ISLAMIC WORLD: A History in Objects

Colourful Ottoman tiles, Iznik pottery, Ilkhanid lustre tiles, Spanish Albarello for the storage of pharmaceutical products showing the influence of Arabs and Berbers from North Africa, Mamluk pottery, the Blacas ewer and metalworking in Mosul, Fatimid textiles, pages from illuminated manuscripts, Iranian mirrors, Herat and the inlaid metalworking industry, pottery and the China trade, the making of manuscripts, Turkish shadow theatre, a lyre from Sudan, exquisite jewellery and tribal garments, a Jewish bridal outfit from 1865 and Shi'ism in Iran are just some of the topics covered. This lavishly illustrated and ambitious history chronicles the Islamic world, through superb art objects and cultural artifacts dating from the emergence of Islam in 7th century to the present, covering an area extending from West Africa to Southeast Asia. Texts are accompanied by a wide variety of objects, including architectural decoration, ceramics, jewellery, metalwork, calligraphy, textiles, musical instruments, coins, illustrated manuscripts, and modern and contemporary art, palatial architecture, scientific instruments and splendid miniature paintings alongside exquisitely embroidered textiles, all of which shed new light on the Islamic world both past and present. It offers a fresh approach to the history of the Islamic world from its origins to the present day. Told in six chapters, arranged both chronologically and thematically, and richly enhanced with outstanding images, it provides an illuminating insight into the material culture through art and artefacts, people and places, from pre-Islamic works that provided a foundation for the arts of Islam to masterpieces produced under the great empires and objects that continue to be made today. A Thames & Hudson publication in conjunction with the British Museum, 400 colour photos, 272 pages. 17.5 x 24.5 cm.