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Construction of the Qutb Minar was started in 1192 by Qutb-ud-din Aibak, the first Sultan of Delhi, and was carried on by his successor, Iltutmish. In 1368, Firoz Shah Tughlaq constructed the fifth and the last storey.<br/><br/> Delhi is said to be the site of Indraprashta, capital of the Pandavas of the Indian epic Mahabharata. Excavations have unearthed shards of painted pottery dating from around 1000 BCE, though the earliest known architectural relics date from the Mauryan Period, about 2,300 years ago. Since that time the site has been continuously settled.<br/><br/> The city was ruled by the Hindu Rajputs between about 900 and 1206 CE, when it became the capital of the Delhi Sultanate. In the mid-seventeenth century the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan (1628–1658) established Old Delhi in its present location, including most notably the Red Fort or Lal Qila. The Old City served as the capital of the Mughal Empire from 1638 onwards.<br/><br/> Delhi passed under British control in 1857 and became the capital of British India in 1911. In large scale rebuilding, parts of the Old City were demolished to provide room for a grand new city designed by Edward Lutyens. New Delhi became the capital of independent India in 1947.
Construction of the Qutb Minar was started in 1192 by Qutb-ud-din Aibak, the first Sultan of Delhi, and was carried on by his successor, Iltutmish. In 1368, Firoz Shah Tughlaq constructed the fifth and the last storey.<br/><br/> Delhi is said to be the site of Indraprashta, capital of the Pandavas of the Indian epic Mahabharata. Excavations have unearthed shards of painted pottery dating from around 1000 BCE, though the earliest known architectural relics date from the Mauryan Period, about 2,300 years ago. Since that time the site has been continuously settled.<br/><br/> The city was ruled by the Hindu Rajputs between about 900 and 1206 CE, when it became the capital of the Delhi Sultanate. In the mid-seventeenth century the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan (1628–1658) established Old Delhi in its present location, including most notably the Red Fort or Lal Qila. The Old City served as the capital of the Mughal Empire from 1638 onwards.<br/><br/> Delhi passed under British control in 1857 and became the capital of British India in 1911. In large scale rebuilding, parts of the Old City were demolished to provide room for a grand new city designed by Edward Lutyens. New Delhi became the capital of independent India in 1947.
Construction of the Qutb Minar was started in 1192 by Qutb-ud-din Aibak, the first Sultan of Delhi, and was carried on by his successor, Iltutmish. In 1368, Firoz Shah Tughlaq constructed the fifth and the last storey.<br/><br/> Delhi is said to be the site of Indraprashta, capital of the Pandavas of the Indian epic Mahabharata. Excavations have unearthed shards of painted pottery dating from around 1000 BCE, though the earliest known architectural relics date from the Mauryan Period, about 2,300 years ago. Since that time the site has been continuously settled.<br/><br/> The city was ruled by the Hindu Rajputs between about 900 and 1206 CE, when it became the capital of the Delhi Sultanate. In the mid-seventeenth century the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan (1628–1658) established Old Delhi in its present location, including most notably the Red Fort or Lal Qila. The Old City served as the capital of the Mughal Empire from 1638 onwards.<br/><br/> Delhi passed under British control in 1857 and became the capital of British India in 1911. In large scale rebuilding, parts of the Old City were demolished to provide room for a grand new city designed by Edward Lutyens. New Delhi became the capital of independent India in 1947.
Construction of the Qutb Minar was started in 1192 by Qutb-ud-din Aibak, the first Sultan of Delhi, and was carried on by his successor, Iltutmish. In 1368, Firoz Shah Tughlaq constructed the fifth and the last storey.<br/><br/> Delhi is said to be the site of Indraprashta, capital of the Pandavas of the Indian epic Mahabharata. Excavations have unearthed shards of painted pottery dating from around 1000 BCE, though the earliest known architectural relics date from the Mauryan Period, about 2,300 years ago. Since that time the site has been continuously settled.<br/><br/> The city was ruled by the Hindu Rajputs between about 900 and 1206 CE, when it became the capital of the Delhi Sultanate. In the mid-seventeenth century the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan (1628–1658) established Old Delhi in its present location, including most notably the Red Fort or Lal Qila. The Old City served as the capital of the Mughal Empire from 1638 onwards.<br/><br/> Delhi passed under British control in 1857 and became the capital of British India in 1911. In large scale rebuilding, parts of the Old City were demolished to provide room for a grand new city designed by Edward Lutyens. New Delhi became the capital of independent India in 1947.
