Objectives

When we looked at Byzantine art, we examined the art of a political entity that endured--more or less successfully--for almost a thousand years. Having a capital and an emperor helps to insure a modicum of stylistic cohesion. Islamic culture, from the ninth century onward, advanced without that political cohesion. The cohesiveness of Islamic culture was maintained by a shared faith. Even so, Islamic art has a history of remarkable diversity and regional identities. One of the objectives of this brief introduction to the richness of Islamic culture is to gain an appreciation for both the diversity and for the power of inventiveness that accompanied Islamic art wherever it appeared (a power, by the way, that can be seen in Islam's science, math, and geography as well).

Goals for this chapter include:

• Recognize the swiftness with which Islam established itself as a major player in world history.

• Learn the basic tenets of Islam and recognize connections with the older religions of Judaism and Christianity.

• Appreciate the abstract decorative impulses that were nurtured in part by the recurrent Islamic reluctance to depict the human figure.

• Identify those pockets of Islamic culture and history that cultivated depiction of the human figure.

• Recognize the three basic types of mosques.

• Note that the so-called "decorative arts" of vessel making and weaving are major arts in Islamic history.

• End the chapter by noting the establishment in Istanbul (Constantinople) of a major world power that will continue to play a role in world affairs until World War I.