Islamic art [antikvár]

Introduction One of the most striking things about Islamic art is the way in which a completely definite style, a whole repertory of motifs, and a distinct architectural system became, quite early in the era of the Hegira, associated with an idea and a faith. Islamic art is, in this respect, quite distinct from Christian, where diversity rather than uniformity was the characteristic. The arts of the various phases of Christendom -Byzantine, Carolingian, Romanesque, Gothic, Renaissance - were wholly different, and there was great diversity between the regions; indeed, variety was the very essence of the art. In the Islamic world, on the other hand, there was much greater uniformity, both with regard to time and to space. In the first place the artists did not seek the new and unfamiliar in the way that the Renaissance artists did, but rather remained attached to the model whose merit had been sanctioned by time and convention, seeking to renew its appeal, rejuvenate its character, by subtle variations of detail. In the second, the adoption over the whole area from India to Spain of a particular script which also served as a basic form of ornament in art exercised a tremendously unifying eifect. Because of these factors Islamic art has, at first glance, a certain degree of sameness for the Western eye; it seems hard to assign its products to a locality, harder still to date them. Closer acquaintance, however, dispels this first impression, and the aim of the writer in compiling this book has been to present the works first according to their period and second according to their geographical provenance, in order to illustrate both the developments that took place over the ages and the variations for which the different regions were responsible ; for the Islamic world was of vast extent and its population was drawn from virtually all the known races of man. This aim has necessitated a division of the chapters quite distinct from that in most other books on Islamic art, where it has usually