Everything about Islamic Art totally explained
Islamic art encompasses the arts produced from the 7th century onwards by people (not necessarily
Muslim) who lived within the territory that was inhabited by culturally
Islamic populations. It includes fields as varied as
architecture,
calligraphy,
painting, and
ceramics, among others.
Overview
Islamic art is not, properly speaking, an art pertaining to religion only. The term "
Islamic" refers not only to the religion, but to the rich and varied Islamic culture as well. Islamic art frequently adopts secular elements and elements that are frowned upon, if not forbidden, by some Islamic theologians.
According to the
Encarta "Islamic art is developed from many sources:
Roman, Early Christian, and
Byzantine styles were taken over in early Islamic architecture; the influence of
Sassanian art—the architecture and decorative art of pre-Islamic Persia was of paramount significance; Central Asian styles were brought in with various nomadic incursions; and
Chinese influences had an important effect on Islamic painting, pottery, and textiles."
There are repeating elements in Islamic art, such as the use of geometrical floral or vegetal designs in a repetition known as the
arabesque. The arabesque in Islamic art is often used to symbolize the transcendent, indivisible and infinite nature of
Allah.
Most Sunni and Shia Muslims believe that visual depictions of any living beings generally should be
prohibited. Nonetheless, human portrayals can be found in all eras of Islamic art. Human representation for the purpose of worship is considered
idolatry and is duly forbidden in Islamic law, known as
Sharia law. There are also many
depictions of Muhammad,
Islam's chief prophet, in historical Islamic art.
Architecture
Perhaps the most important expression of Islamic art is architecture, particularly that of the
mosque (four-iwan and hypostyle). Through the edifices, the effect of varying cultures within Islamic civilization can be illustrated. The North African and Spanish Islamic architecture, for example, has
Roman-
Byzantine elements, as seen in the
Alhambra palace at
Granada, or in the
Great Mosque of Cordoba.
The role of domes in Islamic architecture has been considerable. Domes have been used in Islamic architecture for centuries. The earliest surviving dome is part of the
Dome of the Rock mosque, built in 691 CE. Another prominent dome was added to the
Taj Mahal, constructed in the
17th century with the
Taj Mahal. And as late as the 19th century, Islamic domes were incorporated into Western architecture.
Calligraphy
Calligraphic design is omnipresent in Islamic art, and is usually expressed in a mix of Qur'anic verses and historical proclamations. Two of the main scripts involved are the symbolic
kufic and
naskh scripts, which can be found adorning and enhancing the visual appeal of the walls and domes of buildings, the sides of
minbars, and so on.
Others
From the eighth to the eighteenth centuries, the use of
glazed ceramics was prevalent in Islamic art, usually assuming the form of
pottery. Although the art of sculpture was hardly practiced at all, work in metal and ivory was often developed to a high degree of technical accomplishment. It is also necessary to mention the importance of painting, and particularly of the illumination of both sacred and secular texts.
History of Islamic art
The Beginnings of Islamic art
Before the Dynasties
The period of rapid expansion of the Islamic era forms a reasonably accurate beginning for the label of Islamic art. Early geographical boundaries of the Islamic culture were in present-day
Syria. It is quite difficult to distinguish the earliest Islamic objects from their predecessors in Persian or
Sassanid art and
Byzantine art. There was, notably, a significant production of unglazed ceramics, witnessed by a famous small bowl preserved in the
Louvre, whose inscription assures its attribution to the Islamic period. Vegetal motifs were the most important in these early productions.
Influences from the Sassanian artistic tradition include the image of the king as a warrior and the lion as a symbol of nobility and virility. The
Bedouin tribal tradition represented the geographically "native" artistic hegemony.
Byzantine influence from the Christian west wasn't received without reluctance. Coinage and metalwork were imported and used for trade with the Byzantines.
Umayyad Art
Religious and civic architecture were developed under the
Umayyads, when new concepts and new plans were put into practice. Thus, the “Arab plan,” with court and hypostyle prayer hall, truly became a functional type with the construction of the Umayyad Mosque, or the
Great Mosque of
Damascus (completed in 715 by caliph Al-Walid I) on top of the ancient temple of
Jupiter and in place of the basilica of
St. John the Baptist, the most sacred site in the city. This building served as a point of reference for builders (and for art historians) for the birth of the Arab plan, as Byzantine Christian.
