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An accessible introduction to the quintessential art form of the Islamic world How to Read Islamic Calligraphy explores the preeminence of the written word as a means of creative expression throughout the Islamic world. Aimed at a general audience, the book introduces all five major Islamic calligraphic script types, demonstrates their distinctive visual characteristics, and explains the various contexts in which each one came to be used, whether for transcribing the Qur'an, composing poetry, or issuing written edicts from the sultan's court. Numerous examples illustrate how the transmission of these styles and techniques from master to pupil was fundamental to the flourishing of Islamic calligraphy, and handwriting models from as early as the 10th century continue to inspire students of calligraphy today. Superbly illustrated, the works discussed include manuscripts, glass, metalware, and ceramic tiles. This accessible and engaging book traces the progression of calligraphic styles over centuries and across geographical regions, affirming the spectacular range of creative possibilities afforded by this unique art form.
(source: Nielsen Book Data)

• Reading carpet technique
• Stylistic evolutions
• Tracing carpet history
• Reading carpet symbolism
• Beyond the Islamic world.

Carpets made in the "Rug Belt"--an area that includes Morocco, North Africa, the Middle East, Central Asia, and northern India--have been a source of fascination and collecting since the 13th century. This engaging and accessible book explores the history, design techniques, materials, craftsmanship, and socioeconomic contexts of these works, promoting a better understanding and appreciation of these frequently misunderstood pieces. Fifty-five examples of Islamic carpets are illustrated with new photographs and revealing details. The lively texts guide readers, teaching them "how to read" clues present in the carpets. Walter B. Denny situates these carpets within the cultural and social realm of their production, be it a nomadic encampment, a rural village, or an urban workshop. This is an essential guide for students, collectors, and professionals who want to understand the art of the Islamic carpet.
(source: Nielsen Book Data)

Islamic glassmakers were not only brilliant technicians and innovators in their own right, but they also preserved many of the methods of Late Antique Roman craftsmen, passing them on centuries later to Venetian and other European masters. This lovely book is the first comprehensive study of the accomplishments of these artisans. The volume presents glass objects from collections throughout the world - from perfume flasks to pitchers, mosque lanterns to boxes, inkwells to vases - ranging from the seventh to the nineteenth century and through many of the major artistic centres of the Muslim world. Five introductory essays cover all facets of the subject, including historical background, archacological excavations, issues of connoisseurship, technology and science. The authors then discuss 150 masterworks of Islamic glass, grouped by technique or type of decoration (blown, mould-blown, hot-worked, mosaic, painted, cut, and engraved) each of which is illustrated in full colour. Examples of European glass objects are also included as illuminating reference points. The book is the catalogue of an exhibition that opens at the Corning Museum of Glass in May 2001 and at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in October 2001.
(source: Nielsen Book Data)

• Building a collection of Islamic art at the Metropolitan Museum, 1870-2011 / Priscilla P. Soucek
• A century of installations : a photo essay / Rebecca Meriwether Lindsay
• The new Galleries for the Art of the Arab Lands, Turkey, Iran, Central Asia, and Later South Asia / Navina Najat Haidar
• Art of the early caliphates (7th to 10th centuries) / Maryam D. Ekhtiar
• Art of Spain, North Africa, and the Western Mediterranean / Olga Bush
• Art of the Eastern Islamic lands (9th to 14th centuries) / Priscilla P. Soucek
• Art of Egypt and Syria (10th to 16th centuries) / Stefano Carboni
• Art of Iran and Central Asia (15th to 19th centuries) / Sheila R. Canby
• Art of the Ottoman Court / Walter B. Denny
• Art of South Asia (14th to 19th centuries) / Navina Najat Haidar

This expansive book reveals the great diversity and range of art of the Arab lands, Turkey, Iran, Central Asia, and later South Asia. Published to coincide with the historic reopening of the galleries of the Metropolitan Museum's Islamic Art Department, it presents nearly three hundred masterpieces from one of the finest collections in the world. The works range chronologically from the origins of Islam in the seventh century through the nineteenth century, and geographically from as far west as Spain and Morocco to as far east as India. Outstanding miniature paintings and illuminated manuscripts, ceramics, textiles, carpets, glass, and metalwork reflect the mutual influence of artistic practice in the sacred and secular realms. Many of these beautiful objects display the rich traditions of calligraphy, vegetal ornament (the arabesque), and geometric patterning that distinguish the arts of the Islamic world. With seven informative essays and almost three hundred catalogue entries-supplemented by introductory essays on the collection and its display-this handsome and comprehensive overview will enlighten the specialist and the general reader alike.
(source: Nielsen Book Data)

In 2012 the Metropolitan Museum of Art presented Byzantium and Islam: Age of Transition, a groundbreaking exhibition that explored the transformations and continuities in the Byzantine Empire from the 7th to the 9th century. During this time of historic upheaval, Christian and Jewish communities encountered the world of Islam, resulting in unprecedented cross-cultural exchange. The catalogue for Byzantium and Islam received the 2014 World Book Award as the best new book on Islamic studies, presented by the Islamic Republic of Iran's Ministry of Culture and Religious Guidance. This new volume expands upon the subject, bringing together eleven papers by internationally distinguished scholars delivered in symposia and Scholars' Days during the exhibition, with a new introduction by Helen C. Evans. These writings provide new information about the impact of Byzantine culture, both Christian and Jewish, during the development and early years of Islamic rule in the eastern Mediterranean and across North Africa, and reconsider traditional concepts about the origin of Islamic art.
(source: Nielsen Book Data)

In the 13th century, under the leadership of Genghis Khan, nomadic horsemen burst out of Mongolia and began their sweep across Asia, creating the largest empire the world has ever known. Particularly in China and Iran (Persia), the results were far-reaching: the Mongols imposed enormous changes but were also influenced by the highly developed civilizations of their new subjects. During the century they ruled Iran - the period of the Ilkhanid dynasty (1256 to 1353) - the Mongols adopted Islam and sponsored a brilliant cultural flowering that encompassed many branches of the arts and transformed local Persian artistic traditions. This volume, which focuses on the Ilkhans and their culture, features some 200 extraordinary objects in colour, including manuscript paintings and illuminations, ceramic tiles, metalwork and textiles. Essays by eight scholars provide the historical and political background and address such subjects as the art of the book, religious art, and the transmission of designs across Asia.
(source: Nielsen Book Data)

• The Minbar from the Kutubiyya Mosque / Jonathan M. Bloom
• The pulpit of an empire : the contemporary political and religious environment of the Minbar from the Kutubiyya mosque / Ahmed Toufiq
• The historical and artistic significance of the Minbar from the Kutubiyya mosque / Stefano Carboni
• The conservation of the Minbar from the Kutubiyya mosque / Jack Soultanian ... (et al.)
• The structure and the artistic composition of the Minbar from the Kutubiyya mosque / El Mostafa Hbibi
• Appendix : Arabic text of the inscriptions on the Minbar from the Kutubiyya Mosque / Jonathan M. Bloom.