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A Converging of Western and Muslim Sensibilities
All around Venice (or Venezia as the Italians call it), you see a profound Muslim influence.In the archways above doors, in the windows of canal architecture, on the rooftops the weaving of these two sensibilities is undeniable.We saw this book at an exhibit at the Doge's Palace in Venezia at the end of summer, 2007.This book is a translation of the book that was published to accompany the exhibit.It is a more than faithful capturing of both the content and spirit of the exhibit.

Particularly today, it is important, as well as healthy, to sustain appreciation of these ancestral collaborations because they are weaving of the fabric of our contemporary cultures.In the book and the exhibit, it is easy to feel the curiosity and respect each of these cultures has for the other.They are drawn to one another's differences rather than being repelled by them.

Although the cover artwork of the English language version differs from the other language versions of the exhibit publication, the content is either parallel or the same - something I could not verify since I am limited to speaking primarily English (more and more, feeling this is a handicap in today's global culture).This particular book, I'm told, accompanied the same exhibit when it was in New York.I don't know how well it was received there - but in Venice, it was magical!

I highly recommend this book and would hope that somewhere in the world, there would be a place for the marriage of these cultures to find a more permanent home.The expression of the cultures working together, dancing and weaving their way through the marketplace of ideas, theology, and trade is something that should not be lost.This book teaches us that we have much to learn from cultures different from our own - whichever culture this may be. This curiosity should not close down with the end of an exhibit's run.

Dissapointing
What a dissapointment of a book when the subject has such visual and aesthetic potential. My gripe is mainly with the imagery - paintings are almost invariably reproduced in a size between postage stamp and post-card, when what one would like are full-page reproductions, with details to illustrate the costume and artifacts of the islamic world which began to turn up in Venesian art in this period. Buy it if you want an informative text, but definately not if you want a visual feast.

The Silk Road Adorned
For centuries The Most Serene Republic of Venice was the the western terminus of the fabled Silk Road. The city's warehouses were the repository of every luxury that Persia, India, China, Siam, the Levant, Byzantium, and the Ottomans had to offer. This book is a wonderful companion to the Met's glittering exhibition of art, illuminated manuscripts and decorative objects, which give a sense of Venice's singular place in the history of the Mediterranean. Viva San Marco!

Venice and Islam
This book is excelent.This book is the catalog of the exhibiton that
is on tne Metropolitan Museum of New York.

A scholarly catalogue
This book is the catalogue for a traveling exhibition held at the Institut du Monde Arabe in Paris in 2006 and at the Met in New York in 2007. It is a very complete study of the influence of the islamic world on the Republic of Venice, encompassing all forms of art, painting, architecture, ceramics, textiles, engravings, books, and even religious artefacts (mosque lamps for example). All these works of art are the results of intense cultural and economic exchange between both worlds and the catalogue emphasizes this very well. A scholarly publication well served by wonderful illustrations. A very detailed checklist of all the works in the exhibition (medium, dimensions, location) makes this book a definite reference on the subject. ... Read more

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This pioneering work traces the emergence of the modern and contemporary art of Muslim South Asia in relation to transnational modernism and in light of the region's intellectual, cultural, and political developments.

Art historian Iftikhar Dadi here explores the art and writings of major artists, men and women, ranging from the late colonial period to the era of independence and beyond. He looks at the stunningly diverse artistic production of key artists associated with Pakistan, including Abdur Rahman Chughtai, Zainul Abedin, Shakir Ali, Zubeida Agha, Sadequain, Rasheed Araeen, and Naiza Khan. Dadi shows how, beginning in the 1920s, these artists addressed the challenges of modernity by translating historical and contemporary intellectual conceptions into their work, reworking traditional approaches to the classical Islamic arts, and engaging the modernist approach towards subjective individuality in artistic expression. In the process, they dramatically reconfigured the visual arts of the region. By the 1930s, these artists had embarked on a sustained engagement with international modernism in a context of dizzying social and political change that included decolonization, the rise of mass media, and developments following the national independence of India and Pakistan in 1947.