The
Dome of the Rock in
Jerusalem is one of the most important buildings in all of Islamic architecture, marked by a strong Byzantine influence (mosaic against a gold background, and a central plan that recalls that of the
Church of the Holy Sepulchre), but already bearing purely Islamic elements, such as the great epigraphic frieze. The desert palaces in
Jordan and
Syria (for example,
Mshatta,
Qasr Amra, and Khirbat al-Mafjar) served the caliphs as living quarters, reception halls, and baths, and were decorated to promote an image of royal luxury.
Work in ceramic was still somewhat primitive (unglazed) during this period. Some metal objects have survived from this time, but it remains rather difficult to distinguish these objects from those of the pre-Islamic period.
'Abd al-Malik introduced standard coinage that featured Arabic inscriptions. The quick development of a localized coinage around the time of the
Dome of the Rock's construction demonstrates the reorientation of Umayyad acculturation. This period saw the genesis of a particularly Islamic art.
In this period, Umayyad artists and artisans didn't invent a new vocabulary, but began to prefer those received from Mediterranean and Iranian
late antiquity, which they adapted to their own artistic conceptions. For example, the mosaics in the Great Mosque of Damascus are based on Byzantine models, but replace the figurative elements with images of trees and cities. The desert palaces also bear witness to these influences. By combining the various traditions that they'd inherited, and by readapting motifs and architectural elements, artists created little by little a typically Muslim art, particularly discernible in the aesthetic of the
arabesque, which appears both on monuments and in illuminated
Qur'ān.
Abbasid art
The
Abbasid dynasty (750
A.D.- 1258) witnessed the movement of the capital from
Damascus to
Baghdad, and then from Baghdad to
Samarra. The shift to Baghdad influenced politics, culture, and art.
Art historian Robert Hillenbrand (1999) likens the movement to the foundation of an "Islamic
Rome", because the meeting of Eastern influences from Iranian, Eurasian steppe, Chinese, and Indian sources created a new paradigm for Islamic art. Classical forms inherited from Byzantine Europe and Greco-Roman sources were discarded in favor of those drawn from the new Islamic hub. Even the design of the city of Baghdad placed it in the "navel of the world," as 9th-century historian al-Ya'qubi wrote.
The ancient city of Baghdad can't be excavated, as it lies beneath the modern city. However, Samarra has been well studied, and is known for its extensive cultivation of the art of
stucco. Motifs known from the stucco at Samarra permit the dating of structures built elsewhere, and are furthermore found on portable objects, particular in wood, from Egypt through to Iran.
Abbasid architecture in
Iraq as exemplified in the palace of Ukhaidir (c.775-6) demonstrated the "despotic and the pleasure-loving character of the dynasty" in its grand size but cramped living quarters.
Samarra witnessed the "coming of age" of Islamic art. Polychrome painted
stucco allowed for experimentation in new styles of moulding and carving. The
Great Mosque of Samarra, once the largest in the world, was built for the new capital.
Other major mosques built in the Abbasid Dynasty include the
Mosque of Ibn Tulun in Cairo,
Abu Dalaf in Iraq, the great mosque in
Tunis, and the great mosque in
Kairouan.
The Abbasid period also coincided with two major innovations in the ceramic arts: the invention of
faience, and of metallic lusterware.
Hadithic prohibition of the use of golden or silver pottery led to the development of metallic
lusterware, which was made by mixing sulphur and metallic oxides to ochre and vinegar, painted onto an already glazed vessel and then fired a second time. It was expensive, and difficult to manage the second round through the kiln, but the need to replace fine Chinese pottery led to the development of this technique..
Though the common perception of Abbasid artistic production focuses largely on pottery, the greatest development of the Abbasid period was in textiles. Government-run workshops known as
tiraz produced silks bearing the name of the monarch, allowing for aristocrats to demonstrate their loyalty to the ruler. Other silks were pictorial. The utility of silk-ware in wall decor, entrance adornment, and room separation were not as important as their cash value along the "
silk route."
Calligraphy began to be used in surface decoration on pottery during this period. Illuminated
Qur'ans gained attention, letter-forms now more complex and stylized to the point of slowing down the recognition of the words themselves.
The medieval period (9th-15th centuries)
Beginning in the 9th century, Abbasid sovereignty was contested in the provinces furthest removed from the Iraqi center. The creation of a
Shi'a dynasty, that of the north African
Fatimids, followed by the
Umayyads in Spain, gave force to this opposition, as well as small dynasties and autonomous governors in Iran.
