Geometry and Ornament in Islamic Architecture

Necipoglu, Gülru; Mohammad al-Asad (Essay)

ISBN 10: 0892363355 / ISBN 13: 9780892363353

Published by Getty Center for the History of Art and the Humanities, Santa Monica, 1995

Large Oblong Quarto. 395 (2)pp. Original black cloth with blind-stamped design on cover, gilt lettering on cover and spine; in original color-illustrated dustjacket with white lettering on spine. Black endpapers. With an essay on the geometry of the Muqarnas by Mohammad al-Asad. Important publication on the Topkapi Scroll, the springboard for this extensive scholarly treatment of Islamic patterns in architecture. "The scarcity of information about architectural drafting methods in the Islamic world, which are often assumed to have been nonexistent, adds to the significance of the Topkapi scroll, the earliest known document of its kind." (Preface). In this elaborate analysis of the scroll in five parts, the scroll tradition, the discourse on the geometric "Arabesque," , the geographical, chronological, and semantic horizons of the geometric mode, geometry as well as the contribution of mathematical science, and finally, geometry and aesthetic theory are examined. With an additional essay on the geometry of Muqarnas, the archetypal form of Islamic architecture, by Mohammad al-Asad. Illustrated with one hundred and fourteen color illustrations, a reproduction of the scroll at 50% of its actual size, and numerous b/w photographs, designs and manuscripts throughout. With minor wear along edges of jacket and binding. Book block in fine condition. Seller Inventory # 51765

Synopsis:

The scant number of drawings and the absence of any theoretical treatises on the architecture of the pre-Islamic world make the late fifteenth-century Timurid pattern scroll in the Topkapi Palace Museum Library an exceedingly valuable source of information. In the course of her analysis of the scroll, Necipoglu throws new light on the conceptualization, recording, and transmission of architectural design in the Islamic world between the tenth and sixteenth centuries. Her comparison of the Islamic understanding of geometry with that found in medieval Western art makes this book particularly valuable for all historians and critics of architecture. The text also has far-reaching implications for recent discussions on vision, subjectivity, and the semiotics of abstract representation. The book reproduces the entire scroll, with its 114 individual geometric patterns for wall surfaces and vaulting, along with illustrations showing the underlying geometries from which the individual patterns are generated. An essay by Mohahhad al-Asad discusses the geometry of the mugarnas and demonstrates how one of the scroll's patterns could be used to design a three-dimensional vault.

About the Author: Gulru Necipoglu is the Aga Khan Professor of Islamic Art and Architecture at Harvard University.

Bibliographic Details

Title: Geometry and Ornament in Islamic Architecture
Publisher: Getty Center for the History of Art and the Humanities, Santa Monica
Publication Date: 1995
Binding: Hardcover
Condition: Very good to fine condition
Dust Jacket Condition: Dust Jacket Included
Edition: First edition.