Kufic is the oldest calligraphic form of the various Arabic scripts and consists of a modified form of the old Nabataean script. Its name is derived from the city of Kufa, Iraq. although it was known in Mesopotamia at least 100 years before the foundation of Kufa.<br/><br/> Construction of the Qutb Minar was started in 1192 by Qutb-ud-din Aibak, the first Sultan of Delhi, and was carried on by his successor, Iltutmish. In 1368, Firoz Shah Tughlaq constructed the fifth and the last storey.<br/><br/> Delhi is said to be the site of Indraprashta, capital of the Pandavas of the Indian epic Mahabharata. Excavations have unearthed shards of painted pottery dating from around 1000 BCE, though the earliest known architectural relics date from the Mauryan Period, about 2,300 years ago. Since that time the site has been continuously settled.<br/><br/> The city was ruled by the Hindu Rajputs between about 900 and 1206 CE, when it became the capital of the Delhi Sultanate. In the mid-seventeenth century the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan (1628–1658) established Old Delhi in its present location, including most notably the Red Fort or Lal Qila. The Old City served as the capital of the Mughal Empire from 1638 onwards.<br/><br/> Delhi passed under British control in 1857 and became the capital of British India in 1911. In large scale rebuilding, parts of the Old City were demolished to provide room for a grand new city designed by Edward Lutyens. New Delhi became the capital of independent India in 1947.
Unusually, this leaf from a Qur'an exhibits four different types of script. Eastern Kufi is used for the framed, illuminated chapter heading for sura 20 and the round markers for each tenth verse. In additioni Naskh is used for the main text; Muhaqqaq is used in the black lines contoured with gold; and Thuluth is used for the golden center lines.
The Blue Qur'an (Arabic: لمصحف الأزرق) is a late 9th - early 10th century Tunisian Qur'an manuscript in Kufic calligraphy. It is written in gold (chrysography) on parchment died with indigo, a unique aspect. It is among the most famous works of Islamic art, and has been called 'one of the most extraordinary luxury manuscripts ever created'.<br/><br/> The manuscript was dispersed during the Ottoman period; today most of it is located in the National Institute of Art and Archaeology in Tunis, with detached folios in museums worldwide.
The Blue Qur'an (Arabic: لمصحف الأزرق) is a late 9th - early 10th century Tunisian Qur'an manuscript in Kufic calligraphy. It is written in gold (chrysography) on parchment died with indigo, a unique aspect. It is among the most famous works of Islamic art, and has been called 'one of the most extraordinary luxury manuscripts ever created'.<br/><br/> The manuscript was dispersed during the Ottoman period; today most of it is located in the National Institute of Art and Archaeology in Tunis, with detached folios in museums worldwide.
A mihrab, or‎ maharib, is a niche in the wall of a mosque that indicates the qibla—the direction of the Kaaba in Mecca, which is the direction that Muslims should face when praying. The wall in which a mihrab is located is called the ‘qibla wall’.
Illuminated parchment leaf from a Qur'an written in Kufic script, early Abbasid, c. 9th century.
Kufic is a clean, geometric style of Arabic writing, with a very visible rhythm and a stress on horizontal lines. Vowels are sometimes noted as red dots; consonants are distinguished with small dashes to make the texts more readable. A number of Qur'ans written in this style have been found in the Mosque at Kairouan, in Tunisia. Kufic writing also appears on ancient coins. The Maghribi script and its Andalusi variant are less rigid versions of Kufic, with more curves.
Eastern Kufic script is distinguished by tall upstrokes that often have left-facing serifs and curved downstrokes. The various diacritical marks that facilitate reading are carefully marked with red, blue, and black. Eastern Kufi was introduced in the 10th century at the same time as paper became the preferred material for Korans in the eastern Islamic world.
With the exception of the banner heading, then text is written in Maghribi hand, probably in the 13th century in Grenada, the last bastion of Islam in Spain.
This early Koran is one of its period’s most famous, especially because of the parchment’s blue color, and the script in gold and verse markers in now-decomposed silver. It is difficult to read the text because the spaces between some of the individual letters and between each word are the same. In order to spread the text uniformly over the page, certain letters were moreover lengthened artificially, a practice called mashq. The Qur'an has variously been ascribed to Iraq, Tunisia, Spain, and Sicily, but several features point to its having been made in Tunisia under the Aghlabids (800-909) or the early Fatimids (909-950).
Kufic is the oldest calligraphic form of the various Arabic scripts and consists of a modified form of the old Nabataean script. Its name is derived from the city of Kufa, Iraq. although it was known in Mesopotamia at least 100 years before the foundation of Kufa. At the time of the emergence of Islam, this type of script was already in use in various parts of the Arabian Peninsula. It was in this script that the first copies of the Qur'an were written. Kufic is a form of script consisting of straight lines and angles, often with elongated verticals and horizontals. It is still employed in Islamic countries though it has undergone a number of alterations over the years and also displays regional differences. The difference between the Kufic script used in the Arabian Peninsula and that employed in North African states is very marked.
