The Cosmic Script: Sacred Geometry and the Science of Arabic Penmanship - Hardcover

Ahmed Moustafa; Stefan Sperl

 
9780500517666: The Cosmic Script: Sacred Geometry and the Science of Arabic Penmanship
Hardcover
ISBN 10: 0500517665 ISBN 13: 9780500517666
Publisher: Thames and Hudson Ltd, 2014

Synopsis

This landmark study is the first comprehensive exploration of the ‘Proportioned Script’, an Arabic writing system attributed to the Abbasid wazir (minister) Ibn Muqla and the master scribe Ibn al-Bawwab that has dominated the art of Arabic and Islamic penmanship from the 10th century to the present day. Volume One, ‘Sources and Principles of the Geometry of Letters’, traces the origin of the Proportioned Script to the cross-cultural encounter between Greek learning and the scientific, artistic and philosophical pursuits of classical Islam. On the basis of instructions in surviving sources it identifies a grid module that serves as a common foundation for the design of all the Arabic letter shapes. In Volume Two, ‘From Geometric Pattern to Living Form’, the authors construct each of the letter shapes on the grid module and compare their findings to samples traced by two classical master scribes. They conclude by examining the religious, aesthetic and cosmological significance of the Proportioned Script in the wider context of the Islamic cultural heritage. Drs Moustafa and Sperl have succeeded in unearthing the very foundations of Arabic penmanship, with implications for the arts of Islam as a whole.

"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.

About the Authors

Ahmed Moustafa is an acclaimed artist and scholar in the art of Islam. Numerous of his works have been acquired by major museum and private collections worldwide, including the British Museum and the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford.

Stefan Sperl is Senior Lecturer in Arabic at the London School of Oriental and African Studies. His published work covers aspects of classical Arabic literature, Islamic Studies and Middle Eastern Studies.

From the Back Cover

This landmark study is the first comprehensive exploration of the 'Proportioned Script', an Arabic writing system attributed to the Abbasid wazir (minister) Ibn Muqla and the master scribe Ibn al-Bawwab that has dominated the art of Arabic and Islamic penmanship from the 10th century to the present day. Volume One, 'Sources and Principles of the Geometry of Letters', traces the origin of the Proportioned Script to the cross-cultural encounter between Greek learning and the scientific, artistic and philosophical pursuits of classical Islam. On the basis of instructions in surviving sources it identifies a grid module that serves as a common foundation for the design of all the Arabic letter shapes. In Volume Two, 'From Geometric Pattern to Living Form', the authors construct each of the letter shapes on the grid module and compare their findings to samples traced by two classical master scribes. They conclude by examining the religious, aesthetic and cosmological significance of the Proportioned Script in the wider context of the Islamic cultural heritage. Drs Moustafa and Sperl have succeeded in unearthing the very foundations of Arabic penmanship, with implications for the arts of Islam as a whole.

"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.

Publisher
Thames and Hudson Ltd
Publication date
2014
Language
English
ISBN 10 
0500517665
ISBN 13 
9780500517666
Binding
Hardcover
Edition number
1
Number of pages
724

Other Popular Editions of the Same Title

9781620553961: The Cosmic Script: Sacred Geometry and the Science of Arabic Penmanship

Featured Edition

ISBN 10:  1620553961 ISBN 13:  9781620553961
Publisher: Inner Traditions International, 2014
Hardcover