The Blue Mosque, the Ardabil Carpet, and the Taj Mahal all date to this important period.
c. 1517 - 1924 C.E.
videos + essays
We're adding new content all the time!
Chihil Sutun, a Safavid palace
A royal a threshold between indoors/outdoors, private/public, dark/light, and more.
Writing box with utensils, decorated with photographs of Nasir a-Din Shah, his court, and views of Paris and Tehran, Iran
The Qajar Shah commissioned this beautifully decorated pen case, possibly as a gift for one of his sons.
A Qur’an manuscript from coastal East Africa
A rare example of a style of illuminated Qur’an produced in coastal East Africa on Pate Island.
The Mughal painting tradition: an introduction
Mughal miniatures combined intellectual erudition with artistic sophistication to create objects of everlasting beauty.
Timur’s entry into Samarkand, page from the Zafarnama
Timur's equestrian image would have been the most recognizable embodiment of his royal legacy in the Zafarnama.
The Ardashirnama: a Judeo-Persian manuscript
This illuminated manuscript reveals how 17th-century Iranian Jews visually and poetically emphasized their identities as both Iranian and Jewish.
Shah Jahan’s portrait, emeralds, and the exotic at the Mughal court
Emeralds symbolized the exotic and the rare—the perfect emblem to encapsulate the wealth and aspirations of the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan.
Ottoman prayer carpet with triple-arch design
This Muslim prayer carpet shares striking visual similarities to a Jewish carpet meant to cover the Torah ark.
Mimar Sinan, Şehzade Mosque, Istanbul
Sinan, one of the most famous architects in the Ottoman Empire, draws inspiration from the Hagia Sophia and arguably surpasses it
Muradiye Mosque
The Muradiye Mosque's interior is covered with wall paintings and colorful tiles—like a museum of fifteenth-century Ottoman architectural decoration.
Topkapı Palace tiles
Magnificent blue-and-white tiles adorn this room in the Topkapı Palace, Istanbul.
Humayun’s tomb
This tomb, built in 1570, is of particular cultural significance as it was the first garden-tomb on the Indian subcontinent.
