West & Central Asian Art Study Guide

Aniconic

Decoration with no human figures or animals.

Arabesque

A flowing, intricate, and symmetrical pattern deriving from floral motifs.

Calligraphy

Decorative and beautiful handwriting.

Caravanserai

Roadside inns and towns along trade routes; often sites of cultural diffusion and exchange.

Gandharan

Diverse culture that emerged in Afghanistan, influenced by Alexander the Great’s Greek empire and Buddhism from the Silk Roads and Indian kingdoms.

Hajj

Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca that is required according to the Five Pillars of Islam.

Iwan

In Islamic architecture, a vaulted room opening to a courtyard.

Kiswa

Black cloth that covers the Kaaba.

Koran/Qur’an

The Islamic sacred text, dictated to the Prophet Muhammad by the Angel Gabriel.

Kufic

Highly ornamental and geometric Islamic script.

Mihrab

A niche in a mosque on the qiblah wall; indicates the direction to Mecca.

Minaret

A tall, slender tower used to call people to prayer.

Minbar

Short flight of steps used as a platform by a preacher in a mosque.

Mosque

A Muslim house of worship.

Muezzin

The person at a mosque who calls people to prayer on the minarets.

Muqarnas

Decoration inside a vault; 3D shapes that resemble intricate stalactites layered over one another in a complex pattern.

Ogival arch

Islamic pointed arch.

Parchment

Sheep or goat hide that has been soaked in lime, dried and scraped until it can be cut into pages.

Pishtaq

A rectangular frame around an arched opening, usually associated with an iwan.

Qiblah

The direction toward Mecca which Muslims face in prayer, indicated by a wall.

Sura

Verse or section of the Koran.

Tessellation

Decoration using polygonal shapes with no gaps.

Urna

Red dot on the forehead of Buddhist figures.

Ushnisha

Top-knot on the top of Buddha’s head (references a humble crown).

Vairocana

The universal Buddha, a source of enlightenment.