The Topkapi scroll: geometry and ornament in Islamic architecture 0892363355

Citation preview

SKETCHBOOKS

&

ALBUMS

A Series of the Getty Center Publication

The

SKETCHBOOKS

& ALBUMS

Programs

series acquaints readers w i t h drawings and other forms o f visual

d o c u m e n t a t i o n that have been u n p u b l i s h e d or unavailable. The g u i d i n g p r i n c i p l e b e h i n d the

SKETCHBOOKS

& ALBUMS

series is that the genesis o f an a r t w o r k is central to

its understanding. I f the conception and p r e p a r a t i o n o f a w o r k o f art have a claim on our a t t e n t i o n , then the p r i m e record o f that process must be recognized and u n d e r s t o o d . Sketchbooks and related m a t e r i a l , such as j o u r n a l s , dossiers, copybooks, and corpora o f drawings, reveal the artist's t h o u g h t process and what the artist looked at, copied, read, disliked, or a d m i r e d — h e n c e , the e v o l u t i o n o f a visual concept. Each w o r k reproduced i n the

SKETCHBOOKS

& ALBUMS

series w i l l be accompanied by a catalog o f the visual

d o c u m e n t a t i o n under consideration and by scholarly analysis that considers the w o r k chronologically, regionally, typologically, and thematically and places it w i t h i n its historical and c u l t u r a l context. Julia Bloomfield, Thomas F. Reese, Salvatore Settis, Editors

THE

GETTY

CENTER

PUBLICATION

PROGRAMS

THE TOPKAPI SCROLL-GEOMETRY

AND ORNAMENT

IN ISLAMIC

ARCHITECTURE

SKETCHBOOKS

THE TOPKAPI

SCROLL-GEOMETRY

AND ORNAMENT

IN ISLAMIC

&

ALBUMS

ARCHITECTURE

Topkapi Palace Museum Library MS H. 1956

Gulru

Necipoglu

with an essay on the geometry of the muqarnas by Mohammad

THE

GETTY CENTER

FOR THE HISTORY

OF ART AND THE

al-Asad

HUMANITIES

THE

GETTY

CENTER

PUBLICATION

PROGRAMS

Julia Bloomfield, Thomas F. Reese, Salvatore Settis, Editors

SKETCHBOOKS

&

ALBUMS

The Topkapi Scroll—Geometry and Ornament Oleg Grabar, E d i t o r i a l Consultant Lynne K o s t m a n , M a n a g i n g E d i t o r Diane M a r k - W a l k e r , M a n u s c r i p t E d i t o r

in Islamic

Architecture

Published b y T h e Getty Center for the H i s t o r y o f A r t a n d the H u m a n i t i e s , Santa M o n i c a , C A 90401-1455 ©1995 b y T h e Getty Center for the H i s t o r y o f A r t a n d the H u m a n i t i e s A l l rights reserved. Published 1995 P r i n t e d i n the U n i t e d States o f A m e r i c a Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Necipoglu, Gulru The Topkapi scroll: geometry and ornament in Islamic architecture : Topkapi Palace Library M S H . 1956 / Gulru Necipoglu; with an essay on the geometry of the muqarnas by Mohammad al-Asad. p. cm. — (Sketchbooks & albums) Includes bibliographical references and index. I S B N 0-89236-335-5 1. Architectural drawing, Timurid—Catalogs. 2. Architectural drawing—16th century—Asia, Central—Catalogs. 3. Arabesques— Catalogs. 4. Architectural drawing—Turkey—Istanbul—Catalogs. 5. Topkapi Sarayi Muzesi. Kutuphane. Manuscript, H . 1956— Catalogs. I . Al-Asad, Mohammad. I I . J. Paul Getty Center for the History of Art and the Humanities. I I I . Title. IV. Series. NA2706.A783N43

720'.22'255—dc20

1995

95-14621 CIP

CONTENTS

ix

PREFACE xiii

NOTES PART

3 29 41 54 PART

61 73 84 PART

91 111 124 PART

131 167 176 PART

185 197 217 224

TO

1 : THE

285

READER SCROLL

TRADITION

Chapter 1. Architectural Drawings and Scrolls in the Islamic World Chapter 2. The Topkapi Scroll, Its Date and Provenance Chapter 3. The Topkapi Scroll as a Mirror of Late Timurid-Turkmen Architectural Practice Notes to Part 1 2:

THE

DISCOURSE

ON THE

GEOMETRIC

" ARABESQUE"

Chapter 4. Ornamentalism and Orientalism: The Nineteenth- and Early Twentieth-Century European Literature Chapter 5. Recent Studies on Geometric Ornament Notes to Part 2 3:

THE

GEOGRAPHICAL,

CHRONOLOGICAL,

AND

SEMANTIC

HORIZONS

OF

THE

Chapter 6. Geometric Patterning Before the Mongols Chapter 7. The Post-Mongol Synthesis Notes to Part3 4:

GEOMETRY

AND

THE

CONTRIBUTION

OF MATHEMATICAL

SCIENCES

Chapter 8. Theory and Praxis: Uses of Practical Geometry Chapter 9. Manuals of Practical Geometry and the Scroll Tradition Notes to Part 4 5:

GEOMETRY

AND

AESTHETIC

THEORY

Chapter 10. The Aesthetics of Proportion and Light Chapter 11. Geometric Abstraction and the Psychology of Visual Perception Chapter 12. The Semiotics of Ornament Notes to Part5

CATALOG

231 239

THE

: PATTERN

TYPES

AND

DRAWINGS

IN

THE

TOPKAPI

SCROLL

List of Pattern Types List of Drawings

THE TOPKAPI

SCROLL:

A COLOR

REPRODUCTION

349

THE MUQARNAS:

A GEOMETRIC

ANALYSIS

BY MOHAMMAD

AL-ASAD

361 363

MAP OF THE ISLAMIC WORLD BIBLIOGRAPHY OF PRINTED PRIMARY AND SECONDARY SOURCES

381

INDEX

GEOMETRIC

MODE

PREFACE

Drawings can reveal m u c h about architectural practice and design methods, p a r t i c u l a r l y w h e n a b u i l d i n g t r a d i t i o n lacks theoretical treatises; the

to a wide audience, b o t h specialists i n the Islamic

came to be k n o w n generically i n the I r a n i a n w o r l d

field and nonspecialists.

as girih (Persian, " k n o t " ) . I n part 1 this scroll

The scarcity o f i n f o r m a t i o n about architectural

is compared to other s u r v i v i n g scrolls and p a t t e r n

Islamic architectural heritage is a case i n p o i n t . I n

drafting methods i n the Islamic w o r l d , w h i c h

books a t t r i b u t e d to master builders p r a c t i c i n g

the p r e m o d e r n M u s l i m w o r l d references to a r c h i -

are often assumed to have been nonexistent, adds

i n the Islamic lands, a remarkable g r o u p o f d o c u -

tecture were often embedded i n a wide variety

to the significance o f the Topkapi scroll, the ear-

ments never before treated as a whole. Its prove-

o f n o n a r c h i t e c t u r a l texts and " h o w - t o " manuals

liest k n o w n d o c u m e n t o f its k i n d . A l t h o u g h this

nance, date, graphic conventions, and contents are

p r o v i d i n g simple instructions w i t h o u t theoretical

scroll t h r o w s new light o n h o w architectural

discussed together w i t h the h i t h e r t o underesti-

elaboration. These were c o m p l e m e n t e d by collec-

design was geometrically conceptualized, recorded,

mated role o f such scrolls i n disseminating design

tions o f w o r k s h o p drawings, jealously guarded

and t r a n s m i t t e d i n the p a r t i c u l a r context o f late

concepts, techniques, and tastes w i t h i n the Islamic

by master builders as privileged i n f o r m a t i o n , and

medieval I r a n , i t also raises m o r e general questions

w o r l d . T h e n , a c o m p a r i s o n o f the Topkapi scroll

by oral w o r k s h o p t r a d i t i o n s passed o n f r o m master

about the m o d e o f geometric p a t t e r n i n g that

w i t h c o n t e m p o r a r y late G o t h i c p a t t e r n books,

to apprentice over the generations.

d o m i n a t e d architectural revetments t h r o u g h o u t

i n w h i c h geometry plays a similar role i n generating

the Islamic w o r l d between the eleventh and

variegated designs, is followed by an assessment

the early sixteenth centuries.

o f the scroll's i m p l i c a t i o n s for T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n

This makes p a r t i c u l a r l y valuable the few r e m a i n i n g examples o f drawings that once mediated the conceptualization and transmission o f a r c h i tectural knowledge i n the Islamic w o r l d ; t h r o u g h

The scroll's geometric language parallels that o f late G o t h i c architectural drawings, a parallel

architectural practice. A catalog o f p a t t e r n types, a list o f drawings

these drawings one can begin to penetrate the

i n f o r m e d by a shared late antique c u l t u r a l heritage

illustrated w i t h overlays r e c o r d i n g u n i n k e d

theory and praxis o f architecture and o r n a m e n t .

that often engendered similar design methods

c o n s t r u c t i o n lines, and an appendix c o m p l e m e n t

The scroll preserved at the Topkapi Palace M u s e u m

and aesthetic sensibilities. N o d o u b t Byzantine

the first part o f the b o o k w i t h m o r e detailed

L i b r a r y and reproduced i n its entirety i n this

architectural practice, t o o , grew o u t o f this t r a d i -

descriptions o f the Topkapi scroll's patterns. Since

v o l u m e is an i m p o r t a n t discovery w i t h m a j o r

t i o n , b u t u n l i k e the medieval b u i l d i n g practice

most o f these t w o - and three-dimensional pat-

i m p l i c a t i o n s for Islamic and general architectural

o f Europe, w h i c h is relatively w e l l d o c u m e n t e d by

terns are repetitive variations o f geometric c o m -

history. I n a d d i t i o n to the i n f o r m a t i o n i t p r o -

extant w o r k s h o p drawings f r o m the t h i r t e e n t h

positions generated by similar g r i d systems, i t

vides about architectural practice, the scroll also

century o n w a r d , that o f B y z a n t i u m remains largely

w o u l d have been tedious to describe t h e m i n the

raises broader questions p e r t a i n i n g to the i n t e r -

u n d o c u m e n t e d . This is w h y I have chosen to focus

text. I t is suggested, therefore, that the reader

action between science and art, and promises to be

o n comparisons w i t h the L a t i n West, o n l y refer-

become familiar w i t h this catalog and list and the

relevant for theories o f o r n a m e n t , abstraction,

r i n g to the Byzantine architectural t r a d i t i o n w h e n

accompanying r e p r o d u c t i o n o f the scroll itself

aesthetics, and v i s i o n . M y decision to p u b l i s h this

relevant i n f o r m a t i o n was available.

before reading the rest o f the b o o k , where the geo-

rare d o c u m e n t , w h i c h I ascribe to late

fifteenth-

The Topkapi scroll's distinctive m o d e o f geo-

m e t r i c mode o f design codified i n the Topkapi

or sixteenth-century I r a n , was p r o m p t e d by the

m e t r i c design, d o m i n a t e d by i n t e r l o c k i n g star-and-

scroll is historicized and contextualized. The

necessity o f m a k i n g i t accessible i n its o r i g i n a l f o r m

p o l y g o n patterns i n two and three dimensions,

appendix is an essay by M o h a m m a d al-Asad that

X

PREFACE

addresses the spatial geometry o f the Topkapi

became codified i n scrolls that c o n t r i b u t e d to its

The b o o k concludes by addressing the semiotic

scroll's muqarnas projections by analyzing i n detail

l o n g life d u r i n g the late medieval p e r i o d . These

dimensions o f abstract decorative revetments

a single example chosen f r o m the scroll, i n f o r m e d

parts o f the b o o k draw u p o n a wide range o f

as distinctive visual i d i o m s f u n c t i o n i n g as i d e n t i t y

by the fifteenth-century T i m u r i d m a t h e m a t i c i a n

p r i m a r y sources capable o f t h r o w i n g light o n the

markers t h r o u g h o u t p r e m o d e r n Islamic history.

G h i y a t h a l - D i n Jamshid M a s ' u d al-Kashi's dis-

theory and praxis o f geometric design i n medieval

A case is made for the signifying power o f n o n -

cussion o f the muqarnas. This essay includes

Islamic settings.

figural patterns, generally dismissed as mere

computer-generated elevations and sections that

Part 3 traces the historical development and

dissect the i n d i v i d u a l components o f the chosen

contextual associations o f the girih m o d e , explor-

m u l t i l a y e r e d sign system adaptable to a wide v a r i -

t w o - d i m e n s i o n a l muqarnas p r o j e c t i o n , trans-

i n g where and h o w i t first flourished and c o n -

ety o f shifting contexts, rather t h a n as a static

l a t i n g i t i n t o v o l u m e t r i c forms.

t i n u e d to be elaborated w e l l i n t o the late fifteenth

m o l d o f timeless forms detached f r o m historical

and sixteenth centuries w h e n the Topkapi scroll

m e m o r y and c o n t e x t - b o u n d c u l t u r a l codes o f recognition.

Part 2 provides a c r i t i q u e o f the n i n e t e e n t h and t w e n t i e t h - c e n t u r y secondary l i t e r a t u r e o n the

appears to have been c o m p i l e d . Part 4 assesses the

so-called geometric arabesque as a backdrop for

c o n t r i b u t i o n o f the m a t h e m a t i c a l sciences to

the subsequent parts o f the b o o k . The Topkapi

architectural and artisanal practice at a t i m e w h e n

scroll's distinctive mode o f geometric p a t t e r n i n g

ars and scientia were i n t i m a t e l y l i n k e d i n the

d e c o r a t i o n . Geometric o r n a m e n t emerges as a

This b o o k w o u l d n o t have been w r i t t e n w i t h -

that came to be k n o w n as the girih was a r b i t r a r i l y

M u s l i m and C h r i s t i a n medieval worlds alike. I t

o u t the encouragement o f Filiz cagman o f the

labeled i n n i n e t e e n t h - c e n t u r y O r i e n t a l i s t texts

focuses o n treatises o f practical geometry and

Topkapi Palace M u s e u m L i b r a r y w h o b r o u g h t the

as a subcategory o f the arabesque, w i t h its geo-

applied m e n s u r a t i o n that played an i m p o r t a n t role

Topkapi scroll to m y a t t e n t i o n i n 1986. T h a t year

m e t r i c , vegetal, and calligraphic variants. Often

i n the education o f builders and artisans, c o m -

she displayed i t for the first t i m e i n an e x h i b i t i o n

interpreted i n essentialistic terms, as a timeless

p a r i n g the geometric constructions encountered

o n sixteenth-century O t t o m a n science, technology,

c o m p o n e n t o f Islamic visual c u l t u r e transcending

i n such practice-oriented " h o w - t o " manuals w i t h

and architecture that c o m m e m o r a t e d the four

historical analysis, the subject o f the geometric

those c o m p i l e d i n the Topkapi scroll.

h u n d r e d t h anniversary o f the death o f the a r c h i -

arabesque has generated a considerable l i t e r a t u r e

Part 5 analyzes Islamic texts that p r o v i d e a

tect Sinan. Since the published catalogs o f the

that continues to grow. I had to deconstruct the

glimpse o f medieval theories o f aesthetics and o f

palace l i b r a r y o m i t visual documents that lack

ahistorical discourse o f that l i t e r a t u r e before c o n -

the psychology o f vision that c o u l d have i n f o r m e d

accompanying texts, the scroll had remained

s t r u c t i n g m y alternative reading o f the girih as a

the taste for geometric abstraction and other

u n n o t i c e d u n t i l t h e n . H y p o t h e s i z i n g that the

contextually circumscribed mode o f design that

modes o f abstract p a t t e r n i n g . I t highlights the

Topkapi scroll may have belonged to the O t t o m a n

emerged and spread i n a p a r t i c u l a r c o n j u n c t u r e .

s i m i l a r i t y o f medieval aesthetic theories i n the

chief architect's office, D r . cagman dated i t o n

Parts 3, 4, and 5 deal w i t h the p o l i t i c a l , religious,

L a t i n West, B y z a n t i u m , and the Islamic w o r l d ,

the basis o f its paper and f o r m a t , w h i c h is compa-

p h i l o s o p h i c a l , scientific, and aesthetic contexts i n

theories engendered by a shared classical heritage

rable to other scrolls f r o m the late fifteenth or six-

w h i c h the girih was i n i t i a l l y f o r m u l a t e d i n the

that was r e m o l d e d i n each case by differing

teenth century preserved i n the Topkapi Palace's

early medieval Islamic w o r l d and subsequently

m o n o t h e i s t i c orientations and c u l t u r a l memories.

manuscript collection.

xi

PREFACE

The o n l y other m e n t i o n o f the Topkapi scroll

n u m e r o u s discussions f r o m w h i c h I have benefited

chair w h i l e using i t as a ladder f r o m w h i c h to p h o -

appeared i n the review o f Bernard O'Kane's

so m u c h . I w o u l d like to t h a n k D r . cagman and

tograph the selected drawings that I was granted

Timurid

the directorate o f the Topkapi Palace M u s e u m for

permission to p u b l i s h . I w o u l d like to express m y

M i c h a e l Rogers, w h o had seen i t at the e x h i b i t i o n .

h e l p i n g me o b t a i n the scroll's photographs and for

gratitude for the w a r m reception extended by

He described the scroll as follows:

a l l o w i n g me to p u b l i s h i t . I am also indebted

the institute's scholars and staff, w h i c h made the

Architecture

in Khurasan

i n 1989 by

to Betty Tyers o f the I n d i a n D e p a r t m e n t i n the

rare o p p o r t u n i t y o f rediscovering and e x a m i n -

V i c t o r i a & A l b e r t M u s e u m , w h o i n the w i n t e r

i n g the fragmentary Tashkent scrolls that m u c h

a standard c o m p i l a t i o n o f designs f r o m

o f 1987 helped me locate the nineteenth-century

m o r e memorable.

the c o u r t architect's office. Since i t bears

scrolls o f the Qajar state architect M i r z a Akbar,

I t is i n superb c o n d i t i o n and is evidently

I t was a pleasure to w o r k together o n this

arranged for H u g h Sainsburry to p h o t o g r a p h

project w i t h M o h a m m a d al-Asad w h o , after visit-

it is difficult to state definitely w h e n

t h e m , and gave me permission to p u b l i s h those

i n g Istanbul i n the summer o f 1988 to assist me

or where i t was p u t together t h o u g h i n

photographs. I am grateful to the V i c t o r i a & A l b e r t

w i t h copying the u n i n k e d , incised c o n s t r u c t i o n

D r . Filiz cagman's view i t c o u l d well

M u s e u m for c o n f i r m i n g that permission after

lines o f the Topkapi scroll, agreed to c o n t r i b u t e an

have been c o m p i l e d i n sixteenth-century

her retirement and for a l l o w i n g me to reproduce

essay o n the geometry o f the muqarnas to this

O t t o m a n Turkey. Squinch-nets, however,

i n this b o o k selected examples f r o m the M i r z a

book. I t was Elizabeth Dean H e r m a n n w h o

play no part i n O t t o m a n architecture and

A k b a r scrolls.

translated D r . al-Asad's and m y o w n sketches o f

neither date n o r draughtsman's

signature

the scroll repertoire o f designs for these

A s o m Urunbayev, director o f the I n s t i t u t e o f

finally

the u n i n k e d c o n s t r u c t i o n lines i n t o the overlays

must therefore have come i n t o the palace

O r i e n t a l Studies at the Academy o f Sciences i n

reproduced here i n the List o f Drawings. Conver-

library f r o m the East. The balance o f p r o b a -

Tashkent, p r o v i d e d invaluable guidance i n helping

sations w i t h Oleg Grabar about c o n v e r t i n g his

bilities w o u l d make t h e m T i m u r i d . I t is

me locate a collection o f fragmentary scrolls

A . W. M e l l o n Lectures o f 1989 i n t o a b o o k o n the

welcome news that i t is to be published by

( a t t r i b u t e d to sixteenth- and

theory o f Islamic o r n a m e n t (published i n 1992

seventeenth-century

Uzbek master builders p r a c t i c i n g i n Bukhara) i n

by Princeton University Press as The

his institute's m a n u s c r i p t l i b r a r y d u r i n g the s u m -

of Ornament)

i d e n t i f y designs f r o m i t i n the T i m u r i d

mer o f 1989. These documents were first kept at

Topkapi scroll; as always he enthusiastically shared

m o n u m e n t s w h i c h are published here.

the State Public L i b r a r y i n Tashkent and then

his ideas. He also made useful suggestions as a

transferred to the I n s t i t u t e o f O r i e n t a l Studies i n

reader o f the first draft o f the b o o k m a n u s c r i p t

the same city. Because o f the transfer and change

I s u b m i t t e d i n 1991 to the Getty Center for the

drawings, i t was D r . cagman w h o encouraged me

i n catalog n u m b e r the whereabouts o f these

H i s t o r y o f A r t and the H u m a n i t i e s , p r o v i d i n g

to w o r k o n the u n p u b l i s h e d T o p k a p i scroll, a

scrolls, cited i n former Soviet p u b l i c a t i o n s ,

invaluable guidelines for m y revisions. The c o m -

generous offer that opened up a subject w i t h fas-

remained u n k n o w n . I w o u l d like to t h a n k the

ments and constructive criticisms o f Yve-Alain

c i n a t i n g horizons. I am greatly indebted to her for

librarian, M r . M u n i r o v , who not only found them

Bois, N e i l Levine, M u h s i n M a h d i , M i c h a e l Rogers,

i n the stacks for me b u t forgave m y breaking his

A b d e l h a m i d Sabra, John Shearman, and H e n r i

D r . G u l r u Necipoglu-Kafadar

of Harvard

University for i t should be possible to 1

K n o w i n g m y special interest i n architectural

s u p p o r t o f m y research over the years and for o u r

Mediation

often had direct relevance for the

xii

PREFACE

Zerner o n the same m a n u s c r i p t were p a r t i c u l a r l y

Bukhara, Baku, M o r o c c o , L o n d o n , I s t a n b u l , and

culture(s) o f the Islamic w o r l d . I also hope t h a t m y

illuminating.

Paris was generously p r o v i d e d by the Aga K h a n

b o o k w i l l make a c o n t r i b u t i o n t o w a r d b r i d g i n g the

P r o g r a m for Islamic A r c h i t e c t u r e at H a r v a r d

t r a d i t i o n a l gap between studies o n the visual c u l -

For p r o v i d i n g help, i n f o r m a t i o n , encouragement, and s u p p o r t i n the course o f w r i t i n g

U n i v e r s i t y and M I T , a p r o g r a m t h a t has played an

tures o f the medieval C h r i s t i a n and M u s l i m wo r ld s,

this b o o k I extend m y thanks to Chahriyar A d l e ,

i m p o r t a n t role i n generating scholarly interest i n

a gap that accentuates the latter's exotic " o t h e r -

N u r h a n Atasoy, Sheila Blair, Francois Bucher,

the a r c h i t e c t u r a l practices o f the Islamic w o r l d .

ness" perpetuated by the essentialistic use o f such

H o w a r d Burns, Yvonne D o l d - S a m p l o n i u s ,

I w o u l d p a r t i c u l a r l y like to t h a n k Margaret

categories as the arabesque.

Massumeh Farhad, Lisa G o l o m b e k , W i l l i a m

Sevcenko for her e d i t o r i a l suggestions u p o n read-

C a m b r i d g e , Massachusetts

G r a h a m , Renata H o l o d , Cemal Kafadar, Joseph

i n g the first draft o f m y m a n u s c r i p t ; her expert

September

Koerner, Paul Losensky, Roy M o t t a h e d e h , Nevra

advice guided me t h r o u g h the i n i t i a l revision

N e c i p o g l u , Ayla Odekan, Bernard O'Kane, Yasser

process. The revised text was j o i n t l y edited i n 1994

Tabbaa, Wheeler T h a c k s t o n , Jr., Irene W i n t e r ,

by Lynne K o s t m a n and Diane M a r k - W a l k e r o f the

and m y parents, U l k u and H i k m e t N e c i p o g l u .

Getty Center w i t h w h o m i t has been a pleasure to

I a m also i n d e b t e d to Reif A l t o m a for t r a n s l a t i n g

w o r k o n this project. They were assisted by Tyson

the relevant secondary l i t e r a t u r e f r o m Russian

Gaskill, Benedicte G i l m a n , Stacy Miyagawa, and

i n t o English. Special thanks go to Evin Erder, N a o m i

Diane T i m b a , w h o spent m a n y hours g o i n g over the b i b l i o g r a p h y and text spellings and o b t a i n i n g

Kasahara, and Kate M c C o l l u m , m y resourceful

p h o t o permissions. The index was prepared by

research assistants, and to Andras Riedlmayer,

Carol Roberts. D u e to the unexpected delays i n the

w h o regularly b r o u g h t t o m y a t t e n t i o n new p u b l i -

p u b l i c a t i o n schedule, I was compelled at t h a t t i m e

cations. Jeffrey Spurr facilitated the search for

to update the b i b l i o g r a p h y , as m u c h as possible,

a p p r o p r i a t e i l l u s t r a t i o n s i n the visual collections

and to i n d u l g e i n f u r t h e r revisions t h a t refined

o f the H a r v a r d U n i v e r s i t y Fine A r t s Library.

some o f m y arguments. Despite these revisions I

A c k n o w l e d g m e n t s for photographs p u b l i s h e d w i t h

have no d o u b t t h a t skeptics w i l l r e m a i n . H a v i n g

the permission o f various libraries and collections

chosen to address a n u m b e r o f controversial issues

are i n c l u d e d i n the captions; all r e p r o d u c t i o n s

and to venture b o l d l y i n t o such fields as intellec-

f r o m books were p h o t o g r a p h e d by John C o o k w i t h

t u a l history, the h i s t o r y o f science, l i t e r a r y theory,

the exception o f figs. 119 and 120, w h i c h were p h o -

and aesthetics, I p r o b a b l y have opened myself to

tographed by John Kiffe o f the Getty Center. The

p o t e n t i a l c r i t i c i s m . I t o o k up t h a t challenge, h o w -

scroll itself was p h o t o g r a p h e d by Hadiye Cangokce

ever, i n the hope o f s t i m u l a t i n g critical discussion

and C e m cetin. F u n d i n g for research travel to

that may help dismantle some o f the stereotypes

M o s c o w , L e n i n g r a d , Tashkent, Samarqand,

that still enjoy p o p u l a r i t y i n the study o f the visual

1. Rogers 1989,

135.

1994

NOTES TO THE READER

In rendering passages from sources in foreign languages i n t o English, published translations have been used whenever they were available. Otherwise, the translations are m y o w n . Foreign terms a n d titles are anglicized w h e n they have entered the language. Arabic a n d Persian are transliterated, w i t h m i n o r m o d i f i c a t i o n s , according to the system used i n the Journal

of Middle

East Studies.

International

Modern Turkish

o r t h o g r a p h y has been used t h r o u g h o u t except for direct quotations f r o m O t t o m a n T u r k i s h texts, w h i c h are transliterated according to the system adopted by Islam Ansiklopedisi.

Persian a n d Arabic

proper names a n d c o m m o n terms (except when they are quoted) are spelled w i t h o u t diacritical marks, aside f r o m ayn and hamza. Certain i n c o n c

sistencies were inevitable due t o the different systems o f t r a n s l i t e r a t i o n used i n quotations f r o m other books a n d i n the titles o f works cited i n the bibliography. To s i m p l i f y matters, A . D . dates are used t h r o u g h o u t . For the general readership, dates are given for most o f the names o f historical personages a n d dynasties u p o n first m e n t i o n ; these dates are repeated i n the index for reference. I l l u s t r a tions are grouped i n several categories: figures dist r i b u t e d i n parts 1 t h r o u g h 5 (referred to as figs.), the Topkapi scroll r e p r o d u c t i o n a n d overlay drawings (referred t o as cat. nos.), and D r . al-Asad's computer-generated elevations and sections (referred to as ills.).

PART

1.

THE SCROLL

TRADITION

These drawings are not kept separate nor bound as books, but are fastened

together

side by side with gum, like the Hebrew rolls of the Law, and are preserved in rolls.

—Caspar P u r d o n C l a r k e

1

CHAPTER

1. ARCHITECTURAL DRAWINGS AND SCROLLS IN THE ISLAMIC

The Topkapi scroll, the p o i n t o f departure for this

WORLD

o f the p l a n directly o n the g r o u n d . T h e h i s t o r i a n

reported that w h e n A h m a d I b n T u l u n decided t o

2

study, is the best-preserved example o f its k i n d ,

al-Tabari (839-923) explained h o w the same plan

b u i l d this mosque he met w i t h his architect, w h o

w i t h far-reaching i m p l i c a t i o n s for the theory and

was delineated w i t h lines traced i n ashes, c o t t o n

drew its sketch o n p a r c h m e n t so that the ruler

praxis o f geometric design i n Islamic architecture

seeds, and naphtha; these materials were then

c o u l d c o m p r e h e n d the design clearly.

and o r n a m e n t . Created by master builders i n the

set afire so that the caliph, standing at the center,

5

The existence o f conventions for representing

late medieval I r a n i a n w o r l d , the scroll compiles

c o u l d w a t c h t h e m b u r n and thus better visualize

architecture o n p a r c h m e n t can be deduced f r o m

a r i c h repertory o f geometric drawings for w a l l sur-

the design. A l - K h a t i b al-Baghdadi's (1002-1071)

an early K o r a n m a n u s c r i p t discovered i n Yemen,

faces and vaults. N o t an isolated case, this i m p o r -

h i s t o r y o f Baghdad referred t o b o t h the tracing o f

most likely d a t i n g f r o m before the tenth century

tant d o c u m e n t belongs t o a once-widespread

the plan o n the g r o u n d and a detailed d r a w i n g sent

w h e n the manufacture o f paper spread t h r o u g h -

Islamic t r a d i t i o n o f scrolls i n w h i c h geometric pat-

to the Byzantine ruler i n w h i c h "Baghdad's l a n d ,

out the M u s l i m w o r l d . T w o o f the Koran's folios

3

terns ranging f r o m g r o u n d plans and vault p r o -

markets, thoroughfares, palaces, and canals o n

c o n t a i n architectural representations; each depicts

jections t o epigraphic panels and architectural

b o t h the East and West sides were i l l u s t r a t e d . . . .

an arcaded mosque shown b o t h i n plan and ele-

o r n a m e n t i n diverse media appeared side b y side.

W h e n the k i n g was d r i n k i n g , he w o u l d call for the

v a t i o n . The use o f drawings i n medieval Islamic

A n i n t e r p r e t a t i o n o f the Topkapi scroll's drawings,

i l l u s t r a t i o n and d r i n k a toast, l o o k i n g at the draw-

architectural practice is also i m p l i e d i n p h i l o s o p h i -

therefore, must be framed by a discussion o f the

i n g . . . . H e used t o say: I have never seen an illus-

cal and ethical texts. The philosopher al-Farabi's

history o f architectural drawings and scrolls i n

t r a t i o n o f a better b u i l t p l a c e . " A n o t h e r instance

(Alfarabius or Avennasar, 870-950) Fusul al-

the Islamic w o r l d .

o f plans being sent f r o m Baghdad t o B y z a n t i u m

madamXAphorisms

is recorded w i t h reference t o the suburban palace

described the p l a n n i n g architect as the chief o f

w o r k i n g drawings f r o m the p r e - M o n g o l era

o f Bryas, b u i l t at C o n s t a n t i n o p l e i n 823 for the

those w h o execute his drawings (rasm) and c o n -

despite occasional textual references t o plans.

emperor T h e o p h i l u s o n the basis o f drawings

cepts. Similarly, the p h i l o s o p h e r - h i s t o r i a n I b n

The historian-geographer al-Ya qubi ( d . 897),

b r o u g h t by John the Syncellus, ambassador t o the

Miskawayh's ( d . 1030) b o o k o f ethics, the

for example, described the f o u n d a t i o n o f the

Abbasid c o u r t . A r c h i t e c t u r a l drawings were also

al-akhlaq

r o u n d city o f Baghdad by the Abbasid caliph

used i n Egypt a r o u n d that t i m e d u r i n g the f o u n -

pares the architect-engineer t o an a r m y c o m m a n -

a l - M a n s u r i n 762, and he m e n t i o n e d the tracing

d a t i o n o f the mosque o f I b n T u l u n i n 878. I t is

der whose "supervision is w o r t h a considerable

There are no k n o w n Islamic architectural

c

4

6

o f the statesman), for example,

Tadhib

(The refinement o f character), c o m -

4

PART

1. THE SCROLL TRADITION

a m o u n t o f labor o n the part o f the people w h o t o i l

h o w the A n a t o l i a n Seljuq ruler A l a ' a l - D i n K a y q u -

f u l l vault. The slab was analyzed i n detail by U l r i c h

u n d e r h i m and carry o u t his p l a n s . "

bad had d e t e r m i n e d the p l a n o f the Kubadabad

H a r b o n the basis o f r e m a i n i n g muqarnas vault

Palace i n 1236. The sultan drew the design o f

fragments at T a k h t - i Sulayman, w h i c h were

b u i l d i n g s and d r a w i n g plans can also be inferred

each palace structure according to his o w n c o n -

composed o f prefabricated elements cast i n plas-

f r o m theological w r i t i n g s t h a t stressed "arguments

ception and i n d i c a t e d the placement o f r o o m s .

ter m o l d s and ordered i n corbeled tiers w i t h

f r o m design" to prove God's existence. The t e n t h -

The palace complex was t h e n b u i l t o n the basis o f

filler

c e n t u r y author a l - M a q d i s i o f B a l k h , for example,

the sultan's sketch and under the d i r e c t i o n o f the

c o m p a r e d the creation o f the universe to the c o n -

supervisor o f architectural w o r k s .

7

The role o f the architect i n c o n c e p t u a l i z i n g

s t r u c t i o n o f a m o n u m e n t . Just as i t w o u l d be

c

units.

1 4

This plaster plate reveals t h a t the c o m p l i c a t e d geometric m e t h o d o f designing muqarnas vaults

11

Several later M u s l i m rulers are also r e p o r t e d to

m u s t have been r a p i d l y disseminated t h r o u g h

impossible to imagine a finished b u i l d i n g to have

have d r a w n plans i n order to c o m m u n i c a t e t h e i r

such t w o - d i m e n s i o n a l drawings. Texts suggest

been created " w i t h o u t the maker w h o made i t ,

ideas to builders. The early f o u r t e e n t h - c e n t u r y

that drawings d i d i n fact play an i m p o r t a n t role i n

the fashioner w h o fashioned i t , the expert w h o

I l k h a n i d m o n a r c h Ghazan K h a n , for example,

the d i f f u s i o n o f f o u r t e e n t h - c e n t u r y architectural

f o r m e d i t , and the planner w h o made its p l a n , " the

was described by his vizier Rashid a l - D i n as hav-

i n n o v a t i o n s f r o m the I l k h a n i d capitals to p e r i p h -

universe c o u l d n o t have been created w i t h o u t an

i n g personally sketched the p l a n (tarh) o f his o w n

eral areas, c o n t r i b u t i n g to the creation o f a unified

o m n i p o t e n t G o d responsible for all these steps.

t o m b complex i n T a b r i z .

A n o t h e r reference f r o m

i m p e r i a l style associated w i t h c o u r t patronage. We

The same analogy was used by the S u n n i t h i n k e r

this p e r i o d to a plan or d r a w i n g (rasmi u tarhi) o n

k n o w t h a t plans (tarh) were sent f r o m the I l k h a n i d

and th e o l og ian M u h a m m a d al-Ghazali (1058-1111)

paper (kaghaz)

w h o said t h a t i t was the customary procedure for

(waqfiyya)

the architect t o sketch the p l a n o f a m o n u m e n t ,

Tabriz, a t o m b complex b u i l t for Rashid a l - D i n .

the b u i l d e r t o b u i l d i t , and the decorator to deco-

A l t h o u g h these plans o n paper have n o t survived,

8

12

appears i n the e n d o w m e n t deed

i m p e r i a l capital Tabriz to Yazd for the t o m b c o m -

dated 1309 o f the R a b - i Rashidi i n

plex o f Rashid a l - D i n ' s son-in-law, Shams a l - D i n .

c

1 3

A n o t h e r exchange o f drawings (tarh) between Tabriz and Yazd centered o n a hospital project

rate i t : " H o w e v e r , this is n o t the case w i t h G o d

the earliest k n o w n example o f an architectural

c o m m i s s i o n e d by Shams a l - D i n ; s i m i l a r l y , plans

M o s t H i g h . I n every instance H e H i m s e l f is the

d r a w i n g incised o n plaster dates f r o m the same

were dispatched f r o m Shiraz to Yazd for the

Planner, B u i l d e r and D e c o r a t o r . "

p e r i o d . I t is a 50-centimeter plaster slab s h o w i n g

madrasa complex o f the a m i r G h i y a t h a l - D i n .

9

Occasionally m o r e specific references to a r c h i -

the p r o j e c t i o n o f a muqarnas quarter vault (fig. 1),

1 5

1 6

These references seem to p o i n t to an increas-

tectural drawings can also be f o u n d . For example,

w h i c h was discovered d u r i n g the G e r m a n excava-

the Persian h i s t o r i a n Bayhaqi (995-1077) recorded

tions i n T a k h t - i Sulayman, the site o f a M o n g o l

paper i n I r a n and Central Asia d u r i n g the I l k h a n i d

that the Ghaznavid r u l e r M a s u d I (r. 1031-1041)

palace b u i l t by the I l k h a n i d r u l e r Abaqa K h a n

p e r i o d (1256-1336). After the M o n g o l conquest o f

h i m s e l f drew the plans for his b u i l d i n g s o n paper:

i n the 1270s. The design o n the plate is composed

these r e g i o n s — n o w u n i t e d w i t h East Asia under

" H e b u i l t w i t h his o w n knowledge o f geometry,

o f incised squares, triangles, and r h o m b o i d s (cor-

the Pax M o n g o l i c a (1260-1368)—an abundance

and drew the lines w i t h his o w n exalted h a n d

r e s p o n d i n g to 45-, 90-, and 135-degree muqarnas

o f locally p r o d u c e d , inexpensive paper appears to

and t h a t a m o n g these same facilities his geometry

u n i t s ) . I f d o u b l e d , the design c o u l d have been

have p a r t i c u l a r l y encouraged architectural draw-

was p a r t i c u l a r l y m a r v e l l o u s . "

used i n the c o n s t r u c t i o n o f a muqarnas h a l f vault,

ings o n this m e d i u m . Rag paper had been i n t r o -

and i f q u a d r u p l e d , i t c o u l d generate a muqarnas

duced to Samarqand by Chinese prisoners o f

c

1 0

S i m i l a r l y the

t h i r t e e n t h - c e n t u r y h i s t o r i a n I b n B i b i described

i n g use o f architectural drawings o n plaster and

ARCHITECTURAL

war i n 751, and because i t was m u c h cheaper than papyrus and parchment, its use had spread t h r o u g h o u t the Islamic w o r l d after the t e n t h century. I t was n o t , however, u n t i l the M o n g o l s arrived i n the 1220s that an extensive paper i n d u s t r y developed i n Tabriz and other I r a n i a n towns under Chinese i n f l u e n c e — i n t e r e s t i n g l y this occurred a r o u n d the t i m e that a paper i n d u s t r y was being established i n Europe. The i m p l i c a t i o n s o f this i m p o r t a n t technological change for the transmission o f architectural knowledge i n the Islamic w o r l d are o b v i o u s .

17

The ease o f w o r k i n g

w i t h a pen o n paper w o u l d have increased the sophistication o f graphic conventions; n o longer were architects restricted t o the m e d i u m o f plaster on w h i c h designs c o u l d o n l y be r o u g h l y scratched. The T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n c u l t u r a l sphere, w h i c h extended f r o m the A n a t o l i a n f r o n t i e r t h r o u g h Central Asia f r o m the late fourteenth t o the early sixteenth century, i n h e r i t e d the M o n g o l - I l k h a n i d architectural t r a d i t i o n as elaborated u p o n b y such M o n g o l successor states as the Jalayirids (13361432) and Muzaffarids (1314-1393). I n this p e r i o d , when the abundance o f paper c o n t r i b u t e d t o an unprecedented development i n the arts o f the b o o k , architectural drawings seem t o have been m o r e w i d e l y used t h a n ever before. The renowned T i m u r i d architect -engineer Ustad Qawam a l - D i n Shirazi ( f l . 1410-1438), for example, was n o t o n l y skilled i n engineering-geometry and architecture (mi mdri) c

(tarrdhi).

18

(muhandasi)

b u t also i n d r a w i n g

That architectural drawings were also

. used i n the Arab w o r l d at this t i m e can be deduced

DRAWINGS

A N D SCROLLS

I N T H E ISLAMIC

WORLD

1. Plan of a muqarnas quarter vault discovered in Takht-i Sulayman, Iran, ca. 1270, incised plaster slab. From Harb 1978, pl. 1. Photo: Courtesy Deutsches Archaologisches Institut, Abteilung Teheran.

5

6

PART

1.

THE

SCROLL

TRADITION

3. Ottoman plan of a double bath, second half of the fifteenth century, red and black ink on paper. Istanbul, Topkapi Saray1 Muzesi Arsjvi, E. 9595/7. 2a. Ottoman plan with three options for a mausoleum project, fifteenth or sixteenth century, red and black ink on paper. Istanbul, Topkapi Saray1 Muzesi Arsivi, E. 9495/11.

2b. Detail of figure 2a, "dead drawing" of the incised squared grid shown in ink. Drawing by Behcet Unsal.

f r o m the h i s t o r i a n I b n K h a l d u n ' s (1332-1406) ref-

A t other times, the superintendents o f

erence to plans d r a w n for m o n u m e n t a l projects:

c o n s t r u c t i o n o f royal b u i l d i n g s , i n c o m -

" A r c h i t e c t u r e is also needed w h e n rulers and

pany w i t h the w o n d e r - w o r k i n g architects,

people o f a dynasty b u i l d large towns and h i g h

lay before the critical royal eye plans o f

m o n u m e n t s [haydkil].

proposed edifices. . . . For the m a j o r i t y

They t r y their u t m o s t to

make good plans and b u i l d tall structures w i t h

o f b u i l d i n g s he h i m s e l f draws the plans.

technical perfection, so that [architecture] can

A n d o n the plans prepared by the skillful

reach its highest d e v e l o p m e n t . "

architects, after l o n g consideration he

19

References to the use o f architectural drawings

makes appropriate alterations and emen-

o n paper m u l t i p l y considerably d u r i n g the post-

dations. A n d o n the final approved plans

T i m u r i d era, p a r t i c u l a r l y i n the w r i t t e n sources o f

s u b m i t t e d by the strong p i l l a r o f state and

the O t t o m a n , Safavid, and M u g h a l empires, attest-

f i r m a r m o f sovereignty, Yamin al-Daula

i n g to a relatively widespread d r a f t i n g t r a d i t i o n o f

Asaf K h a n , he writes d o w n his sacred

w h i c h o n l y a few examples have survived. Frequent

j u d i c i o u s notes to serve as a guide for

textual references i n sixteenth- and seventeenth-

the b u i l d i n g overseers and architects o f

century O t t o m a n and M u g h a l sources to architec-

buildings.

22

t u r a l drawings sent f r o m dynastic capitals t o the provinces testify to their role i n disseminating

O n the basis o f reports f r o m foreign travelers,

s t r u c t u r a l and decorative design concepts, a

it appears that architectural drawings were also

role that has so far been u n d e r e s t i m a t e d .

widely used i n Safavid I r a n . Engelbert Kaempfer

20

The

seventeenth-century French traveler Jean Chardin's

w r i t i n g i n the late seventeenth century, for

reference to a palace b u i l t by the Safavid shah

example, referred to architects at the Safavid c o u r t

Tahmasp i n Qazvin o n the basis o f a p l a n pre-

w h o prepared plans and drawings for the royal

sented to h i m by a T u r k i s h (presumably O t t o m a n )

edifices.

architect suggests that occasionally architectural

these architects (maamar, i.e., mir mar) as " c o n -

drawings may have m o v e d f r o m one c o u r t to

tractors for m a k i n g the p l a n and d r a w i n g o f

another.

a large edifice" b u t added that their d r a f t i n g

21

Indeed, plans f r o m Baghdad and Isfahan

are reported to have been available at the c o u r t o f

23

I n 1660 Raphael D u Mans described c

methods differed considerably f r o m those o f their

the M u g h a l emperor Shah Jahan (r. 1628-1666)

European colleagues: " H e r e they use, depending

whose a b i l i t y to draw plans (tarh) was described by

o n t h e i r capacity, pens to draw w i t h , b u t u n l i k e

his c o u r t h i s t o r i a n A b d a l - H a m i d L a h o r i : c

o u r [architects] they do n o t k n o w h o w to represent a b i g palace i n terms o f its ichonography, its o r t h o g r a p h y , or its perspective, and as i f i t were

ARCHITECTURAL

DRAWINGS

AND

SCROLLS

IN THE

4. Ottoman plan of a bath, second half of the fifteenth century, ink and yellow wash on paper. Istanbul, Topkapi Sarayi Muzesi Arsivi, E. 9495/12.

ISLAMIC

WORLD

7

6. Squared tracing board prepared for the plan of a formal garden laid out for the Mughal emperor Babur, detail of a double-page miniature painting. From Babur, Baburnama (Memoirs of Babur), copied ca. 1580. By courtesy of the Board of Trustees of the Victoria & Albert Museum, London, I . M . 1913-276 and I.M. 1913-276A. 7. Attributed to an Uzbek master builder from Bukhara, plan of a mausoleum or centrally planned pavilion, sixteenth century, red and black ink and colors (orange, green) on paper. Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Institute of Oriental Studies, Uzbek Academy of Sciences.

already capable o f being i n h a b i t e d . "

2 4

The appearance o f such drawings can be deduced f r o m s u r v i v i n g O t t o m a n g r o u n d plans drawn o n squared paper, the earliest examples o f w h i c h are datable to the late fifteenth and sixteenth centuries (figs. 2 - 5 ) , and f r o m a sixteenth-century m i n i a t u r e , w h i c h depicts the M u g h a l emperor Babur inspecting the laying o u t o f a f o r m a l garden. Part o f this image shows an architect h o l d i n g a red tracing b o a r d prepared w i t h lines o f w h i t e chalk f o r m i n g a squared g r i d on w h i c h the rectilinear garden's p l a n w o u l d have been traced (fig. 6 ) .

2 5

The use o f grid-based

g r o u n d plans i n O t t o m a n , M u g h a l , and Uzbek architectural practice p r o b a b l y o r i g i n a t e d i n T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n precedents, the graphic conventions o f w h i c h , t h o u g h adapted to different local t r a d i t i o n s , c o n t i n u e d to be influential i n Rajput I n d i a and Qajar I r a n d u r i n g the eighteenth and n i n e t e e n t h centuries (figs. 7-11).

26

Some o f

these s u r v i v i n g g r o u n d plans are i n c l u d e d i n scrolls that are s i m i l a r to the T o p k a p i scroll, and this makes t h e m directly relevant to the subject o f the present study. U n t i l the recent discovery o f the Topkapi scroll, the earliest k n o w n Islamic architectural scrolls were those n o w kept at the I n s t i t u t e o f O r i e n t a l Studies at the Academy o f Sciences i n Tashkent. These fragmentary scrolls have been a t t r i b u t e d by Soviet scholars to an Uzbek master b u i l d e r or a g u i l d o f architects p r a c t i c i n g i n sixteenth-century Bukhara. Similar scrolls were still being used by the t r a d i t i o n a l M u s l i m builders o f Central Asia i n

5. Ottoman plan of a bath, late sixteenth century, red and black ink on paper. Vienna, Osterreichische Nationalbibliothek, Cod. 8615, fol. 153r.

8

PART

1.

THE

SCROLL

TRADITION

8. Attributed to an Uzbek master builder from Bukhara, plan of a madrasa or caravanserai, sixteenth century, red and black ink and colors (yellow, green) on paper. Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Institute of Oriental Studies, Uzbek Academy of Sciences.

9. Plan of an unidentified building, from the collection of drawings once belonging to the Qajar royal architect Mirza Akbar, late eighteenth or nineteenth century, ink on paper. By courtesy of the Board of Trustees of the Victoria & Albert Museum, London.

10. Plan and elevation of a Rajput palace in Jaipur, eighteenth century, ink on paper. From Tillotson 1987,104, fig. 129. Jaipur, Rajasthan, City Palace Museum.

11. Detail from the plan of a Rajput palace in Jaipur, eighteenth century, ink on paper. From Begley and Desai 1989, 10, fig. 10. Jaipur, Rajasthan, City Palace Museum.

ARCHITECTURAL

DRAWINGS

AND

SCROLLS

IN

THE

ISLAMIC

9

WORLD

12. Attributed to an Uzbek master builder from Bukhara, scroll fragment with repeat units for geometric patterns and inscriptions intended for banna'i brick masonry, sixteenth century, ink and colors on paper. From Baklanov 1947,103, p1. 1. Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Institute of Oriental Studies, Uzbek Academy of Sciences.

the early t w e n t i e t h century, and as we shall see,

the Leningrad Academy o f Sciences o n the i n i t i a -

1958 by G. A . Gaganov, w h o a t t e m p t e d to classify

their c o n t i n u e d use has been d o c u m e n t e d i n

tive o f A . A . Semenov, the curator o f manuscripts

their u n d e r l y i n g g r i d systems.

c o n t e m p o r a r y I r a n , I r a q , and M o r o c c o as well.

at the State Public L i b r a r y i n Tashkent, they were

scrolls were subsequently referred to i n several

30

The Tashkent

transferred to that l i b r a r y and classified by N i k o l a i

Soviet p u b l i c a t i o n s , i n c l u d i n g those o f Lazar

patterns for t w o - and three-dimensional architec-

Borisovich Baklanov i n the early 1940s. They

Rempe1', Galina Pugachenkova, Pugachenkova

t u r a l revetments, w i t h grid-based g r o u n d plans,

finally ended up as a m i x e d g r o u p at the I n s t i t u t e

and Rempe1', M i t k h a t Bulatov, and most recently

appear to have been c o m p i l e d by master builders

o f O r i e n t a l Studies i n Tashkent where they are

Iosif N o t k i n .

responsible for c o o r d i n a t i n g all aspects o f a b u i l d -

n o w kept i n eight folders, having been cut up for

issues, i n c l u d i n g the m a t h e m a t i c a l analysis o f geo-

i n g , i n c l u d i n g its decorative p r o g r a m . A l t h o u g h

easier preservation and pasted o n t o separate card-

m e t r i c patterns, the relationship o f scroll patterns

they constitute a d r a f t i n g t r a d i t i o n that was once

b o a r d sheets. A t the t i m e o f t h e i r discovery the

to plan types and architectural revetments seen i n

quite widespread i n the Islamic w o r l d , i t is difficult

mode o f geometric design codified i n these frag-

the extant Islamic m o n u m e n t s o f Central Asia, the

to determine w h e n such scrolls first came i n t o use.

m e n t a r y scrolls was identified as the girih

I find i t t e m p t i n g to hypothesize that their scroll

" k n o t " ) by t r a d i t i o n a l Central Asian master b u i l d -

These scrolls, w h i c h often c o m b i n e geometric

(Persian,

3 1

These studies addressed various

m a t h e m a t i c a l bases o f architectural practice, and the i m p l i c i t theory o f geometric h a r m o n i z a t i o n

f o r m a t was adopted under influences c o m i n g

ers w h o still used such scrolls. This t e r m refers to

e m b o d i e d i n the Tashkent scrolls. I t was Bulatov

f r o m M o n g o l China d u r i n g the I l k h a n i d p e r i o d .

the n o d a l p o i n t s or vertices o f the weblike geo-

w h o observed that the t w o - and three-dimensional

However, s u r v i v i n g examples o f early t h i r t e e n t h -

m e t r i c g r i d systems or c o n s t r u c t i o n lines used i n

patterns c o m p i l e d i n these scrolls testified to the

century A y y u b i d pilgrimage scrolls, w h i c h sche-

generating variegated patterns for architectural

use o f similar geometric processes i n architectural

matically depict the layouts o f Islamic sanctuaries

plans and decorative revetments i n two and three

design and geometric o r n a m e n t to create an over-

i n plan and elevation, suggest that the scroll for-

dimensions (each " k n o t " center where a n u m b e r

all sense o f u n i t y i n the b r i c k - a n d - t i l e based a r c h i -

m a t employed by master builders may already have

o f c o n s t r u c t i o n lines intersects has an n-fold

tecture o f Central Asia, w h i c h t h r i v e d o n lavish

been i n use before the arrival o f the M o n g o l s .

r o t a t i o n a l s y m m e t r y ) . The same master builders

decorative

27

effects.

32

Given the scarcity o f i n f o r m a t i o n , the question

differentiated this m o d e o f geometric design f r o m

o f w h e n Islamic architectural scrolls o r i g i n a t e d

curvilinear vegetal patterns governed by a less r i g -

o f several scrolls, the earliest two o f w h i c h have

cannot yet definitively be resolved.

orous, i m p l i c i t u n d e r l y i n g geometry; the latter

been dated to the sixteenth century o n the basis o f

they identified as islimi (the spiraling ivy or vine-

their Samarqandi rag paper. The first o f these frag-

T H E

T A S H K E N T

S C R O L L S

Before t u r n i n g to the Topkapi scroll itself, let us briefly consider comparable s u r v i v i n g scrolls. The

The eight folders i n Tashkent c o n t a i n fragments

a n d - t e n d r i l m o t i f ) , a t e r m sometimes c o r r u p t e d

ments (38 c m X 160 c m ) consists o f five geometric

i n t o islmi

patterns and a design for a naskhi i n s c r i p t i o n o n

(Islamic).

28

The Tashkent scrolls were briefly discussed i n two articles by Baklanov.

29

The first o f these

squared paper i n t e n d e d for transfer to b r i c k masonry (fig. 12).

33

bannai

The second fragment,

fragmentary Tashkent scrolls, o r i g i n a l l y belonging

described the grid-based g r o u n d plans and m u q a r -

d r a w n o n the same type o f Samarqandi paper, also

to the collection o f the Bukhara M u s e u m , were

nas vault projections, w h i l e the second focused o n

38 centimeters h i g h , is a part o f a scroll w i t h three

analyzed i n several Soviet publications f o l l o w i n g

patterns for t w o - d i m e n s i o n a l geometric o r n a m e n t .

g r o u n d plans superimposed o n squared grids and

their discovery i n the 1930s. After being restored at

These geometric patterns were also analyzed i n

a segment o f a f o u r t h p l a n ; these are grouped

10

PART

1. THE SCROLL

TRADITION

13. Attributed to an Uzbek master builder from Bukhara, plan for a muqarnas quarter vault, sixteenth century, red and black ink and color (green) on paper. Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Institute of Oriental Studies, Uzbek Academy of Sciences.

14. Attributed to an Uzbek master builder from Bukhara, plan for a muqarnas quarter vault, sixteenth century, red and black ink and colors (orange, yellow, green) on paper. Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Institute of Oriental Studies, Uzbek Academy of Sciences.

together w i t h three g r o u n d projections o f m u q a r -

sists o f projections for intersecting arch-net vaults

nas quarter vaults i n square frames and another

f o r m i n g stellate patterns (figs. 2 0 - 2 2 ) , accom-

muqarnas vault composed o f four stellate domelets

panied b y designs for t w o - d i m e n s i o n a l i n t e r -

decorated w i t h square kufic calligraphy (see figs. 7,

l o c k i n g geometric patterns (figs. 2 3 - 2 6 ) and epig-

8,13-15).

34

The p o l y c h r o m a t i c designs i n b o t h o f

composed o f a series o f r i b l i k e intersecting p o i n t e d

reed pen i n black and red i n k , h i g h l i g h t e d w i t h

arch profiles and created b y p r o j e c t i n g a stellate

orange, yellow, ocher tones, and green, often used

geometric p a t t e r n o n t o a curved surface—are

i n c o m b i n a t i o n w i t h s t i p p l i n g o r cross-hatching t o

c o m m o n l y k n o w n as yazdi bandi ( b i n d i n g o r k n o t

distinguish different spatial layers collapsed o n t o

m e t h o d associated w i t h Yazd); they were w i d e l y

a single plane. T h e i r sophisticated draftsmanship

used i n the architecture o f I r a n and Central Asia

and color-coded graphic conventions testify to the

f r o m the T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n p e r i o d o n w a r d .

advantages o f paper over plaster, an observation

15. Attributed to an Uzbek master builder from Bukhara, plan for a muqarnas quarter vault, sixteenth century, red and black ink and colors (orange, yellow, green) on paper. Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Institute of Oriental Studies, Uzbek Academy of Sciences.

raphy. Such arch-net (or squinch-net) v a u l t s —

these Tashkent scroll fragments are d r a w n w i t h a

3 6

Executed w i t h simple drafting i n s t r u m e n t s

c o n f i r m e d b y c o m p a r i n g their detailed muqarnas

(ruler, d i v i d i n g compass, and set squares), the

drawings w i t h the simple muqarnas quarter vault

Tashkent scrolls, t h e n , consist o f f o r m a l drawings

p r o j e c t i o n scratched o n the I l k h a n i d plaster tablet

o f squared g r o u n d plans, geometric and calli-

f r o m T a k h t - i Sulayman (see fig. 1).

graphic patterns, and g r o u n d projections o f

The r e m a i n i n g six folders at Tashkent are gen-

muqarnas o r arch-net vaults contained i n square

erally dated t o the sixteenth century b u t may w e l l

and rectangular frames. They appear to have been

include later drawings f r o m the seventeenth cen-

w o r k s h o p catalogs prepared t o preserve the m e m -

tury. These folders c o n t a i n scroll fragments (exe-

ory o f codified t w o - and three-dimensional ideal

cuted o n smaller pieces o f paper) w i t h designs

patterns; these were generated b y various types o f

typical o f Uzbek architecture. They are d o m i n a t e d

u n d e r l y i n g geometric g r i d systems, the construc-

by projections for muqarnas quarter vaults r e n -

t i o n lines o f w h i c h are i n d i c a t e d either as i n k e d

dered either i n black i n k ( w i t h some units m a r k e d

outlines or as u n i n k e d " d e a d " drawings incised

by small black circles) o r i n black i n k h i g h l i g h t e d

o n the paper surface. They are based o n the funda-

w i t h red, green, and s t i p p l i n g (figs. 16-19). These

m e n t a l concept o f the repeat u n i t , the fragment

muqarnas projections, contained i n square o r

o f an overall p a t t e r n meant t o be m u l t i p l i e d

nearly square frames o f various sizes, are simpler

or rotated b y s y m m e t r y .

and smaller t h a n those i n c l u d e d i n the previously

explanatory texts o r measurements, these drawings

discussed scroll fragments (see figs. 13-15).

seem t o have served as an aide-memoire for a r c h i -

35

The

37

Unaccompanied by

second largest g r o u p o f drawings i n these six f o l d -

tects and master builders w h o were already f a m i l -

ers, executed i n simple b l a c k - i n k outlines, c o n -

iar t h r o u g h experience w i t h the coded graphic

ARCHITECTURAL

DRAWINGS

AND

SCROLLS

IN

THE

ISLAMIC

WORLD

11

16. Attributed to an Uzbek master builder from Bukhara, plan for a muqarnas quarter vault, sixteenth or seventeenth century, ink on paper. Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Institute of Oriental Studies, Uzbek Academy of Sciences.

18. Attributed to an Uzbek master builder from Bukhara, plan for a muqarnas quarter vault, sixteenth or seventeenth century, ink on paper. Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Institute of Oriental Studies, Uzbek Academy of Sciences.

20. Attributed to an Uzbek master builder from Bukhara, plan for a stellate arch-net vault, sixteenth or seventeenth century, ink on paper. Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Institute of Oriental Studies, Uzbek Academy of Sciences.

17. Attributed to an Uzbek master builder from Bukhara, plan for a muqarnas quarter vault, sixteenth or seventeenth century, ink on paper. Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Institute of Oriental Studies, Uzbek Academy of Sciences.

19. Attributed to an Uzbek master builder from Bukhara, plan for a muqarnas quarter vault, sixteenth or seventeenth century, ink on paper. Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Institute of Oriental Studies, Uzbek Academy of Sciences.

21. Attributed to an Uzbek master builder from Bukhara, plan for a stellate arch-net vault, sixteenth or seventeenth century, ink on paper. Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Institute of Oriental Studies, Uzbek Academy of Sciences.

12

PART

1.

THE

SCROLL

TRADITION

23. Attributed to an Uzbek master builder from Bukhara, scroll fragment with repeat unit for a star-and-polygon pattern, sixteenth century, ink on paper. From Rempel' 1961, 399, fig. 1. Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Institute of Oriental Studies, Uzbek Academy of Sciences. 24. Attributed to an Uzbek master builder from Bukhara, scroll fragment with repeat unit for a star-and-polygon pattern, sixteenth century, ink on paper. From Rempel' 1961, 402, fig. 1. Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Institute of Oriental Studies, Uzbek Academy of Sciences.

language used i n t h e m . They f u n c t i o n e d as m n e -

glazed bricks, b e g i n n i n g w i t h the i n t r o d u c t i o n o f

m o n i c devices t h a t assured the preservation and

turquoise i n the eleventh century and c u l m i n a t i n g

transmission o f architectural knowledge over the

i n a w i d e r color range by the f o u r t e e n t h century,

generations. The abstract patterns codified i n the

had b r o u g h t about a standardization o f geometric

scrolls c o u l d be adapted to given dimensions o n

o r n a m e n t . Between the t e n t h and the eleventh

the c o n s t r u c t i o n site where they were often traced

centuries the absence o f color had forced designers

full scale o n the floor or o n w a l l s .

to in ven t m o r e complex geometric patterns exe-

38

The geometric g r i d systems and p a t t e r n types c o m p i l e d i n the Tashkent scrolls were j u d g e d by

22. Attributed to an Uzbek master builder from Bukhara, plans for two stellate arch-net quarter vaults, sixteenth or seventeenth century, ink on paper. Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Institute of Oriental Studies, Uzbek Academy of Sciences.

cuted w i t h a variety o f b r i c k and terra-cotta shapes cut i n c o m p l i c a t e d forms and laid at m u l t i p l e

Soviet scholars to be entirely consistent w i t h . t h e

angles to each other. I n T i m u r i d and Uzbek b u i l d -

design vocabulary o f Uzbek m o n u m e n t s preserved

ings erected between the late f o u r t e e n t h and the

i n Central Asia. The g r o u n d plans represented

seventeenth centuries, the unprecedented expanse

standard b u i l d i n g types codified i n the T i m u r i d

o f walls that had to be covered w i t h p o l y c h r o m a t i c

p e r i o d and further elaborated by Uzbek b u i l d -

surface revetments i n a wide variety o f media

ers, as d i d the accompanying t w o - and three-

resulted i n a relative s i m p l i f i c a t i o n o f geometric

d i m e n s i o n a l patterns for decorative architectural

c o m p o s i t i o n s , and these became b o l d l y enlarged.

revetments. Baklanov related the Tashkent scrolls'

Small m o l d e d , cut, and fired bricks or terra-cotta

decorative patterns based o n squared grids to spe-

pieces were no longer p r o d u c e d i n the variety o f

cific developments that occurred i n the

bannai

shapes c o m m o n i n Seljuq and I l k h a n i d m o n u -

b r i c k masonry technique d u r i n g the T i m u r i d and

ments. The curvilinear outlines seen i n earlier

Uzbek p e r i o d s .

geometric revetments had almost completely dis-

39

H e observed that these drawings

were made to c o n f o r m to standardized glazed

appeared f r o m T i m u r i d and Uzbek geometric pat-

or unglazed bricks o f u n i f o r m w i d t h b u t v a r y i n g

t e r n i n g , w h i c h t o o k o n a p r e d o m i n a n t l y angular

length ( p r o p o r t i o n a l l y related to a square m o d u l e )

appearance i n contrast to the curvilinear vegetal

that c o u l d o n l y be laid h o r i z o n t a l l y , vertically, and

and calligraphic compositions executed i n mosaic

diagonally ( f o r m i n g 45, 90, and 135 degrees), a

t i l i n g . Baklanov concluded that i t was i n this par-

technical constraint that governed the design

ticular context that the somewhat standardized

process. H e was able t o demonstrate h o w changing

angular bannai

b r i c k l a y i n g techniques affected the types o f geo-

scrolls were c r e a t e d .

m e t r i c b r i c k - a n d - t i l e patterns used i n the Islamic

b r i c k patterns o f the Tashkent 40

Like Baklanov, Rempel' also detected a stan-

m o n u m e n t s o f Central Asia between the t e n t h and

d a r d i z a t i o n i n the p r o p o r t i o n a l systems o f girihs

the seventeenth centuries.

collected i n the Tashkent scrolls, reflecting a rela-

Baklanov n o t e d t h a t the e v o l u t i o n o f color-

tive s i m p l i f i c a t i o n o f geometry i n the decorative

ARCHITECTURAL

DRAWINGS

AND

SCROLLS

IN THE

ISLAMIC

WORLD

13

25. Attributed to an Uzbek master builder from Bukhara, repeat unit for a star-andpolygon pattern, sixteenth century, ink on paper. From Rempel' 1961, 401, fig. 1. Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Institute of Oriental Studies, Uzbek Academy of Sciences. 26. Attributed to an Uzbek master builder from Bukhara, repeat unit for a star-andpolygon pattern, sixteenth century, ink on paper. From Rempel' 1961, 401, fig. 3. Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Institute of Oriental Studies, Uzbek Academy of Sciences.

revetments o f T i m u r i d and Uzbek m o n u m e n t s .

square and its derivatives; semisquare and its

circles are f o r m e d , the radial g r i d constitutes the

The shapes o f the rectangular and square frames

derivatives, or the double square; equilateral

basis o f b o t h t w o - and t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l geomet-

that contained girihs i n these scrolls were n o t a r b i -

triangle and its derivatives; c o m b i n a t i o n o f e q u i -

ric designs, i n c l u d i n g arch-net and muqarnas vault

trary; each repeat u n i t corresponded to a definite

lateral triangle and square; and the radial g r i d ) .

projections. It is often used i n c o n j u n c t i o n w i t h

p r o p o r t i o n and c o u l d o n l y have been applied to

A m o n g these the radial g r i d came to enjoy p a r t i c u -

other g r i d systems and axes o f d y n a m i c symmetry,

a surface w i t h the same p r o p o r t i o n s , regardless

lar favor i n the T i m u r i d p e r i o d , as d i d the simpler

resulting i n composite networks o f u n i n k e d

o f actual size. Nevertheless, u n l i k e the decorative

grids based o n the derivatives o f the square and

" d e a d " drawings that generate complex m u l t i layered patterns.

revetments o f the eleventh and twelfth centuries,

the triangle. By the end o f the fifteenth century

w h i c h were custom-made for p a r t i c u l a r m o n u -

designers had come to prefer b o t h t w o - and

ments, those i n c l u d e d i n the Tashkent scroll,

three-dimensional patterns generated by radial

vault projections i n the Tashkent scrolls have

he observed, were designed i n d e p e n d e n t l y o f

coordinates w i t h i n square or rectangular repeat

recently been analyzed by N o t k i n (see figs. 13-22).

The radial grids o f the arch-net and muqarnas

such considerations. To Rempel' this signaled

units. Bulatov noted that radial symmetries were

I n an earlier study o f muqarnas types used i n the

that the " g o l d e n age" o f geometric o r n a m e n t a t i o n

used by T i m u r i d and p o s t - T i m u r i d designers

Shah-i Z i n d a complex at Samarqand, N o t k i n had

c o r r e s p o n d i n g to the complex level o f Islamic

to h a r m o n i z e t w o - and three-dimensional a r c h i -

concluded that f r o m the end o f the f o u r t e e n t h

research i n the m a t h e m a t i c a l sciences was over.

tectural revetments, decorative v a u l t i n g , and the

century o n w a r d radial grids, w h i c h were p a r t i c u -

N o w decorators, diverted by the development o f

spatial arrangement o f centralized b u i l d i n g s . The

larly suited to the versatile m e d i u m o f plaster, had

color, w h i c h was accompanied by a resurgence o f

direct translatability between planar and spatial

started to replace rectilinear networks used i n pre-

curvilinear vegetal and floral m o t i f s executed i n

geometry, based o n a l i m i t e d n u m b e r o f geometric

vious muqarnas vaults composed o f less flexible

mosaic t i l i n g , avoided complex geometry. Rempel'

progressions a l l o w i n g a wide range o f v a r i a t i o n ,

terra-cotta units. The radially arranged tiers o f the

argued that the masters w h o had created the

c o n t r i b u t e d to the sense o f u n i t y i n T i m u r i d a r c h i -

Tashkent scrolls' muqarnas drawings, replete w i t h

Tashkent scrolls used simple formulas o f practical

tecture and its surface d e c o r a t i o n , reflecting an

a m u l t i p l i c i t y o f stars, were largely i n t e n d e d for

geometry to create standardized t w o - and three-

i n t i m a t e relationship between the principles o f

the plaster m e d i u m . N o t k i n identified t h e m as

d i m e n s i o n a l geometric patterns that no longer

architectural design and o r n a m e n t .

Uzbek elaborations o f the radially s y m m e t r i c a l

required an advanced knowledge o f c o m p u t a t i o n a l mathematics or t r i g o n o m e t r y .

41

42

I n the Tashkent scrolls the most c o m m o n g r i d

plaster muqarnas type that had experienced an

systems used are the square or 45-degree r o t a t e d -

unprecedented inventiveness i n the late T i m u r i d

square g r i d , d r a w n i n black i n k (used i n squared

p e r i o d . H e a t t e m p t e d to decipher the coded c o n -

used i n T i m u r i d and Uzbek m o n u m e n t s to har-

g r o u n d plans, square kufic calligraphy, and pat-

ventions o f these muqarnas drawings by separating

monize all aspects o f architectural design, f r o m

terns for bannai

their i n d i v i d u a l tiers, an exercise that led h i m to

g r o u n d plans and wall patterns to decorative vault-

g r i d , scratched o n paper w i t h the sharp p o i n t o f a

conclude that the Tashkent scrolls (despite their

i n g , differed f r o m those favored i n earlier periods.

compass b u t n o t gone over i n i n k . Based o n d i v i d -

intricate c o d i n g o f corbeled spatial layers) c o n t a i n

H e identified six basic g r i d systems that regulated

i n g concentric circles i n t o equal arcs by equidis-

ambiguous representations open to several alter-

geometric decoration i n Central Asian m o n u m e n t s

tant r a d i i , along w h i c h rows o f polygons and star

native readings. Regarding this a m b i g u i t y as a

between the t e n t h and twelfth centuries (square;

polygons inscribed i n smaller subsidiary systems o f

measure i n t e n d e d t o protect secret craft k n o w l -

Bulatov agreed that the geometric g r i d systems

brick m a s o n r y ) , and the radial

14

PART

1.

THE SCROLL

TRADITION

27. Detail from a scroll showing stellate arch-net patterns and arch elevations, from the collection of drawings once belonging to the Qajar royal architect Mirza Akbar, late eighteenth or nineteenth century, red and black ink on paper. By courtesy of the Board of Trustees of the Victoria & Albert Museum, London, Library, M S no. 55.

edge b y enabling the designer alone t o translate

the c o n s t r u c t i o n o f the B r i t i s h Legation B u i l d i n g

the coded drawings i n t o spatial forms, N o t k i n

at Tehran, Clarke was " a l l o w e d t o acquire a q u a n -

identified these muqarnas drawings as the crea-

t i t y o f these r o l l books, most o f w h i c h are n o w

tions o f a B u k h a r a n g u i l d o f master builders a n d

i n the L i b r a r y o f the South Kensington M u s e u m "

architect-engineers [muhandis)

i n r e t u r n for having taught the g u i l d master's

sixteenth c e n t u r y .

active i n the

son the m o d e r n technique o f casting plaster i n

43

The fragmentary Tashkent scrolls almost cert a i n l y reflect the T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n d r a f t i n g

gelatin m o l d s .

46

These scrolls, preserved at the V i c t o r i a & A l b e r t

methods o f the fifteenth century, i f n o t earlier,

M u s e u m , are a t t r i b u t e d to the n i n e t e e n t h - c e n t u r y

given the stylistic conservatism o f sixteenth- a n d

Qajar state architect {muhandis

al-dawlat)

Mirza

seventeenth-century Uzbek architecture i n B u -

A k b a r (figs. 2 7 - 3 6 ) . They are i d e n t i f i e d i n the

khara, w h i c h often perpetuated already established

m u s e u m entry as a " c o l l e c t i o n dispersed at the

formulas

death o f M i r z a A k b a r , acquired f r o m Oostads [i.e.,

4 4

T h e i r graphic sophistication i n c o m -

parison to later scrolls used by elderly M u s l i m

ustad, " m a s t e r " ] K h o d a d a d a n d A k b a r , Master

master builders p r a c t i c i n g i n n i n e t e e n t h - a n d early

builders o f Teheran, by C. P u r d o n Clarke, Super-

t w e n t i e t h - c e n t u r y Central Asia was i m m e d i a t e l y

i n t e n d a n t o f Her B r i t a n n i c Majesty's W o r k s i n

n o t e d by Soviet scholars. Despite their s i m p l i c i t y ,

Persia, January 1876." Today o n l y two o f these

however, the m o r e recent scrolls testify t o a

n i n e t e e n t h - c e n t u r y scrolls are preserved i n t h e i r

relatively u n b r o k e n t r a d i t i o n o f architectural

o r i g i n a l f o r m a t , r o l l e d a n d protected b y leather

practice i n Central Asia f r o m at least the T i m u r i d

flaps. T h e i r u n i n k e d " d e a d " c o n s t r u c t i o n lines,

period onward.

scratched o n the paper w i t h a p o i n t e d t o o l b y

4 5

means o f w h i c h variegated designs were generated, are described i n a note scribbled o n one o f the N I N E T E E N T H -

A N D

T W E N T I E T H - C E N T U R Y

28. Scroll fragments showing stellate arch-net patterns for vaults, arch elevations, and bannai brick masonry designs for arch spandrels, from the collection of drawings once belonging to the Qajar royal architect Mirza Akbar, late eighteenth or nineteenth century, red and black ink and colors (yellow, pink, blue-gray) on paper. By courtesy of the Board of Trustees of the Victoria & Albert Museum, London, Indian and South-East Asian Section, M S no. 32.

scrolls: " T h e u n i n k e d d r y p o i n t t r a c i n g indicates S C R O L L S

the basis o f the f o r m a t i o n o f f i g u r e s . "

47

The

Thanks t o the resident architect o f the B r i t i s h

first scroll is o n blue paper (22.5 c m h i g h ) a n d

Embassy i n I r a n , Caspar P u r d o n Clarke, a

is i d e n t i f i e d as " R o l l o f Standard Patterns for

Freemason w h o managed t o penetrate the secrecy

Tessellated W o r k " ; i t provides c o m p o s i t i o n s for

o f the masons' g u i l d i n Tehran, we k n o w that

t w o - d i m e n s i o n a l geometric patterns i n black i n k ,

scrolls w i t h architectural drawings s i m i l a r t o those

w h i c h c o u l d be applied i n several media. T h e sec-

d o c u m e n t e d i n Central Asia at the t u r n o f this

o n d scroll, o n w h i t e paper (20.5 c m h i g h ) , is i d e n -

century were also being used b y c o n t e m p o r a r y

tified as " R o l l o f Standard Patterns for G r o i n e d

I r a n i a n master masons. W h i l e he was overseeing

V a u l t i n g " ; i t gives projections for stellate arch-net

ARCHITECTURAL

DRAWINGS

AND

SCROLLS

IN

THE

ISLAMIC

15

WORLD

29. S c r o l l fragments s h o w i n g m u q a r n a s quarter vaults w i t h arch-net squinches, f r o m t h ecollection o f drawings o n c e b e l o n g i n g t o t h eQ a j a r r o y a l architect M i r z a A k b a r , late eighteenth o r nineteenth century, i n k o n paper. B y courtesy o ft h e B o a r d o fTrustees o ft h e Victoria & A l b e r t M u s e u m , L o n d o n , I n d i a n a n dS o u t h - E a s t A s i a n S e c t i o n , MSn o . 4 1 .

vaults executed i nblack i n k , occasionally h i g h l i g h t e d i n r e d ( s e e fig. 27). T h e other, m o r e fragile scrolls were c u tu p i n

30a, b. Scroll fragments s h o w i n g m u q a r n a s

quarter

vaults a n dmuqarnas fragments m i x e d w i t h

arch-net

L o n d o n (asw e r e those i nT a s h k e n t ) a n d pasted

vault patterns, f r o m t h ecollection o fdrawings once

in n o particular order onto

b e l o n g i n g t o t h eQ a j a r r o y a l architect M i r z a A k b a r , late

fifty-three

large sheets

o f cardboard. T h e y are n o w kept i nt h e I n d i a n

e i g h t e e n t h o r n i n e t e e n t h c e n t u r y , r e da n db l a c k i n k o n paper. B ycourtesy o ft h e B o a r d o fTrustees o f t h e

D e p a r t m e n t o fthe Victoria & Albert M u s e u m

Victoria & Albert M u s e u m , London, Indian a n d South-

( s e e figs. 2 8 - 3 Ó ) .

E a s t A s i a n S e c t i o n , MS n o s . 3 8 - 3 9 .

48

T h e black-ink outlines o f these

pasted drawings, w h i c h generally provide t h e repeat u n i t o fthe overall design, w e r e once again generated b yvarious grid systems a n d often highlighted w i t h r e d a n d other lively colors (yellow, orange, pink, a n d blue-gray), like t h e drawings i n Tashkent. T h i s nineteenth-century collectiono f designs a n d pounces, w h i c h m a y contain earlier specimens, consists o fdrawings f o rt h e construct i o n o fa r c h curves a n d o r n a m e n t a l details f o r spandrels, capitals, borders, vault projections (arch-net a n d muqarnas), square o r hexagonal tiles, m o s a i c tile w o r k , g e o m e t r i c patterns a n d i n s c r i p t i o n s i n t e n d e d f o r bannà'ïbvick

masonry,

geometric w i n d o w lattices, a n d g r o u n d o n s q u a r e d grids (as w e l l as Q a j a r e s q u e

plans figurai

sketches o ffairies, birds, a n i m a l s , m y t h i c a l creatures,

flowers,

cypress trees, a n d vegetal p a t t e r n s ) .

Although thecollection includes m a n y geometric patterns s i m i l a r t o those i nTashkent, i talso c o n tains E u r o p e a n i z i n g m o t i f s a n d eclectic c o m p o s i tions inconsistent with a T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n

design

r e p e r t o r y ( s e e fig. 36). T h e M i r z a A k b a r drawings arem o r e sketchy i n n a t u r e t h a n those i nT a s h k e n t . M o r e o v e r t h e former include both freehand

figurai

motifs

16

PART

1.

THE SCROLL

TRADITION

•

ARCHITECTURAL

DRAWINGS

AND

SCROLLS

IN

THE

ISLAMIC

WORLD

31. Scroll fragments showing geometric patterns, inscriptions, and ground plans drawn on squared grids, from the collection of drawings once belonging to the Qajar royal architect Mirza Akbar, late eighteenth or nineteenth century, ink on paper. By courtesy of the Board of Trustees of the Victoria & Albert Museum, London, Indian and South-East Asian Section, M S no. 25. 32. Scroll fragments showing geometric patterns, inscriptions, and ground plans drawn on squared grids, from the collection of drawings once belonging to the Qajar royal architect Mirza Akbar, late eighteenth or nineteenth century, ink on paper. By courtesy of the Board of Trustees of the Victoria & Albert Museum, London, Indian and South-East Asian Section, MS no. 24. 33. Scroll fragments showing geometric patterns and inscriptions drawn on squared grids, from the collection of drawings once belonging to the Qajar royal architect Mirza Akbar, late eighteenth or nineteenth century, red and black ink on paper. By courtesy of the Board of Trustees of the Victoria & Albert Museum, London, Indian and South-East Asian Section, MS no. 20.

17

18

PART

1.

THE

SCROLL

34a, b. Scroll fragments showing square, rectangular, and pentagonal repeat units for geometric tile panels, from the collection of drawings once belonging to the Qajar royal architect Mirza Akbar, late eighteenth or nineteenth century, red and black ink on paper. By courtesy of the Board of Trustees of the Victoria & Albert Museum, London, Indian and South-East Asian Section, M S nos. 21-22.

TRADITION

35. Scroll fragment showing geometric patterns for window grilles, from the collection of drawings once belonging to the Qajar royal architect Mirza Akbar, late eighteenth or nineteenth century, ink on paper. By courtesy of the Board of Trustees of the Victoria & Albert Museum, London, Indian and South-East Asian Section, M S no. 44.

ARCHITECTURAL

DRAWINGS

AND

SCROLLS

IN

THE

ISLAMIC

19

WORLD

37a. Archibald H . Christie, drawing of a star-and-polygon pattern from the Mirza Akbar scrolls. From Christie 1929, 257, fig. 290. Photo: By permission of Oxford University Press. 37b. Archibald H. Christie, diagram showing the uninked radial grid lines of figure 37a. From Christie 1929, 258, fig. 291. Photo: By permission of Oxford University Press.

36. Scroll fragment showing the elevation for a mihrab drawn on a squared grid, from the collection of drawings once belonging to the Qajar royal architect Mirza Akbar, late eighteenth or nineteenth century, ink on paper. By courtesy of the Board of Trustees of the Victoria & Albert Museum, London, Indian and South-East Asian Section, M S no. 14. and arch elevations; these are missing f r o m the

cluded that "as the intricasies o f these patterns

Tashkent scrolls, w h i c h consist exclusively o f

were gradually mastered, each was reduced to a

g r o u n d plans, g r o u n d projections o f vaults, and

stereotyped f o r m u l a , and passed f r o m h a n d to

surface patterns. The muqarnas designs i n the

h a n d u n t i l a collection o f w o r k i n g drawings such

V i c t o r i a 8c A l b e r t M u s e u m are also quite ele-

as his [ M i r z a Akbar's] became a necessary part o f

mentary w h e n compared to the earlier ones i n

the material e q u i p m e n t o f every w o r k s h o p . "

Tashkent (cf. figs. 13-19, 2 9 - 3 0 ) . The drawings

4 9

Clarke described the curious way i n w h i c h such

i n L o n d o n are freehand and consist o f weblike

p a t t e r n scrolls were p u t together to record w o r k -

lines i n black i n k , occasionally h i g h l i g h t e d i n red;

shop practices. The g r o u n d plans were first w o r k e d

they no longer e m p l o y the complex color c o d i n g

out o n a squared t r a c i n g board (probably resem-

or s t i p p l i n g seen earlier. This may be explained by

b l i n g the one seen i n fig. 6) by the master b u i l d e r

the relative standardization and s i m p l i f i c a t i o n o f

and then copied by his assistants o n t o squared

muqarnas design i n Qajar I r a n .

paper to preserve t h e m for future reference.

A selected g r o u p o f t w o - d i m e n s i o n a l geometric

Clarke's valuable account thus suggests that most

patterns f r o m the " c o l l e c t i o n o f drawings made by

o f the d r a w i n g s — g l u e d together i n no p a r t i c u l a r

M i r z a A k b a r , master-builder to the Shah o f Persia

order i n s c r o l l s — w o u l d have accumulated as

i n the early part o f the nineteenth c e n t u r y " was

copies o f executed or experimental designs:

first published i n A r c h i b a l d H . Christie's b o o k o n o r n a m e n t , Traditional

Methods

of Pattern

ing, 1910, and later i n Ernst H . G o m b r i c h ' s

DesignSense

of Order, 1979. Christie observed that patterns

So w e l l concealed are the methods used by o r i e n t a l craftsmen t o produce the w o r k , w h i c h often puzzles us by its complexity,

f o r m e d by i n t e r l o c k i n g stars and polygons i n the

that travellers have been deceived i n t o

M i r z a A k b a r scrolls were generated by a series

believing that by some i n t u i t i v e faculty

o f concentric circles subdivided by rays, w h i c h

the Eastern master-builder is able to dis-

f o r m e d complex constellations o f radial s y m m e t r y

pense w i t h plans, elevations and sections,

(figs. 3 7 - 3 9 ) . This m e t h o d allowed Islamic design-

and start the foundations o f the various

ers to "recast familiar types o f p a t t e r n by means

parts o f his structure w i t h o u t a precise

o f t h e i r newly discovered f o r m u l a , " g i v i n g t h e m a

p r e d e t e r m i n a t i o n o f the b u l k and require-

distinctive appearance. Christie singled o u t such

ments o f the several parts. To all appear-

i n t e r l o c k i n g star-and-polygon patterns as " t h e

ance the Persian master-builder is

most characteristic t r i u m p h s o f Islamic o r n a m e n -

independent o f the aid o f plans. W h e n

tal i n v e n t i o n , " i n n o v a t i o n s that had relatively little

engaged to b u i l d a house he first r o u g h l y

influence o n Western o r n a m e n t a l art. He c o n -

levels the g r o u n d and t h e n traces o u t the

20

PART

1.

THE

SCROLL

TRADITION

38a. Archibald H . Christie, drawing of a star-and-polygon pattern from the Mirza Akbar scrolls. From Christie 1929, 254, fig. 286. Photo: By permission of Oxford University Press. 38b. Archibald H . Christie, diagram showing the uninked radial grid lines of figure 38a. From Christie 1929, 255, fig. 287. Photo: By permission of Oxford University Press.

39a. Archibald H . Christie, drawing of a star-and-polygon pattern with a central swastika from the Mirza Akbar scrolls. From Christie 1929, 43, fig. 36. Photo: By permission of Oxford University Press.

39b. Archibald H . Christie, diagram showing the uninked radial grid lines of figure 39a. From Christie 1929, 268, fig. 306. Photo: By permission of Oxford University Press.

p o s i t i o n o f the walls ( f u l l size) w i t h p o w -

o f bricks required for the intended struc-

dered "gatch"

ture is easily c o m p u t e d by c o u n t i n g the

or plaster o f Paris, appar-

ently w i t h o u t other measurement than

squares and m u l t i p l y i n g by the height

foot paces. A c t u a l l y he has first o f all

after d e d u c t i n g the openings. W h e n trans-

w o r k e d o u t the general scheme, n o t as

ferred to paper for future references a

o u r architects d o , o n p l a i n paper, b u t

curious custom is followed w h i c h bears

on a sectional l i n e d t r a c i n g b o a r d , every

the signs o f great a n t i q u i t y . These draw-

square o f w h i c h represents either one or

ings are n o t kept separate n o r b o u n d as

four bricks. These tracing boards are the

books, b u t are fastened together side by

key to the mystery o f t h e i r craft, and

side w i t h g u m , like the Hebrew rolls o f

masons w i l l understand the significance

the Law, and are preserved i n rolls w h i c h ,

o f the discovery that they represent i n

when open, extend about 20 feet. . . . As a

m i n i a t u r e scale the floor o f the master-

b i n d i n g each r o l l terminates w i t h a piece

builder's w o r k r o o m . . . . The surface is r u l e d b o t h ways w i t h fine

o f leather cut i n the f o r m o f a mason's a p r o n w i t h a string fastened to the peak.

lines parallel to the sides, like the sectional

This s t r i n g is l o n g enough to w i n d several

paper used by engineers. I t is then p r o -

times r o u n d and thus secure i t . Probably

tected by a coat o f varnish, w h i c h allows

the survival o f this early type o f b o o k is

the d r a w i n g to be washed o f f w h e n done

o w i n g to the practical reason that a r o l l

w i t h . The system o f p l a n n i n g is simple, as

can be easily carried and concealed; as for

i n Persia the bricks are square. A reed pen

the peculiar f o r m o f the leather b i n d i n g

or b r u s h is used to d o t w i t h I n d i a n i n k

it is a coincidence o n l y due to the neces-

each small square w h i c h represents either

sity o f the case.

50

one or four bricks, and w h e n the design has been f o u n d to w o r k o u t satisfactorily

Such design scrolls were identified by c o n t e m -

the squares are filled up w i t h black and

p o r a r y master builders i n I r a n and I r a q as

the plan is ready. I t is then copied by an

( l i t . , " r o l l , " or " s c r o l l , " vulgarized as

assistant o n to similar squared paper and

Clarke's comparison o f t h e m w i t h the Hebrew

w o r k is set o u t by laying bricks corre-

" r o l l s o f the Law" is p a r t i c u l a r l y suggestive since

s p o n d i n g w i t h those o n the p l a n . E r r o r

they were v i g i l a n t l y protected as canonical codes

is n o t possible, as the squares confine the

o f craft practice passed o n f r o m one generation

sizes to b r i c k dimensions, and as o n l y

to the next. T h a t the fragmentary Tashkent scrolls

one system o f b o n d is used the n u m b e r

once had the same f o r m a t is revealed by a leather

tumar

tmar).

51

ARCHITECTURAL

DRAWINGS

AND SCROLLS

IN THE

ISLAMIC

WORLD

21

40. Ghulam b. Muhammad A l i , Qajar scroll fragment with repeat units for tile patterns, ca. 1800, ink, colors, and gold on paper. Photo: Courtesy Sotheby's, London. c

flap preserved i n one o f the folders where they are n o w kept. T h e widespread use o f such scrolls b y I r a n i a n master builders is c o n f i r m e d b y another s u r v i v i n g early n i n e t e e n t h - c e n t u r y Qajar scroll w i t h a b r o w n m o r o c c o flap. I t contains t w o -

41. Geometric patterns for bannai brick masonry drawn on a squared grid, Shiraz, probably nineteenth century, red and black ink and color (gray-green) on paper. From Khanlari 197!?], pi. 12.

d i m e n s i o n a l geometric patterns for architectural tiles signed by G h u l a m b . M u h a m m a d A l i (fig. 4 0 ) . c

This fragmentary scroll sold b y Sotheby's i n 1985 to an u n i d e n t i f i e d private collector is r e p o r t e d t o have measured 440 centimeters l o n g a n d 12 c e n t i meters h i g h . T h e auction catalog describes i t as having " m a r g i n s r u l e d i n colours a n d g o l d , one i l l u m i n a t e d headpiece i n colours a n d g o l d , i m p e r fect at b e g i n n i n g a n d e n d . "

5 2

As far as one can

judge f r o m its o n l y available p h o t o g r a p h , its geometric patterns contained i n rectangular a n d square frames reinterpreted t r a d i t i o n a l motifs w i t h a distinctive Qajar

flavor.

A n o t h e r I r a n i a n tumdr was recently p u b l i s h e d i n Tehran as t w e n t y - f o u r separate sheets o f colored geometric patterns a n d square kufic calligraphy for bannai

b r i c k masonry, executed o n squared paper

(figs. 4 1 - 4 4 ) . T h o u g h t t o be about a century o l d and i d e n t i f i e d b y local practitioners as a collection o f girih-sdzi

( l i t . , " a r t o f m a k i n g k n o t s " ) drawings

(tar/i), i t belonged to a family o f Shirazi master builders w h o i n h e r i t e d i t f r o m forebears going back a few generations. T h o u g h its t w o - d i m e n s i o n a l patterns are rather simple, all o f t h e m based o n checkered grids c o r r e s p o n d i n g to m o d u l a r b r i c k shapes, the scroll testifies t o the c o n t i n u o u s use o f t r a d i t i o n a l design methods i n certain regions o f I r a n u p t o the m o d e r n era. T h e b r i e f i n t r o d u c t i o n

42. Geometric patterns for bannai brick masonry drawn on a squared grid, Shiraz, probably nineteenth century, red and black ink and color (gray-green) on paper. From Khanlari 197!?], pi. 18. 43. Geometric and calligraphic patterns for bannai brick masonry drawn on a squared grid, Shiraz, probably nineteenth century, red and black ink and color (graygreen) on paper. From Khanlari 197!?], pi. 1. 44. Geometric and calligraphic patterns for banna'i brick masonry drawn on a squared grid, Shiraz, probably nineteenth century, red and black ink and color (graygreen) on paper. From Khanlari 197!?], pi. 2.

22

PART

1.

THE

SCROLL

TRADITION

to the p u b l i s h e d Shiraz scroll facsimile lists the

between i n t e r l o c k i n g geometric surface revetments

c o n t i n u i t y o f architectural drafting methods i n the

b u i l d i n g s recently restored i n t h a t city by local

and the muqarnas opens new perspectives i n t o

b r i c k - a n d - t i l e based architecture o f I r a q , I r a n , and

masters o f girih-sdzi;

the mysterious source o f "stalactites"; they seem

Central Asia u p to the m o d e r n era. This reflects

i n fact to have o r i g i n a t e d as spatial girihs c o m p l e -

the relative persistence o f t r a d i t i o n a l c o n s t r u c t i o n

m e n t i n g the decorative use o f the planar girih

methods; these were based o n a b r i c k core c o l o r -

patterns w i t h w h i c h they are often juxtaposed i n

fully dressed w i t h glazed bricks, tile w o r k , plaster-

subcategory o f the girih genre, w h i c h e m b o d i e d

scrolls as w e l l as o n b u i l d i n g s . This c o n n e c t i o n —

w o r k , and o r n a m e n t a l vaults, the c o m p o s i t i o n s o f

b o t h t w o - and t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l patterns gener-

to w h i c h we shall r e t u r n — s u p p o r t s Bulatov's

w h i c h had gradually frozen i n t o somewhat r e p e t i -

"muqarnas-band"

among them it mentions a

( l i t . , " m u q a r n a s b i n d e r , " or

"muqarnas m a k e r " ) .

5 3

The muqarnas therefore appears to have been a

55

ated by similar geometric g r i d systems. The t r a -

observation t h a t the direct t r a n s l a t a b i l i t y between

tive formulas i n the p o s t - T i m u r i d era. W i t h t h e i r

d i t i o n a l I r a n i a n master b u i l d e r Asgar S h i r b a f

t w o - and t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l geometric patterns

spiraling foliage, c u r v i l i n e a r interlaces, and

classified b o t h planar and spatial geometric pat-

i m b u e d Islamic architecture i n C e n t r a l Asia w i t h

m o t i f s , the serene surfaces o f the celebrated late

terns u n d e r the m o d e o f design called girih or

a h a r m o n i o u s sense o f u n i t y , s y n c h r o n i z i n g the

sixteenth- and seventeenth-century Safavid m o n u -

kdr-bandi

p r o p o r t i o n a l systems o f g r o u n d plans, surface

c

( k n o t w o r k , w o r k t h a t b i n d s , j o i n s , and

floral

ments o f Isfahan d i d briefly move away f r o m the

fastens t o g e t h e r ) , terms referring to t i g h t l y i n t e r -

revetments, and decorative v a u l t i n g . I t is the

l o c k i n g systems o f t w o - and t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l

dialogue between planar and spatial geometry

T u r k m e n aesthetic, w h i c h the Uzbeks c o n t i n u e d

geometric shapes governed by k n o t l i k e grids. I n

that explains the range o f diverse p a t t e r n types

to perpetuate; b u t the geometric girih m o d e ( m o r e

his b o o k o n this mode o f design he p o i n t e d o u t

c o m p i l e d i n scrolls.

that girihs c o u l d be applied to flat and curved sur-

fluid

Pattern scrolls similar to those described above

p r e d o m i n a n t l y angular geometry o f the T i m u r i d -

suited to standard b r i c k - a n d - t i l e shapes) r e i m posed itself w i t h a vengeance i n the late Safavid

faces alike i n m u l t i p l e media ( i n c l u d i n g w o o d ,

have also been d o c u m e n t e d i n m o d e r n I r a q , where

and Qajar architecture o f the eighteenth and n i n e -

plaster, tile, b r i c k , and stone), and he classified

once again they serve p r a c t i c i n g t r a d i t i o n a l master

teenth centuries. S u r v i v i n g examples o f Qajar

b o t h muqarnas and yazdi band! (arch-net) vaults

builders w h o regard t h e m as repositories o f i n h e r -

scrolls testify to a revival o f geometric p a t t e r n i n g

together w i t h geometric surface patterns, executed

ited craft secrets. One reference to these c o n t e m -

at a t i m e w h e n such patterns had come to be

by masters generically called ustdd-i

p o r a r y I r a q i scrolls i n t e r p r e t e d the use o f repeat

regarded by European Orientalists as the typical

u n i t s , often p r o v i d i n g one-quarter o f each design,

ingredients o f Islamic architectural o r n a m e n t

as "a m e t h o d to confuse those w h o were n o t m e m -

(a subject to w h i c h we w i l l t u r n i n part 2).

(master o f k n o t w o r k or j o i n e r y ) .

kdr-band

5 4

The j u x t a p o s i t i o n o f planar and spatial geom e t r i c patterns i n Islamic scrolls provides f u r t h e r

bers o f the f a m i l y o f masons to w h o m the scroll

evidence that the two were regarded as c o m p l e m e n -

belonged."

the t r a n s f o r m a t i o n o f t r a d i t i o n a l b u i l d i n g methods

been overlooked i n the scholarship o n Islamic

by m o d e r n c o n s t r u c t i o n technologies (largely

scrolls reveals t h a t they were c o m p i l e d by master

architectural o r n a m e n t , w h i c h has tended to focus

i m p o r t e d f r o m the West), p r o b a b l y c o n t r i b u t e d

builders responsible for c o o r d i n a t i n g all stages

o n t w o - d i m e n s i o n a l patterns and has viewed the

to the disappearance o f m a n y earlier scrolls.

o f the design process i n a b u i l d i n g t r a d i t i o n that

muqarnas as an entirely separate category w i t h p u z z l i n g origins. The h i t h e r t o u n n o t i c e d affinity

This element o f secrecy, together w i t h

The j u x t a p o s i t i o n o f g r o u n d plans w i t h geomet-

tary systems. This remarkable c o n n e c t i o n has l o n g

56

The s u r v i v i n g design scrolls i n I r a q , Shiraz, L o n d o n , and Tashkent demonstrate a remarkable

ric designs for t w o - and t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l a r c h i tectural revetments i n several s u r v i v i n g p a t t e r n

relied heavily o n surface revetments. I t may n o t be pure coincidence therefore t h a t all the s u r v i v i n g

ARCHITECTURAL

DRAWINGS

scrolls considered thus far belong to the same

AND SCROLLS

IN THE ISLAMIC

23

WORLD

After the C h r i s t i a n reconquest o f M u s l i m Spain,

g r i d , all sorts o f compositions can be m a d e . "

5 7

region, extending f r o m I r a q and I r a n to Central

the so-called H i s p a n o - M o r e s q u e architectural style

Asia, a region unified by a local t r a d i t i o n o f b r i c k -

persisted i n M o r o c c o u p to the m o d e r n era w i t h o u t

ings o f architectural o r n a m e n t f r o m the p a t t e r n

and-tile based a r c h i t e c t u r e — a t r a d i t i o n that

m a j o r i n n o v a t i o n s . Elaborate surface revetments

books o f p r a c t i c i n g M o r o c c a n masters, w h i c h

differed f r o m the p r e d o m i n a n t l y stone-based

conveying an impression o f richness c o n t i n u e d to

i n c l u d e d n o g r o u n d plans. These design booklets

c o n s t r u c t i o n o f n e i g h b o r i n g M u s l i m states i n

conceal the s i m p l i c i t y o f the basic architectural

{daftar)

A n a t o l i a , Syria, Egypt, a n d I n d i a .

fabric, w h i c h u n d e r w e n t l i t t l e s t r u c t u r a l develop-

Sometimes d r a w n o n m o d e r n squared paper using

The o n l y other k n o w n examples o f comparable drawings survive i n M o r o c c o , another region

m e n t . I n his Le Maroc et Vartisanat islamique

dans Varchitecture,

traditionnel

1979 (translated i n t o

Islamic Craft in

Moroccan

Paccard's m o n o g r a p h reproduces selected draw-

do n o t f o l l o w the t r a d i t i o n a l scroll f o r m a t .

colored pencils, they may be seen as updated versions o f earlier scrolls, most l i k e l y created i n

characterized b y a b u i l d i n g t r a d i t i o n that relies

English as Traditional

o n extensive p o l y c h r o m a t i c surface revetments o f

Architecture

geometric tile w o r k and w o o d w o r k , accompanied

that i n c o n t e m p o r a r y M o r o c c o the engineer

(figs. 4 5 - 5 0 ) . I n fact Paccard's b o o k c o m m e m o -

by elaborately carved stucco and stone w i t h

(mouhendis,

rates K i n g Hassan n's architectural patronage

curvilinear vegetal interlaces and cursive i n s c r i p -

s t r u c t i o n and acts as an i n t e r m e d i a r y between

aimed at r e v i t a l i z i n g t r a d i t i o n a l crafts i n M o r o c c o ,

tions. This M a g h r i b i t r a d i t i o n was o r i g i n a l l y

client a n d b u i l d e r , does n o t design plans o n paper

an u n d e r t a k i n g that had actually commenced i n

i n 1980), A n d r e Paccard demonstrated i.e., muhandis),

w h o supervises c o n -

response to an official effort t o revive local a r t i sanal t r a d i t i o n s threatened b y i n d u s t r i a l i z a t i o n

inspired by architectural developments i n the

for b u i l d i n g s b u t improvises their layout o n the

the nineteenth century at the i n s t i g a t i o n o f the

eastern Islamic w o r l d that had traveled westward

spot, t r a c i n g two rectangles (representing the

French colonizers o f N o r t h A f r i c a .

between the eleventh and t h i r t e e n t h centuries

outer w a l l a n d i n n e r c o u r t ) o n the g r o u n d and

all the way to Spain. I t u n d e r w e n t an i n t e r n a l

subsequently d e t e r m i n i n g the d i s t r i b u t i o n o f i n t e -

development d u r i n g the f o u r t e e n t h a n d fifteenth

r i o r rooms according t o the patron's wishes. T h e

t w o - and three-dimensional geometric designs

centuries, w h i c h witnessed the flourishing o f

task o f designing decorative patterns for surface

once again testify to the role o f drawings i n assur-

an i n t r i c a t e revetment aesthetic c u l m i n a t i n g i n

revetments i n m u l t i p l e media falls t o the master

i n g the p e r p e t u a t i o n o f a mode o f architectural

the A l h a m b r a . Instead o f e x p l o r i n g the sculp-

builders (maalem,

decoration that dated back at least to the f o u r -

t u r a l a r t i c u l a t i o n possibilities o f stone, the local

use paper drawings that record a b o d y o f i n h e r i t e d

teenth o r fifteenth century, i f n o t earlier. N o such

Mediterranean b u i l d i n g m a t e r i a l , the M a g h r i b i

knowledge t r a n s m i t t e d over the centuries f r o m

drawings are k n o w n to have survived f r o m N a s r i d

aesthetic relied o n c o n t i n u o u s surface revetments,

master t o apprentice. Paccard n o t e d the element

Spain (1230-1492), the architectural heritage o f

w h i c h carried the distant m e m o r y o f the b r i c k - a n d -

o f secrecy involved i n this process—the masters

w h i c h was subsequently perpetuated i n the Spanish

tile based eastern Islamic architectural t r a d i t i o n .

" d i d n o t reveal all their secrets, w h i c h they guard

M u d e j a r style a n d i n M o r o c c o . A carpentry m a n -

This t r a d i t i o n differed f r o m the relatively m o r e

jealously, t r a n s m i t t e d as they are f r o m father to

ual e n t i t l e d Breve compendio

sober stone architecture o f other M e d i t e r r a n e a n -

s o n " — a n d added that the geometric g r i d systems

bianco y tratado de alarifes ( B r i e f o u t l i n e o f w o o d -

Islamic regions, such as Syria, Egypt, a n d A n a t o l i a ,

used i n generating various patterns were at the

w o r k j o i n e r y a n d treatise o n master b u i l d e r s ) , first

i n w h i c h o r n a m e n t a t i o n was sparsely used t o

heart o f this secrecy: " T h i s refers to a sort o f geo-

published i n Seville b y the seventeenth-century

articulate rather t h a n veil architectural forms.

metrical g r i d o r p a t t e r n . F r o m one a n d the same

Spanish carpenter and architect Diego Lopez de

i.e., mu allim), c

w h o c o n t i n u e to

58

Even t h o u g h the M o r o c c a n p a t t e r n books betray some m o d e r n features, their t r a d i t i o n a l

de la carpinteria

de lo

24

PART

1.

THE

SCROLL

TRADITION

46. El Bouri, muqarnas vault patterns, Morocco, twentieth century, red and black ink on paper. From Paccard i979> 1: 300, figs. 1, 2.

45. Moulay Hafid, star-and-polygon pattern drawn on squared paper, Morocco, twentieth century, ink and colored pencil on paper. From Paccard 1979,1: 226, fig. 1.

ARCHITECTURAL

DRAWINGS

AND SCROLLS

IN THE ISLAMIC

WORLD

47. El Bouri, pattern for an octagonal muqarnas half vault, Morocco, twentieth century, red and black ink on paper. From Paccard 1979,1: 301, fig. 1.

48. El Bouri, patterns for octagonal muqarnas vaults and the intrados of an arch, Morocco, twentieth century, red and black ink on paper. From Paccard 1979,1: 296, fig. 1.

49. El Bouri, octagonal muqarnas vault patterns, Morocco, twentieth century, red and black ink on paper. From Paccard 1979,1: 296, fig. 2.

50. El Bouri, patterns for octagonal and star-shaped muqarnas vaults, Morocco, twentieth century, red and black ink on paper. From Paccard 1979,1: 296, fig. 3.

25

26

PART

1.

THE

SCROLL

TRADITION

51. Diego Lopez de Arenas, repeat unit for artesonado woodwork showing a strapwork pattern with interlaced stars and polygons. From Lopez de Arenas 1912, fol. 14V.

52. Diego Lopez de Arenas, triangular repeat units for wooden muqarnas vaults. From Lopez de Arenas, fol. 23r.

ARCHITECTURAL

DRAWINGS

AND

SCROLLS

IN

THE

ISLAMIC

27

WORLD

w o o d e n muqarnas vaults by the m o d e r n maalem el

than i n v e n t i n g new ones. I n d i v i d u a l patterns and

b i l i t y that paper drawings may have been used i n

B o u r i appear o n elongated strips o f cream-colored

their constituent units were k n o w n by particular

M u s l i m Spain as well. Condensed f r o m a longer

paper that c o u l d f o r m a scroll i f pasted together

names, b u t the rules o f p r o p o r t i o n g u i d i n g their

Arenas i n 1633, does, however, h i n t at the possi-

m a n u s c r i p t composed i n 1619, this technical

(see figs. 4 6 - 5 0 ) . They are d r a w n i n black i n k ,

c o m p o s i t i o n had been forgotten over t i m e . M u c h

m a n u a l directly addressed carpenters and master

h i g h l i g h t e d w i t h red, and coded w i t h small circles

like the p r a c t i c i n g master builders o f Central Asia

builders. I t provides t w o - d i m e n s i o n a l star-and-

recalling those used i n some o f the Tashkent

at the t u r n o f this century and those i n c o n t e m -

p o l y g o n patterns for artesonado

scrolls. El Bouri's drawings seem to carry the

p o r a r y I r a n , the M o r o c c a n masters repeated end-

w o r k applied to flat and curved surfaces and

traces o f m u c h older graphic conventions, the

less variations based o n o l d geometric formulas,

muqarnas vault projections, d r a w n w i t h simple

roots o f w h i c h are difficult to trace.

slightly m o d i f y i n g t h e m by t r i a l and error. I n all

(paneled) w o o d -

geometric methods using compasses and set

The relatively simple geometric compositions

these areas the i n d i v i d u a l components o f t r a d i -

o f el Bouri's muqarnas projections rely o n a fixed

t i o n a l geometric patterns and their range o f

again establish an i n t i m a t e l i n k between planar

vocabulary o f eight m o d u l a r units o f sculpted

possible p e r m u t a t i o n s became identified w i t h a

and spatial geometry, may w e l l carry the traces

w o o d arranged to f o r m 45-, 90-, and 135-degree

specialized vocabulary f o r m i n g a c o m m o n basis

o f an earlier d r a f t i n g t r a d i t i o n i n M u s l i m Spain

angles o n l y (recalling the scheme scratched o n the

for c o m m u n i c a t i o n a m o n g master builders and

and the M a g h r i b .

T a k h t - i Sulayman tablet [see fig. 1]). These c o m p o -

decorators specializing i n various media, a vocab-

squares (figs. 51, 5 2 ) .

59

These drawings, w h i c h once

The basic geometric g r i d systems used i n the daftarof

t w o - d i m e n s i o n a l patterns by the m o d e r n

sitions contrast w i t h the infinite variety o f angles

ulary that also acted as a m n e m o n i c device for

seen i n the m o r e complex muqarnas quarter vault

p a t t e r n types recorded i n scrolls.

M o r o c c a n master M o u l a y H a f i d are n o t so dif-

projections o f the Tashkent scrolls, w h i c h are

ferent f r o m those seen i n the girih scrolls o f the

characterized by their increasing variety o f stars

eastern Islamic w o r l d . They testify to the often

and polygons. The s i m p l i c i t y o f el Bouri's draw-

underestimated role o f drawings i n establishing

ings—based o n the square m o d u l e — c a n be

a certain degree o f visual u n i t y a m o n g the distinc-

explained by the fact that muqarnas vaults fabri-

tive local b u i l d i n g t r a d i t i o n s o f distant countries.

cated f r o m carved wooden units require a m o r e

The three m a i n types o f g r i d systems used by this

r i g i d exactitude t h a n their T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n

M o r o c c a n master are square, isometric ( t r i a n -

counterparts, w h i c h were often composed o f flex-

g u l a r ) , and composite ( p o l y g o n a l ) . The most c o m -

ible cast plaster units using the circle as a m o d -

m o n composite type is based o n the radial g r i d ,

ule.

that is, the circle d i v i d e d i n t o equal arcs by r a d i i

plaster muqarnas vaults o f M o r o c c o stemmed

61

The greater l i b e r t y o f c o m p o s i t i o n i n the

that generate i n t e r l o c k i n g star-and-polygon c o m -

f r o m their n o t being l i m i t e d to 45-, 90-, and

positions used c o m m o n l y i n M a g h r i b i tile w o r k

135-degree angles.

and w o o d w o r k .

60

M o r o c c a n muqarnas projections

62

The standard patterns c o m p i l e d i n m o d e r n

also e x h i b i t an uncanny s i m i l a r i t y to those seen i n

M o r o c c a n sketchbooks indicate that the masters

scrolls f r o m the east. The g r o u n d projections o f

w h o drew t h e m repeated i n h e r i t e d formulas rather

63

CHAPTER

2.

THE TOPKAPI

SCROLL,

ITS DATE AND

PROVENANCE

The T o p k a p i scroll is a typical tumar pasted at one

f r o m Clarke's r e m a r k that Qajar scrolls were

c o m p i l e d i n 1505, w h i c h lists a chest full o f w o r k -

end to a w o o d e n r o d and at the other to a leather

a p p r o x i m a t e l y 20 feet l o n g , the i m p r a c t i c a l length

i n g drawings {karname),

flap (fig. 53). I t is 29.5 meters l o n g and 33 to 34

o f the T o p k a p i scroll (96.76 feet) can o n l y be

brass architectural measuring stick 1 c u b i t l o n g .

centimeters h i g h and contains 114 drawings i n

explained by its unprofessional r e s t o r a t i o n , most

stored together w i t h a 6 5

The earliest k n o w n examples o f O t t o m a n a r c h i -

square or rectangular frames (cat. nos. 1-114).

likely by the royal librarians o f the O t t o m a n i m p e -

tectural drawings n o w kept i n the T o p k a p i Palace

There is, however, no w r i t i n g , date, or w a t e r m a r k

rial treasury, w h o w o u l d n o t have been acquainted

M u s e u m Archives seem to represent u n a p p r o v e d

that m i g h t p o i n t to w h e n and where i t was p u t

w i t h this type o f d o c u m e n t .

projects proposed to the sultan; this appears to be

together or h o w i t entered the O t t o m a n i m p e r i a l

o f designs and graphic conventions i n the frag-

the most l i k e l y hypothesis since very few o f these

treasury c o l l e c t i o n . I t combines two or m o r e frag-

m e n t s — e a c h o f w h i c h is d r a w n o n the same type

drawings correspond to extant b u i l d i n g s . The sul-

m e n t a r y scrolls o f the same height, featuring two

o f heavy, h i g h q u a l i t y cream-colored rag p a p e r —

tans were often presented w i t h several alternative

types o f frames a r o u n d the i n d i v i d u a l patterns; one

however, leaves l i t t l e d o u b t that the c o m b i n e d

designs; one o f the s u r v i v i n g examples shows three

o f these is a t h i c k b l a c k - i n k frame that differs f r o m

scroll constitutes a consistent corpus, possibly

o p t i o n s for a mausoleum project o n the same page

its t h i n n e r c o u n t e r p a r t (see cat. nos. 37, 40-114).

f r o m a single h a n d .

w i t h i n d i c a t i o n s o f comparative costs (see fig. 2a).

Pasted together i n irregular fashion at some

64

The s i m i l a r i t y

W h e n Suleyman 1 ordered the c o n s t r u c t i o n o f

The scroll appears to have taken its present

the $ehzade mosque i n I s t a n b u l i n 1543, architect-

u n k n o w n date, the fragments o f each scroll are

f o r m after u n d e r g o i n g f u r t h e r repairs; the m o d e r n

glued together at various places, w i t h p o i n t s o f

arabic numerals o n its folios o f various sizes m u s t

engineers (miihendisan)

prepared plans and draw-

r u p t u r e o c c u r r i n g between the drawings n u m b e r e d

have been added w h e n the manuscripts o f the

ings (resmler

3 - 4 , 2 7 - 2 8 , 2 8 - 2 9 , 3 6 - 3 7 , a n d 3 9 - 4 0 . Some o f

T o p k a p i Palace M u s e u m L i b r a r y were being cata-

chose the one that appeared best p r o p o r t i o n e d

the drawings (see cat. nos. 4a, 28, 29, 37) are o n l y

loged. Its catalog n u m b e r , Hazine (Treasury)

(mevzun)

p a r t i a l l y preserved. Those n u m b e r e d 3 and 27,

indicates that i t o r i g i n a l l y belonged to the i m p e r i a l

probable t h a t i n such instances the rejected plans

o n the other h a n d , are two halves o f the same pat-

c o l l e c t i o n , once housed at the I n n e r Treasury i n

were placed i n the I n n e r Treasury; the chosen

t e r n , just like cat. nos. 36 and 39, i n d i c a t i n g the

the t h i r d c o u r t o f the T o p k a p i Palace. T h a t a r c h i -

d r a w i n g presumably w o u l d be r e t u r n e d to the

haphazard way i n w h i c h the scroll fragments

tectural drawings were kept i n that treasury is

chief architect for use. The Office o f Royal A r c h i -

were p u t together t o f o r m a single piece. Judging

c o n f i r m e d by an early i n v e n t o r y o f its c o l l e c t i o n ,

tects at the Vefa d i s t r i c t i n I s t a n b u l had its o w n

1956,

ve tarhlar) f r o m w h i c h the sultan

and most agreeable (matbu ). c

66

I t is

30

PART

1.

THE

SCROLL

TRADITION

THE

TOPKAPI

SCROLL,

ITS

DATE

AND

PROVENANCE

53- Topkapi scroll, late fifteenth or early sixteenth century, ink and colors on paper. Istanbul, Topkapi Sarayi Miizesi Kiituphanesi, M S H . 1956.

archive o f plans, the contents o f w h i c h appear to have disappeared w i t h o u t a t r a c e .

67

The earliest O t t o m a n g r o u n d plans at the Top-

ship o f its designs w i t h extant a r c h i t e c t u r a l m o n u -

plex designs, to code their s y m m e t r i c properties,

ments, and by the c i r c u m s t a n t i a l evidence o f its

or to d i s t i n g u i s h the superimposed tiers o f m u q a r -

preservation i n the O t t o m a n i m p e r i a l treasury

nas projections. The u n d e r l y i n g geometric grids or

kapi Palace M u s e u m Archives are drawn o n u n i n k e d

c o l l e c t i o n . First let us compare i t to the scrolls

c o n s t r u c t i o n lines o f the patterns i n the T o p k a p i

squared grids and can be dated to the late fifteenth

previously described. I n terms o f its paper size the

scroll were first incised o n the paper w i t h a metal

and early sixteenth centuries o n the basis o f t h e i r

T o p k a p i scroll (33-34 c m h i g h ) is most closely

p o i n t . O n l y the simpler square and t r i a n g u l a r

w a t e r m a r k e d I t a l i a n paper (see figs. 2 - 4 ) .

related to the t w o fragmentary sixteenth-century

grids, characterized by t h e i r static symmetry, were

use o f I t a l i a n paper distinguishes t h e m f r o m the

Tashkent scrolls d r a w n o n 38-centimeter-high

traced over i n black i n k . The d y n a m i c a l l y symmet-

T o p k a p i scroll's u n w a t e r m a r k e d heavy rag paper,

Samarqandi paper; all k n o w n examples o f later

rical composite radial grids are made up o f c o n -

w h i c h is o f eastern o r i g i n . M o r e o v e r , the O t t o -

scrolls consistently use paper o f a lesser height.

stellations o f weblike concentric circles s u b d i v i d e d

m a n plans are d r a w n o n i n d i v i d u a l folios o f differ-

The T o p k a p i scroll's sophisticated graphic conven-

i n t o equal arcs by shared r a d i i ; they were p r o b a b l y

ent sizes rather t h a n being pasted together i n the

tions and design vocabulary also find t h e i r closest

made by using compasses p r o v i d e d w i t h one scor-

6 8

The

scroll f o r m a t so c o m m o n i n the I r a n i a n w o r l d .

parallel i n the Tashkent scrolls, even t h o u g h the

i n g p o i n t , and they r e m a i n u n i n k e d , " d e a d " draw-

These differences strengthen the p r o b a b i l i t y that

f o r m e r scroll does n o t c o n t a i n any g r o u n d plans.

ings l i g h t l y scratched o n the surface o f the paper

the T o p k a p i scroll was c o m p i l e d somewhere i n the

The n o w - l o s t parts o f the fragmentary documents

so as n o t to detract f r o m the i n k e d patterns they

east. This is further supported by the fact that the

that make up the T o p k a p i scroll may, however,

generate (see the overlay drawings, w h i c h s i m u l t a -

scroll's patterns were largely i n t e n d e d for a b r i c k -

have i n c l u d e d g r o u n d plans, or perhaps other

neously present the " d e a d " drawings and the i n k e d

and-tile based architecture foreign to the O t t o m a n

scrolls w i t h g r o u n d plans o r i g i n a l l y c o m p l e m e n t e d

patterns, i n the Catalog). These radial grids, often

t r a d i t i o n o f stone masonry. Its drawings consist o f

those segments that have survived. The c o m p l e x i t y

c o m p l e m e n t e d by other superimposed geometric

geometric patterns and i n s c r i p t i o n s o n squared

o f graphic conventions used i n the T o p k a p i scroll

schemes and o r i e n t e d along d y n a m i c axes o f sym-

certainly p o i n t s to an earlier date o f c o m p i l a t i o n

metry, e x p l o i t the two f u n d a m e n t a l h a r m o n i c

star-and-polygon patterns, whole or p a r t i a l p r o -

t h a n the n i n e t e e n t h - and t w e n t i e t h - c e n t u r y scrolls

systems o f lines p r o v i d e d by the circle: spokelike

jections o f radial muqarnas or stellate arch-net

discussed above, w h i c h c o n t a i n rather sketchy

straight lines r a d i a t i n g f r o m various centers and

vaults, and details o f architectural o r n a m e n t (see

drawings displaying an eclectic design vocabulary

curved concentric circumferences that successively

Catalog for a descriptive list o f drawings). These

i n c o m p a t i b l e w i t h an early date.

l i m i t the progressive extension o f circular space.

grids for bannai

b r i c k masonry, t w o - d i m e n s i o n a l

drawings, w h i c h w o u l d have had l i t t l e relevance i n

The T o p k a p i scroll's geometric patterns are

the O t t o m a n context, constitute the largest k n o w n

generated by various g r i d systems and d r a w n w i t h

repeat units meant to be m u l t i p l i e d by symmetry.

repertory o f t w o - and t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l geomet-

a reed pen i n black i n k ; m a n y o f t h e m are h i g h -

They are all geometric patterns generated by three

ric patterns for T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n or early Safavid

l i g h t e d w i t h red i n k and sometimes w i t h a w i d e r

types o f g r i d systems: squared, t r i a n g u l a t e d , and

range o f colors i n c l u d i n g blue-gray, p i n k , orange,

composite radial ( p o l y g o n a l ) . The first t w o are

yellow, and green. M u l t i p l e colors and s t i p p l i n g i n

o n l y used for t w o - d i m e n s i o n a l surface patterns

architectural r e v e t m e n t s .

69

The provenance and date o f the T o p k a p i scroll

The T o p k a p i scroll's drawings often consist o f

can be established by c o m p a r i n g i t w i t h other

red or black i n k are used as a graphic c o n v e n t i o n

and calligraphy, i n t e n d e d for the most part for

k n o w n Islamic scrolls, by assessing the r e l a t i o n -

to differentiate the i n d i v i d u a l c o m p o n e n t s o f c o m -

transfer t o bannai

brick masonry b u t also adapt-

31

32

PART

1.

