Knowra Islamic art Islamic art Islamic art encompasses visual arts made in societies shaped by Islam, including architecture, calligraphy, ceramics, textiles, metalwork, and painting. Its forms reflect varied regional traditions, patrons, and religious and secular uses.
Arabic calligraphy : The art of writing Arabic letters in deliberate, often highly stylized forms. Calligraphy turns Arabic script into a major visual art across manuscripts, buildings, and objects.
Dome of the Rock : An early Islamic shrine in Jerusalem, completed in 691–692. Its mosaics and inscriptions are among the earliest surviving monumental works of Islamic art.
Umayyad Caliphate : The caliphate ruled by the Umayyad dynasty from 661 to 750, with its center in Damascus. Umayyad patrons commissioned early monuments that combined inherited regional forms with new Islamic messages.
Byzantine art : The artistic traditions of the Byzantine Empire, especially its Christian architecture, icons, mosaics, and manuscripts. Early Islamic monuments adapted and reworked forms also found in Byzantine art.
Islamic mosque : A building used for Muslim communal prayer, often with a prayer hall oriented toward Mecca. Mosques concentrate inscriptions, architectural ornament, and other art in a religious setting.
Islamic geometric patterns : Repeated geometric designs used in many Islamic artistic traditions. Their interlacing structures create ornament across tilework, wood, stone, and manuscripts.
Great Mosque of Córdoba : A major mosque in Córdoba, begun in the eighth century and expanded under Muslim rule in al-Andalus. Its arches, mosaics, and later alterations show artistic layers formed across changing regimes.
Abbasid Caliphate : The caliphate established by the Abbasid dynasty in 750, centered first in Baghdad. Abbasid court culture and trade helped circulate artistic techniques and styles across a wide region.
Christian art : Visual art made in Christian contexts, including religious images, architecture, and manuscripts. Comparing Christian and Islamic settings reveals different conventions for sacred images and inscriptions.
Qibla : The direction of the Kaaba in Mecca, toward which Muslims pray. The qibla organizes mosque interiors and can shape their decoration and architectural layout.
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