The Museum of Islamic Art

I have been to many museums.  I’ve seen some that desperately needed an artist to help with the displays.  Desperately.  Of course, there are stellar museums. And, there are the ones that span this whole spectrum from sad to stunning.  The Museum of Islamic Art in Jerusalem is one of the stellar ones.  The building itself was beautiful and every artifact was displayed in the best way possible.  I kind of expected it to be limited to Islamic art exclusively from the Holy Land.  Nope.  It was art from the entire Islamic world stretching from China, Iraq, India, the Middle East, across North Africa, and finally Morocco.

The Museum said it well so why try to better it?  “Islam began in the deserts of Arabia, in the city of Mecca, birthplace of the Prophet Muhammad.  From there it spread rapidly throughout the Middle East.  Less than a decade after Mohammad’s death in 632 AD, Islam had rocked the foundations of Byzantium and Persia, the two greatest empires of the time. … A century later, Islam encompassed entire regions of Asia, North Africa, and southern Europe, dominating an area larger than that ruled by the Roman Empire at the height of its power.  Through its power of influence, Islam absorbed numerous peoples and cultures and melt them into a single civilization and thus it became a world religion.”

“The Arabs believe that God chose Arabic over all the other languages to express his divine embodiment in the world.  Thus, the knowledge of God is contingent on the knowledge of Arabic, the holy tongue of the Quran. … In the 7th century, the Arabic alphabet spread in a whirlwind from the Arabian Peninsula to Syria, Iran, southern Russia, Central and Southeast Asia, and even reached India. … The many variations of script were developed into a wide variety of exquisite, abstract embellishments, elevating Islamic art to peaks of beauty and sophistication.”

Usually, Islamic art does not have figures and animals.  Instead, it has much more calligraphy, geometric patterns, and some floral designs.  It was quite interesting to see how this was woven into architecture, ceramic tiles, pottery, carpets, and jewelry.  One of the most beautiful objects in the exhibition was a glass vase from 9th to 10th century Iran.  Who even knew that glass was made that long ago?  But, hands-down, no competition, my favorite items in the entire museum were the Berber jewelry from Morocco.  Could I be ever so slightly biased after living there for two years?

The 9th - 10th Century glass and tiles from Iran

“Scholars refer to the extensive geographical region in which the Oriental rugs are woven as the ‘carpet belt’ which extends from North Africa, via the Middle East, West and East Asia, to North India.  The population inhabiting this area was predominately Muslim, and the product was thus identified as Islamic.  The hypothesis commonly accepted by scholars today is that the rugs were first woven in the eastern district of the ‘carpet belt’ inhabited by nomadic tribes that raised flocks of livestock.  Rather than slaughtering the animals to use their skins, they wove the wool into fur-like rugs which they used when sitting on the ground.”

The was so much to see and learn.  It truly is a museum worth the visit.  And, it left me shocked by one piece of information.  I should have known this.  It should have been aware of this so long ago.  The Taj Mahal, built from 1632-48 to honor Mumtaz Mahal, the wife of Emperor Shan Jahan, is considered to be the crown jewels of Islamic Indian architecture.  I knew it was Indian architecture, but the Islamic influence never entered my mind.


Berber Jewelry from Morocco

Yep, The Museum of Islamic Art is so well worth the visit.