THE SCROLL

TRADITION

able to other media such as w o o d , stone, p a i n t e d

examples—the o n l y real difference being t h a t

plaster, or mosaic a n d inset tile w o r k (see Catalog,

the latter sometimes use a w i d e r range o f colors,

fifteenth-century

Groups I , I I ) . They are far o u t n u m b e r e d by the

i n c l u d i n g yellow, orange, a n d green, i n a d d i t i o n t o

this muqarnas type have survived i n I r a n itself,

spread to the east f r o m I r a n . A l t h o u g h o n l y a few T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n buildings with

m o r e complex designs based o n composite radial

s t i p p l i n g . T h e b l a c k - a n d - r e d color scheme used i n

examples are w i d e l y encountered i n the Uzbek

grids, w h i c h were used for b o t h t w o - a n d three-

the T o p k a p i scroll is also seen i n the m u c h simpler

m o n u m e n t s o f Central Asia, such as the sixteenth-

d i m e n s i o n a l patterns (see Catalog, Groups I I I ,

muqarnas drawings o f M i r z a A k b a r a n d el B o u r i .

century Chahr Bakr shrine complex i n Bukhara

I V ) . This p r e d o m i n a n c e o f the radial g r i d , w h i c h

Like t h e i r counterparts i n Tashkent, the

(figs. 54, 55). T h e muqarnas semidome o f the

finds a parallel i n the Tashkent scrolls, is i n keep-

T o p k a p i scroll's muqarnas p r o j e c t i o n s are c o m -

m i h r a b i w a n at the Taqi a l - D i n Dada shrine (1473-

i n g w i t h Bulatov's observation t h a t late

posed o f radially organized tiers w i t h a w i d e v a r i -

1474) i n B o n d e r a b a d — l o c a t e d t h i r t y - s i x k i l o m e -

fifteenth-

century T i m u r i d designers a n d t h e i r successors

ety o f polygons a n d stars i n t e r l o c k i n g at m a n y

ters n o r t h w e s t o f Yazd—is an early variant o f the

had come t o favor radial symmetries i n t w o - a n d

different angles. Such radially composed plaster

T o p k a p i scroll's radial muqarnas patterns emanat-

t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l architectural r e v e t m e n t s .

muqarnas vaults e m a n a t i n g f r o m fluted shell-

i n g f r o m fan-shaped semidomes. T h e muqarnas

shaped o r fan-shaped semidomes h a d displaced

superstructure o f this m i h r a b (fig. 56) features a

nas vaults contained i n the T o p k a p i scroll are

the simpler o r t h o g o n a l type i n the I r a n i a n w o r l d

series o f f o u r - , five-, seven-, a n d e i g h t - p o i n t e d

s t r i k i n g l y s i m i l a r t o those i n c l u d e d i n the Tashkent

by the second h a l f o f the fifteenth century. Lisa

stars i n tile mosaic, set i n t o tiers o f plaster. T h e

70

The n u m e r o u s g r o u n d projections for m u q a r -

scrolls, i n terms n o t o n l y o f the radially s y m m e t r i -

G o l o m b e k a n d D o n a l d W i l b e r have i d e n t i f i e d the

fluted type o f radial muqarnas p a t t e r n e m a n a t i n g

cal type o f muqarnas depicted b u t also o f the c o n -

radially s y m m e t r i c a l muqarnas w i t h the " S h i r a z i "

f r o m a c o n c h - o r shell-shaped semidome, w h i c h

ventions for representing m u l t i p l e planes o n a flat

type that the T i m u r i d astronomer a n d m a t h e m a -

often appears i n the T o p k a p i scroll, is encountered

surface (see Catalog, G r o u p I V . i i ) . These drawings

t i c i a n G h i y a t h a l - D i n Jamshid M a s ' u d al-Kashi

i n the M a s j i d - i Muzaffariya (Blue mosque, 1465),

represent parallel projections ( m i r r o r or o r t h o g o -

( d . 1429) described as the most c o m p l e x variant o f

the o n l y m a j o r T u r k m e n m o n u m e n t s u r v i v i n g i n

nal p r o je c tio ns ) o f t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l muqarnas

the four basic muqarnas types k n o w n t o h i m (see

Tabriz. This muqarnas type is translated i n s i m -

tiers where p o i n t s o n the flat p i c t u r e plane corre-

" T h e M u q a r n a s " i n the present v o l u m e ) .

plified f o r m i n t o stone o n the

spond to m u l t i p l e layers i n space. I n t h e m the

three types were o r t h o g o n a l , based o n the m o d u l a r

muqarnas portals o f the Shirvan Shahs complex i n

b o u n d a r y lines o f successively corbeled muqarnas

use o f the square; o n l y the Shirazi muqarnas was

Baku, located t o the n o r t h o f T a b r i z .

tiers, representing different spatial levels collapsed

generated by radial g r i d systems. I t p r o m i s e d an

o n t o the same d r a w i n g , are often h i g h l i g h t e d w i t h

almost u n l i m i t e d range o f possible c o m b i n a t i o n s

typically T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n design repertory seem

s t i p p l i n g or color c o d i n g . O n l y i n a few cases are

o f polygons a n d star polygons fitted together at

to p o i n t t o a late fifteenth- or sixteenth-century

the muqarnas projections o f the T o p k a p i scroll

m a n y angles along a n e t w o r k o f concentric circles.

date o f c o m p i l a t i o n . Its patterns appear to have

rendered i n simple black l i n e drawings. W h e t h e r

The m a j o r i t y o f the muqarnas vault p r o j e c t i o n s

been created at a t i m e w h e n the i n t e r n a t i o n a l

rendered i n b l a c k - i n k outlines, color coded

i n c l u d e d i n the Tashkent a n d T o p k a p i scrolls rep-

T i m u r i d geometric design vocabulary (perpetuated

w i t h r e d a n d black i n k , or h i g h l i g h t e d w i t h s t i p -

resent this type o f radial muqarnas, c o m m o n l y

i n the T u r k m e n a n d early Safavid courts o f I r a n

p l i n g , these muqarnas drawings use sophisticated

used f r o m the late fifteenth c e n t u r y o n w a r d .

graphic conventions reminiscent o f the Tashkent

7 1

T h e first

The Shirazi type o f muqarnas seems t o have

fifteenth-century 72

The T o p k a p i scroll's muqarnas patterns a n d its

and i n the Uzbek c o u r t o f Central Asia) was still very m u c h alive. I t may, o f course, be t h a t the

THE

TOPKAPI

SCROLL,

ITS

DATE

AND

PROVENANCE

33

54. Plaster muqarnas hood of a portal, Chahr Bakr shrine complex, Bukhara, 1559-1569. Photo by author.

55. Plaster muqarnas hood of a portal, Chahr Bakr shrine complex, Bukhara, 1559-1569. Photo by author.

56. Plaster muqarnas mihrab hood inlaid with mosaic tile-work stars, Taqi al-Din Dada shrine complex, Bonderabad, 1473-1474. From Golombek and Wilber 1988, 2: fig. 354. Photo: Courtesy Renata Holod.

34

PART

1.

THE SCROLL

TRADITION

57. Muqarnas cornice of the ribbed dome, madrasa complex of Gawhar Shad, Mashhad, 1432. Photo: Donald Wilber, courtesy of Asian Art Photographic Distribution, Ann Arbor, M I .

58. Detail of composite kufic inscription panel in bannai brick masonry, side portal of the Masjid-i Jami , Varzana, 1442-1444. Photo: Courtesy Anthony Hutt, Scorpion Archives. c

scroll's T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n repertory was copied at

drawings, however, can be d i r e c t l y l i n k e d w i t h

a m u c h later date, b u t this is q u i t e u n l i k e l y given

extant T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n m o n u m e n t s , suggesting

the s t r i k i n g difference between its sophisticated

that the patterns represent a w o r k s h o p catalog o f

d r a f t i n g conventions a n d those o f n i n e t e e n t h - a n d

available design choices rather t h a n sketches pre-

t w e n t i e t h - c e n t u r y scrolls. T h e fragmentary d o c u -

pared for specific b u i l d i n g s . Nonetheless, m a n y

ments that compose the T o p k a p i scroll have been

generic similarities exist between the scroll's

damaged over t i m e , a n d this also seems t o suggest

ideal p a t t e r n types a n d those encountered i n the

an early date. I f the scroll were a recent copy o f

r e m a i n i n g architectural m o n u m e n t s o f the b r o a d l y

an older d o c u m e n t , i t w o u l d n o t feature so m a n y

defined i n t e r n a t i o n a l T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n c u l t u r a l

breaks b u t instead w o u l d be consistently designed

sphere. T h e most exact parallels seem t o p o i n t to

and r a t i o n a l l y ordered. T h e absence o f anachro-

western a n d central I r a n d u r i n g the second h a l f o f

nistic m o t i f s inconsistent w i t h an i n t e r n a t i o n a l

the fifteenth century, even t h o u g h m a n y o f the

T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n design vocabulary f u r t h e r

scroll's patterns do o r i g i n a t e i n S e l j u q - I l k h a n i d

argues for the late fifteenth- or sixteenth-century

prototypes t h a t c o n t i n u e d i n use i n the post-

date t h a t Filiz Qagman assigns t o the T o p k a p i

T i m u r i d era.

scroll o n the basis o f her l o n g experience w i t h

Geometric a n d calligraphic patterns d r a w n o n

comparable documents i n the T o p k a p i Palace

squared grids for use o n bannaibrick

M u s e u m Library's m a n u s c r i p t c o l l e c t i o n .

represent a well-defined g r o u p i n the T o p k a p i

73

Let us n o w briefly compare the T o p k a p i scroll's

masonry

scroll; t h e i r variants are w i d e l y used i n m a n y

patterns w i t h those observed i n extant T i m u r i d -

I r a n i a n a n d C e n t r a l Asian b u i l d i n g s (see Catalog,

T u r k m e n m o n u m e n t s . As has been previously

G r o u p I ) . A m o n g these patterns is a c o m p o s i t i o n

n o t e d , the f o r m e r — l a r g e l y foreign to the M e d i -

for a square kufic panel (see cat. n o . 72). I t finds

terranean stone masonry t r a d i t i o n o f O t t o m a n

almost an exact replica o n the entrance p o r t a l

a r c h i t e c t u r e — w e r e no d o u b t i n t e n d e d for a b r i c k -

o f the M a s j i d - i Jami i n Varzana (located o n a

and-tile based b u i l d i n g t r a d i t i o n r e l y i n g o n exten-

caravan r o u t e between Isfahan and Yazd), w h i c h

c

sive p o l y c h r o m a t i c surface revetments. M o s t

is dated 1442-1444 a n d associated w i t h the

o f t h e m w o u l d have h a d l i t t l e relevance i n the

T i m u r i d ruler Shahrukh (fig. 58), w h o reigned

O t t o m a n context; i n this category fall patterns for

f r o m 1405 t o 1447.

the muqarnas cornices o f t y p i c a l l y T i m u r i d r i b b e d

74

Two-dimensional interlocking star-and-polygon

domes (fig. 57, cat. n o . 81), for arch-net a n d plaster

c o m p o s i t i o n s i n t e n d e d m a i n l y for mosaic tile

muqarnas vaults, for bannai

w o r k a n d carved plaster constitute another c o m -

b r i c k masonry, a n d

for mosaic t i l i n g . O n l y a few o f the T o p k a p i scroll's

m o n p a t t e r n type i n the T o p k a p i scroll (see

THE

TOPKAPI

SCROLL,

ITS

DATE

AND

35

PROVENANCE

59. Mosaic tile panel, Masjid-i Jami , Varamin, fifteenth century. Photo: Courtesy Nader Ardalan. c

60. Mosaic tile dado panel in the vestibule behind the entrance iwan, Masjid-i Jami , Yazd, fifteenth century. Photo: Courtesy Harvard University, Fogg Art Museum, Fine' Arts Library, Visual Collections. c

Catalog, G r o u p I I I ) . A d istinc tive aspect o f these patterns is t h e i r r i g i d l y angular character (the exception is a single c u r v i l i n e a r design at the very end o f the scroll [see cat. n o . 114]). This is a factor entirely i n keeping w i t h the T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n geometric design repertory, w h i c h h a d conspicuously m o v e d away f r o m the c u r v i l i n e a r interlaces encountered i n earlier m o n u m e n t s . Once again the closest parallels for this p a t t e r n type appear i n extant T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n b u i l d i n g s . O n e o f the Topkapi scroll c o m p o s i t i o n s i n this category is s t r i k i n g l y s i m i l a r to a mosaic tile panel at the M a s j i d - i J a m i i n V a r a m i n , w h i c h was restored c

i n the reign o f Shahrukh (cf. cat. n o . 70, fig. 5 9 ) .

75

A n o t h e r p a t t e r n (see cat. n o . 8), w h i c h provides the repeat u n i t for a mosaic tile panel, closely resembles the s tar - a nd -p o l yg on c o m p o s i t i o n o n a fifteenth-century dado panel at the entrance p o r t a l o f the M a s j i d - i J am i i n Yazd a n d o n the m i n b a r o f c

the nearby shrine complex o f Taqi a l - D i n Dada i n Bonderabad (fig. 6 0 ) .

7 6

The T o p k a p i scroll's i n t r i c a t e patterns w i t h three different types o f stars (see cat. nos. 35, 39, 44) also find t h e i r counterparts i n fifteenth-century mosaic tile a n d carved plaster c o m p o s i t i o n s .

77

A n o t h e r p a t t e r n type i n the scroll consists o f two superimposed s t a r - a n d - p o l y g o n designs (see cat. nos. 28, 29, 31, 32, 34). Mosaic tile patterns belonging to this type appear i n the D a r b - i I m a m at Isfahan (1453-1454), b u i l t b y a governor d u r i n g the reign o f the Q a r a q o y u n l u ruler Jahanshah (figs. 61, 6 2 ) .

78

I n this type a b a c k g r o u n d p a t t e r n

36

PART

1.

THE SCROLL

TRADITION

61. Mosaic tile work on an arch spandrel, Darb-i Imam, Isfahan, 1453-1454. Photo: Courtesy Kendall Dudley.

62. Mosaic tile work on a portal, Darb-i Imam, Isfahan, 1453-1454. Photo: Courtesy Kendall Dudley. 63. Double-layered relief mosaic tile panel at the side of the north portal, Darb-i Imam, Isfahan, 1453-1454. From Golombek and Wilber 1988, 2: pi. xva. Photo: Courtesy Lisa Golombek.

THE

TOPKAPI

SCROLL,

ITS DATE

AND

37

PROVENANCE

64a. Double-layered relief mosaic tile panel, Masjid-i Jami of Gawhar Shad, Mashhad, 1416-1418. From Golombek and Wilber 1988, 2: pi. xiia. Photo: Courtesy Lisa Golombek. c

64b. Detail from double-layered relief mosaic tile work on the soffit of the arch leading into the dome chamber, Masjid-i Jami , Varzana, 1442-1444. Photo: Courtesy Anthony Hutt, Scorpion Archives. c

composed o f small i n t e r l o c k i n g stars and polygons

executed i n a single layer, n o t t w o , w i t h large p o l y -

is superimposed w i t h a linear p a t t e r n delineating

gon and star fragments embedded i n a field o f

large stars and polygons p r o p o r t i o n a l l y related t o

smaller i n t e r l o c k i n g stars and polygons, signaling

the b a c k g r o u n d m o t i f s i n such a way t h a t its n o d a l

a loss o f technical s o p h i s t i c a t i o n .

p o i n t s o f intersection overlap w i t h the centers o f some b a c k g r o u n d stars.

W i t h a few exceptions f r o m the Safavid p e r i o d this unusual relief t i l i n g technique and the d i s t i n c -

The D a r b - i I m a m also features mosaic tile

tive p a t t e r n type associated w i t h i t seem to have

panels w i t h large p o l y g o n and star fragments super-

largely disappeared after the late fifteenth century.

imposed o n a m i n u t e l y rendered b a c k g r o u n d c o m -

The rare Safavid examples seen at the c o u r t y a r d

posed o f small i n t e r l o c k i n g stars and polygons

iwans o f the M a s j i d - i J a m i i n Isfahan (fig. 66) and

(fig. 63). These panels f i n d t h e i r parallels i n two

the shrine o f I m a m Riza i n Mashhad have simpler

Topkapi scroll drawings (see cat. nos. 38, 4 9 ) ,

b a c k g r o u n d c o m p o s i t i o n s t h a n the T i m u r i d -

w h i c h once again display a remarkable i n g e n u i t y

T u r k m e n examples, w h i c h are closer to the t w o

i n m a n i p u l a t i n g p r o p o r t i o n a l l y related back-

drawings i n the T o p k a p i scroll (see cat. nos. 38,

g r o u n d and f o r e g r o u n d m o t i f s i n different scales.

49). This resemblance supports the early date t h a t

The drawings represent, i n fact, a t o u r de force o f

I have proposed for the T o p k a p i scroll as well as its

superimposed geometric schemes e x e m p l i f y i n g the

I r a n i a n provenance, given t h a t such relief tiles are

complex i n t e r p l a y o f t w o c o m p l e m e n t a r y layers

u n c o m m o n i n Central Asia. O t h e r characteristics

o f p a t t e r n and are thus perhaps comparable t o

o f the scroll also p o i n t to a closer k i n s h i p w i t h

c

p o l y p h o n y i n music. I n t h e m the corners o f the

the m o n u m e n t s o f I r a n t h a n w i t h those o f C e n t r a l

large f o r e g r o u n d m o t i f s raised i n relief, w h i c h

Asia. One o f these is the frequent appearance o f

w o u l d f o r m a c o n t i n u o u s field i f j o i n e d together,

the r o t a t e d names Ali

fall o n the centers o f some b a c k g r o u n d stars.

l i g r a p h i c c o m p o s i t i o n s (see cat. nos. 71, 76, 91).

Comparable examples o f mosaic tile pariels e x h i b -

Such i n s c r i p t i o n s , so c o m m o n i n I r a n w i t h its

i t i n g this rare T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n technique o f

S h i i sympathies, o n l y rarely appear i n T i m u r i d

relief t i l i n g appear o n the sanctuary i w a n o f

and p o s t - T i m u r i d b u i l d i n g s f u r t h e r t o the east.

c

and Muhammad

i n its cal-

c

the M a s j i d - i J a m i o f Gawhar Shad i n M a s h h a d

Popular i n I r a n i a n m o n u m e n t s f r o m at least the

(fig. 64a), b u i l t for Shahrukh's wife i n 1416-1418,

I l k h a n i d p e r i o d o n w a r d , calligraphic c o m p o s i t i o n s

and o n the M a s j i d - i J a m i i n Varzana (fig. 6 4 b ) .

bearing the name Ali

c

c

79

c

also figure p r o m i n e n t l y i n

A similar c o m p o s i t i o n appears i n the mosaic tile

the n i n e t e e n t h - c e n t u r y Qajar p a t t e r n scrolls (see

w o r k o f the D a r b - i K u s h k i n Isfahan (1496-1497)

figs. 3i-33> 44).

b u i l t by the son o f the A q q o y u n l u r u l e r U z u n Hasan (fig. 65). Here, however, the mosaic tiles are

The T o p k a p i scroll was p r o b a b l y c o m p i l e d i n the late fifteenth o r sixteenth c e n t u r y somewhere

65. Mosaic tile panel at the portal, Darb-i Kushk, Isfahan, 1496-1497. Photo: Courtesy John Rosenfield. 66. Double-layered relief mosaic tile work at the southwest iwan in the courtyard, Masjid-i Jami , Isfahan, restored 1475-1476. The tiles may have been added in the early Safavid period, sixteenth century. From Seherr-Thoss 1968,193, pi. 87. Photo: Hans C. Seherr-Thoss. c

38

PART

1.

THE

SCROLL

TRADITION

i n western or central I r a n , possibly i n Tabriz,

p e r i o d as is the disappearance o f Abbasid Baghdad

t r a d i t i o n s f r o m one generation o f master builders

w h i c h served as a m a j o r c u l t u r a l capital under the

for the p r e - M o n g o l e r a .

to the next i n a m a n u s c r i p t - d o m i n a t e d p r e m o d e r n

81

I n his h i s t o r i c a l essay o n

I l k h a n i d s , the Q a r a q o y u n l u , and the A q q o y u n l u

Tabriz, the late sixteenth-century O t t o m a n h i s t o -

w o r l d u n i n f i l t r a t e d by the p r i n t i n g press, f o u n d

T u r k m e n dynasties, as w e l l as the early Safavids. Its

r i a n Ta likizade still ranked that c i t y — t o g e t h e r

its way i n t o the O t t o m a n i m p e r i a l treasury collec-

geometric designs i n all l i k e l i h o o d were p r o d u c e d

w i t h I s t a n b u l , Cairo, D e l h i , Beijing, and R o m e —

t i o n . U n l i k e the p r i n t e d architectural manuals that

under T u r k m e n patronage, b u t an early Safavid

a m o n g the leading metropolises o f the w o r l d .

p r o l i f e r a t e d i n fifteenth- and sixteenth-century

date is also a possibility as the i n t e r n a t i o n a l

By i m p l i c a t i o n this gave i t greater prestige t h a n

Europe, where the late medieval g u i l d system had

T i m u r i d heritage w o u l d still have been very m u c h

Samarqand and H e r a t .

begun to disintegrate, the T o p k a p i scroll addressed

alive. W i t h the p o l i t i c a l decline o f the T i m u r i d s i n

c o m p i l e d i n the T u r k m e n or early Safavid courts

a n a r r o w circle o f initiates already acquainted w i t h

the east a r o u n d the m i d d l e o f the fifteenth cen-

o f Tabriz (or i n another I r a n i a n c i t y ) , its patterns

i n h e r i t e d craft t r a d i t i o n s . Since its coded w o r k i n g

t u r y , the i n i t i a t i v e i n a r c h i t e c t u r a l patronage had

can be seen as precious mementos o f a n o w - l o s t

drawings r e c o r d i n g w o r k s h o p practices by means

r e t u r n e d to western I r a n . The T o p k a p i scroll seems

archaeological record.

to have been p u t together after that p o i n t ; i f so,

c

82

I f the T o p k a p i scroll was

o f economically rendered repeat units do n o t seem to have been i n t e n d e d as presentation drawings

C o n f r o n t e d w i t h the ruins o f ancient Near

this w o u l d explain w h y so few o f its patterns, w h i c h

Eastern m o n u m e n t s , the n i n t h - c e n t u r y Abbasid

for patrons, its preservation i n the sultan's private

a d m i t t e d l y constitute a catalog o f ideal types, can

author al-Jahiz w r o t e : " T h e c o m p o s i n g o f books

treasury seems unusual.

be i d e n t i f i e d w i t h designs o n extant m o n u m e n t s .

is m o r e effective t h a n b u i l d i n g i n r e c o r d i n g the

O n l y a h a n d f u l o f T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n and early

accomplishments o f the passing ages and centuries.

scroll's placement i n the I n n e r Treasury o f the

Safavid b u i l d i n g s survive i n such I r a n i a n c u l t u r a l

For there is no d o u b t that c o n s t r u c t i o n eventually

T o p k a p i Palace can p r o v i d e an a d d i t i o n a l clue as

centers as Tabriz, Q a z v i n , Isfahan, Yazd, and

perishes, and its traces disappear, w h i l e books

to its date and provenance. I f i t was p r o d u c e d i n

Shiraz. A l t h o u g h the parallels t h a t we have i d e n -

handed f r o m one generation to another, and f r o m

Tabriz or b r o u g h t there f r o m another I r a n i a n

tified for the T o p k a p i scroll involve extant m o n u -

n a t i o n to n a t i o n , r e m a i n forever r e n e w e d . "

center, i t c o u l d easily have passed i n t o the hands

ments located i n I r a n , p r i m a r i l y along the axis

turies later the T i m u r i d h i s t o r i a n M i r k h w a n d

o f the O t t o m a n s w h o conquered Tabriz several

between Isfahan and Yazd, the capital Tabriz was

(1433-1498) w o u l d repeat the same observation:

times: the first i n 1474 w h e n M e h m e d 11 defeated

83

Cen-

The c i r c u m s t a n t i a l evidence o f the T o p k a p i

the m a j o r c u l t u r a l center f r o m w h i c h architectural

" B u i l d i n g s may be seen, / Ruined by sun and r a i n . /

U z u n Hasan and the second i n 1514 w h e n Selim 1

and decorative i n n o v a t i o n s were disseminated to

Erect history's strong f o u n d a t i o n / To escape f r o m

vanquished the Safavid ruler Shah I s m a i l . O n

these n e i g h b o r i n g r e g i o n s .

w i n d , r a i n , and d e s o l a t i o n . "

b o t h occasions m a n y skilled artisans and scholars

80

84

The survival o f

c

the T o p k a p i scroll i n the face o f the large-scale

as w e l l as treasures and manuscripts were taken

O t t o m a n artist M a t r a k c i Nasuh i n the 1530s, Tabriz

destruction of T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n monuments i n

f r o m Tabriz to I s t a n b u l . This p a t t e r n was repeated

once, rivaled the T i m u r i d capitals o f Samarqand

such centers as Tabriz bears o u t this sad t r u t h

i n Suleyman I ' S several raids o n the same city i n

and H e r a t i n architectural splendor. The nearly

c o n c e r n i n g the evanescence o f brick-based a r c h i -

the first h a l f o f the sixteenth century, w h i c h even-

wholesale d e s t r u c t i o n o f m o n u m e n t s i n Tabriz is,

tecture i n the I r a n i a n w o r l d .

tually forced the Safavids to transfer t h e i r capital

Judging f r o m its cityscape as d r a w n by the

therefore, as significant a loss for the h i s t o r y o f eastern Islamic architecture i n the p o s t - M o n g o l

The question remains h o w the T o p k a p i scroll, meant to preserve the m e m o r y o f geometric design

to Q a z v i n i n 1543. The scroll c o u l d also have been b r o u g h t to I s t a n b u l by such personages as the

THE

TOPKAPI

SCROLL,

ITS

DATE

AND

PROVENANCE

T i m u r i d a s t r o n o m e r - m a t h e m a t i c i a n A l i Kusci,

o f the chief architect, i t w o u l d p r o b a b l y have dis-

w h o first m o v e d f r o m Samarqand to the c o u r t o f

appeared together w i t h all the architectural draw-

U z u n Hasan i n Tabriz after the death o f his p a t r o n

ings cited i n the O t t o m a n sources. This seems to

U l u g h Beg and t h e n j o i n e d M e h m e d n's c o u r t i n

have been the fate o f many other p a t t e r n scrolls

1472 w i t h a large retinue and a vast m a n u s c r i p t

consumed d u r i n g the c o n s t r u c t i o n process i n

c o l l e c t i o n , w h i c h i n c l u d e d m a t h e m a t i c a l treatises.

the I r a n i a n w o r l d . The c o m b i n e d evidence, t h e n ,

The T o p k a p i scroll may also have belonged to

strongly suggests a late fifteenth- or sixteenth-

the T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n decorators and builders

century date and an I r a n i a n provenance for the

w h o were i n v i t e d to the c o u r t o f M e h m e d 11 i n the

T o p k a p i scroll, hereafter referred to as a T i m u r i d -

1470s. C o m p l e t e d i n 1472, this sultan's Q i n i l i Kosk

T u r k m e n scroll even t h o u g h i t may have been

( T i l e d kiosk) at the T o p k a p i Palace was

c o m p i l e d i n the Safavid p e r i o d . D e t e r m i n i n g an

decorated

by a foreign w o r k s h o p staffed w i t h tile cutters

exact date o f c o m p i l a t i o n becomes a relatively

f r o m the I r a n i a n w o r l d . I t exemplified the prestige

m i n o r issue since the p r e d o m i n a n t l y geometric

o f the i n t e r n a t i o n a l T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n style i n the

design repertory o f the scroll is genuinely T i m u r i d -

O t t o m a n c o u r t at a t i m e when M e h m e d 11 was

T u r k m e n i n o r i g i n , a repertory that c o n t i n u e d

d r e a m i n g o f a p p r o p r i a t i n g the A q q o y u n l u t e r r i t o -

to be used i n the early Safavid era. I n whatever

ries i n the east. I t is t e m p t i n g to propose that the

context i t was created, the i m p l i c a t i o n s o f the

scroll reached the O t t o m a n c o u r t some t i m e i n the

T o p k a p i scroll for architectural practice i n the late

late fifteenth or early sixteenth century w h e n c u l -

T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n and early Safavid worlds are

t u r a l contacts w i t h the T i m u r i d , T u r k m e n , and

o f far greater i m p o r t a n c e , i m p l i c a t i o n s that w o u l d

early Safavid courts were at their peak; this seems

n o t change even i f this u n i q u e d o c u m e n t were

all the m o r e l i k e l y given the d i m i n i s h e d interest

f o u n d to have been copied at a later date.

i n Persianate artistic models after that t i m e . The Topkapi scroll p r o b a b l y owes its superbly preserved c o n d i t i o n to having been deposited i n the I n n e r Treasury and then f o r g o t t e n , thanks to its m i n o r relevance to classical O t t o m a n architecture, the canonical language o f w h i c h was codified by the 1550s and m a r k e d a deliberate departure f r o m the Persianate T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n models that previously had been e m u l a t e d .

85

I f the T o p k a p i scroll had been used i n the office

39

CHAPTER

3.

THE

TOPKAPI

SCROLL

ARCHITECTUAL

AS

A MIRROR

OF LATE

TIMURID-TURKMEN

PRACTICE

nets, complex muqarnas vaults, extensive i n s c r i p -

The geometry that governed the t w o - and three-

" T h e v i r t u o s i t y o f T i m u r i d a r c h i t e c t u r e , " as

d i m e n s i o n a l decorative revetments o f T i m u r i d -

G o l o m b e k and W i l b e r n o t e d , "was n o t expressed

tions, and geometric o r n a m e n t o f T i m u r i d -

T u r k m e n architecture (perpetuated i n early Safavid

p r i m a r i l y i n the design o f new types o f structures,

T u r k m e n b u i l d i n g s almost certainly r e q u i r e d

and Uzbek architectural practice) is the m a i n sub-

or i n the elaboration o f previous types, b u t i n an

detailed advance p l a n n i n g just as c o n t e m p o r a r y

ject o f the T o p k a p i scroll. As G o l o m b e k and W i l b e r

intensive e x p e r i m e n t a t i o n w i t h d e c o r a t i o n and

late G o t h i c architecture d i d . A l t h o u g h o n l y a

have remarked: " W h a t supplies the u n i f y i n g force

w i t h varieties o f v a u l t i n g . "

few architectural drawings are k n o w n f r o m the

to T i m u r i d architecture . . . is the g e o m e t r i z a t i o n

affirmed t h a t " w h i l e architectural layouts remained

Romanesque and early G o t h i c periods i n Europe,

o f design, s t r u c t u r e , o r n a m e n t , and space. Geome-

t r a d i t i o n a l , the T i m u r i d s developed v a u l t i n g and

a large n u m b e r o f w o r k s h o p manuals, lodge books,

t r y i n T i m u r i d architecture is n o t merely a means

t i l e w o r k to a h i t h e r t o unprecedented d e g r e e . "

and drawings f r o m between the f o u r t e e n t h and

to an end, b u t an end i n i t s e l f — a n u n d e r l y i n g

I t is precisely to this aspect o f T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n

sixteenth centuries have survived, most o f t h e m

theme, an aesthetic p r i n c i p l e . A b u i l d i n g must n o t

architecture that the T o p k a p i scroll w i t h its i n t r i -

p e r t a i n i n g to German late G o t h i c .

o n l y have a geometric skeleton, b u t i n the final

cate geometric patterns for p o l y c h r o m e surface

the p r o l i f e r a t i o n o f architectural drawings i n the

analysis i t must l o o k ' g e o m e t r i c ' Geometry is as

revetments and elaborate v a u l t i n g is devoted.

Islamic lands after the f o u r t e e n t h century, w h i c h

m u c h a theme o f the architecture as i t is o f the

Buildings c o m m i s s i o n e d by the r u l i n g elite stood

c u l m i n a t e d i n the earliest k n o w n examples o f

d e c o r a t i o n . " This obsession w i t h geometry, they

o u t by v i r t u e o f t h e i r expensive decorative veneer

p a t t e r n scrolls datable to the late fifteenth and six-

argued, t u r n e d i t i n t o "a f o r m o f design t h e o r y " i n

o f p o l y c h r o m a t i c revetments applied over a

teenth centuries. A l t h o u g h this may s i m p l y be an

I r a n and Central Asia d u r i n g the T i m u r i d p e r i o d .

8 8

Robert H i l l e n b r a n d

89

91

This parallels

greater surface area t h a n ever before i n I r a n i a n

accident o f survival, the b o o m o f drawings c o u l d

The T o p k a p i scroll, w h i c h once acted as an i n t e r -

Islamic architecture. As stellate arch-nets and

also be the result o f the c o d i f i c a t i o n o f forms

v e n i n g m e d i u m i n the c o n c e p t u a l i z a t i o n and

muqarnas vaults t u r n e d i n t o a f o r m o f o r n a m e n t a l

after an i n i t i a l p e r i o d o f s t r u c t u r a l e x p e r i m e n -

transmission o f architectural knowledge, can help

revetment c o m p l e m e n t i n g the decorative treat-

t a t i o n . B o t h the late G o t h i c and the late T i m u r i d -

8 6

us penetrate the processes o f geometric h a r m o n i -

m e n t o f w a l l surfaces, their increasingly i n t r i c a t e

T u r k m e n architectural i d i o m s evolved f r o m

z a t i o n i n T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n architecture where

designs freed f r o m s t r u c t u r a l concerns had to

s t r u c t u r a l i n n o v a t i o n s that were eventually trans-

geometry c o n s t i t u t e d an i m p o r t a n t key to struc-

be w o r k e d o u t i n precise p r e l i m i n a r y d r a w i n g s .

t u r a l logic, beauty, and m e a n i n g .

87

90

The c r u c i f o r m d o m e chambers, weblike arch-

f o r m e d i n t o elaborate decorative sophistications. Like late G o t h i c flamboyant v a u l t i n g , w h i c h

42

PART

1.

THE

SCROLL

TRADITION

has been described as being generated f r o m a

refined v i r t u o s i t y and subtly variegated surface

architecture. . . . I n G o t h i c architecture,

" d i s c i p l i n e d geometric g r i d w h i c h explodes i n t o

revetments i n m u l t i p l e media, as the drawings o f

p r o p o r t i o n s are m o r e abstract; the i n d i -

fireworks o f incredible technical and design

the T o p k a p i scroll w i t h its kaleidoscopic array o f

v i d u a l elements have no accepted set o f

sophistry," T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n v a u l t i n g became

geometric patterns, i n s c r i p t i o n s , and vault projec-

p r o p o r t i o n s i n themselves or i n r e l a t i o n

an independent aesthetic force r e q u i r i n g m o r e

tions show. Based o n m o r e visually c o m p l i c a t e d

to the overall dimensions o f the b u i l d i n g ,

and m o r e c o m p l i c a t e d designs.

m u l t i l a y e r e d geometric c o m p o s i t i o n s t h a n t h e i r

b u t rather f o l l o w a system o f i n t e r r e l a -

G o t h i c counterparts, the scroll's drawings p r o v i d e

tionships g r o u n d e d i n the consistency

T o p k a p i scroll reflect a shared p r e o c c u p a t i o n

a glimpse o f the T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n design reper-

o f geometric f o r m u l a e .

w i t h the graphic representation o f increasingly

t o r y , governed by the abstract logic o f geome-

elaborate vault patterns and details o f geometric

try. These drawings demonstrate t h a t the late

o r n a m e n t rather than w i t h problems o f architec-

T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n architect, like his colleagues

practical constructive geometry o f the medieval

92

S u r v i v i n g late G o t h i c design booklets and the

95

U n l i k e Euclidean theoretical geometry, the

t u r a l space and structure. As the plans o f b u i l d i n g

i n Europe, had to master a m o d u l a r system

master masons d i d n o t require a r i t h m e t i c rea-

types became relatively standardized w i t h the dis-

o f geometric design i n w h i c h a r i t h m e t i c and mea-

soning to move t h r o u g h geometric processes.

sipation o f d a r i n g s t r u c t u r a l e x p e r i m e n t a t i o n , late

surement played a relatively insignificant role.

Problems that w o u l d seem to require n u m e r i c a l

medieval architects i n Europe and i n the Islamic

K o s t o f stressed the p r e d o m i n a n t l y geometric basis

c o m p u t a t i o n were often solved t h r o u g h the c o n -

lands increasingly t u r n e d t h e i r creative energies to

o f the medieval design process, n o t i n g the shared

s t r u c t i o n and m a n i p u l a t i o n o f simple geometric

the decorative embellishment and refinement o f

p r e o c c u p a t i o n o f b o t h C h r i s t i a n and M u s l i m

shapes, using basic w o r k i n g tools. As L o n Shelby

canonical forms. As Spiro K o s t o f n o t e d , late G o t h i c

architects w i t h g e o m e t r y :

observed, rather t h a n being " t h e geometry o f the

94

architects embarked o n a " d a z z l i n g adventure o f

96

m a t h e m a t i c i a n s , " this was the medieval mason's

elaborations," designing lacelike tracery, i n f i n i t e l y

I n m a t u r e G o t h i c design, a r i t h m e t i c a l

"way o f visualizing p o t e n t i a l architectural forms

variegated filigree w o r k , fanciful vault schemata,

tidiness i n the m u c h m o r e sophisticated

w i t h i n certain geometric f i g u r e s . "

and decorative m o t i f s , w h i c h constitute the subject

geometry used was n o t always o f p r i m e

a m i n i m u m i n v e n t o r y o f geometric shapes t h a t

m a t t e r o f t h e i r drawings. He perceptively c o m -

concern. The design process evolved f r o m

medieval architects created a m a x i m u m diversity

pared the dematerialized muqarnas vaults o f the

a geometric progression t h a t started w i t h

o f forms. A c t u a l measurements d i d n o t enter the

A l h a m b r a , w i t h t h e i r m y r i a d m i n u t e l y fragmented

basic figures, such as equilateral triangles,

design process u n t i l the last m o m e n t , w h e n the sit-

facets, to late G o t h i c vaults i n England: " T h e later

circles, and squares, e n d i n g u p , t h r o u g h

i n g and dimensions o f a b u i l d i n g were d e t e r m i n e d ,

vaults i n b o t h the M u s l i m and G o t h i c c o m p a r i s o n

a series o f simple geometric steps, i n

an observation c o n f i r m e d by the absence o f mea-

may seem at first glance w i l d l y l i c e n t i o u s , b u t they

elaborate constellations o f f o r m . I n this

surements o n s u r v i v i n g w o r k i n g drawings. A m o n g

are, each o n e w i t h i n its o w n t r a d i t i o n , r a t i o n a l l y

d y n a m i c m a n i p u l a t i o n o f geometry the

the a p p r o x i m a t e l y five t h o u s a n d preserved G o t h i c

b r e d f r o m the visual principles t h a t governed the

m o d u l e had, as i t were t o fend for itself.

architectural drawings, less t h a n a dozen c o n t a i n

earlier v a u l t s . "

Measured drawings were exceptional.

i n d i c a t i o n s o f actual size, some o f t h e m apparently

P r o p o r t i o n s were n o t fixed according to a

added as an afterthought. M o s t o f these designs

respected general canon, as w i t h Classical

were developed geometrically and thus were w o r k -

93

Like t h e i r late G o t h i c contemporaries, master builders i n the eastern Islamic lands strove for

97

I t was t h r o u g h

THE

TOPKAPI

SCROLL

AS

A

MIRROR

OF

LATE

able for large and small structures a l i k e .

TIMURID-TURKMEN

ARCHITECTURAL

43

PRACTICE

Tashkent scrolls. Elevations were often deduced

based o n a r i t h m e t i c ratios echoing musical c o n -

by means o f geometric procedures f r o m g r o u n d

sonances.

master builders differed f u n d a m e n t a l l y f r o m those

plans, as was c o m m o n practice i n the G o t h i c

scaled architectural drawings (characterized by

developed i n post-Renaissance Europe. As Shelby

building tradition.

measured g r o u n d plans and elevations d r a w n

n o t e d , " M e d i e v a l a r c h i t e c t s — t h e master masons

lel p r o j e c t i o n m u l t i p l e levels o f space frequently

98

The geometric drafting methods o f medieval

1 0 1

T h r o u g h methods o f paral-

102

I t was o n l y after the Renaissance t h a t

according to specific dimensions) became the n o r m

and master c a r p e n t e r s — d i d n o t w o r k and t h i n k

were collapsed o n t o a single d r a w i n g just as t w o -

i n European architectural practice, a development

and w r i t e like ancient and post-medieval a r c h i -

d i m e n s i o n a l designs were projected o n t o walls and

that broadened the gap between d r a f t i n g conven-

tects."

vaults by means o f i m a g i n e d parallel rays. W o r k -

tions i n Europe and i n eastern Islamic lands where

i z i n g design problems are reflected i n G o t h i c

shop t r a i n i n g prepared T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n builders

abstract geometric schemata prevailed. N u m b e r -

99

T h e i r d is ti nc t iv e modes o f conceptual-

sketchbooks and lodge books, w h i c h constitute

to read such m u l t i l e v e l e d drawings, w h i c h c o n -

based design has l o n g been regarded as one o f the

valuable repositories o f f o r g o t t e n techniques and

tained several superimposed h o r i z o n t a l cross sec-

key p o i n t s i n d i s t i n g u i s h i n g Renaissance architec-

lost m e n t a l processes. Shelby's analysis o f medieval

tions. This technique enabled t h e m to visualize

ture f r o m the G o t h i c t r a d i t i o n where m e t r i c a l

architectural drawings led h i m t o conclude that

t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l constructs beneath crisscross

elements had played o n l y a secondary role. The

the " a r t o f g e o m e t r y " o f the master masons p r o -

geometric lines o n paper. W i t h scroll drawings

medieval geometric system o f p r o p o r t i o n i n g based

duced significantly different ways o f conceptualiz-

acting as templates that p r o v i d e d easy shortcuts,

o n i n c o m m e n s u r a b l e ratios differed significantly

i n g and visualizing the design process. I n this

builders and t h e i r specialized teams o f decorators

f r o m the a r i t h m e t i c system o f commensurable

process the template designed by the master mason

c o u l d apply even the most i n t r i c a t e geometric

ratios favored d u r i n g the Renaissance. R u d o l f

and used by the masons to carve geometrically

revetments o n walls and assemble the most c o m -

W i t t k o w e r l i n k e d the latter w i t h the emergence o f

i n t r i c a t e stones for vaults, w i n d o w s , portals, trac-

plex muqarnas or stellate arch-net vaults by simple

perspective: " I n d e e d , the concept o f c o m m e n s u r -

ery, and other o r n a m e n t a l details played a key

means, guided by the practical experience they

a b i l i t y lies b e h i n d the emergence o f the m e t r i c a l ,

role: " L e a r n i n g h o w to project t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l

already possessed.

r a t i o n a l space o f Renaissance perspective."

forms f r o m t w o - d i m e n s i o n a l templates was one o f

The T o p k a p i scroll indicates t h a t T i m u r i d -

1 0 3

As Francois Bucher observed, the " G o t h i c

the most i m p o r t a n t lessons a stonemason had to

T u r k m e n architectural practice was closer i n spirit

design concept t h r i v e d o n the a r i t h m e t i c i r r a t i o n -

master. I t was also a lesson w h i c h carried over i n t o

to the G o t h i c t h a n i t was to the Renaissance t r a d i -

ality o f geometrically staggered p r o p o r t i o n s w h i c h

the most advanced task o f the master mason, t h a t

t i o n . Such T i m u r i d master builders as Qawam al-

are i n s t i n c t i v e l y pleasant to the eye, b u t at the

o f architectural design."

D i n Shirazi, w h o was active i n the early

same t i m e a puzzle to the measuring m i n d . "

1 0 0

fifteenth

1 0 4

century, were essentially refining a t r a d i t i o n a l sys-

The d y n a m i c G o t h i c m e t h o d o f design, based

o f p r o j e c t i n g spatial forms f r o m t w o - d i m e n s i o n a l

t e m o f geometric h a r m o n i z a t i o n m u c h like t h e i r

o n geometric configurations i n v o l v i n g l i t t l e a r i t h -

templates was at w o r k i n T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n a r c h i -

late G o t h i c colleagues. By contrast, c o n t e m p o r a r y

metic, finds a s t r i k i n g parallel i n the girihs o f

tectural practice. The direct t r a n s l a t a b i l i t y o f

I t a l i a n architects such as F i l i p p o Brunelleschi

the T o p k a p i scroll, generated by the ingenious

drawings o n a flat plane i n t o spatial forms reduced

(1377-1446) had begun t o t u r n away f r o m the

m a n i p u l a t i o n o f abstract geometric g r i d systems

the need for precise elevation drawings, w h i c h are

medieval architectural heritage u p o n rediscovering

u n e n c u m b e r e d by a r i t h m e t i c . Like their late G o t h i c

conspicuously absent i n b o t h the T o p k a p i and

the V i t r u v i a n system o f h a r m o n i c p r o p o r t i o n s

counterparts these drawings are u n a c c o m p a n i e d

The T o p k a p i scroll shows that a s i m i l a r process

44

PART

1.

THE

SCROLL

TRADITION

by n u m e r i c a l n o t a t i o n s c o r r e s p o n d i n g to absolute

no tax o n the sale o f b u i l d i n g s , b u t

vaults, t h e n , remained largely independent o f their

measurements. M e a n t to be p r o p o r t i o n a l l y adapted

the Master A r c h i t e c t , w h o m they call

actual c o n s t r u c t i o n . Like the girihs for t w o - and

to b u i l d i n g s and local materials at the construc-

Mamarbachi

t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l decorative revetments that

t i o n site, they are ideal patterns contained i n square

a r c h i t e c t " ] , that is, C h i e f o f Masons, takes

accompany t h e m , s u r v i v i n g grid-based g r o u n d

and rectangular frames whose l e n g t h - t o - w i d t h p r o -

two percent o f inheritance allotments and

plans represent ideal b u i l d i n g types that were geo-

p o r t i o n matters m o r e t h a n their actual dimensions.

sales. This officer also has a r i g h t to five

m e t r i c a l l y p r o p o r t i o n e d p r i o r to being converted

percent o n all edifices c o m m i s s i o n e d by

i n t o a chosen m o d u l a r u n i t o f measurement,

The T o p k a p i and Tashkent scrolls have i m p o r -

[ T u r k i s h , mfmdrbasi,

"chief

tant i m p l i c a t i o n s for the study o f late medieval

the k i n g . These are appraised w h e n they

either equivalent to or commensurate w i t h the

architectural practice i n the eastern Islamic w o r l d .

are c o m p l e t e d and the Master A r c h i t e c t ,

local c u b i t . This u n i t o f measure w o u l d generate

The latter's j u x t a p o s i t i o n o f squared g r o u n d plans

w h o has directed the c o n s t r u c t i o n ,

all the i m p o r t a n t dimensions o f the m o n u m e n t

w i t h designs for t w o - and t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l a r c h i -

receives as his r i g h t and salary as m u c h as

under c o n s t r u c t i o n , just as a set m o d u l e used i n

tectural revetments testifies to the role o f master

five percent o f the c o n s t r u c t i o n cost o f

c o n j u n c t i o n w i t h geometric schemes was typical

builders i n c o o r d i n a t i n g architectural design w i t h

each e d i f i c e .

o f G o t h i c architectural practice. The process o f

106

t r a n s l a t i n g the grid-based plans i n t o elevations

surface d e c o r a t i o n . Grid-based g r o u n d plans, i n w h i c h each square o f the g r i d represented a given

Ready-made tables for n u m e r i c a l c o m p u t a t i o n ,

m u s t have r e q u i r e d a p p r o x i m a t e adjustments o n

n u m b e r o f bricks, made the accurate estimates o f

such as those p r o v i d e d i n al-Kashi's fifteenth-

the b u i l d i n g site o f geometrically generated ideal

c o n s t r u c t i o n costs easier, guided the geometric

c e n t u r y treatise, Miftah al-hisab

forms c o r r e s p o n d i n g to i r r a t i o n a l n u m b e r s . T h a t

p r o p o r t i o n i n g o f architectural layouts, and served

t i c ) , s i m p l i f i e d the process o f calculation for the

is w h y attempts to reconstruct the p r o p o r t i o n a l

as a convenient device for enlarging drawings full

overseers o f c o n s t r u c t i o n , w h o often prepared cost

systems o f s u r v i v i n g medieval Islamic m o n u m e n t s

scale o n the s i t e .

estimates for projected b u i l d i n g s and assessed

are b o u n d to r e m a i n largely

105

Chardin's observations about

the c o n s t r u c t i o n i n d u s t r y i n seventeenth-century Safavid I r a n indicate that architects were p a i d a

their value u p o n c o m p l e t i o n .

(Key to a r i t h m e -

1 0 7

Analyses o f Islamic b u i l d i n g s i n Central Asia

unsuccessful.

I t is n o t u n l i k e l y that elevation drawings o f cert a i n a r c h i t e c t u r a l details were prepared to c o m p l e -

percentage o n each b u i l d i n g based o n the c u b i t

suggest that t h e i r structure frequently was

m e n t the squared g r o u n d plans, even t h o u g h they

measure o f the height and thickness o f walls. This

i n f o r m e d by regulating geometric grids and t h a t

are missing f r o m the T o p k a p i and Tashkent scrolls.

practice explains the rationale for grid-based plans

the square modules o f g r o u n d plans d r a w n o n

Al-Kashi's treatise o n a r i t h m e t i c does p r o v i d e geo-

that consistently indicate w a l l thicknesses to facili-

paper were related to regionally varied c u b i t mea-

m e t r i c drawings for arch and d o m e profiles and

tate such calculations:

sures. The w i d e range o f v a r i a t i o n i n regional

for a muqarnas m o d u l e , w h i c h he said was based

T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n c u b i t measures shows that

o n a d r a w i n g m e t h o d used by p r a c t i c i n g T i m u r i d

The Persians d e t e r m i n e the price for

dimensions were n o t a p r i m a r y c o n s i d e r a t i o n i n

masons (see " T h e M u q a r n a s , " i l l . 2, i n the pres-

masons o n the basis o f the height and

the p r e d o m i n a n t l y m o d u l a r system o f architec-

ent v o l u m e ) .

thickness o f walls, w h i c h they measure

tural design.

profiles such as the ones i n c l u d e d i n the Qajar

by the c u b i t , like c l o t h . The k i n g imposes

t i o n i n g the g r o u n d plans o f b u i l d i n g s and t h e i r

108

The geometric process o f p r o p o r -

1 0 9

Elevations o f arch and d o m e

architect M i r z a Akbar's scrolls (see figs. 27, 28, 36)

THE

TOPKAPI

SCROLL

AS

A

MIRROR

OF

LATE

TIMURID-TURKMEN

ARCHITECTURAL

45

PRACTICE

may s i m p l y have been o m i t t e d f r o m earlier scrolls

us, are given o u t to the w o r k m e n and

because they w o u l d have been designed o n the

serve as templates to shape the w o r k t o .

I n 1881 a f r i e n d o f Clarke's, w h o had seen the vault projections i n c l u d e d i n the M i r z a A k b a r

c o n s t r u c t i o n site according to geometric "rules o f

Perfect accuracy and fitting o f the several

scrolls (see figs. 2 7 - 3 0 ) , c o m m e n t e d , "Such is the

t h u m b , " o n the basis o f r e q u i r e d measurements.

parts are thus assured, as all emanate f r o m

habit w h i c h these Persian w o r k m e n have acquired,

one o r i g i n a l .

by l o n g t r a d i t i o n and h a b i t , o f c a r r y i n g o u t this

The T o p k a p i scroll's few elevation drawings (see

1 1 1

cat. nos. 35, 39, 105) p o i n t to a d r a f t i n g t r a d i t i o n that relied heavily o n g r o u n d plans f r o m w h i c h

w o r k , that they are able to w o r k o u t the most Clarke also described h o w plaster muqarnas

i n t r i c a t e patterns merely f r o m such plans as y o u

elevations c o u l d be geometrically deduced d u r i n g

vaults were created by means o f a m e t h o d o f

see r o u g h l y d r a w n . "

the c o n s t r u c t i o n p r o c e s s .

parallel p r o j e c t i o n f r o m a plan d r a w n full scale

described h o w Persian builders constructed m u q a r -

110

Profiles o f w i n d o w s ,

arches, and portals were most l i k e l y d e t e r m i n e d

George A i t c h i s o n also

nas vaults by translating the plans i n c l u d e d i n the

o n the floor:

according to standard geometric procedures i n the f o r m o f full-scale templates t h a t were c o m m o n l y

1 1 3

M i r z a A k b a r scrolls i n t o full-scale drawings o n The floor o f the r o o m to be vaulted was

the floor, a procedure he c o m p a r e d w i t h G o t h i c

used i n G o t h i c architectural practice as w e l l . The

levelled o n a bed o f ashes, a t h i n coat o f

b u i l d i n g practice:

p r e p a r a t i o n o f such drawings i n plaster o n the

plaster was r u n over this, and the whole

floor o f the c o n s t r u c t i o n w o r k r o o m i n n i n e t e e n t h -

plan l a i d o u t ; the lines were t h e n cut o u t

M r . Clarke was enabled to p r o c u r e f r o m

century Qajar I r a n is described by Clarke:

w i t h a knife i n a V f o r m , and the plaster

the architects' g u i l d a great n u m b e r o f

was saturated w i t h h o t suet. A cast o f this

their p a t t e r n - b o o k s , some o f w h i c h are

H a v i n g described the use o f the t r a c i n g

was taken i n plaster about h a l f an i n c h

exhibited here, and i t is most probable

b o a r d i n Persia I shall n o w proceed to the

t h i c k , and the first p l a n , that is to say, the

that s o m e t h i n g o f the sort existed i n the

floor o f the w o r k r o o m , w h i c h is generally

first line o f stalactites were cut o u t by the

M i d d l e Ages, w h e n stellar and other c o m -

a space w i t h i n the b u i l d i n g i n progress,

w o r k m e n , stuck up h o r i z o n t a l l y against

plex v a u l t i n g was i n vogue. These Persian

and here the full-size details are w o r k e d

the w a l l , and s u p p o r t e d by means o f sticks

p a t t e r n - b o o k s c o n t a i n the plans o n l y

o u t either by enlargement by squares or

and soft plaster; the visible part o f the sta-

o f all the most favorite Persian v a u l t i n g .

geometrical methods m o s t l y e m p i r i c a l .

lactite was t h e n finished by h a n d d o w n t o

W h e n the size o f the space to be vaulted is

The p r e p a r a t i o n o f this floor requires

the w a l l . A n o t h e r sheet was t h e n r u n and

given, any master-mason can execute the

their greatest care, as its finished face is

the second l i n e was cut o u t , stuck o n as

stalactite w o r k f r o m the p l a n alone. This

fine plaster o f Paris evenly l a i d . The pat-

before, and thus contained u n t i l the whole

fact M r . Clarke p r o v e d i n the f o l l o w i n g

terns, once w o r k e d o u t , are incised o n the

was completed. As the faces o f the Persian

way: he made a p l a n , elevation and section

plaster, w h i c h being greased is ready to

stalactites all f o r m p l a i n rectilinear

serve as a m o u l d for slabs o f plaster w h i c h

it is n o t difficult to w o r k t h e m by h a n d .

figures, 1 1 2

o f a cornice at Teheran, and w i s h i n g to have a s i m i l a r one at the B r i t i s h Embassy

are cast f r o m i t . These, w h i c h take the

he was b u i l d i n g , some h u n d r e d miles

place o f tracings o f f u l l size details w i t h

away, he showed the plan to the master-

4

6

PART

1.

THE

SCROLL

TRADITION

67. Asgar Shi rbaf, ground plan of a muqarnas portal hood, Iran, twentieth century, ink on paper. From Shi rbaf, 1982-1983, 1: 91. c

c

68. Asgar Shi rbaf, parallel projection of the muqarnas ground plan depicted in figure 67 to the vault of a portal, Iran, twentieth century, ink on paper. From Shi rbaf 1982-1983,1: 94. c

mason a n d asked h i m i f he c o u l d exe-

plasterer commences his w o r k , c o m m e n c -

cute i t f r o m the plan alone. T h e answer

i n g at the b o t t o m and m o u l d i n g each sta-

was " C e r t a i n l y , " and w h e n i t was done

lactite niche resting o n the lower template

M r . Clarke verified i t f r o m his drawings,

and w o r k i n g i t u p t o the upper o n e .

and f o u n d i t e x a c t .

1 1 5

114

The n i n e t e e n t h - c e n t u r y Qajar m e t h o d o f

c

O n the basis o f a r e p o r t f r o m Clarke, the a r c h i -

muqarnas c o n s t r u c t i o n was still i n use i n 1936 w h e n

tect R. Phene Spiers described the Qajar m e t h o d o f

M y r o n S m i t h saw the plasterers o f Isfahan b u i l d

vault c o n s t r u c t i o n i n a " r o o m w i t h stalactite vaults

a muqarnas semidome by scratching its full-scale

at each angle a n d pendant i n the centre":

design w i t h simple i n s t r u m e n t s (straight edge, s t r i n g , pair o f dividers, a n d stylus) o n the floor

69. Asgar Shi rbaf, ground plan of a muqarnas portal hood and its parallel projection method, Iran, twentieth century, ink on paper. From Shi rbaf 1982-1983, 1: 97. c

c

The p l a n was first made o u t o n the floor,

below, w h i c h had been covered w i t h plaster o f

the outlines o f the several levels being

paris {gach).

T h e i r master first drew a rectangle

strongly m a r k e d o u t . T h e n t h i n slabs o f

c o r r e s p o n d i n g t o the vault's dimensions, sketching

stone were c u t to the o u t l i n e o f each level

the outlines o f the f o r w a r d edges o f the various

and subsequently b u i l t i n the w a l l at the

h o r i z o n t a l strata, a n d c o n t i n u i n g t o design i t i n

r e q u i r e d height. I t s h o u l d be n o t i c e d ,

tiers, b y visualizing its t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l projec-

therefore, that there w o u l d always be

t i o n o n the basis o f his t r a d i t i o n a l e m p i r i c a l k n o w l -

above the curved f o r m o f each course o f

edge. After the design was finished, w i t h o u t the a i d

stalactites an u p r i g h t vertical surface f r o m

o f a d r a w i n g o n paper, black charcoal dust was

1.5 inches t o 2 inches deep; this is the t e m -

brushed i n t o its outlines. Beginning w i t h the line

plate. W h e n the bearing o f the templates

c o r r e s p o n d i n g t o the t o p o f the lowest tier, slabs o f

becomes t o o great, they are s u p p o r t e d i n

gach were cast o n the floor and before setting h a r d

the centre b y chains f r o m beams fixed

they were t u r n e d over and t r i m m e d w i t h a knife t o

above the stalactite ceiling, a n d i n the case

the black line left by the charcoal, an o p e r a t i o n

o f pendant stalactites similar chains are

repeated tier b y t i e r .

suspended t o take t h e m . These chains are

described i n detail w i t h step-by-step diagrams i n

1 1 6

T h e same procedure is

afterwards coated w i t h plaster t o make

recent p u b l i c a t i o n s by p r a c t i c i n g I r a n i a n master

t h e m r i g i d like c o l u m n s . T h e positions

builders, testifying t o the c o n t i n u e d use o f t r a d i -

o f these templates a n d chains are carefully

t i o n a l v a u l t - p r o j e c t i o n methods (figs. 6 7 - 6 9 ) .

ascertained by p l u m b i n g f r o m above d o w n

1 1 7

T h a t the same technique was also widespread i n

to the g r o u n d p l a n . T h e result w i l l be a

Central Asia is demonstrated by N o t k i n ' s account

series o f shelves o r brackets, o n w h i c h the

o f h o w the t r a d i t i o n a l Bukharan master b u i l d e r

THE

TOPKAPI

SCROLL

AS

A

MIRROR

OF

LATE

TIMURID-TURKMEN ARCHITECTURAL

PRACTICE

47

70. Usta Shirin Muradov, repeat unit of the ground plan of a muqarnas vault, Bukhara, twentieth century, ink on paper. From Notkin 1961, 88, fig. 46. Photo: Courtesy Iosif Isakevich Notkin. 71. The preparation of plaster shelves on the ground from the fullscale muqarnas drawing (see fig. 70). From Notkin 1961, 88, fig. 47., Photo: Courtesy Iosif Isakevich Notkin.

72. Shelves parallel to the ground set up on the vault (see figs. 70, 71). From Notkin 1961, 89, fig. 48. Photo: Courtesy Iosif Isakevich Notkin. 73. The final placement of individual muqarnas units in the shelves forming corbeled tiers (see figs. 70-72). From Notkin 1961, 89, fig. 49. Photo: Courtesy Iosif Isakevich Notkin.

4

8

PART

1.

THE

SCROLL

TRADITION

75. Vault model based on figure 74. Photo: Courtesy Francois Bucher and The International Center of Medieval Art, The Cloisters, Fort Tryon Park, New York.

74. Vault projection. From the Dresden Sketchbook, sixteenth century, ink on paper. Vienna, Osterreichische Nationalbibliothek, M S Cod. Vind. m i n . 3, fol. 10V.

Usta S h i r i n M u r a d o v (1880-1957) b o t h drew and

templates f r o m w h i c h builders c o u l d project the

it by measuring the length o f each as s h o w n o n the

constructed the fragment o f a muqarnas vault

p r i n c i p a l intersection p o i n t s by p l u m b i n g f r o m

plan along a h o r i z o n t a l baseline; vertical lines were

(figs. 7 0 - 7 3 ) .

above (see Catalog, G r o u p I V . i ) . I t was c o m m o n

t h e n struck u p w a r d f r o m the endpoints o f each o f

was traced f u l l scale o n the floor: f r o m this t r a c i n g

to trace r i b b e d or g r o i n e d vault patterns o n the

these r i b plans. The length o f the curved ribs was

plaster plates 2 to 3 centimeters t h i c k were cast

floor i n G o t h i c architectural practice as well; the

d e t e r m i n e d by the intersection o f these vertical

for each row. They were attached to the vault w i t h

m e t h o d o f p r o j e c t i n g t h e m i n t o space c o n s t i t u t e d

lines w i t h the p r i n c i p a l a r c .

wooden supports and t h e i r correspondence to

a craft secret jealously guarded by medieval

j e c t i o n plans w i t h vertical lines are used by t r a -

the p l a n was verified by p l u m b line. The attached

masons.

d i t i o n a l master builders i n c o n t e m p o r a r y I r a n

plates f o r m e d successively corbeled h o r i z o n t a l

scroll's vault p r o j e c t i o n s , w h i c h are open to several

shelves parallel to the floor, each shelf c a r r y i n g

alternative readings, e x h i b i t a s i m i l a r concern w i t h

rows o f plaster muqarnas u n i t s serving a p u r e l y

p r o t e c t i n g craft secrets.

1 1 8

Once again the p l a n o n paper

decorative f u n c t i o n as a k i n d o f s c u l p t u r a l surface o r n a m e n t . This m e t h o d o f parallel p r o j e c t i o n

119

A c c o r d i n g to N o t k i n the Tashkent

123

Similar vault p r o -

(see figs. 6 7 - 6 9 ) . U n l i k e t h e i r late G o t h i c counterparts, the muqarnas and stellate arch-net vault patterns i n

120

Like the T o p k a p i and Tashkent scrolls i n w h i c h

the T o p k a p i and Tashkent scrolls give plans w i t h -

vault patterns constitute the largest g r o u p o f draw-

out accompanying vertical p r o j e c t i o n lines p r o -

r e q u i r e d an a b i l i t y t o d i s t i n g u i s h the boundaries

ings, m a n y o f the s u r v i v i n g late G o t h i c lodge

v i d i n g t h e i r c ur vat ur e. They often indicate o n l y

o f different tiers, w h i c h i n the muqarnas drawings

books are d o m i n a t e d by vault patterns and t h e i r

one-quarter o f a vault p a t t e r n t h a t c o u l d be

o f the T o p k a p i and Tashkent scrolls are coded w i t h

p r o j e c t i o n methods. A n u m b e r o f t h e m are exclu-

adapted to produce a h a l f or full vault, an econ-

graphic conventions that accentuate the edges

sively devoted to the p r o b l e m o f vault p r o j e c t i o n ,

o m y o f design that may have reflected a desire to

o f successive rows (see Catalog, G r o u p I V . i i ) .

w h i c h seems to have been a p r i n c i p a l preoccupa-

conceal i n f o r m a t i o n f r o m the u n i n i t i a t e d . U n l i k e

A l t h o u g h an " a n t h r o p o l o g i c a l " approach whereby

t i o n o f late G o t h i c b u i l d e r s .

historical b u i l d i n g techniques are deduced f r o m

show t h a t despite all its visual c o m p l e x i t y , late

These documents

121

their European equivalents the T o p k a p i and Tashkent scrolls were n o t meant to educate b u i l d -

c o n t e m p o r a r y practices may be m e t h o d o l o g i c a l l y

G o t h i c v a u l t i n g was based o n relatively simple

ers or to teach t h e m vault p r o j e c t i o n methods

suspect, the m o d e r n eyewitness accounts cited

geometric procedures. F r o m the flat g r o u n d p r o -

b u t rather to guide those w h o were already w e l l

above do help us visualize h o w the radial m u q a r -

j e c t i o n o f the vault d r a w n full scale o n the floor,

acquainted w i t h the sophisticated graphic c o n -

nas patterns o f the T o p k a p i and Tashkent scrolls,

one c o u l d deduce the length o f the p r i n c i p a l arch

ventions used i n representing t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l

w h i c h were for the most part i n t e n d e d to be cast

f o r m i n g the apex o f the vault as w e l l as the respec-

constructs o n paper. U n a c c o m p a n i e d by any

i n plaster, w o u l d have been translated i n t o spatial

tive lengths o f interlaced ribs (figs. 74, 75). This

a n n o t a t i o n s or w r i t t e n texts, these p a t t e r n scrolls

forms. This d e d u c t i o n is j u s t i f i e d by the s i m i l a r i -

m e t h o d , w h i c h has been sufficiently tested i n m o d -

f u n c t i o n e d as an a i d e - m e m o i r e for master builders

ties between the relatively s i m p l i f i e d muqarnas

els to have p r o v e n f o o l p r o o f and f u n d a m e n t a l l y

familiar w i t h t r a d i t i o n a l c o n s t r u c t i o n techniques.

projections o f the n i n e t e e n t h - c e n t u r y M i r z a A k b a r

simple, was based o n the concept t h a t all the ribs

scrolls and t h e i r m o r e complex counterparts i n the

o f a vault c o u l d be generated p r o p o r t i o n a l l y f r o m

f o r m e d a collective basis for visual c o m m u n i c a t i o n

earlier T o p k a p i and Tashkent scrolls.

its p r i n c i p a l arc (Principalbogen),

a m o n g master builders is suggested by a Persian

The patterns o f stellate arch-net vaults must also have been d r a w n o n the floor as full-scale

122

Once the

T h a t t h e i r coded system o f graphic n o t a t i o n

length o f t h a t arc was d e t e r m i n e d , the curvatures

nasta liq i n s c r i p t i o n o n one o f the muqarnas draw-

o f r e m a i n i n g subsidiary arcs were generated f r o m

ings i n the Tashkent scroll t h a t N o t k i n analyzed

c

THE

TOPKAPI

SCROLL

AS

A

MIRROR

OF

LATE

TIMURID-TURKMEN

ARCHITECTURAL

49

PRACTICE

(see fig. 13). The a n o n y m o u s author o f this i n s c r i p -

repeat u n i t o f a design was executed o n the w a l l

aid o f full-scale templates f u n c t i o n e d as " t h e c o n -

t i o n , w h i c h is scribbled i n a n a r r o w space between

as a m o d e l , even the most inexperienced artisans

s t r u c t i o n lines used i n p r o d u c i n g the p a t t e r n " :

the p r o j e c t i o n o f a muqarnas quarter vault and its

c o u l d m u l t i p l y i t by s y m m e t r y to cover extensive

t r i a n g u l a r zone o f t r a n s i t i o n , challenged his c o m -

surfaces. The m e d i u m o f plaster, w i t h w h i c h most

I t was obvious t h a t polygons i n contact

rades or friends w h o are p r a c t i t i o n e r s o f this craft

T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n i n t e r i o r s are decorated, w o u l d

were easy to draw. H a v i n g d r a w n t h e m ,

(yaran-i

have r e q u i r e d the t r a c i n g o f full-scale squared or

pairs o f lines had to be d r a w n passing

ahl-i hunar) to decipher the ingenious

c o m p l e x i t y o f his design by c o u n t i n g its i n d i v i d u a l

p o l y g o n a l grids o n the w a l l . This is c o n f i r m e d by

t h r o u g h the centres o f each o f the sides o f

muqarnas tiers. P o i n t i n g o u t t h a t " c o m r a d e " or

the g r i d lines preserved o n the plastered walls o f

the polygons, at nearly the same angle i n

" f r i e n d " is a c o m m o n f o r m o f address i n g u i l d

an un fi n is he d vestibule at the f o u r t e e n t h - c e n t u r y

each case. Each line was p r o l o n g e d u n t i l

c o r p o r a t i o n s infused w i t h Sufi t r a d i t i o n s , N o t k i n

M a s j i d - i Safid i n T u r b a t - i Jam. Here, o n one o f

it met a s i m i l a r line t h a t had crossed the

i n t e r p r e t e d this to be the h a n d w r i t i n g o f a literate

the walls, prepared w i t h a central panel featuring

centre o f another side o f a p o l y g o n . W h e n

architect-engineer (muhandis)

squared g r i d lines, a series o f concentric circles

this had been done all over the surface

have been scratched o n the plaster w i t h large

that had to be decorated, n o t h i n g m o r e

compasses for a cursive i n s c r i p t i o n t h a t was

r e m a i n e d to be done, for the p a t t e r n

never c o m p l e t e d .

was c o m p l e t e d .

addressing his

n a r r o w circle o f professional colleagues.

124

The contents o f the T o p k a p i and Tashkent scrolls s u p p o r t the c o m m o n l y expressed view t h a t the key to T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n architecture lies n o t

1 2 5

126

T h a t the t r a c i n g o f geometric grids o n plastered

o n l y i n its fascination w i t h c o m p l i c a t e d v a u l t i n g

w a l l surfaces m u s t have been a relatively c o m m o n

systems b u t also i n its extensive surface decora-

practice is also suggested by the M u g h a l m o n u -

radial g r i d systems can be condensed i n t o short-

t i o n . The n u m e r o u s t w o - d i m e n s i o n a l geometric

ments o f I n d i a , w h i c h were a regional offshoot o f

h a n d formulas r e q u i r i n g the use o f p o l y g o n a l

patterns and epigraphic c o m p o s i t i o n s i n these

the T i m u r i d architectural heritage. I n 1905 Ernst

templates. I n the T o p k a p i scroll p o l y g o n a l grids

scrolls condense complex c o m p o s i t i o n s i n t o short-

H a n b u r y H a n k i n discovered several examples o f

or c o n s t r u c t i o n lines used i n designing such t w o -

h a n d formulas meant to act as guidelines for the

interlaced geometric patterns t h a t had been d r a w n

d i m e n s i o n a l s t a r - a n d - p o l y g o n patterns are often

simpler w o r k i n g methods e m p l o y e d o n the c o n -

w i t h the aid o f t r i a n g u l a r and p o l y g o n a l grids

h i g h l i g h t e d w i t h orange or red i n k (see Catalog,

s t r u c t i o n site. They thus p r o v i d e a valuable glimpse

faintly scratched o n the plastered walls o f two

G r o u p I l l . i . b ) . These d o t t e d or solid c o n s t r u c t i o n

i n t o the processes o f design and execution.

baths i n the late sixteeenth-century palace c o m -

lines define g r i d networks w i t h polygons i n contact

The advantage o f squared paper i n designing

plex i n Fatehpur S i k r i . One was a design o f i n t e r -

and are superimposed o n c o m p l e x patterns d r a w n

square kufic or naskhi i n s c r i p t i o n s and geometric

l o c k i n g rectangles generated by an isometric g r i d

i n black i n k . I t w o u l d be easier to transfer such

patterns for bannaibrick

o f equilateral triangles i n the H a k i m ' s Bath. The

polygons o n t o w a l l surfaces t h a n the m u l t i p l e c o n -

Designs o n squared grids, t h o u g h n o t d r a w n o n a

other was a geometric p a t t e r n o f i n t e r l o c k i n g stars

centric circles used i n generating the patterns o n

one-to-one scale, c o u l d easily be transferred t o

and polygons d r a w n o n an u n d e r l y i n g p o l y g o n a l

paper. N o t all s t a r - a n d - p o l y g o n patterns i n the

w a l l surfaces rendered i n the bannai

g r i d i n the b a t h o f Jodh Bai's palace. H a n k i n c o n -

T o p k a p i scroll, however, are accompanied by c o n -

given the direct correspondence between the m o d -

cluded t h a t these grids f o r m e d by polygons i n

s t r u c t i o n lines defining polygons i n contact. Those

ular b r i c k formats and the g r i d squares. Once the

contact and p r o b a b l y applied to the walls w i t h the

generated by m o r e c o m p l e x u n i n k e d radial g r i d

masonry is obvious.

technique,

M o s t s t a r - a n d - p o l y g o n patterns generated by

50

PART

1.

THE

SCROLL

TRADITION

76. Geometric grid regulating curvilinear patterns at the mosaic tile-work side panel of the entrance portal, Gur-i M i r complex, Samarqand, ca. 1400-1404. Photo by author.

systems based o n d y n a m i c axes o f s y m m e t r y use

i n t o available craft techniques. The geometric

grids composed o f stars and polygons i n contact,

girihs o f architectural scrolls p r o v i d e d d i s c i p l i n e d

w h i c h demonstrates that H a n k i n ' s f o r m u l a was n o t

grids that regulated and gave c o m p o s i t i o n a l u n i t y

universally applicable (see Catalog, G r o u p I l l . i . a ) .

to such curvilinear designs (fig. 76).

The T o p k a p i scroll implies t h a t the role o f

As G o l o m b e k and W i l b e r c o m m e n t e d : " I t may

T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n master builders lay p r i m a r i l y

be stated that w h e n a master b u i l d e r , such as

i n p r e p a r i n g carefully w o r k e d o u t designs o n paper

Qawam a l - D i n Shirazi, t o o k a structure i n h a n d he

for variegated surface revetments, vault patterns,

f o l l o w e d t h r o u g h o n every stage o f the w o r k , f r o m

and geometrically p r o p o r t i o n e d g r o u n d plans,

the w o r k i n g drawings to the design o f the vaults

w h i c h i n t u r n r e q u i r e d c o o r d i n a t i n g the activities

and the w o r k i n g o u t o f all types o f d e c o r a t i o n .

o f specialized artisans according to a preconceived

One needs o n l y to study the details o f his struc-

building program.

1 2 7

Geometric girths d r a w n by

architects were frequently c o m p l e m e n t e d by patterns prepared i n c o u r t scriptoria or kutubkhdna)

(kitabkhdna

for the decorative revetments o f

tures to be convinced that this was the case, and that he had his o w n crew o f decorators." double-page m i n i a t u r e i n the Zafarndma

1 2 9

A

(Book

o f v i c t o r i e s ) , circa 1467, w h i c h represents the c o n -

specific b u i l d i n g projects. We k n o w , for example,

s t r u c t i o n o f T i m u r ' s M a s j i d - i J a m i i n Samarqand,

that the i l l u m i n a t o r s and calligraphers

confirms that c o n s t r u c t i o n and d e c o r a t i o n were

employed

i n the s c r i p t o r i u m o f the T i m u r i d prince

c

carried o u t by teams o f specialized artisans w o r k -

Baysunghur i n the 1420s p r o d u c e d designs for a

i n g h a n d i n h a n d under the d i r e c t i o n o f master

w i d e variety o f media, ranging f r o m m a n u s c r i p t

builders and c o n s t r u c t i o n supervisors (fig. 7 7 ) .

i l l u m i n a t i o n , b o o k b i n d i n g , tent d e c o r a t i o n , and

1 3 0

The unprecedented increase o f w o r k signed by

tile w o r k to cursive m o n u m e n t a l i n s c r i p t i o n s .

master craftsmen specializing i n different media

Fifteenth-century albums o f m i n i a t u r e p a i n t i n g

d u r i n g the T i m u r i d p e r i o d has been i n t e r p r e t e d as

preserved i n I s t a n b u l and B e r l i n , and most likely

a measure o f the rising status o f calligraphers w h o

c o m p i l e d i n T u r k m e n I r a n , c o n t a i n examples o f

designed m o n u m e n t a l i n s c r i p t i o n s and o f tile cut-

such patterns and calligraphy samples, some o f

ters, plasterers, carpenters, and painters w h o deco-

w h i c h may w e l l have been i n t e n d e d for architec-

rated b u i l d i n g s .

tural decoration.

o f the specialized d i v i s i o n o f labor i n a construc-

128

Largely consisting o f c u r v i l i n -

1 3 1

This was an inevitable o u t c o m e

ear floral, vegetal, and figural designs accompanied

t i o n i n d u s t r y that increasingly relied o n extensive

by cursive i n s c r i p t i o n s i n t e n d e d for mosaic t i l i n g

surface revetments i n m u l t i p l e media. The T o p k a p i

and plasterwork, the patterns created i n c o u r t

scroll reveals that p r e p a r i n g geometric drawings

s c r i p t o r i a w o u l d have been translated by master

for t w o - and three-dimensional decorative revet-

builders and t h e i r specialized teams o f decorators

ments was an integral part o f the architect's

THE

TOPKAPI

SCROLL

AS

A

MIRROR

OF

LATE

TIMURID-TURKMEN

ARCHITECTURAL

51

PRACTICE

77. Construction of the Masjid-i Jami of Timur in Samarqand, double-page miniature painting. From Sharaf al-Din A l i Yazdi, Zafarnama (Book of victories), ca. 1467. Baltimore, The Johns Hopkins University, John Work Garrett Library, fols. 359V, 36or. c

c

52

PART

1.

THE

SCROLL

TRADITION

responsibility, i n a d d i t i o n to dealing w i t h p r o b -

another and h o w they w o u l d be c o o r d i n a t e d o n

T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n architects d i d n o t always lead

lems o f s t r u c t u r a l stability and a r c h i t e c t o n i c s .

the fabric o f a b u i l d i n g . T h a t task depended o n the

to w e l l - c o o r d i n a t e d ensembles t h a t fully i n t e -

u n i f y i n g v i s i o n and relative expertise o f architect-

grated all aspects o f p l a n , elevation, massing, and

t i f y to a standardized, repeatable, and flexible

engineers w h o had mastered the methods o f

surface d e c o r a t i o n . This is apparent i n the rela-

approach to design t h r o u g h simple geometric

geometrically h a r m o n i z i n g t w o - and three-

tively l o w rate o f s u r v i v i n g m o n u m e n t s , t h e i r large

132

The scroll's ingeniously varied girih patterns tes-

means t h a t p r o d u c e d sophisticated results. Per-

d i m e n s i o n a l surface revetments w i t h one another

percentage o f collapsed domes, and their often

m u t a t i o n s arrived at by m a n i p u l a t i n g b y - t h e n -

and w i t h their architectural s u p p o r t . I t was they

unbalanced elevations characterized by harsh t r a n -

standard schemes made possible a w i d e variety

w h o b r o u g h t to life o n b u i l d i n g s the

o f i n t r i c a t e patterns, a l l o w i n g the designer great

sketched o u t i n scrolls as abstract linear schemes

screens, minarets, and the m u c h lower rectilinear

scope for i m p r o v i s a t i o n . The scroll's repeat u n i t s

independent o f a p p l i c a t i o n to any p a r t i c u l a r

walls t h a t l i n k t h e m together.

c o u l d be m u l t i p l i e d to cover large walls, b u t they

m e d i u m — b y d e t e r m i n i n g the u n d e r l y i n g geomet-

girihs—

sitions between h i g h domes, tall iwans, p o r t a l

W e l l - k n o w n instances o f domes or portals being

c o u l d also be contained i n frames, b l i n d arches,

ric skeletons o f decorative programs that artisans

heightened i n the m i d d l e o f the c o n s t r u c t i o n

niches, and n a r r o w strips t h a t s u b d i v i d e d the sur-

specializing i n various techniques w o u l d t h e n exe-

process at the c o m m a n d o f a m b i t i o u s patrons

faces o f T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n b u i l d i n g s i n t o r i c h l y

cute. Selected patterns were unified t h r o u g h a har-

such as T i m u r suggest t h a t architect-engineers

orchestrated ornate c o m p a r t m e n t s capable o f

m o n y o f blues, shared geometric schemata, and

were n o t always responsible for the i n c o n g r u i t y o f

engaging the viewer i n a lively process o f a n t i c i p a -

d y n a m i c p r o p o r t i o n s , b u t the p o l y c h r o m a t i c walls

p r o p o r t i o n s observed i n some extant m o n u m e n t s .

t i o n and surprise. The use o f patterns and i n s c r i p -

o f T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n m o n u m e n t s still read like a

Such demands are quite revealing i n terms o f

tions differentiated by subtle variations o f similar

collection o f separately framed motifs f r o m scrolls,

T i m u r i d aesthetic sensibilities and demonstrate

grids, by changes i n scale ( r a n g i n g f r o m designs

no m a t t e r h o w w e l l integrated. These m o n u m e n t s

the i m p o r t a n c e o f o s t e n t a t i o n , spectacular

effects,

o n l y legible at close range to others readable f r o m

carried the unmistakable i m p r i n t o f an i n t e r m e d i -

unprecedented m o n u m e n t a l i t y , and d a r i n g height.

a distance) or by a m u l t i p l i c i t y o f textures and

ary m e d i u m o f drawings t h a t left its distinctive

The deliberate t h e a t r i c a l i t y o f extant m o n u m e n t s

colors, i n t r o d u c e d optical nuances that energized

m a r k o n the final architectural p r o d u c t .

is exemplified by their p r i v i l e g i n g o f elaborately

b u i l d i n g surfaces, a d d i n g spatial variety to f a m i l -

I n the T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n architectural t r a d i t i o n

decorated, overbearing f r o n t a l views t h a t d w a r f

iar layouts. Like surface patterns composed o f

the degree o f success i n the process o f geometric

lateral or rear walls, w h i c h were sometimes left

repeated geometric u n i t s , the b u i l d i n g s were

h a r m o n i z a t i o n u l t i m a t e l y depended o n the rela-

largely or entirely undecorated. A p p r o a c h e d f r o m

themselves made u p o f a series o f geometrically

tive skill o f available architects, since the use o f

t h e i r sides or the back, these spectacular b u i l d i n g s

interrelated forms and spaces r h y t h m i c a l l y

p r o p o r t i o n i n g devices, no m a t t e r h o w elaborate,

reveal the u n i n t e g r a t e d p r o p o r t i o n s o f t h e i r soar-

echoing one another i n architectural ensembles

does n o t necessarily guarantee h a r m o n i o u s results.

i n g portals, i w a n screens, and domes awkwardly

c o n s t i t u t i n g a c o l l e c t i o n o f sequentially ordered

Today, i n retrospect, the c o n v i c t i o n t h a t a p p l y i n g

raised o n tall d r u m s , an i n d i c a t i o n t h a t they were

serial elements.

c o m p l e x geometric formulas c o u l d somehow

i n t e n t i o n a l l y designed as stage sets meant to be

assure the aesthetic c o o r d i n a t i o n o f s t r u c t u r a l and

viewed f r o m p a r t i c u l a r vantage p o i n t s .

The T o p k a p i scroll does n o t , however, p r o vide any clues as to h o w its i n d i v i d u a l patterns

decorative schemes seems u n f o u n d e d . The geo-

contained i n discrete frames were related to one

m e t r i c layouts and surface patterns used by

The contents o f the T o p k a p i scroll, w h i c h resemble those o f a p a t t e r n b o o k , can be seen as

THE

TOPKAPI

SCROLL

AS

A

MIRROR

OF

LATE

TIMURID-TURKMEN

ARCHITECTURAL

PRACTICE

an index o f the unprecedented T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n

" p a i n t e r l y " aesthetic o f architecture i n f o r m e d

emphasis o n surface d e c o r a t i o n , an emphasis that

by the c u l t u r a l prestige o f drawings o n paper. I t

t u r n e d the flat facades o f b u i l d i n g s i n t o stage

embodies a c o n c e p t i o n o f architecture as a sequen-

props for the display o f v i r t u o s o o r n a m e n t a l p a n -

tial series o f ornate walls and vaults, never per-

els and fragmented vaults i n t o multifaceted c o m -

ceived as wholes b u t o n l y as p a r t i a l l y revealed

partments w i t h no s t r u c t u r a l role. Theatricality,

c o m p l i c a t e d surfaces experienced t h r o u g h move-

so central to the T i m u r i d visual aesthetic i n other

m e n t i n t i m e and space. This c o n c e p t i o n o f

artistic media, therefore, provides a key to a r c h i -

architecture as a d r a m a t i c interplay o f structure,

tectural tastes as w e l l .

o r n a m e n t , color, s c u l p t u r a l effects, textures,

1 3 3

Extravagant

revetments

added visual interest to standardized architectonic

and l i g h t presupposed the subjective processes

forms, e n r i c h i n g architectural experience t h r o u g h

o f visual p e r c e p t i o n , w h i c h , as we shall see i n

an o p t i c a l c o m p l e x i t y o f d e t a i l i n g that raised the

part 5, was consistently stressed i n the p r i m a r y

expressive p o t e n t i a l o f patterned surfaces and

sources. We shall t u r n to those sources after

enhanced their a b i l i t y to capture the viewer's

reviewing the secondary l i t e r a t u r e o n Islamic

a t t e n t i o n . The resulting tension between the p o l y -

geometric o r n a m e n t .

c h r o m a t i c veil o f o r n a m e n t and the s t r u c t u r a l skeleton o f b u i l d i n g s was often skillfully t u r n e d i n t o a d y n a m i c dialogue i n w h i c h the two c o m plemented one another t h r o u g h shared geometric schemes.

134

Variegated revetments added d y n a m i c accents and t e x t u r a l richness to the dematerialized p o l y c h r o m a t i c walls and shallow screens o f the two-dimensional world of T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n architecture, so closely related i n aesthetics to the arts o f the b o o k . C o m p l e t e l y covering the i n n e r and outer surfaces o f b u i l d i n g s w i t h variously framed c o l o r f u l patterns and i n s c r i p t i o n s n o t o n l y b r o u g h t these m o n u m e n t s close i n s p i r i t to the fantastic architectural settings represented i n c o n t e m p o r a r y m i n i a t u r e paintings b u t also to a l b u m pages displaying an array o f drawings and calligrap h y samples. The Topkapi scroll, t h e n , reflects a

53

54

NOTES

T O PART

1

1. Clarke 1893,100. 2. al-Ya qubi 1937,11. 3. For al-Tabari's passage and other sources on the foundation of Baghdad, see al-Sayyad 1991,117-23; and Lassner 1970. The common practice of tracing plans on the ground with plaster is discussed in Creswell 1932-1940,1: 109-11. For a Mamluk amir who marked the plan of a building on the ground with whitewash, see Wilber 1976, 32. The practice of tracing plans on the ground in the Ottoman period is discussed in Necipoglu 1986, 234. 4. Translated in Lassner 1970, 49-59, 79. 5. Cited in Swelim 1994,182, from the tenth-century Sir at Ahmad Ibn Tulun (Life of Ahmad Ibn Tulun) by Abu Muhammad Abd Allah b. Muhammad al-Madini al-Balawi. For Bryas, see Eyice 1959; and Runciman 1980, 223. 6. For these two drawings (on large folios measuring 51 cm x 47 cm) discovered in the Great Mosque of Sana a in Yemen, see von Bothmer 1988,178-81, and pi. 2. They are also discussed in Grabar 1992,155-93, where an eighth-century Umayyad date is proposed. 7. al-Farabi 1961, 52,138-40; Ibn Miskawayh 1968, 104. For textual references to architects, see Bulatov 1988. 8. Translated and discussed in Grabar and Holod 1979-1980. 9. al-Ghazzali 1970, 30-31. 10. William H . Morley's edition of Bayhaqi's history is cited in Wilber 1976, 31. Here the reference is to the plan of a new palace designed by Mas ud 1 and executed by the architect-decorator Abd al-Malik al-Naqqash al-Muhandis. 11. Ibn Bibi 1959, 148. 12. Cited in Wilber 1976, 31. Among later Muslim rulers who are known to have drawn plans for their own building projects are the fifteenth-century Ottoman sultan Mehmed 11 (see Necipoglu 1986) and the seventeenth-century Khan of Bitlis (see Evliya Qelebi 1990, 96). As Evliya recorded (I have slightly modified Dankoff's translation of this passage), " I n the science of architecture ( ilm-i m'fmari) he [the khan of Bitlis] is such a master geometer-engineer (sahib-i hendese) that the plan (tarz [u] tarh [u] resm) of the great palace described above is entirely his own conception." Another seventeenth-century ruler who drew plans is the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan; see Begley and Desai 1989, 10. c

c

c

c

c

c

13. Cited in O'Kane 1987, 34. 14. Harb 1978. 15. Ja fari i960, 88-89; cited in Blair 1986, 33. 16. Ja fari i960, 89-90, 95. 17. The history of paper is summarized in Pedersen 1984, 54-71. For the role of paper as a medium for the transmission of architectural knowledge, see Holod c

c

1988, 1-2. The argument that architectural drawings on paper must have been relatively rare in the pre-Mongol era, when verbal transmission and the imprecise copying of actual buildings played a more important role, is made in Bloom 1993. 18. Dawlatshah al-Samarqandi 1901, 340. The same architect, referred to in an early sixteenth-century source as "Ustad Qawam al-Din mi mar-i Shirazi," is praised as the "chief and refuge of the engineers/ architects (muhandisanlm'fmaran) of the age"; see Khwandamir 1954, 4: 14-15. For an English translation, see Thackston 1989, 159. During the Timurid period plans inscribed on plaster tablets continued to be used, complementing those drawn on paper. For a reference by the historian Yazdi to a plan (tarh) on a tablet (lauh), see O'Kane 1987, 34. 19. Ibn Khaldun 1967, 2: 359. 20. For the dispatch of architectural drawings within the Ottoman empire, see Necipoglu 1986, 241-43. A plan sent by the Mughal ruler Shah Jahan to his governor in Delhi is cited in Qaisar 1988, 14. A letter written in 1529 by the Mughal ruler Babur and sent to Kabul refers to the use of drawings in the construction of a mosque, caravanserai, baths, and other structures: "Let this work be ordered after taking counsel with Ustad Sultan Muhammad; i f a design exists, drawn earlier by Ustad Hasan A1T, let Ustad Sultan Muhammad finish the building precisely according to it; i f not, let him do so, after making a gracious and harmonious design"; see Nath 1982-1985,1:126. 21. See Chardin 1811, 2: 388-89: "The king Tahmasp had this fairly small palace built according to the plan that a Turkish architect gave h i m . " 22. The plans of Baghdad and Isfahan are cited in Qaisar 1988, 15. The Lahori quotation is translated in Begley and Desai 1989, 10. 23. Kaempfer 1977,113. 24. Du Mans 1890, 209. 25. Surviving Ottoman plans and textual references to architectural drawings in Ottoman sources are discussed in Necipoglu 1986. The textual and pictorial evidence for Mughal plans (tarh) is discussed in Qaisar 1988, 14-15,37-39. 26. For Uzbek plans, see Baklanov 1944. The Rajput plans are reproduced in Tillotson 1987,104; and Begley and Desai 1989,10, fig. 10. The Qajar plans are discussed in Clarke 1893. 27. For the Ayyubid scrolls, see Sourdel-Thomine 1986. 28. See Baklanov 1947,102; and Gaganov 1958. The Tashkent scrolls, originally cataloged in boxes 16-23 at the State Public Library in Tashkent, have been recataloged as folders 1-8. 29. Baklanov 1944; idem 1947. c

C

30. Gaganov 1958. 31. Rempel' 1961, 397-415; Pugachenkova 1962; Pugachenkova and Rempel' 1965, 323-24; Bulatov 1988, 265, 301; Notkin 1995. These Russian publications are discussed in Holod 1988. Because the transferred and recataloged Tashkent scrolls were lost track of, Holod was unable to locate them. Similarly, Golombek and Wilber wrote: "A full discussion of these rare drawings would be highly desirable. Their present whereabouts has not been ascertained"; see Golombek and Wilber 1988,1: 173. I was able to find these drawings in 1989 at the Institute of Oriental Studies at the Academy of Sciences in Tashkent. 32. For geometric harmonization and modular planning in Central Asian Islamic architecture, see also Bulatov 1988; Kriukov 1964; and Zakhidov 1982. 33. Some designs in this folder (originally no. 16) are reproduced and analyzed in Baklanov 1947. Referred to as a "booklet of geometric ornament (daftar-i gerikh)" it is said to have been discovered by M . C. Andreev in 1936 in the collection of the Bukhara Museum; see Gaganov 1958. 34. This scroll fragment (originally no. 17) contains muqarnas projections (framed in 31.5 cm x 31.5 cm squares). It was first discussed in Baklanov 1944. For the same scroll fragment and reproductions of some of its ground plans and muqarnas drawings, see Pugachenkova 1962; and Pugachenkova and Rempel' 1965, figs. 298-99. Recently Notkin has studied the muqarnas and arch-net vault projections in the Tashkent scrolls; see Notkin 1995. 35. The contents of these six folders can be summarized as follows: no. 18: twelve folios of drawings in black ink of stellate arch-net vaults; no. 19: two folios (24.5 cm x 31 cm and 24.5 cm x 26 cm) with four projections of muqarnas quarter vaults in black ink highlighted in red and green; no. 20: eight partial muqarnas projections (contained in 22.3 cm x 22 cm frames) rendered only in black ink (with some units marked by small circles) and designs for twodimensional geometric ornament; no. 21: drawings in black ink of partial muqarnas vault projections coded with small circles (contained in 11 cm x 11.5 cm or 23 cm x 23 cm frames) and of stellate arch-net vaults; no. 22: a cursive inscription fragment of Persian poetry in black ink, pricked with holes for pouncing, and a brown leather flap originally belonging to one of the scrolls; no. 23: eight projections for muqarnas quarter vaults in black ink using the same small circles (contained in 23 cm x 22.5 cm to 23 cm x 23 cm frames). The muqarnas projections in this group of drawings are studied by Notkin, who dated them all to the sixteenth century; see Notkin 1995. 36. The term yazdi bandiis mentioned in Smith 1947,

NOTES

101, n o , 136-37. For drawings used in the construction of yazdi band! vaults in contemporary Iran, see Shi rbaf 1982-1983; Firishtah Nazhad 1977; and Lur'zadeh 1979. Notkin refers to intersecting arch-net vaults as iroki, a term used by traditional Central Asian master builders at the turn of the twentieth century. Notkin disagrees with the theory that this term refers to the Iraqi origin of arch-net vaults but does not provide any alternative explanation; see Notkin 1995. The term may well refer to the broader region traditionally known as the "two Iraqs" (Arab and Persian). 37. For the concept of the "repeat unit," see El-Said and Parman 1976; and Critchlow 1976. 38. For the traditional Iranian practice of sketching full-scale designs on the floor with plaster, see Smith 1947,132-34; Spiers 1905, 37-38, 52-54; and Clarke 1893, 99-101. For extant drawings scratched on various parts of Gothic cathedrals, see Scholler 1989. 39. Baklanov 1947,102-111. 40. Ibid. 41. Rempel' 1961, 397-415. 42. Bulatov's discussion of various geometric grid systems is summarized in Golombek and Wilber 1988,1: c

159-73. 43. Notkin 1970; idem 1995. 44. This is convincingly argued in O'Kane 1987, 34. 45. For examples of later scrolls, see Baklanov 1947, 108; and Rempel' 1961, figs. 206-10, 220-24. The sketches of the traditional Bukharan master Usta Shirin Muradov (1880-1957) are studied in Notkin 1961. Notkin 1995 refers to relatively simple, freehand drawings by such contemporary masters as Khuli Dzhalilov of Samarqand and Usta Shirin Muradov that are preserved in the Museum of the Arts of Uzbekistan; see Notkin 1995. 46. Clarke 1893,101. 47. The two surviving scrolls are numbered 54 and 55 and are now kept in the library of the Victoria 8c Albert Museum. The note states, "Le trace a la pointe en blanc indique le base de la formation des figures." 48. These designs pasted on fifty-three cardboard sheets (80 cm x 56 cm) are numbered 1-53. 49. Christie 1929, 43, 267-70, 252-55. Christie analyzed selected designs from the Mirza Akbar scrolls; see idem, figs. 36, 244, 267, 269, 286, 287, 290, 291, 306. Gombrich, who acknowledged his debt to Christie's work, also published some patterns from the same scrolls in his book on ornament; see Gombrich 1979, 85-86, pi. 36. The Mirza Akbar scrolls, which I examined in 1987, were also noted by Wasma'a K. Chorbachi, who located the collection through Christie's publications; see Chorbachi 1989, 754-55. I first had referred to the Mirza Akbar scrolls in Necipoglu 1986, before having seen them. For my preliminary observations on these scrolls, presented at a conference on Timurid-Turkmen

culture held in Toronto in 1989, see Necipoglu 1992b. The Mirza Akbar scrolls subsequently were mentioned in O'Kane 1992. 50. Clarke 1893,100-101. 51. The term tumar is used in the introduction of Khanlari n.d. I would like to thank Dr. Chahryar Adle for sending me a photocopy of the shorter French version of this text, which was published by the Fondation de la culture iranienne in the 1970s. For tmars still used in Iraq, see O'Kane 1987, 55 n. 40; he referred to an unpublished Ph.D. dissertation unavailable to me (A. Gailani, "The Origins of Islamic A r t " [Ph.D. diss., University of Edinburgh, 1974], 142,148). 52. Sotheby's London 1985, no. 311. 53. For the Shirazi scroll, see the introduction in Khanlari n.d. 54. For treatment of two- and three-dimensional girihs as related categories, see Shi rbaf 1982-1983; and Lur'zadeh 1979. The contemporary Iranian master builder Muhandis Zuhrah Buzurgmihri similarly referred to all types of geometric patterning (including those on vaults) in Iranian architecture as "kdr-bandT = rasmi band!"; see Buzurgmihri 1982. 55. For the muqarnas and its various interpretations, see Rosintal 1928; Hautecoeur 1931; Diez 1987; Herzfeld 1942; Jones and Michell 1972; Ecochard 1977; Odekan 1977; Harb 1978; Tabbaa 1985; Behrens-Abouseif 1993; and Fernandez-Puertas 1993. 56. Cited in O'Kane 1987, 55 n. 40. For the continuing use of nineteenth-century scrolls in some parts of the Arab world today, see also Chorbachi 1989, 756, fig. 2; 772, fig. 14. In 1981 Chorbachi examined these "paper scrolls of geometric patterns" from the master artisan's workshops of two unspecified Arab towns. These scrolls, illustrated in Chorbachi 1989, which are "still in the hands of artisans today . . . were not only the basic reference manual, but also served as a design book from which artisans chose the appropriate pattern to be used in architectural decoration or in the workshop"; see idem, 755. c

57. Paccard 1980,1: 134, 20. 58. For the establishment of schools in the traditional decorative crafts by the French, see Wright 1991, 131-33. 59. See Lopez de Arenas 1966. Lopez de Arenas's manual was reprinted in 1727, 1867,1912, and 1982. The author, like his father, was a master carpenter and master builder (alarife). He wrote this technical "how-to" manual (filled with specialized terms) for his colleagues at a time when traditional geometric formulas had started to be forgotten. I would like to thank Dr. Lauro Elmo for translating the particularly difficult section on the muqarnas (mocdrabes), chap. 18, fols. 23r-24r. For an analysis of the terminology and geometric structure of the type of Spanish muqarnas

TO

PART

55

1

described by Lopez de Arenas, see Fernandez-Puertas 1993; he pointed out that the mocdrabes (a term derived from muqarbas, which seems to be a corruption of muqarnas) were composed of four basic types of interlocking prisms, the rectangle and three kinds of isosceles triangles—40, 90, and 135 degrees. 60. See Paccard 1980,1: 216: "The star-shaped polygon is the form that dominates all decoration. . . . It is obtained by dividing a circle into equal parts." 61. Paccard described el Bouri's muqarnas designs based on the square module thus: "These complicated structures are actually based on a square. In this case, by being turned diagonally, an eight-pointed star (mthemmen) or an octagon is produced"; see Paccard 1980, 1: 294. 62. Referring to Moroccan plaster muqarnas vaults, Paccard wrote: "The design of the plaster stalactite is quite different from that of the wooden stalactite, in that it is not based on the 90/45 grid. In fact, the negative of the pieces that are used as molds can be arranged among each other according to wider angles. This technique permits a tighter fit to the spherical curve and a greater freedom of execution"; see Paccard 1980, 1: 297. 63. For the specialized vocabulary of Moroccan geometric patterns, where the main generating circle of underlying radial grids is called "mother" (oum) and smaller subsidiary circles surrounding it are known as "sisters" (oukht), while the radii connecting them are called "pathways" (zqaq), see Paccard 1980,1: 218-19. For the modern Iranian vocabulary relating to both individual geometric design components and their combination in codified girihs, see Firishtah Nazhad 1977. The names provided by Firishtah Nazhad reveal that the repeat units of girihs are often designated by the number of the points of the stars used in them. For example, patterns combining six- and five-pointed stars are referred to as "girih of six and five" (girih-i shash wa pan]), or of twelve- and six-pointed stars as "girih of twelve and six," (girih-i duwdzdah wa shash). Occasionally more suggestive terms such as "twelve and six heavens" (duwdzdah wa shash gardun) or "twelve and eight heavens" (duwdzdeh wa hasht gardun) are used for stellate compositions replete with heavenly associations. For pattern names used by contemporary Iranian master builders, see also Lur'zadeh 1979. Names used for geometric patterns in Central Asia are mentioned in Notkin 1995. 0

64. Clarke 1893,100-101. 65. This inventory is reproduced in Oz 1938, no. 21, fol. 14. 66. The §ehzade mosque's plans and drawings are mentioned in Celalzade 1981, fol. 377b. 67. Drawings (rusum) of the Ka ba that Sinan had made were kept in the archives of the Office of Royal Architects at Vefa; see Ca fer Efendi 1987, 54, 56. c

c

56

NOTES

TO PART

1

68. See Necipoglu 1986, 224-43. 69. See Rogers 1989, 135; and my preliminary analysis of the Topkapi scroll in Necipoglu 1992b. 70. For a discussion of Bulatov's views, see Golombek and Wilber 1988, 1: 138, 172. 71. Golombek and Wilber 1988,1: 69, 164-69. For al-Kashi's discussion of the muqarnas, see also DoldSamplonius forthcoming; and idem 1992a. 72. See illustrations in Golombek and Wilber 1988, 2: 334, 339, 352-54> 4i5> 4*773. Qagman has pointed out the similarity of the Topkapi scroll's format and its paper size to a tumar of calligraphy samples prepared for sultan Mehmed 11 that was signed in one place by a Tabrizi scribe in 1458. It is described in Qagman 1983,111, no. 10. The rag paper used in the calligraphy scroll is 34 to 35 centimeters high; because a larger paper format was unavailable, the scroll's height was increased by pasting on additional narrow bands of paper. The type of paper used in the Topkapi scroll measures approximately 34 centimeters in height; the lengths vary (the longest pieces range from 48 cm to 52 cm). Since the leather flap pasted at the beginning of the Topkapi scroll is 31.5 centimeters high, the paper's height is adjusted to it at the beginning of the scroll. From 31.5 centimeters the scroll gradually expands to 33.5 and 34 centimeters. 74. See Golombek and Wilber 1988,1: 412-14; 2: 430, 43575. According to Golombek it was restored in 14121419; see Golombek and Wilber 1988,1: 412. The restoration is dated to 1441-1442 in O'Kane 1986, pis. x l i - x l i i . 76. See Golombek and Wilber 1988,1: 372-75, 414-18; - 355-56, 439; and O'Kane 1986, pis. 37b, 38, 39b. The variants of this popular motif appear in the late Safavid Mader-i Shah Madrasa in Isfahan, which was built in the early eighteenth century, and in the Mirza Akbar scrolls at the Victoria & Albert Museum. 77. Examples appear in the Masjid-i Maydan-i Sang in Kashan (1460s), in a mosaic tile minbar at the Masjid of Amir Khizrshah in Yazd (illustrated in Golombek and Wilber 1988, 2: 462), and in the interior decorations of the Gur-i M i r at Samarqand. 78. See Golombek and Wilber 1988,1: 384-87; 2: pi. xva. 79. For a list of monuments that feature similar relief tiles, see O'Kane 1987, 70. See also Golombek and Wilber 1988,1: 328-31; 2: pi. xiia. 80. Most of the architectural novelties characterizing the imperial Timurid style of Khurasan and of Central Asia were introduced by architects whose nisbas connect them with such cities as Tabriz, Shiraz, and Isfahan. For these nisbas, see Golombek and Wilber 1988,1: 188. 81. The topographic miniature of Tabriz is reproduced in Nasuhi976, fols. 27v-28r. The Timurid-Turkmen 2

architecture of Tabriz is discussed in Golombek and Wilber 1988,1: 30-31. 82. Ta likizade Mehmed Subhi Qelebi b. Muhammed el-Fenari, Tebriziye (On Tabriz), MS R. 1299, fol. 38, Topkapi Sarayi Miizesi Kiituphanesi, Istanbul. The historian Khwandamir wrote in the year 1523-1524 that Tabriz was the most flourishing city of the inhabited quarter of the world; see Khwandamir 1954, 4: 652-53. 83. Abu Uthman A m r b. Bahr al-Jahiz, Kitab al-hayawan (Book of animals), cited in Bosch, Carswell, and Petherbridge 1981, 5-6. 84. Mirkhwand 1891-1894,1: 21. This topos is also encountered in the twelfth-century work Chahar Maqala (Four discourses), which points out that books are more effective as memorials to the glory of past rulers than painted palaces and charming gardens; see Nizami Aruzi 1978, 30-31. 85. For the Qinili Kosk and the impact of TimuridTurkmen prototypes on Ottoman visual culture in the fifteenth and the early sixteenth centuries, see Necipoglu 1991,136-70; idem 1990b; and idem 1992a. The Topkapi scroll could also have been brought to Istanbul during the late sixteenth century when some parts of western Iran, including Tabriz, came under Ottoman rule, but the first half of that century is a more likely date for its acquisition, given the court's Persianate cultural orientation at that time. 86. Golombek and Wilber 1988, 1: 216, xxvi. 87. For the geometric harmonization of Timurid architecture in Central Asia, see Kriukov 1964; Zakhidov 1982; and Bulatov 1988. 88. Golombek and Wilber 1988,1: xxii. 89. Hillenbrand 1989, 99. 90. O'Kane 1987, 74. 91. Except for the isolated thirteenth-century sketchbook of the French architect Villard de Honnecourt, the bulk of Gothic drawings fall into the period between the late fourteenth and the sixteenth centuries. See Shelby 1977; Bucher 1968; idem 1972; idem 1973; idem 1979; Koepf 1969; Rathe 1926; Muller 1973; idem 1975; and Recht1989. 92. Bucher 1973, 44-48; Necipoglu 1992b. 93. Kostof 1985, 387, 398. 94. Kostof 1986, 62. 95. Ibid., 85-86. 96. Shelby and Mark 1979,117. 97. Shelby 1977> 78. 98. Bucher 1979,1:10; idem 1973, 48-49. 99. Shelby 1977, 6-7. 100. Ibid., 74. 101. Ibid., 74-77. See also Frankl 1945. 102. Wittkower 1988,113. Golombek and Wilber's comparison between Qawam al-Din Shirazi and his conc

c

c

c

temporary Brunelleschi seems somewhat forced; see Golombek and Wilber 1988, 1: xxi. 103. Wittkower 1988,150-54. 104. Bucher 1979, 1: 199. 105. According to Clarke, in Qajar Iran each square of the grid corresponded to either one or four bricks; the total number of bricks could be computed by counting the squares and multiplying the total by the height of the rooms (often proportionally related to their plan) after subtracting the openings for windows and doors; see Clarke 1893,101. 106. Chardin 1711, 2: 80. 107. See al-Kashi 1954; idem 1969; and idem 1977. 108. For the Timurid cubit (gaz), see O'Kane 1987, 34-35; and Kriukov 1964. Pugachenkova explained the function of the grid-based plans surviving in Tashkent as follows: "The plans are traced on a checkered surface permitting an observation of the exact proportion of parts in relation to the whole. The overall dimensions as well as the dimension of openings, supporting elements, and the thickness of walls are all indicated there. Each square of the grid represents a sort of architectural module called giaz [i.e., gaz] or zer [i.e., zira ]> which is one of the principal units of measure used by architects. The dimension of the giaz is not standardized in Central Asia, but since it constitutes a modular unit, what matters is that—independent of absolute dimensions—it indicates the proportions of diverse architectural elements drawn on the plan"; see Pugachenkova 1981, 21. 109. For a mathematical explanation of the mason's method for constructing the muqarnas, see also DoldSamplonius forthcoming; and idem 1992a. Al-Kashi's method for measuring domes is analyzed in idem 1992b; and idem 1993. 110. Basing her comments on contemporary building practices in Central Asia, Pugachenkova observed that besides ground plans (tarh) indicating the outline of walls and openings, elevations were only occasionally prepared: "Most often, the elevation of the edifice is not anticipated in advance; the architect realizes his ideas directly on the construction site. Nevertheless, it also happens that—because of the dimensions of a projected edifice, its originality, or to satisfy the curiosity of a client—a sort of ground plan, the tarz [i.e., tarz], is prepared; this represents the edifice in elevation, together with the development of its central and two lateral facades." She added, however, that the ground plan sufficed in most cases: "Even for monumental edifices the plan constitutes the basis of work. Still today in Central Asia do they not construct complex arches and vaults or refined ensembles of stalactites, using similar plans traced on the ground, without a projection of volumes, simply with the indication of vertical sides? It was c

NOTES

thus that one already proceeded in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries"; see Pugachenkova 1981, 21. We know that three-dimensional models were used in Ottoman building practice. Some nineteenth-century sources on the Taj Mahal refer to the preparation of a wooden model of the mausoleum after Shah Jahan selected one of the plans submitted on paper. Although models may have been used for outstanding Timurid projects, standard buildings would have required only ground plans. For Ottoman models, see Necipoglu 1986, 236-42; the reference to the wooden model of the Taj Mahal is in Nath 1985, 7. 111. Clarke 1893,101. 112. Clarke 1893,175. 113. Clarke and Lewis 1880-1881,168. Examples of Mirza Akbar's drawings for vault patterns are reproduced in this article. 114. Ibid., 173. 115. Spiers 1905, 37-38. 116. Smith 1947, 133-34. 117. Shi rbaf 1982-1983; Lur'zadeh 1979. 118. Notkin 1961. Paccard described the construction in Morocco of plaster muqarnas units cast in molds and ordered in tiers in similar terms: "The plaster worker begins at the bottom placing the molds in several rows, then he pours the plaster. When the plaster of Paris has set, he uses the molds again for higher rows, until the cap has been reached. The muqarnas are then carved, and often covered with painted decorations"; see Paccard 1980,1: 296-97. Chardin observed that it was common practice in seventeenth-century Safavid Iran for carpenters to fully assemble joined woodwork vaults on the ground before lifting them into place by means of hoisting machines; see Chardin 1711, 2: 80. 119. Bucher 1973, 47; Frankl 1945. The proceedings of the meeting of lodges in Regensburg in 1459 read: "No workman, nor master, nor foreman (Parlier), nor apprentice shall teach anyone who is not of our profession and has not worked as a mason, how to derive the elevation from the plan"; see Bucher 1972, 527 n. 1. 120. Notkin 1995. 121. The contents of these lodge and sketchbooks are listed in Bucher 1979,1: i i i - v ; Shelby and Mark 1979, 122-31; and Recht 1989, 282-83. The Frankfurt lodge book, 1560-1572, for example, has 222 projects, among them 147 vaults, 28 vault schemata, 23 windows, 6 geometric and decorative drawings, and other details such as sundials, stairs, and gables. Similarly the lodge book of Wolfgang Rixner (circa 1467-1500, with additions until 1599) contains 207 images of which there are 83 vaults, 27 traceries, 26 decorative and sculptural motifs, and 39 theoretical problems, as well as stairs, templates, and gables. The Dresden sketchbook from c

the second half of the sixteenth century, on the other hand, contains 32 vault designs of complex interpenetrating ribs with their projection procedures, and Jacob Feucht's treatise of 1593, intended as a handbook for Gothic architects, is mostly devoted to vault patterns and their projections. The Dresden and Feucht drawings (accompanied by vertical projection lines) provided the vault plan, the one and only curvature for all the ribs, and their actual lengths. 122. Bucher 1972, 527; idem 1973, 47; Shelby and Mark 1979,125-26. The method is summarized by Shelby and Mark as follows: "First, the rib plan (Reihung) of the vault bay was drawn at full scale on the floor of the church, building lodge, or tracing house—wherever there was sufficient room for the task. Then it was determined what would be the highest point of the vault bay, and the distance was measured in the rib plan from one corner of the bay to that point. For example, in a quadripartite vault with semicircular diagonal ribs over a square bay, this distance would have been simply the straight line from one corner (the springer) to the center of the bay (the keystone) on the rib plan. But in the complex patterns of German Spatgotik the distance was determined by summing the lengths of the rib patterns from the springer to the highest keystone of the vault. . . . This distance was then transferred onto a horizontal base line and became the radius of a quadrant set out from that line. This quadrant was the Principalbogen." 123. Shelby and Mark 1979, 125-26. 124. The inscription cited in Notkin 1995 has been translated into English by Wheeler Thackston, Jr.: "Ma lum-i yaran-i ahl-i hunar bashad dar shum[a]ra-i in muqarnas muqayyad bayad shud ta az hal-i in kama haqquhu khabar yabi u napindarl in ghalat karda ast" (May it be known to the friends who are practitioners of this craft [art] that in counting this muqarnas it is necessary to pay careful attention so that you may know about it as it ought to be and not think that this [fellow] has made a mistake). 125. O'Kane 1987, 36-37, pis. 0.1, 0.2. 126. Hankin 1905, 461-65. 127. Referring to the "universal" role of the Timurid master builder in supervising all aspects of architectural design and decoration, Pugachenkova wrote: "He has a knowledge of diverse architectural and decorative techniques. He is at the same time the author and executor of the project. He participates in all the phases of work; the initial conception emanates from his mind; his organizing talent assures the regular progression of construction activities; he executes with his own hands the most delicate pieces of work"; see Pugachenkova 1981, 27. c

TO

PART

1

57

128. A document ( arzadasht) dated 1420 lists the multimedia projects of artists employed in Baysunghur's scriptorium; for a recent translation of this source into English, see Thackston 1989, 323-27. The continuation of this tradition in the Ottoman period is analyzed in Necipoglu 1990b, 140,167 n. 25. For a discussion and selected illustrations of decorative patterns from the Timurid-Turkmen albums in Istanbul and Berlin, see Lentz and Lowry 1989,189-233. 129. Golombek and Wilber 1988,1: 117. 130. A celebrated passage of the fifteenth-century Tankh-i Khayrat (History of good works) describes the construction of Timur's Dilgusha Palace in Samarqand as a process in which the erection of the wall fabric and its decoration proceeded simultaneously as interrelated operations. As soon as the walls began to rise, decorators specializing in various crafts came to apply the revetments. See O'Kane 1987, 34; Golombek and Wilber 1988,1: 91-93131. See O'Kane 1987, 41. Timurid-Turkmen master builders seem to have started out their careers in one of the building crafts, a training particularly relevant in an architectural tradition that thrived on decorative effects. Architects of the Ilkhanid period interchangeably used the titles of mason (banna), geometerengineer (muhandis), and stucco worker (jissas) in their signatures. This suggests that they too rose from the ranks of the building crafts. For these signatures, see Blair 1986, 39-41. 132. Even the stone-based Mediterranean tradition of Ottoman architecture, where decoration plays a much more restrained role, required chief architects such as Sinan to design appropriate decorative programs for each project; see Yenisehirlioglu 1985; and Necipoglu 1990b, 154-58. 133. For the element of theatricality in Timurid art and architecture, see Lentz and Lowry 1989. 134. It would be useful to analyze individual TimuridTurkmen monuments in terms of the relationship of geometric schemes used in their ground plans, vaulting, and surface revetments. Such analyses can lead to a better understanding of the relative success or failure of geometric harmonization in specific cases. c

PART

2.

THE

DISCOURSE

ON THE GEOMETRIC

That thou canst never end, doth make thee great, And that thou ne'er beginnest, is thy fate. Thy song is changeful as yon starry frame, End and beginning evermore the same; And what the middle bringeth, but contains What was at first, and what at last remains.

—Goethe, "Hans N a m e h "

1

"ARABESQUE"

CHAPTER

4.

ORNAMENTALISM

AND

THE NINETEENTH-

ORIENTALISM!

AND EARLY

A great deal has been w r i t t e n about the geometric

TWE N T IETH-CENTURY

EUROPEAN

A l t h o u g h the European fascination w i t h

LITERATURE

example, one o f the early architect-antiquarians

o r n a m e n t o f Islamic architecture w i t h o u t t a k i n g

Islamic o r n a m e n t had its roots i n the medieval

interested i n G o t h i c architecture, was equally fas-

i n t o consideration the role p a t t e r n scrolls played

and Renaissance periods, i t reached its peak i n

cinated w i t h the m o n u m e n t s o f Islamic Spain as

i n the c o n c e p t u a l i z a t i o n and transmission o f the

the nineteenth century. A lively debate o n the

can be seen i n his The Arabian

distinctive m o d e o f design that came to be k n o w n

subject o f o r n a m e n t arose i n the wake o f the

o f 1813-1816. The t o p o g r a p h i c i l l u s t r a t i o n s o f late

as the girih i n the Persian-speaking eastern Islamic

I n d u s t r i a l R e v o l u t i o n w h e n theorists began to

eighteenth- and early n i n e t e e n t h - c e n t u r y p u b l i c a -

lands. This chapter w i l l analyze the n i n e t e e n t h -

reflect o n the nature o f abstract p a t t e r n i n g as

tions o n various regions o f the Islamic w o r l d , no

2

Antiquities

of Spain

and early t w e n t i e t h - c e n t u r y European l i t e r a t u r e

a language o f pure f o r m and color. O r n a m e n t ,

d o u b t an o u t g r o w t h o f earlier travelogues, accen-

o n o r n a m e n t w i t h i n w h i c h the discussion o f

w h i c h was to be relegated to a d i s t i n c t l y lower

t u a t e d the scenic decorative values o f architecture

Islamic geometric patterns often was embedded.

realm by the M o d e r n M o v e m e n t and rediscovered

so appealing to R o m a n t i c sensibilities. These ide-

T h a t l i t e r a t u r e generally overlapped w i t h the

by p o s t m o d e r n i s m , thus came to play a cen-

alized images depicted picturesque m o n u m e n t s ,

Orientalist discourse o n the so-called arabesque,

t r a l role i n the c r i t i c a l discourse o n design i n

often set i n the m i d s t o f i d y l l i c landscapes w i t h

singled o u t as a u n i f y i n g essence o f Islamic visual

n i n e t e e n t h - c e n t u r y Europe. As the practical rele-

r u i n s a n d i n h a b i t e d by l a n g u i d natives wearing

c u l t u r e . After t r a c i n g the development o f the ahis-

vance o f abstract Islamic patterns t o the European

exotic local costumes.

t o r i c a l discourse o n the arabesque, a category to

search for a p p r o p r i a t e decorative m o t i f s for mass

w h i c h Islamic geometric patterns belong as a sub-

p r o d u c t i o n became apparent, p u b l i c a t i o n s o n this

N a p o l e o n , Description

set, I w i l l t u r n to some o f the recent secondary l i t -

specialized subject r a p i d l y m u l t i p l i e d .

i l l u s t r a t i o n s o f Islamic b u i l d i n g s were once again

erature t h a t u n c r i t i c a l l y has a p p r o p r i a t e d m a n y o f the stereotypes constructed m o r e t h a n a c e n t u r y

3

A n o t h e r factor that fueled the g r o w i n g E u r o pean interest i n the decorative aspects o f the

4

I n the m u l t i v o l u m e w o r k w r i t t e n by orders o f de VEgypte

y

1809-1828,

s h o w n w i t h natives engaged i n a variety o f a c t i v i ties, b u t this encyclopedic w o r k reflected a m o r e

ago, recycling t h e m w i t h a new ideological t w i s t .

Islamic architectural t r a d i t i o n was the awakening

"scientific" a m b i t i o n to r e c o r d , catalog, classify,

This critical review o f d o m i n a n t paradigms i n

o f the R o m a n t i c s p i r i t w i t h its search for the pic-

and u l t i m a t e l y c o n t r o l the recently colonized lands

m o d e r n scholarship w i l l serve as a b a c k d r o p

turesque. The R o m a n t i c m o v e m e n t encouraged

o f Egypt. I t was f o l l o w e d by several p u b l i c a t i o n s

for the subsequent parts o f the b o o k where the

n o t o n l y G o t h i c archaeology b u t also the explora-

o n Egyptian Islamic architecture, such as Pascal

girih m o d e is historicized and contextualized.

t i o n o f exotic lands. James Cavanah M u r p h y , for

Coste's Architecture

arabe; ou, Monuments

du

62

PART

Kaire,

2.

THE

DISCOURSE

ON

mesures et dessines, de 1818 d

THE

1826,1837-1839;

P h i l i b e r t Joseph G i r a u l t de Prangey's arabes d'Egypte,

GEOMETRIC

Monuments

de Syrie et d'Asie Mineure

sines et mesures de 1842 a 1845, 1846; and A c h i l l e Vart

arabe d'apres

les monuments

du Kaire depuis le

siecle jusqu'd

la fin du xvin ,

1869-1877; f o l l o w e d

e

by his La decoration

Prisse d'Avennes w r o t e that the M u s l i m civilizat i o n o f Cairo was engendered by the K o r a n , "a

des-

C o n s t a n t - T h e o d o r e - E m i l e Prisse d'Avennes's

" ARABESQUE"

vn

e

arabe, 1887. I n contrast t o ear-

renounce m i m e t i c art. The innate s p i r i t u a l i t y and m y s t i c i s m o f the Arabs made t h e m favor abstract

faithful e m b o d i m e n t o f the aspirations, ideas, and

ornaments capable o f expressing transcendental

mores o f the Semitic races, and manifest sanction

beauty: " C o n t e m p l a t i v e and ecstatic, the A r a b

o f customs a p p r o p r i a t e to their character." He

distances h i m s e l f f r o m the h u m a n f o r m , n o t to

regarded the differences o f style " i n the works o f

obey a religious precept, b u t an i n s t i n c t . " The

the various races under the sway o f the law o f

s p i r i t u a l essence o f Arab art was e m b o d i e d i n the

7

M u h a m m a d " as " v a r i e d modes o f the same art,

arabesque, w i t h its three types o f r h y t h m i c a l l y

lier travelogues these were lavish oversize volumes

since all the principles that inspire these races are

interlaced variants, vegetal, calligraphic, and geo-

that often i n c l u d e d color plates h i g h l i g h t i n g the

derived f r o m the same source." He c o n c l u d e d ,

m e t r i c . First appearing i n the n i n t h - c e n t u r y

p o l y c h r o m y o f Islamic architectural revetments;

" t h u s we affirm t h a t i t is to this pure source that

T u l u n i d m o n u m e n t s o f Cairo, this m o d e o f

they featured m o r e precise measured drawings,

we m u s t t u r n i f we are seriously to study A r a b

abstract o r n a m e n t developed m o r e fully d u r i n g the

plans, and elevations, accompanied by a large

a r t , " t h a t is to the " A r a b genius i n a r c h i t e c t u r e "

F a t i m i d p e r i o d i n the t e n t h and eleventh centuries.

n u m b e r o f details and o r n a m e n t a l panels.

8

that p r o d u c e d the m o n u m e n t s discussed i n his

Gayet i d e n t i f i e d the use o f geometric c o m p o s i t i o n s

b o o k , t h e i r d e c o r a t i o n , and " t h e i r capricious

d o m i n a t e d by polygons as the "essential

p u b l i c a t i o n s generally started w i t h an i n t r o d u c t i o n

ornaments k n o w n as arabesques,

o f all Islamic a r t , " even t h o u g h he recognized

to Egypt's geography, climate, and the various

smallest details o f their f u r n i s h i n g s . " Prisse

Like Napoleon's Description

de VEgypte, these

d o w n to the

races m a k i n g up its p o p u l a t i o n , f o l l o w e d by an

d'Avennes u l t i m a t e l y hoped that the contents o f

e n u m e r a t i o n o f the Islamic dynasties that r u l e d

his b o o k w o u l d p r o v i d e the " m o d e r n decorative

character

regional variations reflecting racial differences.

9

The arabesque came to be i d e n t i f i e d as the p r i m a r y characteristic o f Islamic art by Orientalists

there u n t i l the t i m e o f the French e x p e d i t i o n ,

arts and architecture materials w i t h w h i c h they

focusing o n the m a t e r i a l c u l t u r e o f the Arabs i n

before t u r n i n g to a d e s c r i p t i o n o f the m o n u m e n t s

may renounce b a n a l i t y . " This practical agenda

Syria, Egypt, N o r t h Africa, and Spain d u r i n g the

6

i l l u s t r a t e d i n accompanying plates. This m e t h o d o -

was reflected i n his book's i l l u s t r a t i o n s , w h i c h are

nineteenth century, w h e n artistic styles very often

logical framework, based o n the widespread

d o m i n a t e d by architectural fragments and details

were defined as reflections o f racial and religious

n i n e t e e n t h - c e n t u r y view that architecture and the

o f abstract o r n a m e n t a l panels presented o u t o f

mentalities.

decorative arts were d e t e r m i n e d by climate and

context so that c o n t e m p o r a r y designers c o u l d

whether i n architectural d e c o r a t i o n , objects, or

racial character, t u r n e d the d o c u m e n t e d b u i l d i n g s

derive lessons f r o m t h e m .

m a n u s c r i p t p a i n t i n g , was conspicuously d o w n -

depicted w i t h natives i n t o objects for the e t h n o -

A l b e r t Gayet's Vart arabe, 1893, argued that the

10

The presence o f figural imagery,

played i n c o n s t r u c t i n g the "otherness" o f the

graphic "gaze." Coste, for instance, asserted i n

abstract d e c o r a t i o n o f A r a b m o n u m e n t s reflected

A r a b o - I s l a m i c visual t r a d i t i o n . Generally classified

his i n t r o d u c t i o n t h a t m o n u m e n t s n o t o n l y were

deeply seated racial characteristics: " T h i s is n o t the

i n terms o f its geometric, vegetal, and calligraphic

adapted to different climates b u t also reflected

art o f a r e l i g i o n or o f a people, b u t t h a t o f a race."

variants, the so-called arabesque (occasionally

the customs and the p r e d o m i n a n t racial char-

A c c o r d i n g to Gayet, the Islamic p r o h i b i t i o n o f

i n t e r t w i n e d w i t h stylized figures and animals) was

figural representation had o n l y reinforced the

assigned a p u r e l y decorative f u n c t i o n t h a t differed

i n s t i n c t i v e artistic tendency o f Semitic races to

f u n d a m e n t a l l y f r o m the i c o n o g r a p h i c t r a d i t i o n o f

acter o f peoples; i n the case o f Cairo this was peuple

arabe."