Bringing new insights to such concepts as nationalism, modernism, cosmopolitanism, and tradition, Dadi underscores the powerful impact of transnationalism during this period and highlights the artists' growing embrace of modernist and contemporary artistic practice in order to address the challenges of the present era.
This pioneering work traces the emergence of the modern and contemporary art of Muslim South Asia in relation to transnational modernism and in light of the region's intellectual, cultural, and political developments.


Bringing new insights to such concepts as nationalism, modernism, cosmopolitanism, and tradition, Dadi underscores the powerful impact of transnationalism during this period and highlights the artists' growing embrace of modernist and contemporary artistic practice in order to address the challenges of the present era.
... Read more

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The Nasser D. Khalili Collection contains a remarkable group of more than 600 finger rings from the Islamic world and beyond.These rings provide a rare opportunity to survey the history of this form in the Middle East and southern Asia over the last two millennia, for the oldest examples are two Hellenistic glass rings from the second or first century B.C., while the most recent dated specimen is a signet made in India in 1920.This wealth of evidence has allowed the author to present a typology of Islamic rings within a broad chronological framework, and the color illustrations standard to the series have been supplemented by several drawings of each ring. ... Read more

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Synopsis
The Nasser D. Khalili Collection contains a remarkable group of more than 600 finger rings from the Islamic world and beyond. These rings provide a rare opportunity to survey the history of this form of jewellery in theMiddle East and southern Asia over the last two millennia. Two of theoldest examples are two Hellenistic glass rings from the 2nd or 1st centuryBC, while the most recent dated specimen is a signet made in India in 1920.This volume presents the typology of Islamic rings within a broadchronological framework, and colour illustrations have been supplemented byseveral drawings of each ring. ... Read more

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The Nasser D. Khalili Collection is the greatest collection of Islamic art in private hands.It contains the largest and most important holdings of Islamic lacquer in the world.The production of Islamic lacquerware, in which papier-mache and wooden penboxes, bookbindings, mirror cases and other objects were decorated in a technique of painting and varnishing, flourished in Iran, India and Turkey in the seventeenth to nineteenth centuries.The Collection covers every aspect of this geographical, historical and typological range and contains examples of the work of virtually every known lacquer artist.Relatively little work on Islamic lacquer has been published, and, as well as illustrating all 450 objects in colour, this two-part catalogue will provide a major new study of the subject by two leading authorities in the field, one of them being Dr Khalili himself. Together the two books will form one of the 26 volumes in a lavishly produced series which will introduce the entire Collection to a wider public. The two volumes divide the subject: Part I concentrates on the period up to 1820, and Part II on items produced after that date. ... Read more

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Synopsis
The Nasser D. Khalili collection is the greatest collection of Islamic art in private hands. It contains the largest and most important holdings of Islamic lacquer in the world. The production of Islamic lacquerware, inwhich papier-mache and wooden penboxes, book-bindings, mirror cases andother objects were decorated in a technique of painting and varnishing,flourished in Iran, India and Turkey in the 17th-19th centuries. Thisvolume covers every aspect of its geographical, historical and typologicalrange and contains examples of the work of virtually every known lacquerartist. ... Read more

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This is a lavishly illustrated presentation of the Nasser D. Khalili Collection of Islamic Art's collection of arms and armor. The items range in date from the seventh to the nineteenth centuries A.D. In avoiding the strictly typological classification of most previous catalogues of the subject, the aim is to give a full sense of the panoply of warfare: the stirrup, the drum, and the talismanic shirt were as important to the Muslim warrior as the sword and the mail shirt. David Alexander, the leading authority on Islamic arms and armor, has provided a detailed scholarly guide to this outstanding collection. ... Read more

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Synopsis
This is a lavishly illustrated presentation of the Nasser D. Khalili Collection of Islamic Art's collection of arms and armour. The items range in date from the seventh to the nineteenth centuries AD. Particularlyimportant are a group of belt fittings from the medieval period whichconvey the role of ceremony among the military classes of the Islamicworld. Display was also a major factor behind the creation of theCollection`s two sets of elaborate horse trappings from the thirteenth andfourteenth centuries AD, one of which contains a complete gold saddle. Animpressive array of horse chanfrons of the fifteenth and sixteenthcenturies include the only known example from Sultanate India. Among themost dramatic items is a fifteenth-century steel war mask which stillinspires a sense of awe. In avoiding the strictly typologicalclassification of most previous catalogues of the subject, the aim is togive a full sense of the panoply of warfare: the stirrup, the drum, and thetalismanic shirt were as important to the Muslim warrior as the sword andthe mail shirt. David Alexander, the leading authority on Islamic arms andarmour, has provided a detailed scholalrly guide to this outstandingcollection. This book is intended for art historians and Islamicists,collectors and curators of Islamic art, specialist art trade, some studentsand general. ... Read more

