic is present in this fragment of a silken textile. Can you interpret it? See p Bactrian camels, Indian? Elephants and griffins inhabit this fragment. Anyone from 220 remember heraldic symmetry?
8-9 (ABBASID) EARLY ISLAMIC

14. LATE ISLAMIC c. 909 – 1517 OTTOMAN EMPIRE 1290-1904
LATE ISLAMIC c As the Abbasid dynasty waned in power, the Islamic world fragmented into numerous power bases, some of which are listed below:
FATIMID DYNASTY c associated with Egypt
SELJUK OF RUM DYN. c. 11TH-14TH century – associated with Turkey
SELJUK DYNASTY c – associated with Persia & Mesopotamia
NASRID DYNASTY c – associated with Spain
MAMLUK DYNASTY c – associated with Egypt; defeated Mongols
TIMURID DYNASTY c – associated with Persia
OTTOMAN EMPIRE
Originally from central Asia, a group of Muslim Turks called the Ottomans (named after an early ruler, Osman) forged an empire that included Anatolia, Western Persia, Iraq, Syria, Palestine, western Arabia, India, SE Asia, North Africa and much of eastern Europe. They took Constantinople (renamed it Istanbul) in 1453 and ended the Byzantine Empire. The Ottoman Empire itself ended almost 500 years later in the first quarter of the 20th century.

15. 8-10 (NASRID) LATE ISLAMIC
Court of the Lions, Palace of the Lions, Alhambra, Granada, Spain (completed c )
Built by the last Spanish Islamic dynasty, the Nasrids, the Alhambra was a “fortified palace complex” comprised of “government buildings, royal residences, gates, mosques, baths, servants’ quarters, barracks, stables, a mint, workshops, and gardens.”
Above you see what was originally a lush garden courtyard – part of the overarching idea of the architects of the Alhambra, that is “an attempt to create paradise on earth.” Can you discover the origin of our word “paradise” and its connection here? Also, can you locate an example of a mirador?
8-10 (NASRID) LATE ISLAMIC

16. 8-11 (NASRID) LATE ISLAMIC
Muqarnas Dome, Hall of the Abencerrajes, Palace of the Lions, Alhambra, Granada, Spain (c )
What purpose did the Hall of the Abencerrajes serve? What are muqarnas? What are their Byzantine counterparts?
8-11 (NASRID) LATE ISLAMIC

17. 8-12 (SELJUK) LATE ISLAMIC
Courtyard, Masjid-i Jami (Great Mosque), Isfahan, Persia (11th-18th centuries) We are now in present day Iran.
What is an iwan? A four-iwan mosque? What’s a madrasa & what connection might there be between iwans and madrasas?
What is a qibla iwan and can you locate it in the above image? Can you locate the minarets? Do so before you move on.
8-12 (SELJUK) LATE ISLAMIC

18. 8-13 (SELJUK) LATE ISLAMIC
Tile mosaic mihrab, from the Madrasa Imami, Isfahan, Persia (c. 1354)
What great glazed tile work in this mihrab. What is the Christian architectural counterpart of the mihrab? What function does the mihrab serve? Notice the kufic script?
8-13 (SELJUK) LATE ISLAMIC

19. 8-14 (MAMLUK) LATE ISLAMIC
Qibla wall with mihrab and minbar, main iwan in a mosque, Sultan Hasan madrasa-mausoleum-mosque, Cairo, Egypt ( )
We move from the Seljuks in Persia to the Mamluks in Egypt. This really is a multi-purpose facility; based on the name of the complex, what kind of functions does this building serve? What mediums are used in its (above feature) decorations?
8-14 (MAMLUK) LATE ISLAMIC

20. Sinan. Selimiye Cami (Mosque of Selim), Edirne, Turkey (1570-74)
Remember the Early Byzantine church, Hagia Sophia (figs & 24)? Well, after the Ottoman takeover of Constantinople – now Istanbul – it was turned into mosque, complete with minarets. It’s easy to see (and be confused by on an exam!) the similarities between it and the mosque above. Hagia Sophia, in fact was the inspiration for the Mosque of Selim. Sinan was the architect; he engineered a dome even wider than Hagia Sophia’s. Check out p. 358 to see the breadth of his engineering accomplishments. But he was at the right place at the right time; he was the chief architect for Suleyman, the 10th Ottoman sultan who reigned during the apex of the Ottoman Empire.
8-15 OTTOMAN EMPIRE

21. 8-17 (FATIMID) LATE ISLAMIC
Griffin, probably Egypt (11th century)
Did I ever tell you that my major was jewelry and metalworking? Well, I did and seeing objects like this blow me away. Over 3.5 feet high, this cast bronze griffin (animal hybrid of bird of prey & lion; lots of griffins from even older antiquity) is a wonder to look at. Your book shows the details much better, but still not enough. You are going to have to read about all the designs engraved on it. Probably originating in Egypt, this thing has moved. Where is it now? How in the world did it end up there?
8-17 (FATIMID) LATE ISLAMIC