5

"la

ORNAMENTALISM

AND

63

ORIENTALISM

This d e s c r i p t i o n o f abstract A r a b o r n a m e n t i n

were fragmented i n these p u b l i c a t i o n s i n t o

alleged absence o f m e a n i n g facilitated its a p p r o -

terms o f three d o m i n a n t elements (calligraphy,

reusable parts, displayed as n e u t r a l objects o f

p r i a t i o n by m o d e r n European architects and

vegetation, and geometric interlaces) o r i g i n a t i n g

"consumption."

i n d u s t r i a l designers.

i n n o m a d i c tents w o u l d be repeated i n countless

Western representational a r t .

1 1

The arabesque's

1 4

The i m p l i e d practical agenda o f these regionally

p u b l i c a t i o n s i n c l u d i n g Gayet's Vart arabe, w h i c h

specialized p u b l i c a t i o n s was articulated m o r e

o n Islamic Spain, such as Jules G o u r y and O w e n

sees the distant m e m o r y o f tents i n p o l y g o n a l geo-

e x p l i c i t l y i n the European universal encyclopedias

Jones's Plans, Elevations,

metric patterns.

o n o r n a m e n t a l styles. One o f the earliest encyclo-

M u c h like the p u b l i c a t i o n s o n Egypt those

Alhambra,

Sections and Details

oftht

1842-1845, and G i r a u l t de Prangey's

Essai sur Varchitecture

des Arabes et des Mores en

13

U n l i k e the m o r e scholarly first v o l u m e o f G o u r y and Jones's Alhambra,

pedias o n o r n a m e n t , Charles-Ernest Clerget and M a r t e l ' s Encyclopedic

w h i c h was accompanied by

universelle

d'ornements,

the Spanish Arabist Pascual de Gayangos's h i s t o r i -

circa 1840, contained samples o f Greek, R o m a n ,

lavish plates o f architectural m o n u m e n t s and

cal account and t r a n s c r i p t i o n s o f A r a b i c i n s c r i p -

Egyptian, A r a b , Moresque, Persian, T u r k i s h ,

o r n a m e n t a l details. Jones, w h o had first visited

tions translated i n t o English and French, the

I n d i a n , Chinese, Japanese, medieval, Renaissance,

Cairo and I s t a n b u l before m o v i n g o n to Spain,

second v o l u m e consists o n l y o f c h r o m o l i t h o g r a p h i c

and m o d e r n decorative p a t t e r n s .

identified the architecture o f the Arabs as "essen-

plates d e p i c t i n g decorative fragments detached

i m p o r t a n t and comprehensive encyclopedic w o r k

tially r e l i g i o u s — t h e offspring o f the K o r a n , " just

f r o m t h e i r architectural setting. I t p r i m a r i l y was

o n this subject, Jones's The Grammar

as G o t h i c architecture is o f the Bible:

i n t e n d e d , m u c h like G i r a u l t de Prangey's

Espagne,

en Sidle,

et en Barbarie,

1841,

featured

d'ornements

moresques

de VAlhambra,

15

By far the most of

Orna-

ment, 1856, was w r i t t e n soon after the Great I n t e r -

Choix

n a t i o n a l E x h i b i t i o n o f 1851 i n L o n d o n , w h i c h

1842, to

supply c o n t e m p o r a r y designers w i t h examples o f

encouraged a m o r e rigorous g r o u n d i n g i n the

caused t h e m to seek for other means

o r n a m e n t to copy or study. M o s t books that dealt

s t r u c t u r a l g r a m m a r o f o r n a m e n t . Jones classified

o f d e c o r a t i o n , — i n s c r i p t i o n s f r o m the

w i t h Islamic architecture i n those years, such

Islamic o r n a m e n t i n terms o f the ethnoracial cate-

The p r o h i b i t i o n to represent a n i m a l life,

K o r a n , i n t e r w o v e n w i t h geometrical o r n a -

as Charles Felix M a r i e Texier's Description

ments and flowers, n o t d r a w n decidedly

VAsie Mineure,

f r o m n a t u r e , b u t translated t h r o u g h the

VArmenie,

l o o m ; for i t w o u l d seem t h a t the Arabs,

Monuments

i n changing t h e i r w a n d e r i n g for a settled

Parvillee's Architecture

la Perse et la Mesopotamie, modernes

gories typical o f his t i m e : A r a b i a n , Moresque,

de

1839-1849, and his Description

T u r k i s h , Persian, and I n d i a n . This scheme,

de

repeated i n several later p u b l i c a t i o n s , d i s t o r t e d the

1842; Coste's

m u l t i e t h n i c c u l t u r e o f most p r e m o d e r n Islamic

de la Perse, 1867; and Leon et decoration

turques au

xv

e

dynasties, whose rule had u n i f i e d several geo-

l i f e , — i n s t r i k i n g the tent to p l a n t i t i n a

siecle, 1874, featured plates o f decontextualized

graphic regions w i t h m i x e d p o p u l a t i o n s and

f o r m m o r e s o l i d , had transferred the l u x -

architectural ornaments i n various techniques

religious m i n o r i t i e s . Together w i t h the h o r i z o n t a l

u r i o u s shawls and hangings o f Cachmere,

and styles, e x p l i c i t l y or i m p l i c i t l y addressing a

p a r a d i g m o f an all-encompassing universal M u s l i m

w h i c h had adorned t h e i r f o r m e r d w e l l -

European professional audience i n an age o f eclec-

visual t r a d i t i o n , this vertical p a r a d i g m o f regional

ings, to t h e i r n e w , — c h a n g i n g the t e n t -

t i c i s m and revivalism. B r o k e n d o w n i n t o t h e i r

ethnic dialects was a m o n g the lasting legacies

pole for a marble c o l u m n , and the silken

decorated components such as facades, domes,

o f the n i n e t e e n t h century i n later scholarship

minarets, portals, m i h r a b s , lattices, and calli-

o n Islamic art and architecture.

tissue for gilded p l a s t e r .

12

graphic or o r n a m e n t a l panels, Islamic b u i l d i n g s

The Grammar

of Ornament

was the first serious

6

4

PART

2.

THE

DISCOURSE

ON THE

GEOMETRIC

" ARABESQUE"

study to adopt a systematic approach aimed at for-

rather t h a n as systems o f signification, at the

are all very simple w h e n the p r i n c i p l e o f

m u l a t i n g a r a t i o n a l language o f o r n a m e n t a p p r o -

expense o f their c u l t u r a l associations and contex-

setting t h e m o u t is once u n d e r s t o o d . They

priate for the m o d e r n i n d u s t r i a l age. Its central

tual meanings. Jones's ahistorical approach to

all arise f r o m the intersection o f equidis-

assumption was that "evidence adduced f r o m

Islamic o r n a m e n t was n o t different f r o m the way

tant lines r o u n d fixed centres . . . i n fact,

c u l t u r e is as universal and timeless as evidence

i n w h i c h he treated other o r n a m e n t a l styles, even

geometrical c o m b i n a t i o n s o n this system

f r o m nature; and t h a t , therefore, d e c o r a t i o n can

t h o u g h The Grammar

may be said to be i n f i n i t e .

be described by laws equivalent to the laws o f sci-

biased i n favor o f the so-called Moresque style

of Ornament

was heavily

19

e p i t o m i z e d by the A l h a m b r a , " t h e very s u m m i t o f

T h o u g h he d i d n o t explain these geometric p r i n -

c o n d i t i o n s for good o r n a m e n t were the same for

perfection o f M o o r i s h art, as is the Parthenon o f

ciples o f setting o u t patterns, w h i c h m a n y later

all epochs and cultures was articulated i n t h i r t y -

Greek a r t . " The b o o k assigned the m o r e abstract

authors w o u l d a t t e m p t to decipher, Jones created

seven p r o p o s i t i o n s . These p r o p o s i t i o n s were meant

Moresque and A r a b i a n styles a higher status t h a n

p o l y c h r o m a t i c c o m p o s i t i o n s i n s p i r e d by Islamic

as guidelines for an abstract language o f p o l y c h r o -

the r e m a i n i n g three " m i x e d styles" ( T u r k i s h , Per-

and Pompeian geometric patterns that were gener-

m a t i c o r n a m e n t g o i n g beyond historicisms and

sian, and I n d i a n ) , w h i c h were characterized by

ated by u n d e r l y i n g grids. I n t e n d e d for mosaics and

reflecting a p r o t o m o d e r n i s t urge to establish u n i -

relatively naturalistic motifs. I n his earlier m o n o -

tiles p r o d u c e d by m o d e r n mechanical processes,

versal rules for good design. P r o p o s i t i o n l stressed

graphic w o r k o n the A l h a m b r a , Jones had already

some o f these drawings were p u b l i s h e d i n his

the p r i m a c y o f architectural f o r m f r o m w h i c h the

noted that the great variety o f i n t r i c a t e Moresque

Designs for Mosaic and Tessellated

decorative arts "arise" and u p o n w h i c h they are

patterns was derived f r o m a series o f u n d e r l y i n g

(fig. 78a). Others are preserved at the V i c t o r i a

ence."

1 6

Jones's universalist tenet that the a p r i o r i

Pavements,

1842

" a t t e n d a n t . " Jones's c o n v i c t i o n t h a t despite " l o c a l

geometric grids p r o v i d i n g infinite possibilities for

& A l b e r t M u s e u m i n an u n p u b l i s h e d v o l u m e

or t e m p o r a r y character" all h i s t o r i c styles were

the i n v e n t i o n o f abstract design. This was trans-

o f w a t e r c o l o r and i n k drawings e n t i t l e d "Designs

based o n "eternal and i m m u t a b l e " principles and

lated i n t o a universal p r i n c i p l e i n P r o p o s i t i o n 8:

for Mosaic Tiles" (fig. 7 8 b ) .

o n " t h e same grand ideas e m b o d i e d i n different

" A l l o r n a m e n t s h o u l d be based u p o n a geometrical

reflect the genetic l i n k Jones detected between

forms, and expressed, so to speak, i n a different

construction."

two related h i s t o r i c a l styles o f geometric design,

language" was encapsulated i n P r o p o s i t i o n 36: " T h e principles discoverable i n the works o f the

1 8

Jones was fascinated by the geometric basis o f patterns i n the A l h a m b r a :

past belong to us; n o t so the results. I t is t a k i n g the end for the means."

1 7

Jones's practical agenda led h i m to overlook

20

These drawings

a l i n k he briefly h i n t e d at i n The Grammar Ornament,

of

w h i c h traces the roots o f the geometric

and vegetal arabesque to the G r e c o - R o m a n However m u c h disguised, the whole o f the o r n a m e n t a t i o n o f the M o o r s is c o n -

tradition.

2 1

The classical origins o f the arabesque were m o r e

the s i g n i f y i n g p o t e n t i a l o f o r n a m e n t a l patterns

structed geometrically. T h e i r fondness for

fully explored i n the A u s t r i a n art h i s t o r i a n A l o i s

b e l o n g i n g to different c u l t u r a l t r a d i t i o n s so that

geometrical forms is evidenced by the

Riegl's Stilfragen,

1893, w h i c h often cites Jones.

their u n d e r l y i n g syntactic principles c o u l d be

great use they made o f mosaics, i n w h i c h

I n this celebrated study Riegl d e m o n s t r a t e d i n

a p p r o p r i a t e d for m o d e r n needs. I t called for a

t h e i r i m a g i n a t i o n had full play. However

D a r w i n i a n terms the genetic m u t a t i o n o f the vege-

study o f patterns for their universal relevance

c o m p l i c a t e d the patterns may appear, they

tal arabesque r o o t e d i n the classical p a l m e t t e - a n d -

ORNAMENTALISM

AND

ORIENTALISM

t e n d r i l o r n a m e n t , o n l y briefly discussing the o r i g i n o f Islamic interlaced geometric patterns i n late antique floor mosaics a n d ceiling decorations. H e i n t e r p r e t e d the arabesque as the creation o f an " O r i e n t a l s p i r i t o f a b s t r a c t i o n " (orientalische der Abstraktion)

Geist

t h a t endlessly m u l t i p l i e d m o d u l a r

decorative u n i t s t h r o u g h " i n f i n i t e correspondence" (unendliche

Rapport)

to cover whole surfaces i n

w h i c h f o r e g r o u n d a n d b a c k g r o u n d m o t i f s were no longer distinguishable. Riegl n o t e d that the t r a n s f o r m a t i o n o f Hellenistic, late antique, a n d Byzantine vegetal m o t i f s i n t o a "full-fledged Islamic arabesque" m o d e had been completed by the twelfth c e n t u r y after a t u r n i n g p o i n t sometime a r o u n d the t e n t h o r eleventh c e n t u r y .

22

Riegl's assumption that the arabesque played a p u r e l y decorative role was a p r o d u c t o f his t i m e just like his n o t i o n o f artistic i n t e n t i o n wollen),

(Kunst-

a pervasive m e n t a l i t y (Geisteshaltung)

or

s p i r i t (Geist) m o t i v a t i n g the art o f p a r t i c u l a r ethnic groups a n d periods. Like n i n e t e e n t h c e n t u r y Hegelian art historians w h o i n t e r p r e t e d o r n a m e n t — w h e t h e r Greek, R o m a n , G o t h i c , o r Islamic—as the reflection o f a s p i r i t , Riegl saw the arabesque as a m i r r o r o f c u l t u r a l tendencies. I t e m b o d i e d an a n t i n a t u r a l i s t i c drive for geometric abstraction t h a t was an o u t c o m e o f the Islamic p r o h i b i t i o n against figural representation verbot).

Its

figure-ground

(Bild-

ambiguities reflected a

specifically Islamic Weltanschauung that assigned absolute power t o a transcendent G o d w h o leveled all hierarchies. T h e arabesque was thus the crea-

78a. Owen Jones, design for a mosaic pavement. From Jones 1842, pi. x. Photo: Courtesy John Caiman & King, Ltd.

78b. Owen Jones, design for a mosaic pavement. From his volume of drawings "Designs for Mosaic Tiles," late 1830s or early 1840s, watercolor and ink on paper. By courtesy of the Board of Trustees of the Victoria & Albert Museum, London, Prints and Drawings Department.

65

66

PART

2.

THE

DISCOURSE

t i o n o f a Kunstwollen

ON

THE

GEOMETRIC

that t r a n s f o r m e d naturalistic

" ARABESQUE"

Islamic m o n u m e n t s o f Egypt. I n the first b o o k

Tunisia, Algeria, M o r o c c o , Spain, and Sicily were

classical motifs and b r o u g h t t h e m i n t o a c o m -

B o u r g o i n explained that he o m i t t e d the muqarnas

better k n o w n to h i m t h a n those o f other Islamic

pletely different c u l t u r a l o r b i t .

(les stalactites)

countries f r o m w h i c h m o r e i n f o r m a t i o n had to be

2 3

f r o m his study o f geometric pat-

terns because he was addressing the c o n t e m p o r a r y

gathered. M o r e o v e r , he was n o t b l i n d to stylistic

avalanche o f encyclopedic p u b l i c a t i o n s o n o r n a -

needs o f the i n d u s t r i a l arts: " W e had to c o n f o r m

variations between different regions and p e r i o d s .

m e n t a l styles that i n c l u d e d chapters o n Islamic

to the c o n d i t i o n s c o m m o n to all p u b l i c a t i o n s o f

Nevertheless, like his contemporaries B o u r g o i n

patterns. A l b e r t Charles Auguste Racinet's

this genre, t h a t is to say, we l i m i t e d o u r subject

a t t r i b u t e d a certain timelessness to the art o f

Vornementpolychrome,

i n order to render the b o o k m o r e accessible by

the O r i e n t , often seen as an ethnographic rather

The Grammar

of Ornament

was f o l l o w e d by an

1869-1887; H e i n r i c h

26

choosing a m o n g the materials we have collected

t h a n a h i s t o r i o g r a p h i c field o f i n q u i r y . I n Les arts

L e o n h a r d Diefenbach's Geometrische

Ornamentik,

those t h a t appeared to us as the most a p p r o p r i a t e

arabes, where he used such categories as race arabe

1892; James Ward's Historic

1897; and

for f u r n i s h i n g o u r i n d u s t r i a l arts w i t h new ele-

and races semitiques

ments."

s h o u l d n o t expect to recover i n the h i s t o r y o f the

Dolmetsch's Der Ornamentenschatz,

1887;

Ornament,

Alexander Speltz's Ornamentstil,

1904, are o n l y

2 4

Bourgoin's focus o n the c o m p o s i t i o n a l

or semitisees,

he w r o t e , " O n e

some examples o f this p o p u l a r genre t h a t c o n t i n -

principles o f t w o - d i m e n s i o n a l geometric patterns

art o f the O r i e n t the equivalent o f that rigorous

ued w e l l i n t o the t w e n t i e t h c e n t u r y u n t i l M o d -

reveals that the tendency to treat the muqarnas as

chain o f different phases characteristic o f the art o f

e r n i s m discredited the teaching o f the syntax o f

an independent element ( w h i c h eventually was

the O c c i d e n t . "

historical o r n a m e n t . These universal

singled o u t as the most d i s t i n c t i v e artistic creation

East as a relatively static native t r a d i t i o n u n t o u c h e d

were c o m p l e m e n t e d by specialized p a t t e r n books

o f Islam) o r i g i n a t e d i n the n i n e t e e n t h - c e n t u r y l i t -

by the h i s t o r i c a l processes so central to the

o f Islamic o r n a m e n t featuring plates w i t h b r i e f

erature o n o r n a m e n t , a l i t e r a t u r e p r i m a r i l y c o n -

c o m p l e x e v o l u t i o n o f European artistic c u l t u r e ,

descriptions, such as E. C o l l i n o t and A d a l b e r t de

cerned w i t h surface patterns. This resulted i n

B o u r g o i n h i g h l i g h t e d its essential otherness.

Beaumont's Encyclopedic

an a r b i t r a r y separation o f spatial geometric c o n -

d o i n g so he repeated a topos o f the O r i e n t a l i s t dis-

encyclopedias

des arts decoratifs

de

2 7

By casting the art o f the Islamic

28

In

VOrient ( w h i c h i n a d d i t i o n to the H i n d u , Russian,

structs f r o m the t w o - d i m e n s i o n a l ones w i t h w h i c h

course, w i t h its o p p o s i t i o n between the r a t i o n a l

Venetian, Japanese, and Chinese styles i n c l u d e d

they are so consistently juxtaposed i n Islamic pat-

West, representing a d y n a m i c w o r l d o f progress,

Ornements

tern s c r o l l s .

and the s p i r i t u a l East, c o n s t i t u t i n g a static w o r l d

de la Perse, 1880; Ornements

and Ornements

arabes, 1883); N i k o l a i Evstafievich

Simakov's Vart de VAsie-centrale: decoratif

turcs, 1882;

Recueil

de Fart

de VAsie centrale, 1883; and the a n o n y m o u s

Illustrations

of Indian Architectural

Decorative

for the Use of Art Schools and Craftsmen,

Work

1887-1894.

25

B o u r g o i n ' s Les arts arabes begins w i t h an i n t r o d u c t i o n to the general characteristics o f " t h e art o f the M u h a m m e d a n East" (Vart de VOrient

mahome-

o f stagnation that was denied a true h i s t o r y .

29

Like Jones before h i m , B o u r g o i n classified Arab o r n a m e n t i n terms o f three elements—geometric,

tan) before t u r n i n g to a s t r u c t u r a l analysis o f pla-

vegetal, and c a l l i g r a p h i c — n o t i n g that "these three

nar geometric o r n a m e n t , the m a i n subject o f the

varieties are often m i x e d and m i n g l e d . " Tracing

author's t w o books. B o u r g o i n and his c o n t e m p o -

the interlaced patterns (entrelacs)

1873, and Les elements de Vart arabe: Le trait des

raries were w r i t i n g at a t i m e w h e n factual i n f o r m a -

o r i g i n s , he i d e n t i f i e d t h e m as the essential charac-

entrelacs, 1879, systematically analyzed for the first

t i o n about Islamic architecture was rather l i m i t e d .

teristic o f Islamic art i n all r e g i o n s .

t i m e the u n d e r l y i n g c o m p o s i t i o n a l principles

Painfully aware o f these l i m i t a t i o n s , B o u r g o i n

E m m a n u e l V i o l l e t - l e - D u c ' s i n t r o d u c t i o n to Les

o f geometric patterns, m a i n l y selected f r o m the

a d m i t t e d t h a t the Arab m o n u m e n t s o f Egypt,

arts arabes a t t r i b u t e d the geometric abstraction

T w o books by Jules B o u r g o i n , Les arts

arabes,

to late antique 30

Eugene-

ORNAMENTALISM

AND

67

ORIENTALISM

o f such patterns, whose p u r i t y was d i l u t e d by n a t u -

tively. W i t h its r i g i d geometric basis Arab art was

w h i c h they called to t h e i r aid d i d n o t lead

ralistic motifs i n areas w i t h a m i x e d p o p u l a t i o n ,

analogous to the crystallization o f minerals; its

t h e m to discover new systems o f construc-

to religious and racial factors:

n o n f i g u r a l , abstract interlaced patterns, m e c h a n i -

t i o n , b u t s i m p l y i n s p i r e d new curves for

cally p r o d u c e d w i t h the aid o f ruler and compass,

their arches, and was the generative ele-

One has agreed to give the name " A r a b

c o n s t i t u t e d an a u t o n o m o u s design system w i t h

m e n t o f all c o m p o s i t i o n o f o r n a m e n t ; i n

a r t " to the art that has spread itself i n

closed horizons characterized by an i n c o m p a r a b l y

their hands i t became a p l a y t h i n g , and

those countries w i t h milieus o f diverse

"seductive" elegance.

33

I n Les arts arabes B o u r g o i n

occupied the eye w i t h endless and marve-

races t h r o u g h the conquest o f I s l a m , f r o m

defined this art f o r m as essentially decorative,

lous c o m b i n a t i o n s o f lines. I n the West,

Asia to Spain. . . . This art excludes, i f n o t

guided by the c o m p o s i t i o n a l logic o f geometric

o n the other h a n d , geometry at once over-

i n an absolute manner, at least generally,

schemes independent o f observed nature and des-

t u r n e d the R o m a n s t r u c t u r e , w h i c h was

the representation o f l i v i n g beings, i t thus

t i t u t e o f iconographic meaning: " O n e can consider

no longer sufficiently scientific to meet

l i m i t s its decorative conceptions to forms

A r a b art as a system o f d e c o r a t i o n founded entirely

the new emergencies o f architecture. . . .

b o r r o w e d f r o m geometry and to a lesser

u p o n the order o f geometric forms and w h i c h b o r -

I n order that we may c o m p r e h e n d the dif-

degree f r o m flora, the latter also being

rows n o t h i n g or almost n o t h i n g f r o m the observa-

ferences between these two forms o f art,

subservient to geometric laws. I t is espe-

t i o n o f nature; that is to say, this art, very complete

b o t h o f w h i c h became the slaves o f geome-

cially a m o n g the Semitic peoples that

i n itself, is destitute o f n a t u r a l s y m b o l i s m and o f

try, let us enter the A l h a m b r a and exam-

these tendencies manifest themselves w i t h

ideal signification. The i n s p i r a t i o n is abstract and

ine there one o f the last b u i l d i n g s due to

energy, at least since M u h a m m e d a n i s m .

the execution devoid o f p l a s t i c i t y . "

w h a t is called Arabic c i v i l i z a t i o n . . . . I n

I n places where a m i x t u r e o f races exists,

34

The i m p o r t a n c e that the Islamic architecture o f

the A r a b i c m o n u m e n t , geometry supplied

o r n a m e n t a t i o n partakes o f diverse i n f l u -

Spain and N o r t h Africa placed o n surface decora-

the vestment; i n the western mediaeval

ences, and representations b o r r o w e d f r o m

t i o n was j u d g e d by B o u r g o i n as a sign o f i n f e r i o r -

structure, i t gave the b o d y .

organic nature i n t e r m i n g l e w i t h p u r e l y

ity.

geometric c o m p o s i t i o n s .

o f m o n u m e n t s i n other regions, he nevertheless

31

3 5

A l t h o u g h he recognized the s t r u c t u r a l values

regarded Islamic architecture as essentially decoraV i o l l e t - l e - D u c repeated the generally shared view

36

tive. A s i m i l a r view was expressed i n the

Discourses

This c o m p a r i s o n accentuated the essential decorativeness o f the A r a b architectural t r a d i t i o n , generally seen as the u l t i m a t e source o f regional

that the Arabs t r a n s f o r m e d the entrelacs o f late

on Architecture

antique art i n t o a tapestry-like surface o r n a m e n t

t h a t studies o f Islamic architecture w o u l d c o n t r i b -

the s t r u c t u r a l values o f such m o n u m e n t s as those

because t h e i r n o m a d i c o r i g i n i n s p i r e d t h e m to take

ute to the progress o f w o r l d architecture m a i n l y i n

o f the Seljuqs, Ayyubids, and O t t o m a n s . Its f r a m -

the tent as a m o d e l for a r c h i t e c t u r e .

the field o f d e c o r a t i o n :

i n g o f Islamic architecture as a p r i m a r i l y decora-

32

by V i o l l e t - l e - D u c , w h o believed

variants i n other M u s l i m lands, and overlooked

tive t r a d i t i o n , m u c h like the lavishly i l l u s t r a t e d

I n Les elements de Yart arabe B o u r g o i n identified three m a j o r styles o f o r n a m e n t — G r e e k , A r a b , and

The Arabs . . . d i d n o t change the R o m a n

n i n e t e e n t h - c e n t u r y p u b l i c a t i o n s o n that subject,

Japanese ( C h i n e s e ) — c o r r e s p o n d i n g to the a n i m a l ,

s t r u c t u r e , b u t contented themselves w i t h

e m b o d i e d an i m p l i c i t value j u d g m e n t that associ-

m i n e r a l , and vegetable k i n g d o m s o f nature, respec-

m o d i f y i n g its envelope; the geometry

ated d e c o r a t i o n w i t h f e m i n i n i t y , as opposed t o the

68

PART

2.

THE

DISCOURSE

ON

THE

GEOMETRIC

" ARABESQUE"

superior masculine vigor o f s t r u c t u r a l forms. This

fantastic c o m p o s i t i o n s , to the dismay o f the

geometric patterns had to be based o n a system o f

d i c h o t o m y still dominates p o p u l a r perceptions

r o m a n t i c "partisans o f fantasy," w h o considered

scientific knowledge t r a n s m i t t e d by treatises o n

o f Islamic architecture and the o n g o i n g " f e m i n i -

this a disastrous invasion o f science i n t o the

applied geometry:

z a t i o n " o f the O r i e n t i n various p u b l i c media.

d o m a i n o f the arts. Speculating about the i m p a c t

V i o l l e t - l e - D u c ' s i n t r o d u c t i o n to Les arts

arabes

praised the difference o f Bourgoin's analytical

o f the A r a b i c m a t h e m a t i c a l sciences o n artistic

A l l o r n a m e n t a t i o n is based o n geometric

production, Viollet-le-Duc wrote:

c o n s t r u c t i o n , that o f the Arabs m o r e t h a n any other; thus, i f one possesses the

m e t h o d f r o m t h a t o f other p u b l i c a t i o n s w i t h agreeable collections o f engravings to s k i m

W h o does n o t k n o w that the Arabs were

Elements o f E u c l i d , one can trace, w i t h -

t h r o u g h : " T h e b o o k o f M r . B o u r g o i n is n o t merely

versed i n the m a t h e m a t i c a l sciences ever

o u t i n s t r u c t i o n and, so to speak, w i t h o u t

one o f those c o m p i l a t i o n s o f engravings pleasant

since an early p e r i o d and that Occidental

study, the most c o m p l i c a t e d o f the i n t e r -

to glance t h r o u g h , w h i c h a d o r n the libraries o f

Europe p a r t l y owes t h e m the elements

lace motifs o f Cairo, Baghdad, or Granada.

architects and decorators, b u t w h i c h one never

o f these sciences? I t w o u l d be n a t u r a l ,

The Arabs had acquired such a taste for

consults; i t is a practical and complete treatise that

therefore, to t h i n k that their artistic p r o -

these plays o f lines that several A r a b trea-

uncovers i n its entirety a new order o f c o m p o s i -

d u c t i o n s were based o n this [scientific]

tises o n geometry, analysed by W r o i c k e

t i o n . " V i o l l e t - l e - D u c , whose o w n studies empha-

knowledge, as far as i t i n f o r m e d a per-

[ W o e p c k e ] , c o n t a i n p r o b l e m s o f this

sized the r a t i o n a l s t r u c t u r a l principles o f G o t h i c

fectly clear-cut and sharply defined char-

type: "Trace six equal pentagons a r o u n d

architecture, appreciated h o w Bourgoin's a n a l y t i -

acter [ o f f o r m s ] . Fantasy, or i f one wishes

a circle," and so o n . For o u r p a r t , we w i l l

cal approach b r o u g h t to light the formulas used i n

i m a g i n a t i o n , c o u l d n o t have conserved i n

refrain f r o m presenting the general o u t -

generating A r a b geometric patterns, formulas that

the d o m a i n o f the arts such a u n i t y across

line o f A r a b art i n this d o m a i n , for that

c o u l d be used i n m o d e r n design practice. To be

the centuries i f formulas had n o t p e r p e t u -

task has been masterfully p e r f o r m e d by

able to create anew, i t was necessary to analyze

ated themselves a m o n g the artists and

M r . B o u r g o i n i n his Les arts

the i n n e r principles o f forms rather t h a n t h e i r

artisans. The b o o k o f M r . Parvillee is one

outer appearance.

o f those works that introduces analysis

B o u r g o i n d i d n o t , however, research the h i s t o r i c a l

i n t o artistic p r o d u c t i o n s that appear

methods o f geometric c o n s t r u c t i o n by c o n s u l t i n g

entirely fantastic, and w h i c h demonstrate

such practical treatises. N e i t h e r d i d he have access

B o u r g o i n ' s b o o k . B o t h works sought r a t i o n a l

that b e h i n d fairylike c o m p o s i t i o n s c o l d

to Islamic p a t t e r n scrolls that w o u l d have revealed

geometric principles b e h i n d architectural forms

science had intervened, that calculation

the g r i d systems used i n generating geometric pat-

and decorative m o t i f s . H i s i n t r o d u c t i o n to the

had prepared the way. I t is for this reason

terns. The formulas he presented were based o n

Parvillee v o l u m e praised Bourgoin's and E d m o n d

that we have claimed the privilege o f

his o w n observations and were n o t necessarily the

D u t h o i t ' s w o r k d e m o n s t r a t i n g the geometric basis

w r i t i n g this b r i e f preface.

same ones used by those w h o had o r i g i n a l l y cre-

37

V i o l l e t - l e - D u c also praised Parvillee's tecture et decoration

Archi-

turques as a c o r o l l a r y to

38

o f o r n a m e n t i n the Islamic m o n u m e n t s o f Cairo and Algeria, respectively. The three books had shown the r a t i o n a l scientific basis o f seemingly

arabes?

9

ated the patterns. U s i n g a t a x o n o m i c m e t h o d o f Prisse d'Avennes was the first to observe, i n Vart

arabe, t h a t the unusually c o m p l e x Islamic

classification according to i n n e r structure rather t h a n outer appearance, s i m i l a r to that used by

ORNAMENTALISM

AND

ORIENTALISM

6

9

79. Jules Bourgoin, starand-polygon pattern superimposed with a diagram of its underlying grid network at the upper left corner. From Bourgoin 1879, fig. 51. Photo: Courtesy The University of California, Los Angeles.

biologists, he subdivided patterns i n t o eight cate-

most o r i g i n a l theoretical studies o n geometric

gories based o n the fundamental geometric ele-

o r n a m e n t , Theorie

ments that generated t h e m (hexagons, octagons,

a t t e m p t e d to f o r m u l a t e a universal system o f

dodecagons, star-rosette c o m b i n a t i o n s o f two

repeat p a t t e r n and tessellation t h a t w o u l d serve as

types, square-octagon c o m b i n a t i o n s , heptagons,

a guide to the decorative arts. Like Jones, B o u r g o i n

and pentagons).

de Vornement,

1873. This w o r k

regarded the applied arts as subservient to m o n u -

Bourgoin's systematic classification had a prac-

1844b, pis. X I I I , 19.

m e n t a l architecture and adopted a comparative

tical purpose; i t addressed a European audience

approach to the m a j o r h i s t o r i c a l styles o f o r n a m e n t

o f p r a c t i t i o n e r s . As V i o l l e t - l e - D u c ' s i n t r o d u c t i o n

created by different races i n order to uncover a

to Les arts arabes stated, the b o o k was i n t e n d e d t o

syntax t h a t transcended differing stylistic dialects.

open up an i n f i n i t e possibility o f new geometric

He c o m p a r e d the " s y n t a x " o f o r n a m e n t ( c o n -

c o m p o s i t i o n s , "applicable to architecture, as well

sisting o f order, r h y t h m , and scale) to prosody

as to w o o d w o r k , to p a i n t e d ornaments, to cabinet-

and defined the " g r a m m a r " o f o r n a m e n t as an

m a k i n g , to fine i r o n w o r k , to bronzes, to enamels,

ensemble o f rules and procedures p r o p e r to

to textile designs, wallpaper, e t c . "

40

I n Les ele-

forms.

that the book's two h u n d r e d drawings o f t w o -

analysis was r o o t e d i n the c o n v i c t i o n that the

42

His sophisticated p r o t o s t r u c t u r a l i s t

d i m e n s i o n a l geometric patterns, overlaid at the

decorative arts o f the I n d u s t r i a l Age had to be

upper left corner w i t h d o t t e d c o n s t r u c t i o n lines

based o n a r a t i o n a l skeletal structure e m b o d y i n g

s h o w i n g u n d e r l y i n g grids, w o u l d lose their appar-

measure (la mesure) and scale (Yechelle),

ent m o n o t o n y w h e n applied to various media and

t u t i n g the shared basis o f h a r m o n i o u s beauty i n

enlivened by color (fig. 79). A s i m i l a r practice-

music, poetry, and o r n a m e n t .

o r i e n t e d approach is f o u n d i n the i n t e r i o r decora-

consti-

43

Bourgoin's p u b l i c a t i o n s were f o l l o w e d by a

t o r and amateur scientist D a v i d Ramsay Hay's

series o f others that studied the u n d e r l y i n g gener-

Original

a t i n g principles o f Islamic geometric patterns.

Geometrical

Diaper

Designs, 1844, a collec-

t i o n o f Islamic-flavored interlaced geometric pat-

One o f t h e m was Christie's Traditional

terns meant to serve as u n d e r l y i n g c o m p o s i t i o n a l

Pattern Designing,

grids for m o d e r n i n d u s t r i a l o r n a m e n t (fig. 80).

analysis o f patterns: " T h e s t r u c t u r a l m e t h o d , n o t

Bourgoin's studies o f Arab geometric patterns

41

each h i s t o r i c a l style characterized by distinctive

ments de Vart arabe B o u r g o i n r e m i n d e d his readers

Methods

of

w h i c h advocated the s t r u c t u r a l

the element used, is the sole basis o f classifica-

were part o f his broader i n q u i r y i n t o the syntactic

tion."

structure o f o r n a m e n t as an abstract language.

d o w n by the zoologist, w h o separates i n t o w e l l

4 4

Christie's m e t h o d f o l l o w e d " t h e lines l a i d

W h i l e a professor o f the theory o f o r n a m e n t at the

defined categories all l i v i n g and extinct crea-

Ecole des Beaux-Arts i n Paris he w r o t e one o f the

tures."

4 5

H i s access to the M i r z a A k b a r scrolls

80. Stuart Durant after David Ramsay Hay, designs with geometric grids. Based upon Hay Photo: Courtesy John Caiman & King, Ltd.

70

PART

2.

THE

DISCOURSE

ON

THE

GEOMETRIC

" ARABESQUE"

p r o v i d e d h i m w i t h the o r i g i n a l formulas used i n

syntax o f planar geometric o r n a m e n t for c o n t e m -

r a t i o n a l - m a t h e m a t i c a l basis o f architectural design

setting o u t geometric patterns o n various g r i d sys-

p o r a r y p r a c t i t i o n e r s , classifying the repeat units

and o r n a m e n t i n Islamic C e n t r a l Asia prefigured

tems (see figs. 3 7 - 3 9 ) . The repeat units o f these

{rapport)

recent attempts to apply scientific methods o f

Qajar scrolls s u p p o r t e d Christie's universal defini-

p r o p e r t i e s — l i n e a r or " r i b b o n l i k e , " evenly spread

analysis to the arts. The threefold classification

t i o n o f pattern as "a design composed o f one or

or " c a r p e t l i k e , " and radial. Baklanov also observed

o f patterns used by such authors as Gaganov,

m o r e devices, m u l t i p l i e d and arranged i n o r d e r l y

that girihs were meant to be m u l t i p l i e d by " s i m p l e

Baklanov, Meyer, and H a m l i n is n o t so different

o f girihs i n terms o f t h e i r s y m m e t r i c a l

r e p e t i t i o n , " " s y m m e t r i c r e p e t i t i o n , " or " r o t a t i o n . "

f r o m t h a t used today by crystallographers w h o sci-

examples o f h o w Islamic geometric patterns were

This echoed a t r i p a r t i t e classification encountered

entifically analyze patterns i n terms o f t h e i r under-

generated f r o m m o d u l a r repeat units by processes

i n such European p u b l i c a t i o n s as Franz Sales

l y i n g s y m m e t r y groups. The latter i d e n t i f y three

such as i n t e r l a c i n g , b r a n c h i n g , i n t e r l o c k i n g , and

Meyer's Handbuch

p a t t e r n types i n plane designs: o n e - d i m e n s i o n a l

c o u n t e r c h a n g i n g . I t d i d n o t , however, discuss the

d i v i d e d all planar geometric o r n a m e n t i n t o " r i b -

stellate arch-net and muqarnas vault patterns

b o n l i k e forms (bands), b o r d e r e d figures (panels),

or r a d i a l ) . B o u r g o i n , w h o had observed the crys-

i n c l u d e d i n the M i r z a A k b a r scrolls, a conspicuous

and u n b o r d e r e d flat p a t t e r n s , " or A l f r e d D w i g h t

talline c o m p o s i t i o n o f Arab o r n a m e n t , w h i c h

o m i s s i o n d e m o n s t r a t i n g t h a t Christie was once

Foster H a m l i n ' s A History of Ornament,

r e m i n d e d h i m o f the i n n e r structure o f i n a n i m a t e

again addressing a European audience o f i n d u s t r i a l

and Medieval,

designers, using a well-defined f o r m a t i n w h i c h

" a l l - o v e r , " and " r a d i a t i n g " p a t t e r n s .

sequence."

46

The b o o k gave m a n y revealing

t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l p a t t e r n i n g had no place. Several regional studies o n N o r t h Africa and Spain also analyzed geometric patterns i n terms o f

der Ornamentik,

1888, w h i c h

Ancient

1916, w h i c h referred to " l i n e a r , "

( l i n e ) , t w o - d i m e n s i o n a l ( p l a n e ) , and finite ( p o i n t

m a t t e r , w o u l d be surprised to find o u t that this analogy had a direct relevance for mathematicians

48

investigating crystal symmetry. E d i t h MuTler (a

These parallels show that the a i m o f Soviet scholars was n o t so different f r o m t h a t o f E u r o -

student o f Andreas Speiser, w h o w r o t e Die

pean encyclopedists o f o r n a m e n t w h o searched

der Gruppen

von endlicher

Ordnung,

their u n d e r l y i n g s t r u c t u r a l g r i d systems, such as

for a universal s t r u c t u r a l language t h a t m i g h t have

mathematische

J. C o l l i n ' s Etude pratique

practical c o n t e m p o r a r y applications. This a i m ,

the first systematically to use the m a t h e m a t i c a l

de la decoration

polygo-

Betrachtung

Theorie

1927, and Die

der Kunst, 1944) was

nale arabe, 1911; A n t o n i o Prieto y Vives and M a n u e l

already foreshadowed i n Simakov's c o m p i l a t i o n o f

tools o f g r o u p theory i n the analysis o f Islamic

G o m e z - M o r e n o ' s El lazo: Decoracion

o r n a m e n t a l patterns i n Vart de YAsie-centrale,

o r n a m e n t . H e r thesis, Gruppentheoretische

geometrica

cul-

m i n a t e d i n a large n u m b e r o f studies u n d e r t a k e n

strukturanalytische

d u r i n g the Soviet regime o n the architectural

Ornamente

o r n a m e n t o f C e n t r a l Asian Islamic m o n u m e n t s .

opened up new horizons for the scientific clas-

I t is therefore n o t s u r p r i s i n g t h a t the fragmentary

sification o f geometric patterns o n the basis o f

Tashkent scrolls i n i t i a l l y were studied to derive

different s y m m e t r y g r o u p s .

m e t r i c o r n a m e n t by Soviet scholars were i n f o r m e d

practical lessons for c o n t e m p o r a r y usage; i n 1941

l o w e d by a n u m b e r o f studies o n the arts, each

by the discovery o f the Tashkent scrolls i n the

Usta S h i r i n M u r a d o v , Boris N i k o l a e v i c h Z a s y p k i n ,

study using categorization methods developed by

1930s and o f m o d e r n scrolls used by p r a c t i c i n g

and N . S. Lukasheva w r o t e a t e x t b o o k for artisans

crystallographers.

Central Asian master builders. Such authors as

that was i n s p i r e d by these s c r o l l s .

musulmana,

1921; Jose Galiay Saranana's El lazo,

motivo ornamental

destacado

zu trazado simplicista,

en el estilo

1943; and Basilio Pavon

M a l d o n a d o ' s El arte hispanomusulman racion geometrica,

mudejar, en su deco-

1975. Similar studies o n geo47

Gaganov, for instance, w o r k e d o u t a s t r u c t u r a l

49

The emphasis o f Russian p u b l i c a t i o n s o n the

Untersuchungen

aus der Alhambra

der

und

in Granada,

50

Maurischen 1944,

Her w o r k was f o l -

51

Rigorous classifications derived f r o m the m a t h ematical bases for repeat patterns are f o u n d i n

ORNAMENTALISM

AND

71

ORIENTALISM

some recent books and articles that are m o d e r n

n o t e d the necessity to "search for the p r o p e r

nious m a n i p u l a t i o n o f i n h e r i t e d geometric f o r m u -

counterparts o f n i n e t e e n t h - and early t w e n t i e t h -

scientific languages and tools to generate new

las. N e i t h e r the a b i l i t y to classify the s y m m e t r y

century universal encyclopedias o f o r n a m e n t . The

forms and expressions" i n c o n t e m p o r a r y Islamic

groups o f given patterns n o r the s t r u c t u r a l analysis

architect Peter S. Stevens's Handbook

design. She w r o t e :

o f their syntax i n o r n a m e n t studies ( w h i c h o n l y

Patterns,

of

Regular

rarely a p p r o x i m a t e the o r i g i n a l formulas used i n

1981, for example, w h i c h illustrates the

three plane p a t t e r n classes ( p o i n t , line, plane) w i t h

The i m p o r t a n c e o f G r o u p T h e o r y and its

p a t t e r n scrolls) explains the creative processes and

examples selected f r o m w o r l d w i d e artistic t r a d i -

n o t a t i o n a l system for Islamic art lies i n

aesthetic aspirations o f their makers. Those p r o -

tions, familiarizes artists w i t h the technical descrip-

the fact that it provides a t o o l for exact

cesses relied o n the transmission o f a knowledge o f

tions o f crystallographers and chemists for a better

cataloging o f the infinite n u m b e r o f geo-

practical geometry codified i n p a t t e r n scrolls that

structural u n d e r s t a n d i n g o f repeat patterns that

m e t r i c designs used i n Islamic art. I t is

p r o v i d e d master builders w i t h a r i c h repertoire o f

may help t h e m create new designs. These recent

also h e l p f u l as an analytical t o o l i n rec-

t r a d i t i o n a l formulas developed over the centuries.

o g n i z i n g the s y m m e t r y used w i t h i n a

A n u n d e r s t a n d i n g o f the historical methods o f

design. M o r e o v e r , i t provides a precise

geometric design therefore requires a close study

f i t t i n g geometric figures i n contact that leave no

language and t e r m i n o l o g y by w h i c h those

o f s u r v i v i n g p a t t e r n scrolls, practical geometry

gaps as regular or semiregular

w h o are interested i n these patterns can

manuals, and w r i t t e n p r i m a r y sources relevant to

(planar or spatial) and to u n d e r l y i n g grids as " n e t s "

c o m m u n i c a t e precisely w i t h each other

the theory and praxis o f the girih m o d e .

or "lattices." Regarding earlier attempts at cate-

about these patterns. A l l this m i g h t seem

Given that a large p o r t i o n o f the secondary

g o r i z i n g o r n a m e n t a l patterns by such authors as

r e d u n d a n t to the scientists w h o have been

l i t e r a t u r e we have considered i n this chapter was

B o u r g o i n ( w h o g r o u p e d t h e m according to their

i n v o l v e d i n the study o f s y m m e t r y yet,

directed to a Western professional audience n o t

geometric elements rather t h a n t h e i r s y m m e t r y

for the art historians, i t is still an unac-

p a r t i c u l a r l y interested i n a study o f Islamic geo-

groups) as lacking i n m a t h e m a t i c a l basis, m o d e r n -

knowledged t o o l .

m e t r i c patterns per se, the general lack o f concern

studies replace the unscientific terms and ornament

decoration

with " p a t t e r n " ; they refer to t i g h t l y "tessellations"

5 3

day scholars have adopted a detailed system o f

54

for p r i m a r y sources capable o f revealing h i s t o r i -

n o t a t i o n to standardize the m a t h e m a t i c a l study o f

Such scientific studies p r o v i d e invaluable

repeat patterns called " t i l i n g s and p a t t e r n s . " Some

cal methods and processes o f design is n o t so

insights i n t o the fixed geometric properties o f

surprising. The n i n e t e e n t h - and early t w e n t i e t h -

o f these studies focused exclusively o n the crystal-

s y m m e t r y relationships and the constraints that

century European discourse o n o r n a m e n t , char-

lographic analysis o f Islamic geometric patterns,

designers faced i n the c o m p o s i t i o n o f f o r m and

acterized by its urge to find universal design

singled o u t as a treasury for teaching such topics

color. T h e i r m a t h e m a t i c a l n o t a t i o n system enables

principles, overlapped the equally ahistorical dis-

as tessellation, algebra, t w o - and t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l

the scientifically precise d e s c r i p t i o n and classifica-

course o f O r i e n t a l i s m , w i t h its essentialist f i x a t i o n

symmetry, and color s y m m e t r y .

t i o n o f geometric patterns, b u t such an enterprise

on the arabesque. I t was these two types o f discourse

52

falls beyond the scope o f this b o o k . The master

i n w h i c h the earliest discussions o f Islamic geo-

arguing for " t h e need for a scientific language and

designers w h o created the Topkapi scroll's varie-

m e t r i c patterns were most often embedded.

m e t h o d o l o g y w i t h w h i c h to understand and sys-

gated patterns were p r o b a b l y less concerned w i t h

tematically categorize Islamic geometric p a t t e r n , "

the p r o b l e m o f classification t h a n w i t h the inge-

Wasma'a K. C h o r b a c h i , w h o since 1970 has been

CHAPTER

5.

RECENT

STUDIES

ON GEOMETRIC

ORNAMENT

F r o m the early t w e n t i e t h century o n w a r d the study

fined to the borders o f m o d e r n nation-states t h a t

Western architects c o m p e t i n g for projects search

o f Islamic art and architecture developed i n t o a

no longer corresponded w i t h those o f previous

for ready-made prescriptive formulas. I t was i n

specialized academic field i n w h i c h O r i e n t a l i s t ,

dynasties encompassing m u l t i p l e regions, n a t i o n s ,

that context that Bourgoin's Arabic

Geometrical

archaeological, and m u s e u m or collections research

and subcultures. Despite the g r o w i n g refinement

Pattern and Design was r e p r i n t e d i n 1973,

led to an unprecedented a c c u m u l a t i o n o f i n f o r -

and sophistication o f academic a r t - h i s t o r i c a l

panied by several new p u b l i c a t i o n s o n the subject

m a t i o n . Corpuses o f epigraphy, archaeological

studies, the O r i e n t a l i s t legacy still lingered.

o f Islamic o r n a m e n t that emphasized geometry.

reports, i n t e r n a t i o n a l e x h i b i t i o n s , detailed regional

Specialized p u b l i c a t i o n s dealing w i t h the sub-

accom-

I n an a t t e m p t to " O r i e n t a l i z e the O r i e n t " these

studies, and surveys w i t h a general scope, either

ject o f architectural d e c o r a t i o n were n o w for the

p u b l i c a t i o n s w i l l f u l l y b l u r r e d stylistic, regional,

l i m i t e d to a p a r t i c u l a r p e r i o d or covering the

most part l i m i t e d to p a r t i c u l a r techniques, m o t i f s ,

and c h r o n o l o g i c a l differences u n k n o w n to earlier

w h o l e range o f Islamic art and architecture,

periods, or regions. Generously i l l u s t r a t e d p o p u l a r

writers. C o n s t r u c t i n g the artistic "otherness" o f

increased awareness o f the c h r o n o l o g i c a l , regional,

works such as Sonia P. Seherr-Thoss's Design

the Islamic East was no longer a project l i m i t e d

and ideological complexities o f the M u s l i m visual

Color in Islamic Architecture,

heritage. These academic studies, w h i c h grew o u t

and Oleg Grabar's Islamic Architecture

and

1968, and Derek H i l l and Its

to Europeans observing a foreign c u l t u r e . N o w a m i x e d g r o u p o f Western and n o n - W e s t e r n authors

o f the O r i e n t a l i s t discourse, increasingly t u r n e d

Decoration,

away f r o m the ethnoracial categories encountered

that the earlier interest i n a broader t r e a t m e n t o f

to the p o s t c o l o n i a l Islamic w o r l d ' s i n t e r n a l search

i n n i n e t e e n t h - and early t w e n t i e t h - c e n t u r y w r i t -

o r n a m e n t had n o t altogether disappeared.

for d i s t i n c t i v e n a t i o n a l and c u l t u r a l i d e n t i t i e s .

ings and replaced t h e m w i t h regional, dynastic,

theless w i t h the advent o f i n t e r n a t i o n a l M o d e r n -

I n d o i n g so they i r o n i c a l l y a p p r o p r i a t e d m a n y

A.D. 800-1500,

1967, however, signaled Never-

sought to articulate that "difference" i n response 55

and chronological-stylistic ones. Nevertheless

ism i n architecture, the p o p u l a r i t y o f universal

o f the stereotyped categories constructed by the

the n o t i o n o f an all-encompassing category o f

encyclopedias o f o r n a m e n t eventually died o u t .

n i n e t e e n t h - c e n t u r y O r i e n t a l i s t discourse, a m o n g

" I s l a m i c " art c o n t i n u e d to d o m i n a t e scholarship.

The genre o f professional p a t t e r n books w i t h

w h i c h the so-called geometric arabesque came to

Such subcategories as A r a b i c , M o o r i s h , T u r k i s h ,

Islamic m a t e r i a l was, however, c u r i o u s l y revived

enjoy a p a r t i c u l a r p r o m i n e n c e , a s t r i k i n g example

Persian, Central Asian, or I n d i a n generally were

i n the 1970s i n response t o the new M i d d l e Eastern

o f O r i e n t a l i s m i n reverse. The new l i t e r a t u r e o n

reclaimed by various nationalist discourses that

c o n s t r u c t i o n b o o m , p a r t i c u l a r l y i n I r a n and the

the arabesque was often framed by an e x p l i c i t l y or

a t t e m p t e d to construct new self-identities c o n -

Arab lands, t h a t made b o t h Western and n o n -

i m p l i c i t l y a n t i m o d e r n i s t discourse that sought to

74

PART

2.

THE

DISCOURSE

ON

THE

GEOMETRIC

" ARABESQUE"

preserve the "otherness" o f the O r i e n t , w i t h its

alent views. Ernst Herzfeld's entry o f 1913

timeless t r a d i t i o n s r o o t e d i n an i n n a t e l y s p i r i t u a l

a f o u r t h , figural category to the three m o r e c o m -

a few exceptions, change the style o f the

psyche. This represented a reversal o f the p r o t o -

m o n variants o f the arabesque, that is, vegetal,

arabesque i n its o u t w a r d features only.

m o d e r n i s t search o f earlier w r i t e r s such as Jones

geometric, and calligraphic:

The essential characteristics o f the ara-

added

and B o u r g o i n for universal design principles t r a n -

A l l p r o v i n c i a l developments, apart f r o m

besque are preserved t h r o u g h o u t , b o t h as

scending historicisms, an urge t h a t w o u l d u l t i -

The t e r m arabesque i n its w i d e r sense,

regards the c o m p o s i t i o n and the elements;

mately c u l m i n a t e i n the rejection o f h i s t o r i c a l

as d e n o t i n g the o r n a m e n t o f M u s l i m art

there is therefore o n l y one arabesque i n

o r n a m e n t by i n t e r n a t i o n a l M o d e r n i s m . By c o n -

i n general, also comprises a n u m b e r o f

a n t i q u i t y as well as i n m o d e r n times, i n

trast, the new writers o n Islamic o r n a m e n t exhib-

figurative elements. I t w o u l d indeed be

the East and the West, and i n the South as

ited a revivalist nostalgia for the architectural

possible to d i s t i n g u i s h these f r o m the ara-

well as the N o r t h .

styles o f the past i n a m o d e r n w o r l d whose secular

besque, t a k i n g this w o r d i n a n a r r o w sense,

5 9

i n t e r n a t i o n a l i s m seemed to threaten the d i s t i n c -

and to class t h e m under the t e r m " i c o n o g -

tiveness o f t r a d i t i o n a l M u s l i m c u l t u r e . A recurrent

r a p h y " ; b u t the value o f these figurative

e d i t i o n o f the Encyclopaedia

subtext o f the new secondary l i t e r a t u r e o n geomet-

elements is for the most part p u r e l y o r n a -

marized his booklet Die Arabeske,

ric o r n a m e n t was a c r i t i q u e o f the m o d e r n w o r l d

m e n t a l , w h i l e t h e i r c o m p o s i t i o n is fre-

i n t o English i n 1976 by Ettinghausen as The

and the s p i r i t u a l p l i g h t o f M u s l i m s i n an i n d u s t r i a l

q u e n t l y closely connected w i t h or even

besque: Meaning

era d o m i n a t e d by Western c u l t u r e .

inseparable f r o m the arabesque.

ment (published i n 1977). Rejecting Herzfeld's

56

Ernst Runnel's "Arabesque" entry i n the second of Islam, i 9 6 0 , s u m -

and Transformation

1949, translated of an

AraOrna-

b r o a d description o f the arabesque as " a n t i -

This chapter w i l l analyze the ahistorical treatm e n t o f Islamic geometric patterns i n some recent

Herzfeld n o t e d the a n t i n a t u r a l i s m and geometric

q u a t e d , " K t i h n e l adopted Riegl's n a r r o w e r focus

p u b l i c a t i o n s , p a r t i c u l a r l y the series o f books

abstraction o f the arabesque, characterized by

i n Stilfragen

that appeared i n c o n j u n c t i o n w i t h the W o r l d o f

"countless r e p e t i t i o n s " and an " i n f i n i t e correspon-

t w i n e d w i t h geometric, calligraphic, and stylized

o n its vegetal type that c o u l d be i n t e r -

Islam festival i n 1976 i n w h i c h the arabesque was

dence" that gave rise to completely covered sur-

figural elements. He traced the origins o f the ara-

once again singled o u t as the p r i m a r y "essence"

faces reflecting a t y p i c a l l y Islamic h o r r o r vacui, a

besque to late a n t i q u i t y and n o t e d that it had

o f Islamic visual c u l t u r e . N o longer l i m i t e d to

psychological fear o f e m p t y spaces. This n o t i o n

acquired its typical shape i n the n i n t h century

regional studies o n Egypt, Syria, N o r t h Africa, or

w o u l d be repeated by such authors as Richard

u n d e r the Abbasids, b e c o m i n g m o r e fully devel-

Spain, these p u b l i c a t i o n s universalized the so-

Ettinghausen and by M a u r i c e S. D i m a n d , w h o

oped i n the eleventh century under the Seljuqs,

called arabesque i n t o a pan-Islamic concept t r a n -

w r o t e , " M o h a m m e d a n art is essentially one o f

F a t i m i d s , and M o o r s , thereafter appearing i n

57

scending t i m e and space. Before t u r n i n g to the

d e c o r a t i o n , for an e m p t y surface is intolerable

countless variations impossible to classify " a c c o r d -

books p u b l i s h e d as part o f the festival, I w i l l briefly

to the M o h a m m e d a n e y e . "

i n g to a c h r o n o l o g i c a l order or according to

summarize the various definitions o f the arabesque

Herzfeld associated the arabesque, i d e n t i f i e d as

national-dynastic p r e d i l e c t i o n s . " T h o u g h "Persian,

c u r r e n t at the b e g i n n i n g o f this century that pre-

a " d o m i n a n t feature o f supreme a u t h o r i t y for the

T u r k i s h and I n d i a n artists u n d e r s t o o d the l a n -

pared the g r o u n d w o r k for later studies.

w h o l e art o f I s l a m , " w i t h the "character o f the

guage o f the arabesque quite as w e l l as A r a b i c -

The entries o n the arabesque i n the t w o editions o f the Encyclopaedia

of Islam encapsulate the prev-

M u s l i m view o f l i f e " :

58

Like earlier writers

speaking artists," K i i h n e l i n t e r p r e t e d this m o d e o f design as the " o u t c o m e o f a p a r t i c u l a r Arab a t t i -

RECENT

t u d e " that i n f o r m e d parallel developments i n Arabic p o e t r y and music, as n o t e d i n Johann

STUDIES

ON

GEOMETRIC

Like Riegl, K u h n e l related the development o f

75

ORNAMENT

The Idea o f an Arabesque." Here Grabar discussed

the vegetal arabesque to an Islamic s p i r i t , speci-

the m e t h o d o l o g i c a l p r o b l e m o f assigning mean-

fically to the concept that " n a t u r e does n o t create

i n g to repetitive abstract patterns that d i d n o t

o u t o f itself, b u t t h a t i t is the w o r k o f the d i v i n e

"seem to have an intellectual or c u l t u r a l c o n t e n t "

principles as " r h y t h m i c a l a l t e r n a t i o n o f m o v e m e n t

creator w h i c h manifests itself i n all happenings and

b u t to have been aimed at " b e a u t i f i c a t i o n " and

always rendered w i t h h a r m o n i o u s effect, and the

p h e n o m e n a . " The belief i n the transitoriness o f the

"visual pleasure."

desire to fill the entire surface w i t h o r n a m e n t . "

w o r l d led " t o the assumption t h a t i t cannot be the

Like most earlier European w r i t e r s o n the subject,

task o f the artist to arrest reality w h i c h has been

every m o t i f , even i n s c r i p t i o n s , became " o r n a m e n -

K u h n e l h i g h l i g h t e d the p u r e l y o r n a m e n t a l charac-

optically perceived or personally experienced since

t a l i z e d , " endowed the observer w i t h considerable

ter o f the arabesque: " I t seems unnecessary t o

it c o u l d be counter to the d i v i n e decision to give

subjective freedom, given its " a m b i g u i t y " and

West-Ostlicher

Wolfgang v o n Goethe's (1749-1832) Divan,

1820. K u h n e l identified its two aesthetic

emphasise that the arabesque never has any sym-

permanence to t e m p o r a r y earthly f o r m s . "

bolic significance b u t is merely one o r n a m e n t

the d i v i n e l y i n s p i r e d artist w h o " c a r r i e d i n h i m s e l f

occasionally be assigned to i t (especially t h r o u g h

f r o m a large s t o c k . "

the Islamic w o r l d v i e w " deliberately reworked nat-

the use o f i n s c r i p t i o n s ) , b u t an essential a m b i g u i t y

q u a l i t y and its lack o f iconographic specificity is

uralistic motifs i n t o unreal forms that gave free

still remained: " L i k e the beads o f the h o l y m a n ,

stressed i n The

reign to the artistic i m a g i n a t i o n " p l u n g e d i n t o l i n -

the m e d i t a t i o n i t suggests is n o t i n itself b u t i n the

60

Its ephemeral decorative

Arabesque:

ear speculations o f an abstract n a t u r e . " Just as the infinite r e p e t i t i o n underlines

6 2

Thus

Grabar observed t h a t the arabesque, i n w h i c h

6 3

Such O r i e n t a l i s t scholars a n d art historians

"ambivalence." I c o n o g r a p h i c significance c o u l d

m i n d o f the beholder." Grabar d i d n o t altogether dismiss the possibility that " M u s l i m o r n a m e n t

as Louis Massignon, Georges Marcais, and

c o u l d n o t reflect some a t t i t u d e o f Islamic c u l -

w h i c h do n o t come i n t o sharper focus

Ettinghausen also explained the characteristics o f

t u r e as a w h o l e , " comparable to the r e l a t i o n s h i p

t h r o u g h serialization, b u t rather seem to

abstract o r n a m e n t by reference to the nature o f

between Scholasticism and G o t h i c c o n s t r u c t i o n ;

evaporate, so does the u n i n t e r r u p t e d cov-

Islam. Massignon, for example, l i n k e d the ephem-

" t h e m o o d o f the faith and the m o o d o f the o r n a -

the significance o f the i n d i v i d u a l forms

ering o f the surface deprive t h e m o f all

eral abstractions o f Islamic art w i t h the p h i l o s o p h y

m e n t " seemed to share a n u m b e r o f c o m m o n

objective m e a n i n g . I t is obviously the

o f a t o m i s m , according to w h i c h the universe was

assumptions. However, doubts about the v a l i d i t y

decorative i n t e n t i o n that the eye o f the

composed o f atoms and accidents c o n t i n u a l l y

o f such parallels lingered. He c o n c l u d e d , " I t does

viewer is n o t arrested by the pleasant

changed by an o m n i p o t e n t G o d , u n i q u e and i n d i -

n o t seem possible to f o r m u l a t e for early Islamic

detail, b u t that i t is delighted by the kalei-

visible. A l t h o u g h this hypothesis is n o t u n l i k e l y , as

times any sort o f c o r r e l a t i o n between a c o m m o n

doscopic passing o f an ever-changing and

we shall see i n part 3, Massignon failed to h i s t o r i -

d e n o m i n a t o r o f the arts and w h a t appears to have

disappearing h a r m o n y o f unreal f o r m s . . . .

cize i t , presenting i t as a universal e x p l a n a t i o n

been the m a i n c o m m o n d e n o m i n a t o r o f the

One w o u l d entirely m i s u n d e r s t a n d the

regardless o f c o n t e x t .

contemporary society."

64

The questions raised

65

character o f the arabesque i f one were to

about abstract Islamic o r n a m e n t by Massignon,

attach to i t any symbolic f u n c t i o n . . . .

Ettinghausen, and others i n c l u d i n g Herzfeld,

t r o u b l e d by the m e t h o d o l o g i c a l problems o f assign-

Decisive is a decorative i n t e n t w h i c h is

D i m a n d , and K u h n e l were p u t i n t o perspective i n

i n g specifically Islamic meanings to abstract pat-

devoid o f a m e a n i n g f u l p u r p o s e .

Grabar's The Formation

terns. Foreshadowing several later M u s l i m authors

61

of Islamic Art, 1973, w h i c h

devoted a chapter to "Early Islamic D e c o r a t i o n :

Some other scholars were apparently less

o n the subject, I s m a i l R. al-Faruqi accused Westc

76

PART

2.

THE

DISCOURSE

ON

THE

GEOMETRIC

" ARABESQUE"

ern scholars o f m i s i n t e r p r e t i n g Islamic art as

abstract forms o f Islamic art, therefore, have no

M u s l i m mystic desirous o f t r a c i n g phe-

merely " d e c o r a t i v e " and "contentless," thereby

f u n c t i o n other t h a n h e l p i n g the believer i n t u i t

n o m e n a l m u l t i p l i c i t y back to the d i v i n e

failing to understand its " s p i r i t " and its " I s l a m i c -

" t h e u n i n t u i t a b i l i t y o f that w h i c h can never be

u n i t y , and the e m a n a t i o n back to the

ness." He argued that denaturalized abstract forms

the object o f i m m e d i a t e i n t u i t i o n , " that is, the

i n i t i a l source.

visually represented God's " i n f i n i t y or inexpressi-

absolute transcendence o f a G o d w h o is beyond

b i l i t y " and the M u s l i m profession o f faith, "There

t i m e and space.

is no G o d b u t G o d . " The Islamic artistic t r a d i t i o n ,

The mystical n o t i o n o f " u n i t y i n variety," as

68

O t h e r i n t e r p r e t a t i o n s that stressed the Islamic

stamped by the "Semitic consciousness" and by

meanings o f the arabesque tended to h i g h l i g h t

the central n o t i o n of "tawhid"

(absolute u n i t y or

70

reflected i n the cosmological order o f the universe, and the d o c t r i n e o f tawhid came to occupy a

its mystical, Sufi d i m e n s i o n . This d i m e n s i o n had

central p o s i t i o n i n the i n t e r p r e t a t i o n s o f the ara-

oneness o f G o d ) , i n d u c e d " a n i n t u i t i o n o f u n i m a g -

already been emphasized i n Gayet's Vart

besque d u r i n g the 1960s and 1970s, c u l m i n a t i n g

inableness and i n e x p r e s s i b i l i t y — i n short, o f i n f i n -

1893, where polygonal geometric interlaces were

w i t h the p u b l i c a t i o n s o f the W o r l d o f Islam festi-

ity."

seen as mystical expressions o f transcendental

val. The role o f Sufism, the esoteric d i m e n s i o n

beauty, i n v i t i n g the soul to c o n t e m p l a t i o n and

o f I s l a m , was p a r t i c u l a r l y emphasized i n Nader

ecstasy. The same idea appeared again i n Probst-

A r d a l a n and Laleh Bakhtiar's The Sense of

the religious w o r k o f art i n Islam. I t is the

Biraben's "Essai de p h i l o s o p h i c de l'arabesque,"

The Sufi Tradition

Semitic religious w o r k o f art par excellence since it produces an aesthetic—not l o g i -

1905, where abstract p a t t e r n i n g is defined as

This b o o k argued that " u n i t y i n m u l t i p l i c i t y , " a

" t h e o r n a m e n t a l t r a n s l a t i o n o f mystical M u s l i m

central d o c t r i n e o f Sufism, is w h a t i n f o r m s all the

cal—intuition of "not-nature," of "not-

t h o u g h t , its very s y m b o l i s m . " This act o f transla-

elements o f Islamic architecture i n I r a n , f r o m geo-

f i n i t u d e , " and o f " i n e x p r e s s i b i l i t y , " the

t i o n was undertaken by M u s l i m artisans b e l o n g i n g

m e t r i c surface decoration and architectural f o r m

o n l y i n t u i t a b l e categories o f transcendent

to Sufi confraternities w h o exalted t h e i r s p i r i t u a l

to c o m p l e x u r b a n settings. I n the preface Seyyed

more

m e d i t a t i o n s by visually t r a n s c r i b i n g t h e m o n the

Hossein Nasr defined the I r a n i a n Islamic architec-

walls o f b u i l d i n g s and o n the surfaces o f l u x u r y

t u r a l t r a d i t i o n as composed o f timeless " f o r m s that

6 6

A l - F a r u q i defined the arabesque as follows:

Properly u n d e r s t o o d , the

Arabesque is

reality. Every w o r k o f art i n Islam is a

or less successful e x e m p l i f i c a t i o n o f i t .

6 7

arabe,

objects by means o f an o r n a m e n t a l language. Asserting that figural representation is against " t h e v i s i o n o f tawhid as expressed i n the

shahada

69

The

in Persian Architecture,

Unity: 1973.

echo transcendent archetypes" i n t i m a t e l y related

r h y t h m i c r e p e t i t i o n o f abstract patterns recalled

to cosmology and identified its most f u n d a m e n t a l

the r i t u a l o f dhikr, the tireless r e p e t i t i o n o f ejacu-

p r i n c i p l e as the concept o f God's u n i t y

[profession o f f a i t h ] , " al-Faruqi dismissed m i n i a -

l a t o r y litanies by the devotees o f mystical b r o t h e r -

ture p a i n t i n g as o r i g i n a t i n g f r o m " n o n - I s l a m i c "

hoods. Probst-Biraben w r o t e :

{tawhid):

There is n o t h i n g m o r e t i m e l y today t h a n that t r u t h w h i c h is timeless, t h a n the mes-

influences. H e assigned p r i o r i t y to architecture and the arabesque, since " f i g u r a l p a i n t i n g is o f

Gayet, an artist and fine connoisseur, has

sage that comes f r o m t r a d i t i o n and is

miserably less value" to the M u s l i m whose c o n -

perhaps exaggerated the s y m b o l i s m o f

relevant n o w because i t is relevant at all times. Such a message belongs to a n o w

sciousness is " c o m p l e t e l y d e t e r m i n e d by A l l a h "

interlaced patterns [entrelacs],

and by the n o t i o n o f tawhid that is " t h e first p r i n -

finely sensed the s p i r i t u a l i t y o f A r a b i n s p i -

w h i c h has been, is, and w i l l ever be pres-

ciple o f every aspect o f Islamic c i v i l i z a t i o n . " The

r a t i o n , the c o n n e c t i o n o f art w i t h the

ent. To speak o f t r a d i t i o n is to speak o f

b u t has

RECENT

STUDIES

ON

GEOMETRIC

77

ORNAMENT

i m m u t a b l e principles o f heavenly o r i -

" m o d e r n i z e d classes o f the East since the spread

wide variety o f Sufi texts w i t h o u t regard to t i m e

gin and o f their a p p l i c a t i o n to different

o f the m o d e r n m e n t a l i t y f r o m the end o f the last

and place, or to the c u l t u r a l mechanisms that

m o m e n t s o f t i m e and space. . . . Islamic

c e n t u r y " have i g n o r e d their o w n architectural

i n f o r m e d the assumed c o n n e c t i o n between visual

c i v i l i z a t i o n presents an e m i n e n t example

t r a d i t i o n s , Nasr r e c o m m e n d e d the b o o k to the

aesthetics and Sufism.

o f a t r a d i t i o n a l c i v i l i z a t i o n wherein can

Westernized p r a c t i c i n g architects o f I r a n "at a

The radical sectarian shifts t h r o u g h o u t I r a n i a n

be clearly observed the presence o f certain

m o m e n t w h e n so m a n y o f t h e m are l o o k i n g des-

h i s t o r y (characterized by such irreconcilable posi-

i m m u t a b l e principles that have d o m i -

perately for guidelines to f o l l o w and have realized

tions as the r i g i d Sunnism o f the Seljuqs and the

nated the whole c i v i l i z a t i o n i n b o t h t i m e

the shortcomings o f i m i t a t i n g Western models

official Twelver Shi ism o f the Safavids) were

and space. Islamic art is no m o r e t h a n

b l i n d l y . " A l t h o u g h the book's search for " p r i -

i r o n e d o u t i n this r o m a n t i c v i s i o n o f an eternal

a reflection i n the w o r l d o f m a t t e r o f

m o r d i a l and eternally v a l i d " design principles may

sense o f u n i t y that was engendered by an innate

the spirit and even o f the f o r m o f the

i n i t i a l l y recall the m o d e r n i s t search for universal

s p i r i t u a l psyche, shaped by the u n i q u e I r a n i a n

Quranic revelation.

71

Nasr's emphasis o n static t r a d i t i o n , as opposed to

c

forms transcending historicisms, i t is neverthe-

ecology and t r a d i t i o n . A r d a l a n and Bakhtiar's epi-

less embedded i n an a n t i m o d e r n i s t , t r a d i t i o n a l -

logue p r o m i s e d a future I r a n i a n artistic creativity

ist discourse.

that w o u l d be part o f a t r a d i t i o n w i t h no apparent

72

dynamic h i s t o r i c a l change, revived a central topos

A r d a l a n and Bakhtiar i n t e r p r e t e d geometric

b e g i n n i n g or end: " T h i s b o d y o f knowledge crys-

o f the O r i e n t a l i s t discourse w i t h its typical distinc-

patterns as eternal archetypes that c o u l d lead the

tallized t h r o u g h the arts, e m b o d i e d i n the t r a d i -

t i o n between historical and t r a d i t i o n a l cultures.

c o n t e m p l a t i v e m i n d f r o m outer appearances to the

t i o n a l societies, and available today for those w h o

This topos was n o w reversed to privilege unchang-

esoteric i n n e r realities o f Sufism t h r o u g h s p i r i t u a l

w o u l d 'see,' presents concepts that are p r i m o r d i a l

i n g t r a d i t i o n over m o d e r n i t y and given a new

hermeneutics.

and eternally v a l i d . "

73

They w r o t e , "These shapes, as the

7 6

W h a t c o u l d be a m o r e

c o l o r i n g t h r o u g h the n o t i o n o f the archetype, here

personality o f n u m b e r s , are u n d e r s t o o d by t r a d i -

a p p r o p r i a t e e n d i n g for a b o o k published d u r i n g

applied to the analysis o f Sufism. N o t a b l y the

t i o n a l m a n as aspects o f the m u l t i p l i c i t y o f the

the regime o f Shah Riza Pahlavi " o n the occasion

book's b i b l i o g r a p h y cited C. G. Jung and M i r c e a

Creator."

o f the t w e n t y - f i f t h centenary o f the f o u n d a t i o n o f

Eliade i n a d d i t i o n to such scholars o f Sufism as

terns symbolized the i n n e r esoteric d i m e n s i o n o f

the Persian E m p i r e , " as its title page stated, a b o o k

H e n r y C o r b i n and Toshikiko I z u t s u .

Islam and the Sufi concept o f the "inexhaustible

that rarely m e n t i o n e d any specific dates that m i g h t

74

I n f i n i t e l y extendable geometric pat-

m u l t i p l i c i t y o f creation, the effusion o f Being

d i s r u p t the semblance o f u n i n t e r r u p t e d c o n t i n u i t y

I r a n as a s p i r i t u a l t r a d i t i o n , Nasr p o i n t e d o u t that

that emanates f r o m the One: m u l t i p l i c i t y w i t h i n

i n an u n c h a n g i n g t r a d i t i o n a l I r a n i a n c u l t u r e

" t h i s art has been o n l y too rarely studied w i t h the

unity."

r o o t e d i n ancient civilization?

a i m o f u n d e r s t a n d i n g its symbolic and metaphysi-

some cases, the authors showed no a t t e m p t to

cal significance." To penetrate its i n n e r m e a n i n g

contextualize t h e i r arguments or to demonstrate

i n t i m a t e l y l i n k e d w i t h those o f the T r a d i t i o n a l i s t

" w o v e n a r o u n d the central d o c t r i n e o f u n i t y "

t h r o u g h p r i m a r y sources the ways i n w h i c h geome-

School f o u n d e d i n Switzerland by Rene G u e n o n

required " b o t h an o u t w a r d research and an i n n e r

t r y was i n t e r p r e t e d i n specific h i s t o r i c a l settings.

(1886-1951). Adherents o f that school traced

discovery o f the t r a d i t i o n , " n o t u n l i k e a s p i r i t u a l

T h e i r universalizing generalizations were based

the so-called m o d e r n d e v i a t i o n to Renaissance

j o u r n e y t o w a r d t r u t h . C o m p l a i n i n g that the

o n conceptual categories freely b o r r o w e d f r o m a

secularism, engaged i n a radical c r i t i q u e o f the

After i d e n t i f y i n g the Islamic architecture o f

7 5

A l t h o u g h this may have been true i n

The central premises o f The Sense of Unity

were

78

PART

2.

THE

DISCOURSE

ON THE

GEOMETRIC

" ARABESQUE"

c o n t e m p o r a r y w o r l d , and searched for universal

the observer f r o m focusing o n any one f o r m ,

nature o f Islam, w h i c h unites the nomads

s p i r i t u a l t r u t h s i n metaphysics, cosmology, and

B u r c k h a r d t stressed its mystical, c o n t e m p l a t i v e ,

o f the desert w i t h the learned m a n o f the

t r a d i t i o n a l art. The p u b l i c a t i o n s o f Titus B u r c k -

and ahistorical character capable o f b r i d g i n g

city, and this latter-day epoch o f ours w i t h

h a r d t , a leading spokesman o f this school w h o was

the M u s l i m past and present t h r o u g h abstract

the t i m e o f A b r a h a m .

to become a key figure together w i t h Nasr i n the

forms concerned w i t h " o n l y those elements that

W o r l d o f Islam festival, are fully cited by A r d a l a n

are v a l i d for all t i m e " :

and Bakhtiar. Titus B u r c k h a r d t , the grandnephew

7 9

This e x t r a o r d i n a r y passage encapsulates Burckhardt's essentialistic approach to Islamic visual

o f the celebrated Swiss c u l t u r a l h i s t o r i a n o f the

There are two typical forms o f the ara-

c u l t u r e , an approach that i n f o r m s his rejection

Renaissance, Jacob B u r c k h a r d t , was an i n t i m a t e

besque; one o f t h e m geometrical interlac-

o f h i s t o r i c a l methods o f analysis. He denounced

f r i e n d o f F r i t h j o f Schuon, another disciple o f the

ing made up o f a m u l t i t u d e o f geometrical

the analytical m e t h o d o f m o d e r n art h i s t o r y as

T r a d i t i o n a l i s t School, w h o w r o t e o n esotericism

stars, the rays o f w h i c h j o i n i n t o an i n t r i -

u n e q u i p p e d to deal w i t h the s p i r i t u a l d i m e n s i o n

and the transcendental u n i t y o f religions. B u r c k -

cate and endless p a t t e r n . I t is a most s t r i k -

o f Islamic art: " W h a t e v e r is timeless i n a r t — a n d

h a r d t had converted to Islam after spending some

i n g symbol o f that c o n t e m p l a t i v e state o f

a sacred art like that o f Islam always contains a

years i n M o r o c c o as a y o u n g m a n i n the 1930s,

m i n d w h i c h conceives o f " u n i t y i n m u l t i -

timeless e l e m e n t — i s left o u t by such a m e t h o d . "

where ( m u c h like the early Orientalists) he devel-

p l i c i t y and m u l t i p l i c i t y i n u n i t y . " . . . The

The radical i m p l i c a t i o n is that historical methods

oped a r o m a n t i c fascination w i t h t r a d i t i o n a l

second f o r m , the arabesque c o m m o n l y

o f analysis developed for post-Renaissance artistic

M a g h r i b i c u l t u r e that still preserved many pre-

so-called is composed o f vegetable m o t i f s ,

t r a d i t i o n s i n the West are i n a p p r o p r i a t e for u n d e r -

m o d e r n elements. There he became i m m e r s e d

stylized to the p o i n t o f losing all resem-

standing the Islamic visual t r a d i t i o n . This t r a d i t i o n

i n Sufism, a subject to w h i c h most o f his early

blance w i t h nature and obeying o n l y the

represented an ahistorical s p i r i t u a l p h e n o m e n o n

studies were devoted. These works dealt w i t h

laws o f r h y t h m transposed i n t o graphic

accessible o n l y to the i n i t i a t e d believer w h o can

esoteric Sufi doctrines ( p a r t i c u l a r l y those o f the

m o d e , each line u n d u l a t i n g i n c o m p l e -

decipher its i n n e r , esoteric meanings:

A n d a l u s i a n shaykh I b n a l - A r a b i [1165-1240]),

m e n t a r y phases, and each surface having

alchemy, astrology, cosmology, and s p i r i t u a l

its inverse c o u n t e r p a r t . The arabesque is

The study o f Islamic art, i f undertaken

s y m b o l i s m i n the t r a d i t i o n a l crafts.

b o t h logical and r h y t h m i c a l , b o t h m a t h e -

w i t h an open m i n d and w i t h o u t the post-

matical and m e l o d i o u s , and this is most

Medieval prejudices we have m e n t i o n e d ,

lated f r o m the French as Sacred Art in East and

significant for the spirit o f Islam i n its

is a way o f approach to the s p i r i t u a l back-

West, 1967, discussed the metaphysical aesthetics

e q u i l i b r i u m o f love and intellectual s o b r i -

g r o u n d o f all Islamic c u l t u r e . . . . The

o f m a j o r w o r l d religions, i n c l u d i n g Islam. A m o n g

ety. . . . M o r e o v e r , the universal character

m a i n s h o r t c o m i n g that one has to avoid

his early articles o n Islamic aesthetics perhaps the

o f geometrical o r n a m e n t — t h e f u n d a m e n -

is the academic m e n t a l i t y that considers

most i n f l u e n t i a l was "Perennial Values i n Islamic

tal elements o f w h i c h are essentially the

all works o f art f r o m earlier centuries as

A r t , " 1967, w h i c h argued for the timeless s p i r i t u a l

same, whether they appear i n a B e d o u i n

purely h i s t o r i c a l " p h e n o m e n a " w h i c h

u n i t y o f the Islamic visual t r a d i t i o n i n all periods

r u g or i n a refined u r b a n d e c o r a t i o n —

belong to the past and have very l i t t l e to

and r e g i o n s .

corresponds perfectly to the universal

do w i t h present life. . . . Let us ask w h a t is

c

77

Burckhardt's m a i n w o r k o n aesthetics, trans-

78

N o t i n g that the arabesque prevented

8 0

RECENT

STUDIES

ON

GEOMETRIC

timeless i n the art o f o u r s p i r i t u a l ances-

Disregarding the specificities o f the historical

tors. I f we recognize this, we shall also be

and regional developments o f Islamic theology and

able to make use o f i t w i t h i n the inevitable

m y s t i c i s m , B u r c k h a r d t and the authors o f The

framework o f o u r o w n age.

81

79

ORNAMENT

legalism and moderate m y s t i c i s m . " He concluded that such patterns:

Sense of Unity a t t r i b u t e d a universal significance

t h o u g h used i n the other contexts, seem

to Sufism, w h i c h was n o t equally influential i n all

especially S u n n i i n perspective, for they

regions or periods. N e i t h e r the d o c t r i n e o f tawhid

speak eloquently o f no i n d i v i d u a l , no

Islamic c u l t u r e constitutes a m o n o l i t h i c b l o c k

n o r the transience o f the m a t e r i a l w o r l d , i n whose

u n i t , no person, no h i s t o r i c a l event b u t

characterized by its timeless c o n t i n u u m between

diverse forms the c o n t e m p l a t i n g believer c o u l d

rather o f the i n f i n i t e , transcendent One.

the seventh and t w e n t i e t h centuries, puts the m o d -

detect u n d e r l y i n g signs o f transcendental u n i t y ,

S u n n i Islam i n its purest f o r m is a lovely

ern M u s l i m observer i n the privileged p o s i t i o n o f

were concepts l i m i t e d to Sufi circles. I t is therefore

and lonely w o r l d view; the i n f i n i t e p a t t e r n

" n a t i v e i n f o r m a n t . " The i m p l i c a t i o n that M u s l i m

n o t s u r p r i s i n g that such authors as al-Faruqi and

and the arabesque i n t h e i r purest forms

This statement, based o n the premise that

believers are better equipped to penetrate the i n n e r

E d w a r d H . M a d d e n associated abstract Islamic

m i r r o r that w o r l d view i n a transcenden-

meanings o f their o w n visual c u l t u r e assumes

patterns w i t h S u n n i o r t h o d o x y instead o f Sufi eso-

tally beautiful way.

that the past is m o r e transparent to t h e m . Since

t e r i c i s m . Nasr's c l a i m that " t o grasp fully the sig-

all i n t e r p r e t a t i o n s are b o u n d up w i t h one's o w n

n i f i c a t i o n o f Islamic art is to become aware that i t

A l t h o u g h M a d d e n deemphasized the Sufi d i m e n -

84

h i s t o r i c i t y , however, i t is difficult to believe that

is an aspect o f the Islamic revelation, a casting o f

sion o f Islamic art, his views were nevertheless

any i n t e r p r e t e r , f r o m whatever b a c k g r o u n d , is

the D i v i n e Realities (haqd'iq)

r o o t e d i n the same T r a d i t i o n a l i s t School that

m o r e privileged w i t h objectivity. A sensitive c o n -

m a t e r i a l m a n i f e s t a t i o n " c o u l d even be regarded as

textual i n t e r p r e t a t i o n o f any given aspect o f the

anathema f r o m an o r t h o d o x M u s l i m v i e w p o i n t .

Islamic visual t r a d i t i o n as a h i s t o r i c a l l y i n f o r m e d ,

Given the completely transcendental nature o f the

T r a d i t i o n a l or religious art is the expres-

d y n a m i c c u l t u r a l p h e n o m e n o n demands equal

creator i t w o u l d be inconceivable for an o r t h o d o x

sion o f a whole c o m m u n i t y , o f a complete

m e t h o d o l o g i c a l r i g o r i n the use o f p r i m a r y sources

believer to a t t e m p t to represent G o d or God's rev-

c u l t u r e , i n contrast to the idiosyncratic

f r o m any scholar engaged i n that field, whether

elation i n any f o r m , no m a t t e r h o w abstract. This

and self-expressive features o f c o n t e m p o -

M u s l i m or n o n - M u s l i m . The c o n s t r u c t i o n o f a

is w h y al-Faruqi i n t e r p r e t e d abstract patterns as

rary art a n d , indeed, o f m u c h o f Western

visual t r a d i t i o n based o n timeless s p i r i t u a l t r u t h s ,

visual expressions o f the nonrepresentability o f

art since the Renaissance. D e c o r a t i o n is

however, makes such methodological r i g o r irrele-

G o d , rather than as material manifestations o f s p i r i -

f u n d a m e n t a l to all t r a d i t i o n a l art, b u t it

vant. B u r c k h a r d t stated that the Islamic visual

tual t r u t h s accessible to the c o n t e m p l a t i n g mystic.

is always symbolic i n nature and never

t r a d i t i o n was f u n d a m e n t a l l y derived f r o m the c o n t e m p l a t i o n o f d i v i n e u n i t y (tawhtd)

revealed i n the

u p o n the plane o f

M a d d e n , w h o recognized that arabesques and

inspired B u r c k h a r d t and Nasr:

83

s o m e t h i n g added as an afterthought. I n

" i n f i n i t e p a t t e r n s " were n o t u n c o m m o n i n Sufi

Islamic art the i n f i n i t e p a t t e r n , the ara-

K o r a n i n d i s c o n t i n u o u s flashes: " S t r i k i n g the plane

or S h i i settings where they " c o u l d well be given

besque, and stylized calligraphy all have

o f the visual i m a g i n a t i o n , these flashes congeal

various esoteric meanings," nevertheless asso-

significant symbolic functions wherever

i n t o crystalline forms, and i t is these forms i n t u r n

ciated t h e m p r i m a r i l y w i t h " t h e classical S u n n i

they occur; each i n its o w n way is a s u r r o -

that constitute the essence o f Islamic a r t . "

M u s l i m w o r l d v i e w " that blended " t r a d i t i o n a l

gate i n the physical w o r l d o f such s p i r i t u a l

8 2

c

8o

PART

2.

THE

DISCOURSE

ON

THE

GEOMETRIC

" ARABESQUE"

concepts as Allah's i n f i n i t y , transcen-

accompanied by a series o f related e x h i b i t i o n s ,

D i v i n e Revelation there corresponds a

dence, and unity. . . .

films, and p u b l i c a t i o n s . The p u b l i c a t i o n s , all o f

visually perceptible artistic creativity o f

w h i c h appeared i n 1976, i n c l u d e d the e x h i b i t i o n

comparable unity. A n d t h e n the i d e n t i f i -

besque is a f u n d a m e n t a l religious

catalog The Arts of Islam (featuring an i n t r o d u c -

c a t i o n o f the principles w h i c h create that

s y m b o l . . . . I n all cases o f the i n f i n i t e pat-

t o r y essay by Titus B u r c k h a r d t ) , B u r c k h a r d t ' s Art

u n i t y acquire automatically a c u l t u r a l l y

t e r n — w h i c h has no b e g i n n i n g o r end and

of Islam: Language

normative value.

is s e l f - c o n t a i n e d — t h e design is at once

Science, and Issam el-Said and Ayse Parman's

symbolic b o t h o f Allah's i n f i n i t y and u n i t y

Geometric

There can be no d o u b t that the ara-

i n m u l t i p l i c i t y and at once expressive b o t h o f H i s transcendence and the c o n cept o f

al-tawhid.

S5

and Meaning,

Concepts in Islamic

Nasr's

Islamic

Art.

87

These n o r m a t i v e values reduced the r i c h c o m -

As Grabar n o t e d i n his critical review o f the

p l e x i t y and m u l t i p l i c i t y o f Islamic visual c u l -

festival, the objects i n the Arts of Islam e x h i b i t i o n

t u r e ^ ) i n t o simple prescriptive formulas meant

were n o t grouped according to the usual c h r o n o -

to guide c o n t e m p o r a r y architectural projects

logical, regional, iconographic, and stylistic c r i t e -

i n the M i d d l e East. I t is no surprise, t h e n , that

ria b u t were presented i n terms o f such ahistorical

B u r c k h a r d t ' s catalog i n t r o d u c t i o n i d e n t i f i e d

emphasizing the r e l i g i o s p i r i t u a l and c o s m o l o g i -

categories as calligraphy, geometry, and vegetal

architecture, represented i n the e x h i b i t i o n w i t h

Whatever conclusions they reach, studies cal d i m e n s i o n o f Islamic art are characterized by

o r n a m e n t , "characteristics or attributes w h i c h are

c o l o r p r o j e c t i o n s , as the m a i n focus o f Islamic

sweeping generalizations unsubstantiated by c o n -

alleged to be p a r t i c u l a r to the artistic creativity o f

creativity to w h i c h the decorative arts were subor-

crete data. The wide m a r g i n o f difference i n t h e i r

the M u s l i m w o r l d , w h i c h make Islamic art dif-

dinated, a leitmotif i n many nineteenth-century

symbolic i n t e r p r e t a t i o n s o f the arabesque i n d i -

ferent f r o m other arts, and therefore j u s t i f y an

publications on ornament.

cates that a p r i o r i connections w i t h mystical and

idiosyncratic p r e s e n t a t i o n . "

theological doctrines need to be demonstrated

the ideological message o f the festival, charac-

Islamic art, based o n a " c o m m o n language," to

w i t h respect to specific h i s t o r i c a l contexts. The

terized by its m a r k e d "reluctance to deal w i t h

the p i v o t a l concept o f tawhid, accompanied by the

ahistorical and essentialist discourse o n Islamic art

h i s t o r y , " as follows:

mystical search for cosmic u n i t y , and the s p i r i t u a l

86

Grabar interprets

reached a p a r t i c u l a r l y b r o a d p u b l i c f o r u m d u r i n g

88

B u r c k h a r d t once again a t t r i b u t e d the u n i t y o f

ethos o f a c u l t u r e permeated w i t h the M u s l i m

the W o r l d o f Islam festival i n 1976, organized by

The message was that o f the basic u n i t y

revelation.

various i n s t i t u t i o n s and governments f r o m b o t h

o f Islamic art and by extension o f Islamic

rejected the Western i n t e r p r e t a t i o n o f Islamic art

the Islamic w o r l d and the West to celebrate the

c i v i l i z a t i o n i n the past and, ideally, o f

as " d e c o r a t i v e " and praised B u r c k h a r d t ' s a b i l i t y to

1400th anniversary o f M u s l i m c u l t u r e . The festi-

most M u s l i m s today. By a fascinating

penetrate its "essence" by speaking " f r o m w i t h i n

val recycled m a n y o f the stereotypes that had o r i -

sleight o f h a n d , the p r o f o u n d l y Islamic

the Sufi t r a d i t i o n o f the profoundest aspect o f wis-

ginated i n the n i n e t e e n t h - c e n t u r y O r i e n t a l i s t

theological n o t i o n o f tawhid,

d o m w i t h an a u t h o r i t y w h i c h can o n l y come f r o m

discourse, b u t this t i m e the i n t e n t was to p r o v i d e

lute oneness o f G o d , was transferred n o t

actual experience and realization o f the w o r l d o f

concepts easily accessible to n o n - M u s l i m and

o n l y to the c o m m u n i t y , the ummah,

the s p i r i t . " He added:

M u s l i m audiences alike. H e l d all over B r i t a i n , b u t

also to the objects and b u i l d i n g s spon-

o f the absobut

89

Nasr's i n t r o d u c t i o n to Art of Islam

m o s t l y centered i n L o n d o n , i t featured an e x h i b i -

sored and used by the c o m m u n i t y o f M u s -

Islamic art is at last revealed to be w h a t

t i o n , The Arts of Islam, at the H a y w a r d Gallery,

l i m s . To the single message o f a u n i q u e

it really is, namely the earthly crystalliza-

RECENT

STUDIES

ON

GEOMETRIC

81

ORNAMENT

t i o n o f the s p i r i t o f the Islamic revelation

intellectually satisfying f o r m , for i t is an

the v i t a l p r o p o r t i o n s o f a b u i l d i n g f r o m

as well as a reflection o f the heavenly

extremely direct expression o f the idea o f

the h a r m o n i o u s d i v i s i o n o f a circle is no

realities o n earth, a reflection w i t h the

D i v i n e U n i t y u n d e r l y i n g the inexhaustible

m o r e t h a n a symbolic way o f expressing

help o f w h i c h the M u s l i m makes his j o u r -

variety o f the w o r l d .

T a w h i d , w h i c h is the metaphysical doc-

9 2

t r i n e o f D i v i n e U n i t y as the source and

ney t h r o u g h the terrestrial e n v i r o n m e n t and beyond to the D i v i n e Presence Itself,

The special role o f geometry as a m e t a p h o r for

to the Reality w h i c h is the O r i g i n and

d i v i n e u n i t y was also stressed i n other p u b l i c a t i o n s

End o f this a r t .

associated w i t h the festival. I n his b o o k

90

B u r c k h a r d t ' s b o o k , d o m i n a t e d by d e c o n t e x t u -

Islamic

c u l m i n a t i o n o f all diversity. I t is n o t surp r i s i n g , therefore, t h a t M u s l i m artists s h o u l d have explored all the geometric

Science, for instance, Nasr claimed t h a t the M u s l i m

systems that depend u p o n the regular

"love for mathematics, especially geometry and

d i v i s i o n o f the c i r c l e .

95

alized i l l u s t r a t i o n s o f abstract o r n a m e n t i n various

n u m b e r , is d i r e c t l y connected to the essence o f the

techniques, revived such O r i e n t a l i s t stereotypes as

Islamic message, w h i c h is the d o c t r i n e o f U n i t y

El-Said and Parman's text, w h i c h a t t e m p t e d to

the n o m a d w h o had " l i t t l e feeling for the conven-

(al-tawhid)."

decipher the geometric formulas used i n c o n -

tions o f a r c h i t e c t u r e " b u t instead valued geometric

character o f mathematics i n the Islamic w o r l d view

s t r u c t i n g surface patterns, neither showed an

ornaments derived f r o m the woven textiles o f

m o r e evident t h a n i n art, where w i t h the help

awareness o f s u r v i v i n g scrolls ( p u b l i s h e d by Soviet

tents, together w i t h the ethnoracial categories o f

o f geometry and a r i t h m e t i c m a t t e r is ennobled

scholars and Christie) n o r o f practical geometry

" t h e A r a b , " " t h e T u r k , " and " t h e Persian" that rep-

and a sacred ambiance created w h e r e i n is d i r e c t l y

manuals (studied by Franz Woepcke and cited by

resented "vastly different-mental types." Neverthe-

reflected the u b i q u i t o u s Presence o f the One and

such authors as Prisse d'Avennes and Gayet): "To

less, differences were u n i f i e d by the u b i q u i t y o f the

many."

o u r knowledge, no record has survived to i n s t r u c t

sacred b o o k since " t h e entire life o f a M u s l i m is filled w i t h Q u r a n i c f o r m u l a e , prayers, litanies and invocations i n A r a b i c . "

9 1

B u r c k h a r d t assigned a

93

He added, " N o w h e r e is the sacred

94

A n o t h e r m o n o g r a p h devoted t o the subject o f geometry was El-Said and Parman's Concepts

Geometric

in Islamic Art, whose f o r e w o r d by

central role to the arabesque, another favorite

B u r c k h a r d t once again l i n k e d the sacred geometry

Orientalist theme revived w i t h the English trans-

o f Islamic art w i t h the concept o f

l a t i o n o f KuhnePs Die Arabeske

tawhid:

(translated by

us i n the theory o f designing Islamic geometric patterns."

96

The authors analyzed a wide variety

o f t w o - d i m e n s i o n a l geometric patterns generated by u n d e r l y i n g g r i d systems d o m i n a t e d by the circle, w i t h its radius c o n s t i t u t i n g the basic u n i t o f measure. They compared the r e p e t i t i o n o f

Ettinghausen i n 1976). U n l i k e K i i h n e l , w h o focused

A t the basis o f this geometry there lies

m o d u l a r u n i t s i n visual patterns to music, poetry,

exclusively o n the vegetal arabesque, however,

the circle w h i c h is an image o f an i n f i -

and calligraphy, a c o m p a r i s o n c o m m o n l y made

B u r c k h a r d t treated all o f its variants w i t h p a r t i c u -

nite w h o l e and w h i c h , w h e n i t is evenly

i n n i n e t e e n t h - c e n t u r y O r i e n t a l i s t w r i t i n g s and

lar emphasis o n the " s p i r i t o f geometry":

d i v i d e d , gives rise to regularly shaped

i n o r n a m e n t studies.

polygons w h i c h can, i n t h e i r t u r n , be

Testifying to the sudden p o p u l a r i t y o f this

For a M u s l i m artist o r — w h a t comes to

developed into star-shaped polygons elabo-

t o p i c , i n the same year, 1976, two other books

be the same t h i n g — a craftsman w h o has

rated i n d e f i n i t e l y i n perfectly h a r m o -

were published o n the geometric arabesque, K e i t h

to decorate a surface, geometrical i n t e r -

nious p r o p o r t i o n s . . . . I n the Islamic

C r i t c h l o w ' s Islamic Patterns:

lacement doubtless represents the most

perspective, this m e t h o d o f d e r i v i n g all

Cosmological

Approach,

An Analytical

and

featuring an i n t r o d u c t i o n

82

PART

2.

by N a s r , Art.

98,

97

THE

DISCOURSE

ON

and D a v i d Wade's Pattern

THE

in

GEOMETRIC

Islamic

Characterized by short texts that briefly

t o u c h e d o n the a p r i o r i religious, mystical, and

" ARABESQUE"

a c o m m o n intellectual m i l i e u . Its recurrent ingre-

p l a t i o n o f ordered systems c o u l d have

dients were an emphasis o n architecture to w h i c h

"religious symbolic c o n n o t a t i o n s . "

the decorative arts were s u b o r d i n a t e d , a r o m a n t i c

W h e t h e r these c o n n o t a t i o n s w o u l d fit i n

cosmological meanings o f t w o - d i m e n s i o n a l geo-

Sufi universalism ( w i t h p a r t i c u l a r a t t e n t i o n to

perfectly w i t h the tenets o f Islam is a dif-

m e t r i c designs, these works essentially were pat-

M a g h r i b i and I r a n i a n m y s t i c i s m ) , the assumption

ferent matter. . . . Here the search for

t e r n books p r o v i d i n g guidelines for c o n t e m p o r a r y

o f an i n n e r esoteric d i m e n s i o n o f outer artistic

m e a n i n g coalesces w i t h the tendency . . .

architects p r a c t i c i n g i n the M i d d l e East. I n that

forms, the stress o n the d o c t r i n e o f tawhid w i t h its

o f l o o k i n g for some p r i n c i p l e o f u n i t y

respect they recall n i n e t e e n t h - and early t w e n t i e t h -

cosmological c o r o l l a r y o f " u n i t y i n m u l t i p l i c i t y , "

a m o n g all manifestations o f a c u l t u r e or

c e n t u r y European p u b l i c a t i o n s o n o r n a m e n t

and the t o t a l rejection o f h i s t o r i c a l context. The

p e r i o d . Being characteristic o f A r a b i c

that left o u t t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l patterns, such as

p u b l i c a t i o n s c o o r d i n a t e d w i t h the W o r l d o f Islam

d e c o r a t i o n the arabesque m u s t also par-

Bourgoin's Arabic

festival, w h i c h as Grabar n o t e d " s t i l l f o r m the

take o f the essence o f " I s l a m i c t h o u g h t . " . . .

Geometrical

Pattern and

Design,

w h i c h had been r e p r i n t e d w i t h o u t its text for the

most coherent statement about Islamic art avail-

I n linguistics the quest for the " s p i r i t " o f

same market i n 1973. T h e i r m a i n difference f r o m

able to students or to the general p u b l i c , "

a language has been abandoned and so

earlier p u b l i c a t i o n s o n the same subject was an

a t t r i b u t e d universalizing symbolic meanings to

has the search for the o r i g i n a l m e a n i n g

insistence o n the Islamic s y m b o l i s m o f abstract

geometric patterns w i t h o u t any d e m o n s t r a t i o n o f

o f roots as a guide to semantics. Instead

1 0 0

patterns, no longer presented as merely decora-

the presumed l i n k w i t h mystical and religious doc-

interest has begun to centre o n the syn-

tive m o t i f s . Nasr's f o r e w o r d to C r i t c h l o w ' s b o o k

trines i n p a r t i c u l a r h i s t o r i c a l settings. Therefore,

c h r o n i c analysis o f h o w a language actu-

praised i t as the first study by a n o n - M u s l i m

the s t i l l - p o p u l a r conclusions o f these m e t h o d o l o g i -

ally functions i n any one c o m m u n i t y .

author to explore the m i s u n d e r s t o o d t r a d i t i o n o f

cally u n r i g o r o u s p u b l i c a t i o n s , w h i c h occasionally

The student o f design w o u l d do w e l l to

Islamic art, usually regarded as no m o r e t h a n deco-

do c o n t a i n perceptive insights, need to be tested

follow s u i t .

r a t i o n . C r i t c h l o w , a teacher at the A r c h i t e c t u r a l

by carefully framed nuanced contextual studies.

Association School o f A r c h i t e c t u r e and the Royal

G o m b r i c h was one o f the first to criticize the

1 0 1

Stuart D u r a n t ' s Ornament:

1830-1980,1986,

simi-

College o f A r t i n England, had been i n v i t e d i n the

m e t h o d o l o g i c a l l y p r o b l e m a t i c approach p u b l i -

larly c r i t i c i z e d the festival's p u b l i c a t i o n s as being

early 1970s to become an associate o f the I m p e r i a l

cized by the Arts of Islam e x h i b i t i o n . I n The

" a l l t o o i n c l i n e d to a t t r i b u t e mystical significance

I r a n i a n Academy o f Philosophy i n Tehran by its

Sense of Order he disputed this e x h i b i t i o n ' s

to Islamic d e c o r a t i o n . "

d i r e c t o r , Nasr, and was chosen as a design consul-

basic assumptions:

tant for a new mosque i n that city. I t was i n those

1 0 2

I n his M e l l o n Lectures o f 1989, published as The Mediation

of Ornament,

1992, Grabar also rejected

years that he prepared his b o o k o n Islamic geo-

The v i s i t o r m u s t be reassured that there

m e t r i c patterns. I t is therefore n o t s u r p r i s i n g that

is m o r e to the arabesque t h a n meets the

his w r i t i n g c o n t a i n e d unmistakable echoes o f

eye. The revelation o f symbolic m e a n i n g

M a n y arguments o f logic and o f fact exist

B u r c k h a r d t ' s and Nasr's works o n Islamic m y s t i -

resembles an i n i t i a t i o n i n t o the deeper

against this i m m e d i a t e i n t e r p r e t a t i o n o f

cism and cosmology.

mysteries o f the t r a d i t i o n . I t is clear . . .

geometry, however appealing i t is to a

that there is no concrete evidence for

curious m i x t u r e o f Western orientalists

these i n t e r p r e t a t i o n s . C e r t a i n l y a c o n t e m -

and Islamic fundamentalists. The most

99

To summarize, t h e n , the symbolic i n t e r p r e t a t i o n o f Islamic geometric patterns can be traced to

the symbolic i n t e r p r e t a t i o n o f geometric patterns:

RECENT

STUDIES

ON

GEOMETRIC

83

ORNAMENT

i m p o r t a n t objections are several. There

flies, we are attracted to an abstraction

does n o t exist, to m y knowledge, a single

w h i c h seems to be devoid o f c u l t u r a l spe-

w h i c h privileged the category o f sensual pleasure,

instance j u s t i f y i n g the views that the

cificity. I t is o n l y meant to be b e a u t i f u l . "

and other theories that c o n t i n u e to i n t e r p r e t

M u s l i m c o m m u n i t y , the ummah,

Grabar's psychological theory o f intermediaries, 1 0 5

as

abstract patterns as r e l i g i o s p i r i t u a l symbols per-

opposed to i n d i v i d u a l t h i n k e r s , u n d e r -

Like G o m b r i c h ' s psychology o f decorative art,

petuate the "decorative versus i c o n o g r a p h i c "

stood m a t h e m a t i c a l forms as s y m b o l i z i n g

Grabar's b o o k h i g h l i g h t e d the universal psycho-

p o l e m i c that has polarized the study o f Islamic

or i l l u s t r a t i n g a M u s l i m c o s m o l o g y .

logical factors at w o r k i n the perception o f abstract

visual c u l t u r e since the nineteenth c e n t u r y .

103

107

This

patterns that mediate sensual pleasure. B o t h

b i n a r y o p p o s i t i o n , g r o u n d e d i n the c o n s t r u c t i o n

I n an a t t e m p t to reassert the universal values o f

authors viewed such patterns as p r i m a r i l y decora-

o f a sharp d i c h o t o m y between abstract p a t t e r n -

Islamic geometric design, Grabar proposed that

tive, a view rejected by writers w h o a t t e m p t to

m a k i n g and m i m e t i c representation i n the Western

geometry, like calligraphy and vegetal o r n a m e n t ,

charge the same patterns w i t h a p r i o r i symbolic

t r a d i t i o n o f art, has deeply colored the l i t e r a t u r e

functions as a "perfect i n t e r m e d i a r y , for i t attracts

meanings. Grabar's theory o f intermediaries aimed

on the "character" o f Islamic a r t .

n o t to itself b u t to other places or to functions

to bridge the "boundaries between o r n a m e n t and

ideological split i n the secondary l i t e r a t u r e can

1 0 8

The o n g o i n g

other t h a n itself." He concluded that " g e o m e t r y is

r e a l i t y " t h r o u g h a psychological f r a m e w o r k o f per-

o n l y be mediated by a p a r a d i g m shift capable

a passage, at best a magnet, to s o m e t h i n g else that

c e p t i o n w i t h i n w h i c h the viewer and the abstract

o f transcending the c u l t u r e - b o u n d o p p o s i t i o n

it does n o t i d e n t i f y b u t w h i c h the c u l t u r e deems

image subjectively interact. He deemphasized c u l -

between iconographic representation and o r n a -

desirable."

t u r a l l y significant contextual factors, being i n t e r -

m e n t a l p a t t e r n m a k i n g . A semiotic f r a m e w o r k can

1 0 4

As an "object o f e m o t i o n a l or psy-

chic i n v o l v e m e n t " that gave the viewer a r e m a r k -

ested i n private perceptions o f a universal k i n d . By

be p a r t i c u l a r l y useful i n addressing the p r o b l e m -

able freedom o f i n t e r p r e t a t i o n , geometry was

d e f i n i t i o n such a universalizing G o m b r i c h i a n psy-

atic issue o f c u l t u r a l specificity and m e a n i n g i n a

devoid o f c u l t u r a l specificity:

chology o f perception does n o t concern itself w i t h

visual t r a d i t i o n that employed repetitive abstract

c u l t u r a l l y constructed codes o f r e c o g n i t i o n and

signs whose s i g n i f y i n g p o t e n t i a l was largely c o n -

Geometry really works o n l y as an i n t e r -

sign systems at w o r k i n the process o f visual c o m -

textual. Such a f r a m e w o r k can help dissolve the

mediary. As an i n t e r m e d i a r y , i t leaves

m u n i c a t i o n . Grabar expressed d o u b t " w h e t h e r i t is

sharp d i c h o t o m y between the " i c o n o g r a p h i c " and

the viewer or user a freedom o f choice

a p p r o p r i a t e to seek a p h i l o s o p h i c a l e x p l a n a t i o n or

the " d e c o r a t i v e " by investing abstract patterns

no other i n t e r m e d i a r y seems to offer. I n

even parallel for the arts o f medieval and p r e m o d -

w i t h a wide range o f c u l t u r a l l y relevant associa-

this respect, as a harbinger o f free choice,

ern times i n the Islamic w o r l d , " since he f o u n d i t

tions—even contradictory ones—depending on

geometry is a most dangerous media-

u n l i k e l y that p h i l o s o p h y , l i t e r a r y theory, theology,

specific settings. Before e x p l o r i n g the semiotic

t o r . . . . The penalty o f freedom i n the arts

or m y s t i c i s m i n f o r m e d the sphere o f visual aes-

dimensions o f Islamic abstract patterns as context-

is loss o f m e a n i n g . Its reward is accessi-

thetics. This freed the field o f Islamic art f r o m the

b o u n d sign systems open to a p l u r a l i t y o f m u l t i l a y -

b i l i t y to all. H u m b l e triangles o n a dress

m o n o p o l y o f specialists to a m u c h w i d e r audience,

ered meanings, however, i t is necessary to analyze

or i n the weaving o f a basket or the very

g i v i n g the art h i s t o r i a n the " u n i q u e l y interesting

the girih m o d e as a h i s t o r i c a l l y c i r c u m s c r i b e d

sophisticated b r i c k walls o f I r a n i a n towers

task . . . o f devising the a p p r o p r i a t e contexts, his-

p h e n o m e n o n b o u n d by identifiable regional and

share an a b i l i t y to make us w o n d e r w h a t

t o r i c a l or c o n t e m p o r a r y , w i t h i n w h i c h Islamic art

c h r o n o l o g i c a l parameters.

they mean, because, like m o t h s or b u t t e r -

s h o u l d be u n d e r s t o o d . "

1 0 6

8

4

NOTES

TO PART

2

1. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, "Hafis Nameh," in The Poems of Goethe, trans. E. A. Bowring (New York: Gordon Press, 1974), 892. 2. The German Benedictine monk Theophilus, who was a practicing craftsman himself, included in his twelfth-century technical manual De diversis artibus a section on metalwork explaining "whatever Arabia adorns with repousse or cast work, or engravings in relief"; see Theophilus 1986, 4. During the Renaissance arabesques were used in Venetian-Saracenic metalwork, and they appeared in pattern books published from the early sixteenth century onward, such as those of Francesco di Pellegrino, Jean Gourmont, and Balthasar Sylvius; see Gombrich 1979, 85-86; and Ward-Jackson 1967. 3. For the nineteenth-century literature on ornament and its vast bibliography, see Durant 1986. Many of the works cited below are discussed in Durant's richly illustrated and useful book. See also Gombrich 1979; Kroll 1987; Darby 1983; Brett 1992; Creswell 1961; and idem 1973. 4. See Lewis 1835; Roberts 1837; idem 1842-1849; Walsh 1838; Daniell 1795-1807; and Hodges 1786. This illustrated travel literature is analyzed in Bozdogan 1988; and Darby 1983. 5. Coste 1975. For the involvement of colonial powers in studying and preserving the architectural heritage of Arab lands, see Reid 1992; and Mitchell 1988. 6. Prisse d'Avennes 1983, 22-23. 7. Gayet 1893, 310, 304-5. See idem, 57: "By proscribing the human form, the hadith summed up into a dogma the inclination of spiritualist races; by renouncing it, Arab art yielded to a hereditary repugnance whose trace reappears at each step in the history of the people of the Orient." 8. According to Gayet the abstract forms of Arab art reflected a mystical sensibility. See Gayet 1893,180: "Each polygon, each arabesque, each inscription . . . extends itself into that softly resigned mysticism that at all times has constituted the battleground of Oriental belief." 9. Gayet 1893, 307. See also idem 1978, where Gayet argued that the ecstatic mystical reveries of Arab art were not so characteristic of the "genie des races de Ylran" (genius of the races of Iran); Persian Islamic art was less spiritual and more prone to figural representation, which the Shi i "schismatics" tolerated. 10. For the development of the concept of the arabesque in Germany, see Kroll 1987. 11. For various definitions of the arabesque, see Riegl 1893 (1992); Herzfeld 1987; Kuhnel i960; and idem 1977. 12. Goury and Jones 1842-1845, commentary on pi. 1. 13. See Gayet 1893, 310: " A n d isn't polygonality the c

tracing of the rich and primitive textiles of the tent, which the Arab, still wandering and semisavage, used while camping in the desert?" 14. In nineteenth-century publications on Islamic architecture, linear drawings tended to flatten facades and architectonic elements, stripping away their spatial qualities to translate them into decorative patterns that could be recycled at will. Bozdogan has observed that the architectural drawings of these books reduced light, shadow, texture, and depth to an interplay of linear patterns: "The color and corporeality of the dome of Mescid-i Shah in Isfahan, for instance, eludes the 1842 survey drawing of Charles Texier no matter how complete and accurate the latter is rendered. . . . Nor is it possible to capture in a two-dimensional drawing, as in Owen Jones' pattern book, the precise quality of ornament inside the dome of a mosque when the drawing by its nature strips away the essential spatiality of this ornament"; see Bozdogan 1988, 41. For the Orientalist image as "object of consumption," see idem, 43-45. 15. For another early encyclopedia of ornament, see Wornum 1856, which discussed Egyptian, Greek, Roman, Byzantine, Saracenic, Gothic, and modern styles from the Renaissance onward. Wornum opposed excessive naturalism in ornament, which like music had to be based on such abstract principles as repetition, measure, rhythm, and harmony. Friedrich Maximilian Hessemer's work Arabische und alt-Italienische Bau-Verzierungen, 1842, resembled pattern books with its chromolithographic plates of ornaments derived from the monuments of Cairo, Alexandria, and Italy. 16. Brett 1992, 90. The second edition of Jones's influential book was published in 1868 and translated into German and French. 17. Jones 1982, 8. 18. Ibid., 66, 5. 19. Ibid., 74. 20. Cited in Durant 1986, 89. For Jones's wallpaper and textile patterns generated by geometric grids like those of the Alhambra, see Darby 1983, 90. 21. Jones 1982, 56-59. 22. Riegl 1893, see esp. pp. 267, 302-3, 308, 311-15, 326. See also the annotated English translation of Stilfragen, Riegl 1893 (1992), esp. pp. 229-305. For the turning point in the tenth and eleventh centuries, see Allen 1988, 15) 54-56; and part 3, chapter 6, of the present volume. 23. Riegl often cited the works of Jones, Bourgoin, Gayet, Prisse d'Avennes, and Gottfried Semper, whose Der Stil in den technischen und tektonischen Kunsten, 1860-1863, emphasized the need to learn the basic principles of decoration from non-Western ornamental traditions. For other Austrian theorists of ornament, see Kroll 1987, 47-68.

24. Bourgoin 1873a, 4. It has been suggested that Bourgoin was interested in the grouping of plant cells and may have used this information to understand tessellation; see Durant 1986, 65. 25. Among the early works that treat the muqarnas are Goury and Jones 1842-1845; and Gayet 1893. 26. See Bourgoin 1873a, 1-2, where he noted "a considerable difference between the Moresque art of Spain and the Arab art of Egypt and of Syria." He speculated that a similar difference must have existed " i n other regions of the vast Muslim empire." 27. Ibid., 3. 28. Bourgoin 1879, 5-11. Bourgoin identified three periods of Arab art: the formative period (Yepoque Byzantine, up to the twelfth century), the definitive period (Yepoque arabe, from the twelfth to the fifteenth century), and the period of decadence (Yepoque moderne, from the fifteenth century to the present). The same biological metaphor of growth and decline, so widely used by nineteenth-century European historians of art and architecture, also appears in Prisse d'Avennes's Vart arabe, where its political implications are transparent; see Prisse d'Avennes 1983. In the author's words, the book traces the "formation, flowering, and decay of Muslim civilization in Cairo" up to the arrival of the French armies who rescued the Arabs from Ottoman rule, "an epoch during which artistic inspiration was all but extinguished under the Turkish yoke" and whose few architectural works of merit reflected "the supreme protest of Arab genius against barbarism." This view, constructed to legitimize French colonial rule in Egypt, would be perpetuated within the framework of Arab nationalism that readily appropriated the racially defined notion of "Arab genius." Such Orientalists as Prisse d'Avennes saw the "Arab genius" as the "pure source" of Islamic visual culture whose stylistic and regional variants were merely a function of climate and racial character. 29. The Orientalist discourse accentuated the unbridgeable distance between two separate worlds and time frames; it not only implied the superiority of the West but also rationalized the role of Europe as a catalyst for change in the colonized Arab lands; see Said 1979; Bozdogan 1988; Mitchell 1988; and Qelik 1992. 30. Bourgoin 1873a, 24, 4. 31. Ibid., intro. 32. Ibid., intro. 33. Bourgoin described the geometric character of Arab art as follows: "Elegance and complexity by geometric involutions more or less distinct or mixed, and constructed with symmetry. Abstract figures, linear inflections, and a sort of organic growth: in other words, purely geometric themes that are graphically translated

NOTES

by working drawings, and technically executed by being transferred onto materials, such is the essential basis of Arab art." While Greek art was inspired by the animal realm and exhibited beauty and clarity through representational plastic forms arranged with attention to order, rhythm, and measure, Far Eastern art reflected the vegetal realm, imbued with the spontaneous vivacity of curvilinear floral motifs that defied order and symmetry; see Bourgoin 1879, 5-11. 34. Bourgoin 1873a, 3 - 4 . 35. See ibid., 3: "Moresque architecture is an architecture of decoration, it is this that makes it inferior, and that is why one cannot judge the art of the Orient by what one knows about Moresque or African countries." 36. Viollet-le-Duc 1875, 457~58. 37. Bourgoin 1873a, intro. 38. Parvillee 1874, 11-12. For Edmond Duthoit, see Barry Bergdoll, "'The Synthesis of All I Have Seen': The Architecture of Edmond Duthoit (1834-89)," in Robin Middleton, ed., The Beaux-Arts and Nineteenth-Century French Architecture (Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press, 1982), 216-49. 39. Prisse d'Avennes 1983, 186. 40. Bourgoin 1873a, intro. 41. Bourgoin wrote that monumental architecture "particularly holds under its dependence the arts and crafts which are directly linked to i t " ; see Bourgoin 1873b, i i . 42. Ibid., 48, 209-11. 43. See ibid., 33: "These ideas of measure and scale tend to regularize the expansion or [compositional] development of forms and of ornaments; this is necessary in itself and for the detail. Morover, in order to have concordance in the general chord, it is necessary that a measure, a eurythmy, and a general metrics harmonize each of the constituent series, subordinating one to the other, and as a whole to the overall harmony." 44. Cited in Washburn and Crowe 1988, 8-9. 45. Cited in ibid., 8-9. 46. Cited in ibid., 8-9. 47. See also Prieto y Vives 1907; idem 1932; and idem 1932-1935. 48. See Gaganov 1958,183; and Baklanov 1947,102-11. Meyer and Hamlin are cited in Washburn and Crowe 1988, 7. 49. For studies on ornament, see Rempel' 1961; Denike 1939; and Yuldashev 1957. Such studies not only were applicable to modern architecture but also helped to forge regional identities in the modern Soviet republics. Self-contained diachronic studies on the architectural ornament of various republics from pre-Islamic times up to the modern era reinforced artificial national boundaries and concealed a striking reluctance to

engage in contextual interpretations that stressed religious culture. The practical working methods of medieval builders and the universal language of the geometric and mathematical formulas they used conveniently neutralized the historical, ideological, and cultural contexts of monuments built under Muslim rule. The textbook by Muradov, Zasypkin, and Lukasheva is mentioned in Bulatov 1988, 264-65. 50. Although Miiller has been credited with having found at the Alhambra all of the seventeen symmetry groups possible in one-color plane patterns (known as plane crystallographic groups), it was not until 1987 that Spanish mathematicians and topologists were able to document their presence; see Washburn and Crowe 1988, 5, 20. Finite patterns have a central point axis around which elements can rotate or through which mirror axes can pass (other symmetries, such as translation or glide reflection, are not possible in this category). One- and two-dimensional patterns with a single color have respectively seven and seventeen different motion classes, consisting of combinations of the four basic motions possible in the Euclidean plane (reflection, translation, rotation, glide reflection). To these seven strip groups and seventeen plane groups can be added 230 three-dimensional crystallographic groups. Crystallographers also systematically have explored the greatly increased number of variants possible with the addition of two or more colors (dichromatic and polychromatic) to these symmetry groups. For more information, see Weyl 1952; followed by Shubnikov and Koptsik 1974, which summarized the work of Soviet crystallographers. Until recently the most extensive study of two-color patterns had been attempted by the Soviet school of crystallography, made available in English by Shubnikov et al. 1964. The nearly infinite variety of patterns with more than two colors has been explored in Loeb 1971; Wieting 1982; and recently in Griinbaum and Shephard 1987, which is regarded as the definitive text for the mathematical theory of patterns. 51. For one example, see Washburn and Crowe 1988, ix, where the book's purpose is explained as follows: " I n this book we demonstrate how to use the geometric principles of crystallography to develop a descriptive classification of patterned design. Just as specific chemical assays permit objective analysis and comparison of objects, so too the description of designs by their geometric symmetries makes possible a systematic study of their function and meaning within cultural contexts . . . analysis classifies the underlying structure of decorated forms; that is, the way the parts (elements, motifs, design units) are arranged in the whole design by geometrical symmetries which repeat them. . . . We have attempted to offer a more comprehensive survey of pat-

TO PART

2

85

terns occurring on decorated objects from cultures all over the world and systematically show how to classify the finite, one-dimensional, and two-dimensional oneand two-color designs with the use of flow charts and other detailed descriptions of symmetry motions and colors present." See also Hargittai 1986. 52. See Makovicky and Makovicky 1977, 58-68; Mamedov 1970; idem 1986; and Niman and Norman 1978, 489-91. Makovicky, Makovicky, and Mamedov applied crystallographic analysis to the study of Islamic geometric patterns and showed how such abstract designs are useful as tools for teaching two-dimensional and color symmetry. Noting that the drawings of Escher (who acknowledged being influenced by the Alhambra) have already become crystallographic classics, Makovicky and Makovicky identified Islamic geometric patterns as a "treasury for crystallographic teaching" for which they also recommended the less complicated Roman, Byzantine, and Romanesque mosaics and Gothic vaulting patterns. They also pointed out the usefulness of Bourgoin 1879 for this purpose. Niman and Norman 1978 was part of a project initiated in 1976 by the Metropolitan Museum of Art and Hunter College on the teaching of secondary-school mathematics through works of art, a project whose first part drew exclusively on Islamic geometric patterns. The authors encouraged other American math teachers to use Islamic designs whose "abstractness, inherent logic, and universality" made them "a particularly valuable means of teaching topics such as tessellation, algebra and symmetry." 53. Chorbachi 1989, 757, 774. As an artist Chorbachi has experimented with developing new geometric designs inspired by traditional patterns: " I have tried, visually, to show here that returning to the study of medieval Islamic tradition does not necessarily mean to advocate a move from the present century backwards to medieval times. . . . Rather, the opposite may be the case, for Islamic tradition is so strong that, i f we are in touch with the language of the present time and ground ourselves in this strong old tradition, we can arrive at an expression that is not only contemporary but that could be meaningful and valid in the coming century"; see idem, 788. 54. This book is not a study of the symmetrical properties of the Topkapi scroll's patterns—it is mainly concerned with the cultural and historical contexts in which they were created, together with their implications for aesthetic theory. Mathematical analysis of the symmetry groups to which these patterns belong is a task for which I am not qualified, but it is a task that I hope others will undertake in the future. Chorbachi, who made a pioneering effort to apply the scientific language of

86

NOTES

TO

PART

2

group theory and crystallography to the study of Islamic geometric patterns, was also among the first few scholars to turn to primary sources of scientific manuscripts on practical geometry written specifically for artisans. She wrote: " I t is essential to study in detail the scientific manuscripts and old documents that are now available to us, for they bring us closest to the true historical procedure of the Islamic science of design"; see Chorbachi 1989, 776. As such, she moved beyond symmetry issues to the step-by-step process of design in the medieval era. For these manuscripts, see Bulatov 1988; and part 4 of the present volume. 55. See Bozdogan 1988, 44: "A contemporary version of what Said calls 'Orientalizing the Orient' is, not surprisingly, enjoying growing appeal both for Western architects/firms competing for corporate jobs in the non-Western world and for the architects of the nonWestern world in their post-traditional, post-colonial— and frequently post-Modern—search for national/ cultural identity." 56. Herzfeld 1987, 365. 57. Ibid., 364-67. 58. Dimand 1930, 12; Ettinghausen 1944; idem 1979. See also Sourdel-Thomine 1965, which repeated the stereotyped interpretation of Islamic art as an essentially decorative tradition: " I t is justifiable to define Islamic art as a whole as an art of decorators and ornamenters, concerned to decorate every surface with a multiplicity of figures springing from their own imagination in accordance with a repertoire of motifs. . . . This art of the ornamenters thus corresponded to a peculiar regard for agreements and harmonies, founded, not without some aridity, on the observation of rules such as the horror of the void and the continuation of the line, in a climate which produced also the melodic line of Arab music and the cadences of its poetry." The author identified the arabesque "among the most typical aspects of the art of Islamic countries." 59. Herzfeld 1987, 367. 60. Kuhnel i960. 61. Kuhnel 1977, 8-9. 62. Ibid., 5. 63. Ibid., 6. This statement ignores the fact that not all artisans practicing in the Islamic world were Muslims. 64. See Massignon 1921, 50-51: "Muslim art derives from a theory of the universe. . . . This theory is that, in the world, there is no form in itself, and there is no figure in itself, God alone being permanent." He added, "Just as in the scientific point of view that for them [Muslims] nature does not exist, but is simply an arbitrary series of accidents and atoms with no duration, so too in art we see that the negation of the permanence of the figure and of the form is precisely the principle."

