The Art And Architecture of Islamic Cairo
The Art And Architecture of Islamic Cairo
The Art And Architecture of Islamic Cairo
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above: Feasting ruler: twelfth century<br />
(ceiling <strong>of</strong> the Cappella Palatina, Palermo).<br />
80 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Art</strong> and <strong>Architecture</strong> <strong>of</strong> <strong>Islamic</strong> <strong>Cairo</strong><br />
priestess Anahita seen in an Achaemenid silver vase in the Hermitage<br />
Museum, St Petersburg. <strong>The</strong> rhythmic structure <strong>of</strong> the figure is rendered<br />
through the swirling arabesques embroidered in her dress,<br />
the contours <strong>of</strong> her body, and the folds <strong>of</strong> drapery which long foreshadow<br />
the dynamics <strong>of</strong> Cubism and Futurism. It is an enduring motif<br />
in <strong>Islamic</strong> art and was absorbed elsewhere in the art <strong>of</strong> Byzantium,<br />
most noticeably, in two <strong>of</strong> the small panels in the eleventh-century<br />
gold and enamelled crown <strong>of</strong> Constantine IX Monomachus in the<br />
Magyar Nemzeti Muzeum, Budapest. Trade and cross-cultural links<br />
with Venice were strong and Fatimid merchandise and art was<br />
widely exported to the West. <strong>The</strong> origin <strong>of</strong> the ivories in Berlin and<br />
Florence was probably Sicily, where they were most likely either<br />
exported from Egypt or made by Fatimid artists in Sicily.<br />
FATIMID PAINTING<br />
Sicily came under Arab rule when the Aghlabid rulers <strong>of</strong> Tunisia<br />
occupied the country in 827. In 909 it was incorporated into the<br />
Fatimid empire and its culture flourished under the Kalbite dynasty<br />
until the Normans, led by Count Roger, invaded the island and<br />
finally wrested control from the Arabs in 1091. In Sicily Roger I<br />
encountered a superior Muslim culture which he adopted,<br />
encouraged and patronized with great enthusiasm. Under his<br />
patronage and that <strong>of</strong> his Arabophile successors, Sicily became a<br />
brilliant melting pot <strong>of</strong> Arab–Christian culture. It was a cultural<br />
collaboration in which the arts, sciences and philosophy<br />
flourished, and through their territorial hold on southern Italy, the<br />
Normans became the main transmitters <strong>of</strong> Muslim learning to Italy.<br />
<strong>The</strong> Latin, Greek and Arabic speaking people <strong>of</strong> Sicily imported the<br />
culture <strong>of</strong> Muslim Spain and translated and disseminated major<br />
works <strong>of</strong> Aristotle with Avicenna’s commentaries, as well as other<br />
ancient works such as Ptolemy’s Almagest and Optica. <strong>The</strong> Norman<br />
kings, described as ‘baptised sultans’, spoke Arabic, wore Muslim<br />
dress, appointed Muslim <strong>of</strong>ficials and in some cases formed their<br />
own harems. 7<br />
<strong>The</strong> most interesting visual expression <strong>of</strong> this cultural union<br />
is the royal chapel in Palermo, the Cappella Palatina (1131–40),<br />
built for Roger II. <strong>The</strong> chapel has a basilican plan with nave and<br />
side aisles terminating in a triple-apsed sanctuary. Above the<br />
polychrome marble dado, all the walls, cupolas and arcades are<br />
covered with Byzantine mosaics executed by Greek craftsmen from<br />
Constantinople. <strong>The</strong> painted nave ceiling is the work <strong>of</strong> Arab