West & Central Asia 200–1980 CE · Quick-reference for the AP exam
| Work | Artist / Patron | Date | Medium | Dynasty |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dome of the Rock | Abd al-Malik (patron) | c. 691–92 CE | Stone, mosaic, wood | Umayyad |
| Great Mosque of Córdoba | Abd al-Rahman I+ | c. 785–961 CE | Stone, brick, marble | Umayyad Spain |
| Folio from a Quran (surah 33:73) | Unknown | c. 9th–10th c. | Ink, pigment, gold on vellum | Abbasid |
| Pyxis of al-Mughira | Unknown court workshop | c. 968 CE | Ivory | Umayyad Spain |
| Masjid-i Jami (Friday Mosque) | Various | begun 11th c. | Brick, ceramic tile | Seljuk |
| Court of the Lions (Alhambra) | Muhammad V (patron) | 1354–91 CE | Marble, tile, stucco | Nasrid |
| Basin (Baptistère de Saint Louis) | Muhammad ibn al-Zayn | c. 1300 CE | Brass inlaid with silver/gold | Mamluk |
| Mausoleum of Öljeitü | Unknown architect | 1302–12 CE | Brick, tile, stucco | Ilkhanid |
| Bahram Gur fights the karg | Safavid atelier | c. 1525–35 | Opaque watercolor/gold on paper | Safavid |
| The Court of Gayumars | Sultan Muhammad | c. 1525–35 | Opaque watercolor/gold on paper | Safavid |
| Mi'raj (Night Journey) | Unknown | c. 1494–95 | Opaque watercolor/gold on paper | Timurid |
| Ardabil Carpet | Maqsud of Kashan | 1539–40 CE | Wool and silk | Safavid |
| Mosque of Selim II (Selimiye) | Sinan | 1568–75 CE | Stone | Ottoman |
| Süleymaniye Mosque | Sinan | 1550–57 CE | Stone | Ottoman |
| Khusraw discovers Shirin bathing | Bihzad school | c. 1494–95 | Opaque watercolor/gold on paper | Timurid |
| Double-page frontispiece from a Qur'an | Unknown | c. 1306–13 | Ink, pigment, gold on paper | Ilkhanid |
| Women of Allah (series) | Shirin Neshat | 1994 | Photography, ink | Contemporary |
A hall whose roof is supported by rows of columns, creating a forest-like interior. Great Mosque of Córdoba: columns extend infinitely in all directions — no focal wall, no directional axis visible from the floor. The qibla wall is a later structural orientation.
Three-dimensional stalactite vaulting composed of stacked geometric niche-cells. Appear in squinches (corner transitions from square to round), domes, and portals. Not structural — purely decorative. Dematerialize solid mass into shimmering facets.
Vegetal scroll pattern based on spiraling plant forms. Never ends — loops back on itself infinitely. Reflects Islamic concept of God's infinite nature. Covers surfaces of tile, metalwork, manuscript borders, and stone carving.
The highest Islamic art form — writing the word of God. Multiple scripts: Kufic (angular, early) and Naskh (cursive, later). Quran folios, building inscriptions, and secular manuscripts all foreground calligraphy as the primary visual element.
Avoidance of figural representation in mosques and Quran illumination — NOT an absolute prohibition. Human and animal figures appear extensively in secular Islamic art (manuscripts, metalwork, palace decoration). Context determines appropriateness.
A dome with separate inner and outer shells — the outer dome achieves visual impact from outside while the inner dome creates an intimate interior space. Used in the Mausoleum of Öljeitü; later adopted by Ottoman mosques and Safavid architecture.
Persian national epic by Firdausi (1010 CE) — 60,000 verses covering Persian history and mythology from creation to the Arab conquest. Illustrated copies were the most prestigious secular manuscript commissions for Persian rulers across dynasties.
"Fear of empty space" — Islamic art densely fills all available surface with geometric, vegetal, and/or calligraphic ornament. Reflects the belief that only God can create perfection; dense patterning avoids any claim to perfect representation.
Chief Ottoman architect under three sultans. Built 300+ structures. Self-assessed: Süleymaniye = apprentice, Mosque of Selim II = master. His stated goal in the Selimiye: exceed the span of the Hagia Sophia's dome by 4 cm.
It has no mihrab, no minbar, and no congregational prayer hall. It is a mashhad (commemorative shrine) marking the site of the Prophet's ascent to heaven — a completely different building type from a mosque.
False. Human and animal figures appear extensively in secular Islamic art — Shahnama paintings, the Pyxis of al-Mughira, the Basin of Saint Louis. Aniconism applies primarily to sacred (mosque, Quran) contexts.
Muhammad ibn al-Zayn made it for Muslim elite patrons as a luxury washbasin. The French royal family repurposed it for baptism. Its name and Christian use are secondary, colonial adaptations of the object.
It was designed to lie on the floor of the Ardabil shrine. The two lamps depicted at different sizes make sense only when viewed from below — the perspective is looking up, not horizontally.
Sinan studied Hagia Sophia's engineering failures (lateral thrust cracks) and solved them. His mosques surpass the Hagia Sophia in structural elegance and dome span. He did not copy — he critiqued and exceeded.
She has said her work does not represent "Muslim women" as a category. The photographs interrogate how that category is constructed by Western media and Iranian state ideology — they are a critique of representation, not a representation of reality.
The qibla wall of the Great Mosque of Córdoba faces south — because Mecca is south of Spain. Most students expect it to face east (toward the Middle East). Mosque orientation is geographic, not symbolic.