For a recent elaboration of this theory, see Tabbaa 1985. Ettinghausen 1944, which explained various tendencies of Islamic art by reference to Islam's essential characteristics, was criticized in Aga-Oglu 1954. 65. Grabar 1987, 178-94. 66. See al-Faruqi 1970a; idem 1970b; idem 1973; and idem 1989. Terry Allen, by contrast, disagreed with the view that the arabesque expressed "the secret inner workings of some 'Islamic m i n d ' " and went as far as asserting that "there is nothing 'Islamic' about Islamic art"; see Allen 1988,15. 67. al-Faruqi 1970b, 78-79. 68. al-Faruqi 1989, 261-69. For a further elaboration of the same themes, see al-Faruqi 1985. 69. Gayet described'Arab artisans as follows: "They are first of all spiritualists; they see with the soul, whereas their so admired rivals of the imitative school see with their eyes and never the beyond"; see Gayet 1893,181. See also Probst-Biraben 1907, 17-23. More recently Biirgel has also interpreted the arabesque in mystical terms, as a visual expression of joy and ecstasy. Moreover, he has associated the arabesque with magic: "Magical or quasi magical influences are ascribed to these three arts (poetry, music, painting) in countless cases related in sources from premodern Islam. Does not the idea suggest itself of interpreting the patterns of harmony and symmetry, of mirrorlike repetitions of motifs in chains or clusters or arabesques, as something closely related to the 'sympathetic' chains, the talismans of the magician?"; see Biirgel 1988, 22. 70. Probst-Biraben 1907, 20. 71. Ardalan and Bakhtiar 1973, i x - x i i . 72. Ibid., x i - x i v . 73. Ibid., 21-27. 74. Ibid., 40. 75. Ibid., 3, 6. 76. Ibid., 129. 77. For additional* biographical and bibliographical details, see Burckhardt 1987, 3-9. 78. Reprinted in ibid., 219-30. 79. Ibid., 227. 80. Ibid., 220. 81. Ibid., 217. 82. Ibid., 230. 83. Nasr 1987,13. 84. Madden 1976. 85. Ibid. 86. Grabar 1988a, 147-48. 87. Ibid., 150. 88. Burckhardt observed that Islamic art was primarily aimed at creating a spiritual ambience that would encourage contemplation; this is why architecture played a central role, with the traditional crafts and

calligraphy subordinated to its needs; see Burckhardt 1976b, 27; idem 1987, 228; and idem 1976a, 29. 89. See Burckhardt 1976b, 32: "The Muslim is not fascinated by the drama of individual artistic creation; rather his soul vibrates through the idea of the unity and immensity of God which are reflected in the cosmic order and also in the artefacts shaped by the hand of man." 90. Burckhardt 1976a, x v - x v i . See idem, 46: "But the most profound link between Islamic art and the Quran is of another kind: it lies not in the form of the Quran but in its haqiqah, its formless essence, and more particularly in the notion of tawhid, unity or union, with its contemplative implications; Islamic art—by which we mean the entirety of plastic arts in Islam—is essentially the projection into the visual order of certain aspects or dimensions of Divine Unity." 91. Ibid., 45. According to Burckhardt, diversity was created by different "ethnic environments" that exemplified "the phenomenon of diversity in unity, or of unity in diversity"; see idem, 117. 92. Ibid., 63. 93. Nasr 1976, 75. 94. Ibid., 78. 95. El-Said and Parman 1976, i x - x . 96. Ibid., 7. The lack of awareness of surviving scrolls in this study is particularly surprising given that the Mirza Akbar scrolls were displayed in one of the exhibits coordinated with the World of Islam festival. For the catalog of that exhibition, entitled Science and Technology in Islam, see Harrow and Wilson 1976. 97. Nasr praised the works of Burckhardt and Schuon and reiterated the notion of spiritual concepts reflected in Islamic art: "Islamic spirituality could not but develop a sacred art in conformity with its own revealed form as well as with its essence. The doctrine of unity which is central to the Islamic revelation combined with the nomadic spirituality which Islam made its own brought into being an aniconic art wherein the spiritual v/orld was reflected in the sensible world not through various iconic forms but through geometry and rhythm, through arabesques and calligraphy which reflect directly the worlds above and ultimately the supernal sun of Divine Unity." He stated that the PythagoreanPlatonic tradition was the origin of using numbers and geometric figures as keys to the structure of the cosmos and as symbols of the archetypal world and wrote: "Thanks to the efforts of a small number of authorities, foremost among them F. Schoun and T. Burckhardt, Islamic art is gradually coming to be understood for what it is, namely a means of relating multiplicity to Unity by means of mathematical forms which are seen, not as mental abstractions, but as reflections of

NOTES

the celestial archetypes within both the cosmos and the minds and souls of men"; see Critchlow 1976, 6. 98. Wade believed the Islamic ethos found its consummate artistic expression in the application of elaborate geometricism to the infinite pattern. He wrote that geometric patterning based on scientific developments should be seen as "integral to the Islamic spirit": "Its widespread usage suggested that this mode of expression satisfies something essential in Islam. These patterns in their infinite form reflect the basic Islamic creed of the indivisibility of God. Endlessly repeating themselves in elaborate complexity these mandalas of Islam are a reflection of the One God whose influence is not 'centred' in a divine manifestation, as in Christianity, but whose presence is an even and pervasive force throughout His creation. . . . This art is also a science, but the distinction is irrelevant to Islam, where architecture and geometric ornament develop hand in hand with the advances made in mathematics"; see Wade 1976, 7. Wade also emphasized the Platonic and Pythagorean origin of Islamic geometric patterns; his brief introduction is followed by an analysis of the underlying grids of a large number of two-dimensional patterns. 99. Critchlow 1976, 6. Critchlow freely assigned cosmic meanings to Islamic geometric patterns. For example, the hexagon "is related archetypally to the six days of the Creation"; see idem, 156; and twelve "gives the number of hours in a full daily cycle, one half being dominated by the sun, the other by the moon"; see idem, 160. In addition eight-, sixteen-, and thirty-twopointed stars "can be taken to be cosmically related on the one hand, to the four-fold division of the seasons etc., the eight-fold division relating to the orbital cycle of retrograde loops as seen in the orbit of Mars, and the subsequent divisions by multiples of the primary archetype of four and eight"; see idem, 161. For a recent elaboration of these cosmological interpretations, see Critchlow 1988. 100. Grabar 1988, 150. 101. Gombrich 1979, 225. 102. Durant 1986, 143. For a critique of mystical and cosmological interpretations of Islamic geometric patterns, see also Chorbachi 1989. After analyzing the fallacies of publications on this subject during the 1970s, Chorbachi observed: "The symbolic mystical interpretations that have proliferated in these books on Islamic geometric design, pattern and ornament are based on a modern understanding of Islamic literature. There is no documented evidence that such interpretations were given to the art forms when they were created hundreds of years ago"; see idem 1989, 760. 103. Oleg Grabar 1992,151.

104. Ibid. 105. Ibid., 154. 106. Ibid., 233-34. 107. This polemic continues to divide recent studies on the arabesque, studies that tend to repeat earlier stereotypes. Among the works that see the arabesque as an essentially decorative element are Sourdel-Thomine 1965; and Sandler 1976. Allen was also reluctant to assign iconographic significance to the arabesque and to geometry, which he admitted probably conveyed some associations in at least some cases: "Whatever these may have been, the use of the arabesque and geometry always serves the purpose of increasing the visual richness of an object or building, and I believe this to be their primary purpose"; see Allen 1988, 54, 56. See also idem, 2: "Ironically the idea of the 'Islamicness' of Islamic art has been picked up by Muslims unaware of how deeply rooted it is in a highly culture-bound Western view of the 'East.'" Such authors as Nasr, Lois al-Faruqi, and Isma il al-Faruqi continued to assign specifically Islamic meanings to the arabesque. The recent appearance in Iran of several practice-oriented publications on geometric patterns, with "how-to" instructions addressing professional architects charged with designing buildings appropriate for the new Islamic regime, once again reflects the perception of geometric patterns as symbolic stamps of cultural and religious identity in some Muslim circles; see Firishtah Nazhad 1977; Lur'zadeh 1979; Shi rbaf 1982-1983; and Buzurgmihri 1982. c

c

108. This dichotomy informed Gombrich's different treatment of abstract patterns and representational art in two separate works; see Gombrich i960; and idem 1979.

TO

PART

2

87

PART

3 .

THE GEOGRAPHICAL, HORIZONS

CHRONOLOGICAL,

OF THE GEOMETRIC

To underrate Baghdad is to underrate

—Ernst Herzfeld

1

Rome.

MODE

AND

SEMANTIC

CHAPTER

6.

GEOMETRIC

PATTERNING

BEFORE

The geographical and c h r o n o l o g i c a l parameters

THE

MONGOLS

p o n e d the study o f regional variations beyond

A b o u t two decades later Herzfeld and F r i e d r i c h

o f the so-called geometric arabesque were n o t

the A r a b w o r l d to future generations whose task i t

Sarre's p u b l i c a t i o n s o n the Samarra excavations

systematically explored i n the secondary litera-

w o u l d be to "investigate the d i s t i n c t i o n s w i t h i n

opened up new h o r i z o n s t h a t f i r m l y established

ture discussed i n the previous section. A l t h o u g h

the geographically far-flung regions o f Islamic c u l -

the I r a q i Abbasid o r i g i n o f the ornaments seen i n

n i n e t e e n t h - and early t w e n t i e t h - c e n t u r y p u b l i -

ture and to establish the nature o f the v a r i a t i o n . "

the n i n t h - c e n t u r y mosque o f I b n T u l u n at C a i r o ,

cations o n the subject often suffered f r o m the

Given his agenda to trace the genetic c o n t i n u i t y

previously viewed as a local Egyptian development

l i m i t e d a m o u n t o f d o c u m e n t a t i o n available at

o f vegetal o r n a m e n t f r o m a n t i q u i t y to the present,

o f the arabesque t h a t m a t u r e d under F a t i m i d rule

that t i m e , m o r e recent ahistorical studies o n the

Riegl preferred to adopt an "all-encompassing

between the late t e n t h and t w e l f t h centuries.

r e l i g i o s p i r i t u a l and cosmological s y m b o l i s m o f the

perspective" rather t h a n to "seek or establish

A r t h u r U p h a m Pope and Phyllis Ackerman's m o n u -

arabesque w i l l f u l l y overlooked the accumulated

d i s t i n c t i o n s . " He w r o t e :

m e n t a l Survey of Persian Art from Prehistoric

2

b o d y o f i n f o r m a t i o n o n the regional and c h r o n o logical complexities o f Islamic visual c u l t u r e to

4

Times

to the Present, 1938-1939, also shifted the center Surely f u r t h e r study o f the h i s t o r y o f

o f gravity i n artistic i n n o v a t i o n f r o m Egypt and

u n d e r l i n e a unified essence t h a t transcended

Islamic art w i l l eventually enable us to

the M a g h r i b to the eastern Islamic lands. I n his

t i m e and space.

recognize and isolate the characteristics

discussion o f the " g e o m e t r i c style," whose post-

As we have seen, the n i n e t e e n t h - c e n t u r y litera-

o f i n d i v i d u a l local schools. Today we

eleventh-century development i n the I r a n i a n

t u r e o n the subject concentrated o n the m o r e

are still preoccupied w i t h establishing the

w o r l d he a t t r i b u t e d to the a r r i v a l o f the Seljuqs,

accessible m o n u m e n t s o f A r a b c i v i l i z a t i o n i n

c o m m o n d e n o m i n a t o r o f the develop-

Pope w r o t e : "West Islamic geometric o r n a m e n t ,

Syria, Egypt, N o r t h Africa, and Spain. T h a t is

m e n t as a w h o l e , a development whose

so familiar to Europeans, has t o o often been

w h y Riegl's exemplary analysis o f the arabesque

roots . . . went back to the c o m m o n expe-

accounted n o t merely the representative o f style,

i n Stilfragen,

rience o f late a n t i q u e - B y z a n t i n e art,

b u t even its supreme expression. But c o m p a r e d

Jones, Gayet, Prisse d'Avennes, and B o u r g o i n , was

i.e., the art t h a t d o m i n a t e d all o f these

w i t h the best I r a n i a n examples i t betrays a certain

l i m i t e d to examples p r i m a r i l y selected f r o m A r a b

regions across three c o n t i n e n t s w h e n

meagerness (for all its i n t r i c a c y ) and artificiality."

m o n u m e n t s . Like B o u r g o i n , Riegl a d m i t t e d the

Islam first emerged.

The c o m p l e x i t y o f m u l t i p l e orders o f super-

w h i c h frequently quotes the works o f

l i m i t a t i o n s o f available i n f o r m a t i o n and post-

3

i m p o s e d geometric p a t t e r n i n g seen i n I r a n i a n

92

PART

3.

THE

GEOGRAPHICAL,

CHRONOLOGICAL,

AND

SEMANTIC

HORIZONS

architecture made the arabesques o f the western

it experienced its f u l l f l o w e r i n g . Nevertheless

Islamic w o r l d appear "relatively deficient i n i n t e l -

the i n f o r m a t i o n made available by new research

centers o f artistic p r o d u c t i o n , no d o u b t colored

lectual capacity and aesthetic j u d g m e n t . " Pope

and archaeological f i e l d w o r k d i d n o t result i n a

the canonical visual i d i o m s that stamped p u b l i c

argued: " T h e best geometric o r n a m e n t i n I r a n is

detailed analysis o f the development o f the ara-

religious m o n u m e n t s .

different and superior. I t is, i n the first place, n o t

besque and the mechanisms o f its d i s s e m i n a t i o n .

7

courts, w h i c h also happened to be the m a i n

Even t h o u g h there is no evidence i n the p r i m a r y

the p r o d u c t o f mere craftsmen, b u t , i n the finer

I n this section I w i l l focus o n the geometric m o d e ,

sources to s u p p o r t the stereotyped n o t i o n t h a t

examples, is evidently the direct use o f m a t h e -

the m a i n subject o f the T o p k a p i scroll, o u t l i n i n g

n o n f i g u r a l visual i d i o m s were considered the

m a t i c a l d i s c i p l i n e . " A t t r i b u t i n g the creation o f

its spatial and t e m p o r a l h o r i z o n s together w i t h its

"essence" o f the arts i n Islamic lands, religious

geometric patterns to m a t h e m a t i c a l l y t r a i n e d

c o n t e x t u a l associations as far as is possible given

constraints d i d place an unprecedented emphasis

b u i l d e r s , he observed:

the serious gaps i n the early Islamic archaeological

o n t h e m . This s h o u l d n o t , however, i m p l y t h a t

record.

the development o f the so-called arabesque was

5

The i n v e n t i o n s o f the Persian geometers

W i t h its p u r e l y geometric vocabulary the girih

an a u t o m a t i c one, given the availability o f a wide

are inexhaustible, b u t the principles are

was o n l y one o f m a n y abstract modes o f design

range o f n o n f i g u r a l i d i o m s n o t necessarily l i m i t e d

constant and all subject to d e f i n i t i o n

that flourished i n the medieval Islamic w o r l d i n

to an abstract vocabulary o f geometric, vegetal,

i n logical terms. For these patterns are

response to the constrictions placed o n the scope

and calligraphic forms. I t was o n l y three t o four

the objective and visual records o f laws

o f figural representation, w h i c h f r o m the very

centuries after the b i r t h o f the new r e l i g i o n t h a t

embedded i n the m i n d itself, logic

b e g i n n i n g was excluded f r o m religious m o n u -

the abstract modes o f design i d e n t i f i e d i n Europe

expressed i n linear relations, yet i n d i -

ments and i l l u m i n a t e d Korans. A l t h o u g h figural

as the arabesque were favored, c u l m i n a t i n g by the

v i d u a l i z e d by a p e n e t r a t i n g aesthetic

representation had a r i c h life o f its o w n t h r o u g h -

late t e n t h and eleventh centuries i n p r e d o m i n a n t l y

selectivity that endows t h e m w i t h

o u t Islamic history, i t was consistently relegated

geometric schemes.

beauty and e m o t i o n .

to profane contexts i n architecture, the decorative

6

N e w studies o n the arts and architecture o f

I t is o n l y n a t u r a l to assume t h a t the girih, a

arts, and m i n i a t u r e p a i n t i n g . This meant that

h i g h l y codified mode o f geometric p a t t e r n i n g w i t h

n o n f i g u r a l modes o f representation t h a t exclu-

a distinctive repertoire o f algebraically definable

I r a n , I r a q , A n a t o l i a , Central Asia, Afghanistan,

sively relied o n a vocabulary o f i n a n i m a t e forms

elements, was preferred for some reason over

and I n d i a p r o v i d e d a m o r e balanced v i s i o n o f the

had to be f o r m u l a t e d , forms t h a t often f o u n d t h e i r

other forms o f n o n f i g u r a l design. The p a r t i c u l a r

geographical and c h r o n o l o g i c a l variety w i t h i n

way i n t o n o n r e l i g i o u s contexts as w e l l . The i n t i -

kind o f geometry used lies at the heart o f the p r o b -

the vast Islamic domains. This c o n t r i b u t e d to a re-

mate c o n n e c t i o n between i n a n i m a t e designs and

l e m . The girih m o d e , w i t h its t w o - and three-

d e f i n i t i o n o f the scope o f the so-called arabesque,

the religious contexts for w h i c h they were o r i g i -

dimensional formulations compiled in surviving

leading some scholars t o place its o r i g i n i n the

nally i n t e n d e d makes i t l i k e l y t h a t they w o u l d have

examples o f p a t t e r n scrolls, is characterized by its

n i n t h - c e n t u r y beveled style o f Abbasid Samarra

been i n f o r m e d by the d o m i n a n t theological o r i e n -

self-consciously l i m i t e d vocabulary o f f a m i l i a r ,

and others i n the t e n t h - and eleventh-century east-

tations o f the settings where they were created.

almost emblematic, star-and-polygon c o m p o s i -

ern Islamic w o r l d f r o m where i t spread t o the west

These s h i f t i n g o r i e n t a t i o n s officially adopted to

tions generated by invisible g r i d systems that e l i m i -

between the t w e l f t h and t h i r t e e n t h centuries w h e n

s u p p o r t d i f f e r i n g claims o f legitimacy i n specific

nated a b r o a d spectrum o f alternative geometric

GEOMETRIC

PATTERNING

BEFORE

THE

93

MONGOLS

81. Detail of mosaic panel depicting a river landscape with trees and buildings, from the west portico of the courtyard, Umayyad Great Mosque, Damascus, 705-715. Photo by author.

designs. W h a t made i t so appealing to the sensibilities o f the medieval Islamic w o r l d and w h a t were the circumstances o f its invention? The spotty archaeological record makes i t d i f f i cult to p i n p o i n t the girth's t i m e and place o f o r i g i n and the processes o f its d i s s e m i n a t i o n . Interlaced geometric patterns, c o m m o n l y used i n w i n d o w lattices, floor mosaics, and wooden ceilings d u r i n g the U m a y y a d p e r i o d (661-750), were h a r d l y a p r o m i n e n t feature o f early Islamic architectural d e c o r a t i o n before the late t e n t h century. The n o n figural

decorative vocabulary o f U m a y y a d religious

m o n u m e n t s was p r e d o m i n a n t l y representational, w i t h its B y z a n t i n i z i n g landscapes, architectural depictions, jeweled crowns, and identifiable fruits and trees (figs. 81-83). These elements were synthesized w i t h Sasanian and pagan A r a b motifs i n t o a distinctive i m p e r i a l U m a y y a d visual i d i o m whose geometric and vegetal patterns c o n t i n u e d to e x h i b i t a genetic l i n k to Hellenistic, late antique, and Byzantine prototypes. This l i n k was still apparent i n the n o n f i g u r a l decorative vocabulary o f the

83. Detail of interior mosaics depicting vase, vegetal scroll, crown, and winged motifs, Dome of the Rock, Jerusalem, 692.

early Abbasid p e r i o d . Some examples f r o m t h a t p e r i o d i n c l u d e the juxtaposed geometric and vegetal motifs o f the marble m i h r a b and w o o d e n m i n bar at the Great Mosque i n Qairawan (believed to have been i m p o r t e d i n the n i n t h century f r o m Abbasid Baghdad) and c o n t e m p o r a r y carved w o o d e n panels w i t h s i m i l a r m o t i f s o r i g i n a t i n g from Takrit i n Iraq.

8

The t r a n s f o r m a t i o n o f classicizing vegetal and geometric patterns i n t o the beveled style o f the Abbasid capital Samarra (838-892) c o n s t i t u t e d a

82. Detail of interior mosaics depicting jar, crown, and floral motifs, Dome of the Rock, Jerusalem, 692. Photo: Courtesy Eva Baer.

94

PART

3.

THE

GEOGRAPHICAL,

CHRONOLOGICAL,

AND

SEMANTIC

HORIZONS

84. Dado, style A, Samarra, ninth century, stucco. Cairo, Museum of Islamic Art, I3849.

85. Panel, style B, Samarra, ninth century, stucco. Berlin, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Preufiischer Kulturbesitz, Museum fur Islamische Kunst. Photo: Copyright Bildarchiv Preufiischer Kulturbesitz, Berlin. 86. Panel, style C, Samarra, ninth century, stucco. Berlin, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Preufiischer Kulturbesitz, Museum fur Islamische Kunst. Photo: Copyright Bildarchiv Preufiischer Kulturbesitz, Berlin.

87. Panel with birdlike motif, Egypt, late ninth century, wood. Paris, Musee du Louvre, Departement des Antiquites Orientales, inv. 6023.

GEOMETRIC

radical i n n o v a t i o n (figs. 8 4 - 8 7 ) . The new visual

PATTERNING

BEFORE

THE

tals discovered i n Raqqa, one o f w h i c h already

95

MONGOLS

expressions used i n the K o r a n w i t h reference t o

i d i o m r a p i d l y spread f r o m the Abbasid capitals o f

displays an abstract t r e a t m e n t o f shapes w i t h

G o d were, therefore, i n t e r p r e t e d i n a m e t a p h o r i c a l

Samarra and Baghdad to the caliphal provinces

beveled edges, w h i l e the other still preserves its

sense by the adherents o f the M u t a z i l a school w h o

and to such semi-independent courts as t h a t o f

Hellenistic f o r m .

developed a new cosmology based o n the d u a l i s m

the T u l u n i d s ( 8 6 8 - 9 0 5 ) i n Egypt. I t deliberately

9

I t may n o t be a coincidence t h a t this seemingly

c

o f essence ( a t o m ) and existence (accident). This

abstracted vegetal and geometric designs derived

self-conscious change i n visual representation

a t o m i s t i c view o f m a t t e r , space, and t i m e — c o n -

f r o m classical prototypes t h a t had been assimilated

came about at a t i m e w h e n the Abbasid c o u r t was

ceived by A b u a l - H u d h a y l , w h o died i n Samarra

by the Byzantine, Sasanian, and U m a y y a d i m p e r i a l

intensely engaged i n theological and p h i l o s o p h i c a l

i n the 840s, and elaborated by o t h e r s — e x p l a i n e d

styles, t r a n s f o r m i n g t h e m i n t o i n t e r p e n e t r a t i n g

debates about the unstable nature o f m a t t e r i n the

all p h e n o m e n a i n the physical w o r l d t h r o u g h the

reciprocal shapes t h a t dissolved t r a d i t i o n a l

physical w o r l d , related to such broader issues as

inherence o f accidents i n the atoms t h a t composed

g r o u n d relations. Its contiguous a m o r p h o u s

God's absolute transcendence o f m a t t e r and the

m a t t e r . This was an ephemeral and perishable

shapes, capable o f c o n t i n u a l m e t a m o r p h o s i s i n t o

status o f the r a t i o n a l h u m a n soul as an i n c o r p o r e a l

m a t e r i a l w o r l d i n perpetual flux where a n y t h i n g

one another, recalled the i n t e r m e d i a t e state o f

substance u n c o n s t r a i n e d by m a t t e r . These debates

visible r e m a i n e d o n l y accidentally b o u n d to its

p r i m o r d i a l m a t t e r between formlessness and

were triggered by the t r a n s l a t i o n o f Greek p h i l o -

apparent f o r m .

f o r m . A m b i g u o u s c u r v i l i n e a r patterns, w i t h

sophical texts and c u l m i n a t e d w i t h the accep-

beveled edges creating u n d u l a t i n g surfaces, some-

tance o f M u t a z i l i s m as an official d o c t r i n e by the

w o r l d open to endless p e r m u t a t i o n by incessant

times featured geometric frames t h a t c o m p a r t -

Abbasid caliphs between 813 and 848, a d o c t r i n e

accidents may w e l l have i n f o r m e d the Samarran

mentalized elements d i s t a n t l y evoking vegetation

that w o u l d c o n t i n u e to be i n f l u e n t i a l i n Baghdadi

beveled aesthetic w i t h its deliberate a m b i g u i t y i n

and occasionally animate forms recalling b i r d s .

c o u r t circles under B u y i d (945-1055) patronage

representing n a t u r a l forms, caught as i f they were

figure-

c

1 0

The v i s i o n o f a c o n t i n u a l l y fluctuating a t o m i s t i c

u n t i l its adherents were systematically persecuted

i n an ambivalent zone between i n t e l l i g i b i l i t y and

w h i c h resisted being resolved i n t o i n t e l l i g i b l e

by the Great Seljuqs (1038-1194) w h o occupied

u n i n t e l l i g i b i l i t y , being and b e c o m i n g , actuality

forms w i t h clearly delineated c o n t o u r s , seems to

Baghdad i n 1055. A l t h o u g h establishing the pos-

and p o t e n t i a l i t y . Was this peculiar m o d e o f repre-

have reflected a concern w i t h r u p t u r i n g the classi-

sible c o r r e l a t i o n between M u t a z i l i sensibilities

sentation meant to be a visual c o m m e n t a r y o n the

The deliberate elusiveness o f the beveled style,

c

cal ideal o f mimesis. I t has, i n fact, been s h o w n

and the beveled aesthetic falls beyond the scope o f

i m p e r m a n e n c e o f m a t t e r as mere p o t e n t i a l i t y and

that its abstract patterns were direct translations

m y i n q u i r y , i t is nevertheless t e m p t i n g to postulate

as the unstable s u b s t r a t u m o f forms? C o u l d the

or r e i n t e r p r e t a t i o n s o f classical prototypes, reflect-

that this official ideology i n f o r m e d the character

deceptiveness o f visual p e r c e p t i o n i m p l i e d by the

i n g a p r o g r a m m a t i c process o f abstraction whose

o f abstract visual i d i o m s f o r m u l a t e d at t h a t t i m e

w i l l f u l o b s c u r i t y o f the beveled style have expressed

rationale has so far escaped e x p l a n a t i o n . U n l i k e

i n the A b b a s i d c o u r t m i l i e u .

the M u t a z i l i c o n t e m p t for m a t t e r (liable to c o n -

such scholars as Josef Strzygowski and Ernst Diez,

The M u t a z i l a school affirmed the p r i m a c y c

c

t i n u a l l y change f o r m ) , thereby u n d e r l i n i n g the

w h o a t t e m p t e d to trace the Samarran beveled style

o f h u m a n reason and free w i l l together w i t h the

p r i m a c y o f the r a t i o n a l h u m a n soul and o f

to T u r k i c n o m a d i c influences f r o m C e n t r a l Asia,

absolute transcendence and oneness o f G o d , w h o

intellectual v i s i o n over seeing w i t h one's eyes?

Herzfeld and Ettinghausen l i n k e d i t w i t h some

was completely beyond a n t h r o p o m o r p h i c a t t r i -

t r a n s i t i o n a l Abbasid works, p a r t i c u l a r l y t w o capi-

butes and the physical w o r l d . A n t h r o p o m o r p h i c

I t is n o t u n l i k e l y t h a t the M u t a z i l a t h e o r y o f c

the a t o m i s t i c universe c o u l d have engendered a

9

6

PART

3.

THE

GEOGRAPHICAL,

CHRONOLOGICAL,

new way o f representing the m a t e r i a l w o r l d .

AND

SEMANTIC

HORIZONS

p r e t a t i o n w i t h respect to its outer and i n n e r

o r t h o d o x p o l i c y o f the Abbasid caliphs was perpetu-

I f so, i t was the m e r g i n g o f Greek p h i l o s o p h y

meanings. Influenced by the Hanbalis and other

ated i n Baghdad, where they relocated their capi-

w i t h M u s l i m theology i n a h i s t o r i c a l l y specific

t r a d i t i o n i s t s , the Abbasid caliph a l - M u t a w a k k i l

tal i n the late n i n t h century. I t c u l m i n a t e d i n the

c o n t e x t — r a t h e r t h a n a supposedly universal

(r. 847-861) rejected M u t a z i l i s m and its t h e o r y

S u n n i r e s t o r a t i o n t h a t began to assert itself m o r e

Islamic m e n t a l i t y — t h a t may have i n s p i r e d the

o f the created K o r a n , to w h i c h the Shi is also sub-

strongly d u r i n g the B u y i d p e r i o d f r o m the reign o f

Samarran beveled style, seen by m a n y as the first

scribed. H i s o p p o s i t i o n to M u t a z i l i s m and S h i i s m

a l - Q a d i r (r. 991-1031) o n w a r d . The S h i i Buyids,

example o f the arabesque. Massignon d i d l i n k

(exemplified by his d e s t r u c t i o n o f the S h i i shrine

under whose tutelage the Abbasid caliphs remained

c

c

c

c

c

c

the ephemeral character o f Islamic art w i t h the

o f the i m a m al-Husayn i n Karbala) c o n s t i t u t e d

for m o r e t h a n a century between 945 and 1055 u n t i l

atomistic t h e o r y o f the universe developed by

a break w i t h the past t h a t i n i t i a t e d a new ethos

the o c c u p a t i o n o f Baghdad by the S u n n i Great

M u s l i m theologians, b u t he failed to place his

o f o r t h o d o x y . The h i s t o r i a n a l - M a s u d i ( d . 956)

Seljuqs, favored a c o m b i n a t i o n o f M u t a z i l i and

generalized c o m m e n t s i n context and t o d i s t i n -

described the caliph's policy:

S h i i doctrines against w h i c h a l - Q a d i r fought to

c

c

c

guish between various c o m p e t i n g a t o m i s t i c theo-

restore the power o f the caliphate. To this end he

ries. H i s r e d u c t i o n i s t c o r r e l a t i o n o f a loosely

W h e n the Caliphate came to M u t a w a k k i l ,

issued a manifesto i n 1011 c o n d e m n i n g the Fatimids

defined theological w o r l d v i e w w i t h an assumed

he abolished free t h o u g h t , p h i l o s o p h i c a l

i n Egypt whose propaganda had penetrated the

u n i t y o f artistic expression thus helped perpetuate

disputes and the things w h i c h had occu-

S h i i quarters o f Baghdad. After f o r b i d d i n g the

the p r o b l e m a t i c v i s i o n o f a m o n o l i t h i c and

p i e d men's m i n d s under M u t a s i m , W a t h i q

teaching o f M u t a z i l i and S h i i doctrines i n 1017,

ahistorical Islamic visual c u l t u r e .

and M a m u n [caliphs w h o had accepted

he p r o m u l g a t e d the f o l l o w i n g year an official the-

11

c

c

c

c

c

M u t a z i l i s m as the official d o c t r i n e o f the

ology i n s p i r e d by H a n b a l i ideas t h a t c o n d e m n e d

used i n decorating the religious architecture o f the

Abbasid state]. He re-established o r t h o -

all u n o r t h o d o x doctrines. I n 1029 a l - Q a d i r once

Umayyads, w h o had sought to visualize the abso-

doxy and submission to t r a d i t i o n a l r e l i -

again denounced M u t a z i l i s m , p a r t i c u l a r l y attack-

lute power o f G o d , his k i n g d o m , and his t h r o n e by

gious values, and insisted t h a t the heads

i n g its d o c t r i n e o f the created K o r a n and affirm-

such concrete images as jeweled crowns and i d y l l i c

o f the schools o f T r a d i t i o n s h o u l d teach

i n g its status as an uncreated record o f God's

landscapes w i t h heavenly mansions, m u s t have

that T r a d i t i o n and devote themselves to

eternal speech.

i m p l i e d an a n t h r o p o m o r p h i c v i s i o n t h a t was vehe-

the p r o p a g a t i o n o f the Sunna and practices

m e n t l y rejected by the M u t a z i l a s c h o o l .

sanctioned by the c o m m u n i t y o f I s l a m .

The representational n o n f i g u r a l vocabulary

c

12

The

c

c

1 3

polemics o f this school against a n t h r o p o m o r p h i s m (tashbth)

completely divested G o d o f eternal

attributes (ta tTl),

an extreme p o s i t i o n t h a t was

14

S u n n i o r t h o d o x y was f i r m l y consolidated d u r i n g the reign o f the Great Seljuqs, a T u r k i s h dynasty based i n I r a n and I r a q that associated its

This o r t h o d o x t r e n d also characterized the

legitimacy w i t h the freeing o f the Abbasid caliphs

reign o f the Abbasid caliph a l - M u h t a d i ( 8 6 9 - 8 7 0 ) ,

f r o m B u y i d tutelage i n 1055. This p e r i o d p r o -

criticized by such o r t h o d o x scholars as A h m a d

w h o according to a l - M a s u d i " h a d made austerity

duced such o r t h o d o x theologians as A b u al-Hasan

b. H a n b a l ( d . 855). I n keeping w i t h t h e i r denial o f

and r e l i g i o n the t w i n aims o f his l i f e . " Due t o his

a l - A s h a r i ( d . 935-936) and al-Ghazali, w h o c o n -

God's attributes, the M u t a z i l a rejected the eter-

p u r i t a n i c a l s i m p l i c i t y the caliph b r o k e musical

t r i b u t e d to the r e s t o r a t i o n o f S u n n i s m d u r i n g the

n i t y o f his speech, declaring the K o r a n t o be an

i n s t r u m e n t s , rejected l u x u r y objects, and o b l i t e r -

eleventh century. U n l i k e the S h i i Buyids w h o had

accident created i n t i m e and thus open t o i n t e r -

ated p a i n t e d figures f r o m decorated r o o m s . The

persecuted the A s h a r i theological school, f o u n d e d

c

c

c

c

c

c

GEOMETRIC

PATTERNING

BEFORE

THE

by a l - A s h a r i , the Seljuqs gave official s u p p o r t

as an eternal e m a n a t i o n existing i n d e p e n d e n t l y

to i t . The founder o f this o r t h o d o x school o f the-

of G o d .

c

ology, w h o p u b l i c l y denounced the M u t a z i l i c

97

MONGOLS

I t was i n this context o f S u n n i revival d u r i n g the hegemony o f the Great Seljuqs t h a t the girih

1 5

A l - G h a z a l i , the A s h a r i theologian w h o w o r k e d c

m o d e suddenly

flourished.

T h o u g h its f u l l p o t e n -

doctrines to w h i c h he had previously subscribed,

under Seljuq patronage, was according to I b n

tial for architectural revetments does n o t seem t o

professed to f o l l o w the p o s i t i o n o f t r a d i t i o n i s t s

K h a l d u n " t h e first scholar to w r i t e i n accordance

have been realized u n t i l the eleventh century, the

such as I b n H a n b a l , b u t defended his d o g m a t i c

w i t h the new theological a p p r o a c h . "

theses t h r o u g h the type o f r a t i o n a l a r g u m e n t

his radical m i s t r u s t o f h u m a n reason and his c o n -

b l y t o o k place i n late t e n t h - c e n t u r y Baghdad f r o m

K n o w n for

1 6

earliest f o r m u l a t i o n o f its design principles p r o b a -

sequent c o n d e m n a t i o n o f the views o f speculative

w h i c h i t spread t o other courts. The appearance o f

philosophers t h a t were i n c o m p a t i b l e w i t h o r t h o -

p r e d o m i n a n t l y geometric revetments i n Islamic

w i t h the legal school o f al-Shafi i) a t t e m p t e d t o

d o x I s l a m , al-Ghazali f o r m u l a t e d a new synthesis

architecture is usually traced to the t e n t h - c e n t u r y

mediate between opposing views b y its c o m p r o -

o f A s h a r i S u n n i s m . This synthesis, a b l e n d o f t r a -

" b r i c k style" o f n o r t h e r n - n o r t h e a s t e r n I r a n and

m i s i n g m i d d l e p a t h , o r via media. I t recognized

d i t i o n a l legalism, p h i l o s o p h i c a l sciences, and m o d -

Central Asia, f r o m where i t is t h o u g h t to have

the eternal attributes o f G o d w i t h o u t accepting

erate Sufism, encapsulated the " S h a r i a - m i n d e d "

m i g r a t e d westward. However, this hypothesis is

a n t h r o p o m o r p h i s m , declared the K o r a n to be

ethos o f the age o f " S u n n i r e v i v a l " t h a t eventually

largely based o n the accidental survival o f the ear-

uncreated, and stressed God's o m n i p o t e n c e at the

marginalized M u t a z i l i , S h i i , and other u n o r t h o -

liest b r i c k b u i l d i n g s w i t h geometric revetments i n

employed b y the M u t a z i l a . c

The A s h a r i theological school (generally allied c

c

c

c

c

c

expense o f h u m a n free w i l l . I t also m o d i f i e d the

d o x doctrines t h a t had p o l i t i c a l l y fragmented the

those regions, i n contrast to the disappearance o f

atomistic cosmology o f the M u t a z i l a to vindicate

M u s l i m w o r l d i n the previous century. Despite

m o n u m e n t s f r o m the p e r i o d o f B u y i d and Seljuq tutelage i n the Abbasid capital Baghdad.

c

the absolute power o f G o d , the u n i q u e creator

the o p p o s i t i o n i t faced d u r i n g the Seljuq p e r i o d

whose w i l l alone guaranteed the perceived sense o f

f r o m the M a t u r i d i school ( w h i c h was p a r t i c u l a r l y

order i n the universe b y preserving the accidental

p o p u l a r a m o n g the Hanafi T u r k s , a school t h a t

t e n t h century, such as the Samanid mausoleum i n

c o m b i n a t i o n o f atoms t h r o u g h c o n t i n u o u s i n t e r -

also defended o r t h o d o x y by r a t i o n a l methods b u t

Bukhara and the B u y i d p o r t a l o f the Jurjir mosque

Early examples o f the b r i c k style f r o m the

ference. This cosmology, refined b y the A s h a r i

f o u n d some o f the A s h a r i positions too conser-

i n Isfahan, are d o m i n a t e d b y simple rectilinear

theologian al-Baqillani ( d . 1013), ascribed to God's

vative) and f r o m the H a n b a l i t r a d i t i o n i s t s ( w h o

geometric patterns that show no sign o f the i n t e r -

c

c

direct i n t e r v e n t i o n n o t o n l y the c o m i n g o f things

rejected r a t i o n a l a r g u m e n t a t i o n as an objectionable

laced stars and polygons typical o f the girih

i n t o being b u t also t h e i r persistence i n being f r o m

i n n o v a t i o n ) , the A s h a r i school became the d o m i -

Such patterns appear o n the facade o f the A r a b

one instant t o another. I t was used to s u p p o r t

n a n t theological school i n the Arabic-speaking

c

"arguments f r o m design" t h a t inferred God's exis-

parts o f the late Abbasid caliphate. F r o m t h a t t i m e

a Q a r a k h a n i d m o n u m e n t whose i n t e r i o r has

tence t h r o u g h the w o n d e r f u l design and c o m p o s i -

w e l l i n t o the f o u r t e e n t h c e n t u r y and beyond, the

muqarnas u n i t s at its t r a n s i t i o n zone to the d o m e

t i o n observed i n the d i v i n e creation. The universe

A s h a r i school w o u l d become almost equated

that signal the l i n k between t w o - and three-

reflected the w i s d o m and knowledge o f an a l l -

w i t h S u n n i o r t h o d o x y i n the A r a b w o r l d , w h i l e

d i m e n s i o n a l geometric forms (fig. 88). The facade

p o w e r f u l G o d w h o had d i r e c t l y created i t i n t i m e

the M a t u r i d i school r e m a i n e d d o m i n a n t i n the

o f another Q a r a k h a n i d mausoleum (1012-1013) i n

w i t h o u t any intermediaries, a t h e o r y differing

Hanafi regions extending f r o m A n a t o l i a and

Uzgend i n upper Ferghana (fig. 89), b u i l t for the

f r o m the M u t a z i l i and S h i i view o f the universe

Central Asia to I n d i a .

ruler Nasr b. A l i , also displays early examples o f

c

c

c

c

1 7

mode.

c

A t a mausoleum (977-978) at T i m i n Uzbekistan,

c

9

8

PART

3.

THE

GEOGRAPHICAL,

CHRONOLOGICAL,

88. Elevation drawing of entrance facade, mausoleum of Arab Ata, Tim, 977-978, ink on paper. Photo: Courtesy Harvard University, Fogg Art Museum, Fine Arts Library, Visual Collections. c

AND

SEMANTIC

HORIZONS

89. Detail of geometric brickwork on the main facade of a royal mausoleum, Uzgend, ca. 1012-1013. Photo: Copyright Ernst Wasmuth Verlag GmbH & Co. Tiibingen/Berlin.

c

1

GEOMETRIC

PATTERNING

BEFORE

THE

MONGOLS

99

90. Detail of geometric brickwork on the entrance facade of the East Tomb Tower (1), arch, spandrels, and inscriptions below dome, Kharraqan, 1067. Photo: Courtesy David Stronach.

interlaced s t a r - a n d - p o l y g o n ornaments i n b r i c k ,

Baghdad is t o u n d e r r a t e R o m e . " Baghdad, w i t h

seen o n the eleventh-century b r i c k m i n a r e t o f that

its n o w - v a n i s h e d late Abbasid and Seljuq m o n u -

city as w e l l . Such geometric patterns, often accom-

ments, is the most l i k e l y place f r o m w h i c h t w o -

panied b y the muqarnas, are consistently used o n

and t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l geometric revetments

the b r i c k m o n u m e n t s and minarets o f the Seljuq

c o u l d have spread to n e i g h b o r i n g courts. This

domains after appearing i n full-fledged f o r m at

hypothesis goes against the a r g u m e n t o f such

t w o ' t o m b towers i n K h a r r a q a n (1067-1068 and

scholars as Diez, O k t a y Aslanapa, and Selcuk

1093) (figs. 90, 91). They are seen a r o u n d the same

M u l a y i m , w h o a t t r i b u t e d the d i s s e m i n a t i o n o f

t i m e at the Great M o s q u e i n the Seljuq capital

geometric revetments t o the n o m a d i c tastes the

Isfahan, w i t h its two stellate d o m e chambers fea-

Turks i n t r o d u c e d f r o m Central Asia t o I r a n and

t u r i n g muqarnas zones o f t r a n s i t i o n (1072-1092

A n a t o l i a . Pope, b y contrast, i n t e r p r e t e d the geo-

and 1088) and its various t w e l f t h - c e n t u r y a d d i -

m e t r i c m o d e that flourished d u r i n g the Seljuq

tions. The i n i t i a l austerity o f the geometric i d i o m

p e r i o d as an I r a n i a n creation rather t h a n a T u r k i c

i n b r i c k was soon loosened w i t h the i n t r o d u c t i o n

one. These e t h n o n a t i o n a l i n t e r p r e t a t i o n s fall

o f color i n the t o m b towers o f Maragha and

apart u n d e r close s c r u t i n y and fail t o explain w h y

Nakhchivan i n northwestern Iran including

and h o w s i m i l a r geometric patterns spread so

G u n b a d - i S u r k h (1147-1148), G u n b a d - i Q a b u d

r a p i d l y all the way f r o m the eastern Islamic

(1196-1197), and M u ' m i n a K h a t u n (1186), whose

lands t o S p a i n .

elaborately superimposed, m u l t i l a y e r e d geometric

19

W h i l e the Great M o s q u e i n Isfahan is n o d o u b t

strapwork patterns and muqarnas u n i t s are h i g h -

a m a t u r e example o f the I r a n i a n Seljuq b r i c k

l i g h t e d w i t h turquoise-glazed b r i c k s .

i d i o m , its affinity w i t h Baghdad, where the Seljuqs

18

T h a t the earliest examples o f a r c h i t e c t u r a l revetments e m p l o y i n g the new geometric i d i o m

were s i m u l t a n e o u s l y engaged i n b u i l d i n g activities, s h o u l d n o t be u n d e r e s t i m a t e d . As A l l e n p o i n t e d

s h o u l d appear i n such seemingly u n r e l a t e d m a r -

o u t , "Baghdad was still the center o f i n n o v a t i o n i n

ginal areas as T i m , U z g e n d , and K h a r r a q a n is

the A b b a s i d a r c h i t e c t u r a l t r a d i t i o n , even i f the

probably accidental. These revetments can reasona-

city was slowly d e c l i n i n g i n i m p o r t a n c e . " W i t h o u t

b l y be i n t e r p r e t e d as regional echoes o f i n n o -

d e n y i n g the significance o f the Seljuq capital

c

vations o r i g i n a t i n g i n the late Abbasid capital

Isfahan, A l l e n argued t h a t " i t makes sense t o see

Baghdad, about w h i c h Herzfeld once w r o t e : " O n e

the n o r t h d o m e o f the Isfahan mosque as a sample

m u s t n o t u n d e r r a t e Baghdad, the seat o f the

o f w h a t was b e i n g b u i l t i n Baghdad at the same

caliphate and one o f the seats o f the Seljuq sul-

t i m e . " H e regarded the h i g h q u a l i t y o f t h i r t e e n t h -

tanate, as a c u l t u r a l center d o w n t o its conquest

c e n t u r y b r i c k b u i l d i n g s s u r v i v i n g i n Baghdad as

by H u l a g u i n 656 H . (1258 A . D . ) . TO u n d e r r a t e

the final a r g u m e n t for the c o n t i n u e d i m p o r t a n c e

91. Detail of geometric brickwork on one of the facades of the West Tomb Tower (11), full view below dome, Kharraqan, 1093. Photo: Courtesy David Stronach.

100

PART

3.

THE

GEOGRAPHICAL,

CHRONOLOGICAL,

AND

SEMANTIC

HORIZONS

o f that city as a c u l t u r a l center. Such late Abbasid

[1077-1307], A r t u q i d s [1102-1408], Zangids [1127-

m o n u m e n t s i n Baghdad as the M u s t a n s i r i y a (1233)

1222], Ayyubids [1169-fifteenth c e n t u r y ] , and

w i d e l y used i n the F a t i m i d t e r r i t o r i e s o f Syria and

and the so-called t h i r t e e n t h - c e n t u r y Abbasid

M a m l u k s [1250-1517]).

Egypt before, suddenly proliferated i n those

Palace ( w i t h its sophisticated geometric revet-

The p r i n c e l y rulers o f these states, w h o had no

Geometric strapwork and the muqarnas, n o t

regions under Z a n g i d , A y y u b i d , and M a m l u k rule. The carved stone decorations o f F a t i m i d religious

ments featuring superimposed s t a r - a n d - p o l y g o n

c l a i m for legitimacy other than the official sanc-

patterns and stellate muqarnases that d o m i n a t e

t i o n granted by the Abbasid caliphs i n the f o r m

m o n u m e n t s and their accompanying w o o d w o r k

the geometrized vegetal motifs they frame) d e m o n -

o f titles and d i p l o m a s o f investiture, played an

had been d o m i n a t e d by vegetal patterns, i n t e r -

strate the c o n t i n u i n g vigor o f the geometric m o d e

i m p o r t a n t role i n p e r p e t u a t i n g the S u n n i revival o f

t w i n e d w i t h floriated Kufic i n s c r i p t i o n s . Just as the

after the t e r m i n a t i o n o f Seljuq rule i n I r a n and

the Great Seljuqs i n an age that w o u l d increasingly

muqarnas is o n l y rarely used i n F a t i m i d religious

Iraq.

t u r n to Sufism o n the eve o f the Crusades, f o l -

architecture, so are interlaced s t a r - a n d - p o l y g o n

l o w e d by the M o n g o l invasions. The Z a n g i d and

patterns, w h i c h appear i n a few isolated examples.

d u r i n g the eleventh and twelfth centuries the geo-

A y y u b i d p o l i c y o f h o l y warfare (jihad)

Geometric patterns that hesitantly t r i c k l e d i n t o

m e t r i c m o d e extended further east beyond the

against the crusaders and the Fatimids restored

Seljuq d o m a i n s , appearing i n regions r u l e d by

S u n n i power i n Syria and Egypt, just as the Great

n a n t l y vegetal F a t i m i d decorative vocabulary. As

other S u n n i dynasties w h o acknowledged the

Seljuqs had o v e r t h r o w n the Buyids i n the east

Jonathan B l o o m observed, muqarnas vaults and

suzerainty o f the Abbasid caliphs. I t c o n t i n u e d to

a c e n t u r y earlier. Interlaced geometric patterns

portals w i t h true muqarnas hoods w o u l d r e m a i n

be used i n the Q a r a k h a n i d t e r r i t o r i e s i n C e n t r a l

accompanied by muqarnas friezes are p r o m i n e n t l y

u n k n o w n i n Egypt u n t i l they were i n t r o d u c e d

2 0

Besides spreading t h r o u g h o u t I r a n and I r a q

directed

Egypt f r o m Syria were n o t typical o f the p r e d o m i -

Asia (e.g., the three royal mausoleums i n Uzgend

displayed o n the earliest k n o w n examples o f

f r o m Syria by the M a m l u k s i n the m i d - t h i r t e e n t h

[1012-1013,1152, and 1187], the Namazgah mosque

wooden minbars associated w i t h the p o l i t i c a l l e g i t i -

century. The hospital (1154) and funerary madrasa

i n Bukhara [1119], and the fragmentary, t w e l f t h -

macy o f the Seljuq successor states that revived the

(1167-1168) o f N u r a l - D i n Z a n g i are the earliest

century M a g h a k - i A t t a r i mosque i n B u k h a r a ) . I t

Abbasid khutba, that is, the Friday s e r m o n d u r i n g

b u i l d i n g s i n Damascus that i m p o r t e d the I r a q i

also appeared i n Afghanistan and I n d i a d u r i n g the

w h i c h the name o f the r e i g n i n g caliph i n Baghdad

conical muqarnas d o m e and p o r t a l w i t h a m u q a r -

reigns o f the staunchly S u n n i Ghaznavid and

was p r o n o u n c e d f r o m the m i n b a r as a sign o f

nas h o o d , framed by a m a t c h i n g b o r d e r o f i n t e r -

G h u r i d dynasties (e.g., the m i n a r e t o f M a s u d 111

homage. These i n c l u d e the m i n b a r o f the A l a ' al-

laced star-and-polygon p a t t e r n s .

[1099-1115] i n Ghazna and the t w e l f t h - c e n t u r y

D i n mosque i n the A n a t o l i a n Seljuq capital o f

t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l geometric revetments c o n -

G h u r i d arch at Lashkari Bazar i n Bust). After the

Konya (1155) and the ones installed by the Seljuq

t i n u e d to be elaborated by the Ayyubids w h e n they

demise o f the Great Seljuqs i n 1194 p r e d o m i n a n t l y

atabeg ( t u t o r assigned to Seljuq princes g o v e r n i n g

succeeded the Zangids and by the M a m l u k s , w h o

geometric architectural revetments c o n t i n u e d to

i n the provinces) N u r a l - D i n Z a n g i at his mosque

perpetuated the S u n n i legacy o f t h e i r A y y u b i d

spread i n regions r u l e d by S u n n i dynasties allied

i n H a m a (1163-1164) and at the Great Mosque o f

masters by m a i n t a i n i n g i n Cairo a line o f Abbasid

w i t h the rejuvenated Abbasid caliphate. This was

A l e p p o (1169). (The latter was reinstalled at the

caliphs t o legitimize their rule after the M o n g o l

p a r t i c u l a r l y the case w i t h the splintered Seljuq

Aqsa mosque i n Jerusalem by the A y y u b i d ruler

sack o f Baghdad i n 1258.

successor states that r u l e d i n A n a t o l i a , n o r t h e r n

Salah a l - D i n [1138-1193] after the conquest o f that

M e s o p o t a m i a , Syria, and Egypt (e.g., R u m Seljuqs

city f r o m the crusaders i n 1187.)

c

c

c

21

22

T w o - and

The geometric m o d e also permeated the A n a t o l i a n m o n u m e n t s o f the R u m Seljuqs, a

GEOMETRIC

PATTERNING

BEFORE

T H E MONGOLS

101

dynasty that boasted direct royal descent f r o m the

geometric patterns appear together w i t h r i c h l y

I b n T u m a r t ( d . 1130), had been influenced by the

Great Seljuqs, u n l i k e other n e i g h b o r i n g Seljuq

i n t e r t w i n e d vegetal m o t i f s i n c l u d e the Q a r a w i y y i n

A s h a r i theology o f al-Ghazali t h a t approached

successor states m o s t l y f o u n d e d by f o r m e r atabegs

mosque i n Fez, w h i c h was remodeled i n 1135-1144,

r e l i g i o n t h r o u g h logic and encouraged the d i f f u -

c

and the Q u b b a i n Marrakesh bearing an i n s c r i p -

sion o f moderate Sufism. A d o p t i n g the Ghazalian

t i o n f r o m the reign o f A l i b. Yusuf (r. 1106-1142).

synthesis o f Sufi-oriented S u n n i s m , I b n T u m a r t

the m o n u m e n t s o f Syria and Egypt b u i l t a r o u n d

I n r e t u r n for i n c l u d i n g the name o f the Abbasid

espoused a fundamentalist f o r m o f asceticism that

the same t i m e . The emblematic t w o - and three-

caliph o n their coinage and i n the khutba, the

c o n d e m n e d l u x u r y and a i m e d to restore the p u r i t y

d i m e n s i o n a l geometric patterns p r o m i n e n t l y

A l m o r a v i d s were recognized by the caliph as the

o f early Islam. A l m o h a d i s m placed severe restric-

displayed o n the early t h i r t e e n t h - c e n t u r y stone

legitimate rulers o f the M a g h r i b . This Berber

tions o n a r c h i t e c t u r a l o r n a m e n t , p u r g i n g the

portals o f R u m Seljuq m o n u m e n t s , w i t h their

dynasty, w h i c h f o l l o w e d the M a l i k i legal school

extravagant A l m o r a v i d revetment aesthetic by

muqarnas hoods framed by borders o f interlaced

that was p r o m i n e n t i n the M a g h r i b , espoused a

stars and polygons, advertised the c o n n e c t i o n

S u n n i revival o f its o w n directed against the S h i i

essentials w i t h precise and well-defined linear

o f the r u l i n g dynasty w i t h I r a n and I r a q . Given

heritage o f the Fatimids and their vassals, w h o had

patterns o n p l a i n backgrounds, accompanied by

the close affinity o f these geometric patterns w i t h

previously d o m i n a t e d N o r t h Africa. The m i l i t a n t

the u b i q u i t o u s muqarnas. A l m o r a v i d m o n u m e n t s

the ones decorating the c o n t e m p o r a r y b r i c k

ethos o f this dynasty that targeted the C h r i s t i a n

were either destroyed or their densely i n t e r t w i n e d

or by slaves and descendants o f atabegs.

Geometry

appears m o r e conspicuously i n A n a t o l i a t h a n i n

c

r e d u c i n g i t to b o l d l y enlarged geometrized basic c

m o n u m e n t s o f t h i r t e e n t h - c e n t u r y Baghdad, they

reconquest o f M u s l i m Spain paralleled the p o l i c y

ornate decorations were covered w i t h p l a i n w h i t e

also may have alluded to the alliance between

of jihad against the crusaders adopted by the

p l a s t e r — i n the case o f the Q a r a w i y y i n mosque i n

the R u m Seljuq sultanate and the late Abbasid

Zangids and the Ayyubids i n a s i m i l a r p o l i t i c a l c l i -

Fez, fearful i n h a b i t a n t s whitewashed its p o l y c h r o -

caliphate, an alliance that echoed the earlier Great

mate where S h a r i a - m i n d e d S u n n i o r t h o d o x y was

m a t i c plaster ornaments featuring gilded paintings

Seljuq p a t t e r n .

enforcing its redefined n o r m s . The local dynasties

the n i g h t before the A l m o h a d conquerors, w h o

that succeeded the A l m o r a v i d s w o u l d f i r m l y estab-

preached austerity, entered their mosque for

lish S u n n i s m i n the M a g h r i b . As I b n K h a l d u n

the Friday prayer. The visual asceticism o f the

the Spanish U m a y y a d caliphs provides s u p p o r t

n o t e d i n the f o u r t e e n t h century, the "heretics and

A l m o h a d s was n o t u n l i k e that o f the Cistercians,

for the close association o f its emblematic forms

i n n o v a t o r s " had so successfully been e l i m i n a t e d

a r t i c u l a t e d i n the Apologia,

w i t h the rival Abbasid caliphate and its vassals o r

by t h e n that students no longer had to study " t h e

B e r n a r d o f Clairvaux (1090-1153) that opposed

allies. I t is therefore n o t a coincidence that geo-

science o f speculative p h i l o s o p h y " that had once

l u x u r i o u s monastic art just a r o u n d the same

m e t r i c patterns and the muqarnas spread f r o m the

been useful i n a r g u i n g against heretical d o c t r i n e s .

2 3

The notable resistance to the geometric m o d e i n areas d o m i n a t e d by the legacy o f the F a t i m i d and

east t o N o r t h Africa and Spain d u r i n g the reign o f the A l m o r a v i d s (1056-1147), w h o p o l i t i c a l l y

c

24

T h o u g h they dissociated themselves f r o m

time.

circa 1123-1127, o f

2 5

Before the i n f i l t r a t i o n o f A l m o r a v i d and

the Abbasids, the Berber A l m o h a d s ( f r o m al-

A l m o h a d influences f r o m N o r t h Africa, the a r c h i -

u n i t e d these two regions and recognized the

Muwahhidun,

tectural d e c o r a t i o n o f m o n u m e n t s sponsored

Abbasid caliphs as the s p i r i t u a l leaders o f Islam.

w h o succeeded the A l m o r a v i d s i n N o r t h A f r i c a

"those a f f i r m i n g God's oneness"),

by the Spanish Umayyads (756-1031), and the

The few s u r v i v i n g examples o f A l m o r a v i d m o n u -

and Spain (1130-1269), f u r t h e r e d the consolida-

eleventh-century Taifa kings o f Spain w h o e m u -

ments where such t w o - and t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l

t i o n o f S u n n i o r t h o d o x y . T h e i r r e f o r m i s t founder,

lated t h e m , had been d o m i n a t e d by a Byzantiniz-

102

PART

3.

THE

GEOGRAPHICAL,

CHRONOLOGICAL,

AND

SEMANTIC

HORIZONS

i n g vegetal vocabulary to w h i c h geometric m o t i f s

featured precious geometric reveries that were

panels, dragons, phoenixes, and other auspicious

were s u b o r d i n a t e d . The classical flavor o f pre-

r o m a n t i c a l l y embedded i n the m e m o r y o f a g l o r i -

m y t h i c a l creatures) that w o u l d forever t r a n s f o r m

eleventh-century Islamic architectural o r n a m e n t

ous past age.

the eastern Islamic decorative language.

i n this region, a l l u d i n g to the prestigious seventh-

tasies that so fascinated the Orientalists were

geometric, calligraphic, and figural patterns n o w

27

These i n t r i c a t e o r n a m e n t a l fan-

29

Vegetal,

and e i g h t h - c e n t u r y Syrian Umayyad i m p e r i a l

perpetuated w i t h o u t m u c h creative renewal i n the

became integrated i n t o a new visual i d i o m testify-

heritage o f the Spanish U m a y y a d caliphate, a r t i c u -

M u d e j a r style o f Spain and i n the architecture o f

i n g to the dynamic synthetic capacities o f Islamic

lated a separate dynastic i d e n t i t y that resisted the

M o r o c c o u n t i l m o d e r n times. Paccard's w o r k o n

art. This t r a n s f o r m a t i o n d i d n o t escape the per-

Samarran beveled aesthetic and later Abbasid

the t r a d i t i o n a l crafts practiced i n M o r o c c o p r o -

ceptive eye o f Riegl, w h o n o t i c e d the appearance o f

decorative i d i o m s . The geometric m o d e and the

v i d e d the Arabic names given today by master

m o r e naturalistic tendencies i n the vegetal o r n a -

muqarnas o n l y reached M u s l i m Spain after its

builders to arabesques composed o f c u r v i l i n e a r

m e n t o f later Islamic art. This he a t t r i b u t e d to the

u n i f i c a t i o n w i t h N o r t h Africa under the Berber

vegetal patterns (al-tawrjq,

"Asiatic tribes o f T u r k i c o r i g i n " w h o r u l e d A n a t o l i a

dynasties between the late eleventh and t h i r t e e n t h

nal geometric interlaces (al-tastir,

centuries. The relative novelty o f this m o d e for the

r u l e d w i t h l i n e s " ) , accompanied by calligraphy

"leafed") and polygo"delineated or

and the I r a n i a n w o r l d . Herzfeld and K u h n e l also noted the e v o l u t i o n o f the arabesque t o w a r d

A n d a l u s i a n traveler I b n Jubayr (b. 1145) can be

and the muqarnas. The same masters referred

greater realism i n the p o s t - M o n g o l eastern Islamic

deduced f r o m his enthusiastic d e s c r i p t i o n i n 1182

to star-and-polygon patterns as uqda (Arabic,

lands influenced by Central and Eastern A s i a .

o f N u r a l - D i n ' s j o i n e d w o o d w o r k m i n b a r at the

" k n o t " ) , c o r r e s p o n d i n g to the t e r m girih

Referring to the vegetal arabesque, K u h n e l w r o t e :

Great Mosque o f A l e p p o .

" k n o t " ) that is m o r e c o m m o n i n the Islamic

26

T w o - and t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l geometric patterns u n d e r w e n t an i n t e r n a l development i n N o r t h

c

east.

(Persian,

28

After the M o n g o l invasion o f A n a t o l i a i n 1248,

30

I n the m i d d l e o f the t h i r t e e n t h century, its p o s i t i o n was so strong that i t escaped the

Africa and Spain, c u l m i n a t i n g i n the refined p o l y -

f o l l o w e d by the sack o f Baghdad i n 1258, a novel

danger o f being swept away by the flood

c h r o m a t i c revetment aesthetic o f the A l h a m b r a .

decorative vocabulary i n f i l t r a t e d the eastern

o f Far Eastern motifs w h i c h came w i t h the

Reacting to the ascetic decorative vocabulary o f

Islamic lands d u r i n g the second h a l f o f the t h i r -

M o n g o l invasion. However, f r o m n o w o n

their A l m o h a d predecessors, the Nasrids w h o

teenth century, w h e n the geometric i d i o m lost its

the arabesque no longer exclusively r u l e d

r u l e d i n Andalusia r e i n t r o d u c e d l u x u r i o u s and

i n i t i a l p u r i t y and was d i l u t e d by a host o f new pat-

the i m a g i n a t i o n o f the designers whose

r i c h l y gilded i n t r i c a t e revetments to p r o c l a i m t h e i r

terns. The abstract repertory o f medieval Islamic

creative power had become newly ferti-

different dynastic identity. As Grabar n o t e d , the

patterns was n o w enriched by an i n f l u x o f East

lized w i t h other ideas.

A l h a m b r a stood "at the end o f a h i s t o r i c a l devel-

Asian motifs thanks to contacts b r o u g h t about by

o p m e n t " and represented "despite all its perfec-

the Pax M o n g o l i c a w h e n Yuan C h i n a and I l k h a n i d

The so-called geometric arabesque, t h e n , had

t i o n , a f o r m a l dead e n d " that "crystallized the

I r a n were j o i n e d together for m o r e t h a n h a l f a cen-

emerged sometime a r o u n d the late t e n t h and early

possibilities as well as the l i m i t s " o f a medieval

t u r y under M o n g o l rule. As vassals o f the Great

eleventh centuries i n the eastern Islamic lands

Islamic decorative t r a d i t i o n . Sponsored by the

K h a n , the M o n g o l - I l k h a n i d s i n t r o d u c e d i n t o I r a n

f r o m where i t spread between the eleventh and

c u l t u r a l l y isolated N a s r i d dynasty, w h i c h w o u l d

and A n a t o l i a novel chinoiserie m o t i f s (e.g., blos-

early t h i r t e e n t h centuries. We have seen that this

eventually be expelled f r o m Spain, the A l h a m b r a

soms, lotuses, peony scrolls, c l o u d bands, lobed

process o f dissemination before the arrival o f

31

GEOMETRIC

PATTERNING

BEFORE

THE

MONGOLS

103

the M o n g o l s was i n t i m a t e l y correlated w i t h the

and calligraphic patterns alike. This order was

and knowledge cannot weave patterned brocade

dynamics o f the S u n n i revival, a l t h o u g h the nature

made m o r e explicit i n geometric interlaces gener-

or execute fine p o i n t s o f c r a f t s m a n s h i p . "

o f that c o r r e l a t i o n does n o t appear to have been

ated b y u n d e r l y i n g networks o f g r i d lines, some

articulated i n the w r i t t e n p r i m a r y sources. The

parts o f w h i c h appeared i n the final p a t t e r n w h i l e

a t o m i s t i c universe (shared b y the M a t u r i d i school)

crystalline perfection o f clearly delineated, legible

others were e l i m i n a t e d b y erasure. The r e s u l t i n g

was permeated w i t h a h a r m o n y that resonated w i t h

geometric forms represented a new visual i d i o m

c o m p o s i t i o n s , created b y an intractable process o f

t w o - and t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l geometric patterns,

radically different f r o m the a m b i g u o u s l y u n d u l a t -

selection and r e j e c t i o n , concealed p a r t l y invisible

generated b y undecipherable grids evoking a sense

i n g c u r v i l i n e a r aesthetic o f n i n t h - c e n t u r y Samarra.

grids t h a t resisted decipherment and as such testi-

o f wonder. Since G o d and the contents o f God's

As i n Samarra entire surfaces c o n t i n u e d t o be cov-

fied t o the i n g e n u i t y o f their designer.

eternal speech e m b o d i e d i n the uncreated K o r a n

ered i n tilelike fashion w i t h i n f i n i t e l y extendable

The clarity o f sharply delineated p o l y g o n a l pat-

32

By i m p l i c a t i o n the d i v i n e l y created A s h a r i c

were beyond i m i t a t i o n , artists had n o recourse b u t

repeat u n i t s whose ingeniously i n t e r p e n e t r a t i n g

terns w i t h a h i d d e n geometric basis, as opposed t o

abstract shapes, w h i c h seemed capable o f c o n t i n -

the deliberate obscurity o f the enigmatic Samarran

realm o f nature extending f r o m the upper l i m i t s

ual metamorphosis i n t o one another, once again

style, i n t r o d u c e d a new structure o f l e g i b i l i t y t o

o f the heavens t o the earth below, a realm replete

b l u r r e d f i g u r e - g r o u n d d i s t i n c t i o n s . N o w , however,

abstract o r n a m e n t . Ingeniously interlaced geomet-

w i t h the i n d i r e c t signs and portents o f God's wis-

their f o r m a l t a x o n o m y was severely l i m i t e d t o

ric patterns n o w manifested an u n d e r l y i n g sense

d o m and i n f i n i t e power. Geometrized n o n f i g u r a l

algebraically definable, angular geometric shapes

o f order w i t h their m a t h e m a t i c a l l y g r o u p e d and

arabesques apparently m o d e l e d o n i n a n i m a t e m a t -

such as triangles, quadrangles, circles, polygons,

i n f i n i t e l y extendable star systems clustered like

ter and vegetation, t h a t is, o n two o f the three

star polygons, and their fragments. These shapes

orbits a r o u n d m u l t i p l e foci. C o u l d they have been

k i n g d o m s o f nature (al-mawdlid

f o r m i n g i n t r i c a t e geometric interlaces owed their

i n t e n d e d as abstract visual analogues for the

eral, vegetable, and a n i m a l " ) , seemed t o evoke a

to t u r n t o the abstract i m i t a t i o n o f the created

al-thaldtha,

distinctive appearance t o the use o f d y n a m i c radial

r h y t h m i c order o f a d i v i n e l y created a t o m i s t i c u n i -

new sense o f order missing f r o m the unstable

g r i d systems whose r o t a t i o n a l symmetries were far

verse, constantly kept i n check b y an a l l - p o w e r f u l

a t o m i s t i c m a t e r i a l w o r l d o f the M u t a z i l a . c

"min-

3 3

m o r e complex t h a n their late antique and early

G o d whose w i s d o m was manifested i n the wonders

Islamic counterparts, w h i c h were based o n simpler

o f creation? A c c o r d i n g to the p h i l o s o p h e r and

t r i z a t i o n o f n o n f i g u r a l p a t t e r n i n g , t h r o u g h the

rectilinear grids w i t h diagonal coordinates.

physician I b n Rushd (Averroes, 1126-1198), the

logical coherence and crystalline clarity o f a linear

adherents o f the A s h a r i school w h o " h e l d t h a t

geometric language, w i t h the p u r i t a n sensibilities

The novel interlaced s t a r- a n d - po l y go n patterns,

c

I t is t e m p t i n g to correlate the stringent geome-

consisting o f p e r i o d i c tilings (or tessellations)

all things c o u l d be different f r o m w h a t they are,"

o f the age o f S u n n i revival d u r i n g w h i c h i t flour-

whose lines (or edges) met at vertices c o n s t i -

nevertheless recognized that " i n the products

ished. I b n K h a l d u n , w h o like al-Ghazali attacked

t u t i n g " k n o t s , " f o u n d b o t h planar and spatial

o f art, t o w h i c h they compared the products o f

speculative p h i l o s o p h y , described geometry as a

expressions. I t was as i f the amorphousness o f the

n a t u r e , there exist order and p r o p o r t i o n , and this

m e n t a l astringent capable o f clearing error f r o m

beveled style suddenly became d i s c i p l i n e d i n t o

was called w i s d o m , and they called the Creator

one's m i n d like soap:

intelligible linear patterns obeying the r h y t h m s

wise." A l - A s h a r i w r o t e : " W e l l - m a d e works can be

o f an i m p l i c i t geometric order that governed the

wisely ordered o n l y b y one w h o is k n o w i n g . T h a t

I t s h o u l d be k n o w n t h a t geometry e n l i g h t -

c o m p o s i t i o n s o f i n t e r r e l a t e d geometric, vegetal,

is clear f r o m the fact t h a t a m a n w h o lacks skill

ens the intellect and sets one's m i n d r i g h t .

c

104

PART

3.

THE

GEOGRAPHICAL,

CHRONOLOGICAL,

AND

SEMANTIC

HORIZONS

A l l its proofs are very clear and orderly. I t

i n g a clearly manifest d o g m a t i c theology sup-

940), was perfected by the B u y i d p e r i o d calligra-

is h a r d l y possible for errors to enter i n t o

p o r t e d by logical a r g u m e n t a t i o n and t r a d i t i o n .

pher and i l l u m i n a t o r A l i b. H i l a l ( I b n al-Bawwab,

geometrical reasoning, because i t is w e l l

Reason no longer reigned supreme i n this new

d. 1022), w h o further refined the " p r o p o r t i o n e d

arranged and orderly. T h u s , the m i n d that

o r t h o d o x b l e n d o f d o g m a t i c theology, t r a d i t i o n a l

s c r i p t " (al-khatt

constantly applies itself to geometry is n o t

legalism, and moderate m y s t i c i s m b u t became

ciples o f geometric design. The geometric system

likely to fall i n t o error. . . . O u r teachers

s u b o r d i n a t e d to s u b r a t i o n a l experiential categories

o f p r o p o r t i o n i n g devised by I b n M u q l a had been

used to say that one's application to geome-

such as i n s p i r a t i o n , insight, i n t u i t i o n , and love

based o n the m o d u l a r use o f rhombus-shaped dots

t r y does to the m i n d w h a t soap does to a

i n the metaphysical quest for t r u t h . Geometric

created by the reed pen, w i t h each letter standard-

garment. I t washes o f f stains and cleanses

abstraction, therefore, resonated n o t o n l y w i t h the

ized i n p r o p o r t i o n a l r e l a t i o n to the straight line

it o f grease and d i r t . The reason for this is

p u r i t a n i s m o f the t r a d i t i o n i s t s b u t also w i t h the

o f the alif. H i s relatively angular semikufic Koranic

that geometry is w e l l arranged and orderly,

m y s t i c i s m o f the Sufis, permeated w i t h echoes o f

script was i m p r o v e d by the fully cursive one o f

as we have m e n t i o n e d .

N e o p l a t o n i s m . The h a r m o n i o u s l y p r o p o r t i o n e d

I b n al-Bawwab that c o n t e m p o r a r y critics j u d g e d

forms o f geometry, capable o f p u r i f y i n g the m i n d

to be m o r e legible and m o r e elegant. The latter's

This statement reflects the d i s t i n c t i o n such o r t h o -

and p u r g i n g one's u n d e r s t a n d i n g f r o m error,

p r o p o r t i o n a l s y s t e m — f u r t h e r refined i n Baghdad

d o x scholars as al-Ghazali had d r a w n between

moreover had the u n i q u e power o f m e d i a t i n g the

d u r i n g the reign o f the last Abbasid caliph by the

those p h i l o s o p h i c a l sciences such as mathematics

m a t e r i a l and sensible worlds t h r o u g h t h e i r i n t e r -

calligrapher Yaqut a l - M u s t a s i m i ( d . 1298-1299) —

and logic, w h i c h were i n n o c u o u s f r o m a religious

m e d i a r y status between the t w o , as we shall see i n

was generated by the use o f the circle and its d i a m -

p o i n t o f view, and others such as physics and

part 5. T h o u g h they remained b o u n d to the mater-

eter ( s u b d i v i d e d i n t o m o d u l a r dots) as a u n i t o f

metaphysics, w h i c h contained the b u l k o f the here-

ial w o r l d o f accidents, the m e n t a l l y abstracted

measure (fig. 9 2 ) .

sies and errors o f the speculative p h i l o s o p h e r s .

forms o f geometry were seen as capable o f i n d u c -

34

35

c

al-mansub)

r o o t e d i n the p r i n -

c

36

The invisible geometry t h a t governed the

i n g the s p i r i t to contemplate higher levels o f

p r o p o r t i o n s o f these new scripts codified i n the

the certainty o f proofs, must have made geometric

u n d e r s t a n d i n g , a noetic q u a l i t y t h a t m u s t have

chancelleries o f Baghdad recalls the u n d e r l y i n g

abstraction a p a r t i c u l a r l y appealing visual i d i o m

been p a r t i c u l a r l y appealing i n a context that

geometric schemes used i n generating abstract

d u r i n g the age o f the S u n n i revival w h e n religious

blended S u n n i s m w i t h elements o f m y s t i c i s m .

geometric and vegetal patterns w i t h w h i c h they are

The " p u r e " forms o f geometry, associated w i t h

o r t h o d o x y was defended t h r o u g h logical a r g u m e n -

The t i m e and place i n w h i c h the girih o r i g i n a t e d

often juxtaposed o n manuscripts, objects, and

t a t i o n to make faith "clearer" by an appeal to rea-

cannot conclusively be p r o v e n w i t h the present

b u i l d i n g s . The use o f the circumference and radius

son. The u n a m b i g u o u s language o f geometry t h a t

state o f the archaeological r e c o r d , b u t the i n d i r e c t

o f the circle as a p r o p o r t i o n i n g device i n b o t h I b n

expressed logic i n linear relations can, therefore,

evidence strongly p o i n t s to the late Abbasid c o u r t

al-Bawwab's cursive Koranic script and i n girih

be seen as a visual analogue o f the new quest for

i n Baghdad, the center where the aesthetically

patterns represents related aesthetic p h e n o m e n a

certainty aimed to e l i m i n a t e the doubts and uncer-

related field o f calligraphy became codified. I t was

that seem to have o r i g i n a t e d i n the same m i l i e u .

tainties previously raised by p h i l o s o p h i c a l specula-

i n Baghdad that the p r o p o r t i o n a l system o f the six

The new cursive script and interlaced patterns

t i o n . The official S u n n i ideology had n o w closed

A r a b i c canonical scripts, first codified by the

composed o f stars and polygons appear juxtaposed

its doors to r a t i o n a l i s t i c i n t e r p r e t a t i o n , s u b s t i t u t -

A b b a s i d vizier and calligrapher I b n M u q l a ( 8 8 6 -

for the first t i m e i n a K o r a n at the Chester Beatty

GEOMETRIC

92a, b. Muhammad b. A l i b. Sulayman al-Rawandi, diagrams showing the derivation of cursive Arabic letters from the module of the circle and its diameter subdivided by dots. From his Rabat al-sudur wa ayat alsurur (Solace of hearts and signal for gladness), 1238, ink on paper. Photo: Copyright cliche Bibliotheque Nationale de France, Paris, MS Persan 438. c

PATTERNING

BEFORE

THE

MONGOLS

105

io6

PART

3.

THE

GEOGRAPHICAL,

93. Illuminated frontispiece. From the Ibn al-Bawwab Koran, Baghdad, 1000-1001, colored inks and gold on paper. Reproduced by the courtesy of the Trustees of the Chester Beatty Library, Dublin, MS K.16, fol. 8r.

CHRONOLOGICAL, AND SEMANTIC

HORIZONS

GEOMETRIC

PATTERNING

BEFORE

THE

107

MONGOLS

L i b r a r y i n D u b l i n , whose c o l o p h o n states t h a t i t

nalistic or esoteric i n t e r p r e t a t i o n . Tabbaa p o i n t e d

was w r i t t e n i n Baghdad d u r i n g 1000-1001 by the

o u t the difference between the n o t i o n o f a mys-

n a t i o n f o l l o w e d by t w o - and t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l

calligrapher and i l l u m i n a t o r A l i b. H i l a l (fig. 93).

terious created K o r a n w i t h two levels o f m e a n i n g

girihs t h a t s i m i l a r l y echoed the r h y t h m s o f the

c

dynasty, is i n keeping w i t h the p a t t e r n o f dissemi-

Even t h o u g h this c o l o p h o n is t h o u g h t by some to

i n t e n d e d to "be i n t e r p r e t e d by those w h o k n o w for

S u n n i revival. The same p a t t e r n o f dissemination

be apocryphal, i t is safe to date the m a n u s c r i p t ,

those w h o do n o t " and o f an uncreated eternal one

guided the spread o f cursive m o n u m e n t a l i n s c r i p -

p o p u l a r l y k n o w n as the I b n al-Bawwab K o r a n , to

whose "clearly manifest t r u t h cannot be f u r t h e r

t i o n s , w h i c h eventually supplanted the F a t i m i d

the early eleventh century. Its f r o n t i s p i e c e s — o n

i n t e r p r e t e d . " He c o n v i n c i n g l y argued t h a t the I b n

floriated kufic script between the eleventh and

w h i c h the cursive Koranic script, interlaced geo-

al-Bawwab K o r a n "represents the creation o f a

thirteenth centuries.

m e t r i c s t r a p w o r k patterns, and abstract vegetal

perfectly cursive and easily legible script suitable

39

Given the close affinity between t w o - and three-

motifs h a r m o n i o u s l y i n t e r t w i n e — a r e t h o u g h t to

for expressing the clear and explicit nature o f the

d i m e n s i o n a l geometric patterns, i t is n o t surpris-

have been executed by the same h a n d . This sug-

W o r d o f G o d . " Tabbaa concluded t h a t "at the

i n g t h a t several scholars have recently posited a

gests that the girih m o d e c o u l d have made its first

t i m e o f its i n c e p t i o n and p a r t i c u l a r l y its a d o p t i o n

Baghdadi o r i g i n for the muqarnas. Tabbaa, for

appearance i n m a n u s c r i p t i l l u m i n a t i o n , a h y p o t h e -

t h r o u g h o u t the o n l y recently S u n n i Islamic

example, accepted I r a q as the most likely place for

sis strengthened by the w e l l - k n o w n i m p a c t that

w o r l d , " the p r o p o r t i o n e d script " l i t e r a l l y reflected

the emergence o f the muqarnas vault, the earliest

patterns d r a w n o n paper i n royal scriptoria had

the t r i u m p h o f a theological view and all its p o l i t i -

s u r v i v i n g example o f w h i c h appears i n the I m a m

o n the decorative arts and architectural revetments

cal ramifications. The actual i m a g e — n o t just

D u r (1075-1090) near Samarra, a hypothesis

o f later periods. Several early Korans w i t h fully

the c o n t e n t — o f the W o r d became the s y m b o l

f u r t h e r strengthened by the fact that i t was a very

cursive scripts feature s i m i l a r angular geometric

o f the most i m p o r t a n t p r i n c i p l e o f the S u n n i

c o m m o n feature o f the cityscape o f medieval

interlaces whose c o m p a r t m e n t s c o n t a i n abstract

revival, a m o v e m e n t that redefined the course o f

Baghdad. A l l e n s i m i l a r l y identified the muqarnas

vegetal patterns, a c o m b i n a t i o n that came to be

medieval I s l a m . "

vault as an i n v e n t i o n o f Abbasid architecture,

a standard characteristic o f f o u r t e e n t h - c e n t u r y M a m l u k and I l k h a n i d i l l u m i n a t e d K o r a n s .

37

As Yasser Tabbaa n o t e d , the new Koranic script

3 8

I t is p r o b a b l y n o t a coincidence t h a t the geo-

"devised i n I r a n or I r a q and copied all over the

m e t r i c m o d e that emerged i n the same context was

Islamic w o r l d . " He regarded I m a m D u r ' s "sugar-

also characterized by the linear clarity and precise

l o a f d o m e " as representing the o r i g i n a l use o f the

codified by I b n al-Bawwab c o n s t i t u t e d "a final

logic o f its forms. P r e d o m i n a n t l y geometric i n t e r -

f o r m that was subsequently adapted to squinches

break w i t h the majestic b u t ambiguous script o f

laces are often accompanied o n w o o d e n m i n b a r s

and cornices. T a k i n g the evidence o f some p a i n t e d

the first three Islamic centuries, replacing i t w i t h a

and religious m o n u m e n t s w i t h d i s c i p l i n e d vegetal

stucco muqarnas u n i t s discovered at a b a t h i n

r o b u s t l y cursive and perfectly legible s c r i p t . " He

patterns, cursive scripts, and the muqarnas, all o f

Fustat, w h i c h recall the possibly t e n t h - c e n t u r y

related this development to the religious and

t h e m governed by s i m i l a r u n d e r l y i n g geometric

p a i n t e d stucco muqarnas niches excavated at

p o l i t i c a l climate o f B u y i d Baghdad, where the

grids. Tabbaa's observation t h a t the cursive scripts

N i s h a p u r , D o r i s Behrens-Abouseif reached a

S u n n i revival i n i t i a t e d by a l - Q a d i r had affirmed

o f I b n M u q l a and I b n al-Bawwab had v i r t u a l l y no

s i m i l a r c o n c l u s i o n . She argued t h a t i f the Fustat

the uncreated nature o f the K o r a n to oppose the

i m p a c t o n Korans p r o d u c e d i n F a t i m i d Egypt,

muqarnas u n i t s are to be a t t r i b u t e d to the Abbasid

S h i i and M u t a z i l i view t h a t regarded i t as having

where the earlier type o f kufic script c o n t i n u e d

rather t h a n the F a t i m i d p e r i o d as c o m m o n l y

been created i n t i m e and therefore open to r a t i o -

i n use u n t i l the establishment o f the A y y u b i d

assumed, i n t h a t case "Baghdad as the capital o f

c

c

io8

PART

3. THE GEOGRAPHICAL,

CHRONOLOGICAL,

the Abbasid e m p i r e , c o u l d w e l l be the place o f

AND SEMANTIC

HORIZONS

context i n w h i c h the geometric m o d e i n i t i a l l y

I b n a l - A r a b i , w h o settled i n A y y u b i d Damascus c

emerged and spread, i n order to give a sense o f the

after having visited the R u m Seljuq c o u r t i n

ideological c o m p l e x i t y o f religious dogma that

Konya, d i d n o t suffer a s i m i l a r fate, he certainly

synchronous developments i n interrelated fields o f

often went h a n d i n h a n d w i t h p o l i t i c s . N o d o u b t

was n o t free o f o r t h o d o x hostilities. For example,

geometric design, the center f r o m w h i c h artistic

a m o r e detailed analysis o f c o n t e m p o r a r y legal,

I b n Taymiyya (1263-1328), the reactionary H a n b a l i

i n n o v a t i o n s r a p i d l y spread to those courts c u l t u r -

theological, p h i l o s o p h i c a l , and mystical sources

theologian o f the M a m l u k p e r i o d , w o u l d vehe-

ally and p o l i t i c a l l y c o m m i t t e d to the S u n n i revival.

w i l l i n the future c o n t r i b u t e to a m o r e nuanced

m e n t l y c o n d e m n I b n al- Arabi's m o n i s m , w h i c h

o r i g i n o f the

mukarnas"

40

I f so, Baghdad emerges as the m a i n center for

c

The trajectory o f the girih mode over t i m e and

reading o f the subtle correspondences between

regarded the existence o f created things as n o t h i n g

space, t h e n , was far m o r e complex t h a n assumed

d o m i n a n t official ideologies and visual i d i o m s ,

b u t the very essence o f the creator. S i m i l a r l y I b n

i n the l i t e r a t u r e o n the arabesque, w h i c h tended

p a r t i c u l a r l y since the S u n n i revival was b y n o

K h a l d u n f o u n d his mystical w r i t i n g s meaningless

to m i n i m i z e the visual difference between various

means u n i l i n e a r . We have seen that Sufism, w i t h

and heretical. I b n al- Arabi's teachings w o u l d gain

abstract i d i o m s and to associate t h e m w i t h a

w h i c h so m a n y authors a u t o m a t i c a l l y correlated

m u c h w i d e r currency d u r i n g the p o s t - M o n g o l era,

loosely defined religious m e n t a l i t y responsible

the arabesque, was n o t yet a p r o m i n e n t c u l t u r a l

p a r t i c u l a r l y i n the T u r c o - I r a n i a n w o r l d , b u t they

c

for the overall u n i t y o f Islamic art. We have seen,

force a m o n g the r u l i n g elites w h o p a t r o n i z e d art

were far f r o m u n a n i m o u s l y accepted i n o r t h o d o x

however, that there was n o single i n t e r p r e t a t i o n

and architecture at the t i m e the girih first appeared.

circles d u r i n g the h i g h tide o f the S u n n i r e v i v a l .

o f Islam, o r o f its central d o c t r i n e o f tawhid, that

Even t h o u g h it had started to penetrate i n t o o r t h o -

remained uncontested. Such controversial issues as

dox circles and to be f o r m a l l y organized i n t o c o n -

a new visual order p r o j e c t i n g a shared ethos o f

the nature o f G o d (framed w i t h i n a wide spectrum

fraternities f r o m the twelfth century o n w a r d , its

u n i f i c a t i o n a r o u n d the religious a u t h o r i t y o f the

defined b y the opposing poles o f a n t h r o p o m o r p h -

i m p a c t o n visual aesthetics at that t i m e appears

Abbasid caliphate, the locus o f o r t h o d o x y and

ism and the complete divestment o f a t t r i b u t e s ) ,

to have been rather l i m i t e d . M u c h m o r e t h a n the

the u l t i m a t e source o f legitimacy for the frag-

the role o f h u m a n reason, and the createdness ver-

s p i r i t u a l i s m o f Sufism, i t was the S h a r i a - m i n d e d

m e n t e d S u n n i states. I t was as i f the ideological

sus uncreatedness o f the atomistic m a t e r i a l w o r l d

s c r i p t u r a l i s m o f the S u n n i revival that d o m i n a t e d

alliance between the Abbasid caliphs and the semi-

and o f the K o r a n c o n s t i t u t e d significant p o i n t s o f

the m i l i e u where the girih came i n t o being.

independent S u n n i rulers o f the decentralized

c

41

The geometric mode seems t o have represented

departure for sectarian differences i n a p o l i t i c a l l y

M o r e o v e r , the type o f moderate Sufism t h a t

medieval Islamic w o r l d was expressed t h r o u g h the

and ideologically d i v i d e d medieval M u s l i m w o r l d .

prevailed i n o r t h o d o x circles at t h a t t i m e was very

r a p i d d i s s e m i n a t i o n f r o m Baghdad o f emblematic

Rather t h a n a single d o c t r i n e and cosmology

different f r o m the m o r e d a r i n g teachings o f I b n

signs that acted as a semiotic b o n d visually u n i t i n g

that gave rise to u n i f o r m i t y i n artistic expression

a l - A r a b i o r Shihab a l - D i n al-Suhrawardi (1153-

distant r e g i o n s .

t h r o u g h o u t the Islamic w o r l d , there was a m u l t i -

1191) w i t h w h i c h m o d e r n authors often l i n k the

Baghdad, w h i c h shattered this b r i e f sense o f u n i t y

p l i c i t y o f c o m p e t i n g doctrines and cosmologies

arabesque. A l - S u h r a w a r d i , the I r a n i a n master o f

that lasted between the eleventh and early t h i r -

that i n f o r m e d the f o r m u l a t i o n o f diverse visual

i l l u m i n a t i o n (ishraq) w h o developed a p h i l o s o p h y

teenth centuries, the Abbasid caliph al-Nasir

i d i o m s i n different c o u r t milieus.

o f d i v i n e l i g h t as the sole substance o f being, was

l i - D i n A l l a h (r. 1180-1225) restored the secular

after all charged w i t h heterodoxy and k i l l e d b y the

power o f the caliphate after centuries o f B u y i d and

order o f the A y y u b i d ruler Salah a l - D i n . T h o u g h

Seljuq d o m i n a t i o n . H i s r e l i g i o p o l i t i c a l p r o g r a m

I have o n l y briefly o u t l i n e d some o f the d o m i nant theological o r i e n t a t i o n s that were part o f the

c

42

Just before the M o n g o l sack o f

GEOMETRIC

PATTERNING

BEFORE

THE

was aimed at o r i e n t i n g all M u s l i m s to the Abbasid

o f r a p p r o c h e m e n t w o u l d be perpetuated i n the

caliphate as the sole s p i r i t u a l and secular center

p o s t - M o n g o l T u r c o - I r a n i a n w o r l d t h r o u g h o u t the

o f the Islamic w o r l d . To this end he a t t e m p t e d

fifteenth century u n t i l the r e p o l a r i z a t i o n o f S u n n i -

to b r i n g about a r a p p r o c h e m e n t o f opposing

S h i i differences along p o l i t i c a l lines w i t h the

d o g m a t i c trends i n Islam and thereby create a

sixteenth-century rise o f the three early m o d e r n

c

c o m p r o m i s e between the Sunnis and Shi is. A l -

empires, the S u n n i - H a n a f i O t t o m a n s and Mughals

Nasir's new ideological o r i e n t a t i o n was m o r e

versus the Twelver S h i i Safavids. A c c o r d i n g

c

c

concerned w i t h equating all Islamic confessions

to Biancamaria Scarcia A m o r e t t i , p r i o r to that

than w i t h u n i f y i n g the Sunnis against the Shi is,

r e a l i g n m e n t , the " p r o m i s c u o u s " religious t o p o g r a -

M u t a z i l i s , or the i n v a d i n g Christians. The caliph's

p h y o f the p o s t - M o n g o l eastern Islamic w o r l d that

propagandist U m a r al-Suhrawardi ( d . 1234), a

extended all the way f r o m A n a t o l i a to I n d i a was

c

c

c

Sufi theologian o f the Shafi i school, energetically

characterized by a certain ambivalence, "so that

s u p p o r t e d the u n i o n o f Sunnism and moderate

b e l o n g i n g to the S h i i rather t h a n to the S u n n i

c

c

S h i i s m by p o s i t i n g that Sufism, a m e d i a t i n g

confession w o u l d seem to be a m a t t e r o f religious

bridge between those two poles, c o u l d be sanc-

sensibility rather t h a n one o f ideological diver-

t i o n e d by the caliphate. This view, w h i c h t u r n e d

gences or different j u r i d i c a l rites." I n this t o l e r a n t

the Abbasid caliph i n t o the focal p o i n t o f the

setting deeply i m b u e d w i t h Sufism, w h i c h helped

Shari a and Sufism, consolidated the synthesis i n i -

bridge religious differences, i t was n o t u n c o m m o n

c

c

tiated i n the Seljuq p e r i o d by al-Ghazali. After

for I l k h a n i d , T i m u r i d , and T u r k m e n rulers to

years o f distrust by the r u l i n g powers, o r t h o d o x

waver between Sunnism and S h i i s m according to

Sufism thus f o u n d its way i n t o S u n n i circles w i t h

personal c o n v i c t i o n s .

an official sanction by the c a l i p h a t e .

context i n w h i c h the T o p k a p i scroll seems to have

43

Al-Nasir's

c

44

The T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n

reign therefore prepared the g r o u n d for the rising

been c o m p i l e d was, t h e n , a very different setting

fortunes o f Sufism d u r i n g the p o s t - M o n g o l era,

f r o m the staunchly o r t h o d o x , p u r i t a n m i l i e u o f the

w h e n the t r a d i t i o n a l h o s t i l i t y between the Sunnis

S u n n i revival i n w h i c h the geometric m o d e had

and Shi is w o u l d become m u c h less acute after

i n i t i a l l y flourished.

c

the fall o f the Abbasid caliphate i n Baghdad. D u r i n g the M o n g o l - I l k h a n i d p e r i o d the m i t i gation o f the S u n n i - S h i i dispute i n the eastern c

Islamic w o r l d was accompanied b y the strengtheni n g o f Twelver S h i i s m , the increasing appearance c

o f S h i i trends i n Sufism, and a leaning t o w a r d c

moderate S h i i s m i n S u n n i circles. This climate c

MONGOLS

109

CHAPTER 7. THE POST - MONGOL SYNTHESIS

The c o n t i n u e d life o f the girih m o d e i n the post-

western Islamic lands, selectively i n c o r p o r a t e d

o f e x t r e m e s — " t h e most relentless geometry is set

M o n g o l era seems to have been p r o p e l l e d by its

some o f the new floral chinoiserie motifs i n t o t h e i r

beside the most exuberant f l o r i a t i o n . " He w e l c o m e d this r e v o l u t i o n a r y change:

o w n f o r m a l m o m e n t u m as i t became assimilated

t r a d i t i o n a l decorative vocabulary that conserva-

i n t o w o r k s h o p t r a d i t i o n s t h r o u g h the codified

tively preserved its visual l i n k w i t h the caliphal

repertories o f scrolls. N o w merged w i t h the

" g o l d e n age," the p o s t - M o n g o l aesthetic synthesis

The M o n g o l shock just came at the

Chinese-flavored aesthetic synthesis o f the M o n -

o f the east had very l i t t l e i m p a c t i n N o r t h Africa

m o m e n t w h e n i t was necessary to renew

gols and t h e i r successors, i t was accompanied by

and Spain, where a separate c u l t u r a l i d e n t i t y was

the w h o l e substance o f I r a n i a n d e c o r a t i o n

a wide variety o f m o t i f s . Whatever o r i g i n a l associ-

c u l t i v a t e d by local dynasties t h a t nostalgically

i f i t were n o t to become m o r i b u n d , for

ations i t may have carried w i t h the S u n n i revival

c l u n g to the past. This nostalgic c u l t u r a l o r i e n t a -

indeed the t h i r t e e n t h c e n t u r y had done

were largely forgotten and substituted w i t h new

t i o n was p o l i t i c a l l y expressed by the c o n t i n u e d

l i t t l e m o r e t h a n m a r k t i m e . Regeneration

ones. The M o n g o l invasions b r o u g h t about a c u l -

role o f the Abbasid caliphs stationed at M a m l u k

was effected, n o t by complete s u b s t i t u t i o n ,

t u r a l split between the T u r c o - I r a n i a n realms i n

Cairo i n d i s t r i b u t i n g titles to such loyal rulers as

b u t by s u p p l e m e n t a t i o n , so t h a t c o n t i n u -

the east (extending f r o m A n a t o l i a to the borders

the Nasrids and the slave sultans o f D e l h i .

i t y was n o t b r o k e n b u t rather sustained

o f C h i n a ) and the Arab-speaking ones i n the west

The p o s t - M o n g o l visual i d i o m t h a t stamped the

(extending f r o m the M a m l u k t e r r i t o r i e s t o N o r t h

decorative arts and a r c h i t e c t u r a l revetments o f the

Africa and Spain), a split reflected i n the different

eastern Islamic w o r l d spread i n I r a n , I r a q , A n a t o l i a ,

decorative vocabularies t h a t prevailed i n each

and Central Asia d u r i n g the late t h i r t e e n t h and

r e g i o n . The a n t i n a t u r a l i s t i c abstract language o f

f o u r t e e n t h centuries under the hegemonic rule

elaborated between the late f o u r t e e n t h and early

by fresh suggestions, and saved f r o m lapsi n g by i n e r t i a .

45

The M o n g o l - I l k h a n i d synthesis c o n t i n u e d to be

geometric, vegetal, calligraphic, a n d figural

o f the I l k h a n i d s . Pope w r o t e i n reference to this

sixteenth centuries by the T i m u r i d and T u r k m e n

patterns was perpetuated i n the A r a b w o r l d , w h i c h

p e r i o d , w h e n o l d patterns were assimilated w i t h

dynasties. Geometric schemes i n use since the

had successfully resisted m i l i t a r y invasion by the

new ones, that the Far East c o n t r i b u t e d "ideas and

eleventh century were t r a n s f o r m e d by the m a n i p u -

M o n g o l forces. A l t h o u g h the M a m l u k s , situated

forms m a r k e d b y a new n a t u r a l i s m and a new k i n d

l a t i o n o f t h e i r i n h e r i t e d g r a m m a r i n terms o f scale

at the t r a n s i t i o n a l zone between the eastern a n d

o f elegance" t h a t resulted i n the j u x t a p o s i t i o n

(successively f r a g m e n t i n g t r a d i t i o n a l m o t i f s i n t o

112

PART 3. THE GEOGRAPHICAL,

CHRONOLOGICAL, AND SEMANTIC

HORIZONS

smaller elements or, conversely, m a g n i f y i n g t h e m

classifies genres o f p a i n t i n g under two m a i n cate-

sevenfold classification o f patterns used by deco-

i n an unprecedented m a n n e r ) , c o m p o s i t i o n , color

gories, decorative and representational. The repre-

rators and i l l u m i n a t o r s , w h i c h echoed the sixfold

scheme, m a t e r i a l , technique, placement, s u r p r i s i n g

sentational category is f u r t h e r s u b d i v i d e d i n t o two

classification o f calligraphic modes developed i n

j u x t a p o s i t i o n s , and contrasting c o m b i n a t i o n s w i t h

t y p e s — f i g u r a l p a i n t i n g (suratgari)

Abbasid Baghdad (to w h i c h a seventh category,

c u r v i l i n e a r patterns (vegetal, floral, figural, or cal-

design (janvdr-sdzi)—and

and a n i m a l

the abstract art o f deco-

l i g r a p h i c ) that expanded the set o f designs to a

rators (naqqashi)

v i r t u a l l y infinite n u m b e r . C o m p l e x radial c o m -

seven f u n d a m e n t a l modes (asl, l i t . , "base," or

positions displaced simpler ones based o n recti-

" r o o t " ) w i t h m a n y variations (far ,

is described as consisting o f c

lit., "branch"):

c

as i n calligraphy the Six Pens are basic, i n this craft there are seven f u n d a m e n t a l modes {asl):

islami

[Islamic, a c o r r u p t i o n o f islimi],

farangi,

fisali, abr, vdq, and

linear or diagonal grids, w h i l e designs generated by squared grids i n t e n d e d for transference to

I speak here o f the seven bases {asl) o f

banna'ibrick

decoral art [that is, o f its seven basic pat-

masonry t o o k o n a new p r o m i n e n c e .

ta lTq, was added i n the p o s t - M o n g o l p e r i o d ) : "Just

The girih or band-i

khatai,

girih"

47

rum! was, t h e n , o n l y one o f

the available o p t i o n s i n this b r o a d repertory o f

F o u r t e e n t h - c e n t u r y advances i n t i l i n g techniques

terns or design m o d e s ] . Yet i t s h o u l d be

design modes that c o u l d be used either alone or i n

that c u l m i n a t e d w i t h the development o f mosaic

u n d e r s t o o d that there are m a n y variations

various c o m b i n a t i o n s w i t h one another. T i m u r i d

faience had w i d e n e d the color scheme o f tile revet-

(far )

ments and facilitated the r e n d e r i n g o f c u r v i l i n e a r

C

A1T], i n g u i d i n g me, cited the basic pat-

this varied repertory i n m a n u s c r i p t p a i n t i n g , also

patterns w i t h greater precision. Eventually the l i n -

terns as follows: first come islimi (the

prepared patterns for the decorative revetments o f

ear strapwork interlaces o f the Seljuq and I l k h a n i d

ivy-and-spiral [ o r v i n e - a n d - t e n d r i l ] pat-

specific b u i l d i n g projects as we have already seen.

periods were d o m i n a t e d by the i n t e r l o c k i n g stars

tern) and khatai

These patterns c o m p l e m e n t e d the p u r e l y geomet-

and polygons o f the Topkapi scroll, w h i c h empha-

t e r n ) . You may t h e n take as your t h i r d and

ric ones c o m p i l e d by master builders i n girih

size i n t e r p e n e t r a t i n g color fields m o r e t h a n linear

f o u r t h , abr [ c l o u d l i k e or m a r b l e d p a t t e r n ]

scrolls, c o n t r i b u t i n g to the greater n a t u r a l i s m o f

i n t e r l a c i n g . The scroll's strictly angular geometry

and vdq [grotesque p a t t e r n featuring the

the p o s t - M o n g o l revetment aesthetic. Despite the

also e l i m i n a t e d the curvilinear geometric i n t e r -

head-bearing tree]. This leaves mlufar (the

w i d e r variety o f available patterns, however, a r c h i -

laces o f earlier periods that were no longer favored

lotus) and farangi

tectural revetments and decorative v a u l t i n g c o n -

i n T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n tile w o r k . The i n c o r p o r a t i o n o f the geometric girih

mode

c

as well. M y o w n master [Muzaffar-

(the Chinese floral pat-

(the Frankish p a t t e r n )

and T u r k m e n i l l u m i n a t o r s , w h o made full use o f

as y o u r fifth and s i x t h . A n d w i t h all these

t i n u e d to be d o m i n a t e d by geometric schemes well

i n m i n d , do n o t yet o v e r l o o k the seventh,

i n t o the early sixteenth century.

i n t o a broader decorative vocabulary is d o c u -

band-i

m e n t e d i n several Safavid texts t h a t seem to be

Once y o u have grasped the basic p r i n -

rumi (the A n a t o l i a n k n o t p a t t e r n ) .

A l t h o u g h the T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n dynasties, the M a m l u k s , and the Nasrids were able to sustain the

based o n a T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n classification o f pat-

ciples i n v o l v e d i n these seven patterns,

i n n o v a t i v e m o m e n t u m o f the girih m o d e by enliv-

terns. For example, the Qanun al-suwar

y o u s h o u l d have no difficulty w i t h the

ening i t w i t h p o l y c h r o m y and i n t r i c a t e elabora-

variations.

t i o n s , the early m o d e r n Islamic empires that

(Canons o f

p a i n t i n g ) , w r i t t e n sometime between 1576 and 1602

46

d o m i n a t e d the M u s l i m w o r l d between the six-

by the Safavid c o u r t painter and l i b r a r i a n Sadiqi Bek ( w h o had studied p a i n t i n g i n the 1540s at the

A n o t h e r sixteenth-century Safavid author, M i r

teenth and eighteenth centuries seem to have felt

royal s c r i p t o r i u m o f Tabriz under M u z a f f a r - A l i ) ,

Sayyid-Ahmad M a s h h a d i , slightly m o d i f i e d this

that geometric p a t t e r n i n g had reached a dead end.

c

THE

The O t t o m a n s , Safavids, and M u g h a l s , w h o i n i tially shared the i n t e r n a t i o n a l T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n artistic heritage o f the fifteenth-century eastern Islamic w o r l d , w o u l d eventually develop their o w n abstract i d i o m s o f architectural revetment representing differentiated dynastic tastes confined to relatively a u t o n o m o u s c u l t u r a l zones. These distinctive decorative i d i o m s no longer assigned geometry the privileged role i t had enjoyed i n architectural revetments f r o m the late t e n t h t h r o u g h the early sixteenth century. I n the course o f the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries geometric p a t t e r n i n g was increasingly s u b o r d i n a t e d to the naturalistic floral i d i o m s o f the O t t o m a n s and Mughals, o n the one h a n d , and to the relatively m o r e abstract c u r v i l i n e a r vegetal interlaces o f the Safavids, o n the other. As Pope n o t e d , the Safavid p e r i o d represented the " u l t i mate t r i u m p h o f the floral style" i n I r a n : " T h e geom e t r i c style is n o w largely supplanted by a r i c h arabesque and floral o r n a m e n t i n w h i c h f o r m a l elements are h a p p i l y c o m b i n e d w i t h the s e m i n a t u ralistic and w i t h every i n t e r m e d i a t e degree o f c o n v e n t i o n a l i z a t i o n " (figs. 94, 9 5 ) .

48

The preference o f

the Twelver S h i i Safavids for floriated vegetal c

scrolls may well have been triggered by the specific association these forms had acquired at that t i m e w i t h the Prophet's son-in-law A l i b. A b i Talib c

( d . 661), the revered first i m a m o f the Shi is. The c

calligrapher and painter Dost M u h a m m a d ' s preface to the a l b u m o f the Safavid p r i n c e B a h r a m M i r z a i n 1544 identified the vegetal arabesque as an i n v e n t i o n o f A l i , w h o was " t h e first person to c

POST-MONGOL

SYNTHESIS

113

94. Interior view of the tile-covered sanctuary dome, Masjid-i Shah, Isfahan, 1611-1638. Photo: Courtesy Fogg Fine Arts Films.

114

PART 3. THE GEOGRAPHICAL,

CHRONOLOGICAL, AND SEMANTIC

HORIZONS

a d o r n w i t h p a i n t i n g and i l l u m i n a t i o n the w r i t i n g

dynastic i d e n t i t y (fig. 96). The earlier geometric,

o f the W o r d . . . . A few leaves (barg), k n o w n i n

vegetal, and chinoiserie motifs o f the i n t e r n a t i o n a l

the parlance o f painters as islami, were i n v e n t e d

T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n style were n o t altogether aban-

by h i m . "

d o n e d , b u t they n o w became marginalized by

4 9

The same t r a d i t i o n is repeated i n M i r

Sayyid-Ahmad's preface to another a l b u m , p r e -

designs i n c l u d i n g carnations, hyacinths, t u l i p s ,

pared i n 1564-1565, where b o t h the kufic script

s p r i n g blossoms, and grapevines that recreated a

and the vegetal arabesque are associated w i t h A l i .

garden atmosphere i n d o o r s . P r e d o m i n a n t l y c u r v i -

I t is explained t h a t the latter i n v e n t e d the islimi or

linear patterns accompanied by cursive calligraphy

islam! mode u p o n being challenged i n a c o m p e t i -

replaced angular geometry i n the novel I z n i k tile

t i o n by the infidel Chinese painters w h o designed a

revetments, whose v i v i d l y c o l o r e d , identifiable

tray filled w i t h naturalistic t u l i p s and roses:

flowers w i t h stems stood o u t i n b r i g h t contrast

c

against a w h i t e b a c k g r o u n d as i f to defy the figureW h e n the k i n g o f s a i n t h o o d [ A l i ] saw

g r o u n d ambiguities so valued before. A l t h o u g h the

that d r a w i n g , he seized the pen f r o m t h e m

O t t o m a n h i s t o r i a n Mustafa Ali's late sixteenth-

in inimitability.

century b i o g r a p h i c a l w o r k o n calligraphers and

He drew a c h a r m i n g isldmi that astonished

painters still referred t o specialists o f geometric

the people o f Cathay.

p a t t e r n i n g (girih-bend)

c

a m o n g the i l l u m i n a t o r s o f

W h e n that p r o t o t y p e fell i n t o t h e i r hands,

the O t t o m a n c o u r t , t h e i r specialization had fallen

all other designs were lesser i n t h e i r v i e w .

o u t o f favor.

50

51

The girih c o n t i n u e d to d o m i n a t e the

relatively m o r e t r a d i t i o n a l media o f j o i n e d w o o d This apocryphal t r a d i t i o n o f u n k n o w n o r i g i n demonstrates h o w abstract designs c o u l d be

95. Exterior view of the tile-covered sanctuary dome, Masjid-i Shah, Isfahan, 1611-1638. Photo: Courtesy J. Powell, Rome.

charged w i t h specific c o n t e x t u a l c o n n o t a t i o n s

w o r k , carved marble grilles, and the muqarnas, b u t i t no longer enjoyed its earlier p r o m i n e n c e . The M u g h a l s o f I n d i a , w h o were the direct

that were n o t necessarily relevant t h r o u g h o u t the

descendants o f the T i m u r i d dynasty, w o u l d also

M u s l i m w o r l d . Perhaps the Safavids (like the

create t h e i r o w n n o n f i g u r a l seminaturalistic floral

F a t i m i d s before t h e m ) were n o t so keen o n adopt-

i d i o m i n the seventeenth century after having

i n g the geometric girih because o f its p r o m i n e n c e

extensively used the girih i n t h e i r earlier m o n u -

i n m o n u m e n t s associated w i t h S u n n i memories. The O t t o m a n classical synthesis t h a t emerged

ments (figs. 97, 98). The early M u g h a l style had been d o m i n a t e d by T i m u r i d - t y p e plaster carvings

a r o u n d the m i d d l e o f the sixteenth century

and tile revetments whose geometric patterns were

replaced the abstract Persianate decorative vocabu-

sometimes translated i n t o the local m e d i u m o f tes-

lary o f the early O t t o m a n p e r i o d w i t h a s e m i n a t u -

sellated stone mosaics (khdtim-bandi).

ralistic floral i d i o m p r o j e c t i n g a new, independent

these t r a d i t i o n a l Persianate st ar - an d - po ly g o n c o m -

Eventually

THE

POST-MONGOL

SYNTHESIS

96. Sixteenth-century arched Iznik tile panels reused in the northwest gallery, Mosque of Sultan Ahmed i, Istanbul, 1609-1617. Photo: Courtesy Walter B. Denny.

positions and t h e i r accompanying abstract vegetal interlaces were supplanted b y m o r e naturalistic stemmed flowers, partly inspired b y European botanies and floral p a t t e r n books. Executed i n w h i t e marble reliefs and i n the Italianate pietra technique {parchin-kdri,

dura

l i t . , "clenched w o r k " ) ,

these seminaturalistic floral patterns were n o w accompanied b y floriated vegetal interlaces displaying a Baroque flavor n o t u n l i k e the arabesques i n p r i n t e d p a t t e r n books that the European g o l d smiths and decorators w h o were employed i n the M u g h a l c o u r t may have possessed. O f course, the geometric girih c o n t i n u e d t o live o n i n i n t r i c a t e l y carved stone w i n d o w screens (jali),

inlaid

floors,

plasterwork, and s i m p l i f i e d muqarnas reliefs, b u t it certainly lost its f o r m e r c e n t r a l i t y .

52

Geometric revetments, p r o n e t o m o n o t o n y w i t h their repetitive patterns governed b y fixed f o r m u las, were thus unable t o survive the c o m p e t i t i o n o f new floral i d i o m s invented i n the early m o d e r n age. T h e i r p o s i t i o n o f p r i m a c y remained u n c h a l lenged o n l y i n Uzbek Central Asia where the l e g i t i m i z i n g prestige o f the T i m u r i d past assured t h e i r c o n t i n u e d life, i n the b a c k w a r d - l o o k i n g architect u r e o f the M a g h r i b , and i n the eighteenth- a n d n i n e t e e n t h - c e n t u r y m o n u m e n t s o f Qajar I r a n where geometric revetments enjoyed a revival

inlay decoration on pillar base, Diwan-i Khass, Red Fort, Delhi, 1639-1648. Photo: Copyright Asian Art Archives of the University of Michigan. 97. Pietra dura

f r o m the late Safavid p e r i o d o n w a r d . T h a t revival w o u l d spread like an epidemic t h r o u g h o u t the M u s l i m w o r l d i n the late n i n e t e e n t h and early t w e n t i e t h centuries under the i m p a c t o f O r i e n t a l i s t p u b l i c a t i o n s t h a t i d e n t i f i e d the arabesque as a typical i n g r e d i e n t o f Islamic architectural o r n a -

98. Detail offlorallow relief marble dado panel, Taj Mahal, Agra, 1631-1647. Photo: Copyright Asian Art Archives of the University of Michigan.

115

116 PART 3. THE GEOGRAPHICAL, CHRONOLOGICAL, AND SEMANTIC HORIZONS

m e n t . The so-called geometric arabesque still

c o m p i l a t i o n coincided w i t h the last burst o f crea-

the so-called arabesque was the symbolic transla-

continues to enjoy p o p u l a r i t y i n the revivalist

t i v i t y t h a t the late G o t h i c style experienced i n c o n -

t i o n o f the Islamic revelation i n t o visual f o r m ,

c o n t e m p o r a r y architectures o f such countries as

t e m p o r a r y Europe before its elaborate geometric

most p r i m a r y sources l i m i t the subject m a t t e r o f

M o r o c c o and p o s t r e v o l u t i o n I r a n , where i t is

fireworks were displaced by the n u m e r i c a l a r i t h -

art to the realms o f n a t u r e , given the complete

p r o m o t e d as a f u n d a m e n t a l aspect o f t r a d i t i o n a l

metic approach o f the Renaissance. I n contrast to

transcendence o f G o d and o f the message o f the

Islamic a r c h i t e c t u r e .

Europe, where the Renaissance largely swept away

K o r a n . They often stress the parallelism between

the G o t h i c architectural i d i o m , whose v i r t u o s o

God's creation o f the universe and the artist's

m e t r i c girih m o d e , w i t h its h i g h p o i n t falling

geometric elaborations i t rejected w i t h a ven-

modest creations t h a t t r a n s f o r m raw m a t t e r , a

between the early eleventh and m i d - t h i r t e e n t h cen-

geance, the remnants o f the girih m o d e c o n t i n u e d

p o t e n t i a l l y dangerous parallelism addressed i n sev-

turies and its last creative impulse manifested i n

to live o n i n various degrees o f i n t e n s i t y i n post-

eral h a d i t h t h a t w a r n the painter about the f u t i l i t y

the f o u r t e e n t h - to early sixteenth-century m o n u -

medieval Islamic visual c u l t u r e , w h i c h d i d n o t

o f a t t e m p t i n g to rival G o d t h r o u g h lifelike, n a t u -

ments o f N a s r i d Spain, M a m l u k Egypt, and the

experience a m a j o r paradigmatic shift comparable

ralistic representations.

T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n east. T h o u g h always present,

to the Renaissance. Nevertheless the p r e d o m i -

geometry had n o t been i n the f o r e f r o n t d u r i n g the

n a n t l y floral visual i d i o m s o f the early m o d e r n

53

This b r i e f o u t l i n e helps us historicize the geo-

55

I t is w r i t t e n i n the Rasd'il

(Epistles) o f the

Brethren o f P u r i t y ( I k h w a n al-Safa'), believed

f o r m a t i v e p e r i o d o f Islamic visual c u l t u r e between

Islamic empires seemed to signal the end o f a me-

to have been composed by a g r o u p o f authors

the seventh and late t e n t h centuries, and i t lost

dieval era and the b e g i n n i n g o f a new one whose

w i t h S h i i leanings w h o were active i n late t e n t h -

its i n n o v a t i v e v i g o r i n the post-sixteenth-century

" p r o t o m o d e r n " ethos calls for a detailed contex-

early m o d e r n era, despite its c o n t i n u e d life i n

t u a l analysis falling beyond the scope o f this b o o k .

N o r t h A f r i c a , I r a n , and Central Asia. I t d i d n o t

c

century B u y i d Baghdad, t h a t skillful artisans 54

Neither the few r e m a i n i n g early medieval m o n u -

s h o u l d i m i t a t e God's creation to "assimilate His w i s d o m . . . as m u c h as this is possible to m a n . "

ments n o r the w r i t t e n texts p r o v i d e m u c h i n f o r -

The object o f artistic c r e a t i o n , t h e n , was " t o i m i -

c u l t u r e , as most o f the l i t e r a t u r e o n the subject

m a t i o n about the o r i g i n a l associations o f the

tate the science o f the C r e a t o r " and to " r e p r o d u c e

assumed, b u t was o n l y one o f m a n y abstract deco-

girih at the t i m e o f its i n c e p t i o n , associations t h a t

the signs o f H i s art i n the n a t u r a l p r o d u c t i o n . "

constitute a timeless essence o f Islamic visual

rative modes available. I t was n o t i n d e p e n d e n t l y

appear to have shifted w i t h changing collective

I n t h e i r i n t r o d u c t i o n to the epistle o n music the

i n v e n t e d i n different places as the mysterious

memories over t i m e and space. Later sources f r o m

B r e t h r e n w r o t e , " I n this Epistle music acts as a

visual manifestation o f a M u s l i m s p i r i t u a l m e n -

the p o s t - M o n g o l p e r i o d p r o v i d e a better sense o f

focus whose purpose is to explain and i l l u m i n a t e

tality; i t was developed i n a specific t i m e and

the range o f meanings t w o - and t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l

the wonders o f c r e a t i o n , the p h e n o m e n a o f n a t u r e ,

place and spread f r o m there to other places. The

geometric patterns c o u l d carry. The Safavid clas-

and matters l y i n g w i t h i n the d o m a i n o f h u m a n

T o p k a p i scroll, datable to the late fifteenth- or

sifications o f animate and i n a n i m a t e modes o f

c r e a t i o n . " A b d e l h a m i d I . Sabra's observation t h a t

sixteenth-century I r a n i a n w o r l d , therefore, repre-

abstract design referred to above suggest t h a t artis-

" t h e B r e t h r e n were a i m i n g t h e i r teaching at the

sents a final regional c u l m i n a t i o n o f the girih,

tic c r e a t i o n , w h i c h c o u l d h a r d l y a i m to m a t c h the

class o f craftsmen and generally educated people"

w h i c h enjoyed a longue duree p o p u l a r i t y i n the

creation o f G o d (al-sani ,

medieval Islamic lands just before i t became m a r -

the different realms o f n a t u r e as its u l t i m a t e m o d -

The epistles o f the B r e t h r e n o f P u r i t y , a f r a t e r n i t y -

ginalized d u r i n g the early m o d e r n era. The scroll's

els. C o n t r a r y to the widespread assumption t h a t

like society o f B u y i d g o v e r n m e n t secretaries and

c

"the divine artist"), took

endows t h e i r w r i t i n g s w i t h a special significance.

THE

POST-MONGOL

SYNTHESIS

117

officials w h o preferred to r e m a i n a n o n y m o u s , were

w i l l ; and this w i t h a peculiar v i r t u e

begins w i t h a section that thanks the d i v i n e creator

not o n l y studied by the philosopher and physician

b e l o n g i n g o n l y to a r t .

(sani ) c

5 7

S u n n i writers as al-Ghazali and even the strict

w h o l a i d the f o u n d a t i o n s o f the seven sto-

ries, b u i l t the nine-arched d o m e o f heaven, and

I b n Sina (Avicenna, 980-1037) b u t also by such N o matter h o w abstract, t h e n , artistic creation

created the palace (kasr) o f the b o d y o f A d a m " w i t h o u t ruler or compass" s i m p l y t h r o u g h the

H a n b a l i theologian I b n Taymiyya. This shows that

had to be modeled o n the p h e n o m e n a o f n a t u r e ,

their teachings, to w h i c h we shall r e t u r n i n part 5,

a concept repeated i n a wide variety o f sources.

c o m m a n d "Be!" The same text draws an i m p l i c i t

were n o t l i m i t e d to S h i i circles.

For example, M i r Sayyid-Ahmad's preface to the

parallel between the cosmos and Sinan's m o n u -

c

56

Safavid a l b u m o f paintings and calligraphy m e n -

m e n t a l mosques c r o w n e d by domes o f heaven,

scholar M u h a m m a d al-Dawwani's (1424-1503) late

t i o n e d above described artists w h o specialized i n

a parallel t h a t also i n f o r m e d the architectonic

A s i m i l a r role is assigned to art i n the S u n n i fifteenth-century p o p u l a r ethical treatise, adapted

the seven basic modes o f abstract i l l u m i n a t i o n ,

s t r u c t u r e and decorative programs o f earlier

largely f r o m earlier S h i i texts i n c l u d i n g the ethics

i n c l u d i n g the girih, as d e r i v i n g t h e i r prototypes

Byzantine c h u r c h e s .

o f the M o n g o l - I l k h a n i d m a t h e m a t i c i a n and

f r o m nature, the creation o f the d i v i n e artist:

c

M e h m e d ' s b i o g r a p h y composed by Ca fer c

Efendi, Risdle-i

astronomer Nasir a l - D i n al-Tusi (1210-1274).

59

M'fmariyye

(Treatise o n architec-

W r i t t e n i n the A q q o y u n l u c o u r t , this w o r k brings

W h a t marvelous wielders o f pens o f

t u r e ) , begins w i t h a similar d e d i c a t i o n : "Let there

us close to the m i l i e u where the T o p k a p i scroll

sorcery w h o bestow life w i t h magic-

be endless thanks and numberless praises o f that

seems to have been c o m p i l e d :

m a k i n g pens!

