The Seljuqs and Their Successors

Sheila R. Canby is Curator Emerita of the Department of Islamic Art at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. She is co-author with Deniz Beyazit and Martina Rugiadi of Court and Cosmos: The Great Age of the Seljuqs, Metropolitan Museum of Art (2016), co-editor with Maryam Ekhtiar, Navina Najat Haidar, and Priscilla Soucek of Masterpieces from the Department of Islamic Art, Metropolitan Museum of Art (2011) and author of The Shahnama of Shah Tahmasp, Metropolitan Museum of Art (2011 and 2014), Shah `Abbas: the Remaking of Iran, British Museum Press (2009), Shah `Abbas and the Treasures of Imperial Iran, British Museum Press (2009), Islamic Art in Detail, British Museum Press (2005), Persian Love Poetry, with Vesta Curtis, British Museum Press (2005), among numerous other books.

Renowned scholars present new thinking on art, sciences, belief and history in the Seljuq periodRising from nomadic origins as Turkish tribesmen, the powerful and culturally prolific Seljuqs and their successors dominated vast lands extending from Central Asia to the eastern Mediterranean from the eleventh to the fourteenth century. Enhanced by colour images, charts and maps, this volume examines how, under Seljuq rule, migrations of people and the exchange and synthesis of diverse traditions - including Turkmen, Perso-Arabo-Islamic, Byzantine, Armenian, Crusader and other Christian cultures - accompanied architectural patronage, advances in science and technology and a great flowering of culture within the realm.The book also explores how shifting religious beliefs, ideologies of authority, and lifestyle in Seljuq times influenced cultural and artistic production, urban and rural architecture, monumental inscriptions and royal titulature together with practices of religion and magic. And it presents today's challenges and new approaches to preserving the material heritage of this vastly accomplished and influential civilisation.Key Features¿ Includes studies that focus on the full breadth of Seljuq art and history from the Great Seljuqs in Central Asia and Iran to their successor states in Anatolia, Syria and Iraq/the Jazira¿ Opens new paths in the research on magic, religion, astronomy, the concept of craftsmanship versus artistry, interaction between rulers and elites, ethno-religious and ethno-cultural diversity and emigration of people¿ Case studies on the treatment of iconic art objects (the oldest extant Shahnama and the iconic Stora stucco panel) show innovations in conservation practices and set new strategies in dealing with restored objects¿ The first comprehensive comparison of Seljuq, Qarakhanid and Ghaznavid titulature is set to become a key tool for kingship-related researchSheila R. Canby is Curator Emerita at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Her publications include Shah 'Abbas: The Remaking of Iran (2009), The Shahnama of Shah Tahmasp (2014) and (with Deniz Beyazit and Martina Rugiadi) Court and Cosmos: The Great Age of the Seljuqs (2016). Deniz Beyazit is Associate Curator in the Department of Islamic Art at The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Her publications include, as editor, At the Crossroads of Empires: 14th-15th Century Eastern Anatolia (2012).Martina Rugiadi is Associate Curator in the Islamic Art Department at The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Part I: Introduction