22. 8-18 (ABBASID) LATE ISLAMIC
Shazi. Pen box, Persia or Afghanistan ( )
We’ve spoken of the importance of calligraphy. Calligraphers have tools of the trade and they need “tool boxes” to carry them in. Shazi has created one fine tool box here. Again, we have an example of metalwork: brass with silver & copper engraved with kufic script – how appropriate.
8-18 (ABBASID) LATE ISLAMIC

23. L) 8-19 (MAMLUK); R) 8-20 (SELJUK) LATE ISLAMIC
L) Bottle, Syria (mid-14th century)
Perhaps given as a gift by a Mamluk ruler, this bottle is made of gilded & enameled glass. Don’t miss the wonderful poetic 12th century quote about glass (p. 360). Rosettes & calligraphy – I think we have a design trend here.
R) Ewer, Kashan, Persia (early 13th century)
No, this is not metal but clay painted with a luster, among other glazes. See if you can make sense of the design.
L) 8-19 (MAMLUK); R) 8-20 (SELJUK) LATE ISLAMIC

24. 8-21 (NASRID) LATE ISLAMIC; 8-22 OTTOMAN EMPIRE
L) Banner of Las Navas de Tolosa, southern Spain ( )
Textiles (woven materials, fabrics) is another art form mastered by Islamic artists. Here we see a banner made in Muslim Spain of silk and gilded parchment (vellum). Design motifs are calligraphic and architectural. Read the translation in the book.
R) Garden carpet, central Persia (2nd half 17th century)
“Persian carpets” are & have been one of the best known Islamic artforms outside of Islamic countries. (We have one on our living room floor; I’ll refrain from sharing the story of its purchase). The one above is a garden carpet; at first glance it may seem like pure abstract design, but it’s not. Observe and then read about what’s represented and how.
8-21 (NASRID) LATE ISLAMIC; 8-22 OTTOMAN EMPIRE

25. CARPET MAKING, page 364
Read the inset on page 364. Know tapestry, warp and weft; Kilim, Persian and Turkish knots.

26. 8-23 (MAMLUK) LATE ISLAMIC
Koran frontispiece, Cairo, Egypt (c. 1368)
Because reading the Koran has always been important to Muslims, “a high level of literacy of both women and men in Muslim societies” was achieved. This contrasts with some Christian traditions of keeping the congregation illiterate, and therefore dependent upon the clergy for knowledge of God.
This frontispiece, actually half of one, could easily be a carpet design; in fact, many illuminators also made designs for textiles. It also has parallels with the practice of decoratively illustrating Christian holy books (see example above, “Cross Page, sometimes called a Carpet Page” from the Book of Lindisfarne, 8th century, England; and many in chapters 14, 15, 16, 17 for examples).
8-23 (MAMLUK) LATE ISLAMIC

27. 8-24 & 8-25 (TIMURID) LATE ISLAMIC
L) Bahram Gur Visiting One of His Wives, an Indian Princess, from a copy of Nizami’s 12th century Haft Paykar (Seven Portraits), Herat, Khurasan, Persia (late 1420s)
R) Kamal al-Din Bihzad. The Caliph Harun al-Rashid Visits the Turkish Bath, from a copy of Nizami’s 12th century Khamsa (Five Poems), Herat, Khurasan, Persia (c. 1494)
In contrast to the decorative, non-figurative design of the previous images, we see two here that not only are filled with human figures, but also with “delicate” subject matter: in the left scene we see Prince Bahram Gur ‘visiting’ one of his seven brides (one for each night of the week) and half-naked figures in a bath house in the right scene… once again suggesting that figurative (of the human form) art sometimes enjoyed acceptance in the Islamic world, dependent on time & place.
Though produced about 70 years apart, both were made in Herat where a school (see school of artists in the Glossary p. 12) of painting and calligraphy flourished; both are miniatures; both illustrate copies of an original work by the 12th century Persian mystic poet, Nizami. Read more about each in the text.
8-24 & 8-25 (TIMURID) LATE ISLAMIC

28. Illuminated tugra of Sultan Suleyman, Istanbul, Turkey (c. 1555-60)
Tugras were symbols of very important folks (e.g. the sultan, select officials, etc.) combining the individual’s name, title, father’s name and motto into a stylized monogram. Some design elements (concentric horizontal teardrop shapes & the 3 vertical elements) were standard. Tugras are a type of official seal - seals have been used in one form or another all over the world. This particular tugra was that of Suleyman himself, of whom we spoke earlier.
8-26 OTTOMAN EMPIRE

29. Taj Mahal, Agra, India (c. 1632-48) see p. 824 & 833.
Though it may seem like a lot, our look at Islamic art has been a brief one. Such is the nature of survey courses. The world of Islam is literally that, all over the world. Though India is primarily Hindu (its neighbor Pakistan is Muslim), Muslim monuments are located there. Built as a mausoleum for the wife of Shah Jahan, the symmetrical beauty of the Taj Mahal is known the world over. As we close our study of Islamic with this elegant structure, I encourage you to continue to study this fascinating culture throughout your life.
20-1 & 20-7 MUGHAL PERIOD