Melissa Paschuck February 14, 2005

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Melissa PaschuckFebruary 14, 2005
Islamic Calligraphy
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People of the Book
http//www.cnn.com/interactive/specials/0007/midea
st.photo2/koran.grasp.jpg
http//www.ezsoftech.com/islamic/images/gabriel.jp
g

• "Recite in the name of your Lord Who created,
  Created man from a clot. Recite and your Lord is
  most Generous, Who taught (to write) with the
  pen. Taught man what he knew not."

http//www.ezsoftech.com/islamic/saw/iqra.gif
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Calligraphy An Honored Occupation
http//rmc.library.cornell.edu/.
../E3856_0022.jpg

• Revelation Described in the Koran
• An elegantly proportioned script, which is
  preserved with God on spotless sheets of
  paper, and which is beautiful and
  unsurpassable.

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Calligraphy is Everywhere
Interwoven floral kufic script. The name of
Allah.
http//www.islamicity.com/Culture/Calligraphy/cp16
8.htm
Mosque Lamp, Iznik 1549, London, British Museum.
http//www.islamicarchitecture.org/ia/i/islamic.po
ttery.mosque.lamp.101.small.gif
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Brief History of Arabic Script

• Descended from Aramaic, Nabataean, and Syriac
  languages.
• Earliest inscription found in Sinai from circa
  300 A.D.
• 10th Century 20 scripts
• Kufic was the earliest formal script
• Ibn Muqla--standardized scripts
• Yaqut al-Mustasim (d. 1299)--codified six basic
  calligraphy stylesThe Six Pens
• Vary from flowing cursive to angular
• Consists of 28 letters
• May find a number of different styles on one
  Islamic building
• Second most widely used script in the modern
  world.

http//www.artarena.force9.co.uk/Iran/kufic2.jpg
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The Six Pens
In the name of God
Riqa
Naskhi
Nastaliq
Thuluth
Muhaqqaq
Square Kufic
http//www.islamicarchitecture.org/ia/i/islamic.6.
scriptstyles.101.small.gif
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Materials Equipment

• Parchment of various qualities was used in the
  early centuries of Islam.
• In 641 (after conquest of Egypt) papyrus began to
  be used for secular writings
• Circa 751 Muslims became familiar with paper
  through Chinese prisoners
• Reed pens were the standard writing instrument.
• Ink was frequently made of soot.

http//www.harvardmagazine.com/lib/02mj/images/art
5.jpg
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Education and Training

• Guidance by a master is essential.
• Calligraphers must master outward skills and the
  required etiquette
• Discipled in the secrets of letters according to
  the mystical meaning
• Apprenticeship began at a young age.
• Pupils were expected to obey the master or face
  harsh consequences.
• Masters charged for their instruction and some
  gave free lessons to talented and needy children.
• Speed varied between 50 and 500 lines per day.
• Ijazapermission to sign pagesgiven after many
  years of instruction and practice.

http//www.zaytuna.org/PhotoMoments2/Images/Intro_
Islamic_Calligraphy_Session__.jpg
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Concepts to Remember
http//www.metmuseum.org/toah/images/h2/h2_42.63.j
pg

• Calligraphy has played a key role in unifying
  Muslims.
• Calligraphy was developed over time through a
  combination of circumstances and people.
• Calligraphy penetrates all aspects of Islamic
  art.
• The art of calligraphy involves much more than
  writing.

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Tughra of Sultan Sulaiman the Magnificent, 16th
century Ottoman period (c. 1280-1924)Attributed
to Istanbul, Turkey
http//www.metmuseum.org/Works_of_Art/images/is/im
ages/is38.149.1.L.jpg
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Helmet, late 15th century Ak-Koyunlu/ShivranIran
ianSteel, engraved and damascened with silver
H. 13 3/8 in. (34 cm)
http//www.metmuseum.org/toah/images/hb/hb_50.87.j
pg
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Leaf from a manuscript, 19th century Qajar,
IranInk, watercolors, gold, and silver on paper
13 1/3 x 7 1/2 in. (33 x 19 cm)
http//www.metmuseum.org/toah/images/hb/hb_1997.29
3.jpg
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The Great Mosque, Cordoba(784-6, 961-6, 987-90
and other restorations)The deeply recessed
polygonal chamber of the central mirab.
http//www.islamicity.com/Culture/MOSQUES/Europe/T
Mp105e.htm
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• Arabic calligraphy is a symbol representing
  power and beauty. Its history is the integration
  of artistry and scholarship. Through the abstract
  beauty of the lines, energy flows in between the
  letters and words. All the parts are integrated
  into a whole. These parts include positive
  spacing, negative spacing, and the flow of energy
  that weaves together the calligrapher's
  rendering. The abstract beauty of Arabic
  calligraphy is not always easily comprehended --
  but this beauty will slowly reveal itself to the
  discerning eye.
• http//www.islamicart.com/main/calligraphy/intro.h
  tml

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Bibliography

• http//www.ezsoftech.com/islamic/hira.asp
• http//www.islamicarchitecture.org/ia/art/icalligr
  aphy.html
• http//www.islamicart.com/main/calligraphy/index.h
  tml
• www.artarena.force9.co.uk/ kufic.htm
• www.harvardmagazine.com/ on-line/050223.html
• Author Unknown Islamic Art', Grove Art Online,
  (Oxford University Press, Accessed 10 February
  2005), lthttp//www.groveart.comgt
• Stokstad, M. (2005), Art History (Revised Second
  Edition), New Jersey Prentice Hall.