G o d w h o created m e n , w h o opened the d o o r o f

Latched o n t o every created t h i n g , they

the palace o f w i s d o m and w h o i n accordance w i t h

N o w nature is superior to art, for i t is

reproduce the likeness o f every t h i n g .

the c o m m a n d Be! A n d i t is,' . . . created . . . this

derived f r o m the highest o f sources, w i t h -

They f o l l o w God's craft f r o m the compass

great w o r k s h o p , perfect i n f o r m as an ideal o f the

out the i n t e r v e n t i o n o f h u m a n j u d g m e n t ;

o f the spheres to the surface o f the earth.

m i n d , c o n t a i n i n g and c o m p r i s i n g seven lower lev-

whereas art proceeds solely f r o m such

W i t h their gazes fixed o n c r e a t i o n , they

els and seven upper levels." A detailed d e s c r i p t i o n

i n t e r v e n t i o n . N a t u r e t h e n is the peda-

take an image f r o m every p r o t o t y p e .

o f the cosmos is followed by praise o f the d i v i n e

l

58

architect's w o n d r o u s creation: " W h a t is this vault

gogue and preceptor o f art; and as the perfection o f things secondary lies i n their

Just as painters derived abstract modes o f

o f heaven, and w h a t is this surface o f the world?

resemblance to originals, the perfection o f

i l l u m i n a t i o n f r o m the prototypes o f n a t u r e , a r c h i -

W h a t is this lofty arch, and w h a t is this lofty p a v i l -

art m u s t lie i n its resemblance to nature,

tects are often described as i m i t a t i n g the order o f

ion? H o w is i t that such an edifice was a r t f u l l y

w h i c h resemblance i t may a t t a i n by a n t i c i -

the cosmos i n t h e i r b u i l d i n g s . The late sixteenth-

made w i t h o u t drawings [plans] and w i t h o u t geome-

p a t i n g or p o s t p o n i n g means, and arrang-

and early seventeenth-century biographies o f

t r y and w i t h o u t a [ t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l ] m o d e l ? "

i n g t h e m generally i n their a p p r o p r i a t e

the O t t o m a n architects Sinan and M e h m e d , for

The Sultan A h m e d mosque (1609-1617) designed

course: so that that perfection w h i c h ,

example, start by c o m p a r i n g G o d to an a r c h i -

by M e h m e d is described i n similar terms, its d o m e

under Providence, is effected by the

tect, an image w i d e l y used i n the Islamic w o r l d ,

compared to the i l l u m i n a t e d vault o f heaven, its

agency o f n a t u r e , may be accomplished

B y z a n t i u m , and the L a t i n West alike. Sinan's auto-

m i h r a b to rainbows, and its arched galleries to

by art under the guidance o f h u m a n

b i o g r a p h y composed by the p o e t - p a i n t e r Sa i

m o u n t a i n s , i n d i c a t i n g that its m i c r o c o s m i c struc-

c

60

Il8

3.

PART

THE

GEOGRAPHICAL,

CHRONOLOGICAL,

ture was considered replete with allusions to nature.

AND

SEMANTIC

HORIZONS

T h e h e a v e n l y a s s o c i a t i o n s o f s t e l l a t e girih

pat­

I t has b e e n r e c o g n i z e d t h a t t h e A l h a m b r a ' s

t e r n s are c a p t u r e d i n s o m e t e x t u a l d e s c r i p t i o n s ;

artesonado

f o r e x a m p l e , i n 1544 D o s t M u h a m m a d r e f e r r e d t o

heavens referred to i n an a c c o m p a n y i n g K o r a n i c

buildings, their surfaces—covered w i t h t w o - and

the g i l d e d g e o m e t r i c interlaces o f a Safavid i l l u m i ­

i n s c r i p t i o n : " B l e s s e d is H e i n w h o s e h a n d is t h e

t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l girih

n a t o r as " m a d e f r o m t h e rays o f s h o o t i n g s t a r s "

K i n g d o m . . . . W h o created seven heavens o n e

G i v e n the " n a t u r a l i s t i c " references e n c o d e d i n

patterns d o m i n a t e d by

v a u l t was m e a n t to a l l u d e t o the seven

t h e g e o m e t r y o f stars a n d p o l y g o n s — c o u l d e a s i l y

t h a t create "abodes o f b u r n i s h e d g o l d i n his s u n ­

u p o n a n o t h e r . T h o u seest n o t i n t h e c r e a t i o n o f

trigger c o s m o l o g i c a l associations. As B o u r g o i n and

bursts."

t h e A l l - M e r c i f u l a n y i m p e r f e c t i o n . R e t u r n t h y gaze;

6 2

T h e n a m e s a s s i g n e d t o s t e l l a t e girihs

by

others n o t e d , p o l y g o n a l interlaces seemed to evoke

c o n t e m p o r a r y I r a n i a n m a s t e r b u i l d e r s are also

seest t h o u a n y fissure? T h e n r e t u r n t h y gaze a g a i n ,

the crystalline h a r m o n i c s t r u c t u r e o f a m a t h e m a t i ­

s u g g e s t i v e ; t h e y refer t o c o m p o s i t i o n s w i t h t w e l v e -

a n d a g a i n , a n d t h y gaze c o m e s b a c k t o t h e e d a z z l e d ,

cally o r d e r e d i n a n i m a t e m a t e r i a l w o r l d . A m o n g

a n d s i x - p o i n t e d stars as " t w e l v e a n d s i x h e a v e n s "

aweary" (67: 1 - 4 ) .

g e o m e t r i c p a t t e r n s t h o s e f e a t u r i n g stars r e s o n a t e d

(duwäzdah

w i t h heavenly allusions. The u n d e r l y i n g orbitlike

t w e l v e - a n d e i g h t - p o i n t e d s t a r s as " t w e l v e a n d

o u t a n y gaps o f c o n g r u e n t stars a n d p o l y g o n s c a n

c o n c e n t r i c g r i d s o f s t e l l a t e girih

e i g h t h e a v e n s " (duwäzdah

t h u s be i d e n t i f i e d as a m e t a p h o r f o r t h e w o n d r o u s

patterns p u n c t u ­

wa shash gardün)

or to those w i t h

wa hashtgardün).

6 4

The layering o f the vault i n

s u p e r i m p o s e d tiers a n d the

The

fitting

together w i t h ­

ate t h e surfaces t h e y c o v e r w i t h p u l s a t i n g n o d a l

c o n c h l i k e fluted s e m i d o m e s o r d o m e l e t s f r o m

design o f the heavens created b y the w i s d o m o f

r o t o c e n t e r s m a r k e d b y stars, w h o s e e q u i d i s t a n t

w h i c h m o s t s t a r - s t u d d e d m u q a r n a s t i e r s are r a d i ­

God. This Koranic quotation implies that God's

r a d i i e m a n a t i n g l i k e l i g h t rays c r e a t e a n effect r e m i ­

a l l y g e n e r a t e d l i k e rays c a s c a d i n g f r o m a c e n ­

c r e a t i o n is s i m i l a r t o t h a t o f a p a t t e r n m a k e r c o n ­

n i s c e n t o f t h e e m a n a t i o n o f l i g h t i n a s t a r r y sky.

t r a l s o u r c e o f l i g h t are r e f e r r e d t o as s u n

T h e e x t e n d e d lines o f m u l t i p l e star centers i n t e r ­

(shamsa)

l i n k to f o r m p o l y g o n s a n d s u b s i d i a r y star clusters

T h a t t w o - a n d t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l girih

charged w i t h a vaguely representational

c o u l d also be c h a r g e d w i t h s p e c i f i c h e a v e n l y r e f e r ­

The bedazzlement o f the weary beholder, unable

I n s t e a d o f b e i n g precise r e p r e s e n t a t i o n s o f stars

ences t h r o u g h a c c o m p a n y i n g p o e t i c o r K o r a n i c

to decipher the ingenious u n d e r l y i n g order o f the

a n d h e a v e n l y o r b i t s as t h e y w o u l d a p p e a r i n c o n ­

i n s c r i p t i o n s is d e m o n s t r a t e d b y s e v e r a l e x a m p l e s

d i v i n e l y created universe, parallels the aesthetic

character.

t e m p o r a r y a s t r o n o m i c a l t r e a t i s e s , h o w e v e r , these girihs

are s i m p l y g e o m e t r i c a b s t r a c t i o n s w o r k i n g

figures

b y t h e s a m e b u i l d e r s (see figs. 6 7 - 6 9 ) .

cerned w i t h the p r o b l e m o f t i g h t l y 6 3

patterns

fitting

together

h a r m o n i o u s l y p r o p o r t i o n e d c o n g r u e n t shapes a n d c l o s e l y p a c k e d g e o m e t r i c s o l i d s w i t h o u t a n y gaps.

i n the A l h a m b r a . H e r e the stellate plaster m u q a r ­

effect o f girih

nas d o m e o f t h e f o u r t e e n t h - c e n t u r y H a l l o f T w o

a n d polygons c o n t i n u o u s l y seem to m e t a m o r ­ phose i n t o one another w i t h o u t revealing their

o n the level o f a suggestive analogy or m e t a p h o r .

Sisters a n d t h e w o o d e n artesonado

T h e y recall the D u t c h artist Piet M o n d r i a n ' s

n e i g h b o r i n g H a l l o f A m b a s s a d o r s (also b u i l t i n

vault o f the

p a t t e r n s w h o s e i n t e r l o c k i n g stars

hidden geometry.

(1872-1944) speculation i n a letter a b o u t the m u l ­

t h e f o u r t e e n t h c e n t u r y ) , c o m p o s e d o f seven tiers

t i p l i c i t y o f stars i n t h e n i g h t s k y a n d t h e f o r m a l

o f s i x - a n d e i g h t - p o i n t e d stars i n t e r l o c k i n g w i t h

H a l l o f T w o Sisters as a n i m a g e o f t h e r e v o l v i n g

r e l a t i o n s t h a t l i n e s b e t w e e n these s t a r s c o u l d m a k e

p o l y g o n s , c a n b o t h be i d e n t i f i e d as a n a l o g u e s t o

v a u l t o f h e a v e n o n t h e basis o f t h e A n d a l u s i a n p o e t

m a n i f e s t : " T h e s t a r r y s k y s h o w s us i n n u m e r a b l e

the heavens b y means o f t h e i r carefully chosen

I b n Z a m r a k ' s (1333-1393) A r a b i c p o e m i n s c r i b e d

p o i n t s n o t all equally emphasized: one star t w i n k l e s

inscriptions. This confirms the kinship between

a r o u n d i t s base, w h i c h is p i e r c e d w i t h w i n d o w s

m o r e t h a n a n o t h e r ; a n d n o w again these u n e q u a l

s p a t i a l a n d p l a n a r g e o m e t r i c p a t t e r n s t h a t are

creating an i n t e r p l a y o f l i g h t a n d shade, diffused i n

l i g h t values engender f o r m s . "

j u x t a p o s e d i n girih

subtle g r a d a t i o n s b y m u q a r n a s shells a r r a n g e d i n a

6 1

scrolls.

Grabar i n t e r p r e t e d the m u q a r n a s d o m e o f the

THE

m u l t i t i e r e d stellate c o m p o s i t i o n .

65

H e w r o t e , " I t is

POST-MONGOL

These references to l i g h t suggest t h a t the super-

SYNTHESIS

119

regarded the o r i g i n o f the universe as an eternal

as t h o u g h the cupola was u n d e r s t o o d as a r o t a t i n g

i m p o s e d tiers o f stellate muqarnas vaults c o u l d

one, reflecting the daily cycle o f l i g h t and darkness

be read as abstract analogues for the m u l t i l a y e r e d

or p u r e l i g h t ) , had become a cornerstone o f Islamic

and the changing positions o f constellations." The

heavens studded w i t h g l i t t e r i n g celestial bodies

p h i l o s o p h i c a l t h o u g h t i n the t e n t h and early elev-

relevant parts o f the p o e m read:

and i m b u e d w i t h b r i l l i a n t l i g h t . This visual anal-

enth centuries, p a r t i c u l a r l y i n M u t a z i l i and S h i i

ogy frequently was heightened by color schemes

circles. M a j i d Fakhry p o i n t e d o u t t h a t the emana-

d o m i n a t e d by blues and gold and by the p i e r c i n g

t i o n i s t w o r l d v i e w " t o w h i c h the M u s l i m p h i l o s o -

becomes lost f r o m sight; beauty i n i t

o f muqarnas vaults w i t h w i n d o w s along t h e i r base

phers adhered almost w i t h o u t e x c e p t i o n " was

appears b o t h concealed and visible.

or w i t h r o u n d openings o n each tier, fitted w i t h

developed i n the w r i t i n g s o f such t h i n k e r s as

I n here is a cupola w h i c h by its height

r a d i a t i o n o f l i g h t f r o m a first p r i n c i p l e (the One,

c

c

The constellation o f G e m i n i extends a

glass bulbs f r o m w h i c h real rays o f l i g h t p o u r e d i n .

al-Farabi, I b n Sina, and the Brethren o f P u r i t y ,

ready h a n d [ t o help i t ] and the f u l l m o o n

T h a t the association w i t h l i g h t was relatively c o m -

b e c o m i n g f u r t h e r elaborated i n Shihab a l - D i n

o f the heavens draws near to whisper

m o n is suggested i n a d e s c r i p t i o n o f the sixteenth-

al-Suhrawardi's mystical p h i l o s o p h y o f i l l u m i -

secretly to i t .

c e n t u r y I b r a h i m Pasha Palace o v e r l o o k i n g the

n a t i o n . The heterodox i m p l i c a t i o n s o f this view

A n d the b r i g h t stars w o u l d like to estab-

H i p p o d r o m e i n I s t a n b u l as t o u c h i n g the stalac-

u p h o l d i n g the eternity o f the m a t e r i a l w o r l d w o u l d

lish themselves f i r m l y i n i t rather t h a n

t i t e d heavenly spheres (carh-i

be attacked by the polemicists o f the S u n n i revival,

mukarnas);

its vaults

to c o n t i n u e w a n d e r i n g about i n the

were so elaborately decorated that the sun's rays

w h o restored the Koranic concept o f a universe

vault o f the sky.

w o u l d n o t suffice for the girihs o f their m u q a r -

created i n t i m e w i t h o u t any intermediaries by

A n d h o w m a n y arches rise up i n its vault

yitismez).

nases (mukarnaslarinun s u p p o r t e d by c o l u m n s w h i c h at n i g h t are

girihlerine

zamir-i

dfitdb

67

Given the Koranic association o f light w i t h G o d

an o m n i p o t e n t and o m n i p r e s e n t G o d whose knowledge extends to " t h e smallest particle i n heaven or o n e a r t h " (34: 3 ) .

68

embellished by l i g h t !

expressed i n the L i g h t Verse, the r a d i a t i n g rays o f

Nevertheless, j u s t as the M u t a z i l i a t o m i s t i c

You w o u l d t h i n k that they are heavenly

t w o - and t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l girihs that t r a n s f o r m

cosmology w o u l d be a p p r o p r i a t e d by the A s h a r i

spheres whose orbits revolve, overshadow-

the surfaces o f b u i l d i n g s i n t o v i b r a t i o n s o f l i g h t

school i n m o d i f i e d f o r m , r e f o r m u l a t e d themes o f

c

c

i n g the p i l l a r o f dawn w h e n i t barely

and color (a f u n c t i o n o f l i g h t ) were also open to a

N e o p l a t o n i c cosmology and metaphysics crept

begins to appear after having passed

wide range o f religious resonances. I t is, therefore,

i n t o Sufism. A l t h o u g h al-Ghazali c r i t i c i z e d such

t h r o u g h the sky.

n o t s u r p r i s i n g that the elaborate muqarnas p o r t a l

M u s l i m philosophers as al-Farabi and I b n Sina

o f the madrasa complex o f Sultan Hasan i n Cairo

w h o w r o t e about the spontaneous generation o f

W h e n they are i l l u m i n a t e d by the rays o f

quotes the L i g h t Verse (24: 3 6 - 3 7 ) . The muqarnas

the universe f r o m a p u r e l i g h t source, he d i d

the sun y o u w o u l d t h i n k that they are

h o o d may have been a metaphor for the e m a n a t i o n

adopt t h e i r m e t a p h o r o f l i g h t i n his Mishkdt

made o f pearls by reason o f the q u a n t i t y

o f l i g h t i n the universe created by G o d , the a r t i s t i -

Anwdr

o f celestial bodies i n t h e m .

cally representable i n a n i m a t e realm o f nature and

o f the L i g h t Verse as an allegorical reference

n a t u r a l phenomena.

to the l i g h t o f d i v i n e revelation, reflecting an

6 6

The N e o p l a t o n i c d o c t r i n e o f e m a n a t i o n , w h i c h

al-

( N i c h e o f l i g h t s ) , a mystical i n t e r p r e t a t i o n

amalgam o f N e o p l a t o n i c and Sufi doctrines. I n

120

PART 3. THE GEOGRAPHICAL,

CHRONOLOGICAL, AND SEMANTIC

d o i n g so, he shifted the philosopher's emphasis

HORIZONS

c u l m i n a t i n g i n a conch w i t h eight sectors. Stellate

o f these gilded palatial domes t u r n e d t h e i r o w n

c o m p o s i t i o n s also characterize the t w e l f t h - c e n t u r y

t u r q u o i s e - c o l o r e d appearance i n t o i n d i g o blue a n d

conical muqarnas domes c r o w n i n g the so-called

saffron y e l l o w .

H i s new S u n n i o r t h o d o x synthesis therefore

t o m b o f Zubayda i n Baghdad and N u r a l - D i n ' s

the Persian poetry o f N i z a m i o f Ganja (1140-1202)

i n v o l v e d a selective "process o f a s s i m i l a t i o n " that

madrasa and hospital complexes i n Damascus. T h e

and Hafiz ( d . 1390) as an a t t r i b u t e o f the heavens,

b l u r r e d the lines between t r a d i t i o n i s t theology,

t w e l f t h - c e n t u r y flat w o o d e n muqarnas vault o f the

b u i l t i n layers (tabaqa)

p h i l o s o p h y , and m y s t i c i s m , e n d i n g i n a complete

Capella Palatina i n N o r m a n Palermo, o n the other

F o l l o w i n g the same t r a d i t i o n the

" n a t u r a l i z a t i o n " o f the i m p o r t e d Greek sciences

h a n d , features p r o m i n e n t e i g h t - p o i n t e d stars alter-

T i m u r i d h i s t o r i a n Sharaf a l - D i n A l i Yazdi c o m -

in Muslim soil.

n a t i n g w i t h e i g h t - p a r t i t e conches, embellished

pared the arched portals o f a palace i n the Dilgusha

o n reason t o an experiential f o r m o f i n t u i t i v e i l l u m i n a t i o n i n the quest for d i v i n e k n o w l e d g e .

69

7 0

73

T h e t e r m muqarnas

is also used i n

i n l a i d w i t h glistening stars. fifteenth-century

c

w i t h figural personifications o f the planets, zodia-

Garden at Samarqand t o " t h e stalactited r o o f

i m a g e r y — t h e epitome o f clarity, b r i l l i a n c e , p u r i t y ,

cal signs, and constellations. I t was l i k e n e d i n a

[taq-i muqarnas]

The persisting echoes o f N e o p l a t o n i c l i g h t

o f the celestial s p h e r e , "

74

just

and detachment f r o m m a t e r i a l d e f i l e m e n t — m a y

t w e l f t h - c e n t u r y h o m i l y b y the m o n k Philagathos

as the c o n t e m p o r a r y historians A b d al-Razzaq

have i n f o r m e d the p r e - M o n g o l associations o f the

to " t h e sky at n i g h t w h e n a host o f stars t w i n k l e

al-Samarqandi, Dawlatshah, and K h w a n d a m i r

girih whose c o n t i n u i n g life i n the p o s t - M o n g o l

d o w n t h r o u g h the clear s k y . "

eastern Islamic w o r l d was n o u r i s h e d b y an increas-

described this muqarnas vault as follows: " Y o u

71

Philagathos

c

consistently referred to the sky as a "stalactited vault o r r o o f " (taq-i muqarnas,

saqf-i

muqarnas).

75

i n g receptiveness t o all types o f Sufism, ranging

do n o t tire o f c o n t e m p l a t i n g the roof, a cause o f

f r o m o r t h o d o x t o u n o r t h o d o x . The long-lasting

wonder and marvel t o those w h o see i t or hear

the i m p l i c i t heavenly associations o f muqarnas

p o p u l a r i t y o f the girih i n this m i d d l e p e r i o d o f

about i t . Embellished as i t is w i t h delicate carvings,

vaults, also expressed i n the i n s c r i p t i o n s o f several

Islam (a t e r m conceived b y M a r s h a l l H o d g s o n ,

w h i c h are executed as differently shaped coffers

T i m u r i d m o n u m e n t s . A n o w - l o s t muqarnas-

w h o subdivides i t i n t o the early m i d d l e p e r i o d

and s h i n i n g w i t h gold f r o m all sides, i t imitates the

d o m e d p a v i l i o n (gunbad-i

[950-1250] and later m i d d l e p e r i o d [1250-1500])

clear sky o f heaven, i l l u m i n a t e d b y the c h o i r o f

instance, was inscribed w i t h a p o e m b y Sa di

seems t o signal a p r e o c c u p a t i o n w i t h the sublime

stars."

( d . 1292) that praised G o d as the creator (sani ) o f

aesthetics o f l i g h t and p r o p o r t i o n , w h i c h was

the n i g h t sky bearing n o resemblance t o the actual

the universe, the sun, the m o o n , and the stars.

also shared i n the medieval C h r i s t i a n w o r l d as

structure o f the heavens i l l u s t r a t e d i n c o n t e m p o -

The fact that this famous Persian poet was a

we shall see i n part 5.

rary a s t r o n o m i c a l texts was once again conceived

student o f U m a r al-Suhrawardi, the p r o m o t e r

Even t h o u g h the specific associations o f t w o and t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l geometric patterns d u r i n g the S u n n i revival d o n o t seem t o have been a r t i c u -

72

This a n t i n a t u r a l i s t i c , abstract i m i t a t i o n o f

This p o p u l a r analogy m u s t have accentuated

muqarnas)

i n Yazd, for c

c

76

c

as a loosely i n t e r p r e t e d analogy, rather t h a n a pre-

o f o r t h o d o x Sufism at the late Abbasid caliph

cisely w o r k e d o u t symbolic representation.

al-Nasir's c o u r t , brings us closer t o the Baghdadi

The Seljuq h i s t o r i a n I b n B i b i described the

m i l i e u where the geometric m o d e reached its f u l l -

lated i n c o n t e m p o r a r y w r i t t e n sources, these pat-

d o m e d halls o f the early t h i r t e e n t h - c e n t u r y

fledged expression just before the M o n g o l inva-

terns were d o m i n a t e d b y stellate c o m p o s i t i o n s

Kubadabad Palace i n A n a t o l i a i n s i m i l a r terms,

sion. T h e heavenly m e t a p h o r must have become

f r o m the very b e g i n n i n g . I n Samarra the I m a m

referring t o " t h e i r vaulted domes that rivaled the

m o r e explicit w i t h the increasing p o p u l a r i t y o f

D u r ' s early stucco muqarnas d o m e (circa 1085), for

muqarnas o f the highest heavens," w h i c h o u t o f

the radially s y m m e t r i c a l Shirazi type o f stellate

example, forms a m u l t i t i e r e d e i g h t - p o i n t e d star

jealousy for the t u r q u o i s e and azure decorations

muqarnas that dominates the vault projections

THE

POST-MONGOL

SYNTHESIS

121

o f the Topkapi and Tashkent scrolls. These star-

earth (see cat. no. 51a), together w i t h references t o

studded muqarnas vault projections d o recall the

God's absolute power and w i s d o m as manifested

flanked by mosaic tile relief panels o f i n t e r l o c k i n g

T i m u r i d a s t r o n o m e r - m a t h e m a t i c i a n al-Kashi's

i n the d i v i n e creation, reflect the mystical ethos o f

stars and polygons i n two different layers (see

praise o f the heavens: "Thanks and [praise] a n d

this p e r i o d , characterized by the r i s i n g status o f

fig. 63) that recall similar designs i n c l u d e d i n the

i n c o m p a r a b l e glory is due t o the / Power [the

Sufi poetry i n the f o u r t e e n t h and fifteenth cen-

Topkapi scroll (see cat. nos. 38, 49). Its poetic

Creator] w h o has i n l a i d the layers o f the heavens

turies.

w i t h glistening pearls, w i t h s h o o t i n g [stars],

mystical p o e t r y o f A b d al-Rahman Jami (1414-

the r e v o l u t i o n o f the dome o f the heavens. . . . See,

and g l i t t e r i n g jewels / the planets and the fixed

1492), the greatest o f all T i m u r i d poets, whose

w i t h the eye o f u n d e r s t a n d i n g , h o w t h a t [ b u i l d -

[stars]."

two disciples M i r A l i Shir N a w a ' i (1441-1501) and

ing] whose ivan passed above the seventh heaven

Sultan Husayn Bayqara (1438-1507) were a m o n g

[ S a t u r n ] , fell to the e a r t h . "

m o n u m e n t s s u p p o r t the cosmological associations

the foremost patrons o f late T i m u r i d art and

again h i g h l i g h t s the parallelism between the m u l t i -

o f muqarnas vaults that i n d i r e c t l y seemed t o glo-

architecture i n H e r a t .

tiered r e v o l v i n g heavens and the vaulted b u i l d i n g ,

r i f y the d i v i n e creator b y i n v i t i n g the gaze to c o n -

o f poets, such as those b y N a w a ' i and Dawlatshah,

template the wonders o f creation. For example, the

testify to the widespread p o p u l a r i t y o f Persian

allusions displayed for the i n s i g h t f u l gaze. The

m u q a r n a s - h o o d e d entrance p o r t a l o f the Shad-i

poetry and Sufism a m o n g different strata o f late

widespread use i n the I r a n i a n w o r l d o f such

79

This ethos is best captured i n the deeply c

c

77

Some extant i n s c r i p t i o n s o n T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n

80

C o n t e m p o r a r y biographies

h o o d c o m b i n e d w i t h stellate arch-net squinches, is

i n s c r i p t i o n reads: "There is a m e t a p h o r for this i n

8 2

This i n s c r i p t i o n once

charging its abstract revetments w i t h heavenly

M u l k Aqa mausoleum (1371-1383) i n the Shah-i

T i m u r i d society, ranging f r o m professional poets

poetic i n s c r i p t i o n s , permeated w i t h cosmic themes,

Z i n d a complex i n Samarqand carries the f o l l o w i n g

and the r u l i n g elite to soldiers, the c o m m o n

can be deduced f r o m the fifteenth-century local

i n s c r i p t i o n : " T h i s r o o f f u l l o f muqarnas [saqf-i pur

people, and the bazaar folk. The increasing use

histories o f Yazd where they are q u o t e d and f r o m

muqarnas]

o f i n s c r i p t i o n s q u o t i n g mystical Persian poetry

the extant Persian f o u n d a t i o n i n s c r i p t i o n o f the

Are an expression o f beauty [zayn], I C a l l i n g t o

o n T i m u r i d b u i l d i n g s seems t o have addressed

Q i n i l i Kosk at the Topkapi Palace i n I s t a n b u l ,

m i n d t h a t all o f the decor and art y o u see i n this

this g r o w i n g literate p o p u l a t i o n , w h i c h made

w h i c h was b u i l t i n the T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n i d i o m .

w o r l d / Is by favor o f the Creator, the O m n i p o t e n t . "

Dawlatshah c o m p l a i n , " W h e r e v e r y o u listen, y o u

This q u a t r a i n , w h i c h attributes the beauty o f the

hear the m u r m u r o f a poet, and wherever y o u

ered w i t h p o l y c h r o m a t i c geometric patterns, angu-

cosmos t o its d i v i n e creator, is f o l l o w e d b y two

l o o k , y o u see a L a t i n o r a Z a r i f i o r a N a z i r i . "

lar and cursive i n s c r i p t i o n s , as w e l l as vegetal and

and this gilded vault [tdq-i zarnigdr] I

others referring to death, b u r i a l , and the t r a n -

8 1

The g r o w i n g t r e n d i n T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n a r c h i -

8 3

T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n b u i l d i n g s completely cov-

floral

m o t i f s , c o u l d induce i n receptive observer-

sience o f life i n the m a t e r i a l w o r l d . They end w i t h

tecture t o c o m p l e m e n t A r a b i c epigraphy w i t h

users a c o n t e m p l a t i v e m o o d t h r o u g h their endless

the declaration: " D o n o t expect f u l f i l l m e n t i n this

Persian p o e t r y h i g h l i g h t e d a new k i n d o f dialogue

r e p e t i t i o n o f A r a b i c pious phrases, accompanied

t r a n s i t o r y w o r l d / W h i l e the arch and the s u m m i t

between visual and verbal signs. The way i n w h i c h

by longer poetic i n s c r i p t i o n s i n Persian. Square

stand, such w i l l be the case," an allusion t o the

p o e t r y c o u l d e n r i c h the c o m m u n i c a t i v e p o t e n t i a l

kufic pious aphorisms, most o f t h e m i n A r a b i c ,

cosmos, echoing the references t o architecture

o f accompanying abstract patterns i n a r c h i t e c t u r a l

a b o u n d i n the Topkapi scroll, where they are

made i n the first q u a t r a i n .

revetments is captured b y an i n s c r i p t i o n o n the

juxtaposed w i t h girih patterns f o r bannai

entrance p o r t a l o f the D a r b - i I m a m i n Isfahan.

masonry. These phrases, so p r o m i n e n t i n T i m u r i d

This p o r t a l , w h i c h features a tile mosaic muqarnas

architectural revetments, supplied abstract pat-

78

The increasing emphasis o f T i m u r i d m o n u m e n tal i n s c r i p t i o n s o n the transitoriness o f life o n

V

brick

122

PART 3. THE GEOGRAPHICAL,

CHRONOLOGICAL, AND SEMANTIC

HORIZONS

terns w i t h extra cues. W e l l - k n o w n Koranic phrases

c o m p o s i t i o n . " He added t h a t these ornaments

w e a l t h , depending o n the context and the i n c l i n a -

such as "Praise be t o G o d ! , " " G o d is Great!,"

c o u l d c o n t a i n different subjective meanings:

tions o f the viewer. Like the classical orders, t w o and t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l girih patterns c o u l d s u p p o r t

"There is no god b u t G o d , " or the repeated names To the artist and those p r o v i d e d w i t h a

m u l t i p l e c o n n o t a t i o n s , even c o n t r a d i c t o r y ones,

h a r m o n i o u s setting full o f religious reminders (see

m i n d to estimate the value o f the beauty

t h o u g h t h e i r slightly representational character,

cat. nos. 1, 40, 41, 43, 45, 5 i b - c , 5ie-g> 5ii> 68b,

to w h i c h they gave a life they repeated,

betrayed by the consistent use o f stars, was c o n -

69a, 71, 72a, 75-77, 91). T h e i r visual r e p e t i t i o n has

Look and learn. To the people they p r o -

ducive to p a r t i c u l a r kinds o f resonances.

been c o m p a r e d w i t h verbal repetitions k n o w n

claimed the m i g h t , majesty, and good

I t was this flexibility o f the girih as a m u l t i l a y -

i n Sufi practice as dhikr ( l i t . , " r e m e m b r a n c e , " or

deeds o f the k i n g . To the k i n g h i m s e l f

ered c o n t e x t u a l sign system t h a t assured its l o n g

"commemoration").

o f Allah, Muhammad,

and AlT created a visually c

This r i t u a l r e p e t i t i o n o f a

they never ceased declaring t h a t there was

life, a f l e x i b i l i t y i n keeping w i t h the m u c h - n o t e d

litany, designed to i n t e n s i f y mystical m e d i t a t i o n ,

none p o w e r f u l b u t G o d , t h a t He alone

a m b i g u i t y o f Islamic patterns based o n a looser

was seen as a m e t h o d o f r e m i n d i n g oneself o f

was conqueror, and that to H i m alone was

associational system o f signification rather t h a n

God's greatness and the marvels o f the d i v i n e

for ever due praise and g l o r y .

o n a r i g i d l y codified iconographic one. Geometric

8 4

85

creation. The c o n t e m p l a t i o n o f abstract patterns

patterns, sometimes charged w i t h specific mean-

m o d e l e d o n nature c o u l d be channeled i n t o spe-

T h r o u g h the added " p o i n t e r s " o f i n s c r i p t i o n s

cific directions by such i n s c r i p t i o n s c a p t u r i n g the

and other contextual factors, the otherwise a m b i g -

p o i n t e r s , thus occupied an i n t e r m e d i a r y zone

Sufi sensibilities o f the T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n w o r l d .

uous t w o - and t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l patterns o f the

between the " d e c o r a t i v e " and the " s y m b o l i c . " This

ings t h r o u g h accompanying i n s c r i p t i o n s or other

girih c o u l d trigger specific associations, b u t i t is

rescues t h e m f r o m being relegated i n t o the realm

that endlessly repeat the N a s r i d heraldic m o t t o ,

h i g h l y u n l i k e l y t h a t these patterns were assigned

o f meaningless d e c o r a t i o n , merely aimed to please

"There is no C o n q u e r o r b u t G o d , " the f o r m u l a i c

w i t h fixed iconographic meanings wherever or

or to satisfy the assumed h o r r o r vacui o f the

pious aphorisms p r o m i n e n t l y displayed o n the

whenever they appeared. N o w h e r e i n the w r i t t e n

M u s l i m subject. I t also justifies a semiotic reading

facades o f T i m u r i d b u i l d i n g s i m b u e d abstract

p r i m a r y sources can one f i n d any evidence for the

sensitive t o the v a r y i n g contextual factors over-

patterns w i t h specific moods. I n the A l h a m b r a

a p r i o r i c l a i m t h a t geometric patterns were u n i -

l o o k e d by essentialist symbolic i n t e r p r e t a t i o n s .

repeated short phrases readable i n a furtive " m o n -

versally u n d e r s t o o d as symbols o f the concept o f

o p t i c " Glance were also accompanied by longer

tawhid that endowed m u l t i p l i c i t y w i t h u n i t y . These

Like the A l h a m b r a ' s p o l y c h r o m a t i c revetments

To summarize, t h e n , the geographical, c h r o n o logical, and semantic h o r i z o n s o f the girih were

poems i n A r a b i c r e q u i r i n g the concentrated

evocative patterns c o u l d trigger religious, meta-

m u c h m o r e flexible t h a n assumed i n the secondary

effort o f the Gaze. As Jones w r o t e , the A l h a m b r a ' s

physical, or mystical speculations, b u t they were

l i t e r a t u r e t h a t a t t r i b u t e d timeless religious, m y s t i -

" M o r e s q u e o r n a m e n t s " t h a t addressed themselves

by no means symbolic or iconic "representations"

cal, or cosmological meanings to the arabesque

" t o the eye by t h e i r o u t w a r d beauty, at once excited

o f t h e m . Such r e d u n d a n t and deliberately a m b i g u -

irrespective o f context. Since the girih's

the intellect by the difficulties o f deciphering t h e i r

ous polysemous signs were susceptible to a m u l t i -

tions d u r i n g the age o f S u n n i revival are less d o c u -

curious and c o m p l e x i n v o l u t i o n s , and delighted

p l i c i t y o f subjective i n t e r p r e t a t i o n s and a wealth

m e n t e d t h a n the ones i t came to acquire i n later

the i m a g i n a t i o n w h e n read, by the beauty o f the

o f resonances n o t l i m i t e d to r e l i g i o n . They c o u l d

periods, we have a t t e m p t e d to deduce t h e m by

sentiments they expressed and the music o f t h e i r

also evoke a sense ofbeauty, w o n d e r , power, and

t u r n i n g to the c u l t u r a l context o f late Abbasid

associa-

THE

POST-MONGOL

SYNTHESIS

123

Baghdad where this m o d e o f design seems to

t i n u e d w e l l i n t o the eleventh century. D u r i n g his

have o r i g i n a t e d . The s t r i k i n g parallelism between

m o r e t h a n two decades o f p o l i t i c a l experience i n

(kitdbkhana

the geometric m o d e and the ethos o f the S u n n i

B u y i d Baghdad this celebrated m a t h e m a t i c i a n had

p e r i o d , appears to have had a w i d e r i n t e r d i s c i p l i n -

revival, however, goes beyond just an assumed

developed close connections w i t h a d m i n i s t r a t o r s ,

ary h o r i z o n capable o f encouraging a lively dia-

Zeitgeist. M o r e t h a n s i m p l y a collective w o r l d v i e w

secretaries, l a n d surveyors, merchants, architects,

logue between theory and praxis. I t m u s t have

or Weltanschauung i n f o r m i n g an i n t r i n s i c analogy

artisans, and calligraphers whose special needs

facilitated a direct exchange between intellectual

between the arts, r e l i g i o n , and p h i l o s o p h y , c o m p a -

he addressed i n several practice-oriented manuals

and artistic p r o d u c t i o n i n the very locus o f the

rable to the one posited i n E r w i n Panofsky's Architecture

and Scholasticism,

Gothic

1951, i t was the c o n -

area, recalling the c o u r t workshops and scriptoria or kutubkhdna)

o f the p o s t - M o n g o l

and i n theoretical and practical mathematics

c o u r t where r e l i g i o p h i l o s o p h i c a l debates were

courses t h a t had m a n y a u d i t o r s .

being f o r m u l a t e d i n t o official doctrines. The spa-

One o f these

86

crete circumstances o f artistic p r o d u c t i o n i n the

practical manuals, e n t i t l e d Kitab fimd

courts o f late Abbasid Baghdad t h a t c o n t r i b u t e d

ilayhi al-sani

to the i n i t i a l f o r m u l a t i o n o f the girih m o d e .

w h i c h the artisan needs to k n o w o f geometric c o n -

and extra-aesthetic discourses that resulted i n

structions) is t h o u g h t by Woepcke to have been

artistic practices d i r e c t l y r e s p o n d i n g to d o m i n a n t

The c o d i f i c a t i o n i n Baghdad o f the canonical

c

min a mdl al-handasa c

yahtdju

( A b o u t that

tial p r o x i m i t y o f court-sponsored activities i n different fields explains the intersection o f aesthetic

A r a b i c scripts according to a geometric system o f

c o m p i l e d f r o m class notes by a p u p i l o f al-Buzjani.

ideologies, possibly under the guidance o f erudite

p r o p o r t i o n i n g was n o t o n l y related to theological

This m a n u a l , to w h i c h I w i l l r e t u r n i n part 4, seems

advisers. F r o m the Baghdadi c o u r t m i l i e u , w h i c h

and p o l i t i c a l controversies about the nature o f the

to have been based o n applied geometry exercises

encouraged the cross-fertilization o f ideas and

K o r a n b u t also to the p o p u l a r i z a t i o n o f the m a t h e -

solved i n class meetings. Its text refers to sessions

practices across various disciplines, the girih easily

matical sciences i n that city. D u r i n g the t e n t h and

that al-Buzjani presided over where professional

c o u l d have spread to n e i g h b o r i n g courts whose

eleventh centuries the professional m a t h e m a t i -

geometer-engineers and artisans w o u l d propose

local rulers acknowledged the suzerainty o f the

cians o f the Baghdad school disseminated t h e o r e t i -

differing solutions to given p r o b l e m s . The m a n u a l

Abbasid caliphs. I t c o n t i n u e d to be elaborated and

cal advances i n their field by s i m p l i f i e d practical

addressed the p e r c e p t i o n t h a t practitioners i n v a r i -

further developed i n t o regional dialects i n these

manuals addressing the a p p l i c a t i o n o f m a t h e m a t -

ous fields o f design r e q u i r e d better g r o u n d i n g i n

diverse courts, n o u r i s h e d by the availability o f

ics to everyday needs. Just as the t r i c k l i n g d o w n o f

the methods o f constructive g e o m e t r y .

practical geometry manuals that left an u n m i s t a k -

the speculations o f philosophers i n t o p o p u l a r m y s t i c i s m w o u l d have made t h e m m o r e accessible

87

A s i m i l a r i n t e r a c t i o n between theoreticians and p r a c t i t i o n e r s is also d o c u m e n t e d i n the Abbasid

to the arts and crafts, i t was the p o p u l a r i z a t i o n

court's royal ateliers just before B u y i d rule was

o f the m a t h e m a t i c a l sciences t h a t facilitated the

established i n Baghdad. I t is r e p o r t e d t h a t w h e n

a p p l i c a t i o n o f geometry to design.

the caliph a l - M u t a d i d ( r . 8 9 2 - 9 0 2 ) b u i l t his p a l -

The m a t h e m a t i c i a n and astronomer A b u

c

ace at Baghdad i n 901, he designated an area for

al-Wafa' al-Buzjani ( 9 4 0 - 9 9 8 ) , w h o had emigrated

the teaching o f all the crafts [kull sind at)

f r o m his h o m e t o w n i n N i s h a p u r to Baghdad i n

various branches o f theoretical and technical sci-

9 5 9 - 9 6 0 , was one o f the scholars i n v o l v e d i n this

ences (al- ulum

systematic process o f p o p u l a r i z a t i o n t h a t c o n -

v i d i n g i t w i t h generous financial s u p p o r t .

c

c

al-nazariya

and the

wa al- amaliya),

pro-

c

88

This

able stamp o n the geometric repertory and design methods o f girih scrolls.

124

NOTES

T O PART

3

1. Herzfeld 1942, 40. 2. Riegl 1893 (1992), 298. 3. Ibid., 281. 4. For Samarra, see Sarre and Herzfeld 1911-1920; Herzfeld 1912; idem 1916; idem 1923; idem 1927; and idem 1948. 5. Pope and Ackerman 1938-1939, 3: 2743-44. 6. Ibid., 3: 2753. 7. For the beveled style, see Herzfeld 1923; Creswell 1932-1940, 2: 286-88; Dimand 1937; idem 1952; Ettinghausen 1952; Ettinghausen and Grabar 1987,101-5; and Allen 1988, 1-15, 50-57. Kuhnel stated that the arabesque was already formed in the ninth century and became more fully developed under the Seljuqs, Fatimids, and the Moors; see Kuhnel 1977, 561. Marcais dated the appearance of polygonal arabesques to the tenth century, observing that they particularly flourished in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries when they spread from the east to Andalusia; see Marcais 1947, 49. Allen dated the formation of the true arabesque to the tenth and eleventh centuries, attributing its development to a sort of evolutionary drift of forms away from their late antique sources. This resulted in the creation of self-referential abstract patterns that reflect "the pursuit of visually complex ornament"; see Allen 1988, 6, 54. 8. For Qairawan, see Creswell 1989, 324-26. The woodwork from Takrit is discussed in Dimand 1937, 293. 9. Strzygowski 1917, 88-98; Diez 1917, 68; Herzfeld 1923; Ettinghausen 1952. For the Samarran beveled style and further bibliography, see part 3, n. 7, above. The Raqqa capitals are illustrated in Allen 1988, figs. 33, 34. 10. For the Mutazila school and its cosmological theories, which were by no means monolithic, see Gimaret 1993; Fakhry 1983, 37-42; and Van Ess 1992, 31-428. Most of the writings of the Mutazila school have disappeared. Ibn al-Nadim listed a large number of Mu tazili works on the subjects of atom and accident that capture the preoccupation with developing a new atomistic cosmology; see Ibn al-Nadim 1970,1: 380-435. 11. Massignon 1921. 12. For an interpretation of the Umayyad Dome of the Rock as a representation of God's throne, see a forthcoming study by Julian Raby, "The Dome of the Rock and the Last Day," in Jeremy Johns, ed., Bayt al-Maqdis: c

c

c

Abd al-Malik's Jerusalem, vol. 9, bk. 2 of Oxford Studies in Islamic Art (New York: Oxford Univ. Press).

c

The Umayyad attempt to physically represent God's throne as it would appear during the Last Judgment in Jerusalem must have been regarded as anathema by the Abbasids, whose theologians were engaged in a heated debate about the nature of God's throne as a metaphor because of its anthropomorphic implications. The

increasing preference in the Abbasid period for abstraction over naturalistic representation is captured in several hadith, such as the one transmitted by Ibn Abbas (the grandfather of the Abbasids) that urges the painter to "decapitate animals so that they do not seem to be alive and try to make them look like flowers" and others warning that whoever draws lifelike figures competing with God's creation will have to breathe life into them in hell. Ibn Abbas's hadith is quoted in relation to the beveled Samarran style in Grabar 1983c, 110. For relevant hadith, see al-Faruqi 1989, 262-63; and Van Reenen 1990. See also Griffith 1985; and Hodgson 1964. 13. al-Masudi 1989, 239. 14. Ibid., 306. Al-Qadir's policies are summarized in Sourdel 1978; see also Tabbaa 1991. For the Sunni revival, see Makdisi 1973. 15. Watt i960; al-Baqillani 1957; al-Ashari 1953. 16. Ibn Khaldun 1967, 3: 52. 17. For religion in the Seljuq and Mongol periods, see Bausani 1968. For the Maturidi school, see Madelung c

c

c

c

1991.

18. For the "brick style," see Ettinghausen and Grabar Oleg Grabar 1992, 142-48; and Mulayim 1982. The geometric patterns of the Kharraqan tomb towers are analyzed in Stronach and Young 1966. For the geometry and early chronology of star patterns, see Lee 1987. 19. Herzfeld 1942, 40; Diez 1917; Aslanapa 1971; Mulayim 1982; Pope and Ackerman 1938-1939, 3: 3745. The earliest surviving cursive monumental inscriptions, often juxtaposed with geometric and vegetal arabesques, are also from the easternmost regions of the Islamic world, where they appeared toward the end of the reign of the Ghaznavid ruler Mahmud (998-1030) and continued to be used in later Ghaznavid and Ghurid inscriptions. Tabbaa wrote: "In the absence of any supporting evidence, it is difficult to say whether cursive official inscriptions were used"b)y Abbasid caliphs in the first half of the eleventh century. But in view of the largescale destruction of most early and medieval monuments in Baghdad, it is possible that such inscriptions once existed and may have provided a model for the Ghaznevid development"; see Tabbaa 1994,128. 20. Allen 1988, 72-75. For late Abbasid structures in Baghdad, see Strika and Khalil 1987, esp. pp. 14-15, 42-45, 66-74. The Mustansiriya and the so-called Abbasid Palace in the citadel of Baghdad are analyzed in Schmid 1980. 21. For a description and photograph of the Aqsa minbar before it was burned by a Christian fanatic, see Tabbaa 1986, 230-35. Tabbaa interpreted this minbar as an ex-voto for the impending capture of Jerusalem. 1987, 217-24;

c

22. Star-and-polygon patterns are seen in such rare examples as the portable wooden mihrabs of the shrines (mashhad) of Sayyida Nafisa (made in the 1130s or 1140s) and Sayyida Ruqayya (1154-1160) in Cairo and the wooden minbars of the mashhad of al-Husayn at Ascalon (1091-1192) and of the Amri mosque at Qus (1155-1156). For Fatimid woodwork and the introduction of the muqarnas in Egypt, see Lamm 1936; and Bloom 1988. The Iraqi origin of the Damascene buildings is argued in Tabbaa 1985. 23. For the Anatolian monuments, see Ogel 1963; Aslanapa 1971; and Mulayim 1982. 24. Ibn Khaldun 1967, 3: 54. 25. For the Almohads, see Shatzmiller 1993; Brunschvig 1958; Huici Miranda 1956-1957; and Le Tourneau 1969. Bernard of Clairvaux's Apologia is analyzed in Rudolph 1990a. 26. Ibn Jubayr 1907, 253. For this minbar, later moved to the Aqsa mosque, see part 3, n. 21, above. 27. Grabar 1978,182,195-201, 205. The Nasrid dynasty reestablished ties with the Abbasid caliphs, whom they recognized as the spiritual heads of Sunni Islam like the Almoravids before them. 28. Paccard 1980,1: 145,154. For the Persian terminology, see Lentz and Lowry 1989,169. 29. Star-and-polygon patterns that dominated Anatolian Seljuq architectural revetments in the first half of the thirteenth century were replaced with a predominantly vegetal mode of ornament after the Mongol invasion of Anatolia in 1243; see Ogel 1963; and Mulayim 1982. Chinese motifs in post-Mongol Iranian and Turkish art are analyzed in Rawson 1984,145-98. 30. Riegl 1893 (1992), 299, 305; Kuhnel 1977, 12; Herzfeld 1987, 367. 31. Kuhnel 1977,11-12. 32. Ibn Rushd 1954,13; al-Ashari 1953,12-13. The Harranean astronomer al-Battani (d. 929) wrote that astronomy could lead people to reflect on the unity, majesty, wisdom, and power of God and quoted verses from the Koran to support this view. Similarly, Ibn Rusta's universal geography, circa 903-913, described the celestial spheres as signs of the elegant wisdom and power of God, citing Koranic verses about the divine creation. For al-Battani, see Sayih i960,15-16; and Ibn Rusta 1955,1-6. Such speculations on macrocosm and microcosm eventually grew into a special literature emphasizing the overwhelming greatness and wonders of divine creation, a theme already stressed in the Koran. For such cosmological works that developed in the tenth century, see Anton M. Heinen's commentary in his edition of al-Suyuti 1982. Post-tenth-century works, which popularized the view that a greater awarec

NOTES

ness of the wonders of creation could lead to an acknowledgment of God's greatness, recommended contemplation (tafakkur) of the phenomena of nature and the signs (ayat) through which God manifested his power and wisdom. For example the earliest known treatise on Sufism, written by al-Hujwiri (d. 1070s), states: "The mark of muhadarat is continual meditation upon God's signs, while the mark of mukdshafat is continual amazement at God's infinite greatness"; see al-Hujwiri 1976, 373. From the twelfth century onward cosmological works on the wonders of creation ( Aja'ib al-makhluqdt) were popular. 33. Allen speculated that vegetal and geometric arabesques "probably conveyed some sort of weak association," but he was reluctant to assign meanings unsupported by contemporary textual evidence. He wrote: "Is there iconographic content to the arabesque and geometry? From a modern standpoint it is tempting to wonder if the arabesque, firmly identified with the vine scroll, somehow refers to the vegetal world, and geometric designs allude somehow to the laws of nature that govern the cosmos, or to the rules of construction by which man constructs such things as buildings. But these are anachronistic ideas when applied to the tenth and eleventh centuries, and there is no contemporary evidence to justify projecting them backward in time. It would be useful to study the distribution of arabesque and geometric designs in the art of this period to see if some pattern emerges that might bear on their associations, since there probably are some associations, in at least some cases"; see Allen 1988, 54, 56. 34. Ibn Khaldun 1967, 2:130-31. 35. In the tenth century Abu al-Hasan al- Amiri similarly referred to mathematics as "free from contradictions and doubts"; see Rosenthal 1975, 65. 36. For the proportioned script, see commentary by Sabra in Ibn al-Haytham 1989, 2: 99; Abbot 1939; Soucek 1979; Schimmel 1984; Oleg Grabar 1992, 47-92; and Tabbaa 1991. The Seljuq historian al-Rawandi has a chapter on the derivation of letters from the circumference of the circle and its diameter subdivided into ten modular dots—he noted that all other geometric figures derive from the circle and its diameter; see al-Rawandi c

c

1957-1960, 2: 403-11.

37. For the Ibn al-Bawwab Koran, see Ettinghausen and Rice 1955. For later Korans, see Deroche 1983; James 1980; and idem 1988. 38. Tabbaa 1991,133,142-43. 39. Ibid., 141.1 would like to thank Dr. Tabbaa for sending me the galley proofs of the second part of his article on Arabic writing in the summer of 1993 before it was published. In it he traced the parallel transformai977> 170-73;

tion of monumental inscriptions from angular to cursive, "a transformation that postdated the Qur'anic one by nearly one century but that seems to have been, at least in part, propelled by similar conditions." In this study, Tabbaa first linked the creation of the floriated kufic script under the Fatimids with political and theological issues. Then he traced the gradual spread from approximately 1075 to 1175 of cursive monumental inscriptions in Iran, Syria, upper Mesopotamia, North Africa, and Egypt, connecting this process with the Sunni revival; see Tabbaa 1994. The time lag observed in the emergence of the cursive script in Korans and its use in official monumental inscriptions parallels the case of the girih, a mode of design that seems to have made its earliest appearance in illuminated Korans. 40. Tabbaa 1985, 63; Allen 1988, 85-87; BehrensAbouseif 1993, 501-2. 41. Bausani 1968. 42. A similar conclusion is reached with respect to the spread of the cursive script from Baghdad in Tabbaa 1994.

43. Hartmann 1975. 44. For religion in the Seljuq and Mongol periods, see Bausani 1968. The religious topography of Iran in the Timurid-Turkmen and Safavid periods is discussed in Amoretti 1986. 45. Pope and Ackerman 1938-1939, 3: 2754, 756> 2

2762-63.

46. "The Canons of Painting by Sadiqi Bek," translated as an appendix in Dickson and Welch 1981,1: 259-69; I have slightly modified the translation, adding the bracketed explanations. This passage from p. 262 is cited and analyzed with examples in Lentz and Lowry 1989, i69ff.

47. Mir Sayyid-Ahmad Mashhadi's text (included in the Amir Ghayb Beg Album, H. 2161, Topkapi Sarayi Miizesi, Istanbul, dated 1564-1565) is translated in Thackston 1989, 356. Another variant of this classification appears in a seventeenth-century Safavid text; see Qazi Ahmad 1959,178: "As in writing there are six basic styles, so in the art of painting seven manners are known: islimi, khata'i, farangj, fisalT, abr, akrah, salami." This shows that the names of the seven modes varied considerably. 48. Pope and Ackerman 1938-1939, 3: 2756, 2763. 49. Dost Muhammad's preface is translated in Thackston 1989, 343. 50. Thackston 1989, 353, 355, 339. One wonders whether the Fatimid preference for the floriated kufic script and for vegetal patterns was informed by a similar set of Shi i associations. 51. For the girih specialists in the Ottoman court, see c

TO PART 3

125

Ali 1926, 68. One of them, Taj al-Din, who is referred to as "girih-bend," was conscripted from Damascus by Selim 1 (r. 1512-1520). The other, Mehmed Beg, who was a student of the painter Osman was described as the most talented among the girih masters (girih-bendlerun ekserinden yek); he had arrived at the Ottoman court in the early part of Suleyman I'S reign (r. 1520-1566). For the creation of the Ottoman classical style, see Necipoglu 1990b; and idem 1992a. 52. For Mughal inlay decoration, see Koch 1988; and idem 1991. 53. See Paccard 1980; al-Buzjani 1990-1991; Buzurgmihri 1982; Firishtah Nazhad 1977; and Shirbaf

c

>

c

1982-1983.

54. For the "protomodern" ethos of the early modern Islamic world, characterized by a preoccupation with challenging the past without completely rejecting its cultural heritage, see Necipoglu 1993a. 55. For such hadith, see part 3, n. 12, above. 56. Ikhwan al-Safa' 1978, 56, 44, 6. For the audience of the Brethren of Purity, see Ibn al-Haytham 1989, 2:100; the accessibility of their work in Sunni circles is discussed in Kraemer 1986,165-78. 57. al-Dawwani 1839,146-47. See also al-Tusi 1964. 58. Translated in Thackston 1989, 356. 59. Sai 1989, 44,136,158,171. 60. Cafer Efendi 1987,18-20. I have slightly modified Crane's translation. 61. Cited in Cheetham 1991, 59-60. 62. Translated in Thackston 1989, 349. 63. For these terms, see Firishtah Nazhad 1977. 64. This allusion was first noted by Nykl and Bargebuhr; see Grabar 1978,142. 65. Parts of the poem are repeated in the Hall of the Abencerrajes across the Court of the Lions; see Grabar 1978,144-50. For the dome of heaven in various architectural traditions, see Lehmann 1945; Smith 1950; and L'Orange 1982. 66. Grabar 1978,145. 67. Lokman b. Seyyid Huseyin el-Asuri el-Hiiseyni, Surname (Book of festivities), MS H. 1344, fol. 4v, Topkapi Sarayi Miizesi Ktituphanesi, Istanbul. 68. Fakhry 1983, 27; see also chaps. 1, 4, 5, and 8. 69. Ibid., 248. See also al-Ghazali 1952. 70. For the concept of "naturalization," see Sabra c

c

1987b, 223-43.

71. For the heavenly iconography of the ceiling in Palermo, see Simon-Cahn 1985; the homily is cited on p. 3. 72. Translated in Gelfer-Joergensen 1986,160-61. 73. Ibn Bibi 1959,148. 74. Translated in Thackston 1989, 85.

126

NOTES TO PART 3

75. See Khwandamir 1954, 3: 394, where he referred to " gunbad-i firuze-i muqarnas-i gardun" translated as "the turquoise-stalactited dome of the celestial sphere" in Thackston 1989, 103. Similarly, in his biographical work on poets, Dawlatshah referred to "haft taq-i muqarnas" cited (together with other textual references to muqarnases) in Abd al-Razzaq al-Samarqandi c

1843, 497c 76. Jafari i960,140-41. 77. al-Kashi i960, 19.

78. Translated in Golombek and Wilber 1988, 1: 139. 79. For the increasing use of Persian poetic inscriptions in Timurid architecture, see O'Kane 1989. 80. For Jami's Al-Durra al-fakhira (The precious pearl), a treatise that analyzes questions that Islamic theologians, philosophers, and Sufis had long debated, with a decided preference for the Sufi perspective (either because it reconciles the opposing views of the theologians and philosophers, or because it avoids the problems that their doctrines entail), see Jam! 1979. See also Nawa'T 1984,1965-1968. 81. Cited in Subtelny 1983,124. See also O'Kane 1989. 82. Translated in Golombek and Wilber 1988,1: 385. 83. For two histories of Yazd, see Jafari i960; and al-Katib 1966. For the Persian inscription of the Qinili Kosk, which compares its "emerald dome" decorated with stars to the dome of heaven and the kiosk itself to a heavenly mansion touching the constellations, see Necipoglu 1991, 216. Heavenly metaphors also abound in Khwandamir's Humayunnama (Book of Humayun) in which the Mughal ruler Humayun's building activities are discussed; see Khwandamir 1940. 84. Golombek and Wilber 1988,1: 210. 85. Jones 1982, 66. 86. For al-Buzjani's career and works, see Ibn al-Nadim 1970, 2: 667-68; Woepcke 1855; Yushkevich 1964, 270-77. The cultural milieu of Buyid Baghdad is discussed in Mottahedeh 1980; and Kraemer 1986. 87. See al-Buzjani, Kitab fima yahtdju ilayhi al-sani min a mal al-handasa, MS Ayasofya 2753, Siileymaniye Kutiiphanesi, Istanbul. For a Persian translation of this Arabic manuscript (MS Persan 169, sec. 23, fols. 141V179V, Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris), see al-Buzjani 1990-1991. Woepcke based his observations on the Paris manuscript; see Woepcke 1855. Surviving manuscripts of al-Buzjani's practical geometry are listed in Sezgin 1974, 321-25. For meetings in which professional mathematicians and practitioners of the crafts exchanged ideas, see Ozdural 1995. 88.1 would like to thank Dr. Howyda al-Harithy for this reference in al-Maqrizi 1987, 2: 362-63. c

c

c

PART

4.

GEOMETRY

AND THE CONTRIBUTION

OF MATHEMATICAL

Ars sine scientia nihil est (Art without science is nothing).

—Jean M i g n o t , consultant o n the fabric o f M i l a n c a t h e d r a l

1

SCIENCES

CHAPTER

8.

THEORY

AND PRAXIS:

USES

OF PRACTICAL

The context o f the T o p k a p i scroll can be b r o a d -

GEOMETRY

had as great an i m p a c t o n Islamic architectural

ters as A n t i o c h , Edessa, and H a r r a n before its

ened by l i n k i n g its geometric language w i t h

practice as those t h a t became available i n post-

last remnants reached Baghdad i n the n i n t h

the h i s t o r i c a l development o f the m a t h e m a t i c a l

t w e l f t h - c e n t u r y Europe w o u l d have o n G o t h i c

century. H a r r a n i n n o r t h e r n M e s o p o t a m i a

sciences, the discipline i n w h i c h p r e m o d e r n

design; the latter i n c l u d e d Euclid's

Islamic architectural practice was embedded.

translated by A d e l a r d o f Bath f r o m A r a b i c i n t o

star-worshipers w h o had synthesized the late

U n l i k e the L a t i n West the Islamic w o r l d gained

L a t i n circa 1126, translations o f other works by

antique N e o p l a t o n i c heritage o f the A l e x a n d r i a n

access to the Elements

Greek and M u s l i m authors, and practical geome-

school w i t h Pythagorean-Hermetic elements and

of Geometry

by the Greek

m a t h e m a t i c i a n E u c l i d (circa 3 3 0 - 2 6 0 B . C . ) as early as the eighth century w h e n i t was translated i n t o

try manuals.

Elements

was the center o f the pagan Sabaeans, a sect o f

Babylonian astrology. As late as the t e n t h century

2

A r a b i c science flourished i n the early n i n t h cen-

they were n o t e d for t h e i r artistic skills, astrolabe

A r a b i c for the Abbasid caliph H a r u n al-Rashid

t u r y w h e n Baghdad t u r n e d i n t o the c o s m o p o l i t a n

makers, and their temples constructed i n the f o r m

(r. 7 8 6 - 8 0 9 ) , f o l l o w e d by a second t r a n s l a t i o n

intellectual center o f the Abbasid empire w i t h the

o f p u r e geometric shapes dedicated t o the P r i m a l Cause and the celestial bodies. H a r r a n played

made for his son a l - M a ' m u n (r. 813-833). By 9 8 7 -

establishment i n 832 o f the Bayt al-hikma

988, w h e n the bookseller I b n a l - N a d i m c o m p i l e d

o f w i s d o m ) by a l - M a ' m u n , the same caliph w h o

(House

an i m p o r t a n t role i n the transmission o f Greek

i n Baghdad his Fihrist ( I n d e x ) , an annotated cata-

p r o c l a i m e d M u t a z i l i s m an official d o c t r i n e . This

science. I t n o t o n l y p r o v i d e d the Abbasid c o u r t

l o g o f books available i n the A r a b i c language, the

scientific i n s t i t u t i o n , whose p r i n c i p a l a c t i v i t y

w i t h such famous translators as the astronomer-

m a j o r classics o n mathematics had been translated

was the t r a n s l a t i o n o f Greek texts, is believed

m a t h e m a t i c i a n T h a b i t b. Q u r r a ( 8 2 6 - 9 0 1 ) , u n d e r

to have been m o d e l e d o n the Sasanian academy

whose guidance the Sabaeans translated n u m e r o u s

list o f books w r i t t e n by "geometricians, a r i t h m e t i -

i n Jundishapur, a m a j o r school o f Hellenistic

Greek works o n mathematics and a s t r o n o m y

cians, musicians, calculators, astrologers, makers

l e a r n i n g t h a t was still f l o u r i s h i n g i n the eighth

i n t o A r a b i c , b u t also p r o d u c e d leading scientists

o f i n s t r u m e n t s , and persons interested i n mechan-

c e n t u r y w h e n i t p r o v i d e d the Abbasid c o u r t i n

specializing i n m a t h e m a t i c a l and a s t r o n o m i c a l

ics and d y n a m i c s " testifies to the vast a m o u n t

Baghdad w i t h physicians and astronomers. The

studies. Scholars f r o m different parts o f the

o f knowledge accumulated i n the sciences o f the

Greco-Hellenistic t r a d i t i o n o f l e a r n i n g devel-

M u s l i m w o r l d c o n t i n u e d to frequent H a r r a n to

q u a d r i v i u m ( a r i t h m e t i c , geometry, music, and

oped i n the school o f A l e x a n d r i a was n o t o n l y

study a s t r o n o m y and mathematics w e l l i n t o the

a s t r o n o m y ) . These m a t h e m a t i c a l works m u s t have

transferred to Jundishapur, b u t also to such cen-

eleventh century after w h i c h the Sabaeans were

and augmented by new A r a b i c works. The

Fihrist's

c

PART 4. GEOMETRY AND THE CONTRIBUTION

132

persecuted and their temples destroyed.

OF MATHEMATICAL SCIENCES

d i s s e m i n a t i o n t o other Islamic courts. By the

Greek p h i l o s o p h y (an amalgam o f N e o p l a t o n i s m

eleventh century the m a t h e m a t i c a l sciences h a d

and A r i s t o t e l i a n i s m ) d o m i n a n t i n the Abbasid

A r a b i c translator o f Greek works attached t o the

become so widespread and achieved so m u c h pres-

capital at t h a t t i m e . H i s Ihsa s u b d i v i d e d the m a t h e -

Bayt al-hikma,

tige that even some rulers boasted expertise i n

m a t i c a l sciences i n t o seven specialized fields

3

A c c o r d i n g t o H u n a y n b . Ishaq ( d . 877), the the t r a d i t i o n s o f the late school o f

A l e x a n d r i a were still very m u c h alive a m o n g the

t h e m . For example the Ghaznavid ruler M a s u d 1

( a r i t h m e t i c , geometry, optics, astronomy, music,

scholars and physicians o f Baghdad d u r i n g the

was n o t o n l y skilled i n geometry b u t c o u l d also

weights, and mechanics), each o f w h i c h had b o t h

n i n t h century. T h e t r a n s l a t i o n i n t o Arabic o f

draw architectural plans w i t h his o w n hands. T h e

theoretical (al-nazari)

works i n Greek, Syriac, Persian, and Sanskrit

ruler o f Saragossa i n Spain, Yusuf a l - M u ' t a m i n

branches. A m o n g t h e m practical geometry dealt

had already started d u r i n g the reign o f H a r u n

b. H u d (r. 1081-1085), c o m p i l e d his o w n geometry

w i t h lines and figures o n a piece o f w o o d w h e n

al-Rashid, b u t this a c t i v i t y became intensified i n

treatise using the extensive c o l l e c t i o n o f m a t h e -

used by a carpenter, o n a piece o f i r o n w h e n

his son a l - M a ' m u n ' s Bayt al-hikma.

A l t h o u g h this

c

(al- amali)

and practical

c

m a t i c a l works i n his l i b r a r y . I t was i n this recep-

used by a s m i t h , o n a w a l l w h e n used by a mason,

caliphal i n s t i t u t i o n does n o t seem t o have sur-

tive setting that the girih i n i t i a l l y spread d u r i n g

and o n a p l o t o f l a n d w h e n used b y a surveyor.

vived the o r t h o d o x reaction o f a l - M u t a w a k k i l , its

the eleventh century w h e n its basic r e p e r t o r y

A l - F a r a b i concluded that practical geometry thus

c u l t u r a l repercussions p r o v e d irreversible. T h e

became elaborated i n different ways i n various

f o u n d an a p p l i c a t i o n i n every craft.

translations i t generated were far f r o m a m a r g i n a l

local courts t h a t had acquired a taste for geometry.

experiment. They c o n t r i b u t e d t o the assimilation

The unprecedented emphasis o f the Baghdad

t e n t h - c e n t u r y authors as the Brethren o f P u r i t y

o f classical science and p h i l o s o p h y i n t o medieval

school o n balancing theoretical knowledge w i t h

and the Khurasanian philosopher A b u al-Hasan

Islamic c u l t u r e , even i n the t r a d i t i o n i s t circles o f

practical a p p l i c a t i o n had an undeniable i m p a c t

a l - A m i r i ( d . 992) manifests itself i n their s i m i l a r

5

6

The i m p a c t o f al-Farabi's w r i t i n g s o n such late

c

the S u n n i revival where n i n t h - and t e n t h - c e n t u r y

o n Islamic visual c u l t u r e . T h e close relationship

classifications o f m a t h e m a t i c a l sciences. For

intellectual developments colored by heterodox

between t h e o r y and praxis can be deduced f r o m

example, the collection o f encyclopedic epistles,

M u t a z i l i or S h i i o r i e n t a t i o n s were r e f o r m u l a t e d

various encyclopedic classifications o f knowledge,

or Rasail,

according to o r t h o d o x sensibilities.

i n w h i c h the applied sciences consistently occupy

i n s p i r e d b y an eclectic m i x t u r e o f N e o p l a t o n i c ,

c

c

o f the Brethren (an anonymous g r o u p

an i m p o r t a n t place alongside t h e i r theoretical

Pythagorean, H e r m e t i c , and Sabaean t h o u g h t ) also

o r i g i n a l c o n t r i b u t i o n s were made i n such m a t h e - ^

counterparts. One o f the earliest examples o f such

divides mathematics i n t o theoretical and practical

m a t i c a l disciplines as astronomy, optics, algebra,

classifications, the Ihsa al- ulum

parts. I t stresses the role o f practical geometry i n

and t r i g o n o m e t r y that encouraged the develop-

sciences), was w r i t t e n i n the first h a l f o f the t e n t h

After the i n i t i a l p e r i o d o f translations was over,

c

(Survey o f the

developing those skills r e q u i r e d i n all the crafts,

m e n t o f geometry i n previously u n k n o w n direc-

century by al-Farabi, the r e n o w n e d p h i l o s o p h e r

w h i l e theoretical geometry is identified as the gate-

tions p r o m i s i n g new applications i n a n u m b e r o f

whose father may have belonged t o the T u r k i s h

way t o higher levels o f theoretical knowledge, c u l -

fields, i n c l u d i n g architecture and the decorative

b o d y g u a r d o f the Abbasid caliphs. T h e w r i t i n g s

m i n a t i n g i n metaphysics.

arts (e.g., arch and d o m e profiles, geometric pat-

o f al-Farabi, w h o for m a n y years had settled i n

the patronage o f the B u y i d vizier I b n a l - A m i d

t e r n i n g , and the m u q a r n a s ) . T h e systematic p o p u -

Baghdad before j o i n i n g i n 942 the entourage o f the

( d . 971) w h i l e he lived i n I r a n (he visited Baghdad

l a r i z a t i o n o f theoretical mathematics i n Baghdad

H a m d a n i d ruler Sayf al-Dawla i n A l e p p o , connect

at least twice i n the 970s) i d e n t i f i e d five branches

t h r o u g h practical manuals also facilitated its r a p i d

h i m w i t h the late A l e x a n d r i a n i n t e r p r e t a t i o n o f

o f mathematics ( a r i t h m e t i c , geometry, astronomy,

4

7

A l - A m i r i , w h o enjoyed c

c

THEORY

music, and mechanics), describing geometry as a

are based, occupies a p r o m i n e n t p o s i t i o n , as i t

practical field w i t h m a n y applications:

d i d i n the geometrically shaped Sabaean t e m p l e s .

AND

PRAXIS

133

was no d o u b t aware o f the cosmic associations o f 10

geometric figures. Given the i n t e r d i s c i p l i n a r y l i n k

The circle, w h i c h came to be regarded as the most

between a r i t h m e t i c , geometry, astronomy, and

Geometry follows a r i t h m e t i c i n value and

beautiful o f all geometric figures by the end o f the

music, an interchange between those fields was

i m p o r t a n c e . I t is easier to u n d e r s t a n d

Hellenistic era, is used i n al-Buzjani's treatise to

n a t u r a l . Especially since most mathematicians i n

because i t is concerned w i t h sensual p r o -

generate all o f the regular polygons i n a plane as

the medieval Islamic w o r l d were to some degree

totypes, and i t is m o r e far-reaching, for

well as the sphere, the source o f the five regular

i n v o l v e d w i t h astronomy, the p r e d o m i n a n t use

w i t h o u t its aid the a r i t h m e t i c i a n cannot

polyhedrons (Platonic solids) and two o f the

o f o r b i t l i k e radial grids i n generating girihs may

extract i r r a t i o n a l roots, n o r the surveyor

twelve semiregular polyhedrons ( A r c h i m e d e a n

p a r t l y have been i n s p i r e d by a m e n t a l i t y t h a t

determine the shapes o f sites, n o r h u m a n

solids) w i t h w h i c h the w o r k culminates.

assigned the most privileged place a m o n g geomet-

reason calculate the extent o f the seas and

ric figures t o the c i r c l e .

The practical geometries o f al-Farabi and

12

the height o f m o u n t a i n s . Besides i t is

al-Buzjani b u i l t u p o n the heritage o f the late

useful to all gifted architects, carpenters,

A l e x a n d r i a n school. The N e o p l a t o n i c p h i l o s o p h e r

l i g h t i n the 1850s by the h i s t o r i a n o f science Franz

A l - B u z j a n i ' s A mdl c

al-handasa

was b r o u g h t to

sculptors and goldsmiths and used for the

Proclus (410-485), w h o had studied there, regarded

Woepcke, w h o studied its early eleventh-century

manufacture o f a s t r o n o m i c a l i n s t r u m e n t s

E u c l i d as a m e m b e r o f the ancient Platonic acad-

Persian t r a n s l a t i o n i n c l u d e d i n a m a t h e m a t i c a l

as, for example, spheres [spherical astro-

emy and considered the u l t i m a t e purpose o f the

anthology preserved at the B i b l i o t h e q u e N a t i o n a l e

labes?], astrolabes, a r m i l l a r y spheres

Elements

i n Paris, MS Persan 169.

and sun clocks.

hedrons) to be the c o n s t r u c t i o n o f the five cosmic

the c o m p o s i t i o n o f Islamic geometric patterns

elements w i t h w h i c h Plato's (circa 428-347 or 348

was first n o t e d by Prisse d'Avennes ( w h o m e n t i o n s

8

( w h i c h ends w i t h the five regular p o l y -

13

Its direct relevance for

B . C . ) Timaeus correlates the regular p o l y h e d r o n s .

Woepcke's s t u d y ) , f o l l o w e d by several m o d e r n

i n fields such as l a n d surveying, architecture,

The Abbasid p h i l o s o p h e r a l - K i n d i ( d . circa 866),

scholars (figs. 9 9 - 1 0 2 ) . This relevance becomes

the decorative arts, and mechanical engineering

w h o integrated N e o p l a t o n i s m i n t o the official

apparent i n an a n o n y m o u s Persian treatise,

once again underlines the i n t i m a t e c o n n e c t i o n

M u t a z i l i theology, w r o t e an epistle, Risdla

appended to the Persian t r a n s l a t i o n o f al-Buzjani's

between theory and praxis. Al-Farabi's earlier

al-sabab

statement t h a t practical geometry provides an

al-khamsa

This account o f the uses o f practical geometry

ft

c

alladhi

lahu nasabat al-qudama'

ild al-ustuqusdt

al-ashkdl

( A b o u t the reason w h y

text i n the Paris m a n u s c r i p t , w h i c h thus far is the o n l y k n o w n practical m a n u a l that provides " h o w -

a p p l i c a t i o n i n every craft is p a r t i c u l a r l y significant

the ancients related each o f the five p o l y h e d r o n s to

t o " i n s t r u c t i o n s for d r a w i n g t w o - d i m e n s i o n a l

because al-Buzjani's late t e n t h - c e n t u r y m a n u a l o n

the elements), that shows h o w deeply N e o p l a t o n i c

girih patterns. The a n o n y m o u s treatise, e n t i t l e d

that subject, the A mdl al-handasa,

cosmology had permeated the Baghdadi m i l i e u .

FT taddkhul

c

which directly

1 1

al-ashkdl

al-mutashabiha

aw

addressed the needs o f artisans, is believed to have

A l t h o u g h the s y m b o l i s m o f the Platonic solids is

been m o d e l e d o n an earlier geometry treatise

n o t a r t i c u l a t e d i n al-Buzjani's practical geometry,

ent figures), hereafter referred to by its shorter

a t t r i b u t e d to al-Farabi. I n b o t h al-Farabi's and

this m a t h e m a t i c i a n - a s t r o n o m e r , w h o w r o t e the

t i t l e , A mal

al-Buzjani's treatises the circle, o n w h i c h the

treatise Kitdb ma rifa

shows t h a t the girih m o d e was conceived as a sys-

spherical forms and m o t i o n s o f the celestial bodies

o n the knowledge o f the circle f r o m the heavens),

9

c

al-dawd'ir

min al-falak

(Book

al-mutawdfiqa c

( O n i n t e r l o c k i n g s i m i l a r or c o n g r u -

wa ashkdl ( C o n s t r u c t i o n s and figures),

t e m o f p r o p o r t i o n a l l y related geometric patterns

PART 4. GEOMETRY AND THE CONTRIBUTION

134

99. Abu al-Wafa' al-Buzjani, folios showing text and geometric figures. From his Kitdb fimdyahtdju ilayhi al-sdni min a mdl al-handasa (About that which the artisan needs to know of geometric constructions), a late tenth-century Arabic manual of practical geometry, copied for Ulugh Beg's royal library in Samarqand, fifteenth century, red and black ink on paper. Istanbul, Suleymaniye Kutuphanesi, MS Ayasofya 2753, fols. 20, 21. c

c

OF MATHEMATICAL

SCIENCES

THEORY

AND

PRAXIS

135

100. Abu al-Wafa' al-Buzjani, folios showing text and geometricfigures.From his Kitdb fimdyahtdju ilayhi al-sdn'f min a mdl al-handasa (About that which the artisan needs to know of geometric constructions), a late tenth-century Arabic manual of practical geometry, copied for Ulugh Beg's royal library in Samarqand,fifteenthcentury, red and black ink on paper. Istanbul, Siileymaniye Kiitiiphanesi, MS Ayasofya 2753, fols. 34, 35c

PART 4. GEOMETRY AND THE CONTRIBUTION

136

101. Abu al-Wafa' al-Buzjani, folios showing text and geometricfigures.From his Kitdb fimdyahtaju ilayhi al-sdni min a mdl al-handasa (About that which the artisan needs to know of geometric constructions), a late tenth-century Arabic manual of practical geometry, copied for Ulugh Beg's royal library in Samarqand, fifteenth century, red and black ink on paper. Istanbul, Suleymaniye Kutiiphanesi, MS Ayasofya 2753, fols. 40, 41. c

c

OF MATHEMATICAL

SCIENCES

THEORY

AND

PRAXIS

137

102. Abu al-Wafa' al-Buzjani, folios showing text and geometricfigures.From his Kitdb fimdyahtdju ilayhi al-sdni min a mdl al-handasa (About that which the artisan needs to know of geometric constructions), a late tenth-century Arabic manual of practical geometry, copied for Ulugh Beg's royal library in Samarqand, fifteenth century, red and black ink on paper. Istanbul, Suleymaniye Kutiiphanesi, MS Ayasofya 2753, fols. 48, 49. c

c

138

PART 4. GEOMETRY

AND THE CONTRIBUTION OF MATHEMATICAL SCIENCES

earlier Greek and A r a b mathematicians) had direct

h a r m o n i o u s l y i n t e r l o c k i n g w i t h one another.

o f a circle or its arc; d i v i d i n g the circumference

Dates r a n g i n g f r o m the early eleventh to the early

o f a circle i n t o equal arcs; d r o p p i n g a tangent to a

relevance for applied fields r e l y i n g o n a geometric

t h i r t e e n t h century have been proposed by various

circle f r o m a given p o i n t ; d r a w i n g a tangent to a

system o f p r o p o r t i o n i n g , p a r t i c u l a r l y mechanics,

scholars for this treatise to w h i c h I w i l l r e t u r n i n

circle t h r o u g h a p o i n t o n i t ; trisecting the arc o f

l a n d surveying, architectural design, and the deco-

the next c h a p t e r .

a circle; d u p l i c a t i n g a cube and a sphere; and c o n -

rative a r t s .

m e n t i n g an i n t i m a t e l i n k between the type o f prac-

s t r u c t i n g b u r n i n g m i r r o r s (a subject b e l o n g i n g to

squares, rectangles, triangles, polygons, and circles

tical geometry p o p u l a r i z e d i n late t e n t h - c e n t u r y

mechanics, w h i c h is a subfield o f practical geome-

i n t o congruent parts c o u l d have obvious applica-

Baghdad by such mathematicians as al-Buzjani

try).

and the later scroll t r a d i t i o n .

m o v e d o n to the c o n s t r u c t i o n o f regular polygons

14

Its i m p o r t a n c e lies i n d o c u -

1 6

F r o m these general problems al-Buzjani

18

Operations such as the d i v i s i o n o f

tions i n the laying o u t o f u r b a n schemes, g r o u n d plans, elevations, and o r n a m e n t a l c o m p o s i t i o n s .

inscribed i n circles (see figs. 9 9 , 1 0 0 ) , other c o n -

M o r e o v e r , the a p p r o x i m a t e c o n s t r u c t i o n o f regu-

i n t r o d u c t i o n t h a t is a slightly m o d i f i e d version o f

structions i n v o l v i n g circles and arcs, and the c o n -

lar polygons by s u b d i v i d i n g circles i n t o equal arcs

the one a t t r i b u t e d to a l - F a r a b i .

s t r u c t i o n o f p o l y g o n a l figures inscribed i n various

is precisely the m e t h o d used i n generating t w o -

figures. H e t h e n t u r n e d to the p r o p o r t i o n a l d i v i -

and t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l st ar - an d - po ly g o n patterns i n later scrolls (see figs. 9 9 , 1 0 0 ) .

A l - B u z j a n i ' s A mdl al-handasa

contains an

c

15

This i n t r o d u c t i o n

discusses the three basic i n s t r u m e n t s necessary for geometric constructions, t h a t is, the r u l e r ,

sion o f triangles, quadrilaterals (see fig. 101), p o l y -

set square (angle b ra c k e t) , and compass w i t h a

gons, and circles. H i s m a n u a l also deals w i t h

single o p e n i n g . I n simple language the rest o f

d i v i d i n g a square i n t o a given n u m b e r o f smaller

radial grids o f concentric circles are superimposed

al-Buzjani's m a n u a l teaches the m e t h o d o f draw-

squares and c o m p o s i n g a square f r o m a given

i n these scrolls were also d r a w n according to

i n g regular geometric figures ( b o t h plane and

n u m b e r o f smaller squares (see fig. 102), finally

al-Buzjani's m e t h o d o f p r o p o r t i o n a l l y d i v i d i n g

solid), subdividing them proportionally into con-

t u r n i n g to the d i v i s i o n o f the sphere's surface i n t o

rectangles and squares ( c o r r e s p o n d i n g to the

The d y n a m i c axes o f s y m m e t r y o n t o w h i c h

gruent parts, and c i r c u m s c r i b i n g or i n s c r i b i n g

a given n u m b e r o f polygons by i n s c r i b i n g i n i t

frames o f repeat u n i t s ) i n t o congruent parts

t h e m w i t h i n one another t h r o u g h the use o f these

the five regular polyhedrons and t w o o f the twelve

w i t h diagonals and oblique cuts (see figs. 101,

basic i n s t r u m e n t s , w i t h no recourse to a r i t h m e t i c

semiregular polyhedrons.

This m e t h o d o f p r o p o r t i o n a l d i v i s i o n , treated i n

or to m e t r i c considerations. Since al-Buzjani was

I n short, al-Buzjani's practical geometry o u t -

Euclid's b o o k On Divisions

of Figures,

102).

also seems

p r o v i d i n g s i m p l i f i e d " h o w - t o " procedures derived

lines basic mechanical methods for c o n s t r u c t i n g ,

to reflect the influence o f Cutting Lines in Ratio

f r o m advanced m a t h e m a t i c a l t h e o r y for artisans,

p r o p o r t i o n a l l y s u b d i v i d i n g , and s y m m e t r i c a l l y

and Cutting Surfaces in Ratio, by A p o l l o n i u s o f

he d i d n o t a t t e m p t to s u p p o r t t h e m by scientific

m u l t i p l y i n g geometric figures, f u r t h e r s i m p l i f i e d

Perga (circa 241-197 B . C . ) . These two works c o m -

d e m o n s t r a t i o n s and proofs.

by the use o f o n l y a single o p e n i n g o f the c o m -

p l e m e n t e d A p o l l o n i u s ' s i n f l u e n t i a l treatise o n

pass.

conic sections t h a t had been translated i n t o Arabic

The m a n u a l begins w i t h such basic problems as the c o n s t r u c t i o n o f a r i g h t angle; the bisection o f

17

I t reduces complex problems t h a t involve

conic sections, such as the t r i s e c t i o n o f an angle

i n n i n t h - c e n t u r y Baghdad under the supervision

a square or circle; the d i v i s i o n o f a r i g h t angle i n t o

or the d o u b l i n g o f a cube, t o simple mechanical

o f the Banu M u s a (Sons o f Musa) b r o t h e r s , the

equal parts; the t r i s e c t i o n o f an angle; d r a w i n g a

procedures p r o v i d i n g a p p r o x i m a t e solutions.

three famous Abbasid geometer-engineers w h o are

line parallel t o , perpendicular t o , or at a certain

A l - B u z j a n i ' s constructions o f plane and solid

r e p o r t e d to have sent t h e i r agents to B y z a n t i u m to

angle to a given line; d e t e r m i n i n g the center

geometry ( w h i c h freely drew o n the findings o f

collect scientific m a n u s c r i p t s .

19

Star-and-polygon

THEORY

AND

PRAXIS

139

patterns, based o n the h a r m o n i c properties o f

c o n s t r u c t i o n o f m i l i t a r y machines, musical i n s t r u -

to the science o f mechanics, w h i c h was translated

circles a p p r o x i m a t e l y d i v i d e d i n t o equal arcs and

ments, b u r n i n g m i r r o r s , sundials, and ingenious

i n t o A r a b i c for the Banu M u s a b r o t h e r s , describes

composed i n quadrangular repeat u n i t s p r o p o r -

mechanical devices. The t e r m hiyal ( p i . o f hila,

the subjects encompassed by t h a t science:

t i o n a l l y cut i n t o c o n g r u e n t parts b y d y n a m i c axes

" r u s e , " " d e c e p t i o n " ) h i g h l i g h t e d the status o f geo-

o f s y m m e t r y ( a r o u n d w h i c h elements rotate or

m e t r i c c o n s t r u c t i o n s as c u n n i n g artifices reflecting

The mechanicians o f H e r o n ' s day say t h a t

t h r o u g h w h i c h m i r r o r axes pass), were f u r t h e r

the i n g e n u i t y o f t h e i r creators. As such i t is part

mechanics can be d i v i d e d i n t o a

explored i n A mal

o f the same semantic field as the Greek t e r m metis

cal and a manual

tise o n i n t e r l o c k i n g s i m i l a r or c o n g r u e n t figures,

(associated w i t h mechanics and techne), the " c u n -

is composed o f geometry, a r i t h m e t i c a l

as we shall see i n the f o l l o w i n g chapter.

n i n g i n t e l l i g e n c e " possessed by artisans, m e c h a n -

a s t r o n o m y and physics, the m a n u a l

c

wa ashkal, the a n o n y m o u s trea-

The geometric c o n s t r u c t i o n s o f a l - B u z j a n i and those i n c l u d e d i n the a n o n y m o u s treatise are the

theoreti-

\) ax V, the theoretical part

ics, and architects (e.g., Daedalus). Just l i k e its

o f w o r k i n metals, c o n s t r u c t i o n , carpen-

L a t i n c o u n t e r p a r t scientia de ingeniis,

t e r i n g , and the art o f p a i n t i n g , and the

t h e n , ilm c

o n l y ones k n o w n to have d i r e c t l y addressed a r t i -

al-hiyal

sans, suggesting a degree o f literacy at least a m o n g

nious devices and artifices encompassed by the

m a n w h o has been t r a i n e d f r o m his y o u t h

t h e i r masters. A r i t h m e t i c and geometry were t w o

mechanical sciences. The c o n n e c t i o n between

i n the aforesaid sciences as w e l l as prac-

i n d e p e n d e n t b u t interchangeable modes o f expres-

architecture and mechanics, r o o t e d i n the ancient

ticed i n the aforesaid arts, and i n a d d i t i o n has a versatile m i n d , w i l l be, they say

stressed the i n t e l l e c t u a l character o f inge-

first-

practical execution o f these matters. The

sion for the same m a t h e m a t i c a l concepts, one

works o f A l e x a n d r i a n authors such as the

based o n the language o f n u m b e r s , the other o n

c e n t u r y scientist H e r o , the p h i l o s o p h e r P h i l o

the best i n v e n t o r o f mechanical devices

geometric f o r m s . The latter, m u c h m o r e c o n d u -

(circa 13 B . C . - c i r c a A . D . 50), and the geometer

and b u i l d e r .

cive t o the visual t h i n k i n g a n d graphic i m a g i n a -

Pappus ( f l . circa A . D . 320), had also been stressed

21

t i o n o f designers w h o w o r k e d w i t h basic tools,

i n the R o m a n architect V i t r u v i u s ' s Ten Books on

seems to have played a central role i n medieval

Architecture,

Islamic a r c h i t e c t u r a l practice and the decorative

treatise, w h i c h includes sections o n l a n d survey-

referring to a c u r r i c u l u m for the science o f

arts. Besides elevating the status o f architecture

i n g , a s t r o n o m i c a l devices, b u r n i n g m i r r o r s ,

mechanics a t t r i b u t e d to H e r o o f A l e x a n d r i a , an

and the crafts by g i v i n g t h e m a respectable scien-

sundials, water clocks, water wheels, h o i s t i n g

expert o n stereometry. The person w h o mastered

tific f o u n d a t i o n , the abstract language o f geome-

machines, catapults, ballistae, a n d siege machines,

the c u r r i c u l u m was called mechanicus

t r y p r o v i d e d an aesthetic basis for design.

encapsulates the same Greek t r a d i t i o n o f applied

nikos (recalling the A r a b i c t e r m for geometer-

Islamic encyclopedias consistently classify architecture a n d the crafts together w i t h m e c h a n ics as subcategories o f practical geometry. Al-Farabi's Ihsa,

circa 25 B . C . V i t r u v i u s ' s a r c h i t e c t u r a l

a r c h i t e c t u r a l e d u c a t i o n i n a geometry m a n u a l

or

mecha-

mechanics t h a t p r o v i d e d the basis for medieval

engineer, muhandis),

Islamic a r c h i t e c t u r a l p r a c t i c e .

late R o m a n and Byzantine architects i n c l u d i n g

20

The eighth b o o k o f Pappus o f Alexandria's

for instance, lists architecture

I t is remarkable to find a d e f i n i t i o n o f the ideal

a t i t l e associated w i t h several

I s i d o r u s o f M i l e t u s and A n t h e m i u s o f Tralles, the

h a n d b o o k o f geometry, w h i c h is devoted to the sci-

architects o f the Hagia Sophia i n C o n s t a n t i n o p l e .

a m o n g the geometric branches o f the science o f

ence o f mechanics, divides i t i n t o theoretical and

A n t h e m i u s , a mechanicus

mechanics ( ilm al-hiyal),

practical branches, classifying architecture u n d e r

to s o l i d m a t t e r , is also r e p o r t e d to have possessed

applied mechanics. This b o o k , an i n t r o d u c t i o n

some knowledge o f p a i n t i n g a n d sculpture, sug-

c

w h i c h also i n c l u d e d l a n d

surveying or m e n s u r a t i o n (Him al-misaha)

a n d the

w h o applied geometry

140

PART 4. GEOMETRY

AND THE CONTRIBUTION

gesting t h a t he may have played a role i n conceivi n g the decorative p r o g r a m o f the c h u r c h as w e l l .

2 2

Pappus o f Alexandria's classification o f a r c h i -

OF MATHEMATICAL SCIENCES

augment the seven-fold list p r o v i d e d by al-Farabi.

b u i l d i n g o f cities, f o r t i f i c a t i o n s , beautiful m o n u -

For example, the Irshdd al-qdsid

ments, elevated bridges, subterranean i r r i g a t i o n

ft anwd

al- ulum

c

c

ildasna

al-maqdsid

(Guidance for h i m w h o tends to

canals (qandt),

and dams. Taskoprizade p o i n t e d

the highest purpose i n the various sciences) o f I b n

o u t t h a t its most o u t s t a n d i n g works were two early

w o r k a m o n g the subjects o f practical mechanics

a l - A k f a n i , the I r a q i physician and encyclopedist

eleventh-century books, one by the I r a q i m a t h e -

was inherited by Islam, as al-Farabi's and a l - A m i r i ' s

w h o died i n Cairo i n 1348, m e n t i o n s ten applied

m a t i c i a n I b n a l - H a y t h a m (Alhazen, 965-1039),

t e n t h - c e n t u r y classifications s h o w .

branches o f geometry. These consisted o f optics,

w h o after unsuccessfully a t t e m p t i n g to construct

b u r n i n g m i r r o r s , centers o f gravity, m e n s u r a t i o n ,

a d a m o n the N i l e settled i n F a t i m i d Cairo where

tical geometry i n the t r a i n i n g o f architects and

mechanics, clocks, m i l i t a r y machines, the c o n -

he w r o t e his famous o p t i c a l treatise, and the other

artisans. The b i o g r a p h i c a l w o r k o f the Persian

s t r u c t i o n o f b u i l d i n g s , the l o c a t i o n o f h i d d e n

by the Persian mathematician-engineer a l - K a r a j i

author A b u al-Hasan al-Bayhaqi (1100-1169/1170),

waters, and p n e u m a t i c devices, k n o w n as the

( d . circa 1019-1020), w h o held a d m i n i s t r a t i v e

for example, cites a saying by the astronomer-

science o f ingenious devices. The O t t o m a n ency-

positions i n Baghdad and I r a n where he w r o t e

tecture and crafts such as carpentry and m e t a l c

23

Later Islamic

sources c o n t i n u e to m e n t i o n the role o f prac-

m a t h e m a t i c i a n al-Isfizari ( d . 1123), w h o regarded

clopedist Taskoprizade (1495-1560) c o u n t e d fifteen

several treatises i n c l u d i n g one o n hydraulic water

the science o f geometry as the basis and f o u n d a -

applied branches o f practical geometry, a d d i n g

supplies and the c o n s t r u c t i o n o f qandts.

t i o n o f architecture that the architect and the

n a v i g a t i o n , s w i m m i n g , pulleys used i n construc-

chapters dealing w i t h the science o f c o n s t r u c t i o n

bricklayer had to follow. A n o t h e r e n t r y about the

t i o n , catapults, and equalizing t i m e to the fields

were also i n c o r p o r a t e d i n t o a n o w - l o s t I l k h a n i d

geometer a l - H a k i m A b u M u h a m m a d a l - A d l i

already cited by I b n a l - A k f a n i .

encyclopedic w o r k , a t t r i b u t e d to Rashid a l - D i n .

a l - Q a j i n i establishes a hierarchy based o n the

K h a l d u n , I b n a l - A k f a n i , and the M a m l u k scholar

I n this t w e n t y - f o u r - c h a p t e r w o r k , the f o u r t h and

differing levels o f geometric knowledge r e q u i r e d

al-Qalqashandi (1355-1418) all stressed the connec-

fifth chapters discussed canals, ditches, and dams;

f r o m the designing architect and the mason exe-

t i o n between architecture and practical geometry

chapters 20 and 21 covered the c o n s t r u c t i o n o f

c u t i n g his designs; the architect w i t h his practical

b u t d i d n o t once m e n t i o n its debt to a r i t h m e t i c .

cities, b u i l d i n g s , fortresses, ships, bridges, and

knowledge o f geometry follows after the t h e o r e t i -

T h a t architectural design methods were p r e d o m i -

cal g e o m e t r i c i a n , and the b r i c k l a y i n g mason

n a n t l y geometric is also d o c u m e n t e d i n scrolls

comes last. The same hierarchy is m e n t i o n e d

whose girihs were created by m a n i p u l a t i n g basic

i n s p i r e d by classical prototypes such as the

i n the t h i r t e e n t h - c e n t u r y ethical digest o f Nasir

geometric figures and n o t by a r i t h m e t i c calcula-

architectural treatise by V i t r u v i u s , w h i c h is n o t

a l - D i n al-Tusi w h o h i m s e l f was a m a t h e m a t i c i a n .

tions i n v o l v i n g n u m b e r s .

m e n t i o n e d i n I b n a l - N a d i m ' s t e n t h - c e n t u r y list

c

25

27

Taskoprizade, I b n

26

Here again the practical geometry o f the architect

The b r a n c h o f practical geometry t h a t dealt

is contrasted w i t h the superior theoretical k n o w l -

w i t h the f o u n d a t i o n , c o n s t r u c t i o n , and aesthetics

edge o f the geometer, w h i l e the craftsman is

(husn)

ranked l o w e s t .

al-abniya

24

o f m o n u m e n t s was k n o w n as ilm c

al- uqud c

( l i t . , " t h e science o f ' k n o t s ' o f b u i l d -

mechanical devices used as b u i l d i n g a i d s .

Several

28

I t is unclear to w h a t extent these works were

o f books i n A r a b i c . A l t h o u g h m a n y medieval V i t r u v i u s manuscripts have been d o c u m e n t e d i n Europe, they are n o t yet k n o w n to have circulated i n the M u s l i m w o r l d . The o n l y exception seems to

ings," f r o m aqd, p i . uqud, " k n o t s , " " v a u l t , " or

be an early

cations o f the sciences elaborate earlier ones; they

" a r c h , " t h a t is, the science o f a r c h i t e c t u r a l c o n -

f r o m the l i b r a r y o f the H u n g a r i a n k i n g M a t t h i a s

cite a d d i t i o n a l fields o f practical geometry t h a t

s t r u c t i o n s ) . This science was concerned w i t h the

C o r v i n u s (1440-1490) i n Budapest t h a t was i n c o r -

Late medieval and early m o d e r n Islamic classifi-

c

c

fifteenth-century

L a t i n V i t r u v i u s codex

THEORY

A N D PRAXIS

141

p o r a t e d i n t o the O t t o m a n c o l l e c t i o n o f i m p e r i a l

Its usefulness is apparent i n practical

vaults, a n d domes) and t o the decorative arts

manuscripts at the T o p k a p i Palace after sultan

crafts that have t o do w i t h bodies, such

awaits assessment b y historians o f science so that

Suleyman I'S conquest o f t h a t c i t y .

as carpentry and architecture. I t is also

the ways i n w h i c h theory a n d praxis interacted can

useful for m a k i n g remarkable statues

be u n d e r s t o o d m o r e clearly. A n u m b e r o f t e n t h -

29

I t is u n f o r t u -

nate t h a t I b n al-Haytham's Kitdb al-abniya al- uqud c

wa

( B o o k o f b u i l d i n g s and c o n s t r u c t i o n s ) a n d

al-Karaji's Kitdb uqud al-abniya c

( B o o k o f architec-

[ m o n u m e n t s ] and large objects

[hayakil,

"effigies," or "edifices"] a n d for m o v -

and eleventh-century mathematicians also are k n o w n t o have w r i t t e n treatises o n d r a f t i n g i n s t r u -

t u r a l c o n s t r u c t i o n s ) m e n t i o n e d b y Taskoprizade

i n g loads a n d t r a n s p o r t i n g large objects

ments t h a t facilitated the sketching o f conic sec-

have n o t survived. T h e latter, w h i c h dealt w i t h the

[hayakil]

tions for scientists (al- alim)

c o n s t r u c t i o n o f b u i l d i n g s , bridges, a n d engineer-

contrivances, engineering [ t e c h n i q u e s ] ,

i n g , was described b y I b n a l - A k f a n i as a w o r k

pulleys a n d similar t h i n g s .

exclusively based o n practical g e o m e t r y .

30

w i t h the help o f mechanical

c

35

(al-sani )

T h e existence o f such treatises supports

w h i c h he i d e n t i f i e d as a b r a n c h o f practical This statement is c o n f i r m e d i n a n i n t h - c e n t u r y

geometry, were relevant for architectural a n d artisanal practice, a statement c o n f i r m e d by I b n

referred t o b y the physician and biographer I b n A b i

treatise o n the m e n s u r a t i o n (misaha)

Usaybi a (1203-1270) as Maqala ft ijarat

boloids by T h a b i t b. Q u r r a , w h i c h includes a dis-

al-Haytham's lost architectural treatise, w h i c h

cussion o f the "parabolic d o m e " (al-qubba

ended w i t h the three conic sections.

c

wa al-abniya

bi-jami

c

al-ashkal

al-hufur

al-handasiya

(Trea-

o f paraal-

tise o n the c o n s t r u c t i o n o f ditches a n d b u i l d i n g s

mukafiya)

w i t h all the figures o f geometry j o i n e d t o g e t h e r ) ,

o f a parabola, accompanied b y drawings o f d o m e

i n the mechanical engineer I s m a i l b . al-Razzaz

a w o r k c o n c l u d i n g w i t h the three conic sections,

profiles (figs. 103-106). Treatises o n the mensura-

al-Jazari's Kitdb ft ma rifat

namely, the parabola, hyperbola, a n d ellipse.

c

I b n K h a l d u n ' s statement t h a t the conic sections,

32

Ibn

al-Haytham's lost w o r k , o n the other h a n d , was

alike.

and artisans

created b y r o t a t i n g different sections

One o f these drafting i n s t r u m e n t s is described c

c

al-hiyal

al-handastya

t i o n o f parabolas and paraboloids were w r i t t e n

( B o o k o n the knowledge o f ingenious mechanical

These lost treatises r e l y i n g o n practical geometry,

by such mathematicians as I b r a h i m b . Sinan

devices), w r i t t e n i n the first years o f the t h i r t e e n t h

therefore, appear t o have been i l l u s t r a t e d w i t h

( 9 0 9 - 9 4 6 ) , al-Sijzi ( 9 6 9 - 9 9 9 ) , A b u Sahl a l - Q u h i

c e n t u r y for the A r t u q i d prince o f D i y a r b a k i r

geometric constructions t h a t i n c l u d e d conic

31

(fl. 9 8 0 - 1 0 0 0 ) , a n d I b n a l - H a y t h a m , some o f t h e m

(fig. 107). This was a special drafting i n s t r u m e n t

sections, constructions p r o b a b l y adapted t o s i m -

i n c l u d i n g sections o n arches, vaults, a n d domes.

w i t h the a i d o f w h i c h " t h e c e n t r e - p o i n t o f three

plified mechanical procedures.

A l - S i j z i , for example, w r o t e a w o r k exclusively

p o i n t s o n the surface o f a sphere o r o n a h o r i z o n -

dealing w i t h the m e n s u r a t i o n o f domes, e n t i t l e d

tal surface [ p r o v i d e d t h a t they are n o t i n a straight

Risala ft khawass al-qubba

line] can be d e t e r m i n e d " and w i t h w h i c h " o t h e r

I b n K h a l d u n testified t o the use o f conic sections i n architecture and those crafts dealing w i t h bodies: C o n i c sections are a b r a n c h o f geometry. This discipline is concerned w i t h the study

al-za'ida

wa

al-mukafiya

(Epistle about the characteristics o f h y p e r b o l i c a n d

angles i n [general use], acute or obtuse, m a y also

parabolic d o m e s ) .

be d e t e r m i n e d . " I t consisted o f a h o r i z o n t a l brass

33

The m a n y A r a b i c treatises o n conic sections,

ruler w i t h a semicircular p r o j e c t i o n at its center

w r i t t e n after A p o l l o n i u s o f Perga's Conica was

(a sextant whose arc was pierced w i t h holes corre-

c o n n e c t i o n w i t h cones. I t proves the p r o p -

translated, often deal w i t h p r o b l e m s o f practical

s p o n d i n g t o different angles) a n d a perpendicular

erties o f cones b y means o f geometrical

application.

alidade ( A r a b i c , al- idada,

o f the figures a n d sections o c c u r r i n g i n

proofs based u p o n elementary geometry.

34

T h e i r c o n t r i b u t i o n t o architectural

practice ( p a r t i c u l a r l y designing p o i n t e d arches,

c

the revolving radius o f a

graduated circle, the revolving upper a r m o r index

142

PART 4. GEOMETRY AND THE CONTRIBUTION

103. Thabit b. Qurra, drawing of a dome profile. From his Kitdb ft misahat al-mujassamdt al-mukafiya (Book on the mensuration of parabolic bodies), copied by alSijzi in 969, ink on paper. Photo: Copyright cliche Bibliotheque Nationale de France, Paris, MS Arabe 2457, fol. n8r.

OF MATHEMATICAL

SCIENCES

104. Thabit b. Qurra, drawings of dome profiles. From his Kitdb f 1 misahat al-mujassamat al-mukafiya (Book on the mensuration of parabolic bodies), copied by alSijzi in 969, ink on paper. Photo: Copyright cliche Bibliotheque Nationale de France, Paris, MS Arabe 2457, fol. 119V.

THEORY

105. Thabit b. Qurra, drawings of dome profiles. From his Kitdb fi misdhat al-mujassamdt al-mukdfiya (Book on the mensuration of parabolic bodies), copied by alSijzi in 969, ink on paper. Photo: Copyright cliche Bibliotheque Nationale de France, Paris, MS Arabe 2457, fols. 121V, 122r.

AND PRAXIS

143

144 PART 4. GEOMETRY AND THE CONTRIBUTION OF MATHEMATICAL SCIENCES

106. Thabit b. Qurra, drawings of dome profiles. From his Kitab ft misahat al-mujassamdt al-mukdfiya (Book on the mensuration of parabolic bodies), copied by alSijzi in 969, ink on paper. Photo: Copyright cliche Bibliotheque Nationale de France, Paris, MS Arabe 2457, fol. i2ir.

THEORY

A N D PRAXIS

145

107a. Isma il b. al-Razzaz al-Jazari, drawing of an instrument for setting out different angles. From his Kitdb ft ma rifat al-hiyal al-handasiya (Book on the knowledge of ingenious mechanical devices), early thirteenth century, watercolor and ink on paper. From al-Jazari i974> i97>fig-151. Courtesy: The Bodleian Library, University of Oxford, MS Greaves 27, fol. 108v. c

c

o f an astrolabe o r any graduated i n s t r u m e n t show-

degrees), c o u l d be d e t e r m i n e d . This i n s t r u m e n t ,

ing the degrees o f an arc). I t set o u t r i g h t angles

t h e n , enabled artisans t o cope w i t h conic sections

w h e n the alidade was at r i g h t angles t o the h o r i -

whose c o m p l i c a t e d c o n s t r u c t i o n was n o t o n l y

zontal ruler; shifting the alidade's p o s i t i o n b y

i m p r a c t i c a l , b u t p r o b a b l y beyond t h e i r practical

aligning i t w i t h the angles m a r k e d o n the arc o f the

knowledge o f geometry.

37

sextant allowed the setting o u t o f various acute and

The repeat u n i t s o f geometric girih patterns

obtuse angles (each c o r r e s p o n d i n g i n p r o p o r t i o n t o

c o n t a i n e d i n the a n o n y m o u s A mdl

two segments o f the sextant's semicircular a r c ) .

treatise were based o n specific p r o p o r t i o n a l rela-

36

The same i n s t r u m e n t , identified as an anglebracket r u l e r (gunyd-i

mistara o r mistara-i

gunya)

is described b y the a n o n y m o u s author o f A mdl wa c

c

wa ashkdl

tionships as its title implies (figs. 109-114). T h e " h o w - t o " i n s t r u c t i o n s i n Persian t h a t accompany these girihs usually start w i t h the standard phrase:

ashkdl (fig. 108). Here i t is m e n t i o n e d i n connec-

" T h e way o f d r a w i n g [tariq-i

t i o n t o the c o n s t r u c t i o n o f a r i g h t triangle whose

r a t i o o r p r o p o r t i o n [nisbat]

kashidan]

hypotenuse equals the sum o f its perpendicular

[ aqd]

and shortest side, and i t is specified t h a t I b n

114).

a l - H a y t h a m had w r i t t e n a treatise about the c o n -

tions as aqd, the A r a b i c equivalent o f the t e r m

s t r u c t i o n o f such a triangle based o n the intersect-

girih, suggests a direct l i n k between the lost early

i n g conic sections o f a hyperbola and parabola.

eleventh-century uqud ( p i . o f aqd) treatises b y

This c o n s t r u c t i o n r e q u i r e d the use o f the angle-

I b n a l - H a y t h a m and al-Karaji i l l u s t r a t e d w i t h geo-

bracket r u l e r , t h a t is, a ruler w i t h a central perpen-

m e t r i c schemata and the later T o p k a p i scroll. I t is

dicular alidade t h a t c o u l d be t i l t e d according t o

t e m p t i n g t o speculate t h a t the examples

different angles i n d i c a t e d o n a p r o t r u d i n g g r a d u -

i n c l u d e d i n the a n o n y m o u s treatise were n o t so

ated arc resembling a p r o t r a c t o r . T h a t this i n s t r u -

different f r o m the ones used i n architectural trea-

m e n t was i n s p i r e d b y astrolabes and quadrants

tises. This hypothesis is strengthened b y the fact

giving angle readings i n ratios o f arcs is suggested

that the science o f uqud al-abniya

by its i n c o r p o r a t i o n o f an alidade and a sextant. I t

category o f practical geometry and t h a t I b n

facilitated d r a w i n g geometric c o m p o s i t i o n s based

al-Haytham's vanished treatise o n this subject

and the

o f this c o n s t r u c t i o n

is as f o l l o w s " (see the texts i n figs. 112,

c

38

T h e i d e n t i f i c a t i o n o f geometric construcc

c

c

c

ot aqd c

was a sub-

o n conic sections c o r r e s p o n d i n g t o rare p r o p o r -

i n c l u d e d all the figures o f geometry j o i n e d together.

tions and angles. W i t h its help some o f the m o r e

I f t h a t was the case, i t is n o w o n d e r t h a t later

unusual angles used i n girih patterns, generally . d r a w n w i t h set squares c o r r e s p o n d i n g t o m o r e c o m m o n r i g h t angles (e.g., 30-60-90 o r 35-45-90

scrolls c o m p i l e d b y master builders consist o f p u r e l y geometric patterns generated b y " k n o t s " f o r m i n g variegated g r i d networks.

107b. Isma il b. al-Razzaz al-Jazari, diagram showing how to determine the center of three points marked on a circle with the instrument depicted in figure 107a. From his Kitdb fi ma rifat al-hiyal al-handasiya (Book on the knowledge of ingenious mechanical devices), early thirteenth century, watercolor and ink on paper. From al-Jazari 1974,197,fig.152. Courtesy: The Bodleian Library, University of Oxford, MS Greaves 27, fol. i09r. c

c

146

PART 4. GEOMETRY AND THE CONTRIBUTION

108. Angle-bracket ruler. From the anonymous treatise Fi taddkhul al-ashkdl al-mutashdbiha

aw

al-mutawdfiqa

(On interlocking similar or congruent figures), eleventh to thirteenth century, red and black ink on paper. Photo: Copyright cliche Bibliotheque Nationale de France, Paris, MS Persan 169, fol. i9ir.

OF MATHEMATICAL

SCIENCES

THEORY

AND

PRAXIS

no. Repeat unit for a star-and-polygon pattern. From the anonymous treatise FTtadakhul al-ashkdl almutashdbiha aw al-mutawafiqa (On interlocking similar or congruent figures), eleventh to thirteenth century, red and black ink on paper. Photo: Copyright cliche Bibliotheque Nationale de France, Paris, MS Persan 169, fol. 195V.

109a. Repeat unit for a star-and-polygon pattern. From the anonymous treatise FTtadakhul al-ashkdl almutashdbiha aw al-mutawafiqa (On interlocking similar or congruent figures), eleventh to thirteenth century, ink on paper. Photo: Copyright cliche Bibliotheque Nationale de France, Paris, MS Persan 169, fol. i96r.

109b. Diagram of uninked grid lines used in generating figure 109a. Drawing by Elizabeth Dean Hermann.

147

148

PART 4. GEOMETRY AND THE CONTRIBUTION

111. Repeat unit for a star-and-polygon pattern. From the anonymous treatise Fitadakhul al-ashkdl almutashdbiha aw al-mutawdfiqa (On interlocking similar or congruent figures), eleventh to thirteenth century, red and black ink on paper. Photo: Copyright cliche Bibliotheque Nationale de France, Paris, MS Persan 169, fol. i92r.

OF MATHEMATICAL SCIENCES

112. Repeat unit for a star-and-polygon pattern. From the anonymous treatise Fitadakhul al-ashkal almutashdbiha aw al-mutawdfiqa (On interlocking similar or congruent figures), eleventh to thirteenth century, red and black ink on paper. Photo: Copyright cliche Bibliotheque Nationale de France, Paris, MS Persan 169, fol. 194V.

THEORY

113a. Repeat unit for a star-and-polygon pattern with swastikas. From the anonymous treatise Fitaddkhul al-ashkdl al-mutashdbiha aw al-mutawdfiqa

(On

interlocking similar or congruent figures), eleventh to thirteenth century, red ink and brownish green wash on paper. Photo: Copyright cliche Bibliotheque Nationale de France, Paris, MS Persan 169, fol. i99r.

AND

113b. Diagram of uninked grid lines used in generating figure 113a. Drawing by Elizabeth Dean Hermann.

PRAXIS

149

150

PART 4. GEOMETRY

114. Repeat units of patterns, two of which are composed with squares, rhombuses, and octagons. From the anonymous treatise FT taddkhul al-ashkdl almutashdbiha aw almutawafiqa (On

interlocking similar or congruent figures), eleventh to thirteenth century, red and black ink on paper. Photo: Copyright cliche Bibliotheque Nationale de France, Paris, MS Persan 169, fol. i94r.

AND THE CONTRIBUTION OF MATHEMATICAL SCIENCES

The embeddedness o f architectural practice and the allied decorative arts i n practical geometry can also be surmised f r o m al-Jazari's early t h i r t e e n t h c e n t u r y treatise where the casting o f a m e t a l w o r k d o o r w i t h i n t e r l o c k i n g geometric pieces is described (figs. 115-117). The i m p o r t a n t place given to this d o o r (made for the A r t u q i d royal palace o f D i y a r b a k i r ) i n al-Jazari's treatise o n ingenious mechanical devices, one o f the earliest manuals o f practical mechanics to have survived, shows that Pappus o f Alexandria's d e f i n i t i o n o f this field was fully assimilated by medieval Islamic c u l t u r e . Al-Jazari was a master craftsman fully conversant w i t h the branches o f his trade, w h i c h i n c l u d e d architecture, m e t a l w o r k , and carpentry. H i s cast-brass d o o r featured a g r i d n e t w o r k (shabaka,

l i t . , " n e t " ) o f hexagonal and octagonal

stars [khdtim,

l i t . , "signet r i n g " ) j o i n e d by r h o m -

b o i d a l filler units. I t was decorated w i t h h o l l o w domes, "leaves o f various k i n d s w i t h i n t e r t w i n e d stems," and " w r i t i n g i n the Kufic script w i t h i n t e r t w i n e d letters" featuring " i n t e r t w i n e d leaves." For each geometric u n i t o f the l a t t i c e w o r k al-Jazari prepared a w o o d e n template (mithdl)

and, "as the

founders do i n f o u n d r y , " cast the pieces i n closed m o l d boxes w i t h green sand. The door's i n t e r l o c k i n g s t a r - a n d - p o l y g o n patterns, resembling those o n "carpenter's w o r k for f i l l i n g i n j o i n e r y " (kdrzawdn,

lit., "tongue-and-groove joined w o r k " ) ,

r e q u i r e d a knowledge o f practical g e o m e t r y .

39

Al-Jazari w a r n e d the reader that his w r i t t e n description is less i n f o r m a t i v e t h a n the drawings accompanying i t : " T h i s is [best] u n d e r s t o o d

THEORY

AND PRAXIS

151

115. Isma il b. al-Razzaz al-Jazari, schematic design for a cast metalwork door with star-and-polygon patterns. From his Kitab fi ma rifat al-hiyal al-handasiya (Book on the knowledge of ingenious mechanical devices), Diyarbakir, 1206, watercolor and ink on paper. Istanbul, Topkapi Sarayi Miizesi Kutuphanesi, MS A. 3472, fols. i65v-i66r. c

c

116. Isma il b. al-Razzaz al-Jazari, diagrams showing the details for the individual units of a cast metalwork door with star and polygon patterns. From his Kitab c

fi ma rifat al-hiyal alhandasiya (Book on the c

knowledge of ingenious mechanical devices), Diyarbakir, 1206, watercolor and ink on paper. Istanbul, Topkapi Sarayi Miizesi Kutuphanesi, MS A. 3472, fol. i67r.

117. Isma il b. al-Razzaz al-Jazari, diagrams showing the details for the individual units of a cast metalwork door with star-and-polygon patterns. From his Kitab c

fi ma rifat al-hiyal al-handasiya (Book on c

the knowledge of ingenious mechanical devices), Diyarbakir, 1206, watercolor and ink on paper. Istanbul, Topkapi Sarayi Miizesi Kiitiiphanesi, MS A. 3472, fol. 167V.

152

PART 4. GEOMETRY AND THE CONTRIBUTION

OF MATHEMATICAL SCIENCES

by s t u d y i n g the d r a w i n g , n o t f r o m w h a t I have

pearl cut i n p o l y g o n and star shapes were i n t r i -

I b n K h a l d u n was repeating a t r a d i t i o n , whose o r i -

described, for I have abbreviated the descrip-

cately fitted together. This technique no d o u b t

gin has n o t yet been explained, t h a t l i n k e d these

tion."

The i m p o r t a n c e o f technical drawings

r e q u i r e d a g r o u n d i n g i n practical geometry, as is

two famous geometers o f the A l e x a n d r i a n school

i n c o m m u n i c a t i n g practical craft knowledge is

c o n f i r m e d by the example o f A b u al-Fadl b. A b d

w i t h the v o c a t i o n o f carpentry. I n several b i o -

4 0

c

revealed i n a fascinating passage where al-Jazari

a l - K a r i m a l - M u h a n d i s ( d . 1202-1203), the carpen-

graphical sources b o t h E u c l i d and A p o l l o n i u s

described the schematic d r a f t i n g m e t h o d he used

ter and stonemason responsible for m a k i n g the

o f Perga appear w i t h the epithet " t h e carpenter"

to make his designs m o r e legible:

doors o f the A y y u b i d ruler a l - M a l i k a l - A d i l ' s

(al-najjdr),

hospital i n Damascus, w h o had studied E u c l i d

reflected c o n t e m p o r a r y Islamic craft practices.

c

an epithet that may s i m p l y have 44

I n d r a w i n g i t [the p i c t u r e o f the d o o r ] I

to acquire excellence i n the geometric art o f

have n o t aimed for completeness. M y p u r -

w o o d j o i n e r y . I b n K h a l d u n c o n f i r m e d that carpen-

career o f the O t t o m a n architect M e h m e d , shows

pose was to present a [general] arrange-

ters had to be t r a i n e d i n practical geometry, just

that practical geometry (handasa)

m e n t so t h a t i t can be u n d e r s t o o d i n the

like architect-engineers w h o used i t i n design-

t i o n (misdha,

whole and i n detail. One realises t h a t

i n g b u i l d i n g s and i n s t r u m e n t s (constructed

w i t h lengths, surfaces, and volumes o f geometric

there is obscurity i n the representations o f

according to geometric p r o p o r t i o n s ) for l i f t i n g

figures) c o n t i n u e d to play a central role i n the

solid bodies, b u t i n the i m a g i n a t i o n one

water and for m o v i n g heavy loads o f b u i l d i n g

t r a i n i n g o f architects and carpenters i n the early

can fit one t h i n g to another, view i t f r o m

materials.

42

He w r o t e :

Ca fer's Risdle-i c

Mfmdriyye,

w h i c h discusses the and mensura-

the science o f measurement dealing

m o d e r n era. This treatise includes a substantial

an angle, dissect i t , and thus assemble i t

section o n the science o f geometry, i d e n t i f i e d as

step by step. A l l the drawings w h i c h I have

I n view o f its o r i g i n , carpentry needs a

the c o m m o n basis for the crafts o f architecture,

made are simple, so that they give a clear

g o o d deal o f geometry o f all k i n d s . I t

m o t h e r - o f - p e a r l - i n l a i d w o o d w o r k , and music,

p i c t u r e . I show a d r a w i n g o f part o f w h a t

requires either a general or a specialized

i n all o f w h i c h M e h m e d was t r a i n e d d u r i n g his

I have described, as I have done w i t h the

knowledge o f p r o p o r t i o n and measure-

apprenticeship at the royal workshops o f the

drawings i n the other chapters, split i n t o

m e n t , i n order to b r i n g the forms [ o f

T o p k a p i Palace's outer garden. The author traced

its separate p a r t s .

things] f r o m p o t e n t i a l i t y i n t o actuality i n

the origins o f this science to the p h i l o s o p h e r

41

the p r o p e r manner, and for the knowledge

Pythagoras w h o "collected b o t h the science o f

o f p r o p o r t i o n s one m u s t have recourse to

geometry and the science o f mathematics i n t o

i n c l u d e d i n girih scrolls, w o u l d have to be trans-

the geometrician. Therefore, the leading

a b o o k . " I t was also Pythagoras w h o had sys-

lated i n t o full-scale templates and were capable

Greek geometricians were all master car-

tematized the science o f music: " H e discovered,

o f c o m m u n i c a t i n g the basic i n f o r m a t i o n necessary

penters. E u c l i d , the author o f the Book

arranged a n d classified r h y t h m i c patterns f r o m

for artisans already equipped w i t h e m p i r i c a l w o r k -

of the Principles,

the crashing o f the waves o f the s e a . "

shop experience. I t is n o t a coincidence that

penter and was k n o w n as such. The same

al-Jazari c o m p a r e d his m e t a l w o r k d o o r t o j o i n e d

was the case w i t h A p o l l o n i u s , the author

manuscripts o f practical geometry were used to

w o o d w o r k , the so-called Kassettenstil

o f the b o o k o n Conic Sections,

educate apprentices i n the craft workshops o f the

Al-Jazari's schematic drawings, like the ones

kunda-kdri,

(Persian,

"tongue-and-groove j o i n t i n g " ) , i n

w h i c h precious pieces o f w o o d and m o t h e r - o f -

o n geometry, was a car-

Menelaus, and o t h e r s .

43

and

45

A n episode recounted i n the Risdle shows that

T o p k a p i Palace. I t describes h o w a y o u t h read a b o o k o f geometry a l o u d i n the w o r k s h o p o f the

THEORY

AND

PRAXIS

153

m o t h e r - o f - p e a r l workers: "As he read each section,

w i t h h i m for m a n y years u n t i l the present t i m e ,

Because i t is n o t possible t o relate h o w

he w o u l d t u r n and narrate and explain i t to t h e m .

for the most part closely, w h e n certain subjects

vast a b u i l d i n g this noble mosque is, h o w

By chance, the b o o k w h i c h he was reading was

c o n c e r n i n g the science o f geometry were being

solidly its f o u n d a t i o n s and structure were

about the science o f g e o m e t r y . "

discussed, this h u m b l e servant t o o k and w r o t e

made, we have n o t described these. I n

46

When Mehmed

(apprenticed at that t i m e to the n e i g h b o r i n g w o r k -

d o w n everything. I n accordance w i t h this, he set

t r u t h , one w h o wishes to understand these

shop o f musicians) heard " t h e i n t e l l i g e n t y o u t h . . .

d o w n and composed a treatise c o n c e r n i n g the

matters s h o u l d first become greatly skilled

reading the b o o k w h i c h thus described geometry

science o f g e o m e t r y . "

and a r c h i t e c t u r e , " he decided to switch to the

and w e l l versed i n the science o f geometry.

