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Tombstone in the Form of an Architectural Niche

dated 753 AH/1352 CE
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 455
Incorporating various styles of calligraphic script within its representation of an architectural niche, this tombstone is of historical as well as aesthetic interest. The text of its geometricizing kufic inscriptions include the profession of faith known as the Shahada and passages from the Qur'an. The curvilinear cursive inscriptions provide clues to its history. In the middle framing band are the name and titles of Shaikh Mahmud ibn Sada Muhammad, a leader of a religious brotherhood who "left this world" on the fourth of Muharram 753 / February 21, 1352. The artist’s signature, partly legible as "Niza[m] . . . Shihab," is in the area below the niche.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Tombstone in the Form of an Architectural Niche
  • Date: dated 753 AH/1352 CE
  • Geography: Made in Iran, Yazd
  • Medium: Marble; carved
  • Dimensions: H. 32 3/4 in. (83.2 cm)
    W. 21 3/4 in. (55.3 cm)
    D. 3 1/2 in. (8.9 cm)
    Wt. 137 lbs. (62.1 kg)
  • Classification: Stone
  • Credit Line: Rogers Fund, 1935
  • Object Number: 35.120
  • Curatorial Department: Islamic Art

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