Writing the Word of God: Calligraphy and the Qur'anThe art of Islamic calligraphy developed from the 7th to the 14th century, beginning in western Arabia, spreading south to Yemen and north to the Near East, and continuing east and west to Iran, Egypt, North Africa, and Spain. This handsome book demonstrates the breadth and beauty of Islamic calligraphy across centuries and continents, as seen in rare early folios of the Qur'an. Noted scholar David J. Roxburgh begins by discussing the Qur'an, which Muslims believe to be the written record of a series of divinely inspired revelations to the Prophet Muhammad. He then analyzes Kufic script, the preeminent vehicle for writing early manuscripts of the Qur'an; reforms of calligraphy in the 10th century; and the great master Islamic calligraphers, in particular Yaqut al-Musta'simi. The beautiful reproductions of folios and bifolios validate Roxburgh's conclusion that "the miracle of the text of the Qur'an found its equal in the technical mastery of the calligrapher's practice, a miracle in its own right." |
Common terms and phrases
Abbasid Tradition Abd Allah al-Kamili Abu Bakr al-Baqara al-Musta'sim al-Qur'an al-Sufi alif Arghun caliph Chester Beatty Library consonant Déroche diacriticals dispersed folios dots Eastern Kufic script Encyclopaedia of Islam FIGURE folio and recto folio illustrated Fraser and Kwiatkowski gold on paper gold on parchment hamza hand folio Harvard University Art Hijazi script Ibn al-Bawwab Ibn al-Nadim illumination inches Ink and Gold Iran Islamic Calligraphy Islamic World Kairouan left-hand folio lines Maghribi script manuscript Mashhad mashq Mecca Medina middle 10-middle Mosque Muhammad muhaqqaq script Muslim naskh North Africa opaque pigment Persian Courts private collection Prophet Muhammad Qadi Qadi Ahmad Qur'an Qur'an and Calligraphy Qur'an in Kufic recto recto illustrated revelation right-hand folio Sackler Museum short vowels six scripts Sotheby's Sotheby's Arts Soudavar suras thuluth Umar al-Aqta University Art Museums University Press Uthman verso illustrated vocalization written Yaqut الا الله او على لا ما هو وا ولا