A Story of Islamic Art

Providing an introduction to the artistic and architectural traditions of the Islamic world, A Story of Islamic Art explores fifty case studies, taken from different regions of the Islamic world and from the seventh to the twenty-first centuries. The novel aspect of these case studies is that they are presented as fictional narratives, allowing the reader to imagine art and architecture, either in their original cultural settings or at some later point in their histories. These stories are supported by a scholarly framework that allows the reader to continue their exploration of the chosen artefacts and their historical context. The fifty case studies take the form of short stories, each of which focuses on one or more object from the Islamic world. These encompass portable items in a wide variety of media, book illustrations, calligraphy, photographs, architectural decoration, buildings, and archaeological sites. The book also provides a detailed introduction, maps, timeline, glossary, and guides for further reading. This book offers accessible answers to key questions in the scholarship on Islamic art and architecture from its earliest times to the present. The issues dealt with in each of the stories include iconography, attitudes towards representation, the role of script, the elaboration of geometric decoration, the creation of sacred and secular spaces in architecture, and the socio-cultural context of art production and consumption. Artistic interactions between the Islamic world and other regions including Europe and China are also discussed in this book. A Story of Islamic Art is an engaging and informative introduction for interested readers and students of Islamic art, history, and architecture.

Marcus Milwright is British Academy Global Professor at the University of York. His research interests include Islamic art and archaeology and the study of traditional crafts. He is the author of The Queen of Sheba's Gift: A History of the True Balsam of Matarea (2022).

Contents Acknowledgements Notes for the Reader List of Figures Introduction Glossary Timeline Chapter 1: Sanäa, 660 Chapter 2: Aswan, 691 Chapter 3: Aleppo, 695 Chapter 4: Damascus, 714 Chapter 5: Qusayr -Amra, 745 Chapter 6: Akhmim, 751 Chapter 7: Qasr al-Hayr al-Gharbi, 774 Chapter 8: Basra, 841 Chapter 9: Samarra, 856 Chapter 10: Qayrawan, 863 Chapter 11: Bukhara, 930 Chapter 12: Rusafa, 998 Chapter 13: Baghdad, 1000 Chapter 14: Tripoli, 1070 Chapter 15: Samarqand, 1085 Chapter 16: Kharraqan, 1093 Chapter 17: Harran, 1104 Chapter 18: Herat, 1183 Chapter 19: Mecca, 1199 Chapter 20: Kashan, 1201 Chapter 21: Wasit, 1236 Chapter 22: Palermo, 1248 Chapter 23: Tabriz, 1306 Chapter 24: Cairo, 1361 Chapter 25: Granada, 1375 Chapter 26: Xi'an, 1402 Chapter 27: Panjakent, 1490 Chapter 28: Nizwa, 1531 Chapter 29: Venice, 1547 Chapter 30: Erzincan, 1568 Chapter 31: Sofia, 1582 Chapter 32: Isfahan, 1637 Chapter 33: Agra, 1642 Chapter 34: Hawizeh Marshes, 1673 Chapter 35: Istanbul, 1733 Chapter 36: Breslau, 1766 Chapter 37: Lahore, 1799 Chapter 38: Nafplio, 1831 Chapter 39: Kuala Lumpur, 1886 Chapter 40: London, 1892 Chapter 41: Edirne, 1899 Chapter 42: Simunul, 1902 Chapter 43: Qal-at Bani Hammad, 1908 Chapter 44: Manzala, 1910 Chapter 45: Hindiyya, 1918 Chapter 46: Rabat, 1937 Chapter 47: Cleveland, 1956 Chapter 48: Djenné, 1985 Chapter 49: New York, 2015 Chapter 50: Anywhere, 2020 Appendix: Notes on Chapters 1-50 Further Reading