49

U n f o r t u n a t e l y Ca fer's treatise has n o t yet surc

After t h a t , i t is necessary to study and

study o f the "arts o f w o r k i n g o f m o t h e r - o f - p e a r l

faced, b u t its contents dealing w i t h practical geome-

p o n d e r i t for m a n y days and m o n t h s and

and o f a r c h i t e c t u r e . " After d e m o n s t r a t i n g his skill

t r y can be surmised f r o m the b r i e f chapter o n

years and for m u c h t i m e i n order to c o m -

by s t r i k i n g a p l a n k w i t h an adz o n a m a r k e d spot,

the same subject he i n c l u d e d i n the Risdle, w h i c h

p r e h e n d i n w h a t m a n n e r and i n w h a t

he was accepted i n t o the b r o t h e r h o o d to learn

refers to m o d u l a r c u b i t measures, geometric

ways its various designs and i n t e r l o c k i n g

these two arts, u p o n w h i c h the y o u n g m a n reading

methods o f m e n s u r a t i o n used i n l a n d surveying,

decorations were p u t t o g e t h e r .

the b o o k said: " I f this boy t u r n s t o w a r d this art

and geometric figures used "above all i n the art o f

w i t h this s k i l l , let me also teach h i m the science o f

m o t h e r - o f - p e a r l w o r k i n g . " I t is clear that he was

M e h m e d had n o t o n l y studied at the T o p k a p i

geometry, and transcribe and present h i m w i t h a

n o t concerned w i t h theoretical geometry and its

Palace's i m p e r i a l garden under a master carpenter

copy o f the b o o k i n m y h a n d so that as l o n g as he

proofs b u t w i t h a practical geometry based o n a

and various j o u r n e y m e n (halife)

lives he w i l l have i n his hands a t o k e n f r o m m e . "

knowledge o f basic figures and t h e i r properties.

the r e n o w n e d O t t o m a n chief architect Sinan w h o

4 7

51

b u t also under

This episode confirms that " h o w - t o " manuals

H e w r o t e : " N o w , i n the science o f geometry

often came there w h i l e he occupied t h a t post

o f applied geometry c o n t i n u e d to be used by l i t e r -

there are several forms. W h e n these are mastered,

between 1538 and 1588: " A n d each t i m e the Great

ate master masons and master craftsmen w h i l e

the rest is easy." He identified these as the circle,

A r c h i t e c t came to the I m p e r i a l Gardens, he

the i n f o r m a t i o n contained i n t h e m was o r a l l y

semicircle, small arc o f the circle lesser t h a n the

[ M e h m e d ] studied the science o f geometry and

t r a n s m i t t e d to apprentices as part o f their w o r k -

semicircle, large arc o f the circle bigger t h a n

the art o f architecture w i t h h i m and o t h e r s . "

shop t r a i n i n g .

the semicircle, t r i a n g u l a r forms, quadrangles,

Sinan's role as a teacher is also i m p l i e d i n his

pentagons, hexagons, heptagons, octagons, nona-

e n d o w m e n t deed (waqfiyya),

does n o t understand this rare and agreeable

gons, decagons, and so o n and added, " T h e art

as " t h e royal professor" (mu allim-i

science [i.e., g e o m e t r y ] , he is n o t capable o f the

o f m o t h e r - o f - p e a r l inlay makes use o n l y o f forms

mastery i n geometry is expressed i n the same

finest w o r k i n g i n m o t h e r - o f - p e a r l , n o r can he be

derived f r o m the science o f g e o m e t r y . "

source by his title " E u c l i d i u s o f the A g e . "

The Risdle asserted that "as l o n g as a person

an expert skilled i n the art o f a r c h i t e c t u r e . "

48

Ca fer h i m s e l f c o m p i l e d a treatise o f practical c

50

M e h m e d ' s mastery i n m a n i p u l a t i n g geometric forms i n the craft o f m o t h e r - o f - p e a r l - i n l a i d car-

52

w h i c h refers to h i m c

hdkdni); 5 3

his Sinan,

t o o , was i n i t i a l l y t r a i n e d by a master carpenter i n the craft o f carpentry (neccdr),

which introduced

geometry based o n the discussions he had over-

p e n t r y c u l m i n a t e d i n a r c h i t e c t u r a l works w h e n he

h i m t h r o u g h the use o f ruler (hencdr)

heard w h i l e he was i n the service o f M e h m e d

became the chief architect o f the O t t o m a n c o u r t .

pass (pergdr) to geometry, the g r o u n d w o r k o f a r c h i -

d u r i n g the latter's tenure as chief c o u r t architect

The Sultan A h m e d mosque he b u i l t i n I s t a n b u l is

tecture. I n the autobiography he dictated to Sa i,

(1606-1618): "Because we have been connected

described i n the Risdle as a w o n d e r o f geometry:

Sinan t h a n k e d his master for t r a i n i n g h i m i n the

and c o m c

PART 4. GEOMETRY AND THE CONTRIBUTION

154

OF MATHEMATICAL SCIENCES

craft o f carpentry and t h e n poetically described his

Suleymaniye mosque for the parade is praised for

explains w h y the lost architectural treatises o f I b n

apprenticeship p e r i o d :

his E u c l i d - l i k e mastery o f geometry and his a b i l i t y

a l - H a y t h a m a n d al-Karaji i n c l u d e d sections o n the

to reproduce the universe and the vault o f the

c o n s t r u c t i o n o f fortifications, bridges, dams, a n d

R e m a i n i n g i n the service o f m y master like

heavens i n his imaginative designs (tarh)

i r r i g a t i o n works.

drawn

a compass w i t h one leg fixed, I t u r n e d m y

w i t h compasses. T h a t this architect-engineer was

a t t e n t i o n to center and circumference

most l i k e l y Sinan h i m s e l f can be deduced f r o m a

highest bureaucratic p o s i t i o n i n the centrally orga-

[i.e., d r a w i n g circles]. T h e n , just as a c o m -

later procession o f guilds d u r i n g the c i r c u m c i s i o n

nized O t t o m a n c o n s t r u c t i o n i n d u s t r y , where mas-

pass draws an arc, so I desired t o t o u r

festivities o f 1675 for w h i c h the chief royal a r c h i -

ter masons, masons, and the practitioners o f

countries. For a w h i l e i n the service o f the

tect (mi mdr

various b u i l d i n g - r e l a t e d crafts ( i n c l u d i n g carpen-

ago) had prepared two models o f

c

As chief royal architect, Sinan occupied the

sultan [Selim 1] I cruised the A r a b a n d

kiosks placed i n gardens w i t h jets o f water; these

ters and the ceramic tile makers o f I z n i k ) were

Persian lands, d e r i v i n g m y food f r o m the

were paraded i n f r o n t o f the sultan o n separate

directly placed under his supervision. T h e rela-

pinnacle o f each i w a n , a n d m y l o d g i n g

wheel-carts.

tively h i g h social status o f O t t o m a n master masons

f r o m the corner o f each r u i n .

55

Sinan was p e r p e t u a t i n g the R o m a n o - B y z a n t i n e

5 4

(ustdd)

can be deduced f r o m L o k m a n ' s d e s c r i p t i o n

t r a d i t i o n o f m i l i t a r y architect-engineers that the

o f t h e i r g u i l d procession i n 1582 w h e n they were

O t t o m a n s had filtered t h r o u g h the p r i s m o f t h e i r

accompanied b y o r d i n a r y masons (bennd).

w o r l d as masterpieces o f applied geometry is cap-

o w n architectural heritage and new influences

the latter paraded w i t h their w o r k i n g tools a n d

t u r e d i n a d e s c r i p t i o n o f the Suleymaniye

f r o m Renaissance Italy. Early i n his career he par-

c u b i t measures (arsun),

T h a t Sinan's mosques were seen i n the O t t o m a n mosque

While

the masters p r o u d l y

(1550-1557) b y the seventeenth-century traveler

t i c i p a t e d i n various b u i l d i n g projects i n a d d i t i o n

marched e m p t y - h a n d e d , wearing expensive silk

Evliya Qelebi w h o p u t the f o l l o w i n g words i n t o the

to c o n s t r u c t i n g w o o d e n warships, fortresses, a n d

brocade caftans (kemhdve

m o u t h o f a European architectural expert d i s t i n -

bridges t h a t prepared h i m for the masterpieces he

bans. They w e n t about g i v i n g f i r m a n l i k e orders t o

guished i n the science o f geometry: " B o t h the i n t e -

w o u l d create as chief royal architect. I n those years

c o n s t r u c t i o n workers (irgdd),

r i o r and exterior o f this mosque have been b u i l t

he c o n t i n u e d t o b u i l d bridges, aqueducts, a n d

being i n v o l v e d i n m a n u a l labor [el iscisi]"

i n a c h a r m i n g manner; i n the whole o f Frankistan

water channels, projects that occupy as i m p o r t a n t

These master masons, " w h o had never even d r i v e n

serdser) and large t u r " n o t one o f t h e m himself.

[Europe] we d i d n o t see such an exemplary b u i l d -

a place i n the architect's a u t o b i o g r a p h y as r e l i -

a n a i l " refused t o be ordered a r o u n d and w o u l d

i n g perfect i n terms o f the science o f geometry

gious and secular m o n u m e n t s . Like his successors

n o t listen t o any c o m m a n d "even i f one were t o

D a v u d ( d . 1599), Dalgic A h m e d ( d . 1608), a n d

drive i t i n t o t h e i r ears w i t h a screw." Sinan, w h o

O t t o m a n architectural practice is also reflected i n

M e h m e d , w h o had first served as superintendents

held a m a j o r a d m i n i s t r a t i v e post, enjoyed even

the late sixteenth-century c o u r t h i s t o r i a n L o k m a n

o f waterworks (suyoli naziri) before they were p r o -

greater prestige t h a n the master masons under

b. Seyyid Hiiseyin's account o f the g u i l d proces-

m o t e d t o the office o f chief architect, Sinan was

his c o m m a n d . Nevertheless, his image differed

sions i n I s t a n b u l d u r i n g a royal c i r c u m c i s i o n cere-

deeply i n v o l v e d w i t h h y d r a u l i c engineering. H i s

f r o m t h a t o f his contemporaries i n Renaissance

m o n y i n 1582. Here, an u n n a m e d skilled architect

career, therefore, is i n keeping w i t h the t r a d i t i o n a l

Italy where the s u b o r d i n a t i o n o f architecture t o

(mi mdr)

Islamic classification o f architecture as a sub-

mechanics was renounced t o such a degree that " i n

field o f applied mechanics, a classification t h a t

m a n y parts o f I t a l y a m a n is called a mechanic i n

[ ilm-i c

c

hendese]."

T h e prestige o f geometry i n

and engineer (muhendis)

w h o prepared a

p a i n t e d and gilded t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l m o d e l o f the

THEORY

AND PRAXIS

155

scorn and degradation, and i n some places people

w i t h L u t f Allah's son Khayr A l l a h w h o composed

studied the Almagest before t a k i n g u p the chisel.

are offended even t o be called e n g i n e e r . "

i n 1731 a practical m a t h e m a t i c a l treatise c o n t a i n -

These two p o p u l a r r o m a n t i c epics w o u l d inspire

i n g geometric d i a g r a m s .

new versions, i n c l u d i n g the ones w r i t t e n b y the

56

The similar geometric basis o f the t r a i n i n g o f architect-engineers i n M u g h a l I n d i a is d o c u -

60

This f a m i l y o f architects p r a c t i c i n g i n M u g h a l

I n d o - M u s l i m poet A m i r Khusraw D i h l a w i (1253-

m e n t e d i n w r i t t e n sources that often refer t o t h e m

I n d i a appears t o have perpetuated a late T i m u r i d

1325) and b y the late T i m u r i d poets Jami a n d

as E u c l i d - l i k e skilled geometers.

t r a d i t i o n — t o w h i c h the T o p k a p i scroll b e l o n g s —

N a w a ' i , where the same image o f the ideal a r c h i -

e n r i c h i n g i t w i t h local c o n t r i b u t i o n s . A h m a d

tect is encountered. The t h i r t e e n t h - c e n t u r y a r c h i -

For example, the

57

architect Ustad A h m a d L a h o r i ( d . 1649),

w

n

o

P

a r _

ticipated i n the c o n s t r u c t i o n o f the Taj M a h a l ,

Lahori's mastery o f the "secrets" o f the

was at once a skilled engineer and learned i n the

recalls a d e s c r i p t i o n o f the

Almagest

fifteenth-century

tect Badr a l - D i n T a b r i z i , w h o b u i l t the t o m b o f M a w l a n a Jalal a l - D i n R u m i i n Seljuq Konya, is

sciences o f geometry, a r i t h m e t i c , and astronomy.

T i m u r i d architect Ustad Qawam a l - D i n Shirazi as

described i n similar terms; he possessed a k n o w l -

This architect, w h o received the title " W o n d e r o f

" t h e greatest architect o f the age" w h o was also an

edge o f the sciences o f a s t r o n o m y and m a t h e m a t -

the Age" f r o m his p a t r o n Shah Jahan, is described

"expert at a s t r o n o m y . " The latter had presented an

ics besides alchemy, chemistry, and p h i l o s o p h y .

i n a collection o f poems b y his son L u t f A l l a h

ephemeris as a gift t o the T i m u r i d ruler S h a h r u k h ,

These n o d o u b t idealized l i t e r a r y descriptions

u p o n w h i c h his p a t r o n allegedly recited the f o l -

echo Pappus o f Alexandria's and V i t r u v i u s ' s

M u h a n d i s as acquainted w i t h Euclid's

Elements

and w i t h the second-century astronomer and

l o w i n g line o f poetry: "You d i d the w o r k o f the

m a t h e m a t i c i a n Ptolemy's Almagest,

earth so w e l l t h a t y o u t o o k u p the heavens t o o . "

through which

62

accounts o f the ideal c u r r i c u l u m o f the architect 6 1

or

mechanicus.

the mysterious " m o v e m e n t s o f the planets a n d

These two architects' p r e o c c u p a t i o n w i t h astron-

stars had become k n o w n t o h i m . "

o m y reflects the d y n a m i c interchange between the

architect's b a c k g r o u n d also encompassed a k n o w l -

had descended f r o m a family o f T i m u r i d architects

various branches o f the q u a d r i v i u m . I t also testi-

edge o f m a n y sciences, i n c l u d i n g astronomy, used

o r i g i n a t i n g i n H e r a t ; his two sons and grandsons

fies to the persistence o f the ideal image o f the

i n o r i e n t i n g b u i l d i n g s and c o n s t r u c t i n g sundials:

also f o l l o w e d the profession o f t h e i r forefathers.

architect c u l t i v a t e d i n Persian l i t e r a t u r e , w h i c h

" L e t h i m be educated, s k i l l f u l w i t h the p e n c i l ,

L u t f A l l a h , w h o used the pen name M u h a n d i s ,

was permeated w i t h ancient Near Eastern m y t h o l -

i n s t r u c t e d i n geometry, k n o w m u c h h i s t o r y , have

was an architect-engineer and m a t h e m a t i c i a n w h o

ogy and frequent allusions t o the astrological

f o l l o w e d the philosophers w i t h a t t e n t i o n , u n d e r -

composed a practical treatise o n a r i t h m e t i c filled

secrets c o m m a n d e d b y architects and artisans.

stand music, have some knowledge o f m e d i c i n e ,

N i z a m i ' s Haft Paykar (Seven p o r t r a i t s ) , for

k n o w the o p i n i o n s o f j u r i s t s , and be acquainted

5 8

Ahmad Lahori

w i t h geometric diagrams. A h m a d Lahori's other

V i t r u v i u s ' s d e f i n i t i o n o f the w e l l - r o u n d e d

son, A t a ' A l l a h , also w r o t e several practice-

example, describes the learned architect, w h o b u i l t

w i t h a s t r o n o m y and the t h e o r y o f the h e a v e n s . "

c

63

oriented treatises o n the m a t h e m a t i c a l sciences

for the Sasanian p r i n c e Bahram G u r (r. A . D . 4 2 0 -

V i t r u v i u s qualified his statement b y a d m i t t i n g

and translated a Sanskrit text o n algebra i n t o

438) a seven-domed palace r e p r o d u c i n g the struc-

that since i t is impossible t o be an expert i n a l l

Persian for Shah Jahan i n 1634-1635.

t u r e o f the heavens, as possessing an o u t s t a n d i n g

these fields, a modest knowledge o f t h e i r practical

was an architect and b u i l t the M u g h a l queen

knowledge o f geometry, astronomy, m e d i c i n e , cal-

principles w o u l d suffice for the architect:

Rabi a al-Dawrani's ( d . 1657) t o m b at Awrangabad,

ligraphy, and p a i n t i n g . S i m i l a r l y N i z a m i ' s

59

He, too,

c

Khusraw

m o d e l e d o n the Taj M a h a l . T h e f a m i l y profes-

wa Shirin describes the legendary sculptor Farhad

For i n the m i d s t o f all this great variety

sion was perpetuated b y yet another generation

as a master o f geometry w h o surpassed E u c l i d and

o f subjects, an i n d i v i d u a l cannot a t t a i n

156

PART 4. GEOMETRY AND THE CONTRIBUTION

OF MATHEMATICAL SCIENCES

to perfection i n each, because i t is scarcely

edge o f practical geometry and applied mechanics

century Baghdad by the m a t h e m a t i c i a n and astron-

i n his power to take i n and c o m p r e h e n d

rarely i n c l u d e d distinguished scientists.

omer a l - K h w a r e z m i , attached to a l - M a ' m u n ' s

65

al-hikma.

Bayt

I n the words o f its author, this w o r k was

the general theories o f t h e m . . . . As for

Q a w a m a l - D i n Shirazi and the members o f

m e n u p o n w h o m nature has bestowed

A h m a d Lahori's f a m i l y were literate and d i d pos-

confined to " w h a t is easiest and most useful i n

so m u c h i n g e n u i t y , acuteness, and m e m -

sess a w e l l - r o u n d e d knowledge o f the various

a r i t h m e t i c , such as m e n constantly require i n cases

o r y t h a t they are able to have a t h o r o u g h

branches o f the m a t h e m a t i c a l sciences, b u t t h e i r

o f inheritance, legacies, p a r t i t i o n , lawsuits, and

knowledge o f geometry, astronomy, music

knowledge i n these fields appears to have been

trade, and i n all t h e i r dealings w i t h one another,

and the other arts, they go beyond the

largely practical rather t h a n theoretical. The level

or where the measuring o f lands, the digging o f

functions o f architects and become pure

o f a r i t h m e t i c knowledge c o m m a n d e d by T i m u r i d

canals, geometrical c o m p u t a t i o n s , and other

mathematicians.

architects, however, remains controversial. Bulatov,

objects o f various sorts and kinds are concerned."

for example, argued that Central Asian master

The treatise's first p a r t , dealing w i t h problems

64

builders had a considerable knowledge o f advanced

arising f r o m the d i v i s i o n o f inheritances and trade,

mathematicians Isidorus o f M i l e t u s ; A n t h e m i u s

c o m p u t a t i o n and t r i g o n o m e t r y u p to the end o f

involves o n l y a r i t h m e t i c and linear equations. Its

o f Tralles; Gabriele Stornaloco, w h o was called i n

the T i m u r i d era. Others, such as Rempel' and

shorter second part addresses the practical a p p l i -

d u r i n g the p l a n n i n g o f the M i l a n cathedral i n 1391;

Pugachenkova, have regarded Central Asian a r c h i -

cations o f m e n s u r a t i o n (misaha),

Scientist-architects, such as the professional

t h a t is, the

and Sir C h r i s t o p h e r W r e n (1632-1723), w h o was

tects as h i g h l y qualified master builders w h o d i d

a p p r o x i m a t e calculation o f the areas o f various

a professor o f a s t r o n o m y at O x f o r d , have been the

n o t necessarily c o m p r e h e n d the theoretical or

plane and solid geometric figures by c u b i t mea-

exception rather t h a n the rule i n the h i s t o r y o f

n u m e r i c a l bases o f the practical geometry they so

sures: " K n o w t h a t the m e a n i n g o f the expression

Western architecture. This was also the case i n the

s k i l l f u l l y used. W h i l e Rempel' and Pugachenkova

one by one is m e n s u r a t i o n : one c u b i t [dhird ]

Islamic w o r l d , except for such rare examples as

based t h e i r conclusions o n the graphic methods

length] by one c u b i t [ i n w i d t h ] . " Here rules are

Baha' a l - D i n A m i l i (1564-1621), the remarkable

reflected i n the geometric drawings o f the Tashkent

given to f i n d the areas o f such figures as the circle,

Safavid theologian w h o was n o t o n l y an accom-

scrolls, B u l a t o v saw the existence o f treatises o n

cone, cylinder, p y r a m i d , and t r u n c a t e d p y r a m i d .

plished architect b u t also k n o w n for his dozens

applied a r i t h m e t i c by such mathematicians as

T h a t practical m e n s u r a t i o n is o n l y concerned w i t h

o f works o n various branches o f the m a t h e m a t i c a l

M u h a m m a d b. M u s a a l - K h w a r e z m i , a l - B u z j a n i ,

s i m p l i f i e d formulas becomes apparent i n the three

sciences, i n c l u d i n g astronomy, a r i t h m e t i c , and

and al-Kashi ( w h i c h c o n t a i n a r c h i t e c t u r a l refer-

different p i values a l - K h w a r e z m i p r o v i d e d for cal-

i r r i g a t i o n . Theoretically sophisticated early medie-

ences) as evidence for a deeper knowledge o f a r i t h -

c u l a t i n g the circle, one used i n " p r a c t i c a l life,

val mathematicians such as the Banu M u s a b r o t h -

metic c o m p u t a t i o n a m o n g a r c h i t e c t s .

t h o u g h i t is n o t quite exact," and the other two

c

ers, I b n a l - H a y t h a m , and al-Karaji d i d get i n v o l v e d

66

To resolve this controversy we m u s t t u r n t o the

c

used by geometers and a s t r o n o m e r s .

[in

67

i n c o n s t r u c t i o n projects such as b u i l d i n g dams,

contents o f Islamic manuals o n practical a r i t h m e -

digging i r r i g a t i o n channels, laying o u t new cities,

tic and assess whether they w o u l d have been use-

applied algebra ( w h i c h involves b o t h a r i t h m e t i c

and advising builders, b u t the m o r e c o m m o n

ful for the purposes o f designing architects. T h e i r

and geometric proofs) to geometric p r o b l e m s ,

breed o f architect-engineers w i t h a w o r k i n g k n o w l -

earliest s u r v i v i n g example was w r i t t e n i n n i n t h -

an area where the mathematicians o f the Islamic

The second part o f al-Khwarezmi's treatise

THEORY

AND

PRAXIS

157

w o r l d are k n o w n to have o u t s t r i p p e d their Greek

culations o f wages for m o r t a r i n g and b r i c k l a y i n g ,

p o i n t s o f financial a c c o u n t i n g — s u c h a

and I n d i a n counterparts. The use o f algebra i n

as well as o f streams filling a w e l l .

person m u s t be considered o n l y p a r t l y -

geometry and the s o l u t i o n o f algebraic p r o b l e m s

6 8

U n l i k e al-Buzjani's m a n u a l o n practical geome-

qualified as a secretary."

69

w i t h the aid o f geometry w o u l d be explored

try, w h i c h addresses the p r a c t i t i o n e r s o f various

by m a n y A r a b i c - w r i t i n g m a t h e m a t i c i a n s . For

crafts, this one o n applied a r i t h m e t i c reflects the

I n a d d i t i o n to boasting l i n g u i s t i c , calligraphic, and

example, one o f the earliest M u s l i m algebraists

concerns o f scribes and secretaries, as its title

l i t e r a r y skills, t h e n , the ideal secretary and a d m i n -

w h o l i v e d i n the second h a l f o f the n i n t h century,

implies. The use o f a r i t h m e t i c i n l a n d surveying,

istrator (whose urbane c u l t u r e o f " p o l i t e l e a r n i n g "

A b u K a m i l Shuja , w r o t e a m e n s u r a t i o n treatise o n

i n m a k i n g correct estimates o f b u i l d i n g costs,

was reflected i n the literary genre o f adab) was expected to have some practical competence i n

c

the pentagon and decagon that solved p r o b l e m s

and i n the d i g g i n g o f i r r i g a t i o n channels belonged

by a p p l y i n g algebraic methods to geometry. Since

to the realm o f expertise r e q u i r e d f r o m the w e l l -

mathematics to deal w i t h a c c o u n t i n g , t a x a t i o n ,

Islamic encyclopedias consistently define a r c h i -

r o u n d e d secretary. I b n Qutayba ( 8 2 5 - 8 8 9 ) , the

inheritances, cadastral surveys, and measuring

tecture and practical mechanics as branches o f

p o l y g r a p h w h o was b o t h a theologian and a w r i t e r

allocations o f water i n i r r i g a t i o n channels (a m a j o r

applied geometry, the geometric proofs o f algebra

o f adab (the s u m o f knowledge necessary for gen-

f u n c t i o n o f the state i n the i r r i g a t e d oases o f I r a n ,

were d i r e c t l y relevant to these fields. A l - B u z j a n i ' s

eral c u l t u r e and for p a r t i c u l a r offices), described

I r a q , and C e n t r a l Asia).

late t e n t h - c e n t u r y m a n u a l o n applied a r i t h m e t i c

the skills that the perfect secretary s h o u l d possess:

entitled Kitdb al-manazil al-kuttdb

wa al- ummal

fima yahtaju

ilayhi

min ilm al-hisab ( B o o k o f

The extensive knowledge o f applied m a t h e m a t ics i n B u y i d Baghdad, where the m a i n bearers o f

The Persians always used to say, " H e w h o

h u m a n i s t i c c u l t u r e were the scribes, secretaries,

the stations o n w h a t the scribe and secretary needs

is n o t knowledgeable about d i v e r t i n g

l i t e r a t i , and h i g h officials o f state chancelleries and

o f the science o f a r i t h m e t i c ) contains chapters

water i n t o channels, d i g g i n g o u t courses

courts, can be deduced f r o m the biographies o f

o n practical geometry that extend al-Khwarezmi's

for i r r i g a t i o n streams, and b l o c k i n g u p

such personages as the vizier I b n A b b a d ( d . 995),

a p p l i c a t i o n o f algebra to geometric p r o b l e m s i n t o

disused well-shafts; about the changes i n

w h o was devoted t o s t u d y i n g logic, mathematics,

new fields. Its first two parts deal w i t h simple

the l e n g t h o f the days as they increase and

music, a s t r o n o m y , and m e d i c i n e . The vizier I b n

a r i t h m e t i c operations (e.g., r a t i o , m u l t i p l i c a t i o n ,

decrease, the r e v o l u t i o n o f the sun, the

a l - A m i d ' s mastery o f the m a t h e m a t i c a l sciences

and d i v i s i o n ) . Its t h i r d p a r t applies these opera-

r i s i n g places o f the stars and the state o f

was described by the c o n t e m p o r a r y p h i l o s o p h e r

tions to the m e n s u r a t i o n o f plane and s o l i d geo-

the new m o o n as i t begins to wax, and

and h i s t o r i a n I b n Miskawayh:

m e t r i c figures, i n c l u d i n g the spherical or conical

its subsequent phases; about the various

d o m e (qubba).

c

c

The r e m a i n i n g f o u r parts address

c

c

weights i n use; about the measurement

H e was sole master o f the secrets o f cer-

such practical p r o b l e m s as the payment o f w o r k ,

o f triangles, four-sided figures and p o l y -

t a i n obscure sciences w h i c h no one p r o -

t a x a t i o n , inheritance a p p o r t i o n m e n t s , shares

gons; about the c o n s t r u c t i o n o f bridges

fesses, such as mechanics, r e q u i r i n g the

related to harvest, exchange o f currency, c o m m e r -

and aqueducts, i r r i g a t i o n machines and

most abstruse knowledge o f geometry,

cial transactions, and c o n s t r u c t i o n estimates for

water wheels; and about the materials

and physics, the science o f a b n o r m a l

b u i l d i n g s and dams. The last section contains cal-

used by various artisans, and the fine

m o t i o n s , the dragging o f heavy weights,

158

PART 4. GEOMETRY AND THE CONTRIBUTION

OF MATHEMATICAL SCIENCES

M u g h a l I n d i a i t was the chief b u i l d i n g supervisor

stones or bricks r e q u i r e d to b u i l d a m o n u m e n t

execution o f m a n y operations w h i c h the

(mir Hmdrat) w h o had to be "versed i n accoun-

or a d o m e .

ancients f o u n d impossible, the f a b r i c a t i o n

tancy or alternatively, e m p l o y an a c c o u n t a n t " to

o f w o n d e r f u l engines for the s t o r m i n g o f

ascertain the n u m b e r o f stones or bricks r e q u i r e d

dealing w i t h the m e n s u r a t i o n o f arched

fortresses, stratagems against strongholds

according to fixed u n i t s o f measurement, to deter-

vaulted (dzdj),

and stratagems i n campaigns, the adop-

m i n e the builder's wages, and to k n o w the prices

been i n s p i r e d by H e r o o f Alexandria's n o w - l o s t

t i o n o f w o n d e r f u l weapons, such as arrows

of building materials.

first-century

w h i c h c o u l d permeate a vast space, and

als o n a r i t h m e t i c seem to have been m o r e useful

Kamarika

produce remarkable effects, m i r r o r s w h i c h

for the concerns o f b u i l d i n g supervisors t h a n

w h i c h Isidorus o f M i l e t u s w r o t e a c o m m e n t a r y ,

b u r n e d a very l o n g way off. He c o u l d , for

for architects whose design methods p r i m a r i l y

i n c l u d e d practical formulas for calculating the sur-

his amusement, scratch the f o r m o f a face

relied o n geometry. There were, o f course, some

faces o f arches, c o l u m n s , vaults, domes, and other

o n an apple i n an h o u r — a face so fine that

examples o f architects w h o were b o t h skilled i n

architectonic structures. I t may have influenced

another c o u l d n o t do i t w i t h all the a p p r o -

a r i t h m e t i c and capable o f acting i n an a d m i n i s t r a -

a l - K i n d i ' s lost n i n t h - c e n t u r y w o r k o n the same

priate i n s t r u m e n t s i n a n u m b e r o f days.

tive capacity as b u i l d i n g supervisors, b u t such

subject, Risdla f 1 misahat iwdn (Treatise o n the

skills were o f l i t t l e relevance for the processes o f

m e n s u r a t i o n o f vaulted halls [iwans]),

and the centers o f gravity, i n c l u d i n g the

70

71

Therefore, practical m a n u -

and d o m e d (qubba)

(tiqdn),

halls may have

treatise o n stereometry e n t i t l e d ( O n vaultings). Hero's treatise, o n

w h i c h is

cited i n I b n a l - N a d i m ' s Fihrist and described i n

a r c h i t e c t u r a l design.

These references explain w h y al-Buzjani's

F o l l o w i n g the example set by a l - K h w a r e z m i and

treatise o n applied a r i t h m e t i c addresses the

T h e i r relatively short architectural sections

Daniele Barbaro's sixteenth-century c o m m e n t a r y

bureaucratic concerns o f scribes, secretaries, and

a l - B u z j a n i , such early eleventh-century m a t h e m a -

o n V i t r u v i u s as a w o r k devoted to the geometric,

accountants. The use o f a r i t h m e t i c i n m a k i n g cor-

ticians as al-Karaji and I b n a l - H a y t h a m c o n t i n u e d

a r i t h m e t i c , and h a r m o n i c p r o p o r t i o n s used i n cal-

rect estimates o f b u i l d i n g costs and wages was a

to i n c l u d e chapters o n m e n s u r a t i o n i n t h e i r trea-

c u l a t i n g the heights and surface areas o f vaulted

task often assigned to clerks responsible for the

tises o n applied a r i t h m e t i c . These were c o m p l e -

chambers.

a d m i n i s t r a t i v e and financial aspects o f construc-

m e n t e d by full-scale treatises o n the science o f

mathematicians i n c l u d i n g T h a b i t b. Q u r r a and

t i o n projects. The d i v i s i o n o f labor between such

m e n s u r a t i o n ( ilm al-misdha),

bureaucratic overseers and designing architects

o f practical g e o m e t r y .

responsible for c o n s t r u c t i o n is better d o c u m e n t e d

often proceed f r o m the measurement o f lines and

f r o m the I l k h a n i d p e r i o d o n w a r d , even t h o u g h i n

p l a n i m e t r y ( m e n s u r a t i o n o f surfaces) to stereome-

s u r a t i o n manuals is that w r i t t e n by an otherwise

some instances architects were also charged w i t h

t r y ( m e n s u r a t i o n o f solids), some o f t h e m c o n -

u n k n o w n geometer A b u Bakr ( A b h a b u c h r ) , trans-

a d m i n i s t r a t i v e tasks. The T i m u r i d s , for example,

c l u d i n g w i t h practical applications i n h y d r a u l i c

lated f r o m Arabic i n t o L a t i n i n an abridged f o r m

generally differentiated a d m i n i s t r a t i v e s u p e r i n -

engineering, l a n d surveying, a n d architecture.

by the I t a l i a n scholar Gerard o f C r e m o n a (1114-

tendents (sarkdrhd

The latter address such problems as the i n d i r e c t

1182) i n Toledo as Liber mensurationum

measurement o f m o u n t a i n s and distant objects and

o f m e n s u r a t i o n ) . The L a t i n text gives " h o w - t o "

(mi mdrdn c

or sarkdrdn)

or ustdddn),

f r o m architects

j u s t as the O t t o m a n s dis-

t i n g u i s h e d between the b u i l d i n g supervisor emini)

and the architect (mi mdr). c

(bind'

Similarly i n

c

72

classified as part

M e n s u r a t i o n treatises

73

As we have already seen, several

al-Sijzi had w r i t t e n s i m i l a r treatises o n the m e n s u r a t i o n o f parabolic domes (see figs. 103-106). A n u n d a t e d example o f practice-oriented m e n -

(Book

the c a l c u l a t i o n o f the d e p t h o f wells, the b r e a d t h

i n s t r u c t i o n s i n a simple language w i t h o u t a t t e m p t -

o f rivers, the height o f walls, and the n u m b e r o f

i n g to p r o v i d e proofs and its practical formulas

THEORY

AND

PRAXIS

159

p r o v i d e a p p r o x i m a t i v e results typical o f practical

detailed t h a n earlier examples o n the same subject

things."

geometry. Consisting o f f o u r parts, i t starts w i t h

where the muqarnas had been o m i t t e d : " T h e spe-

c u b i t was c o m m o n i n O t t o m a n architectural prac-

procedures for calculating the surfaces o f q u a d -

cialists merely spoke about this [i.e., measuring]

tice where a team o f architects and surveyors had

rangles (treated as triangles), triangles, and the arcs

for the arch (tdq) and the vault (dzdj)

o f circles, p r o v i d i n g tabulated tables t h a t facilitate

that i t was n o t t h o u g h t necessary. B u t I present i t

and besides

7 7

We k n o w , for example, t h a t payment per

to make cost estimates (kesf'or

tahmin) o f p r o -

jected b u i l d i n g s and supply p r e l i m i n a r y drawings

the c o m p u t a t i o n o f the most i m p o r t a n t lengths o f

[i.e., the muqarnas] a m o n g the necessities together

for various o p t i o n s (see fig. 2). I n a d d i t i o n to facili-

these figures. I t t h e n t u r n s to the m e n s u r a t i o n o f

w i t h the rest, because i t is m o r e often r e q u i r e d i n

t a t i n g estimates o f wages and b u i l d i n g materials

volumes, i n c l u d i n g r o o f shapes. Referring to the

the m e n s u r a t i o n o f b u i l d i n g s t h a n i n the r e s t . "

before c o n s t r u c t i o n , al-Kashi's formulas may also

Liber mensurationum,

a treatise t h a t appears to

75

Rather t h a n present i n s t r u c t i o n s o n h o w to

have been used i n appraising the price o f a b u i l d -

have been w i d e l y disseminated i n medieval Europe,

design architectonic structures, al-Kashi taught the

i n g after its c o m p l e t i o n . As we have already seen,

H u b e r t L. L. Busard p o i n t e d o u t t h a t i t is char-

m e t h o d for calculating their surface area by means

the traveler C h a r d i n r e p o r t e d t h a t the chief royal

acterized by the frequent a p p l i c a t i o n o f algebra

o f a p p r o x i m a t e values. H e appears t o have been

architect i n Safavid I r a n d e t e r m i n e d the value o f

to problems o f practical geometry, a m e t h o d he

concerned m a i n l y w i t h d e t e r m i n i n g the a m o u n t

c o m p l e t e d b u i l d i n g s by measuring their walls i n

traced back to ancient Babylonian algebra and to

o f m a t e r i a l r e q u i r e d , a concern t h a t may reflect

cubits, a value o n the basis o f w h i c h he was p a i d

Hero of Alexandria.

his experience as b u i l d i n g supervisor d u r i n g

a fixed percentage.

74

These influences seem to

78

have been t r a n s m i t t e d t h r o u g h H a r r a n , the center

the c o n s t r u c t i o n o f U l u g h Beg's observatory i n

o f m a t h e m a t i c a l l e a r n i n g where ancient Near

Samarqand. This hypothesis finds s u p p o r t i n a let-

tise "was almost certainly i n t e n d e d for his fellow

Eastern and Hellenistic cultures merged. The T i m u r i d astronomer and m a t h e m a t i c i a n

L i n d a K o m a r o f f has argued t h a t al-Kashi's trea-

ter he addressed to his father i n Kashan, i n w h i c h

m a t h e m a t i c i a n s , rather t h a n for architects and

he r e p o r t e d that nearly five h u n d r e d tumdns w o r t h

craftsmen." She f o u n d i t u n l i k e l y t h a t the treatise

al-Kashi's treatise Miftah al-hisab also includes an

o f b r i c k and limestone had been spent by the t i m e

was w r i t t e n for the use o f c o n t e m p o r a r y builders

extensive chapter o n m e n s u r a t i o n , dealing w i t h

the head mason I s m a i l had almost finished the

since its author " o f t e n distinguishes between the

the areas o f plane and solid geometric figures after

observatory.

w h i c h i t treats architectonic structures. This w e l l -

c

76

I n her recent articles p r o v i d i n g m o d e r n m a t h e -

terms we use—presumably

mathematicians—and

the t e r m i n o l o g y o f the mason or the carpenter, a

k n o w n treatise, dedicated i n 1427 to the T i m u r i d

m a t i c a l analyses o f al-Kashi's formulas for the

clear i n d i c a t i o n t h a t he was n o t addressing his

r u l e r U l u g h Beg, w h o had i n v i t e d al-Kashi i n

m e n s u r a t i o n o f the d o m e and the muqarnas,

remarks to the practitioners o f the builder's craft."

1419 f r o m the Q a r a q o y u n l u city o f Kashan to

Yvonne D o l d - S a m p l o n i u s reached a s i m i l a r c o n -

I t is therefore revealing t h a t al-Kashi referred to

Samarqand, is usually taken as evidence for the

clusion about the author's purpose: " I n medieval

practical w o r k i n g methods i n his discussion o f the

T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n architects' expertise i n advanced

Italy i t was c o m m o n practice to pay the craftsmen

"mason's m e t h o d " o f c o n s t r u c t i n g the muqarnas,

a r i t h m e t i c c o m p u t a t i o n . The treatise's f o u r t h

or artisans according to the surface area they had

w h i c h differs f r o m the m e t h o d o f mathematicians.

b o o k o n m e n s u r a t i o n ends w i t h a chapter o n mea-

c o m p l e t e d . The same c u s t o m may have existed i n

Here he used a technical d r a w i n g to describe h o w

s u r i n g architectonic structures such as arches

the A r a b w o r l d . I t is also useful t o k n o w , m o r e

the masons draw a rectangle whose w i d t h equals

(taq), vaults (dzdj),

domes (qubba),

and muqarnas

types. As al-Kashi i n d i c a t e d , this chapter is m o r e

or less, h o w m u c h m a t e r i a l is needed, like g o l d for

the m o d u l e (miqyds)

g i l d i n g , bricks for c o n s t r u c t i o n or p a i n t and such

length is twice its w i d t h . After s h o w i n g h o w the

o f the muqarnas and whose

16o PART 4. GEOMETRY AND THE CONTRIBUTION OF MATHEMATICAL SCIENCES

profile o f a m o d u l a r muqarnas u n i t is d e t e r m i n e d ,

he observed, "teaches us the use o f the rule and

a p p r o x i m a t e results. The reference to a f o r m u l a

al-Kashi went o n to explain h o w builders cast

compasses, by w h i c h especially we acquire readi-

by " G h i y a t h a l - D i n Jamshid" i n this d o c u m e n t

i n d i v i d u a l units i n slabs o f plaster, a d j u s t i n g t h e m

ness i n m a k i n g plans for b u i l d i n g s . "

shows t h a t al-Kashi's treatise, o f w h i c h n u m e r o u s

to a given arch profile, " a n d at times they shorten

made tabulated tables p r o v i d e d i n al-Kashi's

T u r k i s h translations exist, c o n t i n u e d t o be used

the leg o f the slab . . . or they elongate i t so t h a t

treatise made c o m p u t a t i o n easier for b u i l d i n g

i n the O t t o m a n w o r l d .

whenever they place i t b e h i n d the arch they w o u l d

overseers. A l t h o u g h they were o f l i t t l e use i n the

8 0

The ready-

8 1

I n his seventeenth-century treatise Breve

com-

need that [ e l o n g a t i o n or s h o r t e n i n g ] so t h a t i t w i l l

designing process, they m u s t also have been used

pendio

m a t c h w i t h i t " (see i l l . 2, p. 353).

by architect-engineers whenever they r e q u i r e d the

alarifes, w h i c h heavily drew o n earlier Islamic

79

de la carpinteria

de lo bianco y tratado

de

help o f a r i t h m e t i c , whether i n p r e p a r i n g cost esti-

practices, Lopez de Arenas p o i n t e d o u t t h a t , u n l i k e

insight i n t o h o w muqarnas units were actually

mates, i n calculating measurements, or i n c o m p u -

the master mason (maestro),

prepared by builders o n the basis o f geometric

tations related to hydraulics. U n l i k e professional

(alarife)

(rather t h a n a r i t h m e t i c ) methods, al-Kashi c o m -

mathematicians skilled i n advanced c o m p u t a t i o n a l

and science (ciencia),

p u t e d an average coefficient to a p p r o x i m a t e l y

mathematics, architects i n the late T i m u r i d w o r l d

reading, w r i t i n g , and enough a r i t h m e t i c to deter-

calculate the areas o f curved muqarnas f o r m a -

w o u l d have needed o n l y a basic knowledge o f

m i n e taxes and sale prices. M u c h m o r e i m p o r t a n t

After this e x p l a n a t i o n , w h i c h provides a rare

the chief architect

had to c o m b i n e experience

(experiencia)

i n c l u d i n g a knowledge o f

tions. I n his discussion o f arches, t o o , he first drew

simple a r i t h m e t i c operations, accompanied by a

t h a n these, however, was a t r a i n i n g i n practical

t h e m w i t h ruler and compasses according to pre-

m u c h m o r e solid g r o u n d i n g i n practical geometry.

geometry, based o n the m a n i p u l a t i o n o f polygonal

v a i l i n g geometric formulas and subsequently

This c o n c l u s i o n seems v a l i d for architectural prac-

geometric constructions d r a w n w i t h the aid o f

converted t h e m i n t o numbers. I n other words,

tice i n the early m o d e r n Islamic w o r l d as w e l l ,

basic tools such as the ruler, set squares, and the

al-Kashi's a p p r o x i m a t e n u m e r i c a l values are

j u d g i n g f r o m the O t t o m a n , Safavid, Uzbek, and

compass w i t h a single o p e n i n g ( t h o u g h t to have

derived f r o m architectural forms t h a t were gener-

M u g h a l evidence. A n archival d o c u m e n t t h a t c o m -

been used for the first t i m e by a l - B u z j a n i ) . Lopez

ated by masons according to the methods o f prac-

piles i n f o r m a t i o n about various aspects o f the

de Arenas's practical geometry m a n u a l was w r i t t e n

tical geometry rather t h a n the other way a r o u n d . I t

O t t o m a n c o n s t r u c t i o n i n d u s t r y i n the 1770s,

i n a h i g h l y specialized technical language full o f

was n o t o n a r i t h m e t i c c o m p u t a t i o n b u t o n a series

i n c l u d i n g standardized costs o f b u i l d i n g materials,

obscure A r a b i c terms and accompanied by t w o -

o f geometrically p r o p o r t i o n e d w o r k i n g drawings

p e t i t i o n s f r o m the chief architect to the sultan, and

and t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l geometric drawings r e c o r d -

that the design process o f p r a c t i c i n g T i m u r i d -

" h o w - t o " i n s t r u c t i o n s for practical problems o f

i n g the t r a d i t i o n a l w o r k i n g methods o f M u s l i m

T u r k m e n masons was based, a c o n c l u s i o n also

m e n s u r a t i o n (mesdha),

masters t h a t were perpetuated i n the M u d e j a r style

s u p p o r t e d by the T o p k a p i and Tashkent scrolls.

c o n c l u s i o n . Here, problems dealing w i t h c o m p u t -

f u r t h e r supports such a

(see figs. 51, 52). The m a n u a l addressed p r a c t i t i o n -

i n g the areas o f circles, domes, and c o l u m n s ;

ers at a t i m e w h e n i n h e r i t e d geometric formulas

metic that the t o t a l cost o f b u i l d i n g s is calculated

d e t e r m i n i n g the height o f a m i n a r e t f r o m a dis-

that r e q u i r e d no a r i t h m e t i c were being f o r g o t t e n .

and measurements are c o m p u t e d , b u t difficult

tance; and calculating a m o u n t s o f b u i l d i n g mate-

N e w Renaissance tastes gained favor and the medie-

questions i n v o l v i n g s y m m e t r y are solved by means

rials r e q u i r e d for specific projects are all solved

val g u i l d system was being replaced by professional

o f geometrical theories and m e t h o d s . " Geometry,

by means o f simple a r i t h m e t i c formulas p r o v i d i n g

architects. Lopez de Arenas, therefore, w a n t e d to

V i t r u v i u s w r o t e , " I t is true t h a t i t is by a r i t h -

THEORY

AND

l6l

PRAXIS

preserve for posterity the t r a d i t i o n a l rules he had

o f the t h i r t e e n t h century advances i n the m a t h e -

century m a t h e m a t i c i a n Leonardo Fibonacci o f

i n h e r i t e d f r o m his father and uncle. Whereas his

m a t i c a l sciences had c o n t r i b u t e d to the develop-

Pisa's Practica geometriae,

1220, w h i c h remained

forebears must have jealously guarded their craft

m e n t o f d y n a m i c systems o f geometric design,

the standard w o r k o n t h a t subject for three

secrets i n practical geometry manuals and scrolls

based o n a type o f r o t a t i o n a l geometry n o t u n l i k e

centuries.

passed o n f r o m one generation to the other, Lopez

the one developed i n the Islamic w o r l d a r o u n d

have argued t h a t the Pisan geometer also used

de Arenas u t i l i z e d the new m e d i u m o f the p r i n t i n g

the t e n t h and eleventh centuries. Since standard

A b u K a m i l ' s algebra and his shorter treatise o n

85

Gustavo Sacerdote and H e i n r i c h Suter

geometric approaches u n i t e d the various crafts,

the pentagon and decagon, available t h r o u g h

practical geometry came to act as a k i n d o f shared

L a t i n and H e b r e w translations made i n Spain.

w h o were r a p i d l y a b a n d o n i n g geometry i n favor o f

aesthetic t h e o r y w i t h its o w n f o r m a l logic t h a t

Woepcke has suggested t h a t the practical geome-

precisely measured drawings based o n n u m e r i c a l

guided systems o f p r o p o r t i o n i n g across differ-

t r y o f al-Buzjani must also have been a m o n g

p r o p o r t i o n s , architects i n the early m o d e r n Islamic

ent fields i n G o t h i c architectural and a r t i -

Fibonacci's sources.

w o r l d r e m a i n e d loyal t o Pappus o f Alexandria's

sanal p r a c t i c e .

press.

82

U n l i k e their Renaissance colleagues i n Europe,

d e f i n i t i o n o f architecture as a b r a n c h o f practical

86

Whatever the transmission patterns o f Greek

84

This development was no d o u b t i n f o r m e d by

and A r a b i c l e a r n i n g may have been, the parallels

mechanics. Even t h o u g h the i m p o r t a n c e o f geome-

the assimilation o f translated A r a b i c treatises o n

between medieval European practical geometry

t r y prevailed i n Europe, Renaissance theorists

practical geometry, i n a d d i t i o n to the recovery o f

manuals and their Islamic counterparts are s t r i k -

increasingly divorced architecture f r o m its earlier

m a j o r classical texts t h r o u g h A r a b i c i n t e r m e d i -

i n g . This was largely the o u t c o m e o f a shared

s u b o r d i n a t i o n to mechanics i n an a t t e m p t to

aries. The s i m i l a r i t y between Gerard o f Cremona's

classical heritage that reached medieval Europe

assert its independence and higher status as a l i b -

t w e l f t h - c e n t u r y L a t i n t r a n s l a t i o n o f A b u Bakr's

t h r o u g h translations o f Arabic intermediaries that

eral art. Fortifications, hydraulics, and i n s t r u m e n t s

treatise o n applied m e n s u r a t i o n , Liber

d i d n o t merely " t r a n s m i t " Greek originals b u t

thus came t o be seen as specialized subfields o f

tionum,

mechanical engineering. By contrast architects i n

bar Hiyya's (Savasorda or A b r a h a m Judaeus,

directions p r o m i s i n g practical a p p l i c a t i o n i n

the Islamic w o r l d c o n t i n u e d to u p h o l d the ideal

fl. 1133-1145) w o r k o n the same subject shows h o w

a n u m b e r o f fields. The t r a n s l a t i o n o f A r a b i c

r a p i d l y practice-oriented m e n s u r a t i o n manuals by

scientific and p h i l o s o p h i c a l works, w h i c h began

M u s l i m authors had i n f i l t r a t e d medieval Europe.

i n t e n t h - c e n t u r y N o r m a n Sicily and

image o f the w e l l - r o u n d e d mechanicus

(muhandis)

whose m e n t a l universe was colored by practical geometry, w i t h its still-prestigious c o n n e c t i o n to

A b r a h a m bar Hiyya's H e b r e w treatise

the l i b e r a l art o f m a t h e m a t i c s .

ha-meshihah

83

Before the Renaissance, however, architectural

mensura-

and the Spanish m a t h e m a t i c i a n A b r a h a m

y

Hibbur

translated by Plato o f T i v o l i i n 1145

i n t o L a t i n as Liber embadorum

( B o o k o f areas),

often t r a n s f o r m e d t h e m i n h i t h e r t o u n k n o w n

flourished

d u r i n g the twelfth century i n Spain ( p a r t i c u l a r l y a r o u n d Toledo after i t fell i n 1085), became a Europe-wide p h e n o m e n o n t h a t triggered as great

design i n b o t h the L a t i n West and i n the Islamic

was i n fact an expanded version o f the second part

a c u l t u r a l change as d i d the earlier t r a n s l a t i o n

w o r l d had been g r o u n d e d i n s i m i l a r geometric

o f al-Khwarezmi's m a t h e m a t i c a l treatise t h a t

m o v e m e n t i n Abbasid Baghdad. Especially i n

methods r e q u i r i n g l i t t l e a r i t h m e t i c . A l t h o u g h

applied algebra to m e n s u r a t i o n . Together w i t h

Spain this activity reached such an u n c o n t r o l l a b l e

medieval Europe d i d n o t have access to Euclid's

A b u Bakr's treatise, i t is believed to have been

extent t h a t the sale o f scientific books to Jews

geometry u n t i l the twelfth century, by the m i d d l e

a m o n g the u n k n o w n sources o f the t h i r t e e n t h -

and Christians is p r o h i b i t e d i n a treatise o n hisba

162

PART 4. GEOMETRY

AND THE CONTRIBUTION

OF MATHEMATICAL SCIENCES

(the duties o f an inspector o f the marketplace)

cement and stones, and s i m i l a r l y every

medieval mechanicus

w r i t t e n by the Spanish author I b n A b d u n i n early

agent o f the mechanical arts f o l l o w i n g

assortment o f subjects r a n g i n g f r o m b u i l d i n g s ,

t w e l f t h - c e n t u r y Seville. The treatise indicates t h a t

practical g e o m e t r y .

carpentry, s c u l p t u r a l details, figural decorations,

c

89

and machines to geometric drawings. The draw-

this measure was taken because the translators often a t t r i b u t e d the works they had translated to

whose a l b u m includes an

This d e f i n i t i o n revived a t r a d i t i o n going back to

ings i n the latter category are i d e n t i f i e d w i t h the

themselves, w i t h o u t c r e d i t i n g t h e i r o r i g i n a l

classical a n t i q u i t y w i t h its emphasis o n the i n t e l -

c a p t i o n " A l l these figures are extracted f r o m

M u s l i m authors.

lectual o r theoretical nature o f certain crafts i n t i -

geometry." They address p r o b l e m s i n architecture,

Even the d e f i n i t i o n o f geometry i n the A r a b

mately l i n k e d to the m a t h e m a t i c a l sciences. I t

mechanical engineering, and m e n s u r a t i o n (e.g.,

classifications o f sciences was f u l l y adopted by

endowed the crafts w i t h a m u c h higher status

d e t e r m i n i n g f r o m a distance the height o f a t o w e r ,

87

such t w e l f t h - c e n t u r y authors as the Spaniard

t h a n the alternative and apparently m o r e w i d e -

the w i d t h o f a river, and the w i d t h o f a w i n d o w ) ,

D o m i n i c u s Gundissalinus ( D o m i n g o G u n d i s a l v o ) ,

spread medieval European d e f i n i t i o n proposed i n

some o f w h i c h f i n d parallels i n c o n t e m p o r a r y

w h o emphasized its practical a p p l i c a t i o n i n v a r i -

the t h e o l o g i a n H u g h o f Saint V i c t o r ' s (1096-1141)

European practical geometry manuals. V i l l a r d ' s

ous fields.

encyclopedic Didascalion,

designs governed by u n d e r l y i n g geometric schemes

88

Gundissalinus's classification o f the

w r i t t e n i n the 1120s,

where the seven mechanical arts (fabric m a k i n g ,

have been c o m p a r e d to the w r i t i n g s o f the t h e o l o -

stressed the c o m p l e m e n t a r y nature o f t h e o r y and

a r m a m e n t [encompassing architecture and the

gian and p h i l o s o p h e r Robert Grosseteste (1175-

practice, drew heavily o n al-Farabi's t e n t h - c e n t u r y

crafts], commerce, a g r i c u l t u r e , h u n t i n g , m e d i c i n e ,

1253), w h o regarded the universe as eternally gen-

Ihsa\ w h i c h had been translated i n t o L a t i n as De

and theatrics) were classified as entirely separate

erated b y an e m a n a t i o n o f cosmic l i g h t t h a t be-

scientiis by Gerard o f C r e m o n a i n Toledo. F o l l o w -

f r o m theoretical knowledge. H u g h ' s classification

haved according to geometric laws. This was a

i n g al-Farabi's m o d e l , Gundissalinus enlarged the

e l i m i n a t e d the p o s s i b i l i t y o f contact between the

universe where geometry c o n s t i t u t e d the basis o f

sciences, De ortu scientiarum,

circa 1150, w h i c h

medieval European d o m a i n o f practical geometry

"servile" realm o f the mechanical arts and the

all n a t u r a l phenomena: " I t is impossible to k n o w

to i n c l u d e masonry, carpentry, m e t a l w o r k , m e n -

liberal arts, a m o n g w h i c h the p u r e l y theoretical

nature w i t h o u t geometry. The principles o f geome-

s u r a t i o n , and the c o n s t r u c t i o n o f machines and

science o f m a t h e m a t i c s was i n c l u d e d . By c o n -

t r y have absolute value t h r o u g h o u t the universe

i n s t r u m e n t s , i n c l u d i n g those o f optics.

trast the classical c o n n e c t i o n between these t w o

and for each o f its parts. I t is by lines, angles, and

realms was perpetuated w i t h o u t any r u p t u r e i n

geometric figures t h a t all n a t u r a l p h e n o m e n a

the Islamic w o r l d where architecture and the arts

m u s t be u n d e r s t o o d . "

w h o employs i t i n w o r k i n g . There are,

r e m a i n e d closely i n t e r l i n k e d w i t h mathematics.

tutions of Masonry,

however, two classes w h o e m p l o y i t i n

Gundissalinus's classification thus helped revive a

G o t h i c mason's reliance o n geometry i n s i m i l a r

w o r k i n g , measurers and makers. The mea-

classical d e f i n i t i o n o f mechanics t h a t c o n t r i b u t e d

terms:

surers are those w h o measure the height,

to the r i s i n g status o f the mechanical arts

d e p t h o r surface area o f the earth. The

de ingeniis)

The agent o f practical geometry is he

makers are those w h o t o i l i n w o r k i n g i n

i n the h i g h M i d d l e Ages.

9 1

The a n o n y m o u s

Consti-

circa 1400, expressed the

(scientia

90

The t h i r t e e n t h - c e n t u r y French architect V i l l a r d

D o n ' t m a r v e l t h a t all science lives o n l y by the science o f geometry. . . . There is n o

the mechanical arts, as a carpenter i n

de H o n n e c o u r t , t o w h o m the earliest s u r v i v i n g

t o o l to w o r k w i t h t h a t has no p r o p o r t i o n .

w o o d , a b l a c k s m i t h i n i r o n , a mason i n

G o t h i c sketchbook is a t t r i b u t e d , can be seen as a

A n d p r o p o r t i o n is measure, and the t o o l

THEORY

or the i n s t r u m e n t is earth. A n d geometry is . . . the measure o f earth, wherefore I may say t h a t all m e n live b y geometry. . . . You shall u n d e r s t a n d that a m o n g all the crafts o f the w o r l d . . . m a s o n r y has the m o s t n o t a b i l i t y a n d the most p a r t o f its science is g e o m e t r y .

92

The n o t i o n o f a m a t h e m a t i c a l l y ordered harm o n i c universe, n o t so different f r o m the cosmologies o f medieval M u s l i m philosophers and theologians discussed i n p a r t 3, u l t i m a t e l y w e n t back to Pythagoras and t o the cosmological speculations o f Plato's Timaeus. This n o t i o n , w h i c h c o n t i n u e d t o fascinate postmedieval t h i n k e r s , was explored i n the G e r m a n astronomer Johannes Kepler's (1571-1630) Harmonices

Mundi,

1619, a

w o r k dealing w i t h the c o n s t r u c t i o n o f regular polygons and circles as well as regular and semiregular p o l y h e d r o n s b y r u l e r and compass. I n this w o r k Kepler focused o n the p r o b l e m o f c o n g r u ent geometric figures, b o t h planar and spatial, expressed b y tilings i n contact that left n o gaps (fig. 118). The second b o o k o f Harmonices

Mundi,

o n the congruence o f h a r m o n i c figures, explained h o w to fit regular polygons together a r o u n d a vertex (either t o make a p a t t e r n that can be extended i n f i n i t e l y t o cover a plane [a tessellation] o r a closed v o l u m e t r i c figure [a p o l y h e d r o n ] ) . As we have seen, s i m i l a r p r o b l e m s had also preoccupied such M u s l i m m a t h e m a t i c i a n - a s t r o n o m e r s as a l B u z j a n i and the a n o n y m o u s a u t h o r o f A mdl wa c

ashkdl, w h i c h deals w i t h the c o n s t r u c t i o n o f har-

A N D PRAXIS

118. Johannes Kepler, selected tiling patterns and geometric solids. From his Harmonices mundi (Linz: [n.p.], 1619), book 11.

163

164

PART 4. GEOMETRY AND THE CONTRIBUTION

m o n i o u s l y i n t e r l o c k i n g similar o r congruent geo-

OF MATHEMATICAL

SCIENCES

t r y a m u c h greater visual p r o m i n e n c e , c o m p l e x i t y ,

1542, and Hans Lautensack, 1563, testify to the c o n -

m e t r i c figures. Kepler believed t h a t the h a r m o n i c

and distinctive appearance, d o m i n a t e d b y stars,

t i n u e d p o p u l a r i t y o f geometric constructions i n

properties o f regular and congruent geometric

polygons, calligraphy, and the s c u l p t u r a l forms o f

late medieval and early m o d e r n G e r m a n y .

figures c o n s t i t u t e d the r o o t o f all order and beauty

the muqarnas. The i m p l i e d u n d e r l y i n g geometry

i n the universe:

o f G o t h i c decoration was raised t o the surface i n

94

Even the G e r m a n painter and engraver A l b r e c h t D i i r e r (1471-1528) w r o t e a practical geometry

t w o - and t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l girihs i n w h i c h unseen

m a n u a l e n t i t l e d Unterweisung

geometric grids generated one o r m o r e super-

Zirkel

explain the o r i g i n o f H a r m o n y and its most

i m p o s e d layers o f star-and-polygon patterns.

Korpern

p o w e r f u l effects i n the W o r l d as a w h o l e ,

M e d i e v a l Islamic vegetal o r figural c o m p o s i t i o n s

compass a n d straight edge i n lines, planes, a n d

h o w c o u l d we o m i t t o m e n t i o n the c o n -

(confined t o profane contexts), b y contrast, were

volumes), first published i n 1525, w i t h a second edi-

gruence o f the figures w h i c h are the w e l l -

guided b y invisible geometric schemata n o t so dif-

t i o n appearing i n 1538. Its geometric constructions,

Since we have taken i t u p o n ourselves t o

und Richtscheit

in Linien,

der Messung Ebenen

mit dem

und ganzen

(Teaching guide t o m e n s u r a t i o n w i t h the

springs o f H a r m o n i c p r o p o r t i o n s ? . . .

ferent f r o m those o f V i l l a r d . The shared preoccu-

d r a w n w i t h the aid o f basic w o r k i n g tools and

Since the effect these figures have i n the

p a t i o n w i t h geometry often p r o d u c e d s i m i l a r ways

w i t h o u t recourse to a r i t h m e t i c , addressed master

realm o f Geometry, a n d i n t h a t p a r t o f

o f conceptualizing design p r o b l e m s and s i m i l a r

masons and artisans i n a simple language m a r k e d

A r c h i t e c t o n i c s w h i c h deals w i t h A r c h e -

tastes d o m i n a t e d b y geometric o r geometrized

by an absence o f theoretical e l a b o r a t i o n , m u c h like

types, is as an image o f and a prelude t o

abstract forms. The ingenious v a r i a t i o n o f geomet-

its predecessors. D i i r e r ' s d e d i c a t i o n explains t h a t

t h e i r effects beyond Geometry, beyond

ric schemes based o n the f u n d a m e n t a l design c o n -

since geometry constitutes the r i g h t f o u n d a t i o n

things conceived i n the m i n d , namely

cept o f " u n i t y i n v a r i e t y " (often assumed t o be a

o f all the arts and crafts, he w o u l d teach its prac-

t h e i r effects i n things n a t u r a l and

visual s y m b o l o f the Islamic d o c t r i n e o f tawhid)

tical principles: "Therefore I hope t h a t n o m a n

celestial?

was, therefore, a c o m m o n d e n o m i n a t o r o f the

o f u n d e r s t a n d i n g w i l l censure m y project and

medieval system o f geometric h a r m o n i z a t i o n

i n s t r u c t i o n , f o r i t goes f o r t h w i t h good i n t e n t i o n

regardless o f religious a f f i l i a t i o n .

for the good o f all those desirous o f art. Thus i t

93

The geometric design language o f V i l l a r d reflected a sensibility s i m i l a r to t h a t o f its Islamic

V i l l a r d ' s t h i r t e e n t h - c e n t u r y sketchbook repre-

may be useful n o t o n l y to painters, b u t also t o

counterparts, a l t h o u g h the f o r m e r was d o m i n a t e d

sented a fully assimilated t r a d i t i o n o f practical

g o l d s m i t h s , sculptors, masons, j o i n e r s , and all

by figural imagery (generated b y invisible geomet-

geometry t r a n s m i t t e d b y o r a l w o r k s h o p t r a d i t i o n s

those w h o use m e a s u r e . "

ric schemata) w h i l e the latter foregrounded geome-

and practice-oriented w r i t t e n manuals t h a t began

t r y to an unprecedented degree t o compensate f o r

to circulate m o r e w i d e l y i n Europe i n the f o r m o f

D i i r e r ' s Unterweisung,

95

w h i c h deals w i t h the

m e n s u r a t i o n o f lines, planes, and solids, trans-

the absence o f s c u l p t u r a l programs and narrative

p r i n t e d booklets after the i n v e n t i o n o f the p r i n t i n g

m i t t e d t o future generations a w i d e spectrum o f

cycles. This s i m i l a r i t y no d o u b t was i n f o r m e d b y

press, accompanied b y the gradual d i s s o l u t i o n o f

geometric constructions t h a t had f o u n d a place i n

access t o comparable practical geometry manuals.

the g u i l d system. G e r m a n manuals o f practical

b o t h M u s l i m and C h r i s t i a n craft t r a d i t i o n s . These

U n l i k e the builders and decorators o f G o t h i c

geometry, w r i t t e n b y such geometer-engineers and

medieval c o n s t r u c t i o n s , disseminated b y treatises

cathedrals, w h o used simpler geometric formulas,

master builders as Hans H o e c h , 1472, M a t h i a s

o f practical geometry, " h o w - t o " manuals, a n d

those o f Islamic religious m o n u m e n t s gave geome-

Roriczer, circa 1486-1490, E r h a r d Schoen, 1538-

w o r k s h o p drawings, relied o n methods o f parallel

THEORY

A N D PRAXIS

119. Albrecht Diirer, tiling pattern. From his ( o r t h o g o n a l ) p r o j e c t i o n and t r a n s f o r m a t i o n a l geometry based o n the r o t a t i o n o f figures. They frequently used a p p r o x i m a t e rather t h a n scientifically correct constructions o f regular polygons, d r a w n b y d i v i d i n g circles i n t o equal arcs, a process often s i m p l i f i e d b y the e m p l o y m e n t o f compasses w i t h a single o p e n i n g .

96

Dtirer's

Unterweisung

starts b y teaching the geometric constructions o f regular planar and spatial figures, i n c l u d i n g the five Platonic solids a n d some o f the A r c h i m e d e a n semiregular polyhedrons also dealt w i t h i n al-Buzjani's practical geometry m a n u a l ; t o these are added some n e w solids i n v e n t e d b y the author. I t t h e n discusses conic sections, t i l i n g a n d tessellat i o n patterns developed f r o m regular polygons i n contact, and the development o f geometric solids o n a plane surface such t h a t they c o u l d be c u t out o f paper t o f o r m t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l models (figs. 119,120). D l i r e r also addressed the practical applications o f geometry t o such diverse fields as architecture, engineering, mechanics (e.g., the construction o f a sundial), decoration, and typography ( s h o w i n g the d e r i v a t i o n o f r o m a n letters f r o m the circle, a n d o f the angular G o t h i c script f r o m squares, trapezoids, and triangles). D t i r e r ' s Unterweisung

culminates w i t h the novel

m e t h o d o f perspective p r o j e c t i o n developed i n Renaissance Italy. M a r t i n Kemp a n d Jehane R. K u h n have suggested t h a t the i n v e n t i o n o f perspective d r a w i n g m u s t have been i n s p i r e d b y the practical geometry o f m e n s u r a t i o n , given its s i m i l a r i t y t o the routines o f i n d i r e c t measurem e n t f r o m a distance t h a t t r a d i t i o n a l surveyors

Unterweisung der Messung mit dem Zirkel und Richtscheit in Linien, Ebenen und ganzen Korpern (Nuremberg: [n.p.], 1525). Santa

Monica, The Getty Center for the History of Art and the Humanities. 120. Albrecht Diirer, paper cutout of a geometric solid. From his Unterweisung der Messung mit dem Zirkel und Richtscheit in Linien, Ebenen und ganzen Korpern (Nuremberg: [n.p.], 1525). Santa

Monica, The Getty Center for the History of Art and the Humanities.

16 5

166

PART 4. GEOMETRY AND THE CONTRIBUTION

OF MATHEMATICAL

SCIENCES

had used. K u h n argued that Brunelleschi's m e t h o d

triggered b y a complex set o f c u l t u r a l factors

symmetry, e m b o d i e d a m u l t i p l i c i t y o f v i e w p o i n t s

o f perspective t r a n s c r i p t i o n arose w i t h i n survey-

i n c l u d i n g the change o f attitudes t o w a r d n a t u r a l -

c o n t r a d i c t i n g the Renaissance concept o f the pic-

i n g practice as a t o p o g r a p h i c technique at a t i m e

istic r e p r e s e n t a t i o n .

t u r e plane as a w i n d o w frame that cuts t h r o u g h

w h e n the use o f measured plans and elevations

99

W h e n Renaissance artists t u r n e d away f r o m the

the spectator's cone o f v i s i o n o n w h i c h rays c o n -

c o r r e s p o n d i n g t o n u m e r i c a l values had become

transcendental realm o f abstraction, the n a t u r a l

verge at a central vanishing p o i n t . T h e absence o f a

part o f Renaissance architectural p r a c t i c e . T h e

w o r l d came t o be seen as the u l t i m a t e source o f

fixed v i e w p o i n t i n the abstract geometric matrices

camera obscura used b y Brunelleschi had already

beauty and p r o p o r t i o n . As D a v i d Summers n o t e d :

o f girihs yielded an i n f i n i t e isotropic space that

been experimented w i t h d u r i n g the eleventh-

" T h e i m i t a t i o n o f appearances m i g h t have begun

a m o u n t e d t o a denial o f the naturalistic represen-

century b y I b n a l - H a y t h a m , whose r e v o l u t i o n a r y

as m a r g i n a l displays o f s k i l l , o r as part o f a new

t a t i o n o f the visible w o r l d . Girih patterns

Kitdb al-manazir

97

(Book o n optics) described v i s i o n

filtered

didactic strategy. . . . Eventually the u n i o n o f

the visual data offered b y the n a t u r a l w o r l d i n t o

i n terms o f geometric l i g h t rays t h a t radiate f r o m

p a i n t i n g and optics i n o n e - p o i n t perspective

m e n t a l abstractions. N o wonder, t h e n , that these

visible objects and converge o n the p u p i l o f the

w o u l d yield w h a t was u n d e r s t o o d t o be a most

i n w a r d - l o o k i n g abstract images were unconcerned

eye. Translated i n t o L a t i n as Perspectiva

perfect universal art, fully adapted t o the structure

w i t h the spatial c o o r d i n a t i o n o f sight and repre-

aspectibus

o r De

i n the late twelfth or early t h i r t e e n t h

century, this i n f l u e n t i a l treatise, t o w h i c h I w i l l

o f h u m a n v i s i o n and p e r c e p t i o n . "

1 0 0

I n a passage

sentation t h r o u g h the use o f vanishing p o i n t

that l i n k e d the eye and p a i n t i n g , Leonardo stated,

perspective. T h e draftsmen w h o designed t h e m

r e t u r n i n part 5, was well k n o w n i n Europe. I t h a d

" T h e eye, t h a t is the w i n d o w o f the soul, is the

remained b o u n d t o a c o n c e p t i o n o f the p i c t u r e

an i m p a c t o n such t h i r t e e n t h - c e n t u r y writers as

p r i n c i p a l way whence the c o m m o n sense may most

plane as a w i n d o w t o i n f i n i t y , filled w i t h sym-

the English philosopher and scientist Roger Bacon,

copiously and magnificently consider the i n f i n i t e

m e t r i c a l l y repeated geometric shapes e x h i b i t i n g

the Polish scientist W i t e l o , and the English prelate

works o f n a t u r e . " Summers n o t e d t h a t Leonardo

unendliche

John Peckham and o n f o u r t e e n t h - c e n t u r y writers

u n d e r s t o o d the eye n o t i n its previous, medieval

i n c l u d i n g the English Scholastic philosopher

sense as an o p e n i n g t h r o u g h w h i c h the soul itself

W i l l i a m o f O c k h a m and the French prelate

became visible b u t rather "as an A l b e r t i a n perspec-

N i c o l e d'Oresme. Its f o u r t e e n t h - c e n t u r y I t a l i a n

tive w i n d o w , i n t o w h i c h l i g h t comes and t h r o u g h

t r a n s l a t i o n was extensively used b y the Florentine

w h i c h the c o m m o n sense surveys the w o r l d . "

sculptor Lorenzo G h i b e r t i (circa 1378-1455), w h o

This o u t w a r d - l o o k i n g v i s i o n was f u n d a m e n t a l l y

1 0 1

p a r t i a l l y copied its section o n visual beauty i n

different f r o m the i n w a r d - l o o k i n g s p i r i t u a l v i s i o n

his Commentarii,

o f medieval artists.

and b y the artist and scientist

Leonardo da V i n c i (1452-1519), whose w r i t i n g s

The r e v o l u t i o n a r y u n i o n o f p a i n t i n g and optics

o n the psychology o f v i s i o n echo those o f I b n

i n Renaissance Italy, adapted t o the structure o f

al-Haytham.

visual p e r c e p t i o n , i n v o l v e d p o s i t i n g an observer

98

Nevertheless the i m p l i c a t i o n s o f

this o p t i c a l treatise and o f m e n s u r a t i o n manuals

w i t h a fixed p o i n t o f view. By contrast, geometric

for perspective p r o j e c t i o n w o u l d be explored o n l y

girih patterns, composed o f i n t e r l o c k i n g stars a n d

i n Renaissance Europe, a p h e n o m e n o n t h a t was

polygons r o t a t i n g a r o u n d m u l t i p l e foci o f radial

Rapport.

CHAPTER

9.

MANUALS

The A mdl c

O F PRACTICAL

GEOMETRY

wa ashkdl, an a n o n y m o u s treatise

AND T H E SCROLL

TRADITION

i n g t w o works b y Nasir a l - D i n al-Tusi o n the

sive c o m m e n t a r y o n I b n al-Haytham's early

o n i n t e r l o c k i n g s i m i l a r o r c o n g r u e n t figures, is

astrolabe and o n astrological p r o g n o s t i c a t i o n ) ,

eleventh-century treatise o n optics. This signifi-

the o n l y k n o w n " h o w - t o " m a n u a l o n the draw-

applied m e n s u r a t i o n , and practical g e o m e t r y .

cant c o m m e n t a r y , w h i c h revised the o l d treatise b y

102

i n g methods o f t w o - d i m e n s i o n a l girih patterns.

The manuscript's consistent focus o n praxis,

a d d i n g substantial new sections t o i t , was typical

A p p e n d e d t o an early eleventh-century Persian

together w i t h its collection o f ten works o n prac-

o f the p o s t - M o n g o l era w h e n earlier scientific

t r a n s l a t i o n o f al-Buzjani's practical geometry

tical geometry and applied m e n s u r a t i o n , sug-

works were c u l t u r a l l y assimilated t h r o u g h a crea-

addressed t o artisans, i t provides evidence t h a t

gests that i t may have been p u t together for an

tive process o f r e w o r k i n g and u p d a t i n g .

later scrolls, w h i c h do n o t have any explanatory

architect-engineer

texts, grew o u t o f a medieval t r a d i t i o n o f practical

(muhandis).

The contents o f the Paris m a n u s c r i p t s u p p o r t

1 0 3

It

became c o m m o n practice t o abridge earlier works o r t o expand t h e m i n a revised f o r m a t w i t h

geometry. The t w o treatises are b o u n d together

the assessment b y historians o f science t h a t the

detailed commentaries, a practice i n d i c a t i n g that

w i t h other m a t h e m a t i c a l and a s t r o n o m i c a l texts

M o n g o l - I l k h a n i d and T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n p e r i o d ,

the Islamic w o r l d had b y that t i m e established its

i n a m a n u s c r i p t at the B i b l i o t h e q u e N a t i o n a l e

extending between the m i d - t h i r t e e n t h and early

o w n "classics." U n l i k e Renaissance Europe, w h i c h

i n Paris, M S Persan 169, that once belonged t o

sixteenth centuries, was one o f c o n s o l i d a t i o n i n

b r o k e w i t h the i m m e d i a t e past w h e n sources f r o m

an u n i d e n t i f i e d O t t o m a n n a m e d Sinan Qavus.

the field o f mathematics rather t h a n one o f i n n o -

a n t i q u i t y were rediscovered, the Islamic East was

T h o u g h t t o have been copied i n the early seven-

v a t i o n . I n this p e r i o d i m p o r t a n t steps taken d u r i n g

characterized b y a relatively u n i n t e r r u p t e d c u l t u r a l

teenth century, this Persian m a n u s c r i p t i n the

the t e n t h and eleventh centuries were f u r t h e r elab-

c o n t i n u i t y f r o m the early medieval p e r i o d o n w a r d ,

nasta liq script o r i g i n a l l y may have been c o m p i l e d

orated b y such a s t r o n o m e r - m a t h e m a t i c i a n s as

exemplified b y an u n b r o k e n chain o f transmission

i n the T i m u r i d p e r i o d , since the latest works i t

Nasir a l - D i n al-Tusi w h o w o r k e d w i t h a d i s t i n -

o f knowledge w e l l i n t o the m o d e r n era.

contains were composed i n the first h a l f o f the fif-

guished team o f scientists at the Maragha obser-

teenth century. Twenty-five short treatises, either

v a t o r y and its successor i n Tabriz. H i s younger

w h i c h the m a t h e m a t i c i a n K a m a l a l - D i n M u s a

w r i t t e n o r translated i n t o Persian, are b o u n d

associate and intellectual heir Q u t b a l - D i n

b. Yunus b . M a n a (1156-1242) w r o t e a c o m m e n -

together i n this v o l u m e , w h i c h deserves t o be s t u d -

al-Shirazi (1236-1311) was an equally p r o m i n e n t

tary i n late t w e l f t h - o r early t h i r t e e n t h - c e n t u r y

ied i n greater detail b y historians o f science. These

scientist whose student K a m a l a l - D i n A b u

M o s u l survives i n several Persian translations, one

treatises deal w i t h a r i t h m e t i c , a s t r o n o m y ( i n c l u d -

al-Hasan al-Farisi ( d . circa 1320) w r o t e an exten-

o f t h e m i n c l u d e d i n the Paris m a n u s c r i p t . A c c o r d -

c

A l - B u z j a n i ' s practical geometry m a n u a l , o n c

168

PART 4 . GEOMETRY

AND THE C O N T R I B U T I O N

i n g to the latter's epilogue, its t r a n s l a t i o n i n t o

OF M A T H E M A T I C A L

I n a d d i t i o n to al-Buzjani's A mdl

al-handasa,

c

SCIENCES

m e n t o f triangles and the arcs o f circles, accom-

Persian had been i n i t i a t e d by A b u Nasr M a n s u r

the Paris m a n u s c r i p t includes several applied m e n -

panied by tabulated tables for calculating t h e i r

b. A l i I b n I r a q ( f l . 1000), the K h w a r e z m i a n

s u r a t i o n treatises based o n practical geometry.

most i m p o r t a n t dimensions. I t t h e n t u r n s to mea-

astronomer and m a t h e m a t i c i a n w h o was a student

One o f these, dedicated to a late t w e l f t h - c e n t u r y

s u r i n g volumes and culminates w i t h a section o n

o f al-Buzjani. This early eleventh-century abridged

atabeg o f Azerbaijan, deals w i t h measuring the

applied mechanics that discusses pulleys, b u r n -

c

c

t r a n s l a t i o n was copied and revised i n t w o m o n t h s

areas o f t w o - and t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l geometric

i n g m i r r o r s , and h o w to determine the height o f

by the m a t h e m a t i c i a n - a s t r o n o m e r A b u Ishaq

figures and the practical applications o f mensura-

m o u n t a i n s and the d e p t h o f wells, accompanied by

b. A b d A l l a h K u b a n a n i Yazdi (active i n 1442-1443

t i o n i n l a n d surveying, h y d r a u l i c engineering, and

technical geometric d i a g r a m s .

at Sari and i n 1459

architecture. This a n o n y m o u s text includes such

c

a t

K i r m a n and H o r m u z ) , w h o

108

I t is t e m p t i n g to associate the author o f this

also drew the text's i l l u s t r a t i o n s . The reference to

p r o b l e m s as calculating the d e p t h o f wells, the

treatise w i t h the u n i d e n t i f i e d A b u Bakr whose

I b n I r a q suggests t h a t the o r i g i n a l t r a n s l a t i o n

height o f m o u n t a i n s , the w i d t h o f rivers, the

similar treatise o n applied m e n s u r a t i o n had been

m u s t have been u n d e r t a k e n i n the K h w a r e z m i a n

height o f walls i n b u i l d i n g s , and the n u m b e r o f

translated i n abridged f o r m i n t o L a t i n as

Liber

capital Gurganj ( n o w K u n y a U r g e n c h ) , w h i c h had

bricks r e q u i r e d for vaults and d o m e s .

mensurationum

Both

become a center o f l e a r n i n g d u r i n g the e n l i g h t -

a n o n y m o u s m e n s u r a t i o n treatise i n the same v o l -

works p r o v i d e tabulated tables for calculating the

ened rule o f the Khwarezm-Shahs (995-1017). The

u m e includes a s i m i l a r section o n measuring the

most i m p o r t a n t dimensions o f geometric

b r i l l i a n t g r o u p o f figures gathered at t h a t c o u r t

surfaces o f h o l l o w domes (qubba-i

and apply algebra to the s o l u t i o n o f practical

i n c l u d e d I b n Sina and I b n I r a q ' s e m i n e n t student

vaults, and arches (azdj wa

c

c

106

Another

mujawwafa),

tiqan).

by Gerard o f C r e m o n a .

1 0 9

figures

geometry problems. D e t e r m i n i n g the i d e n t i t y o f

107

a l - B i r u n i (973-1050), w h o subsequently m o v e d to

The Paris m a n u s c r i p t also contains t w o u n d a t e d

Ghazna w h e n the Ghaznavid ruler M a h m u d ( 9 9 8 -

works o n practical geometry and applied mensura-

t i c u l a r l y i m p o r t a n t because he is m e n t i o n e d twice

1030) conquered K h w a r e z m . K u b a n a n i Yazdi's

t i o n b y an otherwise u n k n o w n geometer, A b u

i n the A mdl

copy o f this Persian text is evidence o f its avail-

Bakr a l - K h a l i l al-Tajir (the m e r c h a n t ) al-Rasadi

t i o n to some o f the girihs i n c l u d e d i n this u n d a t e d

a b i l i t y i n the T i m u r i d p e r i o d .

A b u Bakr a l - K h a l i l al-Tajir al-Rasadi becomes parc

wa ashkal.

uo

H i s personal c o n t r i b u -

(the a s t r o n o m e r ) . H i s nisba "al-Rasadi" signals his

a n o n y m o u s treatise is i n d i c a t e d by the r e m a r k that

i n v o l v e m e n t w i t h astronomy, w h i c h is s u p p o r t e d

master craftsmen (ustadan)

i n his applied m e n s u r a t i o n treatise e n t i t l e d A mal

about the different ways i n w h i c h a p a r t i c u l a r geo-

( C o n s t r u c t i o n s ) where the n u m e r i c a l methods o f

m e t r i c c o n s t r u c t i o n c o u l d be d r a w n ; one o f his

( n o w at the Suleymaniye K i i t u p h a n e s i i n I s t a n b u l ) ,

a r i t h m e t i c (usul al-arithmdtiqi)

solutions is explained i n an accompanying dia-

transcribed for U l u g h Beg's royal l i b r a r y i n

mers are differentiated f r o m the a p p r o x i m a t i v e

Samarqand. S. A . Krasnova, w h o translated this

geometric ones used i n applied m e n s u r a t i o n

m a n u s c r i p t i n t o Russian, hypothesized t h a t i t

al-misaha

m u s t have been b r o u g h t to I s t a n b u l by A l i Kusci,

a r i t h m e t i c operations based o n n u m e r i c a l ratios

five-pointed

w h o j o i n e d the O t t o m a n c o u r t i n 1472 after a b r i e f

can be translated d i r e c t l y i n t o geometry, exemp-

as the m o d u l e . M o r e o v e r , the A mal

stay i n the A q q o y u n l u c o u r t o f Tabriz f o l l o w i n g

lified i n the w o r k ' s frequent a p p l i c a t i o n o f algebra

includes a tabulated table for the measurements

the death o f his royal p a t r o n U l u g h B e g .

to geometric p r o b l e m s . I t deals w i t h the measure-

o f most c o m m o n l y used triangles, recalling s i m i -

1 0 4

A mdl

T h a t an A r a b i c version o f al-Buzjani's al-handasa

c

was also available at the T i m u r i d c o u r t

is d e m o n s t r a t e d by a

fifteenth-century

copy o f i t

105

c

be-taqrib).

used by astrono-

had questioned h i m

g r a m . The same treatise contains another geo-

(a mal c

This treatise shows h o w

m e t r i c c o n s t r u c t i o n by A b u Bakr a l - K h a l i l , w h i c h shows h o w to draw a pentagon inscribed w i t h a star by using the c h o r d o f an arc c

wa

ashkdl

MANUALS

O F PRACTICAL

GEOMETRY

•

A N D T H E SCROLL TRADITION

may have been added t o the o r i g i n a l set d u r i n g the

p i l e d sometime between the early eleventh a n d

the applied m e n s u r a t i o n treatise b o u n d i n the

T i m u r i d p e r i o d w h e n i t was being c o p i e d .

early t h i r t e e n t h centuries.

same v o l u m e .

n o t certain, however, that the A mal

lar tables p r o v i d e d i n A b u Bakr al-Khalil's

A mal, c

c

1 1 1

1 1 3

I t is

wa ashkal

A l t h o u g h a detailed analysis o f the A mal c

wa

constitutes an appendix t o al-Buzjani's practical

ashkal lies beyond the scope o f this b o o k , its rela-

sional m a t h e m a t i c i a n w i t h practitioners recalls the

geometry. T h e fact that i t follows al-Buzjani's

t i o n s h i p t o later girih scrolls preserved f r o m the

example o f a l - B u z j a n i , w h o held meetings w i t h

related w o r k i n the Paris m a n u s c r i p t , w h i c h is a

T i m u r i d p e r i o d o n w a r d needs t o be assessed. This

artisans i n t e n t h - c e n t u r y Baghdad where problems

collection o f m a n y treatises, may have been a c o i n -

twenty-page " h o w - t o " m a n u a l , p r o v i d i n g i n s t r u c -

o f practical geometry c o n c e r n i n g t h e i r works were

cidence. Therefore, its date and provenance

tions for the c o n s t r u c t i o n o f sixty-one repeat units

discussed. I n a d d i t i o n t o A b u Bakr a l - K h a l i l , the

r e m a i n u n c e r t a i n . Its o n l y s u r v i v i n g copy exhibits

for planar geometric patterns, is o f p a r t i c u l a r

anonymous author o f A mal

seems

l i n g u i s t i c archaisms also f o u n d i n the accompany-

interest because i t shows h o w the general p r i n -

w i t h practical rather t h a n

i n g al-Buzjani text t h a t Edgar Blochet i d e n t i f i e d as

ciples o u t l i n e d i n the practical geometries o f

theoretical t r a i n i n g i n geometry—also p r o v i d e d

a pre-thirteenth-century w o r k .

al-Buzjani and others were used i n developing

some solutions o f his o w n t o p r o b l e m s raised i n

pentagonal seal seen b o t h i n the a n o n y m o u s trea-

i n t e r l o c k i n g star-and-polygon c o m p o s i t i o n s

these sessions.

tise and o n the decorations o f the so-called A b b a -

(see figs. 108-114).

The c o l l a b o r a t i o n o f this u n k n o w n profes-

c

to have been a muhandis

112

wa ashkal—who

Perhaps i t was al-Buzjani's stu-

dent I b n I r a q w h o i n t r o d u c e d such sessions t o the c

c o u r t o f the Khwarezm-Shahs after he sponsored the Persian t r a n s l a t i o n o f his teacher's al-handasa.

A mal c

I f A b u Bakr a l - K h a l i l and the anony-

mous author o f A mal c

wa ashkal were attached t o

1 1 4

O n the basis o f a

sid Palace i n Baghdad, C h o r b a c h i and A r t h u r L.

The A mdl c

wa ashkal often provides very c o m -

Loeb suggested that the treatise may have been

plicated, scientifically correct geometric c o n -

c o m p i l e d before that palace's c o n s t r u c t i o n

structions that are accompanied b y simpler

between 1180 and 1230.

methods for c o n s t r u c t i n g the same patterns. I n

The date o f A mal c

115

one example a girih p a t t e r n r e q u i r i n g the use o f

wa ashkal, i n w h i c h the

the same c o u r t , t h e n this w o r k appended t o the

names o f I b n a l - H a y t h a m and A b u Bakr a l - K h a l i l

an angle-bracket ruler, w h i c h facilitated sketching

Persian t r a n s l a t i o n o f al-Buzjani's practical geome-

are m e n t i o n e d , can be d e t e r m i n e d w i t h m o r e cer-

conic sections, is accompanied b y two simpler

t r y can also be dated t o the early eleventh century.

t a i n t y once the latter's i d e n t i t y is ascertained. I f

solutions o f the same p r o b l e m arrived at b y the

Bulatov, w h o assumed that the a n o n y m o u s treatise

he was indeed the author o f Liber

method of approximation.

was created as an appendix t o al-Buzjani's text,

w h i c h Gerard o f C r e m o n a had translated some-

tions reflected the c u r r e n t w o r k i n g methods o f

dated b o t h works t o the early eleventh-century

t i m e i n the t w e l f t h century, t h e n an eleventh-

some artisans {ba zi

K h w a r e z m i a n c o u r t . After developing some o f the

century date may n o t be u n l i k e l y for the A mal

treatise's repeat u n i t s i n t o t i l i n g patterns t h r o u g h

ashkal

s y m m e t r i c a l r e p e t i t i o n , he concluded t h a t all o f

been revised w h i l e i t was being copied i n the

an easier m e t h o d t h a t a p p r o x i m a t e d i t very closely

the g r i d systems used i n i t already appear o n

T i m u r i d p e r i o d , most l i k e l y b y the same K u b a n a n i

( azm

the eleventh- t o t w e l f t h - c e n t u r y m o n u m e n t s o f

Yazdi w h o prepared the text and drawings o f

length and w i d t h o f the rectangular repeat u n i t

Central Asia. A n eleventh-century date was also

al-Buzjani's practical geometry. Nevertheless i t

i n t o seven and six equal m o d u l a r parts, respec-

accepted b y G o l o m b e k and W i l b e r , w h o suggested

seems that we p r i m a r i l y are dealing w i t h an early

tively, a c o n s t r u c t i o n c o r r e s p o n d i n g t o the n u m e r -

that some o f the a n o n y m o u s treatise's drawings

medieval corpus o f geometric constructions c o m -

ical r a t i o

mensurationum,

c

c

wa

This a n o n y m o u s treatise appears t o have

1 1 6

az sunnd ) c

One o f these soluw h o drew the

repeat u n i t o f this girih n o t according t o the geom e t r i c a l l y correct way (tariq-i c

handasa)

but i n

nazdik ast). This i n v o l v e d d i v i d i n g the

7:6.

117

The a n o n y m o u s author offered a

170

PART 4. GEOMETRY

AND THE CONTRIBUTION OF MATHEMATICAL SCIENCES

second a p p r o x i m a t e m e t h o d for the same pat-

T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n and Uzbek scrolls. The m e t h o d

w h i c h i t was composed. Its w i d e variety o f geomet-

t e r n t h a t he w o r k e d o u t himself, a m e t h o d that

is based o n an a x i o m explained at the b e g i n n i n g

ric c o n s t r u c t i o n s , u n l i k e the relatively standard-

dominates the T o p k a p i and Tashkent scrolls. This

o f the treatise: W h e n any triangle is inscribed i n a

ized r e p e r t o r y o f later scrolls, suggests that i t m u s t

involved d i v i d i n g the r i g h t angle at the lower r i g h t

circle, the r a t i o o f its angles is equal to t h a t o f the

have been created at a t i m e o f rigorous e x p e r i m e n -

corner o f the rectangular girih i n t o n i n e equal

arcs cut o f f by those angles. This meant t h a t the

t a t i o n . This was a m i l i e u i n w h i c h mathematicians

parts (angle modules) by d r a w i n g a quarter circle

angles o f triangles or polygons inscribed i n circles

collaborated w i t h p r a c t i t i o n e r s , h e l p i n g t h e m find

s u b d i v i d e d by eight equidistant r a d i i , f o u r and five parts o f w h i c h closely a p p r o x i m a t e d

(ghdyat

c o u l d be expressed i n terms o f m o d u l a r arc u n i t s .

suitable a p p r o x i m a t i o n s o f scientifically correct

So, for example, to construct a triangle w i t h angles

geometric constructions t h a t c o u l d s i m p l i f y

equal to three, four, and five modules, one s i m p l y

a p p l i c a t i o n to various fields. T h a t process often

These examples demonstrate t h a t lines and

had to sketch a circle, divide its circumference i n t o

i n v o l v e d the t r a n s l a t i o n o f n u m e r i c a l ratios i n t o

angles c o u l d be expressed i n terms o f m o d u l a r

twelve parts, and t h e n w i t h chords j o i n three, four,

the p r o p o r t i o n a l relationships o f geometric f o r m s ,

units c o r r e s p o n d i n g to n u m e r i c a l ratios i n the

and five parts. The a n o n y m o u s treatise uses such

a t r a n s l a t i o n facilitated by the c o m m o n habit

geometric language o f girihs. Such m o d u l a r u n i t s

angle modules instead o f the degrees, seconds, and

a m o n g mathematicians o f p r o v i d i n g geometric

o f measurement translated algebraic equations

m i n u t e s employed by astronomers and a r i t h m e t i -

proofs for algebraic p r o b l e m s . The A mdl

taqrib)

the r e q u i r e d a n g l e s .

118

c

wa

i n t o the visible geometric relationships o f girihs,

cians i n measuring angles. Besides compasses and

ashkdl, therefore, includes girihs t h a t are geometric

created by the h a r m o n i c d i v i s i o n o f square and

the angle-bracket r u l e r for sketching conic sec-

expressions o f algebraic p r o b l e m s , some o f t h e m

rectangular repeat units i n t o i n t e r l o c k i n g s i m i l a r

tions (see figs. 107,108), i t also m e n t i o n s special

i n v o l v i n g complex cubic equations w i t h solutions

or c o n g r u e n t figures obeying the laws o f symmetry.

set squares {gunyd),

based o n intersecting conic s e c t i o n s .

c o r r e s p o n d i n g t o the most

120

The hap-

The use o f ratios was an i m p o r t a n t element i n

c o m m o n l y used r i g h t angles, t h a t facilitated the

hazard o r g a n i z a t i o n o f the treatise suggests t h a t its

practical geometries whose i n d i r e c t measuring

tedious process o f d i v i d i n g arcs i n t o equal parts.

a n o n y m o u s author, w h o was personally i n v o l v e d

techniques relied o n p r o p o r t i o n , t h a t is, o n f i n d -

These i n c l u d e d set squares c o r r e s p o n d i n g to five-

i n adapting scientifically accurate solutions i n t o

i n g the r a t i o o f an u n k n o w n q u a n t i t y to a k n o w n

angle modules (i.e., 30-60-90 degrees) and six-

s i m p l i f i e d a p p r o x i m a t i o n s m o r e suitable to

one. T h a t the girihs o f the a n o n y m o u s treatise

angle modules (i.e., 36-45-90 degrees, used i n

artisanal w o r k i n g methods, c o m p i l e d i t as a spon-

were based o n specific ratios is reflected i n its

girihs w i t h pentagons and d e c a g o n s ) .

taneous r e c o r d o f o n g o i n g experiments.

i n s t r u c t i o n s t h a t explain h o w to draw the r a t i o or p r o p o r t i o n (nisbat) construction

o f a given geometric

( aqd).

119

I f i t was indeed composed i n the early eleventh century, the A mdl c

wa ashkdl brings us close to the

The use o f several constructions f r o m al-Buzjani's practical geometry i n the anony-

m o m e n t w h e n the girih m o d e was being f o r m u -

mous treatise shows the l i n k between these two

lated by artisans under the direct supervision o f

a p p l i c a t i o n - o r i e n t e d manuals. One o f those

ules by equidistant r a d i i to a p p r o x i m a t e the angles

professional mathematicians. The text's references

constructions is a square c o n t a i n i n g a smaller

r e q u i r e d i n c o n s t r u c t i n g s t a r - a n d - p o l y g o n patterns

to n e w l y discovered methods for c o n s t r u c t i n g par-

r o t a t e d square at its center (whose four sides are

is s h o w n as one o f m a n y i n the A mdl

c

The m e t h o d o f d i v i d i n g an arc i n t o equal m o d -

t i c u l a r geometric patterns and to experiments w i t h

extended u n t i l they t o u c h the larger f r a m i n g

Eventually, however, this practical m e t h o d came

several alternative techniques for d r a w i n g a given

square, creating four kite-shaped paraboloids

to d o m i n a t e the simpler geometric language o f

p a t t e r n capture the inventiveness o f the setting i n

or f o u r conic triangles along each side). This

c

wa

ashkdl.

MANUALS

OF PRACTICAL

GEOMETRY

AND THE

SCROLL TRADITION

171

algebraically definable geometric scheme, w h i c h

practical geometry o n f u t u r e generations o f a r c h i -

became w i d e l y used i n the T i m u r i d p e r i o d as a

tects and decorators. The girihs o f the a n o n y m o u s

tions o f curves w i l l be most agreeable,

p r o p o r t i o n i n g device i n the setting o u t o f g r o u n d

treatise, annotated w i t h " h o w - t o " i n s t r u c t i o n s t h a t

where the mechanical process o f describ-

plans and decorative panels, is encountered n o t

do n o t explain every step, addressed designers

ing t h e m shall be least apparent; and we

o n l y i n the a n o n y m o u s treatise (see figs. 108,

already acquainted w i t h the basic methods o f

shall find i t to be universally the case,

but also i n the T o p k a p i scroll (see cat. nos. 59, 61,

constructive geometry explained i n al-Buzjani's

t h a t i n the best periods o f art all m o u l d -

72c) and i n the m u c h later M i r z a A k b a r scrolls

attached m a n u a l (such as d r o p p i n g perpendiculars

ings and ornaments were f o u n d e d o n

112)

to detect; so we t h i n k that those c o m p o s i -

(see fig. 34). K n o w n today a m o n g c o n t e m p o r a r y

or d r a w i n g polygons by d i v i d i n g circles). The

curves o f a higher order, such as the

I r a n i a n builders as chahdr langeh ( l i t . , " f o u r legs,"

T o p k a p i scroll f u r t h e r d i s t i l l e d , revised, and c o d i -

conic sections; w h i l s t , w h e n art declined,

referring to the extended sides o f the central

fied the early medieval girihs o f the a n o n y m o u s

circles and compass-work were m u c h

square) or as chahdr turunj ( l i t . , " f o u r kite-shaped

treatise, w h i c h c o n s t i t u t e d a c u l m i n a t i o n o f the

more d o m i n a n t .

paraboloids, or conic quadrilaterals," referring

geometric constructions c o n t a i n e d i n al-Buzjani's

to the shapes a b u t t i n g the central square), its

practical geometry.

use has also been d o c u m e n t e d i n I n d i a n m a t h e matical treatises.

121

The T o p k a p i scroll was the end p r o d u c t o f a l o n g process o f e l a b o r a t i o n o f early medieval girihs

1 2 2

A l t h o u g h the Topkapi scroll by no means represents a " d e c l i n e , " its girihs generated by a p p r o x i m a t i v e methods no longer e x h i b i t the

by successive generations o f master builders w h o

same c o m p l e x i t y as their counterparts i n the

schemata i n the design process d i d n o t i m p l y an

visually t r a n s m i t t e d t h e m to future generations

A mdl

a b i l i t y to u n d e r s t a n d t h e m algebraically i n terms

by means o f a sophisticated system o f graphic

immense creativity i n the field o f geometry. C o m -

o f n u m e r i c a l equations. I n i t i a l l y f o r m u l a t e d

n o t a t i o n . The o m i s s i o n o f a text w i t h " h o w - t o "

p a r i n g the girihs o f these two documents reveals

w i t h the help o f m a t h e m a t i c i a n s , such geometric

i n s t r u c t i o n s i n this scroll shows t h a t by the late

that the f o r m e r rely m o r e heavily o n circles and

schemes eventually became codified i n scrolls

T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n p e r i o d girihs were so w e l l

compass w o r k , whereas the latter are based o n

The practical a b i l i t y to e m p l o y such geometric

c

wa ashkdl, seemingly created i n a p e r i o d o f

reflecting w o r k s h o p practices i n h e r i t e d over the

u n d e r s t o o d and assimilated i n t o oral craft t r a -

alternative methods ranging f r o m simple c o n -

generations. A l - B u z j a n i ' s late t e n t h - c e n t u r y m a n -

d i t i o n s t h a t one o n l y r e q u i r e d drawings serving

structions to complex ones using conic sections.

ual o n practical geometry, the a n o n y m o u s treatise

as m n e m o n i c devices to record codified w o r k s h o p

Such a c o m p a r i s o n seems to s u p p o r t the early date

put together sometime between the early eleventh

practices. Some o f the m o r e c o m p l i c a t e d geomet-

o f the a n o n y m o u s treatise, whose girihs are gener-

and early t h i r t e e n t h centuries, and the T o p k a p i

ric methods described i n the a n o n y m o u s treatise

ally consistent w i t h the types o f geometric p a t t e r n -

scroll c o m p i l e d i n the late T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n

were replaced i n the scroll by the simpler methods

ing seen o n the b r i c k b u i l d i n g s o f the eastern

p e r i o d can therefore be seen as three successive

o f a p p r o x i m a t i o n , a development perfectly s u m -

Islamic w o r l d between the eleventh and early t h i r -

stages i n the e v o l u t i o n o f a geometric design t r a -

marized by Jones:

teenth centuries. Its variegated g r i d systems w o u l d eventually be s u b o r d i n a t e d to the d i c t a t o r s h i p o f

d i t i o n . A c o m p a r i s o n o f these three documents As w i t h p r o p o r t i o n , we t h i n k t h a t those

radial grids s u b d i v i d e d by equidistant r a d i i t h a t

methods, t e s t i f y i n g to the lasting i m p a c t o f late

p r o p o r t i o n s w i l l be the most beautiful

became p a r t i c u l a r l y d o m i n a n t i n the late T i m u r i d -

t e n t h - and early eleventh-century developments i n

w h i c h i t w i l l be most difficult for the eye

T u r k m e n p e r i o d . C o m p a r i n g the A mdl

demonstrates a s t r i k i n g c o n t i n u i t y i n d r a f t i n g

c

wa ashkdl

172

PART 4. GEOMETRY

AND THE CONTRIBUTION OF MATHEMATICAL SCIENCES

w i t h the T o p k a p i and Tashkent scrolls confirms

presence o f several un fin i sh ed irregular patterns

The T o p k a p i scroll, t h e n , is a corpus o f sche-

this i m p o r t a n t t r a n s f o r m a t i o n and supports the

i n the a n o n y m o u s treatise (see figs. 109a, 110)

view t h a t the h i g h l y standardized geometric pat-

again captures the e x p e r i m e n t a l n a t u r e o f this

the collective m e m o r y o f master builders w h o end-

terns o f p o s t - t h i r t e e n t h - c e n t u r y m o n u m e n t s i n

d o c u m e n t , w h i c h seems to have been c o m p i l e d at

lessly refined early medieval girihs b u t still pos-

the Islamic East no longer e x h i b i t e d the same

a t i m e w h e n girihs were being i n v e n t e d t h r o u g h

sessed a creative geometric i m a g i n a t i o n , n o u r i s h e d

c o m p l e x i t y and variety as those encountered i n

t r i a l and error methods, u n l i k e the m o r e fully

by manuals o f practical geometry, w o r k s h o p draw-

earlier structures b u i l t between the late t e n t h a n d

w o r k e d o u t patterns codified i n later s c r o l l s .

ings, a n d by e m p i r i c a l experience acquired d u r i n g

once

123

mata accumulated over the centuries that reflects

early t h i r t e e n t h centuries, w h e n advances i n the

C o m p a r i n g the two documents also shows t h a t

apprenticeship. Its visual complexities are r e m i n i s -

m a t h e m a t i c a l sciences were still at t h e i r peak.

some o f the girihs i n the a n o n y m o u s treatise were

cent o f the A l h a m b r a ' s i n t r i c a t e geometric revet-

further fragmented i n t o smaller geometric c o m -

ments, w h i c h also represent the c u l m i n a t i o n o f

wa ashkdl find direct parallels i n the T o p k a p i scroll,

p a r t m e n t s i n the T o p k a p i scroll (e.g., see fig. 111

earlier experiments at a t i m e w h e n m a t h e m a t i c a l

m a n y o f t h e m have been e l i m i n a t e d altogether.

and cat. n o . 34).

creativity had lost its i n i t i a l vigor. The celebrated

A l t h o u g h several c o m p o s i t i o n s i n the

A mdl c

For example, the treatise's c o m p l e x t r i a n g u l a t i o n

Despite t h e i r s t r i k i n g parallels the T o p k a p i

geometric fantasies o f the A l h a m b r a were based o n b r i l l i a n t elaborations o f b y - t h e n - r e d u n d a n t

methods, r o t a t i o n s o f triangles w i t h i n triangles,

scroll and A mdl

h a r m o n i c divisions o f polygons i n t o c o n g r u e n t

repertories consistent w i t h their respective times

f o r m u l a s , most likely t r a n s m i t t e d t h r o u g h n o w -

parts, and t r a n s f o r m a t i o n s o f s i m i l a r polygons

o f c o m p i l a t i o n . The latter d o c u m e n t , for example,

lost scrolls (whose m e m o r y may have been

i n t o one another do n o t find their c o u n t e r p a r t i n

does n o t i n c l u d e any radial arch-net or muqarnas

preserved i n Lopez de Arenas's Breve compendio

the T o p k a p i scroll, w h i c h is d o m i n a t e d by c o m -

vault p r o j e c t i o n s , so characteristic o f the T o p k a p i

la carpinteria

posite radial g r i d systems p r o d u c i n g a w i d e variety

and Tashkent scrolls. N o r does i t have geometric

c

wa ashkdl e m b o d y different design

o f s t a r - a n d - p o l y g o n patterns i n t w o and three

and calligraphic patterns i n t e n d e d for

dimensions. Nevertheless, schemes based o n r o t a t -

b r i c k masonry. Its i n v e n t i v e schemes eventually

bannd'i

de lo bianco y tratado de

de

alarifes).

The A mdl wa ashkdl dealt w i t h the p r o p o r t i o n a l c

d i v i s i o n o f the plane (considered limitless o n all sides) i n t o s i m i l a r or congruent geometric shapes

i n g a square w i t h i n another square a n d radial grids

c u l m i n a t e d i n the i n t r i c a t e girihs o f T i m u r i d -

( k n o w n by mathematicians as tilings or tessella-

organized a r o u n d d y n a m i c axes o f s y m m e t r y

T u r k m e n and Uzbek scrolls t h a t explore all the

tions) t h a t cover surfaces w i t h o u t leaving any gaps

( o b l i q u e cross axes or diagonal lines c u t t i n g repeat

possible p e r m u t a t i o n s o f i n h e r i t e d patterns.

or e m p t y spaces. The c u t t i n g o f the plane i n t o a

units i n t o c o n g r u e n t parts) are c o m m o n i n b o t h

Despite t h e i r visual c o m p l e x i t y , however, the later

jigsaw puzzle o f p r o p o r t i o n a l l y related pieces sym-

documents, w h i c h c o n t a i n some s i m i l a r girihs.

scrolls were based largely o n standard formulas.

m e t r i c a l l y m u l t i p l i e d by the operations o f trans-

( C o m p a r e , for example, fig. 109 w i t h cat. n o . 73;

They represented a d i s t i l l a t i o n o f practical geome-

l a t i o n , r o t a t i o n , reflection, a n d glide reflection

fig. 111 w i t h cat. n o . 34; fig. 112 w i t h cat. n o . 61; and

try, ingeniously adapted to the w o r k i n g methods

recently has been analyzed by crystallographers

o f master builders and decorators. I t is u n l i k e l y

and explored i n the w o r k o f the t w e n t i e t h - c e n t u r y

were generated by s i m i l a r u n i n k e d g r i d lines

that these scrolls, e x h i b i t i n g a sophisticated capac-

D u t c h graphic artist M . C. Escher (whose fasci-

scratched o n the paper (see figs. 109b, 113b), some-

i t y to m a n i p u l a t e geometric grids to create c o m -

n a t i o n w i t h t i l i n g s t h a t fill the plane and space

times i n d i c a t e d o n the final p a t t e r n as solid or

plex constellations o f p a t t e r n , were i n f o r m e d by

w i t h o u t any gaps were i n s p i r e d p r i m a r i l y by the

d o t t e d c o n s t r u c t i o n lines i n red or black i n k . The

a deep theoretical knowledge o f mathematics.

Alhambra).

fig. 113 w i t h cat. n o . 70.) These comparable

girihs

1 2 4

A l t h o u g h the A mdl c

wa ashkdl does

MANUALS

OF PRACTICAL

GEOMETRY

AND THE

SCROLL TRADITION

173

n o t i n c l u d e muqarnas projections, a few o f its

arranged i n corbeled tiers. This affinity explains

drawings f r o m Baghdad or other courts t h a t

girihs composed o f squares and rhombuses do

w h y muqarnas projections ( t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l

emulated its artistic, scientific, and intellectual

recall o r t h o g o n a l muqarnas vaults such as the

space-filling patterns) are always juxtaposed w i t h

innovations.

one represented o n the t h i r t e e n t h - c e n t u r y T a k h t - i

geometric interlaces ( t w o - d i m e n s i o n a l surface-

Sulayman tablet (see figs. 1,114). These t w o -

filling

d i m e n s i o n a l patterns suggest t h a t the muqarnas

experiments i n i t i a t e d by early medieval designers

must have evolved f r o m a s i m i l a r k i n d o f geome-

to t h e i r logical conclusion w i t h collections o f

o f a single m o d e o f design t h a t was expressed

try, i n v o l v i n g the p r o p o r t i o n a l d i v i s i o n o f space

c o n g r u e n t t i l i n g s , b o t h planar and spatial.

t h r o u g h p r o p o r t i o n a l l y related planar and spatial

i n t o closely packed c o m p a r t m e n t s w i t h o u t leav-

patterns) i n Islamic scrolls that b r o u g h t

The elusive muqarnas can therefore be defined

1 2 7

T w o - and t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l geometric patterns, often juxtaposed o n b u i l d i n g s , f u r n i t u r e , and objects, c o n s t i t u t e d c o m p l e m e n t a r y aspects

networks. The aesthetic reaction such patterns

i n g any gaps. The simplest examples o f muqarnas

as a geometric f o r m a t i o n w i t h corbeled tiers o f

f o r m a t i o n s are i n fact n o t h i n g b u t stereometric

space-filling lattices that homogeneously p a r t i t i o n

t i o n f r o m the 1180s o f the i v o r y - a n d - e b o n y - i n l a i d

exercises i n the cubic d i v i s i o n o f space; the shapes

space i n t o s i m i l a r or congruent cells connected by

j o i n e d - w o o d w o r k m i n b a r i n the Great M o s q u e o f

enveloping t h e i r carved cells often are full cubes

filler elements. Such a d e f i n i t i o n is consistent w i t h

A l e p p o , i n f r o n t o f w h i c h " t h e eyes enjoy one o f

in contact.

al-Kashi's d e s c r i p t i o n o f the muqarnas i n 1427 as

the most beautiful sights i n the w o r l d . " He i d e n t i -

a vaulted r o o f resembling a gradine or staircase

fied this m i n b a r , composed o f i n t e r l o c k i n g stars

congruent t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l cells, or space t i l -

(madraj),

and polygons j o i n e d " w i t h o u t apparent d i v i s i o n "

ings, was a n a t u r a l extension o f experiments w i t h

(bayt) j o i n i n g one another at different angles

125

The regular d i v i s i o n o f space i n t o s i m i l a r and

w i t h the facets o f each adjacent cell

c o u l d evoke is captured by I b n Jubayr's descrip-

and t o p p e d by muqarnas tiers, as an exquisite example o f qarbasa w o r k , a t e r m that complicates

plane tilings. Just as the simplest o r t h o g o n a l

along successively corbeled tiers (tabaqa)

muqarnas c o m p o s i t i o n s e x h i b i t an affinity to t w o -

to the h o r i z o n . The measure o f the base o f the

the controversial etymology o f muqarnas

d i m e n s i o n a l surface patterns generated by recti-

largest facet c o n s t i t u t e d the m o d u l e {miqyds)

variously as muqarbas

linear grids (see figs. 1, 4 6 - 5 0 , 52), the far m o r e

the muqarnas, w h i c h generated

parallel of

commensurable

or muqarbas

the Spanish t e r m mocarabe],

(spelled

[the source o f

and as muqarnas

or

complex radial muqarnas projections o f the

shapes j o i n e d together i n perfect h a r m o n y (see

muqarnas).

T o p k a p i and Tashkent scrolls can be read as spatial

" T h e M u q a r n a s " i n the present v o l u m e ) .

that i n t r i c a t e l y j o i n e d t w o - d i m e n s i o n a l star-and-

i n t e r p r e t a t i o n s o f t w o - d i m e n s i o n a l patterns w i t h

muqarnas, t h e n , was the p r o d u c t o f the same type

p o l y g o n patterns may o r i g i n a l l y have been consid-

i n t e r l o c k i n g stars and polygons. E x t e n d i n g the

o f geometric e x p e r i m e n t a t i o n t h a t c u l m i n a t e d i n

ered an integral part o f qarbasa or qarnasa w o r k ,

1 2 6

The

128

I b n Jubayr's d e s c r i p t i o n suggests

idea o f filling a plane w i t h c o n g r u e n t stars and

the i n v e n t i o n o f planar girihs, w h i c h e m b o d i e d

before muqarnas

polygons i n t o three dimensions m u s t have been a

classical aesthetic n o t i o n s o f p r o p o r t i o n a l i t y rather

referring to "stalactites."

became

n a t u r a l o u t c o m e o f exercises i n practical geometry

t h a n the so-called h o r r o r vacui o f the Islamic psy-

and m e n s u r a t i o n manuals, w h i c h proceed f r o m

che. I t d i d n o t appear all o f a sudden i n different

aesthetic pleasure f r o m h a r m o n i o u s l y c o m b i n e d

constructions i n the plane to constructions i n

places t h r o u g h a mysterious process o f s i m u l t a n e -

t w o - and t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l girihs. The anony-

space. Just as " k n o t t e d " g r i d lines d i v i d e d surfaces

ous c o m b u s t i o n reflecting a specifically M u s l i m

mous author o f the A mdl

p r o p o r t i o n a l l y , so t o o c o u l d intersecting planes

Weltanschauung b u t was most l i k e l y disseminated

praised one o f the girihs contained i n that w o r k as

be arranged to divide space i n t o repetitive cells

by i t i n e r a n t workshops, design manuals, and

"extremely elegant" (be-ghdyat

a m o r e specialized t e r m

I b n Jubayr was n o t the o n l y person to derive

c

wa ashkdl s i m i l a r l y lattf ast). Like the

174

PART 4. GEOMETRY AND THE CONTRIBUTION

OF MATHEMATICAL SCIENCES

treatise itself, based o n an u n a r t i c u l a t e d theory o f

view i t saddles are strapped o n [i.e., t o c o n t r o l one

b o t t o m [ i t was covered w i t h ] the i n t e r -

beauty r e l y i n g o n a h a r m o n y o f interrelated parts,

f r o m s h a k i n g ] . T r u l y i t is the pearl, the o r p h a n ,

l o c k i n g sides o f triangles and quadrangles

this r e m a r k echoes the fascination w i t h the aes-

a priceless possession" (see figs. 115-117).

and the sides o f pentagons and hexagons

thetics o f p r o p o r t i o n i n medieval Islamic texts t o

passage reflects al-Jazari's e n o r m o u s p r i d e i n his

and heptagons, and the patterns were pos-

w h i c h I w i l l t u r n i n part 5 .

o w n i n g e n u i t y , i m p l i e d i n the t e r m hiyal t h a t

sessed o f various forms. T h a t is, l o o k i n g

129

I b n K h a l d u n also

regarded geometric w o o d w o r k as "very elegant,"

131

This

underlines the intellectual status o f geometric

f r o m one angle, one type o f f o r m o f circle

just as Lopez de Arenas described the w o o d e n

artifices i n v e n t e d by the c u n n i n g intelligence o f

was seen, and w h e n one l o o k e d again at

muqarnas as possessing a " h a r m o n y t h a t appears

their creators. Evliya Qelebi described the m u l t i -

that place f r o m another angle, other types

very gracious to the sight."

layered girihs o f gates, m i n b a r s , and m i h r a b s

o f designs and patterns emerging, other

1 3 0

i n s i m i l a r terms, praising the ingenious talent

forms appeared. However m u c h the p o i n t

between the m a t h e m a t i c a l sciences and modes o f

(ma rifet)

o f view was changed, that m a n y forms

geometric design transcended merely technical

approached m i r a c u l o u s saintly powers

goals. The abstract language o f geometry, t h r o u g h

or l i c i t magic (sihr-i

mtibTn). Even the s c r u t i -

W h e n the late [ s u l t a n ] , o u t o f his delight,

w h i c h ars c o u l d be raised to the level o f

n i z i n g gaze (im dn-i

nazar) was n o t equipped

t u r n e d and examined and inspected i t ,

These aesthetic reactions i m p l y t h a t the l i n k

scientia,

c

o f t h e i r designers, w h i c h at times

c

left a p r o f o u n d i m p a c t n o t o n l y o n design m e t h -

to figure o u t these w o n d e r f u l

ods b u t also o n medieval aesthetic sensibilities.

c

ibretnUmun,

acd ib,

c

y

gard'ib)

(kerdmet)

( ibretnumd, c

compositions

The girih m o d e t h r i v e d o n the a r i t h m e t i c i r r a t i o -

that i n v a r i a b l y i n d u c e d a sense o f a d m i r a t i o n

n a l i t y o f geometric p r o p o r t i o n s that were i n s t i n c -

and a s t o n i s h m e n t .

tively pleasant t o the eye b u t remained a puzzle to

132

Ca fer, the seventeenth-century author o f the c

were t r a n s f o r m e d i n t o other shapes.

n o w f r o m this d i r e c t i o n , n o w f r o m t h a t , he recited extemporaneously this noble verse. " G o d ! G o d ! W h a t are these beautiful forms? Like w i n e , they i n s t a n t l y caused me t o lose m y head."

1 3 3

the i n q u i r i n g m i n d . This is eloquently expressed

Risdle-i Mi mdriyye,

i n Dost M u h a m m a d ' s preface to the Bahram M i r z a

t i o n o f the b e w i l d e r i n g effects p r o d u c e d by the

This rare d e s c r i p t i o n once again h i g h l i g h t s the aes-

a l b u m o f 1544 where the hand-i

rumi patterns

c

p r o v i d e d a fascinating descrip-

ingeniously i n t e r l o c k e d figures o f a w o o d e n read-

thetic value attached to i n t r i c a t e l y fitted star-and-

d r a w n by a Safavid graphic artist (tarrdh, l i t . , " l i n e -

i n g lectern featuring "geometric forms w i t h sides

p o l y g o n patterns t h a t c o u l d evoke an i n t o x i c a t i n g

a r t i s t " ) are described as being " u n f a t h o m a b l e to

j o i n e d to one a n o t h e r " t h a t the architect M e h m e d

sense o f delight m i x e d w i t h wonder and at the

even the most discerning eye." Visually pleasing,

had presented to the O t t o m a n sultan M u r a d 111

same t i m e testify to the inventive skill o f the

yet undecipherable geometric patterns often

(r. 1574-1595):

designer w h o had created t h e m as abstract fig-

evoked a sense o f astonishment and wonder w i t h

ments o f the i m a g i n a t i o n . The reference to i n t o x i -

t h e i r ingeniously c o n t r i v e d and s t a r t l i n g effects

W h e n i t was placed i n the Exalted Pres-

cating delight recalls the overtones o f the n o t i o n

( ajib)

ence, t h a t w o r l d l y - w i s e and blessed sultan,

o f taste (dhawq,

architecture. This is captured i n al-Jazari's descrip-

s c r u t i n i z i n g and e x a m i n i n g i t w i t h care,

t i o n ) i n mystical usage where i t denotes a k i n d o f

t i o n o f the m e t a l w o r k d o o r w i t h i n t e r l o c k i n g

saw t h a t the H o l y K u r ' a n had no such

ecstatic e n j o y m e n t and i n t o x i c a t i o n that has a

geometric u n i t s i n c l u d e d i n his b o o k o n ingenious

peerless t h r o n e and that its equal was n o t

noetic q u a l i t y .

mechanical devices: " I t is the chef-d'oeuvre, to

to be f o u n d i n the w o r l d . F r o m t o p t o

c

t h a t were so p r i z e d by patrons o f art and

the power o f aesthetic apprecia-

1 3 4

Nervously p u l s a t i n g a r o u n d m u l t i p l e foci o f

MANUALS

OF PRACTICAL

GEOMETRY

AND THE

r o t a t i o n a l symmetry, l a b y r i n t h i n e girih patterns

Koranic passage q u o t e d o n the artesonado

acted as seductive magnets that afforded no rest to

w o r k ceiling at the A l h a m b r a ' s H a l l o f Ambas-

the attentive gaze. Seeing became, i n effect, r e i n -

sadors implies: " T h o u seest n o t i n the crea-

SCROLL

wood-

v e n t i n g new patterns each t i m e the gaze a t t e m p t e d

t i o n o f the A l l - M e r c i f u l any i m p e r f e c t i o n . Return

i n v a i n to fix itself o n these i n t e r p e n e t r a t i n g geo-

t h y gaze; seest t h o u any fissure? T h e n r e t u r n

m e t r i c shapes or to dissect their concealed u n d e r -

t h y gaze again, and again, and t h y gaze comes

l y i n g schemes. W i t h t h e i r restless flux o f geometric

back to thee dazzled, aweary" (67: 3 - 4 ) . The geo-

figures that c o n t i n u a l l y m e t a m o r p h o s e d i n t o one

m e t r i c sophistications o f girihs t h a t i n t e n t i o n a l l y

another f r o m whatever d i r e c t i o n one l o o k e d , star-

dazzled the eye to the p o i n t o f blindness were n o t

a n d - p o l y g o n patterns seemed to deny the static

o n l y i n f o r m e d by m a t h e m a t i c a l concepts b u t also

v i e w p o i n t o f a fixed spectator w i t h a l i m i t e d span

by aesthetic theories o f sublime beauty and the

o f focused v i s i o n . To use N o r m a n Bryson's distinc-

psychology o f visual p e r c e p t i o n . T h e i r b e w i l d e r i n g

t i o n between the "Gaze" and the "Glance," such

v e r t i g i n o u s effects that inscribed subjectivity i n t o

patterns were d i a m e t r i c a l l y opposed to the p r o -

the optical field c o u l d produce a wide range o f

longed gaze encouraged by m o n o c u l a r perspective.

contextual associations and aesthetic r e a c t i o n s .

Instead they r e q u i r e d the " f l i c k e r i n g , ungovernable m o b i l i t y o f the Glance" i n w h i c h the apprehension o f the c o m p o s i t i o n a l order was perpetually postp o n e d to evoke a sense o f wonder and awe, the prelude to c o n t e m p l a t i v e w i s d o m .

1 3 5

Like Ca fer, V i o l l e t - l e - D u c described the aesc

thetic effect p r o d u c e d by geometric entrelacs

as

one o f vertigo: " O n e is seized by vertigo w i t h these i n t e r p e n e t r a t i n g networks o f straight and bent lines that f o r m a concrete and h a r m o n i o u s ensemble, b u t whose c o m b i n a t i o n s seem t o slip away f r o m e x a m i n a t i o n . " Geometric patterns w i t h dazzling displays o f linear interlacement t h a t defied q u i c k apprehension i n d u c e d a f o r m o f visual i n t o x i c a t i o n , a d i s o r i e n t i n g dizziness o f unsettled v i s i o n lost i n w o n d e r m e n t . A s i m i l a r yet m u c h m o r e intense aesthetic effect c o u l d be t r i g gered by the wonders o f d i v i n e creation, as the

136

TRADITION

175

176

NOTES

TO PART

4

1. For this quotation and an analysis of its meaning in the context of the construction of Milan cathedral, see Ackermann 1949. 2. Ibn al-Nadim 1970, 2: 634ff. For the impact of the mathematical sciences on Gothic design methods, see Harvey 1971, 36, 41; and Bucher 1972, 532. A bibliography on medieval architectural mathematics and mechanical sciences is provided in Crombie 1959; and Clagett 1959. 3. The transmission of Greek learning is discussed in Nasr 1976, 9-12; Mieli 1938; O'Leary 1979; Goldstein 1964,132-33; Fakhry 1983, 1-36; and Kraemer 1986, 84-86. For the Sabaeans, see Marquet 1966-1967. According to the Arab historian and encyclopedist al-Nuwayri (1279-1332), the Sabaeans were famed for their artists: "Specialties in the sciences and praxis: The scholars of Greece, the physicians of Jundishapur, the artists of Harran, the storytellers of Yemen, and the scribes of the Sawad"; cited in Wiedemann 1970, 867. The twelve shrines of the Sabaeans on the sacred enclosure at Harran are referred to in Ibn al-Nadim 1970, 2: 745~73- See idem, 755 n. 50, where these shrines are described as: "(1) shrine of the Primal Cause, a hemisphere; (2) of Intelligence (al- Aql), a circle; (3) of the Soul (al-Nafs), a circle; (4) of Form (al-Surah), perhaps meaning 'Space,' no shape cited; (5) either Sequence (Time), called al-Silsilah by al-Mas udi, or the Governing, called al-Siyasah in al-Maqrizi and al-Dimashql, circular; (6) (al-Zuhal) (Saturn), hexagonal; (7) al-Mushtari (Jupiter), triangular; (8) al-Mirrikh (Mars), square; (9) al-Shams (the Sun), square; (10) al-Zuharah (Venus), elongated triangle; (11) Utarid (Mercury), square outside but hexagonal inside; (12) al-Qumar (the Moon),five-sided.Each shrine had an idol, also a special metal and color" corresponding to the planets. For a description of these shrines constructed in allegorical geometric shapes and materials, which were associated with the Sabaean mysteries, see also al-Masudi c

c

c

c

1865, 4: 61-62.

