Islam: -c. 610 CE an Arab merchant, al-Amin, begins receiving revelations from God (Allah) outside Mecca; becomes Muhammad (“messenger of God”) -these messages form foundation of Islam (submission to God’s will); followers called Muslim (“those who have submitted to God”) -Muhammad's recitations recorded after his death in the Qur'an (“recitation”)—holy book -c. 622, Muhammad preaches from home in Medina, establishing model for 1 st mosque (“place of prostration”) -c. 630, Muhammad returns to Mecca and establishes Islam’s spiritual center there -part of 5 pillars of Islamic belief require prayer facing Mecca 5x per day and a pilgrimage to Mecca in the Middle East -Mixing of pilgrims from around the world at Mecca helped contribute to Islam’s eclectic artistic style

The Kaaba, Meccaaniconism; avoidance of figural imagery arabesques: scrolling vines

-After Muhammad’s death, four caliphs (successors) took over the leadership of Islam -the 4 th caliph, Ali, provoked a power struggle and was assassinated; his followers are Shiites -Shiites regard Ali as the only “rightly guided” successor to Muhammad -other Muslims recognize all caliphs as “rightly guided” successors and are called Sunnis Timeline: c. 661 – 750; Umayyad dynasty ruled from Damascus in Syria c. 750 – 1258; Abbasid dynasty ruled from Bagdad in Iraq c. 750 – 1031; Umayyad rule continues from Cordoba, Spain c – 1194; Sajuq rulers unite Iran and Iraq; hold rule in Anatolia until late 1200s c. early 1200s; Muslim world splintered by invading Mongol Genghis Khan c. 1300s; Ottomans take over; conquer Constantinople in 1453 ending Byzantine empire c. 1492; Muslim rule in Spain ends c. 1918; end of Ottoman empire in Near East

Aerial view of Haram Al-Sharif, (the Dome of the Rock) Jerusalem -completed 692 Islamic Architecture Dome of the Rock -built to house the rock that is believed to be the site of the Jewish 2nd temple -1st great monument in Islamic art; announces the arrival of that tradition in Jerusalem -there, Muslims believe Muhammad ascended to the presence of God

Dome of the Rock, Jerusalem (interior) -piers and columns alternate around the central box, holding the rock -text is used around the frieze inside, and under the dome—oldest surviving written Qur’an verses and 1st use of writing in monumental architecture; common for Muslim architecture from now on

Hypostyle Mosque -most early mosques originally built on simple, hypostyle plan with alternating rows of aisles and columns; easily expandable -qibla wall: wall of the mosque nearest to Mecca (direction of prayers) -qibla walls are indicated by the mihrab niche (a depression in the wall based on the tradition of niches holding scrolls or sacred statues in other religions)

Prayer Hall, Great Mosque, Cordoba, Spain Begun 785–86 Interior of the prayer hall at the Great Mosque in Cordoba Spain -Cordoba in Spain is the location of the capital of western Islamic leadership after the early Umayyad dynasty was overthrown by the Abbasids (who ruled from Bagdad in Iraq for 500 years) -this mosque is one of the finest surviving examples of Umayyad architecture -built on site of an earlier Christian church -the white stone and red brick voissoirs (alternating colors) was adopted from Roman and Byzantine precedents, -columns are taken from variety of other older sources, so they vary in height and style slightly

-prayer hall of Great Mosque shows horse-shoe arches -from Roman times, but become closely associate with Islamic architecture -muqarnas; an arch filled with stacked, non-load bearing, vault-like niches. -unique to Islam Elements of Architecture: Arches and Muqarnas

Dome in front of the Mihrab, Great Mosque in Cordoba; 965 -Great Mosque in Cordoba continued to be built on after its initial beginning -dome in front of the mihrab shows Islamic interest in mathematics and geometry as a source of artistic inspiration -mosaics were made by a Byzantine master who was sent by the emperor in Constantinople; shows artistic exchange that was emblematic of the Mediterranean region

Four-Iwan Mosque -later mosque style developed in Iran -features 4 iwans (huge barrel-vaulted halls with wide arched entrances) that face each other across a central courtyard

Courtyard, Congregational Mosque, Isfahan, Iran 11th–18th century -example of an earlier hypostyle mosque that was built onto to create an iwan mosque -iwans added in 1100s -tile around the courtyard is from the 1600s -many changes made to the mosque throughout the centuries reflect its continuing importance to its community

Tile Mosaic Mihrab, from the Madrasa Imami, Isfahan Glazed and cut tiles 11'3" X 7'6" 354 Iran. -mihrab from 1300s was in the mosque’s madrasa (building for teaching Islamic theology and law) -now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York -shows some of the finest early architectural ceramic decoration in Islamic art; -contrasting colors and dense pattern are typical of the art form

Qibla wall with mihrab and minbar, Sultan Hasan Madrasa-Mausoleum-Mosque Complex; 1356–63 mihrabminbar