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BLThe most comprehensive study yet of the ancient art of Islamic calligraphyThe Nasser D. Khalili Collection holds examples of Islamic calligraphy that span six centuries and demonstrate the continuity of this central art form into the modern era. The holdings - nearly 300 in total - include exceptional items that feature the work of many of the most famous master calligraphers, including Seyh Hamdullah and Hafiz Osman. The author discusses items from the Collection under nine headings that exemplify the variety of the artform and the discipline required to master it: mufradat (exercises from the calligraphic curriculum); muraqqa`at (collections of calligraphic samples); and hilyahs (treatments of the description of the Prophet) form the major sections, and there are studies of ijazahs (certificates of competence in the art), karalama (rough copy work), decoupage (cut work), kalib-making (stencilled reproductions), the miniature ghubar script, and leaf gilding. ... Read more

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Synopsis
The power of the written word to convey emotional intensity in a pleasing visual form, particularly when dealing with sacred subject matter, has been a constant them in Islamic culture. The demanding discipline of Islamiccalligraphy, transmitted from master to pupil throughout the ages, has beenthe source of one of the humanity's richest artistic traditions. The NasserD Khalili Collection holds examples of the Islamic calligraphy that spansix centuries and demonstrate the continuity of this central art form intothe modern era. The holdings - nearly 300 in total - include exceptionalitems that feature the work of many of the most famous mastercalligraphers: Yaqut, Seyh Hamdullah, Hafiz Osman, Mahmud Calaluddin,Mehmed Rasim and Yusuf 'Hafiz al-Qur'an'. This book is intended forislamicists, collectors and curators of Islamic art, specialist art trade,some students, and general readers. With a contribution by: Zakariya,Mohamed; ... Read more

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fantastic exhibition
I have attended "Empire of the Sultans" exhibition in San Francisco's Asian Art Museum multiple times. The new catalog has many helpful historical overviews which will help to orient the reader in rich history of Ottoman Empire and Islam. I was mostly impressed with maps, cutout calligraphy, illustrated prayer calendars, and calligraphy on dry leaves. Some of the scrolls of edicts from the time of zenith of Ottoman power (Suleiman the Magnificent) are executed in a wonderfully restrained style with just the hint of color and gold dust. A reader will have a great time with this catalog! ... Read more

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This book represents the first sustained attempt to understand Islamic urbanism and court life from an interdisciplinary approach. Samarra, the last great example of early Islamic city building in Iraq, was the capital of the Abbasid caliphate and the center of court culture during the second half of the ninth century. Although archaeologists and art historians have worked on the site extensively, the bounty of numismatic, literary, and historical evidence has hardly been tapped. Since much of this evidence overlaps, Samarra offers unique insights into the character of city building, administration, military history, court life (ritual, court poetry), and imperial ideology throughout this period. ... Read more

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Despite political upheavals under Muslim domination in the Middle Ages, Palestine was a center of great artistic activity recognized for its incredible dynamism. Its unique contribution to the Islamic “macrocosm,” however, never became the subject of extensive study. Numerous archeological excavations on this relatively small geographic area reveal the existence of extremely well preserved monuments of high architectural quality and exceptional religious value. This is what Myriam Rosen-Ayalon exposes in this thorough introduction to Palestinian Islamic art and archeology. In chronological order she presents here for the first time the multifaceted and long-lasting achievements of Islamic art in Palestine, filling the gap of years of neglect on the subject. ... Read more

