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The Islamic World: Religion and Culture

c. 570-1540 The Islamic World

Dates and Places: • 7th century to present • Middle East, , North Africa People: • Ancestors animistic, tribal people who worshipped over 300 nature deities • once polytheistic, birth 570 marks change • Muslim followers of Prophet Muhammad • Rapid expansion of empire Map: The Spread of Islam 622- 750 CE Islamic World

Example: • Iconic piece of • One of the earliest surviving buildings from the Islamic world • Original function debated though building is not a

The of the Rock (Qubbat al- Sakhra), Umayyad, 691-2. Stone masonry, wooden roof, decorated with glazed ceramic , , and gilt aluminum and bronze dome, with multiple renovations The Islamic World

• Dome sits atop the al-Sharif, the highest point in old near the Western or Wailing Wall

The Dome of the Rock (Qubbat al-Sakhra), Umayyad, 691-2 with view of Western Wall. Stone masonry, wooden roof, decorated with glazed ceramic tile, mosaics, and gilt aluminum and bronze dome, with multiple renovations The Islamic World

• The Dome of the Rock holds significance to , , and Muslims • It is believed to be the site of the Jewish second temple, which the Roman Emperor Titus destroyed in 70 C.E. while subduing the Jewish revolt, the location where was prepared to sacrifice his son , and Muslims believe that the rock marks the spot where Muhammad last touched earth before his journey to heaven Interior of the Dome of the Rock (photo: Robert Smythe Hitchens, public domain) Five Pillars of Islam

1. Confession of faith: “There is no but , and Muhammad is his Messenger” 2. Recitation of prayers 5 times a day, facing (marked by the mihrab) 3. Almsgiving: the practice of making a charitable contribution to the Islamic community 4. Fasting from dawn to sunset during the sacred month of (during 9th month of , the time when Muhammad received his calling) 5. Pilgrimage () to Mecca at least once during a Muslim’s lifetime Islamic World Themes: • Restrictions on holy images • Geometric pattern, vegetal design, calligraphic passages from Koran Forms: • Non-illusionistic • Repetition of design • Rich colors, materials Malwiya , Great Mosque, Samarra, 848–852. Islamic Architecture

Example: • Mosque for collective prayer • Muhammad’s house as model • hall, wall, mihrab, minaret • Maqsura for ruler • Plain exterior, lavish

interior View and plan, Great Mosque, , , ca. 836–875. Islamic Architecture Example: • Once housed statues of and sacred • Muslim tradition believes the to have been built by Abraham and his son, • Marks sacred spot where Abraham prepared to sacrifice son, Isaac • Muslims must make hajj to Kaaba at least once in lifetime The Kaaba, Mecca, Saudi Arabia. Luxury Arts Example: • Qur’an principle text of Islam • Kufic script • Integration of text and ornament • Lacks figural representation • Authority of Muslim ritual and life providing guidance on law, morals, ethics, worship, and injunctions for

everyday conduct Qur'an fragment, in , possibly Iraq, before 911 C.E., vellum, MS M.712, fols. 19v–20r, 9 x 12.6.” The Morgan Library and Museum, NYC. Luxury Arts Example: •Work highlights Islam’s presence in Africa and dominance in slave trade •Islam Africa’s fastest growing religion •Image also shows woman veiled with hajib, covering her neck, torso, and part of face, excluding eyes – Local customs governed women’s dress – In some areas women are expected to wear a The Slave Market at Zabĭd, Yemen, from the Maqămăt of al-Harĭr ĭ, 1237. National Library of France. The Islamic World

• Although not prescribed in the Qur’an, some Islamic communities dictate women’s bodies be covered from head to toe • Depending on the region, women wear some form of dress highlighted here

Headgear worn by Muslim Women Islamic Architecture Example: • Hypostyle hall • Double-tiered arches add height • Columns from earlier structure • , maybe Visigoth or Near Eastern • Lavish mosaics and

stucco Prayer hall, Great Mosque, Córdoba, Spain, 8th to 10th centuries. Islamic Architecture Example: • Iranian mosque type • Courtyard with two- story arcade • Four (vaulted recess in wall) • Qibla is largest • Dome before the mihrab

Prayer hall, Great Mosque, Córdoba, Spain, 8th to 10th centuries. Islamic Architecture Example: • Focal point of prayer hall is the horseshoe arched mihrab or prayer niche • The mihrab marks the wall that faces Mecca, the birth place of Islam • Gold tesserae (small pieces of glass with gold and color backing) create a dazzling combination of dark blues, reddish browns, yellows and golds that form intricate calligraphic bands and vegetal

motifs that adorn the arch Mihrab of the Great Mosque at Córdoba, 11th cent. Glass and gold mosaics on marble. Islamic Architecture Example: • Palace of the caliph in Spain • Image of • Multi-lobed pointed arches, ornamental stucco decoration • Ornament of calligraphy and patterns

Court of the Lions, Alhambra. Granada, Spain, 1354–1391. Islamic Architecture Example: • tile ornamentation • Repeating vegetal motifs • Calligraphy from Koran to assist in prayers – Inner border: (in Kufic script): "Said [the Prophet] on him be blessing and peace: . . . witness that there is no God save Allah and that Muhammad is his Apostle and the Blessed , and in legal almsgiving, and in the pilgrimage, and in the fast of Ramadan, and he said, on him be blessing and peace." – Central framed text: "The Prophet, peace be upon him, said, 'The Mosque is the dwelling place of the pious.’” Mihrab (prayer niche), 1354–55 • Abstract patterns (A.H. 755), just after the Ilkhanid • Lacks figural representation of holy figures period, Imami, Isfahan, . Polychrome glazed , 135 1/16” x 113 11/16.” Metropolitan Museum of Art, NYC Luxury Arts

Example: • Rug in funerary mosque • One of the world's oldest and most signigicant Islamic carpets • Rugs replace wood furniture, create functional multi-purpose rooms • Wool carpet by master designer

• Heavenly dome design with Medallion Carpet, “The Ardabil Carpet,” water and lotus blossoms Maqsud of Kashan, Persian, Safavid Dynasty, 1539-40 C.E. Silk warps and wefts with wool • Lanterns in design pile (25 million knots, 340 per sq. inch). Tabriz, Kashan, Isfahan or Kirman, Iran. Currently at the Victoria & Albert Museum, London. Luxury Arts

Example: •Pedanius Dioscorides was a Roman army doctor in the first century AD. His treatise describes how to make medicine from up to five hundred plants, explaining where to find each plant, how to harvest it, how to prepare it as a drug, and which ailments it will cure. The book was translated into Arabic in the mid-ninth century at a famous translation institute in Baghdad, known as the House of Wisdom. Leaf from an Arabic translation of the Materia Medica of Dioscorides ("The Pharmacy"), 1224. Iraq, Baghdad School. Colors and gilt on paper, 12” x 9.” Metropolitan Museum of Art, NYC. The Islamic World Example: • Combination of diagrams and some portrait pages of author or patron • More narrative scenes, like this one show people harvesting herbs, making medicines, and treating patients according to Dioscorides instructions • This page shows the making of medicine from • Brilliant colors, energetic figures in contemporary local dress, and a balanced, bilaterally symmetry characterize composition Leaf from an Arabic translation of the • The neutral color of the page itself, serves Materia Medica of Dioscorides ("The as background reinforcing the two- Pharmacy"), 1224. Iraq, Baghdad dimensionality of the picture School. Colors and gilt on paper, 12” x 9.” Metropolitan Museum of Art, NYC.