Centrally-Planned Mosque Church of Hagia Sophia; 532–37

Mosque of Sultan Selim, Edirne; 1568–75; Turkey

Interior, Mosque of Sultan Selim

Court of the Lions, Palace of the Lions; Alhambra, Granada 1354–9; Spain

Muqarnas Dome, Hall of the Abencerrajes, Palace of the Lions, Alhambra; Built between 1354–91 -ceiling is carved stucco -uses squinches -square room rises to an 8-point star pierced by 18 windows that culminate in a burst of carved muquarnas (small niches) -shapes are visible, but not really discernable; like the heavens

Calligraphy: art of fine hand lettering -since the Qur’an is the word of God, it must be recorded carefully, with devotion and embellishment -developed into an impressive art form in the Islamic world and was the most highly regarded craft -outstanding calligraphers received public recognition for and signed their work -writing used on buildings, metalwork, textiles and ceramics, in addition to books and documents -Arabic; language of the Qur’an and a powerful unifying force within Islam; universal language from 8 th through 11 th centuries among scholars in the Islamic world and in some Christian lands -written from right to left (not left to right, like us) -earliest example of calligraphy on buildings is inside the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem

Page from the Qur'an in kufic script Black ink pigments, and gold on vellum; 8⅜ X 11⅛“; 9th century

Attributed to Galinus Arabic manuscript page 1199 naskhi: ornamental form of calligraphy said to have been given to scribes in a vision -shows kufic headings in a background of scrolling vines; -actual text (a medical treatise) written horizontally and vertically in naskhi

Illuminated Tugra of Sultan Suleyman; Ink, paint, and gold on paper; 20½ X 25⅜“; c. 1555–60 -during Ottoman empire artists developed imperial ciphers (tugras) which combined the ruler’s name and title with the motto “eternally victorious” -made a monogram used to denote the authority of the sultan and of those officials who were also granted an emblem -tugras appeared on coins, buildings, and official documents -drawn in black or blue with 3 long vertical strokes to the right of 2 concentric teardrops -decorative foliage patterns fill the space; later decorations become more naturalistic and even spill outside the lines -blue and white floral decoration may show influence from blue and white Chinese pottery

Textile with elephants and camels; Dyed silk; largest fragment 20½ X 37“; pre 961 Textiles -important means of disseminating the Islamic artistic style throughout the rest of the world -silks highly sought after

Medallion Rug, variant Star Ushak style; Wool 10‘ 3" X 7‘ 6 ¼“; 16th century -many works of Islamic art show influence of garden forms -such carpets brought the beauty of nature indoors -written accounts indicate that elaborate patterns appeared on carpets as early as the 600s -carpets are famous examples of Islamic art, though few survive from before the 1500s b/c they were destroyed from use -this Turkish carpet; Ushak style: infinite arabesques swirl around the main quatrefoils -Muslims also use small rugs for prayer, so rug making has been a necessity in Islamic culture

Two women weaving, Turkey -fine carpets had as many as 2400 knots per sq inch -women pictured work between September and May and might make 5 carpets—tying up to 5000 knots/day -modern rugs have about knots/sq inch Technique: carpet making

Qur’an frontispiece (right half of two- page spread) Ink, pigments, and gold on paper 24 X 18" c Manuscripts -art of book production flourished from the 1st century of Islam -books made for secular and religious purposes -emphasis on the study of the Qur’an meant there was a high level of literacy among both men and women -non-figural, geometric and botanical designs created for Qur’ans led to intricate and lovely designs for books

The Portrait of Khusrau Shown to Shirin; Ink, pigments, and gold on paper 9⅞ X 6¾“; c From a copy of the 12th-century Khamsa (Five Poems) of Nizami.Herat, Afghanistan Kamal al-Din Bihzad; The Caliph Harun Al-Rashid Visits the Turkish Bath; Ink and pigments on paper approx. 7 X 6“; c. 1494

Bowl with kufic border Earthenware with slip, pigment, and lead glaze diameter 14½“; 9th–10th century Other luxury wares/portable goods -Islamic artists excelled in creating small luxury goods -this bowl, called Samarkand ware because of the region (now Uzbekistan) where it was originally made -covered in white slip to imitate prized Chinese porcelain -shows kufic calligraphy around the outside rim; -used popular sayings like this one that said “knowledge: the beginning is bitter to taste, but the end is sweeter than honey.”

The Macy Jug Composite body glazed, painted fritware and incised (glaze partially stained with cobalt), with pierced outer shell 6 ⅝ X 7 ¾“ 1215–16 -later ceramic work, like this jug, shows incredible sophistication with new materials -exemplifies pierced, double wall fritware ceramics made by Islamic artists -glaze is lusterware; made of metal oxides that have the lustrous appearance of burnished metal

Pen Box; Brass with inlaid silver, copper, and black organic material; height 2", length 12⅝", width 2½" 1210–11 Griffin; Bronze; height 42⅛“; 11th century Islamic Mediterranean, probably Fatimid, Egypt Metalwork

Mamluk glass oil lamp Glass, polychrome enamel, and gold height 12“; c Syria or Egypt -during the 13th and 14th cent, glass workers in Syria, Egypt and Italy developed new thinness in glass ware through blowing and molding techniques -Islamic artists in Egypt especially excelled in the application of enameled surface decoration in gold and various colors -this image shows a glass lamp that would have hung in a mosque and been lit from within by oil and a wick—hung from chains through the handles -mosques required hundreds of lamps and there were hundreds of mosques

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