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This volume of the Khalili Collection catalogues approximately 250 Arabic documents written on papyrus. Each accompanied by a plate, the entries are catalogued according to the type of document, firstly accounts, secondly legal documents, and thirdly, letters.Most of the documents date from the eighth or ninth centuries A.D.A large number of the papyri came from Fustat, the old Arab capital of Egypt.Nearly all published Arabic papyri came from southern Egypt. The Khalili collection contains the first Arabic document that has been discovered to have been written in northern Iraq.The documents are an important primary source for socio-economic history, palaeography, and diplomatics. The text is supported by notes, up-to-date bibliography, and index. ... Read more

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Synopsis
The Khalili Collection is the greatest collection of Islamic art in private hands. This volume catalogues approximately 250 Arabic documents written on papyrus and owned by the Collection. The entries are cataloguedaccording to the type of document: firstly accounts, secondly legaldocuments, and thirdly letters. Most of the documents date from the 8th or9th centuries AD. A large number of the papyri came from Fustat, the oldArab capital of Egypt. Nearly all published Arabic papyri came fromsouthern Egypt. The Khalili Collection contains the first Arabic documentthat has been discovered to have been written in northern Iraq. ... Read more

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This first volume of the two-volume catalogue of the Nasser B. Khalili ceramic collection concentrates on the beauty of the work of the early Muslim potters, which holds some of the most attractive and interesting examples known.Among these are several unparalleled masterpieces, and the Collection is particularly rich in Saljuq lustrewares of the twelfth and thirteenth centuries A.D., and in the pottery of the Timurid period.Full color illustrations of all major types of early Islamic pottery have never been published together in a single volume: here they are presented with brief introductory essays on each category, detailed discussions of individual objects, and a scholarly apparatus providing references to comparative pieces and to further reading. ... Read more

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Synopsis
The Nasser D. Khalili Collection contains some 2000 items of pottery, representing a millenium of ceramic production across the Islamic world. The catalogue of these holdings is to be published in two volumes. Thefirst concentrates on the beauty of the work of the early Muslim potters,of which the Collection holds many attractive examples. The Collection isparticularly rich in Saljuq lustrewares of the 12th and 13th centuries AD,and in the pottery of the Timurid period. Illustrations of all major typesof early Islamic pottery are presented with brief introductory essays oneach category, detailed discussions of individual objects, and a scholarlyapparatus providing references to comparative pieces and to furtherreading. ... Read more

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The Grove Encyclopedia of Islamic Art and Architecture is the most comprehensive reference work in this complex and diverse area of art history. Built on the acclaimed scholarship of the Grove Dictionary of Art, this work offers over 1,600 up-to-date entries on Islamic art and architecture ranging from the Middle East to Central and South Asia, Africa, and Europe and spans over a thousand years of history.

Recent changes in Islamic art in areas such as Afghanistan, Iran, and Iraq are elucidated here by distinguished scholars. Entries provide in-depth art historical and cultural information about dynasties, art forms, artists, architecture, rulers, monuments, archaeological sites and stylistic developments. In addition, over 500 illustrations of sculpture, mosaic, painting, ceramics, architecture, metalwork and calligraphy illuminate the rich artistic tradition of the Islamic world. With the fundamental understanding that Islamic art is not limited to a particular region, or to a defined period of time, The Grove Encyclopedia of Islamic Art and Architecture offers pathways into Islamic
culture through its art. ... Read more

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Since Napoleon's invasion of Egypt in 1798, the western traveller has been obsessed with the Pharaohs and Egypt's ancient past. Her Islamic culture has been largely ignored, and the pyramids have been allowed to cast a long shadow over the visual culture of Islamic Cairo, obscuring a magnificent art and architectural heritage that has lasted over a thousand years, from the building of the Mosque of Amr in the seventh century to that of Muhammad Ali in the nineteenth. Cairo is full of masterpieces of medieval art and architecture reflecting the status of Egypt as the centre of several significant Muslim empires. The purpose of this book is to redress the cultural balance and examine the art and architectural treasures of Cairo from the Arab to the Ottoman conquests (642-1517). Set within an historical narrative, the stylistic development of the visual arts is explained within changing religious, social and political contexts. Examples of the decorative arts - ceramics, glass, woodwork, metalwork, textiles and manuscripts - are examined in the Museum of Islamic Art, Cairo, and other major collections in Europe and the USA.Architecture and the decorative arts are dealt with separately with detailed descriptions, illustrating how the story of Islamic art and architecture is one of continuing adaptation and change. By concentrating on Cairo's Islamic art and architecture, Yeomans has created a study of Islamic style which is unprecedented in its historical scope. Fully illustrated with over 200 vivid photographs, plans and elevations and a comprehensive glossary of architectural terms, this book will be essential reading for architects, designers and historians; indeed, for anyone with an appreciation of one of the world's finest and richest architectural legacies, tragically under threat. ... Read more