Spain and the Maghreb
The first Islamic dynasty to establish itself in Spain (or
al-Andalus) was that of the Spanish Umayyads. As their name indicates, they were descended from the great Umayyads of Syria. After their fall, the Spanish Umayyads were replaced by various autonomous kingdoms, the
taifas (1031-91), but the artistic production from this period doesn't differ significantly from that of the Umayyads. At the end of the 11th centuy, two Berber tribes, the
Almoravids and the
Almohads, captured the head of the Maghreb and Spain, successively, bringing Magrhebi influences into art. A series of military victories by Christian monarchs had reduced Islamic Spain by the end of the 14th century to the city of
Granada, ruled by the Nasirid dynasty, who managed to maintain their hold until
1492.
In the
Maghreb, the
Marinids carried on the Almhoad flame after 1196. Outside of their capital,
Fez, they participated in many military expeditions, both in Spain and in Tunisia, whence they were unable to dislodge the
Hafsids, a small but solidly implanted dynasty. Marinid power declined throughout the 15th century, and they were finally replaced by the Sharifs in
1549. The Hafsids finally succumbed to the
Ottoman Turks in
1574.
al-Andalus was a great cultural center of the Middle Ages. Besides the great universities, which taught philosophies and sciences yet unknown in Christendom (such as those of
Averroes), the territory was an equally vital center for art. One thinks immediately, in architecture, of the
Great Mosque of Cordoba, but other, smaller, monuments shouldn't be forgotten, such as the Bab Mardum in
Toledo, or the caliphal city of
Medina Azahara. In the later period one finds notably the palace of the
Alhambra, in Granada.
Many techniques were employed in the manufacture of objects. Ivory was used extensively for the manufacture of boxes and caskets. The pyxis of al-Mughira is a masterwork of the genre. In metalwork, large sculptures in the round, normally rather scarce in the Islamic world, served as elaborate receptacles for water or as fountain spouts. A great number of textiles, most notably silks, were exported: many are found in the church treasuries of Christendom, where they served as covering for saints’ ossuaries. From the periods of Maghrebi rule one may also note a taste for painted and sculpted woodwork.
The art of north Africa isn't as well studied. The Almoravid and Almohad dynasties are characterized by a tendency toward austerity, for example in mosques with bare walls. Nevertheless, luxury arts continued to be produced in great quantity. The Marinid and Hafsid dynasties developed an important, but poorly understood, architecture, and a significant amount of painted and sculpted woodwork.
Egypt and Syria
The
Fatimid dynasty, which reigned in Egypt between
909 and
1171, was one of the few Shi'a dynasties in the Islamic world. Their greatest accomplishment was the foundation of the city of
Cairo in
969. The dynasty gave birth to an important religious architecture and a rich tradition in the art of the object, produced in a wide array of materials: crystal, luster ceramics and ceramics painted under the glaze, metalwork, opaque glass, etc. Many artisans were
Coptic Christians, who constituted the majority under the particularly tolerant reign of the Fatimids.
At the same time in Syria, the
atabegs (Arab governors of Seljuq princes) assumed power. Quite independent, they capitalized on conflicts between the Turkish princes, and in large part supported the installation of the Frankish
crusaders. In
1171,
Saladin seized Fatimid Egypt, and installed the transitory
Ayyubid dynasty on the throne. This period isn't terribly notable for architecture, but the production of luxury objects continued apace. Ceramics and metalwork of a high quality were produced without interruption, and enameled glass became another important craft.
In
1250 the
Mamluks seized control of Egypt from the Ayyubids, and by
1261 had managed to assert themselves in Syria as well. The Mamluks were not, strictly speaking, a dynasty, as they didn't maintain a patrilineal mode of succession; in fact, Mamluks were freed Turkish slaves, who (in theory) passed the power to others of like station. This mode of government persevered for three centuries, until
1517, and gave rise to abundant architectural projects (many thousands of buildings were constructed during this period), while patronage of luxury arts favored primarily enameled glass and metalwork. The Baptistery of Saint Louis, one of the most famous Islamic objects, dates to this period.
Iran and Central Asia
In Iran and the north of India, the
Tahirids,
Samanids,
Ghaznavids, and
Ghurids struggled for power in the 10th century, and art was a vital element of this competition. Great cities were built, such as
Nishapur and
Ghazni, and the construction of the Great Mosque of
Isfahan (which would continue, in fits and starts, over several centuries) was initiated. Funerary architecture was also cultivated, while potters developed quite individual styles: kaleidoscopic ornament on a yellow ground; or marbled decorations created by allowing colored glazes to run; or painting with multiple layers of slip under the glaze.
