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Islamic art
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== Other applied arts == [[File:Dagger horse head Louvre OA7891.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Mughal Empire|Mughal]] dagger with hilt in [[jade]], gold, [[rubies]] and [[emerald]]s. Blade of [[damascening|damascened]] steel inlaid with gold.]] High levels of achievement were reached in other materials, including [[hardstone carving]]s and jewellery, ivory carving, textiles and leatherwork. During the Middle Ages, Islamic work in these fields was highly valued in other parts of the world and often traded outside the Islamic zone. Apart from miniature painting and calligraphy, other arts of the book are decorative illumination, the only type found in Qur'an manuscripts, and Islamic book covers, which are often highly decorative in luxury manuscripts, using either the geometric motifs found in illumination, or sometimes figurative images probably drawn for the craftsmen by miniature painters. Materials include coloured, tooled and stamped leather and [[lacquer]] over paint.<ref>See the relevant sections in "Arts"</ref> === Precious stones === [[Egyptians|Egyptian]] carving of [[rock crystal]] into vessels appears in the late 10th century, and virtually disappears after about 1040 C.E. There are a number of these vessels in the West, which apparently came on the market after the [[Cairo]] palace of the [[Fatimid]] [[Caliph]] was looted by his mercenaries in 1062, and were snapped up by European buyers, mostly ending up in church treasuries.<ref>[http://simerg.com/literary-readings/literary-reading-fatimid-rock-crystal-ewers-most-valuable-objects-in-islamic-art/ Fatimid Rock Crystal Ewers, Most Valuable Objects in Islamic Art]</ref> From later periods, especially the hugely wealthy Ottoman and Mughal courts, there are a considerable number of lavish objects carved in semi-precious stones, with little surface decoration, but inset with jewels. Such objects may have been made in earlier periods, but few have survived.<ref>Arts, 120–121</ref> [[File:WLA vanda Ottoman marquetry and tile-top table 2.jpg|thumb|left|Ottoman [[marquetry]] and tile-top table, about 1560]] === House and furniture === Older wood carving is typically relief or pierced work on flat objects for architectural use, such as screens, doors, roofs, beams and friezes. An important exception are the complex [[muqarnas]] and [[mocárabe]] designs giving roofs and other architectural elements a [[stalactite]]-like appearance. These are often in wood, sometimes painted on the wood, but often plastered over before painting; the examples at the [[Alhambra]] in [[Granada, Spain]] are among the best known. Traditional Islamic furniture, except for chests, tended to be covered with cushions, with cupboards rather than cabinets for storage, but there are some pieces, including a low round (strictly twelve-sided) table of about 1560 from the Ottoman court, with [[marquetry]] inlays in light wood, and a single huge ceramic tile or plaque on the tabletop.<ref>[[:File:WLA vanda Ottoman marquetry and tile-top table 2.jpg|Table]] in the [[Victoria & Albert Museum]]</ref> The fine inlays typical of Ottoman court furniture may have developed from styles and techniques used in weapons and musical instruments, for which the finest craftsmanship available was used.<ref>Rogers and Ward, 156</ref> There are also intricately decorated caskets and chests from various periods. A spectacular and famous (and far from flat) roof was one of the Islamic components of the 12th century Norman [[Cappella Palatina]] in [[Palermo]], which picked from the finest elements of Catholic, Byzantine and Islamic art. Other famous wooden roofs are in the [[Alhambra]] in [[Granada]]. [[File:Panel hunters Louvre OA 6265-1.jpg|left|upright=<!--size for low image-->1.3|thumb|Ivory with traces of paint, 11th–12th century, Egypt]] === Ivory === [[Ivory carving#Islamic ivory|Ivory carving]] centred on the [[Mediterranean]], spreading from Egypt, where a thriving [[Copt]]ic industry had been inherited; Persian ivory is rare. The normal style was a deep relief with an even surface; some pieces were painted. Spain specialized in caskets and round boxes, which were probably used to keep jewels and perfumes. They were produced mainly in the approximate period of 930–1050, and widely exported. Many pieces are signed and dated, and on court pieces the name of the owner is often inscribed; they were typically gifts from a ruler. As well as a court workshop, [[Córdoba, Spain|Cordoba]] had commercial workshops producing goods of slightly lower quality. In the 12th and 13th century workshops in [[Norman Sicily]] produced caskets, apparently then migrating to Granada and elsewhere after persecution. Egyptian work tended to be in flat panels and friezes, for insertion into woodwork and probably furniture – most are now detached from their settings. Many were calligraphic, and others continued Byzantine traditions of hunting scenes, with backgrounds of arabesques and foliage in both cases.