Art and Architecture of the Islamic World

 Questions for thought:

What are the 'jobs' of artists that we've encountered so far?

Is it, and in what ways is it, important to talk about religion in a course on art history up to 1300?

What roles do artists plan in religion, that you've encountered in key works in this class, or in your own lived experience?

Whatdo you remember from last week's class segment on Abrahamic religions?

We will pick up the sarcophagus of Junius Bassus and Mausoleum of Galla Placidia this week (key works from last week) 

M:Great Mosque of Cordoba

Mosque of Mimar Sinan

The Prophet Muhammad and his Companions Traveling to the Fair 

TH Mausoleum of Galla Placidia

Art and Religion

From all that we can know about the history of humans, art and religion have always interrelated. The history of religion plays a key role in understanding the content of a huge portion of Art objects throughout history, and an absolutely central role in understanding the art of the 1^st through 17^th centuries, when religious and spiritual content dominated. In the particular periods we dealt with last week and this, the art on all sides of the Mediterranean reflects the often violent battles for dominion of several major religions (and many lesser-known ones), three of which remain significant religions in the world today. 

Yet even in these areas where most of the artwork has a religious purpose or theme, work also exists outside the realm of religion, and we can detect stylistic aspects that tie it all together. In the Islamic World, calligraphy, especially Arabic Calligraphy, appears everywhere from houses to church domes to bowls and carpets, and demonstrates the importance of writing. Other visual themes found throughout include: vegetative and floral motifs, and, most especially, detailed, all-over, surface decoration, often in quasi-crystalline geometric formations. 

In order to understand the art of the 1^st through 17^th centuries in Europe, North America, the Near East, Northern Africa, Southeast Asia, we need at least a rudimentary background in the Abrahamic Faiths. 

Icons of the Abrahamic Faiths. 

Islam, Judaism and Christianity are three of the world’s major monotheistic faiths. They share many of the same holy sites, such as Jerusalem, and prophets, such as Abraham. Collectively scholars refer to these three religions as the Abrahamic faiths, since Abraham and his family played vital roles in the formation of these religions.

Pantheon (6-22, 6-23), Rome, 125-128 ce

Colossos of Constantine (Roman emperor Constantine the Great )(c. 280–337), Capitoline Museum, Rome

 Anthemius of Tralles and Isodorus of Mileutus, Hagia Sophia, Hagia Sophia, 360 ce, Byzantine Cathedral, Istanbul, Turkey. The Hagia Sophia was a Greek Orthodox church almost consistently from AD 360 to 1453.  After the fall of Constantinople in 1453, it served as a mosque until 1935, when it became a museum to itself. In 2020, the site once again became a mosque.

dome on pendentives. 182 feet high. 33 feet

Mihrab,  Hagia Sophia (7-11 and 12),Hagia Sophia, 360 ce, Byzantine Cathedral, Istanbul, Turkey source

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Minbar, Anthemius of Tralles and Isodorus of Mileutus, Hagia Sophia (7-11 and 12),Hagia Sophia, 360 ce, Byzantine Cathedral, Istanbul, Turkeysource

Christ Pantocrator, Hagia Sophia,  11th c

The Prophet Muhammad and his Companions Traveling to the Fair (

Five Pillars: 

1. The Profession of Faith (The Shahada) “There is no God but God and Muhammad is his prophet.” 

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Shahada source

2. Daily Prayers (Salat) Devout Muslims  pray five times a day, any location works, but they pray facing  Mecca. Muslims attend the mosque on Fridays to hear sermons. 

3. Alms-Giving (Zakat) Muslims believe in sharing wealth with those less-fortunate
4. Fasting during Ramadan (Saum) Muslims fast from dawn to dusk during the ninth month of the Islamic Calendar. In 2013, Ramadan occurred between 10 July – 7 August

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5. Hajj or Pilgrimage to Mecca 
All Muslims, who are physically able, should  make the pilgrimage to Mecca, visit the Kaaba, and perambulate it seven times. 

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Great Mosque at Cordoba 


Great Mosque at Cordoba  , source

mihrab, Great Mosque at Cordoba (8-7 &8),source

 Dome in front of mihrab, Great Mosque at Cordoba  
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 Dome in front of mihrab, Great Mosque at Cordoba  source

Mihrab, Great Mosque of Cordoba, c. 786 

Hypostyle Hall, Great Mosque at Cordoba  &8),source

The Alhambra (the Red Fort). Image source, begun 1238, Grenada, Spain, by last Muslim Dynasty to rule Spain. 

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Muqarnas (stacked, radially geometric niches or brackets that generally serve decorative and structural purpose), Palace of the Lions, Alhambra (8-13 7 14), 

Figure 1. Mimar Sinan, courtyard of the Süleymaniye Mosque, İstanbul, 1558

Diagram reconstruction of the Prophet’s House, Medina, Saudi Arabia

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Shirin Neshat, Rebellious Silence, 2004. Via Signs Journal . source

Shirin Neshat, Rebellious Silence, 2004. Via Signs Journal .

Key Work: The Prophet Muhammad and his Companions Traveling to the Fair (p. 193),