Islamic Calligraphy from the Welcome Library

The Wellcome Library is one of the world's greatest collections of books, manuscripts, archives, films and paintings on the history of medicine from the earliest times to the present day. The Library's Asian Collections comprise electronic and printed books and manuscripts in more than 40 languages ranging for over 4000 years.

This lavishly illustrated book conveys the visual richness of the Wellcome collection of Islamic calligraphy for over ten centuries, providing an insight into the artistic and spiritual activity of Indian and Iranian peoples. The ninety beautifully written calligraphy exemplars were purchased in the early 20th century as a part of the private libraries of certain medical practitioners from that area, and reflect both the literary and artistic tastes of this professional group as well as their religious beliefs.

Prepared by an international team of scholars from the UK, Iran and Russia, the text is primarily intended for the general reader. It explains the concept of calligraphy in the world of arabic scripts, outlines its stylistic development over the past centuries, and illustrates the tools and methods used in practising the calligraphy. Detailed descriptions of the exemplars, along with extensive glossary and indices, also make this book an important reference for students, scholars, and academic libraries.