The
Seljuqs, nomads of Turkic origin from present-day Mongolia, appeared on the stage of Islamic history toward the end of the 10th century. They seized Baghdad in
1048, before dying out in
1194 in Iran, although the production of “Seljuq” works continued through the end of the 12th and beginning of the 13th century under the auspices of smaller, independent sovereigns and patrons. During their time, the center of culture, politics and art production shifted from
Damascus and
Baghdad to
Merv,
Nishapur,
Rayy, and
Isfahan, all in Iran .
The visual arts flourished in this period . The second half of the twelfth century witnessed expansion of figural decoration, as seen in the
Bobrinski Bucket. Figural decorations were also seen in surface decoration of "narrative scenes (such as the
Shahnama of Firdausi), pictures of coutiers, animals, zodiacal themes and images from the princely cycle featuring hunting, banqueting, music-making, and similar forms of entertainment. Long benedictory inscriptions in Arabic and Persian became a usual sight in the portable arts. Sculpture in stucco, ceramic and metal now [took] on a new importance."
Popular patronage expanded because of a growing economy and new urban wealth. Inscriptions in architecture tended to focus more on the patrons of the piece. For example, sultans, viziers or lower ranking officials would receive often mention in inscriptions on mosques. Meanwhile, growth in mass market production and sale of art made it more commonplace and accessible to merchants and professionals . Because of increased production, many relics have survived from the Seljuk era and can be easily dated. In contrast, the dating of earlier works is more ambiguous. It is, therefore, easy to mistake Seljuk art as new developments rather than inheritance from classical Iranian and Turkic sources.
Under the Seljuqs the “Iranian plan” of mosque construction appears for the first time. Lodging places called
khans, or
caravanserai, for travellers and their animals, or caravansarais, generally displayed utilitarian rather than ornamental architecture, with rubble masonry, strong fortifications, and minimal comfort . Another important architectural trend to arise in the Seljuk era is the development of mausolea including the tomb tower such as the
Gunbad-i-qabus (circa 1006-7) (showcasing a Zoroastrian motif) and the domed square, an example of which is the
tomb of the Samanids in the city of
Bukhara (circa 943) .
Innovations in the ceramic arts that date to this period include the production of minai ware and the manufacture of vessels, not out of clay, but out of a silicon paste (“frit-ware”), while metalworkers began to encrust bronze with precious metals. Across the Seljuk era, from Iran to Iraq, a unification of book painting can be seen. These paintings have animalistic figures that convey strong symbolic meaning of fidelity, treachery, and courage .
In the 13th century the
Mongols, under the leadership of
Genghis Khan, swept through the Islamic world. Upon the death of Genghis Khan, his empire was divided among his sons and many dynasties were thus formed: the
Yuan in China, the
Ilkhanids in Iran, and the
Golden Horde in northern Iran and southern Russia.
The Ilkhanids
A rich civilization developed under these “little khans,” who were originally subservient to the Yuan emperor, but rapidly became independent. Architectural activity intensified as the Mongols became sedentary, and retained traces of their nomadic origins, such as the north-south orientation of the buildings. At the same time a process of “iranisation” took place, and construction according to previously established types, such as the “Iranian plan” mosques, was resumed. The tomb of
Öljeitü in
Soltaniyeh is one of the greatest and most impressive monuments in Iran, despite many later depredations. The
art of the Persian book was also born under this dynasty, and was encouraged by aristocratic patronage of large manuscripts such as the
Jami al-tawarikh by
Rashid al-Din. New techniques in ceramics appeared, such as the lajvardina (a variation on luster-ware), and Chinese influence is perceptible in all arts.
The Golden Horde and the Timurids
The early arts of the nomads of the Golden Horde are poorly understood. Research is only beginning, and evidence for town planning and architecture has been discovered. There was also a significant production of works in gold, which often show a strong Chinese influence. Much of this work is preserved today in the
Hermitage.
The beginning of the third great period of medieval Iranian art, that of the
Timurids
, was marked by the invasion of a third group of nomads, under the direction of
Timur. During the 15th century this dynasty gave rise to a golden age in Persian manuscript painting, including renowned painters such as
Kamāl ud-Dīn Behzād, but also a multitude of workshops and patrons. Iranian architecture and city planning also reached an apogee, in particular with the monuments of
Samarkand, and are marked by extensive use of exterior ceramic tiles and
muqarnas vaulting within.