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This book is a collection of papers from the Giorgio Levi Della Vida Conference. It explores the meaning of Islamic art in various different contexts, beginning with its effect on those who experience the art firsthand, using as examples the mantle of Roger II of Sicily and the ceiling of the Capella Palatine, both of which are remarkable works of Islamic art used and experienced by non-Muslims. The idea that objects can be used to demonstrate the reaction of one culture to another is explored, and we are given a glimpse into the social meanings of objects. The role of colonization in the representation of the Islamic art of Algeria following the French invasion is followed by a discussion of India's Deccan Plateau as a civilizational frontier between the Hindus and Muslims. The book ends with a look at how historical accounts of events affecting holy buildings in India can be vital in motivating present day action, and that these accounts must therefore be written in a historically and morally responsible way. ... Read more

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Exhibiting the largest hand-made carpet collection in the world (1,700 pieces), the Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts is a unique place to visit in Istanbul, Turkey. This album presents the best samples from among a large inventory of forty thousand pieces of Islamic art that represent not only Seljuk and Ottoman empires but also Umayyads, Abbasids, Andalusia, Safavid Empire, and other Muslim states and civilisations across North Africa and Caucasia. Alongside carpet exhibition, the museum hosts 13,000 manuscripts, a beautiful collection of wooden works, tiles, stone pieces, and other samples of Islamic decorative arts. ... Read more

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People have been searching for meaning in Islamic art for centuries. This book explores the iconography of Islamic art, presenting a diverse range of approaches to the subject.Despite this variety, there is an overarching theme: the linking of the interpretation of objects to textual sources. This results in a collection of in-depth studies of motifs as diverse as the peacock, trees, and the figure holding a cup and branch. In addition, new interpretations are presented of other objects, such as an Abuyyid metal basin or Mongol paintings.Textual sources on the Ka'ba or the use of marble provide a starting point for the examination of objects and their relationship to history. The architectural decoration of monuments from Egypt to India is analysed, and Arab and Safavid paintings are mined for meaning. Links with Christian elements in Sicily or Buddhist stupas are appraised.Generously illustrated throughout, this book will appeal to all those with an interest in Islamic art, architecture and iconography.

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The second of four volumes cataloguing the Qur'ans, this book includes a Qur'an that retains its original illumination by the greatest calligrapher of the Middle Ages, Yaqut al-Musta 'simi.Other masterpieces include a Qur'an written in gold from twelfth-century Iraq; the only twelfth-century Qur'an from Valencia; and a manuscript that is possibly the earliest Qur'an to survive from India. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Synopsis
SynopsisThe Khalili Collection is the greatest collection of Islamic art in private hands; it is continuing to grow and improve. It contains a large and comprehensive range of Qur'anic material, covering the entire historyof Qur'an production from the seventh to the twentieth century, includingexamples from centres as far apart as Spain and India. This is the secondof four volumes cataloguing the Qur'ans in the Khalili Collection. Notableamong the manuscripts in this volume is a Qur'an by the greatestcalligrapher of the Middle Ages, Yaqut al-Musta`simi, which is exceptionalin that it retains its original illumination. Other masterpieces include aQur'an written in gold from twelfth-century Iraq; the only twelfth-centuryQur'an from Valencia still in private hands; and a manuscript that ispossibly the earliest Qur'an to survive from India. The lavish presentationof this catalogue is combined with detailed scholarship that not onlyencompasses the history of the subject, but also presents in accompanyingessays new findings that have been made in the course of cataloguing. Thisbook is intended for art historians, Islamicists, collectors and curatorsof Islamic art. ... Read more