This leaf is written in an elegant Muhaqqaq script, the black letters contoured in gold. The calligraphy resembles that of magnificent Il-Khanid Qur'ans, but the verse markers indicate a slightly later dating, under the Jalayirids.
Illuminated parchment leaf from a Qur'an written in Kufic script, 8th century.
Known as the 'Nurse's Qur'an', this work was commissioned by Fatima, who had cared for the Zirid prince al-Muizz ibn Badis. The Qur'an was completed in January 1020 and according to the colophon was created in its entirety by Ali ibn Ahmad al-Warraq, then donated by Fatima to the Great Mosque in Kairouan.
Kufic is a clean, geometric style of Arabic writing, with a very visible rhythm and a stress on horizontal lines. Vowels are sometimes noted as red dots; consonants are distinguished with small dashes to make the texts more readable. A number of Qur'ans written in this style have been found in the Mosque at Kairouan, in Tunisia. Kufic writing also appears on ancient coins. The Maghribi script and its Andalusi variant are less rigid versions of Kufic, with more curves.
This leaf is written in an elegant Muhaqqaq script, the black letters contoured in gold. The calligraphy resembles that of magnificent Il-Khanid Qur'ans, but the verse markers indicate a slightly later dating, under the Jalayirids.
Illuminated parchment leaf from a Qur'an written in Kufic script, 8th century.
Ta'wiz or Tawiz are lockets usually containing verses from the Quran or other Islamic prayers and symbols. As a general rule it is worn with the belief that it will repel any evil intended for the wearer and will also bring him luck. As such it is intended to be an amulet. The word Ta'wiz is also used to refer to other amulets used in Islam. Hanging or wearing of amulets (Ta'wiz) is normally permissible for protection or healing provided certain conditions are met:<br/><br/> 1. That they consist of the Names and of Allah and His Attributes<br/><br/> 2. That they are in Arabic<br/><br/> 3. That they do not consist of anything that is disbelief (Kufr)<br/><br/> 4. The user does not believe the words have any affect in themselves, but are empowered by Allah, the Most High<br/><br/> Most Ta'wiz are made up of a small paper containing the prayers which is repeatedly folded and sewn inside a tiny cloth pouch, black in colour. A black thread is used to wear it as a locket. Wearing a Ta'wiz is popular in India and Pakistan. Many Muslims object to Ta'wiz as they believe that wearing a Ta'wiz is shirk (idolatry, polytheism) according to the hadith of Muhammad.
Kufic is the oldest calligraphic form of the various Arabic scripts and consists of a modified form of the old Nabataean script. Its name is derived from the city of Kufa, Iraq. although it was known in Mesopotamia at least 100 years before the foundation of Kufa. At the time of the emergence of Islam, this type of script was already in use in various parts of the Arabian Peninsula. It was in this script that the first copies of the Qur'an were written. Kufic is a form of script consisting of straight lines and angles, often with elongated verticals and horizontals. It is still employed in Islamic countries though it has undergone a number of alterations over the years and also displays regional differences. The difference between the Kufic script used in the Arabian Peninsula and that employed in North African states is very marked.
Illuminated parchment leaf from a Qur'an written in Kufic script, early Abbasid, c. 9th century.
Eastern Kufic script is distinguished by tall upstrokes that often have left-facing serifs and curved downstrokes. The various diacritical marks that facilitate reading are carefully marked with red, blue, and black. Eastern Kufi was introduced in the 10th century at the same time as paper became the preferred material for Korans in the eastern Islamic world.