Syria, Iraq, and Anatolia
The Seljuq Turks pushed beyond Iran into Anatolia, winning a victory over the
Byzantine Empire in the
Battle of Manzikert (
1071), and setting up a sultanate independent of the Iranian branch of the dynasty. Their power seems largely to have waned following the Mongol invasions in 1243, but coins were struck under their name until
1304. Architecture and objects synthesized various styles, both Iranian and Syrian, sometimes rendering precise attributions difficult. The art of woodworking was cultivated, and at least one illustrated manuscript dates to this period.
Caravanserais dotted the major trade routes across the region, placed at intervals of a day's travel. The construction of these
caravanserai improved in scale, fortification, and replicability. Also, they began to contain central mosques.
The
Turkmen, nomads who settled in the area of
Lake Van, were responsible for a number of mosques, such as the
Blue Mosque in
Tabriz, and they'd a decisive influence after the fall of the Anatolian Seljuqs. Starting in the 13th century, Anatolia was dominated by small Turkmen dynasties, which progressively chipped away at Byzantine territory. Little by little a major dynasty emerged, that of the
Ottomans, who, after
1450, are referred to as the “first Ottomans.” Patronage was exercised primarily in architecture, where cupolas were deployed in an attempt to created unified spaces. The ceramic arts of this period may also be seen as the forerunners of Ottoman art, in particular the “Milet” ceramics and the first blue-and-white Anatolian works.
Islamic book painting witnessed its first golden age in the thirteenth century, mostly from Syria and Iraq. Influence from Byzantine visual vocabulary (blue and gold coloring, angelic and victorious motifs, symbology of drapery) combined with Mongoloid facial types in 12th-century book
frontispieces.
Earlier coinage necessarily featured Arabic
epigraphs, but as Ayyubid society became more cosmopolitan and multi-ethnic, coinage began to feature astrological, figural (featuring a variety of Greek, Seleucid, Byzantine, Sasanian, and comtemporary Turkish rulers' busts), and animal images.
Hillenbrand suggests that the medieval Islamic texts called
Maqamat, copied and illustrated by Yahya b. Mahmud al-Wasiti were some of the earliest "
coffee table books.
" They were among the first texts to hold up a mirror to daily life in Islamic art, portraying humorous stories and showing little to no inheritance of pictorial tradition.
India
India, conquered by the Ghaznavids and Ghurids in the 9th century, didn't become autonomous until
1206, when the Muizzi, or slave-kings, seized power, marking the birth of the
Delhi Sultanate. Later other competing sultanates were founded in
Bengal,
Kashmir,
Gujarat,
Jaunpur,
Malwa, and in the north
Deccan (the
Bahmanids). They separated themselves little by little from Persian traditions, giving birth to an original approach to architecture and urbanism, marked in particular by interaction with
Hindu art. Study of the production of objects has hardly begun, but a lively art of manuscript illumination is known. The period of the sultanates ended with the arrival of the
Mughals, who progressively seized their territories. The Taj Mahal was made by Shah Jahan, a muslim king.
The Three Empires
Ottomans
The
Ottoman Empire, whose origins lie in the 14th century, continued in existence until shortly after
World War I. This impressive longevity, combined with an immense territory (stretching from Anatolia to Tunisia), led naturally to a vital and distinctive art, including plentiful architecture, mass production of ceramics (most notably
Iznik ware), an important jeweler’s art, Turkish paper marbling
Ebru,
Turkish carpets as well as tapestries and an exceptional art of manuscript illumination, with multiple influences
The standard plan of Ottoman architecture was inspired in part by the example of
Hagia Sophia in
Constantinople/
Istanbul,
Ilkhanid works like
Oljeitu Tomb and earlier
Seljuks of Rum and Anatolian Beylik monumental buildings and their own original innovations. The most famous of Ottoman architects was (and remains)
Sinan, who lived for approximately one hundred years and designed several hundreds of buildings, of which two of the more important are
Süleymaniye Camii in Istanbul and
Selimiye Camii in
Edirne. Apprentaces of Sinan later built the famous
Blue Mosque in Istanbul and the
Taj Mahal in
India.
Masterpieces of Ottoman manuscript illumination include the two “books of festivals,” one dating from the end of the 16th century, and the other from the era of Sultan
Murad III. These books contain numerous illustrations and exhibit a strong
Safavid influence; thus they may have been inspired by books captured in the course of the Ottoman-Safavid wars of the 16th century.
The Ottomans are also known for their development of a bright red pigment, “Iznik red,” in ceramics.
