cover image Islamic Art and Architecture: From Isfahan to the Taj Mahal

Islamic Art and Architecture: From Isfahan to the Taj Mahal

Henri Stierlin. Thames & Hudson, $50 (292pp) ISBN 978-0-500-51100-8

Art historian Henri Stierlin explores a dazzling 1,000-year-old decorative tradition in Islamic Art and Architecture: From Isfahan to the Taj Mahal. The gorgeous art book opens with several two-page full-color spreads of the mosque at Isfahan, Iran, noted for its brilliant tiles and elaborate domes. Stierlin argues that ""Persian style"" reigned in Islamic art from the 10th century to the late 18th and that its influence spread beyond Iran as far as India and Uzbekistan. The book boasts more than 500 color illustrations of mosques, palaces, tombs and minarets, as well as close-ups of details such as decorative stucco, calligraphy, arch designs and tile mosaics.