4. Souissi 1982. See idem, 414: "An important area in the application of geometry is that of architecture and sculpture; Muslim art, inspired by geometry, invented the extended [sic, pointed?] arch, cupolas resting on regular polygons, corbellings, stalactites, groups of polyhedrons of stucco and light. The work of the sculptor in stone or in stucco was designed by the mathematicians." 5. The reference to Masud 1 is from Bayhaqi's Tarikh-i Mas udT (History of Masud), cited in Wilber 1976, 31; for the treatise written by the king of Saragossa, see Hogendijk 1986. 6. al-Farabi 1949a. See also the translation of al-Farabi's classification of sciences into German in Wiedemann 1970, 328-47. Islamic classifications of the sciences are discussed in Gardet and Anawati 1948, 101-24; and Bosworth 1963. c

c

c

Ikhwan al-Safa' 1928,1: 42. The mathematical sciences are dealt with in epistles 1-10, pp. 23-362. 8. Translated in Rosenthal 1975, 65. 9. For al-Buzjani's treatise on practical geometry, see part 3, n. 87, above. Al-Farabi's geometry treatise, which al-Buzjani is believed to have taken as a model, is translated into Russian in al-Farabi 1972, 91-231. For this treatise, Kitdb al-hiyal al-ruhdniya wa al-asrdr al-tabi iya fi daqd'iq al-ashkdl al-handasiya (Book of pneumatics and natural mysteries about the subtleties of geometric figures), the sole manuscript of which is in the Uppsala University Library, MS Tornberg 324, see Kubesov and Rosenfeld 1969. The attribution of this manuscript to al-Farabi is disputed in Hogendijk 1985, 62. Another geometry treatise of al-Farabi exists in Oxford, Kitdb 7.

c

bugyat al-dmdl fi sind at al-raml wa taqwim al-ashkdl c

(Book on necessary operations in the science of divination and the construction of shapes), MS Marsh 216 (Uri. 1, 956), Bodleian Library. Bulatov pointed out that the Oxford manuscript is not related to divination (al-raml) as its misleading title suggests but to geometric constructions; see Bulatov 1988, 89. For these al-Farabi manuscripts and further bibliography, see Sezgin 1974, 295-96. 10. For the geometric shapes of the Sabaean temples, see part 4, n. 3, above. 11. Proclus 1970. Al-Kindi's work is cited in Ibn al-Nadim 1970, 2: 619. For the Brethren's correlation of thefiveelements with the Platonic solids, see Ikhwan al-Safa' 1975,119, 547-48. 12. This lost work by al-Buzjani is cited in Ibn al-Nadim 1970, 2: 668; see also Sezgin 1974, 325. In contemporary astronomical treatises circular diagrams played a central role. 13. The known Arabic manuscripts of al-Buzjani's practical geometry are MS Ayasofya 2753, Suleymaniye Kuttiphanesi, Istanbul; and MS 68, Biblioteca Ambrosiana, Milan. The first one is translated into Russian in Krasnova 1966, 56-140. For these manuscripts and related bibliography, see Sezgin 1974, 321-25. Another Arabic copy in the Dar al-Kutub, Cairo, is mentioned in Chorbachi 1989, 769. For the early eleventh-century Persian translation of this text in MS Persan 169, sec. 23, fols. 141V-179V, Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris, see Woepcke 1855; and for an adaptation of this text into modern Persian, see al-Buzjani 1990-1991. A late tenth- or early eleventh-century Persian translation prepared for the Buyid ruler of Iran, Abu Mansur Baha' al-Dawla (r. 998-1013), is in MS 37, Imam Riza, Mashhad. Another eleventh- or twelfthcentury Persian translation is in MS 2876, fol. 36ff., Kitabkhane-i Merkez-i Danishgah, Tehran. The copy of an Arabic commentary written in Mosul on al-Buzjani's practical geometry by Kamal al-Din Musa b. Yunus b.

Mana, known as Ibn Mana (1156-1242), is in MS 5357, sec. 139, fol. 6ff., Imam Riza, Mashhad. Al-Buzjani's emphasis on praxis may have been inspired by the type of mathematical education he received from his paternal uncle who had studied geometry under Abu al- Ala' b. Karnib, renowned as a master in the "arts of teaching and geometry," according to Ibn al-Nadim 1970, 2: 649, 667. Al-Buzjani's popularizing works included an abbreviated version of Ptolemy's Almagest, simplified for nonspecialists interested in astronomy. In it he separated geometric from arithmetic demonstrations so that geometer-engineers (muhandis) and calculators (hdsib) trained in only one of these branches could benefit from it; those acquainted with both methods could join the two types of demonstration on their own. The text showed the calculation of the chords of a circle without the aid of numerical formulas, just by using simple geometric shapes (e.g., the sides of the equilateral triangle, square, pentagon, hexagon, octagon, and dodecagon) and included tables of trigonometry that made readily available the new developments in thatfield;see Carra de Vaux 1892. Al-Buzjani also wrote a practical manual on applied arithmetic that addressed the needs of scribes and secretaries; see al-Buzjani 1971; and Saidan 1974. 14. For the anonymous treatise, see MS Persan 169, sec. 24, fols. i 8 o r - i 9 9 v , Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris. It is described in Blochet 1905-1934, 2: no. 772, 41-47; and Richard 1989, 187, where its title has been misread as FT c

c

c

maddkhil al-ashkdl al-mutashdbiha aw al-mutawafiqa

(Introduction to similar or congruentfigures).The correct reading has been provided in Chorbachi 1989, 764, and in al-Buzjani 1990-1991, where maddkhil (introduction) has been read as taddkhul (interlocking), a reading that is more appropriate in terms of the treatise's contents dealing with interlocking geometric figures. For references to the practical geometry of al-Buzjani and the anonymous treatise, see Woepcke 1855; Prisse d'Avennes 1983; Bulatov 1988; Golombek and Wilber 1988; Holod 1986; idem 1988; Chorbachi 1989; and Chorbachi and Loeb 1992. Chorbachi's doctoral dissertation on the anonymous treatise, "Beyond the Symmetries of Islamic Geometric Patterns: The Science of Practical Geometry and the Process of Islamic Design," completed at Harvard University in 1989, is not available for public use. I regret not having had access to this important study that awaits publication. An abbreviated Russian translation of the anonymous treatise was published as an appendix in Bulatov 1978, a book that appeared in a revised edition; see Bulatov 1988, 315-40. For a recent Iranian publication of al-Buzjani's practical geometry and the anonymous treatise, see al-Buzjani 1990-1991. The various dates proposed for the anonymous treatise are discussed in part 4, pp. 167-75; see nn. 113-15, below.

NOTES

15. Kubesov and Rosenfeld noted that the treatise of al-Farabi finished on 7 July 933 contains a foreword and ten books (maqalat), all of which are included in al-Buzjani's differently organized treatise. 16. For al-Buzjani's geometric constructions, see Krasnova 1966, 56-140. Burning mirrors are concave mirrors that, by concentrating the reflected rays of the sun at a focus, cause them to set fire to objects. 17. See Woepcke 1855; Suter 1922; and idem 1986, 2: 635-51-

18. Also dealt with by ancient Greek mathematicians, similar geometric constructions had been treated in the early ninth-century geometric works of al-Kindi whose lost treatises listed by Ibn al-Nadim included Risala ft taqrib qaul ArshimTdis fi qadr qutr al-daira

min muhitiha

(Approximating Archimedes's statement about the measuring of the diameter of a circle from its circumference), Risala f 1 taqrib watar al-da'ira (Approximating the chord of a circle), Risala fi taqrib watar al-tis (Approximating the chord of a ninth [i.e., the line marking a segment equal to a ninth of a circumference]), Risala taqsim al-muthallath wa al-murabba wa amalihima (Dividing the triangle and the square and their constructions), and Risala fi qismat al-daira thalathat aqsam (Dividing the circle into three parts). These titles suggest that al-Kindi dealt with approximations of complex geometric constructions and with methods of proportioning; see Ibn al-Nadim 1970, 2: 619; and Sezgin 1974, 255-59. Krasnova listed among the earliest examples of Arabic works on constructive geometry dealing with approximate solutions a treatise by Thabit b. Qurra, who had translated Archimedes's related work entitled Amal al-daira al-maqsuma bi-sab at aqsam mutasawiya li-Arshimidis (On dividing the circle into seven equal parts by Archimedes). This treatise deals with twelve geometric constructions addressing such problems as dividing an angle into three equal parts, dividing lines into proportional segments, dividing a triangle into proportional parts, triangulation, inscribing broken lines in the arc of a circle in proportional relations, and dividing the circumference of a circle into proportional parts. For a discussion of geometric works related to that of al-Buzjani, see Krasnova c

c

c

c

c

1966.

19. The two treatises of Apollonius on cutting lines and surfaces in ratio, whose Greek originals are lost, are cited in Ibn al-Nadim 1970, 2: 637-38, as Kitdb fi

qat al-khutut ala al-nisab and Kitdb ft qat al-sutuh ala nisbat. See also Hogendijk 1985, 98; and Sezgin 1974, 142-43. Apollonius's Conica (Kitdb al-makhrutat) and c

c

c

c

its various translations are discussed in Sezgin 1974, 136-43. The Banu Musa (Muhammad, Ahmad, and al-Hasan) and their works are mentioned in Ibn al-Nadim 1970, 2: 637-38, 645-46; Hogendijk 1985,

1-30; and Souissi 1982, 412. 20. For the science of mechanics, see al-Farabi 1949a; and Wiedemann 1970, 346-47. Al-Farabi divided mechanics into two sections, one based on arithmetic and the other on geometry. The only field in the first section is algebra, which used both arithmetic and geometric proofs. For mechanical subjects included in Books 8-10 of Vitruvius's architectural treatise, see Vitruvius Pollio 1914, 225-319. For the concept of metis, see Detienne and Vernant 1974. 21. Translated in Downey 1946-1948,106-7. For Pappus's ninth-century Arabic translation, see Jackson 1972, 96-103. 22. Downey 1946-1948,107;

Kostof 1986, 63. 23. See part 4, nn. 6 and 8, above. In the late tenth century al- Amiri wrote: "Mechanics is a discipline that shares both mathematics and natural science. It enables one to bring forth hidden water from the interior of the earth and also to conduct water through water-wheels or fountains, to transport heavy objects with the application of little energy, to construct arched bridges over chasms, to erect other wonderful bridges over deep streams and to accomplish many other things, whose mention here would take up too much room"; translated in Rosenthal 1975, 66. In their classifications of knowledge such authors as al-Khwarezmi and Nasir al-Din al-Tusi continued to list mechanics among the mathematical sciences. For al-Khwarezmi's chapter on hiyal, in the Mafatih al- ulum (Keys of sciences), circa 977, see Wiedemann 1970,188; and Bosworth 1963. 24. Al-Bayhaqi's biographical entries are translated into German in Wiedemann 1970, 649, 653. Abu Hatim al-Muzaffar b. Isma il al-Isfizari, who was a contemporary of Umar Khayyam, said: "Geometry is the basis for architecture; that is why the geometer with his science constitutes the foundation. He is followed by the master builder who in turn is followed by the wage laborer [bricklayer]. The geometer commands the second [i.e., master builder] and the master builder commands the wage laborer, while the wage laborer busies himself with water and clay." Al-Qajini, who was trained in the practical rather than the theoretical branches of geometry, wrote: "The mason does not have the same significance as the architect and the architect not the same as the geometer. The geometer is Ptolemy, the architect is al-Battani, and my role is that of the mason." See also al-Tusi 1964, 217. 25. For Shams al-Din Muhammad b. Ibrahim b. Said al-Ansari al-Sinjari, called Ibn al-Akfani, see Ibn al-Akfanl 1990, translated in Wiedemann 1970,110-13. See also Taskoprizade 1895, 406-11. 26. For the applied branches of geometry mentioned by these authors, see al-Hassan and Hill 1986, 263-64. 27. For the science of construction, see Taskoprizade c

c

c

c

c

TO PART 4

177

1895, 406. Ibn al-Akfani's definition of this science is translated into German in Wiedemann 1970,114-15. For al-Karaji's treatise titled Inbat al-miyah al-khafiya (Book on finding hidden waters), see al-Karaji 1973; and Vernet and Catala 1970! 28. This lost work entitled Kitdb al-ahya wa al-athar (Book of the living and monuments[?]) is cited in Wilber 1976, 31; and Bulatov 1988, 93. 29. For medieval Vitruvius manuscripts, see Krinsky 1967; and Conant 1968. The early fifteenth-century Vitruvius manuscript in Budapest, which once belonged to the duke of Milan, Francesco Sforza (1401-1466), and later to King Matthias Corvinus, De Architectura (MS Lat. 32, Bibliothecae Universitatis Budapestiensis, Budapest), is discussed in Hajnoczi 1991. This copy came back from Istanbul in 1877 when Sultan Abdulhamid 11 sent it with other manuscripts once belonging to the Biblioteca Corviniana as a diplomatic gift to Hungary. 30. Cited in Wiedemann 1970, 418; see also Sezgin 1974,328. 31.

Cited in Wiedemann 1970,114-15; and Sezgin 1974,

37332. Ibn Khaldun 1967, 3:132. 33. Thabit b. Qurra's Arabic treatise, Kitdb fi misahat al-mujassamat al-mukafiya (Book on the mensuration of parabolic bodies), is contained in MS Arabe 2457, sec. 24, fols. 95-122, Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris, and lists

three types of parabolic domes. The treatises in this Paris manuscript were copied in 969 by al-Sijzi; see Sezgin 1974, 264-72. Al-Sijzi's own treatise on measuring domes is in MS Resit Efendi 1191, sec. 4, fols. 66-68, Suleymaniye Kutiiphanesi, Istanbul; see Sezgin 1974, 331. For treatises on the mensuration of parabolas and paraboloids, see Suter 1986, 2: 369-491. 34. For various geometers who wrote on conic sections, see Souissi 1982, 412-13; and Hogendijk 1985, 59-62, 96-115. Muhammad b. Musa b. Shakir, one of the Banu Musa brothers attached to the ninth-century Abbasid court, was the first to write an introduction to the conical forms that simplified Apollonius's treatise for practical use. This was followed by a stream of treatises on conies between the ninth and eleventh centuries by such mathematicians as Thabit b. Qurra, al-Mahani, Ibrahim b. Sinan, al-Sijzi, and Ibn al-Haytham; see Souissi 1982; and Rashed 1993. 35. For the device known as the conic compass, which facilitated drawing the conic sections, see Hogendijk 1985, 35-36; Woepcke 1874; Wiedemann 1984; and Yushkevich 1964, 288. 36. al-Jazari 1974,196-98. Al-Jazari wrote: "I made an instrument for that to facilitate the determination of the required centre-point, and the determination of all the angles in [general] use, acute and obtuse. This is [the method]." He then continued with a description of this

178

NOTES TO PART 4

drafting instrument, but it is unlikely that he invented it, given the derivative nature of his treatise that freely draws on earlier works on the same subject, such as the book of ingenious devices by one of the Banu Musa brothers; see Ibn Musab. Shakir Muhammad 1979. Al-Jazari seems to have been a technologist rather than a professional mathematician; inventing such an instrument would have required extensive mathematical training. Not enough is known about the history of Islamic drafting instruments to be able to determine when the one described by al-Jazari was invented. For instruments, see part 4, n. 35, above. 37. This instrument is reconstructed in Bulatov 1988, 328; see MS Persan 169, sec. 24, fol. 191, Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris. It is unclear which treatise by Ibn al-Haytham the anonymous author was referring to; this may have been a lost work of the mathematician who extensively dealt with conic sections throughout his career. The anonymous author says that according to the inventor of the instrument one could draw complex conic sections with its aid, but he admitted his unfamiliarity with this technique. It is also possible that the anonymous author was referring to the concluding chapters of Ibn al-Haytham's Uqud treatise, which dealt with conic sections, rather than to a separate treatise on the construction of that particular right triangle. For Ibn al-Haytham's works on conies, see Souissi 1982, 413. 38. See, for example, the "how-to" instructions in MS Persan 169, sec. 24, fol. 194, Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris. 39. al-Jazari 1974, 191-95. 40. Ibid., 195. 41. Ibid., 192. 42. For the Damascene geometer, see Wiedemann 1970,114 n. 1. The role of practical geometry is discussed in Ibn Khaldun 1967, 2: 363. 43. Ibn Khaldun 1967, 2: 360-61. 44. See Plessner i960, 994: "Apollonius of Perge appears in the biographical sources . . . almost invariably with the epithet al-Nadjdjar (the carpenter), the origin of which has not yet been explained satisfactorily. . . . Also Euclid was called the geometer, and . . . Ibn al-Qifti calls him al-Nadjdjar in the heading of his article, but states afterwards that Euclid was a carpenter by vocation." In medieval Europe, Euclid was invoked as the father of masonry; see Bucher 1972, 532. 45. Cafer Efendi 1987, 27, 30. For the garden workshops of the Topkapi Palace, see Necipoglu 1991, 46-50, 207-8. The close relationship and rivalry between music and architecture at the Ottoman court is discussed in Necipoglu 1990a. 46. Cafer Efendi 1987, 28. 47. Ibid., 32. c

c

c

48. Ibid., 28. 49. Ibid., 22-23. 50. Ibid., 30-3151. Ibid., 67-68. 52. Ibid., 34. 53. Konyah 1948, 72. 54. Sai 1989, 52-56, 141-42, fols. 2b-3a; translation mine. 55. Evliya Qelebi 1896-1897, 157-59; Lokman, Surname, MS H. 1344, fol. 189b, Topkapi Sarayi Miizesi Kutiiphanesi, Istanbul. The description of the model paraded in 1675 from the late seventeenth-century Surname of Abdi is cited in And 1982, 86. For the use of architectural models in Ottoman architectural practice and the reproduction of a miniature showing the model of the Stileymaniye mosque paraded in 1582, see Necipoglu 1986. 56. Lokman, Surname, MS H. 1344, fols. i7ib-i72a, Topkapi Sarayi Miizesi Kutiiphanesi, Istanbul. The quotation of Filippo Pigafetta (1533-1604), himself a mechanic, is cited in Wilkinson 1988, 474. For Sinan's jurisdiction over building- and decoration-related crafts, see Necipoglu 1992a, 211. 57. Qaisar 1988,14. 58. Translated in Begley and Desai 1989, 267, 270. 59. For these Mughal mathematical treatises and further bibliography, see ibid., xli-xlviii, 266-75. 60. See ibid., 275. 61. Translated in Thackston 1989,159. 62. For the Haft Paykar, included in the Khamsa (Five epic poems), see NizamI GanjawT 1991-1992, 141-42. In this work Nizami described Sinimmar, the legendary builder of the Khawarnaq castle, as skilled in drawing, preparing talismans, and making astrolabes; see idem, 59. For the reference to Farhad in Khusraw wa ShTrin, see idem, 216-17. The architect Badr al-Din Tabrizi is mentioned in Aflaki 1986-1987, 2: 159, 287-88. For the image of the medieval Islamic architect in literary sources, see also Bulatov 1988. 63. Vitruvius Pollio 1914, 5-6, 11-12. 64. Ibid., 6. 65. For Baha' al-Din Amili, see S. H. Nasr, "Spiritual Movements, Philosophy and Theology in the Safavid Period," in Jackson and Lockhardt 1986, 666-69; and al- Amili [18—?]. Professional mathematician-engineers seem to have been more frequently involved in construction projects during the early Islamic era, especially during the foundation of such new caliphal capitals as Baghdad and Samarra. 66. For a summary of the views of Soviet scholars on the mathematical knowledge commanded by architects, see Bulatov 1988. 67. al-Khwarezmi 1831, 3, 71. The contents of c

c

c

al-Khwarezmi's treatise are discussed in Bulatov 1988, 83-88; and Dold-Samplonius 1993, 2-3. 68. For Abu Kamil's treatise known from a Hebrew translation, see Sacerdote 1896; Suter 1986, 1: 247-75; Sezgin 1974, 277-81; and Dold-Samplonius 1993. For the arithmetic treatise of al-Buzjani, see al-Buzjani 1971; and Saidan 1974. 69. Bosworth 1963, 98-99. 70. Cited in Mez 1937,104-5. For the culture of the Buyid court, see Kraemer 1986; and Mottahedeh 1980. 71. For the Timurid organization, see O'Kane 1987, 40: "The work of supervision on a large-scale project could be divided up on successive hierarchical levels, with amirs and high government officials specifically receiving superintendencies (sarkarhd)" He added that in some cases architects (mi mar) acted in a purely administrative capacity. The Ottomans are discussed in Mayer 1956, 19. For the administrative organization of the construction industry in Mughal India, see Qaisar 1988, c

5-15.

72. For the works on applied arithmetic by al-Karaji and Ibn al-Haytham, see Busard 1968, 69; DoldSamplonius 1993, 6-7; and al-Karaji 1878-1880. For the science of misaha, see al-Farabi 1949a. Ibn Khaldun grouped mensuration among the geometric sciences concerned with "quantities [measurements]" rather than among the arithmetic sciences "concerned with numbers" just like Cafer Efendi, the author of the Risale-i M'fmariyye; see Ibn Khaldun 1967, 3: 118-35; and Cafer Efendi 1987, 30-31, 83. For the practical uses of misaha and an introduction to the major texts in this field, see Schirmer 1993. 73. Schirmer 1993. For al-Kindi's geometric works, see Ibn al-Nadim 1970, 2: 619; and Sezgin 1974, 258. Barbaro's commentary on Book 3 of Vitruvius, which deals with proportions, summarizes the propositions of "Alchindo" on the rules of proportion; see Barbaro c

c

1567,103-7.

74. For Abu Bakr's Latin translation, see Sezgin 1974, Schirmer 1993, 137; Suter 1900, no. 224; and Busard 1968. 75. I am grateful to Dr. Yvonne Dold-Samplonius for sending me copies of her forthcoming and published articles on al-Kashi's mensuration of the muqarnas and dome. For the quoted passage, see Dold-Samplonius 1992a, 193. For al-Kashi's chapters on mensuration, see also idem 1992b; idem 1993; and idem forthcoming. Another recent analysis of al-Kashi's chapter on the muqarnas is in Ozdural 1990. 76. Ghiyath al-Din al-Kashi's role (together with Mawlana Mu in al-Din al-Kashi) as building supervisor (dar tartib~i an bind') is mentioned in Khwandamir 1954, 4: 21. Al-Kashi's letter (MS 2916, Kitabkhana-i 389-91;

c

NOTES

Masjid-i Sipahsalar, Tehran) is cited in Sayih i960, 282. 77. See Dold-Samplonius 1992a, 193-94. 78. Chardin 1711, 2: 80. For the full quotation, see part 1, p. 44, of the present volume. 79. Komaroff 1991, 610-11. Referring to al-Kashi's treatise on arithmetic, Rogers rightly asked: "How far was this prescriptive and how far a commonplace example to explain a series of mathematical functions? Kashi was certainly not an architect, nor can mastery of such mathematical functions have been an essential part of the architect's training." He concluded, "Whatever the future may show the required demonstration that Timurid architects were mathematicians or that metrology has an important contribution to make to the history of Timurid architecture is not yet to hand"; Rogers 1989,134-35. For the mathematical explanation of the mason's method, see Dold-Samplonius forthcoming; idem 1992a, 220-26; and Ozdural 1990. 80. Vitruvius Pollio 1914, 5-6,11-12. 81. MS Bab-i Defter! Ba§ Muhasebe, Bina Emini (D. B§M. BNE.), no. 15999, Basbakanhk Arsivi, Istanbul. I plan to analyze this document in a forthcoming study. 82. See Lopez de Arenas 1912; and idem 1966. 83. For the lower status of mechanics in Renaissance Europe, see Wilkinson 1988, 472-74. The practical geometry of medieval master builders and artisans may have been a humble science, but it was, as Kostof pointed out, "the vernacular of the same language that was used by the intelligentsia." In the end "what distinguished the [medieval] architect from the master mason would be exactly his mastery of the theoretical implications of geometry, which is why the architect could find no loftier portrait for himself than to be represented as a geometrician with compass and measuring rod in hand"; see Kostof 1986, 79-80. 84. Bucher 1972, 528, 532; Harvey 1971, 36, 41. 85. Active in Barcelona, Abraham bar Hiyya was involved in translating the masterpieces of Arab science into Latin. For Abraham bar Hiyya and Fibonacci, see Busard 1968, 67, 85; and Lindberg 1978b. 86. Sacerdote 1896,174-76; Suter 1986, 1: 247-75; Woepcke 1855, 221. See also Schirmer 1993; and Sezgin 1974, 280, 390. c 87. Ibn Abdiin 1981, 172-73. For the movement, see Lindberg 1978b.

translation

88. Cited in Summers 1987, 254; and Victor 1979, 7-11. 89. Translated in Victor 1979, 7-11. Gundissalinus used the expression "secundum geometriam practicans" to define the artist and artisan; see Simson 1974, 33 n. 33. See also Wilkinson 1988, 470-72. 90. For the medieval status of the mechanical arts, see Sternagel 1966, 27-33; Wilkinson 1988, 470-72; Ovitt 1983; and Summers 1987, 262-65.

91. Cited in Wittkower 1988,151. For Grosseteste, see Crombie 1953. For the quotation from Villard, see Bucher 1979,121. Medieval European practical geometries are discussed in Victor 1979. 92. Cited in Bucher 1979,14. 93. See Kepler 1939; and Field 1979. Kepler defined congruence as follows: "Congruence takes one form in the plane and another in space. In the plane there is congruence when individual angles of several figures come together at a point in such a way that they leave no gap"; translated from the second book of Harmonices Mundi in Field 1979, 113. The titles of Kepler's five books give an idea of his grand scheme: Book 1, The Regular Figures Which Give Rise to Harmonic Proportions; Book 2, Congruence of Harmonic Figures; Book 3, The Origin of Harmonic Proportions in Nature and Differences between Things Appertaining to Music; Book 4, The Harmonic Configurations of the Rays of Stars and the Earth, and Their Effect in Determining the Weather and Other Natural Phenomena; and Book 5, The Most Perfect Harmony in the Celestial Motions and the Origin from Them of Eccentricities, Semidiameters, and Periodic Times. For the cosmic symbolism of the Platonic solids

in the Renaissance, see Pacioli 1509. 94. For the practical geometries of these authors, see Bucher 1979, 34. Roriczer's short fifteenth-century pamphlet on constructive geometry, Geometria Deutsch, is translated into English in Shelby 1977, 113-23. 95. See Diirer 1970; and Schroder 1980, 9-12. 96. Dan Pedoe commented on Diirer's construction of the pentagon: "The medieval constructions of regular polygons were, of course, approximate, but they were, and had to be, simple, preferably not even calling for a change in the opening of the compasses, which had no device to recapture an opening, once it was changed. . . . Diirer knew Euclid, but he does not give Euclid's construction for a regular pentagon, which is a theoretically exact one. . . . Euclid makes no attempt to trisect a given arc, and Diirer knew that this was impossible. . . . Diirer does give approximate constructions for the trisection of an arc"; Pedoe 1976, 69. There are similar pentagon constructions in the A mal wa ashkal (see Bulatov 1988, 322, fig. 22) and in Geometria Deutsch (see Shelby 1977, c

113-23).

97. Kemp 1978; idem 1990; Kuhn 1990. 98. The impact of Ibn al-Haytham's optical treatise in Europe is discussed in Ibn al-Haytham 1989, 2: xi, 97; Lindberg 1967; and Summers 1987, 74. 99. For the development of perspective in Renaissance Europe, see Panofsky 1924-1925; Kubovy 1986; Damisch 1987; and Jay 1988, 3-23. 100. Summers 1987, 316. 101. Ibid., 73.

TO PART 4

179

102. For a description of the contents of the manuscript, see Blochet 1905-1934, 2: no. 772, 41-47; and Richard 1989,183-87. 103. For Seljuq and Mongol science, see Kennedy 1968; sciences in the Timurid period are discussed in idem 1986. For Safavid sciences, see Winter 1986. 104. For the commentary written in Mosul, see Chorbachi 1989, 752-54. It was Bulatov who first linked the Persian translation in Paris with Ibn Iraq and the eleventh-century Khwarezmian court; see Bulatov 1988. Kubanani Yazdi's postscript invokes the names of his master Shams al-Din Abu Bakr Shah b. Najm al-Din Mahmud Shah b. Hajji Taj al-Din Kudak and of his deceased brother Shaykh Najm al-Din Mahmud. The latter had written a commentary on the Almagest and a gloss on the Greek mathematician Menelaus's Spherics in addition to other works. It was he who had begun copying al-Buzjani's text but died before completing this enterprise; see Sezgin 1974, 321-25; and Richard 1989,186-87. For the court of Khwarezm, see Bosworth 1978. Ibn Iraq's works are listed in Sezgin 1974, 338-41. The medieval Persian text in Paris has been adapted to modern Persian in al-Buzjani 1990-1991. 105. For the Arabic text in Istanbul, see Krasnova 1966, 42-55. For surviving al-Buzjani manuscripts, see part 4, n. 13, above. 106. MS Persan 169, sec. 7, fols. 49V-63, Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris. For a description, see Blochet 19051934, 2: no. 772, 42; and Richard 1989,184. 107. MS Persan 169, sec. 10, fols. 70V-89, Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris. 108. MS Persan 169, sec. 16, fols. 108-118, Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris; idem, sec. 19, fols. 124V-138. 109. Fuat Sezgin suggested that the Abhabuchr (Abu Bakr) mentioned in the Latin text may have been the little-known author of the Risala ft misahat al-ashkal (Treatise on the mensuration of figures), an Abu Bakr al-Qadi who lived in the first half of the eleventh century. However, Abhabuchr's identity has not been confirmed. Neither Gerard of Cremona's abridged Latin text nor the Risala includes the last section on applied mechanics appended to the longer Persian treatise in Paris (A mal) whose author may have been the same Abu Bakr. Abu Bakr al-Qadi's four-part treatise (MS 3439, sec. 17, fols. 127V-134, Fatih Kutuphanesi, Istanbul) is cited in Sezgin 1974, 386; for the four-part Latin text, see idem, 389-91. 110. Abu Bakr is cited in MS Persan 169, sec. 24, fols. i87r, i89r, Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris. 111. MS Persan 169, sec. 24, fol. i89r, Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris (fig. 32 in Bulatov 1988, 327); MS Persan 169, sec. 24, fol. i87r, Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris (fig. 26 in Bulatov 1988, 324). The tabulated table is on c

c

c

i8o

NOTES TO PART 4

fol. i84r; see Bulatov 1988, 322. 112. For one such solution proposed by the author, see MS Persan 169, sec. 24, fol. i9or, Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris. 113. Bulatov 1988, 315-40; Golombek and Wilber 1988, 1:159. See also Holod 1986; and idem 1988. One of the patterns that may have been added to the treatise in the Timurid period is the last one, which has no accompanying text (see fig. 113a in the present volume). But even this last pattern is not inconsistent with an early medieval repertory; for comparable examples of swastika compositions in Anatolian Seljuq monuments, see Mulayim 1982,185,192, 232. 114. Blochet 1905-1934, 2: no. 772, 41-47.

115. They wrote, "Since this architectural decoration dates from the period 1180-1230 A . D . , we may conclude that knowledge about the Pentagonal Seal had by that time filtered down to artisans, so that the material presented in folio 180a may be dated to before 1200 A.D., circa 1180-1230 A . D . " ; see Chorbachi and Loeb 1992, 301-4. This is, however, a hypothetical date, given that the pre-thirteenth-century examples of geometric ornament from monuments in the Baghdad region have completely disappeared. It is therefore not possible to firmly establish when the patterns seen in the anonymous treatise first came into use in architectural decoration. Chorbachi seems inclined to date the anonymous treatise to Iraq around the late twelfth or early thirteenth century, given the revived interest in those years in al-Buzjani's practical geometry on which Kamal al-Din Musa b. Yunus b. Mana, known as Ibn Mana, wrote a commentary in Mosul; see Chorbachi 1989, 752-54. Alpay Ozdural proposed an early thirteenthcentury date, given the similarity between the drafting instruments (see figs. 107,108) depicted in the anonymous treatise and in al-Jazari's early thirteenth-century manual on ingenious devices written in Diyarbakir; see Ozdural 1995, 70 n. 46. 116. MS Persan 169, sec. 24, fols. 185V, 187V, i9or, Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris. 117. MS Persan 169, sec. 24, fol. 187V, Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris. 118. MS Persan 169, sec. 24, fol. i9or, Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris. 119. MS Persan 169, sec. 24, fols. 183V-184, Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris. 120. It was the Persian mathematician and poet Umar Khayyam (d. circa A.D. 1130) who perfected such cubic equations, which have been regarded as the highest achievements of Muslim mathematicians, in his famous algebra, al-Jabr; see Sarton 1927-1948,1: 759-61. For a mathematical text of Umar Khayyam addressing the practical concerns of artisans, see Ozdural 1995. c

c

c

c

121. For the Indian sources, see Yushkevich 1964, 99. See also Chorbachi 1989, 764-71, where the algebraic analysis of this geometric construction and its use in Islamic architectural decoration are discussed. The names given by contemporary Iranian craftsmen are cited in Orazi 1976, figs. 79-81; and Firishtah Nazhad i977> 9.

122. Jones 1982, 69. 123. For the triangulation methods and harmonic divisions of polygons shown in the anonymous treatise and the special importance assigned to the pentagon (which is not as prominent in the Topkapi scroll), see Bulatov 1988, 90, 315-24, 339. The irregular patterns in this treatise may reflect a misunderstanding on the part of the copyist, who made several errors. One of these errors was noted by Chorbachi: "Clearly this was a copyist's error, which in turn tells us something else about this unique manuscript: that it is copied and thus there must have been another manuscript like it. My main hope here is that the original manuscript has survived somewhere and will be recognized or discovered one day. Using another manuscript, one can resolve some of these textual problems"; see Chorbachi 1989, 777. It is unclear whether the original manuscript was written in Arabic or Persian. 124. By adding a representational dimension to the geometric problem of proportionally dividing a plane, Escher's zoomorphic tilings animated the nonrepresentational star-and-polygon compositions of "Moorish" patterns, whose purely abstract qualities had fascinated so many nineteenth-century European theorists of ornament. Escher regretted that Islamic geometric patterns based on this principle were limited to abstract shapes: "Altogether it is doubly unfortunate that the only people obviously intrigued by this possibility—the Moors—were not allowed to proceed beyond abstractions"; see Coxeter et al. 1986,16. 125. It is not surprising that Escher, too, did not limit himself to plane tilings but also experimented with the regular division of space into closely packed congruent three-dimensional cells, or space tilings. See, for example, his drawing entitled Cubic Space Division in Coxeter et al. 1986, 6, fig. 4. 126. Al-Kashi's discussion of the muqarnas is interpreted in Golombek and Wilber 1988,1: 164-65. For recent studies and an English translation, see Ozdural 1990; Dold-Samplonius 1992a; and idem forthcoming. See also "The Muqarnas" by Mohammad al-Asad in the present volume. 127. The origin of the muqarnas has puzzled scholars from the nineteenth century onward. Diez wrote in 1938, "The muqarnas was not invented by a people but grew out of the soil of a common Weltanschauung"; see Diez

According to Grabar, "So far as is known, the origins of the muqarnas probably lie in almost simultaneous but apparently unconnected developments in north-eastern Iran and central North Africa"; see Grabar 1978,176. 128. Ibn Jubayr 1907, 253. This passage is translated and discussed in Tabbaa 1986, 230-35: "The qarbasa craft has exhausted its resources in this minbar, for I have not seen in another country a minbar which resembles its shape and the uniqueness of its manufacture. ... It rises like an enormous crown above the mihrab until it reaches the ceiling. Its top part is arched and open with balconies. It is all inlaid with ivory and ebony, and this inlay work continues to the mihrab and beyond the qibla wall without any apparent division, so that the eyes enjoy one of the most beautiful sights in the world." For the term muqarbas or muqarbas, used as a synonym for muqarnas in the western Islamic world, see Fernandez-Puertas 1993. The confusion between muqarnas and muqarbas is noted in the glossary of Ibn Jubayr 1907, 44. For the etymology of muqarnas, see "The Muqarnas" by al-Asad in the present volume; and Dold-Samplonius 1992a, 197-200. 129. MS Persan 169, sec. 24, fol. i8ov, Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris (fig. 2 in Bulatov 1988, 316). Among mathematical treatises on the subject of proportion written around the same time were al-Buzjani's Risala fi al-nisab wa al-ta rifat (Epistle on ratio and proportion) and the Baghdadi mathematician Abu Abd Allah Muhammad b. Isa b. Ahmad al-Mahani's (circa 825888) Risala ft al-nisba (Epistle on proportions) and Risala ft mushkil min amr al-nisba (Epistle on complex proportions); for these works and other works on proportion by Ibn al-Haytham and Umar Khayyam, see Sezgin 1974,100, 260-62, 324. See also epistle 6 on ratio and proportion, in Ikhwan al-Safa' 1928,1: 181-94, discussed in part 5. 130. See Ibn Khaldun 1967, 3: 360-61, 365: "Another technique of construction is decoration and ornamentation. Thus, figures formed of gypsum are placed upon the walls. [The gypsum] is mixed with water, and then solidified again, with some humidity remaining in it. Symmetrical figures are chiseled out of it with iron drills, until it looks brilliant and pleasant. The walls are occasionally also covered with pieces of marble, brick, clay, shells [mother-of-pearl], or jet. [The material] may be divided either into identically shaped or differently shaped pieces. The pieces are arranged in whatever symmetrical figures and arrangements are being utilized by the [various artisans], and set into the quicklime [with which the walls have been covered]. Thus, the walls come to look like colorful flower beds." See also Lopez de Arenas 1912 (1633), fol. 23r. 1987,153-54.

c

c

c

c

NOTES

131. Dost Muhammad's description of the Safavid artist Master Kamal al-Din Husayn's geometric patterns is translated in Thackston 1989, 349. See also al-Jazari 1974,191.

132. See, for example, Evliya's description of the marble gate of the Yesil Cami in Bursa with multilayered (kat ender kat) interlaces of girih, islimT, and rumi patterns designed in a wonderful manner (tarz-i acib ve tavr-i garib) in Evliya Qelebi, Seyahatname (Book of travels), vol. 2, MS B. 304, fol. 224V, Topkapi Sarayi Miizesi Kutiiphanesi, Istanbul. He described the minbar of the Ala' al-Din mosque in Sinop as having three superimposed layers (tie kat birbiri altinda) of interlaced pattern, a wonderful ( ibretntimun) work whose design manifested miraculous saintly powers (evliya ulldhin izhar-i kerametidur) and astonished the viewer (engtist berdehan). Its designer had so skillfully fitted together small pieces of marble that even the scrutinizing gaze (im an-i nazar) of experts could not decipher the joints that appeared continuous; see idem, fol. 246r. Evliya described the minbar and mihrab of the Sultan Hasan mosque in Tabriz, with its intricate interlacing of mukarnas, islimi, rumi, and geometric patterns, as a work whose creator's talent approached the level of licit magic (sihr-i mubin mertebesi); see idem, fol. 299r. Similarly, the Kizil Medrese in Sivas had a marble gate with seventy to eighty layered interlaces characterized as a wonderful work ( ibretnumun) approaching the level of licit magic (sihr-i mubin); see idem, fol. 75r. 133. Cafer Efendi 1987, 34. 134. See Rahman 1965. 135. Bryson 1983, 87-131. 136. For Viollet-le-Duc, see the preface in Bourgoin 1873a. Yve-Alain Bois has recently argued that the French painter Henri-Emile-Benoit Matisse (1869-1954) was aiming at a similar "blindness of vision" by his rejection of monocular perspective. His paintings encouraged "a distracted glance, a peripheral glance, a glance dispossessed of its force of concentration." Bois suggested that this is why Matisse was so seduced by the labyrinthine optical effects of Islamic architectural revetments and the decorative arts; see Bois 1993. For a similar "madness of vision" in Baroque art, see c

c

c

c

c

c

Jay 1988,16-20.

TO PART

4

l8l

PART

5.

GEOMETRY

AND AESTHETIC

Euclid alone has looked on Beauty bare.

— E d n a St. V i n c e n t M i l l a y , The

Harp-Weaver

]

THEORY

CHAPTER

10.

THE AESTHETICS

OF PROPORTION

AND LIGHT

designing a r h y t h m i c arabesque, o r s t r i n g i n g a

Since architecture and the decorative arts were

w r i t i n g s o f such m a j o r philosophers as a l - K i n d i ,

classified as part o f applied mechanics, r o o t e d

al-Farabi, a n d I b n Sina a n d later t h i n k e r s w h o

necklace according to the rules o f measured c o m -

i n a shared language o f practical geometry, their

explored its effects o n the s o u l .

p o s i t i o n (ta'lTf)

principles were expounded i n m a t h e m a t i c a l trea-

3

I n b o t h medieval Europe and i n the M u s l i m

a n d p r o p o r t i o n (tanasub).

The

O t t o m a n theorist o f poetry M u s l i h a l - D i n Mustafa

tises that c o m p l e m e n t e d oral t r a d i t i o n s a n d

lands the realm o f " a r t " had b r o a d h o r i z o n s

S u r u r i (1491-1562), w h o used such craft meta-

w o r k s h o p drawings. Despite their h i g h status

encompassing what we t h i n k o f nowadays as

phors, compared the o r n a m e n t a l arts o f poetry

t h r o u g h o u t Islamic history, these fields d i d n o t

technology and artisanry. T h e medieval theory

(sanai-yi

generate a separate b o d y o f n o n m a t h e m a t i c a l

o f art (ars) was, therefore, "first a n d foremost a

w o r k (kdsikdr),

theoretical w r i t i n g f r o m w h i c h one c o u l d deduce

theory o f c r a f t s m a n s h i p . "

referring t o the art o f h o m o p h o n y as tarsi

their aesthetic principles. By contrast a consider-

w o r l d were generally subsumed under u m b r e l l a

"tarsia," or " t o inlay w i t h pearls a n d precious

able theoretical l i t e r a t u r e existed o n music, liter-

terms such as fann and san at that referred t o all

stones").

ary c r i t i c i s m , a n d t o a lesser extent o n calligraphy,

fields o f expertise or skill i n the crafts a n d sciences

w h i c h together w i t h l i t e r a t u r e was classified as

alike. Consequently, theoretical w r i t i n g s o n

and music, w h i c h p r o v i d e valuable glimpses o f

part o f the t r i v i u m ( g r a m m a r , logic, r h e t o r i c ) . T h e

poetics, music, a n d calligraphy are filled w i t h

visual aesthetics, p h i l o s o p h i c a l texts also were

concept o f taste (dhawq),

references t o the visual arts a n d architecture,

r i c h l y i m b u e d w i t h aesthetic n o t i o n s . As i n medie-

o f aesthetic p e r c e p t i o n , was a mysterious e m o -

reflecting the c o m m o n semantic field o f crafts.

val Europe, w h i c h d i d n o t have an aesthetics i n d e -

t i o n a l q u a l i t y by w h i c h the heart a n d soul c o u l d

Jerome W . C l i n t o n , i n his analysis o f the prosodist

pendent o f scholastic philosophy, i n the Islamic

be m o v e d , a subjective q u a l i t y that nevertheless

Shams-i Qays's ( f l . 1204-1230) Persian m a n u a l

w o r l d concepts o f beauty often were embedded i n

r e q u i r e d objective standards. These standards

o f versification, said that " f r o m the p o i n t o f view

metaphysical discussions. T h e relevance o f such

were most clearly denned i n literary c r i t i c i s m .

o f the l i t e r a r y c r i t i c , at least, poetic esthetics a n d

p h i l o s o p h i c a l texts for architectural a n d artisanal

M u s i c (a science w i t h b o t h theoretical and p r a c t i -

the esthetics o f art were co-extensive." H e drew

p r o d u c t i o n has n o t yet been explored systemati-

cal branches subsumed under the q u a d r i v i u m ) h a d

a t t e n t i o n t o the frequent use o f craft metaphors

cally. Conceptual categories p r o v i d e d by Islamic

a questionable status i n some p u r i t a n i c a l circles,

i n l i t e r a r y c r i t i c i s m where poetic c o m p o s i t i o n is

intellectual h i s t o r y have been ignored by art h i s t o -

b u t i t , t o o , received theoretical elaboration i n the

often compared to weaving a patterned brocade,

rians w h o focus o n the h a r d data o f archaeology,

defined as the power

2

T h e arts i n the Islamic

4

c

si nye) c

to the wall paintings (naks), and p o m p (alayis)

tile

o f a house, c

(lit.,

5

I n a d d i t i o n t o theoretical w r i t i n g s o n l i t e r a t u r e

186

PART 5. GEOMETRY

AND AESTHETIC

epigraphy, h i s t o r i c a l sources, and standard r e l i -

THEORY

M e d i e v a l aesthetics i n the L a t i n West, Byzan-

ideas i n a m o r e p o p u l a r i d i o m t h a n t h a t o f the

gious texts. The positivistic f o r m a l studies t h a t

t i u m , and the Islamic w o r l d b u i l t u p o n a shared

philosophers. As we have seen, the Rasa'il, w h i c h

d o m i n a t e the field o f Islamic art and architecture

heritage received f r o m classical a n t i q u i t y , a

c o n s t i t u t e d an encyclopedia o f the p h i l o s o p h i c a l

( w h i c h u l t i m a t e l y grew o u t o f n i n e t e e n t h - c e n t u r y

heritage t h a t was infused w i t h the m o n o t h e i s t i c

sciences, was also p o p u l a r i n S u n n i circles despite

Orientalist archaeology and museology) treat

transcendental o r i e n t a t i o n s o f I s l a m and C h r i s -

the heterodox S h i i leanings o f its authors asso-

b u i l d i n g s and objects as items t o be cataloged i n

tianity. Just as medieval Islamic science was

ciated w i t h the B u y i d c o u r t i n Baghdad.

terms o f geographic regions, style, typology, i n s c r i p -

r o o t e d i n the late school o f A l e x a n d r i a , the p h i l o -

tions, decorative techniques, and factual data o n

sophical speculations o f M u s l i m t h i n k e r s w h o

and astrology occupy a p r i m a r y p o s i t i o n , are

artists and patrons. The few i n t e r p r e t i v e studies

a t t e m p t e d to reconcile Plato and A r i s t o t l e w i t h

an eclectic b l e n d o f Pythagorean (Pythagoras is

c

7

The fifty-two epistles, i n w h i c h mathematics

emphasize the p o l i t i c a l and ideological contexts o f

Islam were i n s p i r e d by the classical t r a d i t i o n . The

referred t o as a m o n o t h e i s t i c sage f r o m H a r r a n )

art and architecture, largely o v e r l o o k i n g m o r e e l u -

p h i l o s o p h i c a l sciences became w i d e l y dissemi-

and N e o p l a t o n i c p h y s i c o m a t h e m a t i c a l ideas

nated between the n i n t h and late t e n t h centuries,

merged w i t h Babylonian astrology and H e r m e t i c

t r i c k l i n g d o w n i n p o p u l a r i z e d f o r m to the u r b a n

doctrines. The first o f the fourteen m a t h e m a t i c a l

sive questions about aesthetic p h i l o s o p h y .

6

This explains w h y no sourcebook has been c o m p i l e d o n visually relevant aesthetic w r i t i n g s f r o m

c u l t u r e o f m a j o r Islamic cities, m u c h like the dif-

epistles deals w i t h a r i t h m e t i c , " t h e science o f

the Islamic w o r l d , comparable t o such anthologies

fusion o f the m a t h e m a t i c a l sciences at t h a t t i m e .

n u m b e r " t h a t is " t h e r o o t o f the other sciences, the

as Julius v o n Schlosser's Die Kunstliteratur,

After the c o n s o l i d a t i o n o f the S u n n i revival i n the

f o u n t o f w i s d o m , the starting p o i n t o f knowledge,

eleventh century, however, o r t h o d o x refutations

and the o r i g i n o f all concepts." This is f o l l o w e d by

Edgar de Bruyne's Etudes d'esthetique

1946; and Paul FrankPs The Gothic: Literary and Interpretations

1924;

medievale,

through Eight Centuries,

Sources i960.

o f p h i l o s o p h y m u l t i p l i e d . Aesthetic theories t i n g e d

the epistle o n theoretical geometry (differentiated

w i t h N e o p l a t o n i s m were n o w revised according

f r o m the practical geometry o f the arts and crafts)

I n the next t w o chapters I w i l l discuss some defini-

to d o m i n a n t o r t h o d o x sensibilities, d i s t i l l e d i n

t h a t is s i m i l a r l y defined as a gateway t o superior

tions o f ideal beauty together w i t h psychological

p o p u l a r i z e d f o r m t h r o u g h Sufism, and assimilated

levels o f theoretical u n d e r s t a n d i n g . M a t h e m a t i c s

theories o f the processes o f artistic creation and

i n t o the m a i n s t r e a m o f medieval Islamic c u l t u r e .

is thus presented as the t h r e s h o l d o f intellectual

visual p e r c e p t i o n scattered i n various Islamic

The late t e n t h - c e n t u r y Rasa'il o f the B r e t h r e n o f

insight along the pathway o f progressive ascent

texts. O f course, m a n y other relevant texts c o u l d

P u r i t y seems t o have played an i m p o r t a n t role i n

t o w a r d the highest level o f knowledge, metaphys-

be cited for t h e i r i m p l i c a t i o n s about visual aes-

p o p u l a r i z i n g aesthetic concepts developed i n the

ics. The r e m a i n i n g m a t h e m a t i c a l epistles address

thetics i n general and geometric abstraction i n

w r i t i n g s o f such philosophers as a l - K i n d i and al-

such subjects as astronomy, music, geography,

p a r t i c u l a r . The ones I have chosen, regardless o f

Farabi. The B r e t h r e n spread t h e i r central teaching

logic, " n u m e r i c a l , geometric, and h a r m o n i c

whether they exercised a direct influence o n b u i l d -

(the salvation o f souls f r o m the defilement o f

r a t i o s , " and the arts and crafts. A c c o r d i n g to the

ers and decorators, p r o v i d e fragmentary glimpses

m a t t e r b y s p i r i t u a l p u r i f i c a t i o n so t h a t they m i g h t

B r e t h r e n mathematics plays a central role i n

i n t o widespread aesthetic sensibilities t h a t acted

r e t u r n to t h e i r t r u e h o m e by celestial ascent)

the c o m p o s i t i o n o f the universe. M o r e o v e r , the

as a general b a c k d r o p against w h i c h visual i d i o m s

a m o n g the elite and masses alike, i n p a r t i c u l a r

r e l a t i o n o f the i n d i v i s i b l e u n i q u e G o d to the m u l -

were f o r m u l a t e d and r e f o r m u l a t e d i n specific his-

addressing artisans and the generally educated

t i p l i c i t y o f the universe (created as an eternal

t o r i c a l contexts.

c o m m o n people. To this end they e x p o u n d e d t h e i r

e m a n a t i o n o f l i g h t ) corresponds to the r e l a t i o n

THE AESTHETICS

o f the n u m b e r one to other n u m b e r s .

8

The Brethren's cosmology echoes the emana-

OF PROPORTION

AND

LIGHT

18

appeared as an i n c o r p o r e a l substance capable o f

to w h i c h its substance corresponds. I n other

m e d i a t i n g between the i n t e l l i g i b l e realm o f reason

words, aesthetic pleasure arises w h e n the soul

7

t i o n i s t w o r l d v i e w o f earlier A r a b philosophers

and the sensible realm o f matter. Just as i t c o u l d

(subject to the same p r o p o r t i o n s t h a t govern the

such as a l - K i n d i and al-Farabi. As M a j i d Fakhry

descend d o w n w a r d to the ignoble corporeal w o r l d

cosmos) finds its o w n i n n e r h a r m o n y d u p l i c a t e d

has s h o w n , t h a t w o r l d v i e w was i n s p i r e d largely by

o f the senses, i t c o u l d also direct its l o n g i n g gaze

i n its object, leading i t to remember w i t h l o n g -

the N e o p l a t o n i s t p h i l o s o p h e r Plotinus's ( 2 0 5 - 2 7 0 )

u p w a r d t o w a r d the resplendent beauty o f the i n t e l -

i n g the music o f the spheres to w h i c h i t had once

ligible w o r l d , infused w i t h b r i l l i a n t l i g h t .

been exposed. The epistle o n love and ideal beauty

d o c t r i n e o f e m a n a t i o n expounded i n the

Enneads.

A n abridged version o f t h a t w o r k (the apocryphal Theology of Aristotle

i n w h i c h extracts f r o m

P l o t i n u s appear as the c u l m i n a t i o n o f Aristotle's Metaphysics)

9

The B r e t h r e n o f P u r i t y described the splendor

argues that one loves o n l y beauty (al-husn),

a nat-

o f t h a t w o r l d by referring to the Pythagorean

u r a l e m o t i o n t h a t makes the ear and the eye l o n g

n o t i o n o f the music o f the spheres:

for h a r m o n i o u s sounds and c o m p o s i t i o n s .

had been translated i n t o A r a b i c for

11

This concept o f the soul's innate love o f beauty,

a l - K i n d i as early as the m i d - n i n t h century. A t t r i b -

I f one establishes the measure o f [ m u s i -

w h i c h as we shall see was repeated i n m a n y later

uted to A r i s t o t l e , Plotinus's d o c t r i n e o f the One

cal] t i m e by the regular, h a r m o n i o u s

Islamic texts, once again can be traced back to

(the First Cause, or Pure L i g h t ) t h a t generates the

and p r o p o r t i o n a t e succession o f m o t i o n s

Plotinus's Enneads

whole order o f the universe t h r o u g h an e m a n a t i o n

and silences, the notes resulting w i l l be

i n e m o t i o n a l terms as that w h i c h induces w o n d e r -

o f the l i g h t o f Reason (also discussed i n Proclus's

comparable to the notes p r o d u c e d by the

m e n t , l o n g i n g , delight, and love because o f its

movements o f the spheres and the heav-

k i n s h i p w i t h the soul. Such philosophers as I b n

Elements

of Theology)

p r o v e d to be so appealing

where the beautiful is defined

that i t was conflated w i t h the Islamic n o t i o n o f an

enly bodies and w i l l be i n concordance

Sina and I b n H a z m (994-1064) also discussed

u t t e r l y transcendent u n i q u e G o d . The P l o t i n i a n

w i t h t h e m . Thus d o i n g , the i n d i v i d u a l

beauty as an object o f love; the latter w r o t e : "As

t h e o r y o f the cosmos as a c o n t i n u u m w i t h a

soul, t h a t inhabits the w o r l d o f generation

for w h a t causes love i n most cases to choose a

c e n t e r — t h e O n e — t h a t is transcendent and

and c o r r u p t i o n , w i l l recall the beatitude

beautiful f o r m to l i g h t u p o n , i t is evident t h a t the

u n k n o w a b l e , b u t whose power emanates o u t w a r d

o f the w o r l d o f spheres and the felicity

soul itself being beautiful, i t is affected by all

i n such a way t h a t i t progressively diminishes as

o f souls w h o are there above . . . celestial

beautiful things, and has a yearning for perfect

it approaches the outer extremes o f the universe,

bodies are m o r e transparent t h a n glass,

s y m m e t r i c a l images; whenever i t sees any such

w o u l d be divested o f its pagan c o n n o t a t i o n s and

m o r e polished t h a n a m i r r o r . They t o u c h ,

images, i t fixes itself u p o n i t ; t h e n , i f i t discerns

adapted to the m o n o t h e i s t i c theologies o f the

b r u s h against each other, r u b and resound

b e h i n d t h a t image s o m e t h i n g o f its o w n k i n d , i t

M u s l i m and C h r i s t i a n worlds. I t i n s p i r e d the

as i r o n and copper resound. T h e i r notes

becomes u n i t e d and t r u e love is established."

M u t a z i l i and S h i i atomistic cosmology i n w h i c h

are c o n c o r d a n t and h a r m o n i o u s ; t h e i r

the earthly realm o f accidents is d o m i n a t e d by a

melodies are w e l l - b a l a n c e d .

c

c

10

hierarchy o f superior forces e m a n a t i n g f r o m trans-

1 2

H e a r i n g and sight, the noblest o f the five senses, were regarded by the B r e t h r e n as most capable o f c o m m u n i c a t i n g to the soul a sense o f pure

parent celestial bodies, divested o f m a t t e r w i t h

The notes o f terrestrial music i m i t a t e those o f the

aesthetic pleasure t h a t cannot be a r t i c u l a t e d

their dazzling l u c i d i t y and l u m i n o u s p u r i t y . I n this

celestial r e a l m , causing the h u m a n soul t o rejoice

by words. The m o s t pleasing p r o p o r t i o n s , they

hierarchical scheme, the r a t i o n a l h u m a n soul

i n t h e i r p r o p o r t i o n a l and h a r m o n i c relationships

argued, echo the h a r m o n y o f the heavenly spheres,

188

PART 5. GEOMETRY

AND AESTHETIC

THEORY

w h i c h p r o v i d e archetypes for the corporeal w o r l d

and p r o p o r t i o n , arguing t h a t geometry provides

o f generation and c o r r u p t i o n . Just as the k i n s h i p

the shared basis o f every art and t h a t no art can

repeats the n o t i o n t h a t visual beauty is a h a r m o n i -

between the soul and musical h a r m o n y c o u l d

achieve the perfection o f w h i c h i t is capable w i t h -

ous o r d e r i n g o f p r o p o r t i o n a l l y related parts:

The Brethren's d e s c r i p t i o n o f beautiful w r i t i n g

cause the f o r m e r to find pleasure i n measured

o u t d r a w i n g u p o n the science o f ratios and p r o -

r h y t h m s , so d i d the soul marvel at h a r m o n i o u s l y

p o r t i o n s . As examples o f crafts guided by r a t i o and

composed visual forms:

p r o p o r t i o n the B r e t h r e n listed m e l o d i c sounds i n

o n two basic principles; w h i c h are, the

music, prosody i n poetry, letters i n p r o p o r t i o n e d

straight l i n e w h i c h is i d e n t i f i e d w i t h the

We say t h a t all the scripts . . . are f o u n d e d

Since the substance o f the soul is o f the

script, and h a r m o n i o u s colors and p r o p o r t i o n a l l y

diameter o f the circle, and the curved line

same nature as t h a t o f h a r m o n i c n u m b e r s

j o i n e d figures i n p a i n t i n g and mechanical devices.

w h i c h is i d e n t i f i e d w i t h the c i r c u m f e r -

and corresponds to t h e m , w h e n the beats

They c o m p a r e d the principles o f prosody, " w h i c h

ence; all the letters are f o r m e d and c o m -

o f the r h y t h m s presented by the m u s i c i a n

is the weighing-scale o f p o e t r y , " to the rules o f

posed as we have explained i n the Epistle

are measured, w h e n i n these r h y t h m s

music, " w h i c h can be c o m p a r e d to those o f pros-

o n geometry. . . . the best, the most cor-

the periods o f beats and silences are p r o -

ody," and l i k e n e d the p r o p o r t i o n s g o v e r n i n g t h e m

rect and the most beautiful o f scripts

p o r t i o n a t e , h u m a n nature takes delight

to those u n d e r l y i n g calligraphy and p a i n t i n g .

is t h a t where the characters are o f the

i n t h e m , the s p i r i t rejoices and the soul

Just as " t h e most perfect o f p r o d u c t i o n s , the most

dimensions governed by the most noble

experiences happiness. A l l this is because

c o o r d i n a t e d o f constructions and the most beauti-

p r o p o r t i o n . . . . W h a t we have said o n

o f the resemblance, the r e l a t i o n and

ful o f c o m p o s i t i o n s " i n music and p o e t r y are those

the subject o f the p r o p o r t i o n s o f the let-

k i n s h i p w h i c h exist between the soul and

"governed by the best o f p r o p o r t i o n s , " a script is

ters and t h e i r reciprocal relationships o f

musical h a r m o n y . I t is the same w h e n

considered beautiful by t h e m o n l y w h e n its varied

length and b r e a d t h , is s o m e t h i n g imposed

the soul marvels at the beauty o f c o u n t e -

letters are p r o p o r t i o n a l l y executed i n terms o f size

by the most e m i n e n t laws o f geometry

nances and the o r n a m e n t o f n a t u r a l

and order. To produce pleasing images, painters

and the rules o f p r o p o r t i o n .

things; for the beauty o f the n a t u r a l beings

s i m i l a r l y are urged to observe the r i g h t p r o p o r -

arises f r o m the h a r m o n y o f their c o n -

tions o f colors, shapes, and sizes for f i g u r e s .

s t i t u t i o n s and the beauty w i t h w h i c h t h e i r various parts are composed t o g e t h e r .

1 5

16

The B r e t h r e n considered visual objects beautiful o n l y insofar as they capture the balanced p r o -

13

I n their epistle o n music the B r e t h r e n stated

1 8

We have seen t h a t the p r o p o r t i o n e d script (al-khatt

al-mansub),

based o n the m o d u l e o f the

circle, was perfected i n B u y i d Baghdad by I b n

p o r t i o n s and symmetries o f the universe, w h i c h

al-Bawwab, w h o f u r t h e r refined the cursive scripts

skilled artists take as t h e i r u l t i m a t e m o d e l . They

systematized by I b n M u q l a . The Brethren's lengthy

that t h e i r goal was n o t to teach the practice o f

w r o t e , " I n effect, the beautiful i n this w o r l d is a

discussion o f p r o p o r t i o n a l i t y i n w r i t i n g , composed

music b u t " t o make k n o w n the science o f p r o p o r -

trace o f the universal celestial s o u l . "

after the c o d i f i c a t i o n o f the p r o p o r t i o n e d script,

1 7

This recalls

tions and the m o d a l i t y o f h a r m o n y , the knowledge

Plotinus's a r g u m e n t t h a t the beauty o f the m a t e r i a l

was an i m p o r t a n t source for later w r i t e r s o n the

o f w h i c h presides at the mastery i n all the arts."

w o r k o f art originates f r o m archetypal forms i n the

subject, i n c l u d i n g al-Rawandi i n the t h i r t e e n t h

artist's m i n d or soul t h a t i m i t a t e s p i r i t u a l beauty.

c e n t u r y (see fig. 92), al-Qalqashandi i n the fif-

1 4

They devoted a w h o l e epistle to the subject o f r a t i o

THE AESTHETICS

OF PROPORTION

AND LIGHT

189

teenth century, and Taskoprizade i n the sixteenth

p r o p o r t i o n , r o o t e d i n the musical theories o f late

discussion o f beauty i n Arabic according to Sabra.

century, all o f w h o m explained the same geometric

a n t i q u i t y , was also an aspect o f c o n t e m p o r a r y l i t -

I t can be regarded as a t h e o r y o f aesthetics relevant

system o f p r o p o r t i o n i n g derived f r o m the curved

erary c r i t i c i s m is revealed i n the p h i l o l o g i s t and

for u n d e r s t a n d i n g c o n t e m p o r a r y developments i n

circumference and straight radius o f the c i r c l e .

l i t e r a r y theorist al-Jurjani's ( d . 1078) d e s c r i p t i o n o f

Islamic visual c u l t u r e .

19

T h a t the Brethren's theory o f beauty was f a m i l -

beauty as a h a r m o n i o u s s t r u c t u r a l r e l a t i o n s h i p :

I b n a l - H a y t h a m defined beauty (al-husn)

23

n o t as

an absolute a t t r i b u t e b u t as a complex i n t e r a c t i o n

iar a m o n g B u y i d chancellery secretaries and calligraphers is suggested i n a treatise o n p e n m a n s h i p

This [beauty] is manifest i n all crafts and

between t w e n t y - t w o properties ( l i g h t , color, dis-

composed by A b u Hayyan a l - T a w h i d i ( d . after

artistic activities w h i c h are associated w i t h

tance, p o s i t i o n , solidity, shape, size, separation,

1009-1010), w h o k n e w at least three o f the p r i n -

subtlety, fineness, and s k i l l . I n the images

c o n t i n u i t y , n u m b e r , m o t i o n , rest, roughness,

cipal members o f this f r a t e r n i t y - l i k e g r o u p per-

p r o d u c e d i n such crafts i t is always the case

smoothness, transparency, opacity, shadow, dark-

sonally. The treatise quotes E u c l i d as the source

that the m o r e w i d e l y different the shape

ness, beauty, ugliness, s i m i l a r i t y , and d i s s i m i -

o f the saying " H a n d w r i t i n g is s p i r i t u a l geometry

and appearance o f t h e i r parts are and t h e n

l a r i t y ) . O n l y two o f these factors, l i g h t and color

w h i c h appears by means o f a b o d i l y i n s t r u m e n t , "

the m o r e perfect the h a r m o n y achieved

(a q u a l i t y o f l i g h t ) , were by themselves capable o f

a saying (often repeated i n later sources o n Islamic

between these parts is, the m o r e fascina-

p r o d u c i n g beauty, that is, p r o d u c i n g " i n the soul

calligraphy) t h a t testifies to the d i s s e m i n a t i o n o f

t i o n the images w i l l possess and the m o r e

an effect such t h a t the f o r m appears b e a u t i f u l . "

N e o p l a t o n i c concepts a m o n g the c o u r t secretaries

deserving o f praise for t h e i r skill t h e i r

The r e m a i n i n g t w e n t y properties had to be subjec-

and scribes. D i s t i n g u i s h e d as a m a n o f letters,

creators w i l l b e .

tively c o m b i n e d d u r i n g the process o f visual per-

21

ception.

p h i l o s o p h e r , and a professional scribe, a l - T a w h i d i (a protege o f al-Buzjani) w r o t e his treatise i n the

As Sabra n o t e d i n his i n t r o d u c t i o n to I b n al-

same Baghdadi m i l i e u i n w h i c h congruent geomet-

H a y t h a m ' s o p t i c a l treatise, the Kitab

al-manazir,

24

I b n a l - H a y t h a m added to these a t h i r d

factor capable o f causing beauty: " N o w beauty may consist i n s o m e t h i n g other t h a n either o f the two things we have m e n t i o n e d , and t h a t is p r o p o r t i o n -

ric patterns w i t h i n t e r l o c k i n g stars and polygons,

the idea t h a t p r o p o r t i o n (tanasub)

based o n the m o d u l a r use o f the circle, appear to

most responsible for beauty (frequently e n c o u n -

have been f o r m u l a t e d under the guidance o f p r o -

tered i n t e n t h - and eleventh-century Islamic texts)

I n a fascinating passage he argued t h a t u n d e r cer-

fessional mathematicians. The circle was used as

no d o u b t had a classical o r i g i n " t h o u g h the full

t a i n circumstances p r o p o r t i o n a l i t y alone c o u l d

a p r o p o r t i o n i n g device i n b o t h the p r o p o r t i o n e d

h i s t o r y o f its transmission and d e v e l o p m e n t . . .

p r o d u c e beauty:

script and i n geometric p a t t e r n i n g i n a c u l t u r a l

has yet to be w r i t t e n . "

context deeply i m b u e d w i t h a m a t h e m a t i c a l c o n -

aesthetics o f l i g h t also played an i m p o r t a n t role

ception o f beauty as a h a r m o n y between parts

i n medieval Islamic descriptions o f beauty, a m o n g

beauty, p r o v i d e d t h a t the organs are n o t

and the w h o l e (see fig. 9 3 ) .

20

The congruence o f

2 2

is the feature

ality and h a r m o n y (al-tanasub

wa

al-itilaf)"

Besides p r o p o r t i o n the P r o p o r t i o n a l i t y alone may p r o d u c e

w h i c h the one p r o v i d e d i n I b n al-Haytham's optics

i n themselves ugly, t h o u g h n o t perfect i n

p r o p o r t i o n and s y m m e t r y e m b o d i e d a q u a n t i t a t i v e

is the most comprehensive. This remarkable psy-

their beauty. Thus w h e n a f o r m combines

n o t i o n o f beauty based o n the f u n d a m e n t a l p r i n -

chological d e s c r i p t i o n o f visual p e r c e p t i o n as a

the beauty o f the shapes o f all its parts

ciple o f u n i t y i n variety. T h a t the aesthetics o f

subject-object r e l a t i o n s h i p is by far the longest

and the beauty o f t h e i r magnitudes and

25

190

PART 5. GEOMETRY AND AESTHETIC

THEORY

their c o m p o s i t i o n and the p r o p o r t i o n a l i t y

I b n a l - H a y t h a m elaborated his d e f i n i t i o n o f beauty

w h i c h t h e i r f o r m looks beautiful and appealing

o f parts i n regard to shape, size, p o s i t i o n

i n calligraphy and visual objects i n another pas-

other t h a n t h e i r radiant l i g h t . Therefore, l i g h t by

and all the other properties r e q u i r e d by

sage i n w h i c h their aesthetic affinity is discussed:

itself produces beauty." He added that color, t o o , can produce beauty by itself, for b r i g h t colors

p r o p o r t i o n a l i t y , and moreover, w h e n the

"appeal to the beholder and please the eye." W h e n

organs are p r o p o r t i o n a t e to the shape

For the beauty o f w r i t i n g is due o n l y to

and size o f the face as a w h o l e — t h a t is

the soundness o f the shapes o f letters and

arranged w i t h regard to p r o p o r t i o n , the aesthetic

perfect beauty.

their c o m p o s i t i o n a m o n g themselves, so

value o f c o l o r f u l designs increases considerably

that w h e n the c o m p o s i t i o n and order o f

since " b r i g h t and pure colours and designs are

letters are p r o p o r t i o n a t e i n respect o f

the letters is n o t regular and p r o p o r t i o n -

m o r e beautiful w h e n regularly and u n i f o r m l y

their shapes, magnitudes, positions and

ate the w r i t i n g w i l l n o t be beautiful. . . .

ordered t h a n w h e n they have no o r d e r . "

order. A n d the same is true o f all visual

Similarly, m a n y forms o f visible objects

W r i t i n g also is n o t beautiful unless its

2 8

The sensuous i m m e d i a c y o f the beauty o f l i g h t

objects w h i c h are c o m b i n a t i o n s o f various

are felt to be beautiful and appealing o n l y

a n d color was no d o u b t associated w i t h the meta-

parts. W h e n , therefore, a survey is made

because o f the c o m p o s i t i o n and order o f

physics o f l i g h t and its m e t a p h o r i c a l visions o f

o f beautiful forms i n all kinds o f visible

their parts a m o n g

g l i t t e r i n g brightness and pure effulgence. I n I b n

themselves."

27

al-Haytham's t h e o r y o f v i s i o n , the beauty o f visual

objects, p r o p o r t i o n a l i t y w i l l be f o u n d to produce i n t h e m a beauty other t h a n

Just as "perfect beauty" i n w r i t i n g "comes o n l y

f o r m derives f r o m the diffusion o f l i g h t and color

that p r o d u c e d by any one o f the p a r t i c u l a r

f r o m the c o n j u n c t i o n o f shape and p o s i t i o n , "

f r o m visible objects whose rays obey geometric

properties by itself and other t h a n that

abstract patterns, t h e n , can a t t a i n aesthetic perfec-

laws e m b o d y i n g h a r m o n i o u s p r o p o r t i o n s . This

p r o d u c e d by the c o n j u n c t i o n o f the par-

tion through their proportional combination o f

aesthetics o f l i g h t and p r o p o r t i o n recalls Plato's

ticular properties existing together i n the

congruent shapes.

f o r m . W h e n the beautiful effects p r o d u c e d

P r o p o r t i o n (the geometric order o f l i g h t ) and

by the c o n j u n c t i o n o f p a r t i c u l a r p r o p e r -

color (a corporeal q u a l i t y o f l i g h t ) , w h i c h accord-

ties are examined, the beauty due to t h a t

i n g to I b n a l - H a y t h a m belong to the three p r i v i -

reference i n the Philebus

to a timeless beauty o f

p u r e geometric forms and colors whose beauty is n o t relative b u t absolute.

29

A n o t i o n o f aesthetic p u r i t y a i m i n g at a t r a n -

c o n j u n c t i o n w i l l be f o u n d to be o n l y the

leged elements most capable o f p r o d u c i n g visual

scendental f o r m o f abstract beauty seems to be at

result o f the p r o p o r t i o n a l i t y and h a r m o n y

beauty, are i n t i m a t e l y related to the t h i r d element,

w o r k i n the i n v e n t i o n o f the girih m o d e , whose

o b t a i n i n g between those c o n j o i n e d p r o p -

l i g h t . L i g h t is the u l t i m a t e source o f visual beauty

geometric shapes occupy an i n t e r m e d i a t e zone

erties. . . . Beauty is, therefore, p r o d u c e d

and the p r e c o n d i t i o n o f v i s i o n since " a l l visible

between i n t e l l i g i b l e and sensible forms. The

by the p a r t i c u l a r properties, b u t its c o m -

properties can be perceived o n l y f r o m the forms

B r e t h r e n o f P u r i t y stressed the p u r i f y i n g role

p l e t i o n and perfection is due o n l y t o the

p r o d u c e d i n the eye by the forms o f colours and

o f geometry i n u p l i f t i n g the m i n d to c o n t e m -

p r o p o r t i o n a l i t y and h a r m o n y t h a t may o b t a i n between the p a r t i c u l a r p r o p e r t i e s .

26

lights o f the visible objects." I b n a l - H a y t h a m

plate higher forms o f u n d e r s t a n d i n g . This aspect

w r o t e : " F o r l i g h t produces beauty, and thus the

o f geometry comes o u t i n t h e i r reference to

sun, the m o o n , and the stars l o o k beautiful, w i t h -

Pythagoras, " w h o heard the music o f the spheres

o u t there being i n t h e m a cause o n account o f

after having been cleansed o f the defilement o f

THE AESTHETICS

OF PROPORTION

AND

LIGHT

191

corporeal appetites and raised to the sublime by

things. Nevertheless they are o n l y images,

saying that allegedly was w r i t t e n o n Plato's door:

constant reflection and by the sciences o f a r i t h -

i m i t a t i n g i n their d i v i d e d fashion the

" N o one w h o is n o t a geometrician may enter o u r

metic, geometry, and m u s i c . "

i n d i v i s i b l e and i n their m u l t i f o r m fashion

house."

3 0

A c c o r d i n g to the

37

Brethren the final a i m o f geometry, the gateway to

the u n i f o r m patterns o f being. I n short,

s p i r i t u a l w i s d o m , was to p e r m i t the soul to "sepa-

they stand i n the vestibule o f the p r i m a r y

m o v e d between various courts i n Central Asia

rate itself f r o m this [corporeal] w o r l d i n order to

forms, a n n o u n c i n g t h e i r u n i t a r y and

and I r a n , i n c l u d i n g those o f Gurganj and Isfahan,

j o i n , thanks t o its celestial ascension, the w o r l d o f

u n d i v i d e d and generative reality, b u t have

defined geometry as a m e n t a l abstraction t h a t

the spirits and eternal l i f e . "

n o t risen above the p a r t i c u l a r i t y and c o m -

essentially remained b o u n d to the m a t e r i a l w o r l d

3 1

I b n Sina, w h o after his education i n Bukhara

positeness o f ideas and the reality that

since the m a t h e m a t i c a l sciences dealt o n l y w i t h

w h i c h according to I b n a l - N a d i m h a d been trans-

belongs to likenesses. . . . Let this be o u r

accidents. This once again placed geometry i n an

lated i n t o A r a b i c by the t e n t h c e n t u r y ,

u n d e r s t a n d i n g , for the i n t e r m e d i a t e status

i n t e r m e d i a r y p o s i t i o n i n the quest for metaphysi-

Proclus's c o m m e n t a r y o n Euclid's

Elements, similarly

32

had emphasized the noetic a b i l i t y o f geometry to

o f m a t h e m a t i c a l genera and species, as

cal t r u t h ; i t was the ladder by w h i c h one ascended

direct the m i n d u p w a r d to a higher w o r l d o f super-

l y i n g between absolutely i n d i v i s i b l e reali-

to a s t r o n o m i c a l knowledge and f r o m w h i c h one

sensible realities. Proclus argued t h a t geometric

ties and the divisible things t h a t come t o

t h e n c o u l d move up to the metaphysical sciences. *

forms occupy an i n t e r m e d i a t e p o s i t i o n between

be i n the w o r l d o f m a t t e r .

This hierarchical o r d e r i n g o f knowledge, c o m -

34

3

i m m a t e r i a l higher realities and the confused

m o n l y encountered i n medieval Islamic encyclo-

material objects o f the w o r l d o f senses: " M a t h e m a t -

Stressing the i n t r i n s i c beauty o f geometric

pedias, was so w i d e l y disseminated that i t is

ics occupies a m i d d l e p o s i t i o n between the i n t e l -

shapes ( a m o n g w h i c h the circle was the most

repeated i n I b n Rashiq's eleventh-century trea-

ligible and the sense worlds a n d exhibits w i t h i n

b e a u t i f u l ) , Proclus argued that the beauty and

tise o n poetics:

itself m a n y likenesses o f d i v i n e things and also

order o f m a t h e m a t i c a l discourse " b r i n g us i n t o

m a n y paradigms o f physical r e l a t i o n s . "

33

He des-

cribed the i n t e r m e d i a t e status o f m a t h e m a t i c a l forms:

contact w i t h the i n t e l l i g i b l e w o r l d itself and estab-

Knowledge, i n the philosophers' o p i n i o n ,

lish us f i r m l y i n the c o m p a n y o f things that are

is o f three k i n d s : the highest, w h i c h is the

always fixed, always resplendent w i t h d i v i n e

knowledge o f w h a t escapes sensual per-

beauty, and ever i n the same r e l a t i o n s h i p to one

ception and can o n l y be attained t h r o u g h

M a t h e m a t i c a l objects, and i n general all

another."

the objects o f the u n d e r s t a n d i n g , have an

are abstract m e n t a l p r o j e c t i o n s , "arouses o u r

w h i c h is the knowledge o f the precious

3 5

He n o t e d that geometry, whose figures

reason and analogy; the i n t e r m e d i a t e ,

i n t e r m e d i a t e p o s i t i o n . They go beyond

i n n a t e k n o w l e d g e , awakens o u r intellect, purges

rules o f d e c o r u m that reason derives f r o m

the objects o f intellect i n being divisible,

o u r u n d e r s t a n d i n g , brings to l i g h t the concepts

n a t u r a l objects such as n u m b e r s , geome-

b u t they surpass sensible things i n being

that belong essentially to us . . . sets us free f r o m

try, the art o f astrology, and the art o f

devoid o f matter. They are i n f e r i o r to the

the bonds o f u n r e a s o n . "

melody; and the i n f e r i o r , w h i c h is the

36

This statement recalls

f o r m e r i n s i m p l i c i t y , yet superior to the

that o f I b n K h a l d u n w h o , as we have seen, ascribed

knowledge o f p a r t i c u l a r things and b o d i l y

latter i n precision, reflecting i n t e l l i g i b l e

to geometry the role o f e n l i g h t e n i n g the intellect

objects."

reality m o r e clearly t h a n do perceptible

and p u r i f y i n g the m i n d like soap, after q u o t i n g the

39

192

PART 5. GEOMETRY AND AESTHETIC

These n o t i o n s p r o v i d e d a b a c k d r o p for the b u r -

THEORY

concepts o r i g i n a l l y associated w i t h the d o c t r i n e

t h e n . The love o f beauty is described i n a cele-

geoning taste for geometric abstraction d u r i n g

o f e m a n a t i o n p r o v e d extremely durable. Images

brated passage o f al-Ghazali's Kimyd-i

the late t e n t h and early eleventh centuries i n a

o f p r o p o r t i o n and l i g h t c o n t i n u e d to live o n ,

( A l c h e m y o f happiness), circa 1106, whose rele-

sa ddat c

m i l i e u permeated w i t h N e o p l a t o n i c philosophy.

m o d i f i e d to reflect the o m n i p o t e n c e o f G o d , the

vance for aesthetic t h e o r y was n o t e d first by

Even t h o u g h the spread o f the girih paralleled the

creator o f a w o n d e r f u l universe filled w i t h beauti-

Ettinghausen and recently elaborated by Grabar.

dynamics o f the S u n n i revival, w h i c h rejected the

ful signs (ayat) and portents signaling d i v i n e wis-

Ettinghausen p o i n t e d o u t that this w o r k , w h i c h

emanationist cosmology w i t h its heterodox i m p l i -

d o m . A l - G h a z a l i w r o t e , "Just as the greatness o f a

p o p u l a r i z e d i n the Persian vernacular language

cations o f " p o l y t h e i s m , " l i g h t imagery c o n t i n u e d

poet, w r i t e r or artist becomes all the m o r e notable

ideas the same author had developed i n a longer

to enjoy immense p o p u l a r i t y , as we have seen i n

the m o r e y o u k n o w o f the w o n d e r f u l works o f

A r a b i c w o r k , the Ihya

ulum al-din (Revival o f the

c

al-Ghazali's mystical i n t e r p r e t a t i o n o f the L i g h t

poetry, w r i t i n g and art; i n the same way miracles

sciences o f r e l i g i o n ) , m u s t have been accessible to

Verse. The Sunni atomistic w o r l d v i e w o f al-Ash ari

o f the creation o f G o d are a key to the knowledge

the c o m m o n people, i n c l u d i n g artisans. A l - G h a z a l i

restored the Koranic concept that the universe was

o f the greatness o f the C r e a t o r . "

w r o t e , " E v e r y t h i n g the perception o f w h i c h gives

c

41

created by G o d ex n i h i l o and i n t i m e , as opposed

A l t h o u g h God's nature was b o u n d t o r e m a i n

pleasure and satisfaction is loved by the one w h o

to its eternal e m a n a t i o n t h r o u g h an i n t e r m e d i a r y

i n c o m p r e h e n s i b l e , the creator had given h u m a n

perceives i t " ; therefore, everything beautiful is an

chain o f i n c o r p o r e a l intelligences propagated f r o m

subjects, i n a d d i t i o n to the miracle o f the K o r a n ,

object o f l o v e .

42

C o n c l u d i n g that i t is God's beauty

a transcendent active intellect or First Cause, like

the created cosmos t h r o u g h w h i c h they may c o n -

that leads one to d i v i n e love, al-Ghazali described

l i g h t f r o m the sun. The eternal versus t e m p o r a l

template the d i v i n e glory and w i s d o m . Often

the love o f beauty for its o w n sake, w h i c h he

nature o f the cosmos also preoccupied the Scho-

accompanied by q u o t a t i o n s f r o m the " u n c r e a t e d "

differentiated f r o m sensual desire:

lastics i n the L a t i n West, p a r t i c u l a r l y after they

K o r a n rendered i n the p r o p o r t i o n e d script,

were c o n f r o n t e d w i t h the t w e l f t h - and t h i r t e e n t h -

geometrized designs abstracted f r o m prototypes

A n o t h e r cause o f love is that one loves

c e n t u r y translations o f Greek and A r a b i c sources

p r o v i d e d by nature were therefore p o t e n t i a l l y

s o m e t h i n g for its o w n sake. . . . To this

addressing t h a t subject. I b n Sina's t h e o r y o f the

i m b u e d w i t h the v i s i o n o f a d i v i n e l y created w o n -

category belongs the love o f beauty . . .

creation o f forms by e m a n a t i o n , for example, is

drous universe. I t is this i m p l i c i t parallelism

because the perception o f beauty is plea-

k n o w n t o have influenced the p h i l o s o p h e r Thomas

between the separate yet analogous realms o f

sure i n itself and is loved for its o w n sake

Aquinas (1225-1274), whose w r i t i n g s were deeply

nature and art t h a t explains the frequent c o m p a r i -

and n o t for a n y t h i n g else. D o n o t believe

"imbued with Avicennism."

sons between the d i v i n e creator a n d the d i v i n e l y

that love o f beautiful forms is conceivable

i n s p i r e d artist.

o n l y for the satisfaction o f sensual desire.

40

The S u n n i o r t h o d o x w o r l d v i e w , f o r m u l a t e d t o vindicate the absolute power o f G o d , s u b o r d i n a t e d

Theories o f beauty based o n an agreeable

The satisfaction o f such a desire is another

the p r i m a c y o f h u m a n free w i l l and the " l i g h t o f

h a r m o n y o f p r o p o r t i o n s and colors i n s t i n c t i v e l y

type o f pleasure for w h i c h beautiful forms

reason" to the subintellectual categories o f i n t u i -

appealing to the h u m a n soul or heart are fre-

can also be loved. However, the percep-

tive experience, mystical i l l u m i n a t i o n , and love

q u e n t l y encountered i n the w r i t i n g s o f post-

t i o n o f beauty also gives pleasure and can

as means o f a c q u i r i n g metaphysical knowledge.

eleventh-century M u s l i m authors even t h o u g h the

be loved for its o w n sake alone. . . . The

Despite this m a j o r shift i n emphasis, aesthetic

fascination w i t h Greek p h i l o s o p h y had faded by

reaction o f every healthy c o n s t i t u t i o n

THE AESTHETICS

proves t h a t the c o n t e m p l a t i o n o f flowers

OF PROPORTION

AND LIGHT

193

ticular m a t t e r as to perfect h a r m o n y and

o f the music o f the spheres and quotes the i n s c r i p -

and b i r d s , o f a beautiful c o l o u r , graceful

arrangement are n o t d i s c a r d e d — t h a t

t i o n about geometry placed over the d o o r o f

design and f o r m gives pleasure. O n see-

being the m e a n i n g o f beauty and l o v e l i -

Plato's academy.

i n g t h e m even w o r r y and grief leave the

ness whenever these terms are used for

a t t r a c t i o n to beauty is reiterated: " T h e soul feels

h u m a n m i n d , t h o u g h there is no benefit

any object o f sensual p e r c e p t i o n — t h a t

an essential affection for any similar p r o p o r t i o n ,

to be derived beyond the mere l o o k i n g .

[object o f v i s i o n ] is t h e n i n h a r m o n y w i t h

and . . . a pure p r o p o r t i o n , wherever observed,

These objects give pleasure and everything

the soul that perceives [ i t ] , and the soul

is the means o f a t t r a c t i n g and agitating the spirit:

pleasurable is l o v e d .

thus feels pleasure as the result o f perceiv-

such as beauty, w h i c h is a t e r m for correspondence

i n g s o m e t h i n g that is agreeable to i t . . . .

o f parts." A l - D a w w a n i defined audible and vis-

I n a different passage al-Ghazali emphasized t h a t

Thus every m a n desires beauty i n the

ual beauty as a congruence o f parts p r o d u c i n g a

the highest object o f love is God's beauty: " T h e

objects o f v i s i o n and hearing, as a r e q u i r e -

sense o f u n i t y : " T h e effect o f cadences, concor-

causes o f love (and these i n c l u d e beauty) are real

m e n t o f his n a t u r e .

43

47

A g a i n the soul's a u t o m a t i c

dant tones, m e t r i c a l verses, and fine forms, is o n

45

account o f the eminence o f their u n i t y i n rela-

o n l y as applied to G o d , i n all other cases t h e i r existence is o n l y delusion, i m a g i n a t i o n , and meta-

I b n K h a l d u n once again explained the i n s t i n c t i v e

t i o n . " Since the source o f all beauty is no other

phorical expression."

a t t r a c t i o n o f the soul to the beauty o f h a r m o n i o u s

than G o d , the soul's a t t r a c t i o n to the beautiful

shows h o w aesthetic concepts elaborated between

sounds and images as a r e l a t i o n s h i p o f love, an

can, according to a l - D a w w a n i , p r o v i d e a foretaste

the n i n t h and early eleventh centuries by M u s l i m

e m o t i o n a l a t t r a c t i o n caused by the s t r u c t u r a l

o f d i v i n e love, a statement echoing al-Ghazali's

philosophers, w e l l before Sufism became a d o m i -

affinity between t h e m . The m e t a p h o r o f love, so

c o n c e p t i o n o f beauty as t h a t w h i c h gives pleasure

nant t r e n d , were eventually merged i n t o mystical

often encountered i n Islamic sources, appears

i n itself and yet at the same t i m e is capable o f

l i t e r a t u r e . I b n K h a l d u n , w h o like al-Ghazali c r i t i -

as late as the sixteenth c e n t u r y i n the O t t o m a n

i n d u c i n g an i n t u i t i o n o f higher forms o f transcen-

cized the philosophers, echoed t h e i r N e o p l a t o n i c

scholar Taskoprizade's encyclopedia o f knowledge

dental beauty.

aesthetic n o t i o n s i n a passage describing the per-

where, after having described the music o f the

was aesthetic pleasure, beautiful objects also c o u l d

ception o f beauty by the eye and the ear:

heavenly spheres he w r o t e : " M a n ' s soul adores and

lure the receptive viewer to higher levels o f meta-

is i n love w i t h beautiful things. Whenever the soul

physical c o n t e m p l a t i o n about the splendor o f the

sees a beautiful image or hears a beautiful s o u n d i t

heavens and the mysterious wonders o f creation.

44

H i s discussion o f beauty

Agreeable sensations o f v i s i o n and hearing are caused by h a r m o n i o u s arrangement i n

remembers the realm o f i n t e l l i g i b l e entities and for

the forms and qualities o f [the things seen

that reason i t is delighted and e x a l t e d . "

or h e a r d ] . This impresses the soul as harm o n i o u s and is m o r e agreeable to i t . I f an object o f v i s i o n is h a r m o n i o u s i n the forms and lines given to i t i n accor-

46

The same psychological t h e o r y o f aesthetic per-

48

Although their immediate function

Widespread n o t i o n s about the role o f geomet r y as a bridge between the m a t e r i a l and s p i r i t u a l realms, coupled w i t h the absolute beauty o f its

ception is repeated i n the ethical treatise o f the

h a r m o n i o u s forms capable o f p u r i f y i n g the m i n d

A q q o y u n l u t h i n k e r al-Dawwani, w h i c h was p a r t i c u -

like music, m u s t have made geometric abstraction

larly p o p u l a r i n the late T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n w o r l d .

a p a r t i c u l a r l y appealing visual i d i o m . The p u r i t y o f

dance w i t h the m a t t e r f r o m w h i c h i t is

This treatise includes a section o n h a r m o n y and

a p o l y c h r o m a t i c abstract design vocabulary d o m i -

made, so t h a t the requirements o f its par-

p r o p o r t i o n t h a t repeats the Pythagorean n o t i o n

nated by congruent geometric shapes approached

194

PART 5. GEOMETRY

AND AESTHETIC

THEORY

the status o f light and color, the o n l y t w o p r o p -

the mansions and gardens o f paradise or the Bayt

e q u a t i o n between love and beauty encountered i n

erties t h a t I b n a l - H a y t h a m singled o u t as being

a l - M a m u r (Prosperous house, the heavenly p r o t o -

m a n y later Islamic texts. Augustine also regarded

beautiful i n themselves i n a d d i t i o n to p r o p o r t i o n -

type o f the Ka ba i n Mecca).

sight and hearing as the highest senses because

ality. This p u r i t y o f sterilized forms, absolved f r o m

c

c

they were capable o f a p p r e h e n d i n g measure,

To conclude, t h e n , the so-called arabesque

i m p u r e defilement, no d o u b t augmented the posi-

(whether geometric, vegetal, calligraphic, or fig-

beauty, and order, w h i c h i n v i t e us to contemplate

tive resonances o f geometric and geometrized pat-

ural) can be seen as the offshoot o f a classical

the source o f such qualities, t h a t is, G o d . He d i d

terns, often accompanied by Koranic i n s c r i p t i o n s .

n o t i o n o f beauty recast i n abstract terms. The aes-

n o t consider the experience o f visual or aural

M o r e o v e r , the p r o p o r t i o n a l l y i n t e r l o c k i n g colored

thetics o f p r o p o r t i o n and l i g h t , most likely i n h e r -

beauty to be merely an end i n itself, for he believed

geometric forms o f girihs t h a t c o u l d trigger an

ited f r o m the last remnants o f the school o f

that the h a r m o n y o f beautiful objects occasion-

innate aesthetic reaction i n viewers must have

A l e x a n d r i a , left its e n d u r i n g stamp o n medieval

ally c o u l d c u l m i n a t e i n the c o n t e m p l a t i o n o f

given medieval designers the hope o f e n d o w i n g

Islamic visual c u l t u r e . As i n medieval Europe

d i v i n e beauty.

51

their visual creations w i t h the expressive p o t e n t i a l

and B y z a n t i u m , the aesthetic sensibilities o f the

and e m o t i o n a l i m m e d i a c y o f music.

M u s l i m w o r l d were no d o u b t permeated w i t h r e l i -

concept o f p r o p o r t i o n , reflecting the h a r m o n i c

Boethius also l i n k e d beauty to a m a t h e m a t i c a l

g i o n , b u t c u l t u r a l developments i n the m a t h e -

structure o f the cosmos. A c c o r d i n g to h i m r a t i o

e m b o d i e d n o t i o n s o f aesthetic p u r i t y and h a r m o n y

m a t i c a l sciences and p h i l o s o p h y had an equally

and p r o p o r t i o n p r o d u c e d beauty i n visible and

visually aspiring to the music o f the spheres. The

i m p o r t a n t part t o play i n shaping visual i d i o m s .

audible forms alike, a beauty capable o f arousing

The L a t i n West and B y z a n t i u m had i n h e r i t e d

aesthetic pleasure i n the soul, w h i c h is subject to

P o l y c h r o m a t i c s ta r -a n d - po l y go n patterns

invisible heavenly orbits o f l i g h t g o v e r n i n g the c o m p o s i t i o n o f these patterns can be i n t e r p r e t e d

the same late antique aesthetic theories t h a t were

the same laws o f p r o p o r t i o n t h a t govern the struc-

as an a m b i t i o n to raise abstract visual beauty to

assimilated i n t o medieval Islamic c u l t u r e . The

ture o f the c o s m o s .

w o u l d assume m o r e c o m p l e x forms w i t h such

52

The concept o f p r o p o r t i o n

the same m a t h e m a t i c a l level as music. T h r o u g h

i m p a c t o f Plotinus's Enneads

the use o f the circle as a p r o p o r t i o n i n g device, the

visual representation i n the Byzantine w o r l d has

writers as Grosseteste, w h o developed an aesthetics

n o t i o n o f the music o f the spheres f o u n d visual

been analyzed by A n d r e Grabar and o t h e r s .

o f light and p r o p o r t i o n similar to t h a t o f I b n

expression i n girih patterns (see figs. 92, 99,100,

philosophers as Augustine (354-430) and M a n l i u s

al-Haytham's Kitab al-manazir.

109b, 113b, 121,122). Just as the consonances o f

Boethius (circa 4 8 0 - 5 2 4 ) t r a n s m i t t e d the classical

o n l i g h t had been foreshadowed by the w r i t i n g s

earthly music c o u l d strive to echo the heavenly

concepts o f p r o p o r t i o n and the love o f beauty to

o f such philosophers as al-Farabi, I b n Sina, and

music o f the spheres whose transparent bodies

the L a t i n West. Augustine ( w h o had absorbed the

al-Ghazali, i n a d d i t i o n to I b n a l - H a y t h a m .

emanated l i g h t i n circular r h y t h m s , so d i d c o n -

classical c u l t u r e o f Carthage before his conversion

o n abstract modes o f 49

Such

H i s new emphasis

53

W i t h the t r a n s l a t i o n o f A r a b i c p h i l o s o p h i c a l

gruent girihs e m b o d y a nostalgic yearning for the

to C h r i s t i a n i t y ) , for example, p r o v i d e d a defini-

works i n t o L a t i n , n o t o n l y classical texts b u t also

pure crystalline structure o f the heavens, infused

t i o n o f beauty as t h a t w h i c h attracts and pleases

the works o f M u s l i m authors became w i d e l y

w i t h b r i l l i a n t l i g h t . T h e i r heavenly o r i e n t a t i o n ,

t h r o u g h its s y m m e t r i c a l p r o p o r t i o n s , consonance

available i n Europe d u r i n g the twelfth and t h i r -

betrayed by the insistent use o f stars, reflected a

o f parts, a n d h a r m o n y .

teenth centuries, r e s u l t i n g i n an i n t r i c a t e mesh o f

50

Like P l o t i n u s , he asked i n

w i d e r tendency i n Islamic art and architecture t o

the Confessions,

emulate celestial prototypes as models, such as

b u t the beautiful?" a question p r e f i g u r i n g the

circa 400, " D o we love a n y t h i n g ,

intertextuality. After t h a t p o i n t i t becomes difficult to trace the strands o f influence i n medieval

THE

AESTHETICS

O F PROPORTION

A N D LIGHT

195

121. Abd al-Qadir b. Ghaybi al-Hafiz al-Maraghi (d. 1435), folio with circular diagrams. From his Maqdsid al-alhdn (Purports of music), a treatise on musical theory, written around 1421-1423 in the Timurid court at Samarqand and dedicated to Sultan Murad 11, copied at the Ottoman court in 1437-1438, red and black ink on paper. Istanbul, Topkapi Sarayi Miizesi Kutiiphanesi, MS R. 1726, fol. 42V. c

122. Abd al-Qadir b. Ghaybi al-Hafiz alMaraghi (d. 1435), folio with geometric diagram. From his Maqdsid alalhan (Purports of music), a treatise on musical theory, written around 1421-1423 in the Timurid court at Samarqand and dedicated to Sultan Murad 11, copied at the Ottoman court in 1437-1438, red and black ink on paper. Istanbul, Topkapi Sarayi Miizesi Kutiiphanesi, MS R. 1726, fol. 43r. c

196

PART 5. GEOMETRY

AND AESTHETIC

European aesthetic theories, w h i c h e x h i b i t a

THEORY

m e d i t a t i o n has i n d u c e d me to reflect,

scheme o f values—or, to p u t i t i n medieval terms,

remarkable s i m i l a r i t y to their Islamic counter-

transferring t h a t w h i c h is m a t e r i a l to that

w i t h i n a u n i t a r y v i s i o n o f the transcendental

parts. The Scholastic philosophers o f Europe were

w h i c h is i m m a t e r i a l , o n the diversity o f

aspects o f b e i n g . "

5 7

n o u r i s h e d by the new translations o f Greco-Arabic

the sacred virtues: then i t seems to me

texts to such a degree t h a t i t is impossible to tell

that I see myself d w e l l i n g , as i t were, i n

m o n d e n o m i n a t o r o f medieval aesthetics i n b o t h

w h a t t h e i r w r i t i n g s m i g h t otherwise have been like.

some strange region o f the universe w h i c h

the C h r i s t i a n and Islamic worlds alike. The theo-

N o t s u r p r i s i n g l y Aquinas's o f t e n - q u o t e d passages

neither exists entirely i n the slime o f the

centric ethos o f these worlds revolved a r o u n d a

o n beauty i n the Summa

earth n o r entirely i n the p u r i t y o f Heaven;

shared p r e o c c u p a t i o n w i t h grasping the nature

and that, by the grace o f G o d , I can be

o f the relationship between a transcendent G o d

Theologica,

1266-1273,

e x h i b i t a s t r i k i n g affinity to aesthetic concepts encountered i n medieval Islamic texts, p a r t i c u l a r l y

t r a n s p o r t e d f r o m this i n f e r i o r to t h a t

i n the w r i t i n g s o f I b n Sina, w h i c h he is k n o w n to

higher w o r l d i n an anagogical m a n n e r .

The n o t i o n o f transcendental beauty was a c o m -

and a created w o r l d , and between the celestial and 55

terrestrial realms. I n the Islamic w o r l d beautiful visual objects that were capable o f arousing love

have consulted. After a l l , the attempts o f M u s l i m

c o u l d evoke a foretaste o f metaphysical beauty, b u t

philosophers to reconcile pagan Greek p h i l o s o p h y

Suger was describing neither a simple pleasure i n

w i t h Islamic m o n o t h e i s m corresponded so closely

the sensuous n o r an intellectual c o n t e m p l a t i o n o f

their abstract forms lent themselves to a wider

w i t h the aims o f the European Scholastics t h a t

the supernatural; the i n t u i t i v e passage f r o m aes-

variety o f subjective i n t e r p r e t a t i o n s t h a n t h e i r fig-

it is easy to understand w h y the latter were readily

thetic pleasure to mystical j o y was v i r t u a l l y instan-

ural counterparts i n C h r i s t e n d o m . They c o u l d

d r a w n to A r a b i c m o d i f i c a t i o n s o f Greek originals.

taneous. As U m b e r t o Eco w r o t e , medieval taste

resonate w i t h suggestive allusions and correspon-

Aquinas's psychological d e f i n i t i o n o f beauty

" i n v o l v e d an apprehension o f all the relations,

dences to the higher order o f things, b u t at the

emphasized " p r o p e r p r o p o r t i o n or consonance"

i m a g i n a t i v e and supernatural, subsisting between

same t i m e t h e i r polysemy allowed for a rela-

and "brightness," aesthetic categories n o t so dif-

the c o n t e m p l a t e d object and a cosmos w h i c h

tively open-ended series o f e m o t i o n a l responses

ferent f r o m t h e i r Islamic counterparts and sugges-

opened o n to the t r a n s c e n d e n t . "

f r o m audiences.

tive o f an abstract linear style w i t h g l o w i n g c o l o r s .

grated medieval m e n t a l i t y metaphysical aesthetic

54

56

I n the i n t e -

N o d o u b t the similarities o f medieval aesthetic

concepts m i n g l e d constantly w i t h daily artistic

theories i n the Islamic and C h r i s t i a n contexts

as described by A b b o t Suger (1081-1151) w i t h ref-

j u d g m e n t s , a process facilitated by the analogical

were c o n d i t i o n e d by a shared classical heritage.

erence to his new c h o i r at Saint-Denis, w o u l d n o t

m e n t a l i t y o f an age t h a t equated macrocosm w i t h

Similar aesthetic theories resulted i n differentiated

The u p l i f t i n g e m o t i o n a l force o f visual beauty,

have been foreign i n a c o n t e m p o r a r y Islamic c o n -

m i c r o c o s m . The n o t i o n o f a hierarchically ordered

visual i d i o m s i n the L a t i n West, B y z a n t i u m , and

text. I n this famous d e s c r i p t i o n religious and aes-

universe where the p a t t e r n o f the w h o l e was

i n the Islamic lands, yet these i d i o m s were u n i t e d

thetic elements are i n e x t r i c a b l y fused:

echoed i n the p a t t e r n o f the parts made d r a w i n g

by a transcendental ethos expressed t h r o u g h the

inferences f r o m one category o f parallel p h e n o m -

p r e d o m i n a n t use o f abstract geometric schemes

T h u s , w h e n — o u t o f m y delight i n the

ena to the other all the m o r e easy. A c c o r d i n g to

and b r i g h t colors. Despite s t r i k i n g stylistic dif-

beauty o f the house o f G o d — t h e l o v e l i -

Eco, medieval discussions o f transcendental beauty

ferences an u n d e r l y i n g s i m i l a r i t y remained, u n i -

ness o f the m a n y - c o l o u r e d gems has called

therefore allowed, " b o t h for the a u t o n o m y o f aes-

fied by a medieval o r i e n t a t i o n t o w a r d metaphysical

me away f r o m external cares, and w o r t h y

thetic value and for its place w i t h i n a u n i t a r y

splendor a n d the w o n d e r f u l marvels o f creation.

CHAPTER

11.

GEOMETRIC ABSTRACTION

AND THE PSYCHOLOGY

OF VISUAL

PERCEPTION

The medieval Islamic theory o f the soul's attrac-

f o u n d l y intellectual activity was also elaborated

I b n M u q l a to that o f the bee. C i t i n g the Koranic

t i o n to h a r m o n i o u s l y p r o p o r t i o n e d and b r i g h t l y

by B o e t h i u s .

verse o n the bee as a wonder o f creation (16: 68),

colored visual forms i n v o l v e d n o t o n l y an objec-

58

The i n n e r faculty of fantasia

(mutakhayyila),

a l - T a w h i d i described this calligrapher: " H e is a

tive c o n c e p t i o n o f ideal beauty b u t also the sub-

w h i c h makes spiders weave their webs and bees

p r o p h e t i n the field o f h a n d w r i t i n g ; i t was p o u r e d

jective, psychological processes o f aesthetic

produce their honeycombs, was n o t o n l y respon-

u p o n his h a n d , even as i t was revealed to the bees

p e r c e p t i o n . I t presupposed a subject-object rela-

sible for artistic creation b u t also for dreams and

to make their honey cells h e x a g o n a l . "

t i o n s h i p t h a t t o o k i n t o account the e m o t i o n a l

p r o p h e t i c visions. The status o f prophecy w o u l d

same lines, the autobiography that the architect

responses o f the viewer. The

p a r t i c u l a r l y preoccupy thinkers i n the Islamic

Sinan dictated to Sa i exalts his mastery i n a r c h i -

w o r l d , given the p r o p h e t M u h a m m a d ' s p u r e l y

tecture as a f o r m o f saintliness (velayet)

compara(hikmet-i

unprecedented

emphasis o f late antique philosophers o n artistic creativity and the artist's i m a g i n a t i o n

(fantasia)

60

A l o n g the

c

h u m a n nature, so different f r o m that o f C h r i s t , the

ble to the w i s d o m o f the sage L o q m a n

was perpetuated by medieval M u s l i m p h i l o s o -

son o f G o d . The i n t i m a t e relationship between

Lokmdn).

phers. M o d i f y i n g Plato's views to accord a higher

prophecy, dreams, and the artistic i m a g i n a t i o n

n a t u r a l " t a l e n t [kabiliyyet]

status to art, Plotinus's Enneads

explains w h y creativity is often a t t r i b u t e d i n

by G o d , " cultivated by his o w n d i l i g e n t efforts

creative i m a g i n a t i o n o f the artist w h o went beyond

Islamic texts to dream i n s p i r a t i o n s . The A r a b

i n perfecting his art (san at).

just h o l d i n g a m i r r o r to nature by shaping raw

singer-composer M a b a d ( d . 743), for example, is

t u a l o r i g i n o f artistic creation, w h i c h c o u l d at

m a t e r i a l o n the basis o f ideal m e n t a l images.

said to have learned his v o c a t i o n i n sleep, just as

times a t t a i n the level o f a saintly miracle, explains

A c c o r d i n g to Plotinus the beauty o f the m a t e r i a l

the r e n o w n e d Umayyad singer a l - G h a r i d ( d . circa

the frequent praise o f skilled w o r k m a n s h i p

w o r k o f art o r i g i n a t e d f r o m such archetypal forms

716-717) heard mysterious voices i n dreams o n the

i n Islamic texts and the p r i d e o f craftsmen i n

abstracted i n the artist's m i n d or soul f r o m the

basis o f w h i c h he composed songs.

their o w n w o r k s .

had stressed the

suprasensible i n t e l l i g i b l e w o r l d ; hence the

Enneads

c

59

Texts frequently refer to artistic creation as

Sinan a t t r i b u t e d his masterpieces to his

c

w h i c h is a grace granted The m e n t a l or s p i r i -

61

Ingenious talent, c u l m i n a t i n g i n the p r o p h e t i c

assigned a revelatory f u n c t i o n to art t h a t c o u l d

a f o r m o f d i v i n e i n s p i r a t i o n . A l - T a w h i d i ' s trea-

v i s i o n , was regarded i n the post-Hellenistic p h i l o -

transcend mere sense p e r c e p t i o n . This late antique

tise o n p e n m a n s h i p , for example, compares

sophical t r a d i t i o n that Islam i n h e r i t e d as an i n t u -

conceptualization o f artistic creativity as a p r o -

the i n s p i r e d creativity o f the celebrated calligrapher

itive i n n e r faculty o f the s k i l l f u l artisan. U n l i k e

198

PART 5. GEOMETRY AND AESTHETIC

THEORY

animals, w h o o n l y followed n a t u r a l instincts,

relationship a n d hierarchy are o f interest

h u m a n beings were capable o f a higher order o f

to any artist whose art consists o f creating

extensively by thinkers i n c l u d i n g Aquinas, Bacon,

creativity t h a t is often l i n k e d i n Islamic t h o u g h t

a w o r k that pleases or conveys a message

and the philosopher-scientist Albertus Magnus

Sina's w r i t i n g s o n that subject were d r a w n u p o n

w i t h the realm o f the i n t e r n a l senses, a group

or arouses a certain feeling i n the h u m a n

(circa 1200-1280). Aquinas's psychological doc-

o f cognitive faculties located i n the b r a i n a n d

beings w h o l o o k at i t or w o r k or worship

t r i n e o f art, w h i c h u n d e r l i n e d the role o f the

separate f r o m the external senses. I b n Sina, for

i n i t . Sense p e r c e p t i o n , i m a g i n a t i o n , i n t e l -

i n t e r n a l senses i n artistic creation a n d aesthetic

example, argued that a l t h o u g h animals trans-

lect, passion, a n d practical u n d e r s t a n d i n g

p e r c e p t i o n , is, therefore, closely related to Islamic

f o r m e d matter b y b u i l d i n g nests, theirs was a

are all parts o f the soul that the architect

aesthetic t h e o r i e s .

spontaneous activity w h e n compared t o the

addresses t o some extent t h r o u g h w h a t

nal senses answered an obvious need: " T h e y were

creation o f an artificial e n v i r o n m e n t b y m a n k i n d

he creates. T h e power o f i m a g i n a t i o n , its

'faculties' responsible for all those necessary a c t i v i -

t h r o u g h w o r k a n d creative i n v e n t i o n . Differen-

functions i n d r e a m i n g , the way i t m e d i -

ties o f the soul that were at once higher t h a n

t i a t i n g the "sensitive i m a g i n a t i o n " o f animals f r o m

ates between u n d e r s t a n d i n g a n d sense

sensation, lower t h a n the intellect, and u n i q u e l y

the " r a t i o n a l i m a g i n a t i o n " o f humans, he a t t r i b -

p e r c e p t i o n , its role as a receptacle o f i n d i -

h u m a n . . . i n the discussion o f the i n t e r n a l senses

uted a special s p i r i t u a l capacity to the latter that is

v i d u a l perception or revelation, a n d its

is t o be f o u n d the p r e m o d e r n t r e a t m e n t o f the

cultivated i n the arts, sciences, a n d noble actions.

creative role i n representing this percep-

'unconscious' processes o f association a n d recol-

I b n Sina singled o u t the arts a n d language as

t i o n o r revelation i n sensible forms are

l e c t i o n , o f i n g e n u i t y a n d even g e n i u s . "

the two faculties that distinguish h u m a n s f r o m

all questions crucial t o any discussion

animals, a d i s t i n c t i o n also made b y the Brethren

o f . . . art w o r k s .

o f P u r i t y and I b n K h a l d u n .

64

65

Summers stated that the i n t e r -

66

The i n t e r n a l senses, t h e n , acted as i n t e r m e d i aries between the external senses a n d the intellect. Sensations conveyed to the m i n d b y the eye a n d

6 2

The p a r t i c i p a t i o n o f i n t e r n a l senses such as i m a g i n a t i o n , c o g i t a t i o n , and m e m o r y i n the p r o -

Summers also emphasized the i n t i m a t e l i n k

ear, c o m m o n l y regarded as the highest o f the

between visual aesthetics a n d the i n t e r n a l senses

external senses, were filtered t h r o u g h the p r i s m o f

cesses o f artistic creation a n d aesthetic percep-

that p e r f o r m e d j u d g m e n t s o f d i s t i n c t i o n , c o m p a r i -

the i n t e r n a l senses c o n s t i t u t i n g a locus o f aesthetic

t i o n endowed these activities w i t h an intellectual

son, association, a n d c o m b i n a t i o n . H e argued t h a t

sensibility. T h e i n t e r n a l senses n o t o n l y conferred

d i m e n s i o n . The i m p o r t a n t place given i n M u s l i m

the g r o w i n g status o f the i n t e r n a l senses i n medie-

a prestigious m e n t a l status to artistic creation b u t

t h o u g h t t o the i n t e r n a l senses, w h i c h Aristotle's De

val Europe a r o u n d the late t w e l f t h a n d early t h i r -

also assured the p o w e r o f artifacts t o generate

Anima

teenth centuries helped rescue the mechanical arts

e m o t i o n a l responses i n t h e i r audiences. U n l i k e

touched u p o n , has been demonstrated i n a study

(previously l i n k e d t o the external senses) f r o m the

early medieval Europe where the late antique l i n k

by H a r r y A u s t r y n Wolfson that traces their h i s t o r y

pejorative associations they h a d acquired b y the

between the i n t e r n a l senses a n d the arts a n d crafts

and v a r y i n g classifications.

n i n t h century, a t r a n s f o r m a t i o n that c o n t r i b u t e d

was largely severed, the M u s l i m w o r l d perpetuated

to the r i s i n g social p o s i t i o n o f their practitioners.

that l i n k w i t h n o break, assigning a respectable

Wolfson p o i n t e d o u t t h a t i t was L a t i n translations

p o s i t i o n t o the mechanical arts, w h i c h were f i r m l y

The structure o f the soul a n d the activities

o f Greek a n d Arabic sources that i n s p i r e d this new

situated a m o n g the expressions o f the creative

o f its various parts o r powers a n d their

interest i n the i n t e r n a l senses; he n o t e d t h a t I b n

h u m a n soul. This view was eloquently expressed

and De Memoria

et Reminiscentia

63

had briefly

T h e i r relevance for

the arts has been n o t e d b y M u h s i n S. M a h d i :

GEOMETRIC ABSTRACTION

AND THE

PSYCHOLOGY

OF VISUAL

by I b n K h a l d u n , w h o regarded the arts and crafts

that the m a n u a l crafts carried the i m p r i n t s o f t h e i r

PERCEPTION

199

nal senses) and " r e c o l l e c t i o n " ( t h a t w h i c h restores

as " t h e result o f man's a b i l i t y to t h i n k , t h r o u g h

creator's m i n d s . They transcended mere sensual

forgotten things to m e m o r y ) sometimes were

w h i c h he is distinguished f r o m a n i m a l s . " C o m -

experience since they i n v o l v e d the i n n e r , m e n t a l

c o m b i n e d w i t h the others i n a five-fold classifica-

b i n i n g t h e o r y w i t h praxis, the crafts, w h i c h t r a n -

activities o f the h u m a n s o u l .

tion.

scended mere m a n u a l labor, were d i s t i n c t i v e signs

68

The relatively h i g h status accorded to the arts

7 1

The abstractive powers o f the r a t i o n a l soul

were described by I b n Sina i n terms o f t h e i r sub-

o f h u m a n c i v i l i z a t i o n : " T h e [susceptibility] o f

and crafts is also apparent i n the Brethren's epistle

servience to reason i n a hierarchical scale r i s i n g i n

the crafts to refinement and the q u a l i t y o f [the

o n the "loftiness o f the crafts" (sharaf

degrees f r o m the lowest sensuous faculties (vegeta-

al-sanai ). c

purposes] they are to serve i n the demands made

This epistle once again reflects the intellectual

tive and a n i m a l ) to the highest r a t i o n a l ones. H i s

by l u x u r y and w e a l t h , t h e n , c o r r e s p o n d t o the

basis o f the crafts, i n t i m a t e l y l i n k e d w i t h the " p r o -

t h e o r y o f the soul recognized t h a t some i n d i v i d u -

c i v i l i z a t i o n o f a given c o u n t r y . "

ductive faculty" o f the soul. Here the crafts are

als were gifted w i t h an i n b o r n i n t u i t i v e power

defined as the i m p r i n t s o n raw m a t t e r o f m e n t a l

or insight called " h o l y reason" (or h o l y faculty),

oped by Islamic philosophers between the n i n t h

images (al-sura)

reserved as a d i v i n e favor for the very few. U n l i k e

and early eleventh centuries, views t h a t t r i c k l e d

tors, and several crafts are identified as lofty w i t h

al-Farabi, w h o had ascribed prophecy t o an excep-

d o w n i n t o p o p u l a r mystical texts, l i t e r a t u r e , and

respect to p a r t i c u l a r criteria. For example, fire-

t i o n a l perfection o f the imaginative faculty,

b i o g r a p h i c a l works o n calligraphers and painters.

works, p a i n t i n g , and music are singled o u t as

I b n Sina assigned i t to insight or h o l y reason,

being lofty i n terms o f t h e i r c o n n e c t i o n to the

described as the highest o f the h u m a n faculties.

6 7

These state-

ments o f I b n K h a l d u n were r o o t e d i n views devel-

A l - K i n d i and al-Farabi were a m o n g the earliest

f o r m e d i n the m i n d s o f their crea-

Islamic philosophers to have discussed the i n t e r n a l

soul. The latter t w o are described as products o f

A l - G h a z a l i , t o o , a t t r i b u t e d prophecy and

faculties o f the soul. A l - F a r a b i , whose d e f i n i t i o n

ideal forms d i s t i l l e d i n the souls o f painters and

s a i n t h o o d to the highest degree o f insight, the

remained close to that o f A r i s t o t l e , enumerated

musicians whose artistic beauty is capable o f

" p r o p h e t i c h o l y s p i r i t " that operates where " t h e

five faculties: i m a g i n a t i o n , e s t i m a t i o n , m e m o r y ,

m o v i n g the soul and t r i g g e r i n g a sense o f pleasure

intellectual and cogitative s p i r i t falls s h o r t . "

compositive h u m a n i m a g i n a t i o n , and compositive

and w o n d e r

a n i m a l i m a g i n a t i o n . This list was m o d i f i e d i n the

(al-ta ajjub). c

72

U n l i k e I b n Sina, w h o envisaged the c o n j u n c t i o n

69

I b n Sina also l i n k e d the i n t e r n a l senses o f

o f insight w i t h d i v i n e revelation as an intellectual

epistles o f the Brethren o f P u r i t y where the five

i m a g i n a t i o n (capable o f abstracting m a t t e r ) and

experience, al-Ghazali regarded i t as a mystical

i n t e r n a l ( s p i r i t u a l ) senses s y m m e t r i c a l l y counter-

e s t i m a t i o n (capable o f a m o r e elevated f o r m o f

one. For h i m the heart ( c o m p r i s i n g the s p i r i t and

balance the five external (corporeal) senses and act

abstraction going beyond m a t e r i a l accidents) w i t h

r a t i o n a l soul) was the secret o f d i v i n e knowledge

as the servants o f t h e i r k i n g , the soul. I n a d d i t i o n

artistic activity. H e argued t h a t these faculties were

rather t h a n the b r a i n , b u t at the same t i m e he

to the first three i n t e r n a l senses cited by al-Farabi,

essential " t o deduce plans c o n c e r n i n g t r a n s i t o r y

awarded the intellect " a n u n a m b i g u o u s cachet o f

the Brethren listed the "faculty o f speech" and the

things and to deduce h u m a n a r t s . "

legitimacy."

" p r o d u c t i v e faculty (al-quwwa

w r i t i n g s o n the i n t e r n a l senses, w h i c h elaborated

the five i n t e r n a l senses, assimilating t h e m i n a less

o f w h i c h is i n the hands and fingers and by means

and refined those o f his predecessors, I b n Sina

systematic m a n n e r i n t o his various w r i t i n g s i n

al-sani a), c

the seat

70

I n his various

73

Consequently al-Ghazali recognized

o f w h i c h the soul produces the art o f w r i t i n g as

listed seven categories that augmented al-Farabi's

w h i c h the heart and mystical love play an i m p o r -

well as the other arts." The i n c l u s i o n o f the p r o -

five. H i s t w o a d d i t i o n a l faculties, the " c o m m o n

tant role. He sometimes w r o t e about a sixth sense

ductive faculty a m o n g the i n t e r n a l senses i m p l i e d

sense" ( t h a t w h i c h centrally coordinates the i n t e r -

(referred to variously as the soul, the s p i r i t , or the

200

PART 5. GEOMETRY AND AESTHETIC

123. Nasir al-Din al-Tusi and his colleagues at the Maragha observatory, miniature painting. From a scientific anthology, Shiraz, ca. 1410. Istanbul, istanbul Universitesi Kiituphanesi, MS F. 1418, fol. IV.

THEORY

GEOMETRIC

ABSTRACTION

AND THE

PSYCHOLOGY

OF VISUAL

PERCEPTION

201

heart) t h a t i n t u i t i v e l y perceived the beauty o f

b u i l d i n g o f an architect reveal also the i n n e r

aesthetic j u d g m e n t s were considered embedded i n

the i n n e r w o r l d , far m o r e perfect t h a n that o f the

beauty o f these m e n . "

the subjective processes o f the psychology o f visual

outer w o r l d : " T h e beauty o f the outer f o r m w h i c h

w r i t i n g s , w h i c h often use craft analogies, does one

p e r c e p t i o n , w h i c h i n v a r i a b l y involved the i n t e r n a l

is seen w i t h the b o d i l y eye, can be experienced

find any reference to artifacts as symbolic repre-

senses. Here beauty is defined n o t as an absolute

even by c h i l d r e n and animals . . . w h i l e the beauty

sentations o f religious or mystical doctrines. Like

a t t r i b u t e b u t as a contextual subject-object rela-

o f the i n n e r f o r m can be perceived by the eye

earlier w r i t e r s , he recognized the capacity o f beau-

t i o n s h i p i n v o l v i n g i n n e r m e n t a l operations o f

o f the 'heart' and the l i g h t o f i n n e r v i s i o n o f

t i f u l objects to reflect creative skill and to move

c o g n i t i o n t h a t d i d n o t take place i n a c u l t u r a l v o i d .

man alone."

the soul w i t h love, b u t the rest was left u p to the

The i n t e r n a l senses o f i m a g i n a t i o n ( p e r f o r m -

subjective i n c l i n a t i o n s o f each viewer.

i n g j u d g m e n t s o f c o m m o n sense), r e c o g n i t i o n ,

74

The p o p u l a r mystical d i s t i n c t i o n

between i n n e r (batin) and outer (zahir)

v i s i o n is

repeated i n another passage by al-Ghazali:

7 6

However, nowhere i n his

Philosophical theories about the i n t e r n a l senses, w h i c h eventually were i n c o r p o r a t e d i n t o p o p u l a r

remembrance ( m e m o r y ) , and inference w o r k e d together t h r o u g h the m e d i a t i o n o f the external

The i n n e r v i s i o n is stronger t h a n the outer

mystical l i t e r a t u r e , also penetrated m o r e special-

sense o f sight i n the subjective process o f aesthetic

one, the " h e a r t " keener i n p e r c e p t i o n t h a n

ized texts o n poetics, music, calligraphy, and

judgment. I b n al-Haytham wrote:

the eye and the beauty o f the objects per-

optics. I n t h a t respect I b n al-Haytham's

ceived w i t h the "reason" is greater t h a n

al-mandzir

the beauty o f the outer forms w h i c h pre-

author also w r o t e a treatise o n architecture. This

o f sight is perceived by pure sensation;

sent themselves to the eye. Hence the

optical treatise, so i n f l u e n t i a l i n Europe after

rather, m a n y visible properties are per-

pleasure o f the " h e a r t " over the exalted

the t h i r t e e n t h century, became available i n I r a n

ceived by j u d g m e n t and inference i n a d d i -

d i v i n e objects w h i c h i t sees and w h i c h

t h r o u g h an expanded t r a n s l a t i o n and c o m m e n t a r y ,

t i o n to sensing the visible object's f o r m , and n o t by pure sensation alone.

Kitdb

is p a r t i c u l a r l y significant since its

are t o o lofty to be perceived by the senses

the Tanqih al-mandzir

m u s t necessarily be m o r e perfect and

circa 1300, o f K a m a l a l - D i n al-Farisi, w h o had

(Revision o f the

Optics),

N o t everything perceived by the sense

N o w sight does n o t possess the capac-

greater, and the i n c l i n a t i o n o f s o u n d dis-

studied w i t h Q u t b a l - D i n al-Shirazi at the Maragha

i t y to judge; rather i t is the faculty o f

p o s i t i o n and reason t o w a r d t h e m m u s t be

observatory (fig. 123). This i n s i g h t f u l w o r k

j u d g m e n t that discriminates those p r o p -

stronger. . . . H e w h o lacks the i n n e r

became the m a i n vehicle for disseminating I b n

erties. But the d i s c r i m i n a t i o n p e r f o r m e d

v i s i o n cannot perceive the i n n e r f o r m and

al-Haytham's o p t i c a l theories i n the p o s t - M o n g o l

by the faculty o f j u d g m e n t cannot take

cannot derive pleasure f r o m i t , love i t and

Islamic w o r l d . The Tanqih was abridged w i t h a new

place w i t h o u t the m e d i a t i o n o f the

incline toward i t .

c o m m e n t a r y for M u r a d 111 by the sixteenth-

sense o f s i g h t .