<ref>Arts, 147–150, and exhibits following</ref> [[File:IlkhanateSilkCircular.jpg|thumb|right|[[Ilkhanid]] piece in silk, cotton and gold, Iran or Iraq, early 14th century]] === Silk === Despite ''[[Hadith]]'' sayings prohibiting the wearing of silk, the Byzantine and Sassanian traditions of grand figured silk woven cloth continued under Muslim rule. Some designs are calligraphic, especially when made for palls to cover a tomb, but more are surprisingly conservative versions of the earlier traditions, with many large figures of animals, especially majestic symbols of power like the lion and eagle. These are often enclosed in roundels, as found in the pre-Islamic traditions. The majority of early silks have been recovered from tombs, and in Europe [[reliquaries]], where the relics were often wrapped in silk. European clergy and nobility were keen buyers of Islamic silk from an early date and, for example, the body of an early bishop of [[Toul]] in France was wrapped in a silk from the [[Bukhara]] area in modern [[Uzbekistan]], probably when the body was reburied in 820.<ref>Arts, 65–68; 74, no. 3</ref> The [[Shroud of St Josse]] is a famous [[samite]] cloth from East Persia, which originally had a carpet-like design with two pairs of confronted elephants, surrounded by borders including rows of [[camel]]s and an inscription in [[Kufic]] script, from which the date appears to be before 961.<ref>[http://www.louvre.fr/llv/oeuvres/detail_notice_popup.jsp?CONTENT%3C%3Ecnt_id=10134198673226262&CURRENT_LLV_NOTICE%3C%3Ecnt_id=10134198673226262&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=9852723696500781 Louvre, Suaire de St-Josse] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110623185919/http://www.louvre.fr/llv/oeuvres/detail_notice_popup.jsp?CONTENT%3C%3Ecnt_id=10134198673226262&CURRENT_LLV_NOTICE%3C%3Ecnt_id=10134198673226262&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=9852723696500781 |date=2011-06-23 }}. Exhibited as no. 4 in Arts, 74.</ref> Other silks were used for clothes, hangings, altarcloths, and church vestments, which have nearly all been lost, except for some vestments. [[File:Batik Indonesia.jpg|left|thumb|upright|[[Javanese culture|Javanese]] court [[batik]]]] Ottoman silks were less exported, and the many surviving royal [[kaftan]]s have simpler geometric patterns, many featuring stylized "tiger-stripes" below three balls or circles. Other silks have foliage designs comparable to those on Iznik pottery or carpets, with bands forming ogival compartments a popular motif. Some designs begin to show Italian influence. By the 16th century Persian silk was using smaller patterns, many of which showed relaxed garden scenes of beautiful boys and girls from the same world as those in contemporary album miniatures, and sometimes identifiable scenes from Persian poetry. A 16th-century circular ceiling for a tent, 97 cm across, shows a continuous and crowded hunting scene; it was apparently looted by the army of [[Suleiman the Magnificent]] in his invasion of Persia in 1543–45, before being taken by a Polish general at the [[Battle of Vienna|Siege of Vienna]] in 1683. Mughal silks incorporate many Indian elements, and often feature relatively realistic "portraits" of plants, as found in other media.<ref>Arts, 68, 71, 82–86, 106–108, 110–111, 114–115</ref> ===Indonesian batik=== {{main|Batik}} The development and refinement of [[Indonesia]]n ''[[batik]]'' cloth was closely linked to Islam. The Islamic prohibition on certain images encouraged ''batik'' design to become more abstract and intricate. Realistic depictions of animals and humans are rare on traditional ''batik''. However, mythical serpents, humans with exaggerated features and the [[Garuda]] of pre-Islamic mythology are common motifs. Although its existence pre-dates Islam, ''batik'' reached its zenith in royal Muslim courts such as [[Mataram Sultanate|Mataram]] and [[Yogyakarta Sultanate|Yogyakarta]], whose [[sultan]]s encouraged and patronised ''batik'' production. Today, ''batik'' is undergoing a revival, and cloths are used for additional purposes such as wrapping the Quran.
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