The Minaret of Jam is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in western Afghanistan. It is located in the Shahrak District, Ghor Province, by the Hari River. The 65-metre high minaret, surrounded by mountains that reach up to 2400m, was built in the 1190s, entirely of baked-bricks. It is famous for its intricate brick, stucco and glazed tile decoration, which consists of alternating bands of kufic and naskhi calligraphy, geometric patterns, and verses from the Qur'an (the surat Maryam, relating to Mary, the mother of Jesus).<br/><br/> For centuries, the Minaret was forgotten by the outside world until rediscovered in 1886 by Sir Thomas Holdich, who was working for the Afghan Boundary Commission. It did not come to world attention, however, until 1957 through the work of the French archaeologists André Maricq and Gaston Wiet. Later, Werner Herberg conducted limited surveys around the site in the 1970s, before the Soviet invasion of 1979 once again cut off outside access.<br/><br/> The archaeological site of Jam was successfully nominated as Afghanistan's first World Heritage site in 2002. It was also inscribed in UNESCO's list of World Heritage in Danger, due to the precarious state of preservation of the minaret, and results of looting at the site.<br/><br/> The circular minaret rests on an octagonal base; it had 2 wooden balconies and was topped by a lantern. It is thought to have been a direct inspiration for the Qutub Minar in Delhi, which was also built by the Ghurid Dynasty. After the Qutub Minar in Delhi, India, which it inspired, the Minaret of Jam is the second-tallest brick minaret in the world.<br/><br/> The Minaret of Jam belongs to a group of around 60 minarets and towers built between the 11th and the 13th centuries in Central Asia, Iran and Afghanistan, ranging from the Kutlug Timur Minaret in Old Urgench (long considered the tallest of these still in existence) to the tower at Ghazni. The minarets are thought to have been built as symbols of Islam's victory, while other towers were simply landmarks or watchtowers.
The Minaret of Jam is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in western Afghanistan. It is located in the Shahrak District, Ghor Province, by the Hari River. The 65-metre high minaret, surrounded by mountains that reach up to 2400m, was built in the 1190s, entirely of baked-bricks. It is famous for its intricate brick, stucco and glazed tile decoration, which consists of alternating bands of kufic and naskhi calligraphy, geometric patterns, and verses from the Qur'an (the surat Maryam, relating to Mary, the mother of Jesus).<br/><br/> For centuries, the Minaret was forgotten by the outside world until rediscovered in 1886 by Sir Thomas Holdich, who was working for the Afghan Boundary Commission. It did not come to world attention, however, until 1957 through the work of the French archaeologists André Maricq and Gaston Wiet. Later, Werner Herberg conducted limited surveys around the site in the 1970s, before the Soviet invasion of 1979 once again cut off outside access.<br/><br/> The archaeological site of Jam was successfully nominated as Afghanistan's first World Heritage site in 2002. It was also inscribed in UNESCO's list of World Heritage in Danger, due to the precarious state of preservation of the minaret, and results of looting at the site.<br/><br/> The circular minaret rests on an octagonal base; it had 2 wooden balconies and was topped by a lantern. It is thought to have been a direct inspiration for the Qutub Minar in Delhi, which was also built by the Ghurid Dynasty. After the Qutub Minar in Delhi, India, which it inspired, the Minaret of Jam is the second-tallest brick minaret in the world.<br/><br/> The Minaret of Jam belongs to a group of around 60 minarets and towers built between the 11th and the 13th centuries in Central Asia, Iran and Afghanistan, ranging from the Kutlug Timur Minaret in Old Urgench (long considered the tallest of these still in existence) to the tower at Ghazni. The minarets are thought to have been built as symbols of Islam's victory, while other towers were simply landmarks or watchtowers.
The Minaret of Jam is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in western Afghanistan. It is located in the Shahrak District, Ghor Province, by the Hari River. The 65-metre high minaret, surrounded by mountains that reach up to 2400m, was built in the 1190s, entirely of baked-bricks. It is famous for its intricate brick, stucco and glazed tile decoration, which consists of alternating bands of kufic and naskhi calligraphy, geometric patterns, and verses from the Qur'an (the surat Maryam, relating to Mary, the mother of Jesus).<br/><br/> For centuries, the Minaret was forgotten by the outside world until rediscovered in 1886 by Sir Thomas Holdich, who was working for the Afghan Boundary Commission. It did not come to world attention, however, until 1957 through the work of the French archaeologists André Maricq and Gaston Wiet. Later, Werner Herberg conducted limited surveys around the site in the 1970s, before the Soviet invasion of 1979 once again cut off outside access.<br/><br/> The archaeological site of Jam was successfully nominated as Afghanistan's first World Heritage site in 2002. It was also inscribed in UNESCO's list of World Heritage in Danger, due to the precarious state of preservation of the minaret, and results of looting at the site.<br/><br/> The circular minaret rests on an octagonal base; it had 2 wooden balconies and was topped by a lantern. It is thought to have been a direct inspiration for the Qutub Minar in Delhi, which was also built by the Ghurid Dynasty. After the Qutub Minar in Delhi, India, which it inspired, the Minaret of Jam is the second-tallest brick minaret in the world.<br/><br/> The Minaret of Jam belongs to a group of around 60 minarets and towers built between the 11th and the 13th centuries in Central Asia, Iran and Afghanistan, ranging from the Kutlug Timur Minaret in Old Urgench (long considered the tallest of these still in existence) to the tower at Ghazni. The minarets are thought to have been built as symbols of Islam's victory, while other towers were simply landmarks or watchtowers.