Mughals
The
Mughal reign in India lasted from
1526 until
1828, when the English seized the country and created their protectorate. Architecture was accorded a place of honor within Mughal art, with the development of a distinctive plan and the creation of the
Taj Mahal. The arts of jewelry and the carving of hard stones, such as
jade, were also cultivated; the series of hard stone daggers in the form of horses’ heads is particularly impressive.
The Mughals also gave rise to a magnificent art of
manuscript illumination, in which a strong European influence may be perceived, both through the utilization of
perspective and the use of European engravings as models. Nevertheless a strong Persian influence remains, as Persian painters founded the Mughal art of the book under the reign of
Humayun. This latter had taken refuge among the Safavids after being temporarily dethroned, and upon his return brought with him certain Persian painters. The influence of
Hindu art may also be perceived, particularly in provincial production (the so-called “sub-imperial” paintings).
Also of note is the invention of “bidri,” a technique of metalwork in which silver motifs are set against a black background.
Safavids and Qajars
The Iranian
Safavids, a dynasty stretching from
1501 to
1786, is distinguished from the Mughal and Ottoman Empires in part through the Shi'a faith of its shahs. Ceramic arts are marked by the strong influence of Chinese porcelain, executed in blue and white. Architecture flourished, attaining a high point with the building program of
Shah Abbas in
Isfahan, which included numerous gardens, palaces (such as
Ali Qapu), an immense bazaar, and a
large imperial mosque.
The art of manuscript illumination also achieved new heights, in particular in the
Shah Tahmasp Shahnameh, an immense copy of
Ferdowsi’s poem containing more than 250 paintings. In the 17th century a new type of painting develops, based around the album (muhaqqa). The albums were the creations of conoisseurs who bound together single sheets containing paintings, drawings, or calligraphy by various artists, sometimes excised from earlier books, and other times created as independent works. The paintings of
Reza Abbasi figure largely in this new art of the book.
After the fall of the Safavids, the
Qajars, a Turkmen tribe established from centuries on the banks of the
Caspian Sea, assumed power. Qajar art displays an increasing European influence, as in the large oil paintings portraying the Qajar shahs. Steelwork also assumed a new importance. Like the Ottomans, the Qajar dynasty survived until the First World War.
Painting gallery
Image:Yahyâ ibn Mahmûd al-Wâsitî 007.jpg
Image:Iran, Battle Between Kay Khusraw and Afrasiyab, by Salik b. Sa'id, 1493-1494 AD.jpg
Image:Timurid Dynasty, The Prophet Elias and Khadir at the Fountain of Life, late 15th century.jpg
Image:Syrischer Maler um 1315 001.jpg
Image:Shaybanid Dynasty, Feast of Id, Copy of Divan by Hafiz, 1523 AD.jpg
Image:Yahyâ ibn Mahmûd al-Wâsitî 005.jpg
Image:Safavid Dynasty, Joseph Enthroned from a Falnama (Book of Omens), circa 1550 AD.jpg
Image:Safavid Dynasty, Horse and Groom, by Haydar Ali, early 16th century.jpg
Image:Ottoman Dynasty, Portrait of a Painter, Reign of Mehmet II (1444-1481).jpg
Image:Ottoman Dynasty, Kneeling Angel, by Shah Quli, mid 16th century.jpg
Image:Abbasid Caliphate, Outdoor Scene of A Mad Dog Biting a Man, Arabic Translation of the Materia Medica, 1224 AD.jpg
Image:Il-Khanid Dynasty, Ardashir Captures Ardavan, circa 1330-1340 AD.jpg
Image:Mameluk Dynasty, Folio From a Copy of Al-Jaziri's Treatise Automata (1206 AD), early 14th century copy.jpg
Image:Mughal Dynasty, Sa'di in a Rose Garden, Reign of Emperor Shah Jahan, early 16th century, repainted 1645.jpg
Image:Maler der Geschichte von Bayâd und Riyâd 002.jpg
Image:Safavid Dynasty, Man Filling a Wine Cup, mid-17th century, ink on paper.jpg
Image:Safavid Dynasty, Battle Scene, by Mahmud Musawwir, 1525-1550 AD (2).jpg
Image:Safavid Dynasty, Portrait of Majlisi, 1670-1680 AD.jpg
Image:Uzbekistan, Seated Princess, by Muhammad-Sharif Musawwir, circa 1600 AD.jpg
Image:Safavid Dynasty, Woman with a Spray of Flowers, circa 1575 AD.jpg
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