7 5

78

century O t t o m a n astronomer-engineer Taqi The role o f the artist's i n t e r n a l faculties i n creating

a l - D i n b. M a r u f w h o was attached to the royal

As we have seen, the perception o f beauty i n v o l v e d ,

beautiful objects capable o f arousing pleasurable

observatory i n I s t a n b u l , m o d e l e d o n earlier

according to I b n a l - H a y t h a m , a complex i n t e r -

awe was acknowledged by al-Ghazali: " T h e beauti-

I l k h a n i d - T i m u r i d observatories i n Maragha,

action between t w e n t y - t w o visual properties ca-

ful w o r k o f an a u t h o r , the beautiful p o e m o f a

Tabriz, and Samarqand (fig. 124).

pable o f p r o d u c i n g beauty either i n d i v i d u a l l y or

poet, the beautiful p a i n t i n g o f a painter or the

c

77

I b n al-Haytham's Kitdb al-mandzir

shows t h a t

i n c o m b i n a t i o n w i t h one another. Perfect beauty

202

PART 5. GEOMETRY

AND AESTHETIC

THEORY

124a, b. Taqi al-Din b. Ma ruf and his colleagues at the Istanbul observatory, miniature painting. From Lokman, Shahanshahndma (Book of the king of kings), Istanbul, ca. 1581-1582. Istanbul, Istanbul Universitesi Kiituphanesi, MS F. 1414, fols. 56v-57r. c

GEOMETRIC

ABSTRACTION

AND THE

PSYCHOLOGY

OF VISUAL

PERCEPTION

203

came about t h r o u g h the p r o p o r t i o n a l i t y and har-

w h i c h is an almost instantaneous r e c o g n i t i o n o f

iar t h a t the next t i m e i t is seen the "sight w i l l

m o n y a m o n g p a r t i c u l a r properties, o n l y two o f

repeatedly seen familiar forms f i r m l y embedded i n

perceive its f o r m by r e c o g n i t i o n . "

w h i c h , l i g h t and color, were perceived by " p u r e

visual m e m o r y , and " c o n t e m p l a t i v e p e r c e p t i o n , "

plicated forms r e q u i r i n g the concentrated c o n -

sensation." The rest r e q u i r e d the i n v o l v e m e n t o f

a longer o p e r a t i o n i n v o l v i n g the i n s p e c t i o n o f

t e m p l a t i o n o f the gaze, as opposed to the fleeting

the i n t e r n a l senses:

all parts o f an u n f a m i l i a r or c o m p l e x object.

glance, i n c l u d e " m i n u t e designs, letters o f a script,

The choice between c o n t e m p l a t i n g or glancing is

t a t t o o marks, w r i n k l e s and the difference between

left to the viewer:

closely s i m i l a r c o l o u r s " whose "fine features

The sense o f sight perceives the forms o f

8 1

Visually c o m -

appear o n l y after they have been scrutinized and

visible objects f r o m the forms that come H a v i n g s h o w n this, we [ n o w ] say that

contemplated."

objects. A n d its perception o f lights qua

sight perceives visible objects i n t w o ways:

and calligraphy recalls I b n al-Haytham's earlier

lights and o f colours qua colours is by

by glancing and by c o n t e m p l a t i o n . For as

remarks o n p r o p o r t i o n e d scripts and h a r m o n i -

to i t f r o m the colours and lights o f those

82

The reference to m i n u t e designs

p u r e sensation. But those properties i n

soon as sight takes notice o f the object,

ously composed designs, w h i c h according to the

the f o r m w h i c h , or the like o f w h i c h , i t

it perceives its manifest features. T h e n i t

f o l l o w i n g statement can be fully appreciated o n l y

has previously perceived, and w h i c h , or

may or may n o t subsequently contemplate

by c o n t e m p l a t i v e v i s i o n :

the like o f w h i c h , i t remembers having

the object. I f i t contemplates and inspects

perceived, are at once perceived by recog-

all its parts, then i t w i l l ascertain its f o r m .

W h e n sight perceives an object whose

n i t i o n f r o m the signs i n the f o r m . The fac-

I f i t does n o t contemplate the object and

beauty consists i n the c o n j u n c t i o n o f

u l t y o f j u d g m e n t t h e n discerns this f o r m ,

scrutinize all its parts, t h e n i t w i l l perceive

properties and i n t h e i r p r o p o r t i o n a l i t y ,

thus perceiving f r o m i t all properties i n i t ,

a non-ascertained f o r m o f i t . . . . W h e n ,

and i t contemplates the object thus d i s t i n -

such as order, o u t l i n e , s i m i l a r i t y , d i s s i m i -

however, sight perceives an object and

g u i s h i n g and perceiving the properties that

larity, and all properties i n the f o r m the

contemplates i t , i t perceives a verified

p r o d u c e beauty by being c o n j o i n e d or by

p e r c e p t i o n o f w h i c h is n o t affected by

f o r m o f i t ; and i t perceives this f o r m

being p r o p o r t i o n a t e to one another, and

mere sensation or by r e c o g n i t i o n . There-

by c o n t e m p l a t i o n .

this perception occurs i n the sentient, and

80

fore, a m o n g the properties that are perceptible by the sense o f sight, some are

the faculty o f j u d g m e n t compares those As examples o f i m m e d i a t e r e c o g n i t i o n t h r o u g h

properties w i t h one another, t h e n that fac-

perceived by pure sensation, others by

glancing, I b n a l - H a y t h a m cited f a m i l i a r w r i t t e n

r e c o g n i t i o n , and others still by a j u d g -

words (such as Allah) t h a t have appeared so m a n y

that consists i n the c o n j u n c t i o n o f the

m e n t and inference that exceeds the infer-

times before the eye o f a literate person that they

h a r m o n i o u s l y c o m b i n e d properties i n i t .

ences o f r e c o g n i t i o n .

are perceived " b y r e c o g n i t i o n at the m o m e n t o f

79

g l a n c i n g , " w i t h o u t the need to inspect the letters

u l t y w i l l perceive the beauty o f the object 8 3

A l t h o u g h I b n a l - H a y t h a m stated this as a

I b n a l - H a y t h a m thus differentiated " p u r e sensa-

one by one. H e also m e n t i o n e d a w a l l "covered

general a x i o m , its i m p l i c a t i o n s for the aesthetic

t i o n " f r o m i n f e r e n t i a l " p e r c e p t i o n . " He f u r t h e r

w i t h designs and d e c o r a t i o n s " t h a t after being

p e r c e p t i o n o f girth patterns and p r o p o r t i o n e d

subdivided perception into "glancing perception,"

c o n t e m p l a t e d for the first t i m e becomes so f a m i l -

calligraphy are obvious. I t is n o t u n l i k e l y t h a t the

204

PART 5.

GEOMETRY

AND AESTHETIC

I r a q i m a t h e m a t i c i a n had become acquainted w i t h these t w o c o m p l e m e n t a r y modes o f design before

THEORY

A n o t h e r i m p l i c a t i o n o f I b n al-Haytham's psychological t h e o r y o f optics is t h a t the w i l l f u l

their o w n sheer visual richness. W r i t t e n sources c o m m e n t n o t o n l y o n the

he m o v e d to the F a t i m i d c o u r t i n Cairo to regulate

c o m p l i c a t i o n o f v i s i o n by i n t r i c a t e l y decorated

i n t e r n a l i z e d m e n t a l processes o f visual perception

the flow o f the N i l e . He may have been t h i n k i n g

surfaces was a calculated way o f i n d u c i n g c o n t e m -

b u t also o n the ingenious skill o f architects and

about t h e m w h i l e w r i t i n g his treatise, w h i c h often

plative v i s i o n , a "way o f seeing," w h i c h often is

uses concrete examples f a m i l i a r to h i m i n c l u d i n g

referred to as the " s c r u t i n i z i n g gaze"

a s t r i k i n g reference i n the chapter o n errors o f

nazar) i n O t t o m a n t e x t s .

v i s i o n to shadow plays ( k n o w n to have existed i n

surfaces, covered by m u l t i l a y e r e d geometric

p h i l o s o p h e r al-Sijistani described the musician's

Fatimid Egypt).

designs interlaced w i t h geometrized vegetal, calli-

creativity as emanating f r o m the soul and intellect,

base his statements o n p r o p o r t i o n e d scripts and

graphic, and occasionally figural m o t i f s , c o n s t i -

recalling the Brethren o f Purity's characteriza-

geometric patterns, they still p r o v i d e valuable

t u t e d magnetic fields designed to attract the gaze

t i o n o f p a i n t i n g and music as bearers o f m e n t a l

insights about c o n t e m p o r a r y aesthetic j u d g m e n t s .

w i t h t h e i r b e w i l d e r i n g v e r t i g i n o u s effects. T h e i r

abstractions f o r m e d i n the souls o f t h e i r creators

One i m p l i c a t i o n is that artifacts may have been

i n f i n i t e l y extendable, n o n d i r e c t i o n a l patterns o f

t h r o u g h a d i s t i l l a t i o n o f sense perceptions f r o m

designed to take i n t o account the processes o f

line and color, w i t h no single focal p o i n t or hierar-

the n a t u r a l w o r l d . A l - S i j i s t a n i was q u o t e d by his

visual p e r c e p t i o n o u t l i n e d i n I b n al-Haytham's

chical progression t o w a r d a decorative c l i m a x ,

friend al-Tawhidi:

psychological optics ( o r i n other o p t i c a l texts),

r e q u i r e d the i n s e r t i o n o f subjectivity i n t o the

p a r t i c u l a r l y since aesthetic theories so consistently

o p t i c a l field; they presupposed a private way o f

M u s i c advenes to the soul and is present

emphasize the e m o t i o n a l responses beautiful a r t i -

l o o k i n g . Such surfaces seduced the eye to alight

t h e r e i n i n a subtle and noble manner. A n d

facts i n d u c e d i n t h e i r viewers. This was the case i n

o n h a r m o n i o u s l y c o m b i n e d colors and abstract

i f the m u s i c i a n happens to have a recep-

the royal halls o f the A l h a m b r a , where poetic

patterns that c o u l d stir u p the i m a g i n a t i o n , arouse

tive n a t u r e , responsive m a t t e r , suitable

i n s c r i p t i o n s i n v i t e the viewer to examine a t t e n -

the e m o t i o n s , and create m o o d s . I n s t a n t l y recog-

d i s p o s i t i o n , and a p l i a n t i n s t r u m e n t , he

tively t h e i r visual beauty, w h i c h exceeded the

nizable pious aphorisms and f a m i l i a r names,

pours o u t over i t , w i t h the aid o f the i n t e l -

most extravagant conceptions o f the i m a g i n a t i o n

accompanied by longer q u o t a t i o n s f r o m the

lect and soul, an elegant cast and w o n -

(khaydl or khiydl).

K o r a n , the h a d i t h , or p o e t r y that addressed literate

derful h a r m o n y , g i v i n g i t a beloved f o r m

i n the H a l l o f T w o Sisters reads, " I am the garden

audiences, f u r t h e r enriched the intellectual p o t e n -

and remarkable embellishment. H i s fac-

appearing every m o r n i n g w i t h adorned beauty;

t i a l o f visual p e r c e p t i o n . Visually c o m p l i c a t e d

u l t y herein is by means o f c o m m u n i c a t i o n

contemplate m y beauty and y o u w i l l be penetrated

architectural revetments, open to a wealth o f reso-

w i t h the r a t i o n a l soul. N a t u r e conse-

w i t h u n d e r s t a n d i n g . " A different i n s c r i p t i o n i n the

nances and a m u l t i p l i c i t y o f meanings, interacted

q u e n t l y needs art because i t attains its per-

same h a l l refers t o the u n f o l d i n g o f so m a n y w o n -

i n different ways w i t h the subjectivity o f viewers.

fection t h r o u g h the r a t i o n a l soul by

ders t h a t " t h e eyes [ o f the spectator] r e m a i n for-

They created artificial e n v i r o n m e n t s o f fantasy

means o f skillful a r t .

ever fixed o n t h e m , p r o v i d e d he be gifted w i t h a

and c o n t e m p l a t i v e i n t r o s p e c t i o n , simultaneously

84

Even i f I b n a l - H a y t h a m d i d n o t

For instance, one o f the poems

86

(im dn-i c

Elaborately patterned

decorators w h o ennoble raw m a t t e r t h r o u g h ideal m e n t a l forms abstracted by the power o f the i n t e r nal senses. The late t e n t h - c e n t u r y Baghdadi

87

m i n d [ t o estimate t h e m ] , " a statement a l l u d i n g to

reflecting the glory o f the b u i l d e r , the decorator,

The role o f the i m a g i n a t i o n i n magically trans-

the intellectual nature o f aesthetic p e r c e p t i o n .

the p a t r o n , and o f G o d , i n a d d i t i o n t o advertising

f o r m i n g the raw m a t e r i a l o f art by e n d o w i n g i t

85

GEOMETRIC

ABSTRACTION

AND THE PSYCHOLOGY

OF V I S U A L

PERCEPTION

205

w i t h a nobler intellectual q u a l i t y is c o m p a r e d to

Naqqash, attached to Sultan H u s a y n Bayqara's

that this g r o u p has, no one o f the other

the power o f alchemy by al-Jurjani:

c o u r t at H e r a t , w h o was an expert i n the art

arts possesses. The beauty that unveils her

o f d e p i c t i o n and i l l u m i n a t i o n : " H e constantly

face i n the tablet o f the painter's m i n d is

Poetry creates o u t o f ignoble m a t e r i a l

p a i n t e d strange things a n d w o n d e r f u l forms o n

n o t reflected i n everyone's i m a g i n a t i o n .

i n v e n t i o n s o f transcendental value; and

the pages o f t i m e w i t h the b r u s h o f i m a g i n a t i o n . "

9 1

acts i n such a m a n n e r as to make y o u

Such passages also are encountered i n the sources

The Qdnun al-suwar by Sadiqi Bek, another Safavi
4

t e r r a - c o t t a , 12,13

Tärikh-i

Mas üdt, c

176 n . 5

180 n . 129

B y z a n t i n e architecture, 117

a l - B a q i l l a n i ( A s h a r i t h e o l o g i a n , d. 1013), 97 c

133

Buzurgmihri, Muhandis Zuhrah (contemporary Iranian

B o z d o g a n , Sibel, 84 n . 14, 86 n . 55

al-Balawï

al-handasa,

c

o n m o n u m e n t a l a r c h i t e c t u r e , 85 n . 41

24-25,

B a k l a n o v , N i k o l a i B o r i s o v i c h , 9,12

Kitäb ma rifa

Risäla ft al-nisab

84 n . 33

B a h r a m M i r z a (Safavid p r i n c e ) , 113

min a màl

m a t h e m a t i c a l e d u c a t i o n of, 176 n . 13

o n h a r m o n y , 85 n . 43,118

a l - B a g h d a d i , a l - K h a t i b (1002-1071), 3

c

123,133, i34-37> 138,167-68,170,176 n . 13

66, 6 8 - 6 9 , 71

M o n g o l sack of, 102,108

Sunnism i n , 9 6 - 9 7

ilayhi al-sàni

99

a n d S u n n i s m , 107

B r u n e l l e s c h i , F i l i p p o (1377-1446), 43, 56 n . 1 0 2 , 1 6 5 - 6 6

i n T o p k a p i s c r o l l , 34, 37, 232

al-Bayhaqi, A b u al-Hasan (1100-1169/1170), 140

Bryas Palace ( C o n s t a n t i n o p l e ) , 3

Capella Palatina ( P a l e r m o ) , 120

Bayqara, Sultan H u s a y n ( T i m u r i d ruler, r. 1470-1506), 121

B r y s o n , N o r m a n , 175

carpentry, 152. See also w o o d w o r k

B a y s u n g h u r ( T i m u r i d p r i n c e , d. 1433), 50, 57 n . 128

B û c h e r , F r a n ç o i s , 43

C e n t r a l Asia, 56 n . 110

b u i l d e r , master. See master b u i l d e r s

arch-net vaults of, 10

Bayt a l - M a m u r , 194

B u k h a r a n master b u i l d e r , 7,

b r i c k a n d tile c o n s t r u c t i o n i n , 9,12, 22, 23, 34, 97

beauty. See aesthetics

Bukhara Museum, 9

Behrens-Abouseif, D o r i s , 1 0 7 - 8

B u l a t o v , M i t k h a t , 9, 22,156

( B a g h d a d ) , 131,132

Bayt al-hikma c

B e i j i n g , 221 Berber dynasties. See A l m o h a d dynasty; A l m o r a v i d

c o n s t r u c t i o n o f plaster m u q a r n a s vaults i n , 46, 48

o n a n o n y m o u s (Paris) m a n u s c r i p t , 169,179 n . 104

g r i d systems used i n , 13, 44

o n g r i d systems, 13, 32

m a t h e m a t i c a l t r a i n i n g o f architects i n , 156

dynasty

Burckhardt, Titus

Bernard o f Clairvaux

Art of Islam,

Apologia,

7-13,14

paper, use of, 4

80-81

plaster, use of, 4

The Arts of Islam ( e x h i b i t i o n catalog), 80

101

revetments i n , 115

"Perennial Values i n I s l a m i c A r t , " 78

beveled style

u n i t y i n a r c h i t e c t u r e of, 22

classical o r i g i n s of, 9 5 - 9 6

o n the r e l i g i o u s role o f I s l a m i c art, 86 n n . 8 8 - 9 1

Chahär

Samarran, 92, 93, 94, 95,103, 220

Sacred Art in East and West, 78

C h a h r Bakr shrine c o m p l e x ( B u k h a r a ) , 32, 33

a l - B i r u n i ( 9 7 3 - 1 0 5 0 ) , 168

B ü r g e l , Johann C h r i s t o p h , 86 n . 69

Blochet, Edgar, 169

b u r n i n g m i r r o r s , 177 n . 16

B l o o m , Jonathan, 100

Busard, H u b e r t L . , 159

Blue m o s q u e ( T a b r i z ) , 32

B u y i d dynasty (945-1055), 95, 96,107

B o e t h i u s , M a n l i u s (circa 4 8 0 - 5 2 4 ) , 194,197

a l - B u z j a n i , A b u al-Wafa' ( 9 4 0 - 9 9 8 ) , 156,163,169

Bois, Y v e - A l a i n , 181 n . 136 Book of the Principles

( E u c l i d ) , 152

Kitäb al-manàzil al- ummäl c

fïmàyahtàju

min ilm al-hisàb, c

Maqäla

( N i z a m i A r u z i ) , 56 n . 84 c

C h a r d i n , Jean (seventeenth-century F r e n c h t r a v e l e r ) , 6, 44, 57 n . 118 Cheetham, M a r k A .

ilayhi al-kuttàb 157

The Rhetoric

of Purity,

210, 212

c h i n o i s e r i e patterns. See floral p a t t e r n s wa

Choix d'ornements Prangey), 63

moresques

de VAlhambra

( G i r a u l t de

384

INDEX

C h o r b a c h i , Wasma'a K . , 55 n . 56, 71, 85 n n . 5 3 - 5 4

Symmetries

D o l d - S a m p l o n i u s , Y v o n n e , 159 Dolmetsch, Heinrich •

cursive script. See c a l l i g r a p h y

C h r i s t i e , A r c h i b a l d H . , 19-20, Methods

c u r v i l i n e a r vegetal p a t t e r n s . See floral patterns;

55 n . 49

of Pattern

Designing,

19, 6 9 - 7 0

Ç i n i l i K ö s k ( T i l e d k i o s k ) , i n the T o p k a p i Palace

islimi

Lines in Ratio ( A p o l l o n i u s o f Perga), 138

D o m e o f the R o c k (Jerusalem), 93, 220

Cutting

Surfaces in Ratio ( A p o l l o n i u s o f Perga), 138

D o s t M u h a m m a d (calligrapher a n d p a i n t e r ) , 113-14* 118, 174, 212

circle, 133,138,189,194. See also r a d i a l g r i d

drawings. See also g r o u n d plans; n i n e t e e n t h - a n d

Cistercians, 101

D

Clarke, Caspar P u r d o n , 1 4 , 1 9 - 2 0 , 45, 56 n . 105

D a l g i ç A h m e d ( d . 1608), 154

classical art. See G r e c o - R o m a n art

D a r b - i I m a m (Isfahan), 35, 36, 37,121

figurai

Clerget, Charles-Ernest

D a r b - i K u s h k (Isfahan), 37, 37

grid-based, 7

D a v u d A g h a ( d . 1599), 154

o n paper, 3 - 9 ,

D a w l a t s h a h ( f i f t e e n t h - c e n t u r y T i m u r i d h i s t o r i a n ) , 120,

on parchment, 3

universelle

d'ornements,

63

C l i n t o n , Jerome W . , 185

t w e n t i e t h - c e n t u r y scrolls; Tashkent scrolls;

de la décoration

polygonale

arabe, 70

Tadhkïrat

c

des arts décoratifs

de VOrient,

66

D u M a n s , Raphael ( C a p u c h i n m i s s i o n a r y a n d traveler t o

( V i t r u v i u s P o l l i o ) , 177 n . 29

De Architectura

i n b r i c k a n d tile, 12,13, 99

De aspectibus

i n n i n e t e e n t h - a n d t w e n t i e t h - c e n t u r y scrolls, 15

de B e a u m o n t , A d a l b e r t

i n Tashkent scrolls, 10,13, 32 i n T i m u r i d revetments, 41 i n T o p k a p i s c r o l l , 31, 32, 49,112 ( G h i b e r t i ) , 166

Commentarii

C o m p u t e r v i s i o n C A D D S X , 351 4

(Saint A u g u s t i n e ) , 194

Conic Sections Constitutions

( A p o l l o n i u s ) , 152 of Masonry,

162-63

c o n s t r u c t i o n m e t h o d s , 51

D u r a n t , Stuart, 69

( A r i s t o t l e ) , 198

aesthetics of, 190, 215

a n d s y m m e t r y , 85 n n . 5 0 - 5 2 {see also crystallography)

Encyclopédie

de VOrient,

médiévale,

De Memoria

( A r i s t o t l e ) , 198

et Reminiscentia

Der Ornamentenschatz

Eco, U m b e r t o , 196

( D o l m e t s c h ) , 66

Der Stil in den technischen

und tektonischen

Künsten

de l'Egypte,

Design and Color in Islamic Architecture

a n d templates, 49

design booklets. See p a t t e r n b o o k s Designs for Mosaic and Tessellated de la Perse, 63

crafts. See also specific crafts; aesthetics; arts

Pavements

(Jones), 64

Didascalion

( H u g h o f St. V i c t o r ) , 162 ( K ü h n e l ) , 7 4 - 7 5 , 81,102,124 n . 7

Diefenbach, L e o n h a r d Geometrische Die Kunstliteratur

Ornamentik,

66

(Schlosser), 186

Diez, Ernst, 95, 99,180 n . 127

d i v i n e l y i n s p i r e d , 197

D i h l a w i , A m i r K h u s r a w (1253-1325), 155

d r e a m - i n s p i r e d , 197

D i l g u s h a garden palace ( S a m a r q a n d ) , 57 n . 130,120

a n d the i n t e r n a l senses, 1 9 7 - 9 9 , 201

D i m a n d , M a u r i c e S., 74 d i Pellegrino, Francesco ( a u t h o r o f s i x t e e n t h - c e n t u r y

Critchlow, Keith Islamic

Patterns,

8 1 - 8 2 , 87 n . 99

Elements

of Geometry

Elements

of Theology

p a t t e r n b o o k ) , 84 n . 2

geométrica

( E u c l i d ) , 131,133 ( P r o c l u s ) , 187

elevations, a r c h i t e c t u r a l , 43, 4 4 - 4 5 , 353-57, geométrica

musulmana

353-58

(Prieto y Vives

a n d G ó m e z - M o r e n o ) , 70 El lazo, motivo

ornamental

destacado

zu trazado simplicista

c o u r t p a t r o n a g e of, 221

c r e a t i o n , artistic

en su decoración

( P a v ó n M a l d o n a d o ) , 70

El lazo: Decoración

dhikr, 122 Die Arabeske

status of, 199

(Seherr-Thoss), 73

"Designs for M o s a i c T i l e s " (Jones), 64

a n d c i v i l i z a t i o n , 199 d e f i n i t i o n of, 208

Mésopotamie

61

a n d p l a s t e r w o r k , 57 n . 118

61-62

El arte hispanomusulman

la Perse et la

( T e x i e r ) , 63 Description

Edessa, 220 Egypt, 23, 94

de VArménie,

modernes

E

( G u n d i s s a l i n u s ) , 162

De ortu scientiarum

Description

Monuments

D z h a l i l o v , K h u l i , 55 n . 45

( T h e o p h i l u s ) , 84 n . 2

a n d d e c o r a t i o n , 50, 57 n . 130,180 n . 130

arabe,

Richt-

D e l h i , 221

( a l - F a r a b i ) , 132,139,162

Coste, Pascal

und Körpern,

D u t h o i t , E d m o n d , 68

186

De scientiis

a n d measurements, 4 3 - 4 4

mit dem Zirkel

Ebenen und ganzen

164-65,165

d'esthétique

De diversis artibus

der Messung

scheit in Linien,

66

de B r u y n e , Edgar Etudes

82

1830-1980,

Unterweisung

des arts décoratifs

a r i t h m e t i c tables, 44

Architecture

Ornament,

D ü r e r , A l b r e c h t (1471-1528), 179 n . 96

( I b n a l - H a y t h a m ) , 166

(Semper), 84 n . 23

a n d d r a w i n g , 3 5 0 - 5 1 , 359

the Safavid c o u r t ) , 6 - 7

a l - D a w w a n i , M u h a m m a d (1424-1503), 117,193 De Anima

color

5-8

D u g h l a t , M i r z a M u h a m m a d Haydar (1499/1500-1551), 212

c

Encyclopédie

sketches, 15

dreams, 197 215

al-shu ara,

a l - D a w r a n i , R a b i a ( d . 1657), 155

C o l l i n o t , E.

Confessions

Topkapi scroll

121,126 n . 75

C o l l i n , J. Etude pratique

66

Der Ornamentenschatz,

Cutting

( I s t a n b u l ) , 39,121,126 n . 83

Encyclopédie

( V i o l l e t - l e - D u c ) , 67

on Architecture

D i w a n - i Khass, i n the Red F o r t ( D e l h i ) , 115

85 n . 51

of Culture,

crystallography, 70, 85 n n . 5 0 - 5 2 , 85 n . 54,172

n.115,180 n.123 C h r i s t i a n i t y , 187 Traditional

Discourses

Crowe, Donald W.

o n a n o n y m o u s (Paris) m a n u s c r i p t , 169,176 n . 14,180

emanation,

en el estilo

mudejar,

(Galiay S a r a ñ a n a ) , 70

119-20,187,192 74

Encyclopedia

of Islam,

Encyclopédie

des arts décoratifs

de l'Orient

(Collinot and

de B e a u m o n t ) , 66 Encyclopédie

universelle

d'ornements

(Clerget a n d

M a r t e l ) , 63 engineers, 178 n . 65. See also architects; master b u i l d e r s role of, 3 - 4 , 23, 52 t r a i n i n g of, 155 Enneads

( P l o t i n u s ) , 187,194,197

epigraphy, 10, 232

385

I N D E X

a h i s t o r i c a l t r e a t m e n t of, 7 4 - 8 3

Escher, M . C , 85 n . 52,172,180 n n . 124-25

Fayzi, A b u al-Fayz ( d . 1595/1596), 218

"Essai de p h i l o s o p h i e de Tarabesque" ( P r o b s t - B i r a b e n ) ,

Feucht, Jacob, 57 n . 121

a n d the beveled style, 92, 93, 94, 9 5 - 9 6 , 220

Fibonacci, L e o n a r d o (a.k.a. L e o n a r d o o f Pisa, t h i r t e e n t h -

the circle as p r o p o r t i o n i n g device i n , 189

76 Essai sur l'architecture Espagne,

Practica

( G i r a u l t de

et en Barbarie

Prangey), 63 Ettinghausen, R i c h a r d , 74, 75, 95,192 Etude pratique

de la décoration polygonale

arabe ( C o l l i n ) ,

d'esthétique

figurai

r e p r e s e n t a t i o n , 92, 93, 93

c a l l i g r a p h y i n , 112

figurai

sketches, 15

c o s m o l o g i c a l associations i n , 116-20

Fihrist

( I b n a l - N a d i m ) , 131

decline o f g e o m e t r i c revetments i n , 115

Fi tadäkhul

E u c l i d (circa 3 3 0 - 2 6 0 B . C . ) , 68,178 n . 44,179 n . 96 Elements

c

al-mutashäbiha

aw

al-mutawäfiqa.

girih i n , 114,115,116 p a t t e r n types i n , 112

wa ashkäl

a n d T w e l v e r S h i i s m , 113-14 c

p r e - M o n g o l p e r i o d , 9 1 - 1 0 9 , 1 1 9 - 2 3 , 1 2 4 n . 7 (see also

M u g h a l , 113,114-15

o n h a n d w r i t i n g , 189

p a t t e r n s i n , 111,114-15,124 n . 29

g e o m e t r i c a l c o m p l e x i t y i n , 112

floral patterns, 102,111

131,133

of Geometry,

al-ashkäl

See A mäl

152

Book of the Principles,

floral

199

F i r i s h t a h N a z h a d , M u r t a z a , 55 n . 63

(de B r u y n e ) , 186

médiévale

p o s t - M o n g o l p e r i o d , 102,111-19

161

geometriae,

fireworks,

70 Etudes

a n d h a r m o n y , 103,118,138,164

century mathematician)

des arabes et des mores en

en Sicile,

n a t u r a l i s m i n , 218, 219

Abassid caliphate)

E u r o p e a n O r i e n t a l i s t s . See O r i e n t a l i s m , E u r o p e a n

O t t o m a n , 113,114, 115

beveled style i n , 92, 9 5 - 9 6 , 1 0 3 , 220

Evliya Ç e l e b i (seventeenth-century O t t o m a n t r a v e l e r ) ,

pietra

of Figures, 138

On Divisions

The Formation

54 n . 12,154,174,181 n . 132, 205 E y y u b i ( s i x t e e n t h - c e n t u r y O t t o m a n w r i t e r ) , 225 n . 61

c a l l i g r a p h y i n , 104, 105,124 n . 19

dura, 115, 115 Art ( G r a b a r ) , 75

of Islamic

The Gothic: Literary

Sources and

Interpretations

g r i d systems i n , 103

(al-Farabi), 3

Fusül al-madanï

and puritanism, 103-4

Fakhry, M a j i d , 119,187

religious c o n t e x t of, 9 2 - 9 6 , 1 0 0 - 1 0 4 , 1 0 7 , 1 0 8 ,

fann, 185 far . c

G

See aesthetics, m o d a l t h e o r y o f

al-Farabi (a.k.a. A l f a r a b i u s o r Avennasar, 8 7 0 - 9 5 0 ) , 119,

al- ulüm, c

El lazo, motivo ornamental mudejar,

132,139,162

Kitäb al-hiyal

al-rühäniya

al-ashkäl

wa al-asrär

al-handasxya,

Kitäb bugyat al-àmàl fïsinä at c

al-tabï ïya c

fï

\j6 n . 9

al-raml

wa

taqwïm

176 n . 9

al-ashkäl,

destacado en el estilo

zu trazado simplicista,

70

( D i e f e n b a c h ) , 66

a p p r o x i m a t i o n m e t h o d , 169-70,171,177 n . 18 and architect o r artisan t r a i n i n g , 132-33,139-40,152-54 a n d a r i t h m e t i c , 133,139,140,176 n . 13

G a u g u i n , Paul (1848-1903), 210

o n the i n t e r n a l senses, 199

Ornamentik

geometry. See also m a t h e m a t i c s ; m e n s u r a t i o n a n d algebra, 1 5 6 - 5 7 , 1 5 8 - 5 9 , 1 6 8 , 1 7 0 - 7 1

Galiay S a r a ñ a n a , José 3

Fusül al-madanï,

daqaiq

Geometrische

" T h e O r i g i n s o f I s l a m i c A r t , " 55 n . 51

162

De scientiis,

124 n . 12 revetments i n , 97, 9 9 , 1 0 0 - 1 0 1 , 1 2 4 n . 29

Gaganov, G. A . , 9, 70 Gailani, A .

176 n . 14 o n the circle, 133

Ihsa

c o s m o l o g i c a l associations i n , 118-21,133 girih i n , 93, 97,104,108

186

through Eight Centuries,

F

classical o r i g i n s o f f o r m s i n , 6 4 - 6 6 , 74, 8 6 - 8 7 n n . 9 7 - 9 8 , 93, 9 5 - 9 6

F r a n k l , Paul

a n d a r i t h m e t i c i r r a t i o n a l i t y o f p r o p o r t i o n s , 174

Avant et après, 226 n . 109 Gawhar Shad, m o s q u e o f ( M a s h h a d ) , 34

as basis o f a r c h i t e c t u r e , 177 n . 24

de Gayango, Pascual, 63

branches of, 139,140,162

Gayet, A l b e r t

circles, 133 classical influence o n

arabe, 62, 63, 76, 86 n . 69

o n mechanics, 177 n . 19

L'art

on music, 2 0 8 - 9

o n n o m a d i c tents, 84 n . 13

A l e x a n d r i a n , 131-33,139,140,155,158,159

o n s p i r i t u a l i s m o f I s l a m i c a r t , 84 n n . 7 - 9

B a b y l o n i a n , 159

a l - F a r a h i d i , K h a l i l b . A h m a d (a.k.a. F a r h u d i , e i g h t h c e n t u r y A r a b p r o s o d i s t ) , 206 Farhad (legendary s c u l p t o r ) , 155 a l - F a r h u d i . See al-Farahadi

gaz, 56 n . 108

Greek, 138,152,155

g e o m e t r i c a b s t r a c t i o n . See also arabesque; g e o m e t r i c

R o m a n o - B y z a n t i n e , 139-41,154,155-56 c o n i c sections, 141,145,177 n . 34

patterning

a l - F a r u q i , I s m a i l , 7 5 - 7 6 , 79

a n d d i v i n e c r e a t i o n , 192

a n d cosmology, 133,163

F a t e h p u r S i k r i , M u g h a l palace c o m p l e x ( I n d i a ) ,

a n d the i n t e r n a l senses, 210

decline o f prestige of, 219

modes of, 210

d r a f t i n g i n s t r u m e n t s , 138,141,145,

c

49 F a t i m i d dynasty (909-1171), 62, 96,101 a n d the arabesque, 74, 91 kufic c a l l i g r a p h y of, 107,125 n . 39, 125 n . 50 resistance t o g e o m e t r i c m o d e i n , 101

p u r i t y of, 1 9 3 - 9 4 Geometric

Concepts in Islamic

manuals, 153,158-59,167-75,176 n . 9 (see also Art (el-Said a n d P a r m a n ) ,

a b s t r a c t i o n ; g r i d systems; islïmï;

sign system of, 2 2 0 - 2 1

ornament, Islamic; star-and-polygon patterns

a n d vegetal patterns, 100

aesthetics of, 52,173-75,181 n . 132

A mäl c

wa ashkäl; p a t t e r n b o o k s ) a n o n y m o u s (Paris) m a n u s c r i p t , 167-68,176 n . 14,

80, 81, 86 n . 96, 209 g e o m e t r i c p a t t e r n i n g . See also arabesque; g e o m e t r i c

a n d S h i i s m , 101 c

145-46,160,169,

170,177 n . 36

a n d N e o p l a t o n i s m , 192

mathematics;

178 n . 37,179 n . 104,179 n . 109,180 n . 113, 180 n . 115,180 n . 123 b y a l - B u z j a n i , 133, 134~37> 139> 158, 1 6 7 - 6 8 , 1 7 0 , 176 n . 13,180 n . 1 2 9

386

INDEX

geometry

m e t h o d s o f c o n s t r u c t i n g , 145 (see also geometry,

(continued)

manuals

Great M o s q u e (Damascus), 93 Great M o s q u e (Isfahan), 99, 220

manuals)

(continued)

a n d m u l t i p l e v i e w p o i n t s , 166,175, 210

Great M o s q u e ( Q a i r a w a n ) , 93

b y al-Jazari, 145,150, 152,152

o r i g i n s of, 93, 97,104,108,125 n . 39,170

Great Seljuq dynasty (1038-1194), 95,100

o n p r o p o r t i o n , 180 n . 129

i n p o s t - M o n g o l p e r i o d , 102,111-19

and Ash ari Sunnism, 9 6 - 9 7

tables i n , 1 6 8 - 6 9 , 1 7 6 n . 13

as sign system, 122

a n d d e v e l o p m e n t o f g e o m e t r i c style, 91, 99

E u r o p e a n , 1 6 0 - 6 1 , 163,163-65,

165

b y T h a b i t b . Q u r r a , 141, 142-44,177

c

a n d s u b j e c t i v i t y , 122

n . 18

G r e c o - R o m a n art, 64, 85 n . 33, 95, 96

G o d , 108. See also I s l a m ; S h i i s m ; S u n n i s m ;

as m e t a p h o r for d i v i n e u n i t y , 81,103

tawhïd

c

a n d a n t h r o p o m o r p h i s m , 95, 96,124 n . 12

a n d metaphysics, 191,193, 224 n . 55 a n d m e t h o d s o f c o n s t r u c t i n g figures, 138,

147-50,165,

Greek art. See G r e c o - R o m a n art g r i d systems, 27, 56 n . 108, 6 9 - 7 0 , 9 2 - 9 3 - See also

a n d the a r g u m e n t f r o m design, 4, 97,116-17

geometric patterning; star-and-polygon pattern

beauty of, 193

173,177 n . 18

a n d b r i c k , 49, 56 n . 105

and nature, 162-63,164

a n d c r e a t i o n , 124 n . 32,175,192

a n d calligraphy, 49

and purity, 103-4,190-91,193

o m n i p o t e n c e of, 96, 97,192

a n d islimi, 50

transcendence of, 95,187

as nets or lattices, 71

ratios, 170,188

West-Ostlicher

G e r a r d o f C r e m o n a (1114-1182), 161,162

El lazo: Decoración

o n the i n t e r n a l senses, 199, 201 Mishkät

al-Anwär,

c

The Gothic: Literary

192

sa ädat,

a n d e l e v a t i o n , 45

Gómez-Moreno, Manuel

192

Kimyä-i

g r o u n d plans

Sense of Order, 19, 55 n . 49, 82

o n G o d , 4, 97,192,193 al-dïn,

t r i a n g u l a r , 13, 232-33 Grosseteste, R o b e r t (1175-1253), 162,194

G o m b r i c h , Ernst H .

c

ulüm

i n T o p k a p i s c r o l l , 31-32

o n g e o m e t r y i n T i m u r i d a r c h i t e c t u r e , 41, 226 n . 124

a n d A s h a r i S u n n i s m , 97,101 c

square, 13,112, 231-32

o n a n o n y m o u s (Paris) m a n u s c r i p t , 169

o n aesthetics, 192-93

geométrica

musulmana,

Sources and Interpretations

Eight Centuries

119-20

grid-based, 7, 44 (see also g r i d systems)

70

method of drawing, 3

through

and p r o p o r t i o n , 4 3 - 4 4

( F r a n k l ) , 186

Gruppentheoretische

Gothic architecture, 41-42

o n prophecy, 199

27, 49, 55 n . 63,103,112

semisquare, 13

75

Divan,

G o l o m b e k , Lisa, 32, 50, 56 n . 102, 353

a l - G h a r i d ( d . circa 716-717), 197 al-Ghazali, M u h a m m a d (1058-1111), 96,104, 117

Ihya

r a d i a l , 13,19, 19-20,

Goethe, Johann W o l f g a n g v o n (1749-1832)

uses of, 132-33,176 n . 4

Ghazan K h a n ( I l k h a n i d r u l e r , r. 1295-1304), 4

d r a f t i n g m e t h o d s i n , 43

G h a z n a v i d dynasty (977-1186), 100

a n d d r a w i n g s , 56 n . 91

G h i b e r t i , L o r e n z o (1378-1455)

a n d geometry, 4 2 - 4 3 , 1 1 6 , 1 6 2 - 6 3

und strukturanalytische

suchungen

der Maurischen

Alhambra

in Granada

Ornamente

Unteraus der

( M ü l l e r ) , 70, 85 n . 50

G u e n o n , R e n é (1886-1951), 7 7 - 7 8

g r o u n d plans for, 48, 57 n . 122

G u n b a d - i Q a b u d ( M a r a g h a ) , 99

Ghiyath al-Din (fourteenth-century Ilkhanid amir), 4

p a t t e r n b o o k s f o r , 42, 43, 45, 48, 57 n . 121

G u n b a d - i S u r k h ( M a r a g h a ) , 99

G h u l a m b . M u h a m m a d A l i (designer o f a Qajar p a t t e r n

a n d secrecy o f masons, 57 n . 119

G u n d i s a l v o , D o m i n g o . See G u n d i s s a l i n u s , D o m i n i c u s

a n d T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n a r c h i t e c t u r e , 43

G u n d i s s a l i n u s , D o m i n i c u s (a.k.a. D o m i n g o G u n d i s a l v o ,

166

Commentarii,

c

scroll, circa 1800), 21, 21

Gothic Architecture

G i b b , Elias John W i l k i n s o n , 214, 226 n . 118 Choix d'ornements

moresques

Espagne, Monuments girih,

en Sicile,

de VAlhamhra,

63

des arabes et des mores en et en Barbarie,

arabes d'Egypte,

63

62

9, 9 2 - 9 3 , 1 3 2 . See also g e o m e t r i c p a t t e r n i n g ; starand-polygon patterns

abstractness of, 166 aesthetics of, 173-75,181 n . 132,194, 2 0 3 - 4 {see also aesthetics) a n d classification o f patterns, 70 c o m p l e x i t y of, 215 c o n v e n t i o n a l i t y of, 206 c o s m o l o g i c a l associations of, 118 decline of, 114 i m p r o v i s a t i o n i n , 209 m a n u a l for d r a w i n g , 133,138

and Scholasticism

162

De ortu scientiarum,

(Panofsky),

G u r g a n j , 168

122

G i r a u l t de Prangey, P h i l i b e r t Joseph Essai sur l'architecture

t w e l f t h - c e n t u r y a u t h o r i n S p a i n ) , 179 n . 89

vault p r o j e c t i o n i n , 48

G h u r i d dynasty (circa 1000-1215), 100

G o u r m o n t , Jean ( a u t h o r o f s i x t e e n t h - c e n t u r y p a t t e r n

G u r - i M i r ( S a m a r q a n d ) , 50, 56 n . 77

b o o k ) , 84 n . 2 G o u r y , Jules Plans, Elevations,

Sections and Details of the

Alhambra,

63

Haft Paykar ( N i z a m i o f Ganja), 155,178 n . 62

Grabar, O l e g

H a g i a Sophia ( I s t a n b u l ) , 139

o n the A l h a m b r a , 102,118-19 The Formation Islamic

H H a f i z ( d . 1390), 120

Architecture

The Mediation

H a k i m ' s B a t h , i n F a t e h p u r S i k r i ( I n d i a ) , 49

of Islamic Art, 75 and Its Decoration,

of Ornament,

73

x i , 8 2 - 8 3 , 224 n . 42

o n the m u q a r n a s , 180 n . 127, 349 p s y c h o l o g i c a l t h e o r y o f i n t e r m e d i a r i e s , 83 o n the W o r l d o f I s l a m festival, 80, 82 The Grammar

of Ornament

(Jones), 6 3 - 6 4 , 84 n . 16

Great I n t e r n a t i o n a l E x h i b i t i o n o f 1851 ( L o n d o n ) , 63 Great M o s q u e ( A l e p p o ) , 100,102,173

H a m l i n , A l f r e d D w i g h t Foster A History of Ornament,

Ancient

and Medieval,

H a n a f i t r a d i t i o n , 97 H a n b a l i t r a d i t i o n , 97 A Handbook

of Ornament

Handbook

of Regular

Handbuch

der Ornamentik

( M e y e r ) , 70

Patterns

H a n k i n , Ernst H a n b u r y , 49

(Stevens), 71

( M e y e r ) , 70

70

387

I N D E X

H a r b , U l r i c h , 350 Harmonices

I b n a l - A m i d ( d . 971), 157-58

I b r a h i m b . Sinan ( 9 0 9 - 9 4 6 ) , 141,177 n . 34

I b n a l - A r a b i (1165-1240), 108

I b r a h i m Pasha Palace (early sixteenth century, I s t a n b u l ) ,

c

( K e p l e r ) , 163,163-64,179

Mundi

n . 93

c

119

I b n al-Bawwab ( d . 1022), 188

H a r r a n , 131,159 H a r u n al-Rashid ( A b b a s i d c a l i p h , r. 7 8 6 - 8 0 9 ) , 131

K o r a n , 104, 106

Ihsa

al- ulüm c

( a l - F a r a b i ) , 132; 139

c

I b n B i b i ( t h i r t e e n t h - c e n t u r y Seljuq h i s t o r i a n ) , 4,120

Ihya

Hay, D a v i d Ramsay

I b n H a n b a i , A h m a d ( d . 855), 96

I k h w a n al-Safa'. See B r e t h r e n o f P u r i t y

I b n a l - H a y t h a m (a.k.a. A l h a z e n , 9 6 5 - 1 0 3 9 ) , 140,145,154,

I l k h a n i d dynasty (1256-1336), 38,102,111

Original

Geometrical

Diaper Designs,

69

H e r b e r t , R o b e r t L . , 226 n . 109

o n conic sections, 177 n . 34,178 n . 37

H e r o o f A l e x a n d r i a ( f i r s t - c e n t u r y scientist), 139

De aspectibus,

c

1 6 6 , 1 8 9 - 9 0 , 201, 203

o n m e n s u r a t i o n , 158

o n the vegetal o r n a m e n t , 102

Perspectiva,

I l l u m i n a t i o n , 50 a n d i n t e r n a l senses, 2 0 5 - 6 modes of, 210

166

n a t u r a l i s m i n , 218

I b n H a z m ( 9 9 4 - 1 0 6 4 ) , 187

Hessemer, F r i e d r i c h M a x i m i l i a n und alt-Italienische

Bau-Verzierungen,

I b n I r a q , A b u Nasr M a n s u r b . A l i ( f l . 1000), 168,169 c

c

Illustrations ilm al- uqüd

I b n K h a l d u n (1332-1406)

(Bar H i y y a ) , 161

ha-meshthah

of Indian

the Use of Art

I b n Jubayr ( b . 1145), 102,173,180 n . 128

84 n . 14 Hibbür

p l a s t e r w o r k of, 4,10

141

wa al- uqüd,

Kitäb al-manäzir,

o n Baghdad, 99

Arabische

K o r a n s of, 107 paper, use of, 4

166

Kitäb al-abniya

158

Kamarika,

H e r z f e l d , Ernst, 74, 91, 95

al-din

b r i c k m a s o n r y of, 12

156, 204

H e l l e n i s t i c art. See G r e c o - R o m a n art

ulüm

( a l - G h a z a l i ) , 192

Hassan 11 ( k i n g o f M o r o c c o , 1 9 2 9 - ) , 23

c

Architectural

al-abniya,

c

Decorative

Schools and Craftsmen,

Work for

66

140

o n aesthetics, 174,193

I m a m D u r , m a u s o l e u m o f (Samarra), 107,120, 349

on architecture, 6

I m a m Riza, shrine c o m p l e x o f ( M a s h h a d ) , 37

o n c o n s t r u c t i o n techniques, 180 n . 130

i m p e r i a l a r c h i t e c t u r e , 4, 6, 56 n . 80, 217, 220

o n crafts, 199, 208, 221

I m p e r i a l I r a n i a n A c a d e m y o f P h i l o s o p h y ( T e h r a n ) , 82

H i l l e n b r a n d , R o b e r t , 41

o n geometry, 1 0 3 - 4 , 140, 141,152,191

Inbät

H i s p a n o - M o r e s q u e style, 23

o n h u m a n s vs. animals, 198

I n d i a n style, 64

o n m e n s u r a t i o n , 178 n . 72

i n s c r i p t i o n . See c a l l i g r a p h y

o n p a t r o n a g e o f the arts, 221

I n s t i t u t e o f O r i e n t a l Studies, A c a d e m y o f Sciences

a l - H i j a z i , A h m a d b . A b d A l l a h ( f i f t e e n t h - c e n t u r y poet c

a n d c a l l i g r a p h e r ) , 212-13 H i l l , Derek Islamic

Historic

and Its Decoration,

73

( W a r d ) , 66

Ornament

A History hiyal,

Architecture

of Ornament,

Ancient

(Hamlin),

and Medieval

o n poetry, 206, 208

139,174

o n theology, 97,101,108

International Iqd al-farid

H o d g s o n , M a r s h a l l , 120, 212

I b n M a n ' a . See K a m a l a l - D i n M u s a b . Y u n u s

c

H o e c h , H a n s ( f i f t e e n t h - c e n t u r y G e r m a n a u t h o r ) , 164

I b n M i s k a w a y h ( d . 1030), 157-58

Iran

Tadhtb al-akhläq,

h o n e y c o m b m o t i f . See m u q a r n a s H o u s e o f W i s d o m ( B a g h d a d ) , 131,132

I b n a l - N a d i m ( t e n t h - c e n t u r y b o o k s e l l e r ) , 124 n . 9,

Didascalion,

Fihrist,

use o f plaster i n , 4

H u n a y n b . Ishaq ( d . 877), 132

I b n R u s h d (a.k.a. Averroes, 1126-1198), 103

Irshäd

H u n t e r College ( N e w York C i t y ) , 85 n . 52

I b n Rusta ( t e n t h - c e n t u r y

geographer-historian),

e m a n a t i o n i s m of, 119,192 o n h u m a n s vs. animals, 198

I b n A b b a d ( d . 995), 157 c

I b n Abbas (a.k.a. A b d A l l a h b . al- Abbas, 6 1 9 - 6 8 6 / 6 8 8 ) c

c

c

Iqd al-farid,

224 n . 12

I b n A b d u n (early t w e l f t h - c e n t u r y w r i t e r o f a hisba c

m a n u a l i n Seville), 161-62 I b n a l - A k f a n i ( d . 1348), 141 Irshäd 140

al-qäsid

ilä asna

al-maqäsid

224 n . 12

o n p e r c e p t i o n , 210

I b n A b d R a b b i h ( 8 6 0 - 940) c

c

o n the i n t e r n a l senses, 199 Kitäb al-Shifa,

124 n . 12

fï anwä

c

al-ulüm,

al-qäsid

ilä asna' al-maqäsid

fï anwä

c

al-ulüm

( I b n a l - A k f a n i ) , 140 Isfahan, 6, 22

124 n . 32 I b n Sina (a.k.a. A v i c e n n a , 9 8 0 - 1 0 3 7 ) , 117,168,187,191

i

xiii

c a l l i g r a p h y i n , 37

I r a q , 22

( K h w a n d a m i r ) , 126 n . 83

East Studies,

b r i c k a n d tile c o n s t r u c t i o n i n , 22, 34, 97

I b n Rashiq (1000-1063/1064 o r 1070/1071), 191

Humäyünnäma

of Middle

c

use o f paper i n , 4

131

I b n Q u t a y b a ( 8 2 5 - 8 8 9 ) , 157

a l - H u j w i r i ( d . 1070s), 125 n . 32

Journal

( I b n A b d R a b b i h ) , 224 n . 12

s t a r - a n d - p o l y g o n p a t t e r n s of, 55 n . 63

176 n . 13

162

( a l - K a r a j i ) , 177 n . 27

arch-net vaults of, 10

3

I b n M u q l a ( 8 8 6 - 9 4 0 ) , 104,188, 197

H u g h o f St. V i c t o r (1096-1141)

al-khafïya

( T a s h k e n t ) , 7, 9

70

H o l y Sepulcher c h u r c h (Jerusalem), 220

al-miyäh

al-Isfizari ( t w e l f t h - c e n t u r y a s t r o n o m e r - m a t h e m a t i c i a n p h i l o s o p h e r ) , 140 Isidorus o f Miletus (sixth-century Byzantine architect), 139,156,158 I s l a m , 96. See also G o d ; S h i i s m ; Sufism; S u n n i s m c

a n d e m a n a t i o n , 187

o n poetry, 213, 226 n . 112

a n d the i n t e r n a l senses, 198

o n w o n d e r , 214

l i g h t , 119-20

I b n T a y m i y y a (1263-1328), 108,117

M u h a m m a d , 197

I b n T u l u n , m o s q u e o f ( C a i r o ) , 3, 91

M u t a z i l i s m , 9 5 - 9 6 , 1 0 3 , 1 1 9 , 1 2 4 n . 9,187 c

I b n T u m a r t ( A l m o h a d r u l e r , d . 1130), 101

tawhid,

I b n Z a m r a k (1333-1393), 118-19,125 n . 65

T w e l v e r S h i i s m , 77,109

76-77, c

79, 80, 81, 86 n . 90,108

388

INDEX

islämt. See Islamic

islïmï

Architecture

( H i l l and

and Its Decoration

Kitäb al-Shifa

K a n d i n s k y , Wassily (1866-1944), 210

Kitäb bugyat al-ämäl fïsinä at

Inbät

( C r i t c h l o w ) , 8 1 - 8 2 , 87 n . 99

Islamic

Patterns

Islamic

Science ( N a s r ) , 80, 81

al-miyäh

Kitäb uqüd

Kitäb fï ma rifat c

141

a n d g r i d systems, 50 i n M o r o c c o , 23

a l - K a s h i , G h i y a t h a l - D i n Jamshid M a s ' u d ( d . 1429), 32

i n Tashkent scrolls, 9,13

o n m u q a r n a s , 173 c

c

a n d m a t h e m a t i c i a n ) , 121,156

I s t a n b u l , 221 I s t a n b u l observatory, 201, 202

K e m p , M a r t i n , 165-66

I z n i k ceramic tile revetments, 114, 115, 219

Kepler, Johannes Harmonices

J al-Jahiz, A b u U t h m a n ( n i n t h - c e n t u r y A b b a s i d a u t h o r ) , c

38

c

mechanical

engineer)

Kitäb fï ma rifat

al-hiyal

c

al-handasïyah,

141, 145,150,

151,152,174

K o m a r o f f , L i n d a , 159

Designs for Mosaic and Tessellated

Pavements,

64, 65

"Designs for M o s a i c Tiles," 64, 65 o n g e o m e t r i c patterns i n the A l h a m b r a , 64,122 6 3 - 6 4 , 84 n . 16

Sections and Details of the

( N i z a m i o f Ganja), 155

wa Shïrïn

al-Jurjani ( d . 1078), 189, 205, 226 n . 114 Jurjir m o s q u e (Isfahan), 97

K

K h w a n d a m i r , Ghiyath a l - D i n (fifteenth-century T i m u r i d

a n d d i v i n e c r e a t i o n , 124 n . 32,175,192

al- ulüm, c

seven heavens, 118 tawhïd

177 n . 23

c

al-ashkäl

Krasnova, S. A . , 168

alladhï

lahü nasabat

al-khamsa

Risäla fï misähat Risäla fï qismat

al-qudama

kufic calligraphy. See calligraphy, kufic

iwän, 158 thaläthat

aqsäm, 177 n . 18

fï qadr qutr

Risäla

wa al-murabba

taqsim al-muthallath

wa

c

( I b n a l - H a y t h a m ) , 141

c

wa al-athär

(Rashid a l - D i n ) , 177 n . 28

( A b u U t h m a n A m r b . Bahr al-Jahiz), c

c

56 n . 83

käghaz. See paper K a l i m , A b u T a l i b , o f Kashan ( d . 1651), 218, 219 K a m a l a l - D i n A b u al-Hasan al-Farisi ( d . circa 1320), 167 201

K a m a l a l - D i n M u s a b . Y u n u s (a.k.a. I b n M a n ' a , 1156-1242), 167-68,176 n . 13

Meaning

Ornament),

74-75,

kutubkhäna.

and Transformation

of an

81,102,124 n . 7

See s c r i p t o r i a

L La décoration

arabe (Prisse d'Avennes), 62

L a h o r i , A b d a l - H a m i d ( d . 1654/1655), 6 c

Kitäb al-hiyal daqä'iq

(translated i n t o E n g l i s h as The

Arabesque:

177 n . 18 wa al- uqüd

Kitäb al-hayawän

K ü h n e l , Ernst Die Arabeske

177 n . 18

Kitäb al-ahya

K u h n , Jehane R., 1 6 5 - 6 6

177 n . 18

Risäla fï taqrïb watar al-tis ,

Kaempfer, Engelbert ( s e v e n t e e n t h - c e n t u r y traveler i n

al-daira

177 n . 18

Risäla fï taqrïb watar al-daira,

Kitäb al-abniya

K u b a d a b a d Palace (Beysehir), 4,120 Kubesov, A u d a n b e k , 177 n . 15

133

ilä al-ustuqusät,

al-daira

min muhïtha,

K a b a ( M e c c a ) , 194 Safavid I r a n ) , 6

97,103,107,108 Kostof, S p i r o , 42,179 n . 83, 224 n . 55

a l - K i n d i ( d . circa 866) Risäla fïal-sabab

i n , 79

theories o f the created vs. u n c r e a t e d n a t u r e of, 96,

( a l - G h a z a l i ) , 192

sa ädat

106,107

L i g h t Verse, 119

al-Khwarezmi, M u h a m m a d b. Musa (ninth-century

amalihimä,

( H e r o ) , 158

I b n al-Bawwab K o r a n , 104,

126 n . 83

Humäyünnäma,

c

c

n . 39

a n d cosmology, 119

c

Kamarika

a n d calligraphy, 104, 106,107,125

c

Risäla fï taqrïb qaul Arshimïdis

63

Tanqth al-manäzir,

92 a n d a n t h r o p o m o r p h i s m , 95

K h w a j a A l i A r i z a g a r ( f i f t e e n t h - c e n t u r y a r t i s t ) , 205

Kimyä-i

o n a p p r o x i m a t i o n m e t h o d , 171

Alhambra,

absence o f f i g u r a i r e p r e s e n t a t i o n i n m a n u s c r i p t s of,

Khwarezm-Shahs (995-1017), 168, 169

Jones, O w e n , 74

of Ornament,

Koran

K h a w a r n a q castle ( I r a q ) , 178 n . 62

Mafatïh

Abbasid court), 3

The Grammar

See calligraphy, p r o p o r t i o n e d script

al-mansüb.

Baghdadi a s t r o n o m e r a n d m a t h e m a t i c i a n ) , 156-57

John the Syncellus ( B y z a n t i n e ambassador t o the

Plans, Elevations,

k n o t w o r k . See girih

h i s t o r i a n ) , 56 n . 82,120, 205

o n d r a f t i n g i n s t r u m e n t s , 177 n . 36

( a l - B u z j a n i ) , 133

k n o w l e d g e , h i e r a r c h y of, 191, 224 n . 36

Khusraw

126 n . 80

al-Jazari, I s m a i l b . al-Razzaz ( t h i r t e e n t h - c e n t u r y

min al-falak ( a l - K a r a j i ) , 141

K i z i l Medrese (Sivas), 181 n . 132 163, 163-64,179 n . 93

Mundi,

L a h o r i , seventeenth c e n t u r y ) , 155,156

Jami, A b d a l - R a h m a n (1414-1492), 121,155, 215

al-abniya

K h a n o f B i t l i s ( s e v e n t e e n t h - c e n t u r y r u l e r ) , 54 n . 12 al-khatt

(Thabit b.

al-mukafïya

K h a r r a q a n , 99, 99

c

al-fäkhirah,

c

138, 1 6 7 - 6 8 , 1 7 0 ,

142-44 al-dawair

c

Kitäb uqüd

al-mujassamät

al-handasa

c

See s c r i p t o r i a

kitäbkhäna. Kitäb ma rifa

K h a y r A l l a h (son o f M u g h a l architect U s t a d A h m a d

Jalayirid dynasty (1336-1432), 5 Al-Durrah

176 n . 13 Kitäb fï misähat Qurra),

al-Kashi, Mawlana M u i n u d d i n ( T i m u r i d astronomer

I s m a i l i (Safavid shah, r. 1501-1524), 38

min a mäl

( a l - B u z j a n i ) , 123,133, 134-37»

al-hisäb, 4 4 , 1 5 9 - 6 0 , 1 7 9 n . 79, 350, 353, 359

Miftäh

taqwïm

(al-Jazari), 141,

al-handasïyah c

See s t a r - a n d - p o l y g o n p a t t e r n s

kär-bandt.

i n n i n e t e e n t h - a n d t w e n t i e t h - c e n t u r y scrolls, 15

al-hiyal

145,150, 15h 152,174 Kitäb fïmayahtäju ilayhi al-säni

o n m e n s u r a t i o n , 158

islïmï, 12, 85 n . 33,114

wa

( a l - F a r a b i ) , 176 n . 9

al-ashkäl

177 n . 27

al-khafïya,

al-abniya,

c

al-raml

c

a l - K a r a j i ( d . circa 1019-1020), 140,154,156

G r a b a r ) , 73

( I b n Sina), 224 n . 12

K a n b u , M u h a m m a d Salih ( M u g h a l c o u r t h i s t o r i a n ) , 219

al-rühäniya al-ashkäl

wa al-asrär al-handasïya

al-tabï ïyafï c

( a t t r i b u t e d to

a l - F a r a b i ) , 176 n . 9 Kitäb al-manäzil al- ummäl c

Kitäb al-manäzir

fïma yahtäju

ilayhi al-kuttäb

min ilm al-hisäb c

L a h o r i , U s t a d A h m a d ( d . 1649), 155, 205 L'art

arabe (Gayet), 62, 63, 76, 86 n . 69

L'art

arabe d'après les monuments

( a l - B u z j a n i ) , 157

( I b n a l - H a y t h a m ) , 1 6 6 , 1 8 9 - 9 0 , 201, 203

du Kaire

d'Avennes), 62, 68, 84 n . 28

wa L'art

de l'Asie-centrale

( S i m a k o v ) , 66, 70

L a s h k a r i Bazar ( B u s t ) , 100

(Prisse

389

I N D E X

Lautensack, Hans ( f i f t e e n t h - c e n t u r y G e r m a n a u t h o r ) ,

m a t h e m a t i c s . See also a r i t h m e t i c ; g e o m e t r y

M a k o v i c k y , E m i l , 85 n . 52 M a k o v i c k y , M i l o t a , 85 n . 52

a n d aesthetics, 191

M a m e d o v , K h . S., 85 n . 52

algebra, 1 5 6 - 5 7 , 1 5 8 - 5 9 , 1 6 8 , 1 7 0 - 7 1 , 1 8 0

M a m l u k dynasty (1250-1517), 100,107,111

e d u c a t i o n , I s l a m i c art used i n , 85 n . 52

L e n i n g r a d A c a d e m y o f Sciences, 9

a l - M a ' m u n ( A b b a s i d c a l i p h , r. 813-833), 131,132

fields of, 132-133

Lentz, T h o m a s W . , 215, 217

a l - M a n s u r ( A b b a s i d c a l i p h , r. 7 5 4 - 7 7 5 ) » 3

Greek texts translated i n t o A r a b i c , 131-32,138,161

L e o n a r d o da V i n c i (1452-1519), 166

m a p o f the I s l a m i c w o r l d , 361

a n d geometric patterns, 6 8 - 6 9 , 7 0 - 7 1 , 92,125 n . 35,

L e o n a r d o o f Pisa. See F i b o n a c c i , L e o n a r d o

maqäm.

See m u s i c , modes i n

Les arts arabes ( B o u r g o i n ) , 66, 67, 68, 84 n . 26, 85 n . 35

Maqäsid

al-alhän

164 Le Maroc

et Vartisanat

traditionnel

islamique

dans

(Paccard), 23, 55 n n . 6 0 - 6 2 , 1 0 2

Varchitecture

c

o n a r g u m e n t f r o m design, 4

(Bar H i y y a ) , 161 ( A b u B a k r ) , 158-59,161

Liber mensurationum

g r o u p theory, 71, 85 n . 54 h a r m o n i c p r o p o r t i o n s , 43,138

al-Maqdisi (tenth-century author from Balkh)

n . 28, 84 n . 33 Liber embadorum

174

( A b d al-Qadir b. Ghaybi al-Hafiz

a l - M a r a g h i ) , 195

de Vart arabe ( B o u r g o i n ) , 66, 67, 69, 69, 84

Les éléments

n . 120

h i s t o r y of, 167 a n d metaphysics, 186

M a r a g h a , 99

planar a n d spatial geometry, 13, 22, 27, 43

M a r a g h a observatory, 200, 201

p o p u l a r i z a t i o n of, 123,132

a n d aesthetics, 189,190, 215

M a r c á i s , Georges, 75,124 n . 7

s y m m e t r y , 71, 85 n n . 5 0 - 5 2 (see also c r y s t a l l o g r a p h y )

religious significance of, 119-20

M a r k , R o b e r t , 57 n . 122

light

t i l i n g s a n d patterns, 71

Martel

literary criticism

Matisse, H e n r i - E m i l e - B e n o î t (1869-1954), 181 n . 136

Encyclopédie

aesthetics of, 185, 213

universelle

d'ornements,

63

M a s h h a d i , M i r Sayyid A h m a d ( s i x t e e n t h - c e n t u r y

i n n o v a t i o n a n d i m i t a t i o n i n , 218

Safavid a u t h o r ) , 112,114,117, 205

a n d p r o p o r t i o n , 189

M a t t h i a s C o r v i n u s ( 1 4 4 0 - 1 4 9 0 ) , 140 M a t u r i d i school, 97,103 mechanics, 177 n . 20,177 n . 23

Loeb, A r t h u r L . , 169,180 n . 115

M a s j i d o f A m i r K h i z r s h a h (Yazd), 56 n . 77

a n d a r c h i t e c t u r e , 139,154-55

L o k m a n b . Seyyid H ü s e y i n (late s i x t e e n t h - c e n t u r y

M a s j i d - i J a m i ( H e r a t ) , 217

manuals, 150

M a s j i d - i J a m i (Isfahan), 37, 37

Ottoman court historian) Shahanshähnäma, Surname,

c

M a s j i d - i J a m i ( S a m a r q a n d ) , 50, 51

202

c

Spanish

23, 26, 27, 55 n . 5 9 , 1 6 0 - 6 1

tratado de alarifes, Vornement

de lo blanco y

M e d i n a , 220

M a s j i d - i J a m i (Yazd), 35, 35

M e h m e d A g h a (seventeenth-century O t t o m a n c h i e f

c

M a s j i d - i J a m i o f Gawhar Shad ( M a s h h a d ) , 37, 37

c o u r t a r c h i t e c t ) , 117,152-53,154,174

c

M a s j i d - i M a y d a n - i Sang ( K a s h a n ) , 56 n . 77

M e h m e d Beg ( O t t o m a n c o u r t artist specializing i n the

M a s j i d - i M u z a f f a r i y a ( T a b r i z ) , 32

( R a c i n e t ) , 66

polychrome

Losensky, Paul, 214-15, 218

M a s j i d - i Safid ( T u r b a t - i Jam), 49

L o w r y , G l e n n D . , 215, 217

M a s j i d - i Shah (Isfahan), 113-14

Lukasheva, N . S., 70

masons, 4 5 - 4 6

M

girih m o d e ) , 125 n . 51 M e h m e d 11 ( O t t o m a n sultan, r. 1444-1446 a n d 1451-1481), 38, 39, 54 n . 12 Menelaus (Greek m a t h e m a t i c i a n ) , 152

d r a f t i n g m e t h o d s of, 1 5 9 - 6 0

L y d d a , 220

mensuration,

141,152,156,157,158-59,161,168

O t t o m a n , 154

D ü r e r o n , 164-65

p a y m e n t of, 44

as a geometric science, 178 n . 72 manuals, 173

M a b a d ( d . 743), 197

secrecy of, 14, 48, 57 n . 119

Madden, Edward H . , 79-80

status of, 177 n . 24,179 n . 83

m e t a l w o r k , 84 n . 2

t r a i n i n g of, 1 3 2 - 3 3 » 139-40,153

Metaphysics

c

M a d e r - i Shah Madrasa (Isfahan), 56 n . 76 Mafàtïh

( a l - K h w a r e z m i ) , 177 n . 23

al- ulüm c

M a g h a k - i A t t a r i m o s q u e ( B u k h a r a ) , 100 c

(Grabar), x i , 82-83,

M a s j i d - i J a m i (Varzana), 34, 34, 37, 37 c

master carpenter a n d a r c h i t e c t ) , 174

of Ornament

224 n . 42

c

L ó p e z de Arenas, D i e g o (seventeenth-century de la carpintería

status of, 1 6 2 , 1 9 8 - 9 9 The Mediation

M a s j i d - i J a m i ( V a r a m i n ) , 35, 35

125 n . 67,154

Breve compendio

c

( A r i s t o t l e ) , 214

M a s s i g n o n , L o u i s , 75, 86 n . 64, 96

M e t r o p o l i t a n M u s e u m o f A r t ( N e w York C i t y ) , 85 n . 52

master b u i l d e r s , 4 5 - 4 6 , 57 n . 131. See also architects;

M e y e r , Franz Sales, Handbuch

B u k h a r a n master b u i l d e r ; engineers

M a g h r i b , 101, 221

Miftäh

der Ornamentik,

a l - K a s h i ) , 4 4 , 1 5 9 - 6 0 , 350, 353, 359

revetments i n , 23,115

c o n s t r u c t i o n m e t h o d s of, 46

s t a r - a n d - p o l y g o n p a t t e r n s i n , 27

d r a f t i n g m e t h o d s of, 1 9 - 2 0 , 43, 48

m i n i a t u r e p a i n t i n g . See p a i n t i n g , m i n i a t u r e

p a t t e r n books used by, 23

M i r k h w a n d (1433-1498), 38

tile w o r k a n d w o o d w o r k i n , 27 a l - M a h a n i , A b u A b d A l l a h M u h a m m a d b . Isa b . c

c

A h m a d (circa 8 2 5 - 8 8 8 ) , 177 n . 34 Risäla fï al-nisba, Risàlafï

mushkil

p a y m e n t of, 44

m i r r o r s , b u r n i n g , 177 n . 16

role of, 9» 22, 23, 43, 44, 50, 57 n . 127,177 n . 24

M i r z a A k b a r ( n i n e t e e n t h - c e n t u r y Qajar state a r c h i t e c t ) ,

scrolls used by, 9

180 n . 129 min amr al-nisba,

180 n . 129

70

al-hisäb ( G h i y a t h a l - D i n Jamshid M a s ' u d

14» 19

secrecy of, 22, 23, 4 8 - 4 9 » 353

M i r z a A k b a r scrolls, 14, 14-20,19,

M a h d i , M u h s i n S., 198

M a s u d i ( G h a z n a v i d r u l e r , r. 1031-1041), 4,132

d r a f t i n g m e t h o d s i n , 171

M a h m u d ( G h a z n a v i d r u l e r , r. 9 9 8 - 1 0 3 0 ) , 124 n . 19

a l - M a s u d i ( d . 956), 96

elevations i n , 4 4 - 4 5

M a h m u d , M a w l a n a ( i l l u m i n a t o r ) , 212

mathematician-engineers,

c

c

178 n . 65

g r i d systems i n , 6 9 - 7 0

32, 55 n . 49, 86 n . 96

390

INDEX

Mishkät

al-Anwär

m u s i c , 152

grid-based g r o u n d plans, 7

( a l - G h a z a l i ) , 119-20

models, a r c h i t e c t u r a l . See elevations, a r c h i t e c t u r a l

m o n u m e n t s of, 49,114, 115

aesthetics of, 185,188,194, 195, 224 n . 12

m o d e r n i s m , 66, 73, 74

p o e t r y of, 218

a n d cosmology, 187,190-91,194, 209, 225 n . 105

m o d e r n scrolls. See M i r z a A k b a r scrolls; n i n e t e e n t h - a n d

revetments of, 217-18

i m p r o v i s a t i o n i n , 209

s t a r - a n d - p o l y g o n patterns of, 114-15

a n d the i n t e r n a l senses, 204

tessellated stone mosaics of, 114-15

modes i n , 209, 225 n . 105

t w e n t i e t h - c e n t u r y scrolls M o n d r i a n , Piet (1872-1944), 118, 210 Mongols A n a t o l i a i n v a d e d by, 102

M u h a m m a d , the p r o p h e t , 197

N e o p l a t o n i c t r a d i t i o n of, 209

M u h a m m a d b . M u s a b . Shakir. See B a n u M u s a

p s y c h o l o g i c a l effects of, 208 r h y t h m types, 2 0 8 - 9

brothers

Baghdad sacked by, 102,108

muhandis.

inexpensive paper i n t r o d u c e d by, 4

See engineers

status of, 199 M u s l i m theology. See I s l a m

a l - M u h a n d i s , A b u al-Fadl b . A b d a l - K a r i m ( d .

m o n u m e n t s , 6, 97,107

c

M u s t a n s i r i y a madrasa ( B a g h d a d ) , 100

1202-1203), 152

Abassid, 100

M u h a n d i s , L u t f A l l a h (son o f

A l m o r a v i d , 101

seventeenth-century

M u g h a l architect U s t a d A h m a d L a h o r i ) , 155,156

A y y u b i d , 67

a l - M u s t a s i m i , Yaqut ( d . 1298-1299), 104 c

a l - M u t a d i d ( A b b a s i d c a l i p h , r. 8 9 2 - 9 0 2 ) , 123 c

a l - M u ' t a m i n I b n H u d , Y u s u f ( H u d i d ruler, r. 1081-1085),

F a t i m i d , 100

a l - M u h t a d i ( A b b a s i d c a l i p h , r. 8 6 9 - 8 7 0 ) , 96

I r a n i a n , 38

mukarnas.

M u g h a l , 49, 114, 115

M ü l a y i m , Selçuk, 99

a l - M u t a w a k k i l ( A b b a s i d c a l i p h , r. 8 4 7 - 8 6 1 ) , 96,132

O t t o m a n , 67

Müller, Edith

M u t a z i l i s m , 9 5 - 9 6 , 1 0 3 , 1 1 9 , 1 2 4 n . 9,187

religious i n s c r i p t i o n s o n , 121,124 n . 19,125 n . 39 r e v e t m e n t replacement i n , 220 Rum

Seljuq, 100-101

science o f b u i l d i n g , 140

132

See m u q a r n a s c

Gruppentheoretische

und strukturanalytische

suchungen

der Maurischen

Alhambra

in Granada,

Ornamente

Unter­

70, 85 n . 50

M u ' m i n a K h a t u n (1186), m a u s o l e u m o f ( N a k h c h i v a n ) ,

Seljuq, 67, 99 U m a y y a d , 93,101

M u q a d d a s i ( t e n t h - c e n t u r y a u t h o r ) , 220 m u q a r n a s , 46, 3 4 9 - 5 9

Monuments

arabes d'Egypte

Monuments

modernes

( G i r a u l t de Prangey), 62

de la Perse (Coste), 63

c o n s t r u c t i o n of, 46, 47, 48, 57 n . 118,160,180 n . 130, 3 5 0 - 5 1 , 359 a n d cosmology, 119-21

M o r o c c o , 102

d e f i n i t i o n and e t y m o l o g y of, 173, 3 4 9 - 5 0

g r i d systems of, 27, 55 n . 63

d r a f t i n g techniques f o r , 351

H i s p a n o - M o r e s q u e style, 23

elevations of, 353-57,

m u q a r n a s i n , 24-25,

353-5$

g e o m e t r y of, 350

27, 55 n . 62, 57 n . 118

O t t o m a n p o e t ) , 226 n . 129 N a k h c h i v a n , 99 N a m a z g a h m o s q u e ( B u k h a r a ) , 100 N a p o l e o n , 61 Naqqash, M a w l a n a H a j j i M u h a m m a d ( T i m u r i d p a i n t e r -

M o r e s q u e style, 64, 84 n . 26, 85 n . 35

M a g h r i b i t r a d i t i o n , 23, 27

N N a b i (seventeenth- a n d early e i g h t e e n t h - c e n t u r y

99

T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n , 32, 3 4 - 3 7 , 1 2 0 , 1 2 1 , 214

M u z a f f a r i d dynasty (1314-1393), 5

aus der

h a l f v a u l t , 25, 358

p a t t e r n books of, 23, 27

M o r o c c a n , 24-25,

revetments i n , 23

o r i g i n s of, 100,102, 107-8,173,180 n . 127, 349

27, 55 n . 62

d e c o r a t o r ) , 205 al-Nasir l i - D i n A l l a h ( A b b a s i d c a l i p h , r. 1180-1225), 108-9 Nasr, Seyyed Hossein, 7 6 - 7 7 , 79, 82 f o r e w o r d to Islamic Patterns,

82, 86 n . 97

i n t r o d u c t i o n to Art of Islam,

80-81

Islamic

Science, 80, 81

a n d p l a s t e r w o r k , 4, 5, 13-14, 33, 45, 55 n . 62, 57 n . 118

Nasr b. A l i ( d . 1012), 97

tile use i n , 23

i n Qajar I r a n , 19, 45

N a s r i d dynasty (1230-1492), 23,102,124 n . 27

w o o d w o r k i n , 23, 27

q u a r t e r v a u l t , 10, 10-11, 15, 24, 35/

Nasuh, Matrakçi (sixteenth-century O t t o m a n

s t a r - a n d - p o l y g o n p a t t e r n s of, 24-25,

mosaic t i l e , 33, 35, 35-36,

27

113-14

c

t o p o g r a p h i c p a i n t e r ) , 38

r a d i a l grids i n , 3 5 0 - 5 1 , 352 Shirazi, 3 2 , 1 2 0 - 2 1 , 353

N a w a ' i , M i r A l i Shir (1441-1501), 121,155, 215, 217

r e l i e f t i l i n g , 37, 37

Spanish, 26, 55 n . 59

N e f i (seventeenth- a n d early e i g h t e e n t h - c e n t u r y

vegetal a n d c a l l i g r a p h i c p a t t e r n s o n , 12,13, 50, 93

a n d s t a r - a n d - p o l y g o n patterns, 22 {see also star-and-

faience, 112

m o t h e r - o f - p e a r l w o r k , 153 mouhendis.

See engineers

M o u l a y H a n d ( c o n t e m p o r a r y M o r o c c a n designer o f a r c h i t e c t u r a l p a t t e r n s ) , 24, 27 M u d e j a r style, 23,102 M u g h a l empire

c

c

O t t o m a n p o e t ) , 226 n . 129 Neoplatonism,

p o l y g o n patterns)

119-20,133,187,189,192

a n d aesthetics, 193

s t r u c t u r a l role of, 349 i n Tashkent scrolls, 4 8 - 4 9

a n d m u s i c , 209

i n T o p k a p i s c r o l l , 31, 32, 4 8 - 4 9 , 236-38

N i m a n , John, 85 n . 52

types of, 353

n i n e t e e n t h - a n d t w e n t i e t h - c e n t u r y scrolls, 1 4 - 2 7 ,

M u r a d i n ( O t t o m a n s u l t a n , r. I574~i595)> 174

55 n . 56. See also M i r z a A k b a r scrolls

architects or engineers i n , 155,158

M u r a d o v , Usta S h i r i n ( U z b e k master b u i l d e r ) , 46, 47,

b r i c k m a s o n r y design i n , 20, 21, 21

c u l t u r a l i d e n t i t y of, 219

48, 55 n . 45> 70 M u r p h y , James Cavanah The Arabian Antiquities

c a l l i g r a p h y i n , 37

drawings o n paper, 6 floral

p a t t e r n s of, 113,114-15, 2 1 9 - 2 0

c o l o r i n , 15 of Spain, 61

designs a n d pounces i n , 15,19

391

I N D E X

m u s i c of, 225 n . 105

o r n a m e n t , I s l a m i c , 6 1 - 7 1 , 7 3 - 8 3 . See also arabesque;

E u r o p e a n influences o n , 15 G h u l a m b . M u h a m m a d A l i scroll, 21, 21 c

p o e t r y of, 218, 226 n . 129

geometric patterning

Qajar scrolls, 37

a b s t r a c t i o n i n , 62, 65, 6 6 - 6 7 , 75, 76

revetments of, 217-18

revetments i n , 22

a n d the arabesque, 74, 75

t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l models used i n , 57 n . 110

" R o l l o f Standard Patterns for G r o i n e d V a u l t i n g , "

classical o r i g i n s of, 66 a n d c u l t u r a l i d e n t i t y , 217-18, 2 1 9 - 2 0

14-15 " R o l l o f Standard Patterns for Tessellated W o r k , " 14

d e c o n t e x t u a l i z a t i o n of, 6 2 - 6 3 , 7 4 - 8 3 , 84 n . 14, 85 n . 49

secrecy about patterns i n , 22

treasury c o l l e c t i o n of, 29, 38 Ö z d u r a l , Alpay, 180 n . 115

Shiraz scroll, 21-22, 21

a n d decorative n a t u r e o f I s l a m i c art, 67, 86 n . 58, 96

P

stellate arch-net vaults i n , 14-15

a n d design, 9,13

Paccard, A n d r é , 57 n . 118

N i z a m i A r u z i ( t w e l f t h - c e n t u r y Persian p o e t ) , 208, c

encyclopedias o f o r n a m e n t a l styles, 63, 66, 84 n . 14

Le Maroc et Y artisanat Varchitecture

as essence o f I s l a m i c art, 64, 74, 76, 79

225 n . 99

islamique

dans

(translated i n t o English as

traditionnel

Tradi­

E u r o p e a n l i t e r a t u r e o n , 6 1 - 7 1 , 84 n . 14

tional Islamic Craft in Moroccan

Haft Paykar, 155,178 n . 62

f e m i n i z a t i o n of, 6 7 - 6 8

55 n n . 6 0 - 6 2 , 1 0 2

o n the i n t e r n a l senses, 205

a n d figurai r e p r e s e n t a t i o n , 62, 65, 67, 84 n . 7

N i z a m i o f Ganja (1140-1202), 120

Architecture),

painting

g e o m e t r i c p a t t e r n s i n , 62, 67, 70, 219

aesthetics of, 188

N o r m a n , Jane, 85 n . 52

g e o m e t r i c p r i n c i p l e s of, 66, 68

biographies o f painters, 212-13, 224 n . 3

N o r t h A f r i c a , 70,102,111

g e o m e t r i c , vegetal, a n d c a l l i g r a p h i c elements of, 66,

a n d e m o t i o n a l response, 212, 226 n . 109

Khusraw

wa Shtrtn, 155

N o t k i n , Iosif, 55 n . 36, 350

a n d the i n t e r n a l senses, 204, 2 0 5 - 6 , 210, 212

85 n . 33

o n c o n s t r u c t i o n o f plaster m u q a r n a s , 46, 48

g r a m m a r of, 209

m i n i a t u r e , 50, 51, 76, 202, 218

o n Tashkent scrolls, 9 , 1 3 - 1 4 , 48, 49, 55 n . 36, 55 n . 45

as love, 224 n . 42

a n d optics, 166

N u r a l - D i n , m a u s o l e u m o f (Damascus), 100,120, 349

m a t h e m a t i c a l analysis o f p a t t e r n s i n , 6 8 - 6 9 , 7 0 - 7 1

status of, 199

N u r a l - D i n Z a n g i ( Z a n g i d r u l e r , r. 1146-1174), 100

m o d e r n a p p l i c a t i o n s of, 62, 6 3 - 6 4 , 66, 67, 69, 70

styles of, 112,125 n . 47

a l - N u w a y r i (1279-1332), 176 n . 3

a n d m u q a r n a s , 66

T u r k i s h painter's m a n u a l , 210, 212, 226 n . 109

a n d m y s t i c i s m , 84 n n . 8 - 9 n a t u r a l i s m i n , 219

o

p a t t e r n b o o k s for, 66, 84 n . 2

O c k h a m , W i l l i a m o f ( f o u r t e e n t h - c e n t u r y E n g l i s h Scho­

Panofsky, E r w i n Gothic Architecture

and Scholasticism,

122

paper. See also drawings, o n paper

racial i n t e r p r e t a t i o n s of, 62, 63, 66, 6 7 - 6 8 , 69

m a n u f a c t u r e of, 3

a n d r a t i o n a l West vs. s p i r i t u a l East, 66

M o n g o l i n t r o d u c t i o n o f inexpensive, 4

Office o f R o y a l A r c h i t e c t s (Vefa d i s t r i c t , I s t a n b u l ) , 29, 31

semiotics of, 217-23

vs. p a r c h m e n t , 5

O'Kane, Bernard

styles of, 67

vs. plaster, 5,10

a n d Sufism, 79

a n d s o p h i s t i c a t i o n o f drawings, 5

lastic p h i l o s o p h e r ) , 166

Timurid

Architecture

x i , 178 n . 71

in Khurasan,

O m a r K h a y y a m . See U m a r K h a y y a m c

On Divisions

( E u c l i d ) , 138

of Figures

optics. See I b n a l - H a y t h a m , Kitäb

al-manäzir

Oresme, N i c o l e d ' ( f o u r t e e n t h - c e n t u r y French p r e l a t e ) ,

syntax of, 66, 69, 70

O r i e n t a l i s m , 61-71,102. See also o r n a m e n t , I s l a m i c a n d the arabesque, 62, 7 3 - 7 4 (see also arabesque) a n d d e c o n t e x t u a l i z a t i o n , 81, 96

Pappus o f A l e x a n d r i a ( f l . circa A . D . 320), 139,140,161

a n d theology, 63, 79, 86 n . 90

parchment, 5

transcendental beauty of, 62

P a r m a n , Ay§e

a n d universal design p r i n c i p l e s , 64, 74, 75, 78, 83, 85 n . 49 and Western iconographie t r a d i t i o n , 62-63 (Speltz), 66

E u r o p e a n , 22, 6 1 - 7 1 , 84 n . 29

Ornamentstil

a n d h i s t o r i c a l vs. t r a d i t i o n a l cultures, 77

O t t o m a n e m p i r e (1281-1924), 158

a n d h o r r o r v a c u i , 74

conquest o f T a b r i z , 38

a n d "otherness," 7 3 - 7 4

c o n s t r u c t i o n i n d u s t r y i n , 160

racial focus of, 62, 63

c u l t u r a l i d e n t i t y of, 219

religious focus of, 62, 63, 74, 76, 8 0 - 8 1 , 84 n n . 7 - 9 ,

d r a w i n g s o n paper, 6, 6 - 7 , 7 floral

86-87 nn. 97-99 travelogues, 6 1 - 6 2 a n d Western i c o n o g r a p h i e t r a d i t i o n , 6 2 - 6 3 , 83 Original

Geometrical

Diaper

Designs ( H a y ) , 69

" T h e O r i g i n s o f I s l a m i c A r t " ( G a i l a n i ) , 55 n . 51 Ornament,

1830-1980

( D u r a n t ) , 82

spread o f use of, 4 - 5

a n d tawhid, 7 9 - 8 0 , 86 n n . 8 9 - 9 1 , 8 6 - 8 7 n n . 9 7 - 9 9

travelogues d e p i c t i n g , 6 1 - 6 2

166

23,

p a t t e r n s of, 113,114, 115, 219

Concepts in Islamic Art, 80, 81, 86 n . 96, 209

Geometric

Parvillée, L é o n Architecture

et décoration

turques, 63, 68

p a t t e r n b o o k s , 73,164. See also geometry, manuals M o r o c c a n , 23, 27 Pattern

in Islamic Art ( W a d e ) , 82

P a v ó n M a l d o n a d o , Basilio El arte hispanomusulman

en su decoración

geométrica,

70 Pax M o n g ó l i c a (1260-1368), 4,102 Peckham, John ( t h i r t e e n t h - c e n t u r y E n g l i s h p r e l a t e ) , 166

g e o m e t r y i n , 153-54

Pedoe, D a n , 179 n . 96

grid-based g r o u n d plans, 7, 31

p e r c e p t i o n , v i s u a l . See v i s i o n

I t a l i a n paper used i n , 31

"Perennial Values i n I s l a m i c A r t " ( B u r c k h a r d t ) , 78

masons i n , 154

Persian style, 64, 81. See also O r i e n t a l i s m

m o n u m e n t s of, 67

Perspectiva

( I b n a l - H a y t h a m ) , 166

392

INDEX

o n m a t h e m a t i c a l analysis o f g e o m e t r i c patterns, 68

Peshawar, 219

Probst-Biraben

Philagathos ( t w e l f t h - c e n t u r y m o n k ) , 120 Philebus

Proclus ( 4 1 0 - 4 8 5 ) , 133, 224 n . 36

P h i l o (circa 13 B . C . - c i r c a A . D . 50), 139 plans, a r c h i t e c t u r a l . See drawings; g r o u n d plans

Elements

Plans, Elevations,

o n m a t h e m a t i c s , 191

Sections and Details of the

Alhambra

( G o u r y a n d O w e n s ) , 63 p l a s t e r w o r k . See also d r a w i n g s a n d m u q a r n a s vaults, 4, 5 , 1 3 - 1 4 , 33, 45, 55 n . 62,

palace o f ( J a i p u r ) , 8 Raqqa, 95 Rasa'il ( B r e t h r e n o f P u r i t y ) , 116-17,132,186-88,189 Rashid a l - D i n ( I l k h a n i d v i z i e r a n d h i s t o r i a n , 1267-1318),

p r o p o r t i o n , 224 n . 55

4,140 Kitäb al-ahya

the circle as p r o p o r t i o n i n g device, 189,194 a n d l i t e r a r y c r i t i c i s m , 189

T i m u r i d , 54 n . 18

rasmt u tarhï. See drawings

p r o p o r t i o n e d script. See c a l l i g r a p h y

al-Rawandi, M u h a m m a d b. A l i b. Sulayman c

Prosperous house (Bayt a l - M a m u r ) , 194

( t h i r t e e n t h - c e n t u r y Seljuq h i s t o r i a n ) , 188-89

Ptolemy (second-century astronomer and mathe-

190, 224 n . 29

matician)

224 n . 42

Almagest,

214

155, 176 n . 13

r e l i g i o n . See C h r i s t i a n i t y ; G o d ; I s l a m ; K o r a n

o n g r o u n d plans, 56 n . 108, 56 n . 110

Plessner, M . , 178 n . 44

o n master b u i l d e r s , 57 n . 127,156

R e m p e l ' , Lazar o n master b u i l d e r s , 156

Pythagoras (circa 5 8 0 - c i r c a 500 B . C . ) , 8 6 - 8 7 n n . 9 7 ~ 9 8 ,

Plotinus (205-270)

152

o n aesthetics, 188,197 Enneads,

187,194,197

Theology

of Aristotle

m u s i c o f the spheres, 1 8 7 , 1 9 0 - 9 1

a r c h i t e c t u r e , 116, i54~55> 161 n a t u r a l i s m i n p a i n t i n g , 166 perspective i n , 4 3 , 1 6 5 - 6 6 , 210

Q

a n d c o m p l e x i t y , 215 a n d d i v i n e i n s p i r a t i o n , 218

revetments,

m u q a r n a s c o n s t r u c t i o n , 46

I n d i a n , 218, 226 n . 128

revetments i n , 115

i n n o v a t i o n a n d i m i t a t i o n i n , 218

s t a r - a n d - p o l y g o n p a t t e r n s i n , 22

a n d the i n t e r n a l senses, 205

w o r k s h o p practices of, 45

meters i n , 206

I z n i k ceramic tiles, 114,115, 219 i n M o r o c c o , 23, 217 i n n i n e t e e n t h - a n d t w e n t i e t h - c e n t u r y scrolls, 22 replaced i n m o n u m e n t s , 220 c

( g e o m e t e r ) , 140,177 n . 24

M u g h a l , 218

a l - Q a l q a s h a n d i (1355-1418), 1 4 0 , 1 8 8 - 8 9

o r i g i n a l i t y i n , 218

Qänün al-suwar

O t t o m a n , 218, 226 n . 129

Q a r a k h a n i d m a u s o l e u m ( U z g e n d ) , 97, 98, 99

Safavid, 218

Q a r a q o y u n l u dynasty (1380-1468), 38

status of, 214

(Sadiqi B e k ) , 112, 2 0 5 - 6 , 218

Q a r a w i y y i n m o s q u e (Fez), 101

s t r u c t u r a l m o l d s i n , 206, 208, 209, 211-12

qarbasa,

a n d w o n d e r , 213, 226 n . 116

a l - Q a r t a j a n n i (1211-1285), 213

Pope, A r t h u r U p h a m , 99,111 Times to the

( F i b o n a c c i ) , 161

P r i e t o y Vives, A n t o n i o geométrica

Rhetoric

arabe, 62

arabe d'après les monuments

62, 68,

( C h e e t h a m ) , 210, 212

Stilfragen,

6 4 - 6 5 , 91 ( a l - B u z j a n i ) , 180 n . 129

Risäla ft al-nisab

wa al-ta rtfät

Risäla ft al-nisba

( a l - M a h a n i ) , 180 n . 129

c

Risäla ft al-sabab al-ashkäl

alladht

lahü nasabat

al-khamsa

Risäla ft khawäss

al-qubba

al-zä'ida

( a l - K i n d i ) , 133

wa

al-mukäfiya

( a l - S i j z i ) , 141 twän ( a l - K i n d i ) , 158

a l - Q u h i , A b u Sahl ( f l . 9 8 0 - 1 0 0 0 ) , 141

Risäla fï mushkil

min amr al-nisba

Q u r ' a n . See K o r a n

Risäla fï qismat

al-dä'ira

thaläthat

( a l - M a h a n i ) , 180 n . 129 (al-Kindi),

aqsäm

177 n . 18 Risäla fï taqrïb qaul Arshimïdis muhïtha

R

al-qudamä'

ilä al-ustuqusät

Risäla fï misähat

fï qadr qutr al-dä'ira

( a l - K i n d i ) , 177 n . 18

Risäla fï taqrïb watar al-dä'ira

( a l - K i n d i ) , 177 n . 18

Rab -i Rashidi (Tabriz), 4

Risäla fï taqrïb watar al-tis

( a l - K i n d i ) , 177 n . 18

Racinet, A l b e r t Charles Auguste

Risäla

wa al-murabba

c

c

du Kaire,

of Purity

Qazvin, 6

70

o n a l - B u z j a n i , 133

84 n . 28

The

Riegl, A l o i s , 84 n . 23,102

Q u t b a l - D i n a l - S h i r a z i (1236-1311), 167, 201 musulmana,

Prisse d'Avennes, A c h i l l e - C o n s t a n t - T h é d o r e - E m i l e

L'art

U m a y y a d , 220

54 n . 18, 56 n . 102,155,156

Art from Prehistoric

91-92

El lazo: Decoración

173

Q a w a m a l - D i n Shirazi, U s t a d (1410-1438), 5, 43, 50,

o n Safavid floral p a t t e r n s , 113

La décoration

i n T i m u r i d a r c h i t e c t u r e , 41

al-Qajini, al-Hakim A b u M u h a m m a d al- Adli

a n d m i m e s i s , 213

geometriae

a n d i m p e r i a l style, 217, 220

Qajar dynasty (1779-1924), 7,19

i m i t a t i o n a l , 206, 214, 226 n . 118

100-101,102

a n d c u l t u r a l i d e n t i t y , 220, 221

a l - Q a d i r ( A b b a s i d c a l i p h , r. 991-1031), 96

a n d i m a g i n a t i v e c r e a t i v i t y , 213-14

Practica

o n Tashkent s c r o l l , 9 , 1 2 - 1 3 Renaissance

( a p o c r y p h a l ) , 187

poetry

A Survey of Persian

105,125 n . 36

wa äyat al-surür,

Red F o r t ( L a h o r e ) , 219

Plato o f T i v o l i ( t w e l f t h - c e n t u r y t r a n s l a t o r ) , 161

Present,

Rähät al-sudür

Red F o r t ( A g r a ) , 219

Pugachenkova, G a l i n a , 9

133,163

177 n . 28

wa al-athär,

rasm. See drawings

c

Symposium, Timaeus,

Rajput dynasties, 7

187

P r o p h e t ' s m o s q u e ( M e d i n a ) , 220

a n d squared grids, 49

Theaetetus,

of Theology,

R a h m a n , Fazlur, 224 n . 2

aesthetics of, 1 8 7 - 9 0 , 1 9 4

224 n . 12

c

prophecy, 197,199

57 n.118

Plato (circa 4 2 8 - 3 4 7 o r 348), 8 6 - 8 7 n n . 9 7 - 9 8 , 1 9 1 ,

( M u h a m m a d b. A l i b.

wa äyat al-surür

Sulayman a l - R a w a n d i ) , 105,125 n . 36

"Essai de p h i l o s o p h i e de l'arabesque," 76

( P l a t o ) , 190, 224 n . 29

Philebus,

Rähät al-sudür

L'ornement

polychrome,

66

taqsïm al-muthallath amalihimä

c

( a l - K i n d i ) , 177 n . 18

c

wa

min

393

I N D E X

Risäle-i

Mi märiyye c

(Ca fer E f e n d i ) , 117, 1 5 2 - 5 3 » c

225 n . 105

Sasanian academy ( J u n d i s h a p u r ) , 131

signs. See o r n a m e n t , semiotics o f

Sasanian patterns, 93

al-Sijistani ( p h i l o s o p h e r i n late t e n t h - c e n t u r y B a g h d a d ) , 204

R i x n e r , W o l f g a n g , 57 n . 121

Savasorda. See Bar H i y y a , A b r a h a m

Rogers, M i c h a e l , 179 n . 79

S a y y i d - A h m a d , M i r . See M a s h h a d i

R o m a n art. See G r e c o - R o m a n art

Sayyida Nafisa, t o m b o f ( C a i r o ) , 124 n . 22

o n c o n i c sections, 177 n . 34

R o m a n t i c m o v e m e n t , 61

Sayyida Ruqayya, t o m b o f ( C a i r o ) , 124 n . 22

Risäla ft khawäss

Roriczer, M a t h i a s ( f i f t e e n t h - c e n t u r y G e r m a n a u t h o r ) ,

Schlosser, Julius v o n Schoen, E r h a r d ( f i f t e e n t h - c e n t u r y G e r m a n a u t h o r ) , 164

r o y a l edifices. See i m p e r i a l a r c h i t e c t u r e

Scholastics, 196

o f the M a w l a w i o r d e r o f dervishes), 155

wa

in Islam ( e x h i b i t i o n ) , 86 n . 96

Science and Technology scribes, 157

Vart

66, 70

de VAsie-centrale,

i53-54> 197> 225 n . 61 Sinan Ç a v u ç ( O t t o m a n o w n e r o f a T i m u r i d m a t h e m a t i ­

script, cursive. See c a l l i g r a p h y

Russian studies o f I s l a m i c art, 70, 85 n . 49

s c r i p t o r i a , 50, 57 n . 128, 212-13, 215, 232

Rypka, Jan, 214

scrolls, I s l a m i c a r c h i t e c t u r a l . See also M i r z a A k b a r

cal m a n u s c r i p t ) , 167 S i n i m m a r (legendary a r c h i t e c t ) , 178 n . 62 Shat Ahmad

scrolls; n i n e t e e n t h - a n d t w e n t i e t h - c e n t u r y scrolls; Tashkent scrolls; T o p k a p i s c r o l l

Ibn Tülün ( a l - B a l a w i ) , 54 n . 5

sketchbooks. See p a t t e r n b o o k s S m i t h , M y r o n , 46

o r i g i n s of, 7, 9

Soucek, Priscilla P., 205

Sabaeans, 131-32,133,176 n . 3

secrecy a b o u t scrolls, 13-14, 22

S o u r d e l - T h o m i n e , Janine, 86 n . 58

Sabra, A b d e l h a m i d I . , 189

secretaries, 157

Soviet studies o f I s l a m i c art, 70, 85 n . 49

Sacerdote, Gustavo, 161

Seherr-Thoss, Sonia P.

Sacred Art in East and West ( B u r c k h a r d t ) , 78

Spain, 70,111

Design and Color in Islamic Architecture,

73

M u d e j a r style, 23,102

Sa di ( d . 1292), 120

§ehzade m o s q u e ( I s t a n b u l ) , 29

use o f m u q a r n a s i n , 26, 55 n . 59

Sadiqi Bek (Safavid c o u r t p a i n t e r a n d l i b r a r i a n )

Selim i ( O t t o m a n s u l t a n , r. 1512-1520), 38,125 n . 51

w o o d w o r k i n , 26

c

Seljuqs, Great. See Great Seljuq dynasty

Spanish U m a y y a d s . See U m a y y a d s o f Spain

Safavid dynasty (1501-1732), 6 - 7 , 32, 38,112

Seljuqs o f R u m (1077-1307)

Speltz, A l e x a n d e r , Ornamentstil,

a n i m a t e vs. i n a n i m a t e designs i n , 116

a n d the arabesque, 74

Spiers, R. P h e n é , 46

Qänün al-suwar,

112, 2 0 5 - 6 , 218

al-mukäfiya,

Sinan ( O t t o m a n c h i e f architect f r o m 1538 to 1588), 117,

R u m Seljuqs. See Seljuqs o f R u m

s

al-zaida

S i m a k o v , N i k o l a i Evstafievich

Rosenfeld, Boris A . , 177 n . 15 R u m i , M a w l a n a Jalal a l - D i n ( t h i r t e e n t h - c e n t u r y f o u n d e r

al-qubba

141

186

Die Kunstliteratur,

164

al-Sijzi ( 9 6 9 - 9 9 9 ) , 158

66

c o n s t r u c t i o n i n d u s t r y i n , 44, 57 n . 118

b r i c k m a s o n r y of, 12

s q u i n c h - n e t vaults. See arch-net vaults

c u l t u r a l i d e n t i t y of, 219

m o n u m e n t s of, 67

stalactite m o t i f . See m u q a r n a s

drawings o n paper, 6

revetments of, 1 0 0 - 1 0 1

s t a r - a n d - p o l y g o n patterns, i x , 69, 9 2 - 9 3 » 124 n . 22. See

p o e t r y of, 218

a n d S u n n i s m , 77

also g e o m e t r i c p a t t e r n i n g ; girih

r e l i e f t i l i n g of, 37

semiotics. See o r n a m e n t , semiotics o f

revetments of, 217-18

Semper, G o t t f r i e d , Der Stil in den technischen

und

tekto-

84 n . 23

nischen Künsten,

s t a r - a n d - p o l y g o n p a t t e r n s i n , 22

aesthetic value of, 173-75,181 n . 132 i n b r i c k w o r k , 97, 98-99,

99

c o n s t r u c t i o n techniques of, 138-39,

147-50

T w e l v e r S h i i s m of, 77,113-14

Seneca, 225 n . 60

c o s m o l o g i c a l associations of, 118

vegetal p a t t e r n s of, 113-14, 218

Sense of Order ( G o m b r i c h ) , 19, 55 n . 49, 82

decline of, 114-15

The Sense of Unity ( A r d a l a n a n d B a k h t i a r ) , 76, 77, 79

i n I r a n , 55 n . 63

century poet-painter and biographer o f Sinan),

Seurat, Georges (1859-1891), 210

i n M o r o c c o , 24-25,

117

Sezgin, Fuat, 179 n . 109

a n d m u q a r n a s , 22 (see also m u q a r n a s )

c

Sa i, M u s t a f a (late s i x t e e n t h - a n d early seventeenthc

( L o k m a n ) , 202

Sa'ib o f T a b r i z (1603-1677), 218

Shahanshähnäma

el-Said, Issam

Shah I s m a i l . See I s m a i l 1

Geometric

c

Concepts in Islamic Art, 80, 81, 86 n . 96,

209

c

i n Spain, 26

57 n . 110, 219

Samarqand rag paper, 4 - 5 , 9

S h a h r u k h ( T i m u r i d r u l e r , r. 1405-1447), 34,155

a l - S a m a r q a n d i , A b d al-Razzaq ( f i f t e e n t h - c e n t u r y

Shams a l - D i n ( s o n - i n - l a w o f Rashid a l - D i n ) , 4

beveled style of, 92, 93, 94, 95, 220

Shams-i Qays ( f l . 1204-1230), 185, 206

c

185

Sarre, F r i e d r i c h , 91

i n Tashkent scrolls, 12-13, 12-13, 233-38 v o c a b u l a r y of, 55 n . 63 i n w o o d w o r k , 26, ij State P u b l i c L i b r a r y ( T a s h k e n t ) , 9

S h i r b a f , Asgar ( c o n t e m p o r a r y I r a n i a n master b u i l d e r ) ,

Stevens, Peter S.

c

22, 46

Handbook

of Regular

Patterns,

( R i e g l ) , 6 4 - 6 5 , 91

S h i i s m , 96,109,119,187

Stilfragen

S h i r v a n Shahs c o m p l e x ( B a k u ) , 32

stone a r c h i t e c t u r e , M o r o c c a n , 23

c

2j

i n T o p k a p i s c r o l l , 31, 32, 3 4 - 3 5 » 37» 4 9 ~ 5 0 , 231,

Shelby, L o n , 42, 43, 57 n . 122

Sana'i ( t w e l f t h - c e n t u r y G h a z n a v i d p o e t ) , 210 san at,

22

Shah Jahan ( M u g h a l e m p e r o r , r. 1628-1657), 6, 54 n . 12, Shah M u z a f f a r (late T i m u r i d p a i n t e r ) , 212

T i m u r i d h i s t o r i a n ) , 120

19-20,

a n d r a d i a l grids, 49,103

S a m a n i d m a u s o l e u m ( B u k h a r a ) , 97

Samarra, 91,103,178 n . 65

i n n i n e t e e n t h - a n d t w e n t i e t h - c e n t u r y scrolls, 19,

Shah-i Z i n d a c o m p l e x ( S a m a r q a n d ) , 13,121

Salah a l - D i n ( A y y u b i d r u l e r , r. 1169-1193), 100,108

c

27

71

394

INDEX

S t o r n a l o c o , Gabriele ( f o u r t e e n t h - c e n t u r y professional m a t h e m a t i c i a n ) , 156

Taifas ( e l e v e n t h - c e n t u r y kings o f S p a i n ) , 101-2 Taj a l - D i n (girih-bend),

Kitab fi misahat al-mujassamat

al-mukafiya,

( P l a t o ) , 214

S t r z y g o w s k i , Josef, 95

Taj M a h a l ( A g r a ) , 57 n . 110, 115, 219

Theaetetus

stucco, 23, 94

T a k h t - i S u l a y m a n , 4, 5,173, 350

theology. See also C h r i s t i a n i t y ; G o d ; I s l a m ; K o r a n

Subtelny, Eva M a r i a , 214

a r g u m e n t f r o m design, 4, 97

p l a s t e r w o r k of, 10

Sufism, 76, 77, 79,101,108 dhikr, 122

Theology

T a l i k i z a d e (late s i x t e e n t h - c e n t u r y O t t o m a n c o u r t h i s t o -

T h e o p h i l u s , De diversis

c

Théorie

r i a n ) , 38, 221

a n d poetry, 121

Tanqih al-manäzir

a n d S u n n i s m , 109

T a q i a l - D i n Dada, shrine c o m p l e x o f ( B o n d e r a b a d ) , 32,

Suger, A b b o t (1081-1151), 196

( K a m a l a l - D i n a l - F a r i s i ) , 201

Taqi a l - D i n b. M a r u f (sixteenth-century O t t o m a n c

a l - S u h r a w a r d i , U m a r ( d . 1234), 109,120 c

S ü l e y m a n i y e m o s q u e ( I s t a n b u l ) , 154

Tarikh-i

Khayrät,

Sultan A h m e d m o s q u e ( I s t a n b u l ) , 115, 117-18,153

Tänkh-i

Mas üdt

Sultan Hasan, madrasa c o m p l e x o f ( C a i r o ) , 119

Tashkent scrolls, 9 - 1 4 , 9-13, 54 n . 33

Summa

( T h o m a s A q u i n a s ) , 196

Theologica

T h o m a s A q u i n a s , Saint (1225-1274), 192 a n d aesthetics, 198 196

Theologica,

t i l e . See b r i c k a n d tile; I z n i k ceramic t i l e revetments; t i l i n g s . See tessellation

tarh. See drawings

T i m , 99

57 n . 130 ( B a y h a q i ) , 176 n . 5

c

artibus, 84 n . 2 ( B o u r g o i n ) , 69

mosaic tile

a s t r o n o m e r ) , 201, 202

S ü l e y m a n 1 ( O t t o m a n r u l e r , r. 1520-1566), 29, 38, 220

Sultan Hasan m o s q u e ( T a b r i z ) , 181 n . 132

de Yornement

Summa

33, 35

a l - S u h r a w a r d i , Shihab a l - D i n (1153-1191), 108,119

of Aristotle

( P l o t i n u s ; a p o c r y p h a l ) , 187

T a k r i t , 93

a n d N e o p l a t o n i c cosmology, 119

Timaeus

( P l a t o ) , 133,163

Timurid

Architecture

(O'Kane), x i

in Khurasan

T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n a r c h i t e c t u r e , 5, 7, 38, 56 n . 80,109,

a p p r o x i m a t i o n m e t h o d used i n , 170

111,158

arch-net vaults i n , 54 n . 35

S u m m e r s , D a v i d , 166,198

a n d bannai

S ü n b ü l z a d e . See V e h b i , S ü n b ü l z a d e

c o l o r used i n , 10,13, 32

sun figures, 46, 118

c o m p l e x i t y o f girih p a t t e r n s i n , 215

a n d a r i t h e m e t i c c o m p u t a t i o n , 159,160

S u n n i s m , 77

d r a f t i n g m e t h o d s i n , 48

b r i c k m a s o n r y of, 12, 232

a n d calligraphy, 107

elevations i n , 43

c o l o r used i n , 41, 52

a n d God's o m n i p o t e n c e , 192

geometric h a r m o n i z a t i o n i n , 9

d r a f t i n g m e t h o d s of, 14

r e v i v a l of,

grid-based g r o u n d plans i n , 9,13, 44

g e o m e t r i c aesthetic i n , 41, 52, 57 n . 134

96-97,100,101,103-4,107,119,132

angular g e o m e t r y of, 12-13,

b r i c k m a s o n r y , 9, 9,12

a n d Sufism, 109

m u q a r n a s i n , 9,10,13, 27, 54 n n . 3 4 ~ 3 5 >

( L o k m a n ) , 125 n . 67,154

S u r u r i , M u s l i h a l - D i n M u s t a f a (1491-1562), 185 207, 211-212, 224 n . 5, 225 n . 96

Bahr el-ma ärif, c

surveying, 165-66 A Survey of Persian Art from Prehistoric

Times to the

Present (Pope a n d A c k e r m a n ) , 9 1 - 9 2

patterns i n , 9 1 2 1

g r i d systems of, 13, 32,171

s i m p l i f i c a t i o n o f g e o m e t r y i n , 12-13

i n s c r i p t i o n s i n , 121-22, 232

size of, 31

m o n u m e n t s of, 32, 3 4 - 3 7 , 1 2 0 , 1 2 1 , 214

s t a r - a n d - p o l y g o n p a t t e r n s i n , 12-13, 12-13, 27

m u q a r n a s of, 13-14, 32, 54 n . 18 a n d patronage o f the arts, 217

T a c k ö p r i z a d e (1495-1560), 140,189,193 tatabbu , c

a n d Persian poetry, 121

206

tawhid, 76-77,

Sylvius, Balthasar ( a u t h o r o f s i x t e e n t h - c e n t u r y p a t t e r n

a l - T a w h i d i , A b u H a y y a n ( d . after 1009-1010), 189,197

r e l i e f t i l i n g of, 37

80, 81, 86 n . 90

of Culture ( W a s h b u r n a n d C r o w e ) , 85 n . 51

Tebriziye

Symposium

( P l a t o ) , 224 n . 42

T e h r a n , 14

T o p k a p i scroll as m i r r o r of, 41-53

( T a l i k i z a d e ) , 56 n . 82 c

u n i t y i n , 13 ( V i t r u v i u s ) , 139> i 5 5 ~ 5 6 ,

The Ten Books on Architecture

al-Tabari (839-923), 3 Tabbaa, Yasser, 107,124 n . 19,124 n . 21,125 n . 39 T a b r i z , 4, 38, 221

tents, n o m a d i c , 67, 81, 84 n . 13

garden w o r k s h o p s , 153

t e r r a - c o t t a , 12,13

I n n e r Treasury, 29, 38

paper i n d u s t r y i n , 5 al-akhläq

Tadhkxrat

(Ibn Miskawayh), 3

al-shu ara c

T o p k a p i scroll, 30

b y Escher, 180 n n . 124-25 Description

O t t o m a n conquest of, 38 Tadhib

M u s e u m Library, ix, x

tessellation, 71, 85 n . 52,103,163,172-73

a p p r o x i m a t i o n m e t h o d used i n , 170

Texier, Charles Félix M a r i e

a r c h i t e c t u r a l splendor of, 38, 56 n . 82

( D a w l a t s h a h ) , 215

Tahmasp 1 (Safavid shah, r. 1524-1576), 6, 220

tmar. See n i n e t e e n t h - a n d t w e n t i e t h - c e n t u r y scrolls T o p k a p i Palace ( I s t a n b u l ) , 152-53

160

T

revetments i n , 41, 52-53, 217 t h e a t r i c a l i t y of, 53, 214

102. See also arabesque, vegetal

al-tawriq,

Symmetries

Syria, 23, 220

a n d G o t h i c a r c h i t e c t u r e , 43

secrecy a b o u t designs i n , 13-14, 4 8 - 4 9 , 57 n . 124

Suter, H e i n r i c h , 161 b o o k ) , 84 n . 2

> 35

g e o m e t r i c design v o c a b u l a r y of, 32, 34

islïmï

Surname

2 2

arch-net vaults of, 10

a n d S h i i s m , 109 c

de YArménie,

la Perse et la

Mésopotamie,

Amal

arch-net vaults i n , 31, 236 bannai

63 al-daira

mutasäwiya

al-maqsüma li-Arshimïdis,

o n c o n i c sections, 177 n . 34

b r i c k m a s o n r y p a t t e r n s i n , 31, 34, 231-32

c a l l i g r a p h y i n , 34, 37, 232

T h a b i t b . Q u r r a ( 8 2 6 - 9 0 1 ) , 131,141 c

142-44,

158,177 n . 33

125 n . 51

bi-sab at c

177 n . 18

aqsäm

c o l o r used i n , 31, 32, 49,112, 231, 232, 234 c o m p l e x i t y o f girih p a t t e r n s i n , 215, 231 date a n d provenance of, 2 9 - 3 9

Woepcke, Franz, 68,123,133,161

d r a f t i n g m e t h o d s i n , 31, 48,171

U z g e n d , 99,100

elevations i n , 43

U z u n Hasan ( A q q o y u n l u r u l e r , r. 1453-1478), 37> 3

8

W o l f s o n , H a r r y A u s t r y n , 198 w o n d e r , 213-14, 226 n . 116, 226 n . 124

g r a p h i c c o m p l e x i t y of, 31, 42, 52 m e a s u r e m e n t of, 4 3 - 4 4

woodwork

mosaic tile p a t t e r n s i n , 35

v

m u q a r n a s i n , 31, 32,121, 2 3 6 - 3 8

vaults. See arch-net vaults; m u q a r n a s

p a t t e r n types i n , 231-38

vegetal patterns, c u r v i l i n e a r . See islïmï;

r a d i a l grids i n , 31-32,172

V e h b i , S ü n b ü l z a d e ( d . 1809), T u r k i s h painter's m a n u a l ,

artesonado,

Kassettenstil, 152

al-tawrïq

i n M o r o c c o , 23, 27 i n Spain, 26

210, 212, 226 n . 109

religious a p h o r i s m s i n , 121, 232

26, 27,118

i n Egypt, 94

secrecy about designs i n , 4 8 - 4 9

V i c t o r i a & A l b e r t M u s e u m , 14

W o r l d o f I s l a m festival, 74, 76, 80, 81, 82, 86 n . 96

size of, 29, 31, 56 n . 73

V i l l a r d de H o n n e c o u r t (circa 1225-circa 1250), 56 n . 91,

w o r k s h o p practices, 1 0 , 1 2 , 1 9 - 2 0 , 38, 43, 55 n . 56

s t a r - a n d - p o l y g o n p a t t e r n s i n , 31, 32, 34~35> 37>

v i n e - a n d - t e n d r i l m o t i f . See

W o r n u m , R a l p h N . , 84 n . 14

islïmï

W r e n , Sir C h r i s t o p h e r (1632-1723), 156

V i o l l e t - l e - D u c , E u g è n e - E m m a n u e l , 175

4 9 - 5 0 , 1 7 2 , 231, 233-38 and T i m u r i d - T u r k m e n architecture, 34-37, 4i~53

Architecture

t r i a n g u l a t e d grids i n , 31, 232-33

Discourses

Traditional

plaster use, 45

162,164

squared grids i n , 31, 231-32

Islamic Craft in Moroccan

et décoration

turques, i n t r o d u c t i o n t o , 68

on Architecture,

w r i t i n g . See c a l l i g r a p h y

67

Les arts arabes, i n t r o d u c t i o n t o , 66-67,

Architecture

68

v i s i o n , 166,181 n . 136,189,190

(Paccard), 23, 55 n n . 6 0 - 6 2 , 1 0 2

W r i g h t , O w e n , 209

a n d aesthetic j u d g m e n t , 201, 2 0 3 - 5 , 226 n . 124

Y

Baroque, 210

Y a m i n a l - D a u l a Asaf K h a n ( M u g h a l official), 6

a n d external senses, 198, 201, 203

a l - Y a q u b i ( d . 897), o n g r o u n d plans, 3

T u l u n i d dynasty ( 8 6 8 - 9 0 5 ) , 62

glancing, 203

Yazd, 4,121

tümär. See n i n e t e e n t h - a n d t w e n t i e t h - c e n t u r y scrolls

a n d i m a g i n a t i o n , 197-98

Yazdi, A b u Ishaq b . A b d A l l a h K u b a n a n i (active

T u r k i s h painter's m a n u a l , 210, 212, 226 n . 109

i n n e r vs. outer, 201, 210

T u r k i s h style, 64, 81. See also O r i e n t a l i s m

a n d i n t e r n a l senses, 2 0 4 - 5 , 210

a l - T u s i , N a s i r a l - D i n (1210-1274), 117, 140,167,177 n . 23,

a n d m e m o r y , 210

T r a d i t i o n a l i s t School ( S w i t z e r l a n d ) , 7 7 - 7 8 , 79 Traditional

Methods

of Pattern Designing

( C h r i s t i e ) , 19,

69-70

c

c

1442-1443, i459)> 168,169,179 n . 104 Yazdi, Sharaf a l - D i n A l i ( T i m u r i d h i s t o r i a n ) , 120 c

Zafarnäma,

50, 51

bandï, 10, 54 n . 36. See also arch-net vaults

m y s t i c a l , 205, 210

yazdï

T w e l v e r S h i i s m , 77,109,113-14

p r o p h e t i c , 197

Yesil C a m i ( B u r s a ) , 181 n . 132

t w e n t i e t h - c e n t u r y scrolls. See M i r z a A k b a r scrolls;

a n d the s c r u t i n i z i n g gaze, 204

Y u a n dynasty (1206-1368), 102

200 c

Vitruvius Pollio, Marcus, 140-41

n i n e t e e n t h - a n d t w e n t i e t h - c e n t u r y scrolls

De Architectura,

177 n . 29

z

h a r m o n i c p r o p o r t i o n s , 43

u

The

Ten Books on Architecture,

139,155-56, 160

w

180 n . 120

U m a y y a d dynasty ( 6 6 1 - 7 5 0 ) , 93, 96,124 n . 12, 220

Unterweisung in Linien,

mit dem Zirkel

Ebenen und ganzen

und

Körpern

Richtscheit

(Dürer),

1 6 4 - 6 5 , 165 uqda,

c

in Islamic Art, 82, 87 n . 98

W a h a b i s m , 220

tawhïd

der Messung

Z u b a y d a , t o m b o f ( B a g h d a d ) , 120

Wade, D a v i d Pattern

U m a y y a d s o f Spain (756-1031), 101-2, 2 2 0 - 2 1 u n i t y o f G o d . See

c

Z a s y p k i n , B o r i s N i k o l a e v i c h , 70

U m a r K h a y y a m ( d . circa A . D . 1130) al-Jabr,

(Sharaf a l - D i n A l i Yazdi), 50, 51

Z a n g i d dynasty (1127-1222), 100,101

U l u g h Beg ( T i m u r i d r u l e r , r. 1447-1449), 159 c

Zafarnäma

102. See also s t a r - a n d - p o l y g o n p a t t e r n s

c

U r f i o f Shiraz (1555-1590), 226 n . 128

c

U t h m a n ( t h i r d c a l i p h , r. 6 4 4 - 6 5 6 ) , 220

U z b e k master b u i l d e r . See B u k h a r a n master b u i l d e r Uzbeks, 10, 32, 217 b r i c k m a s o n r y of, 12 c u l t u r a l i d e n t i t y of, 219 d r a f t i n g m e t h o d s of, 14

a l - W a l i d 1 ( U m a y y a d c a l i p h , r. 705-715), 220 W a r d , James Historic

Ornament,

66

Washburn, Dorothy K. Symmetries

of Culture,

85 n . 51

W a z i r K h a n , m o s q u e o f ( L a h o r e ) , 219 wazn. See poetry, meters i n West-Östlicher

Divan ( G o e t h e ) , 75

W i l b e r , D o n a l d , 32, 50, 56 n . 102, 353 on a n o n y m o u s (Paris) m a n u s c r i p t , 169 on g e o m e t r y i n T i m u r i d a r c h i t e c t u r e , 41, 226 n . 124

grid-based systems of, 7,13

W i t e l o ( t h i r t e e n t h - c e n t u r y Polish scientist), 166

a n d s i m p l i f i c a t i o n o f geometry, 12-13

W i t t k o w e r , R u d o l f , 43

AUTHOR

BIOGRAPHY

G u l r u N e c i p o g l u is the Aga K h a n Professor o f Islamic A r t and A r c h i t e c t u r e at H a r v a r d U n i versity, where she has been a member o f the faculty since 1987. She has lectured and published w i d e l y i n the area o f Islamic art and architecture between 1250 and 1800. H e r p u b l i c a t i o n s to date include Architecture, The Topkapi Centuries

Ceremonial,

Palace in the Fifteenth

and and

Power: Sixteenth

( A r c h i t e c t u r a l H i s t o r y F o u n d a t i o n and

M I T Press, 1991) and, as guest editor, " P r e - M o d e r n Islamic Palaces," a special issue o f Ars Orientalis

23

(1993). She is c u r r e n t l y w r i t i n g a b o o k o n religious architecture, u r b a n i s m , and architectural practice i n the age o f the architect Sinan. N e c i p o g l u is also the editor o f Muqarnas,

the project c o o r d i n a -

t o r for the p r e p a r a t i o n o f a catalog o f the T o p k a p i Palace M u s e u m ' s Arabic and Persian i l l u m i n a t e d manuscripts, and a member o f i n t e r n a t i o n a l teams involved i n researching p o r t r a i t s o f O t t o m a n sultans and creating a database o f the qadi c o u r t archives o f I s t a n b u l .

Designer

S i m o n Johnston,

Suzanne Watson Petralli, Production

Coordinator

Cartographer

D a v i d L. Fuller,

Composed b y G & S Typesetters, Inc., A u s t i n , Texas, i n M i n i o n type. P r i n t e d by T h e Stinehour Press, L u n e n b u r g , V e r m o n t , o n M o n a d n o c k D u l c e t , 100 l b . N e u t r a l W h i t e Text. B o u n d by Roswell Book Bindery, Phoenix, A r i z o n a .

SKETCHBOOKS

&

ALBUMS

A Series o f the Getty Center P u b l i c a t i o n Programs