Calligraphy in Islamic Art

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Thematic Essays (38)

• • The Age of Süleyman "the Magnificent"
• • Art and Nationalism in Twentieth–Century Turkey
• • The Art of Nishapur (mid–9th–early 12th century)
• • The Art of the Abbasid Period (750–1258)
• • The Art of the Almoravid and Almohad Periods (ca. 1062–1269)
• • The Art of the Ayyubid Period (ca. 1171–1260)
• • The Art of the Book in the Ilkhanid Period
• • The Art of the Fatimid Period (909–1171)
• • The Art of the Ilkhanid Period (1256–1353)
• • The Art of the Mamluk Period (1250–1517)
• • The Art of the Mughals after 1600 A.D.
• • The Art of the Ottomans after 1600
• • The Art of the Seljuq Period in Anatolia (1081–1307)
• • The Art of the Seljuqs of Iran (ca. 1040–1157)
• • The Art of the Umayyad Period (661–750)
• • The Art of the Umayyad Period in Spain (711–1031)
• • The Arts of the Book in the Islamic World, 1600–1800
• • Birth of Islam
• • Carpets from the Islamic World, 1600–1800
• • Chinese Calligraphy
• • Enameled and Gilded Glass from Islamic Lands
• • Figural Representation in Islamic Art
• • Geometric Patterns in Islamic Art
• • Glass with Mold Blown Decoration from Islamic Lands
• • Indian Textiles: Trade and Production
• • Islamic Arms and Armor
• • List of Rulers: Islamic World
• • The Magic of Signs and Patterns in North African Art
• • Modern and Contemporary Art in Iran
• • Modern Art in West and East Pakistan
• • Modern Art in West Asia: From Colonial to Post–colonial Period
• • The Nature of Islamic Art
• • Nineteenth–Century Court Arts of India
• • Nineteenth–century Iran: Continuity and Revivalism
• • The Shahnama of Shah Tahmasp
• • Takht–i Sulayman and Tile Work in the Ilkhanid Period
• • Vegetal Patterns in Islamic Art
• • West Asia: Between Tradition and Modernity

Maps (2)

• • World Map, 500–1000 A.D.
• • World Map, 1000–1400 A.D.

Index Terms (8)

Art Movement/Style

• • Islamic Art in the Early Period
• • Islamic Art in the Later Period
• • Islamic Art in the Medieval Period

Material and Technique

• • Calligraphy
• • Calligraphy, West Asia

Object

• • Qur'an

Subject Matter/Theme

• • Islamic World
• • Religious Art, Islam

Calligraphy is the most highly regarded and most fundamental element of Islamic art. It is significant that the Qur’an, the book of God's revelations to the Prophet Muhammad, was transmitted in Arabic, and that inherent within the Arabic script is the potential for developing a variety of ornamental forms. The employment of calligraphy as ornament had a definite aesthetic appeal but often also included an underlying talismanic component. While most works of art had legible inscriptions, not all Muslims would have been able to read them. One should always keep in mind, however, that calligraphy is principally a means to transmit a text, albeit in a decorative form.

Objects from different periods and regions vary in the use of calligraphy in their overall design, demonstrating the creative possibilities of calligraphy as ornament. In some cases, calligraphy is the dominant element in the decoration. In these examples, the artist exploits the inherent possibilities of the Arabic script to create writing as ornament. An entire word can give the impression of random brushstrokes, or a single letter can develop into a decorative knot. In other cases, highly esteemed calligraphic works on paper are themselves ornamented and enhanced by their decorative frames or backgrounds. Calligraphy can also become part of an overall ornamental program, clearly separated from the rest of the decoration. In some examples, calligraphy can be combined with vegetal scrolls on the same surface though often on different levels, creating an interplay of decorative elements.

Citation for this page

Department of Islamic Art. "Calligraphy in Islamic Art". In Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000–. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/cali/hd_cali.htm (October 2001)

Suggested Further Reading(s) Find these publications in a library

Blair, Sheila S. Islamic Calligraphy. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2006.
Grabar, Oleg. The Mediation of Ornament. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1992.

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