Fatimid Caliphate
Art and architecture

The Fatimids were known for their exquisite arts. The Fatimid period is important in the history of Islamic art and architecture as it is one of the earliest Islamic dynasties for which enough materials survive for a detailed study of their evolution. The stylistic diversity of Fatimid art was also a reflection of the wider cultural environment of the Mediterranean world at this time. The most notable characteristics of their decorative arts are the use of lively figurative motifs and the use of an angular, floriated Kufic script for Arabic inscriptions. Among the best-known art forms that flourished are a type of ceramic lustreware and the crafting of objects carved in solid rock crystal. The dynasty also sponsored the production of linen textiles and a tiraz workshop. A vast collection of different luxury objects once existed within the caliph's palaces, but few examples of them have survived to the present day.

Many traces of Fatimid architecture exist in both Egypt and present-day Tunisia, particularly in the former capitals of Mahdia (al-Mahdiyya) and Cairo (al-Qahira). At Mahdia, the most important surviving monument is Great Mosque. In Cairo, prominent examples include the Al-Azhar Mosque and the Al-Hakim Mosque, as well as the smaller monuments of al-Aqmar Mosque, the Mashhad of Sayyida Ruqayya, and the Mosque of al-Salih Tala'i. Al-Azhar Mosque, which was also a center of learning and teaching known today as al-Azhar University, was named in honour of Fatimah (the daughter of Muhammad from whom the Fatimids claimed descent), who was called Az-Zahra (the brilliant). There were two main Fatimid palaces in Cairo, covering a huge area around Bayn al-Qasrayn, near Khan el-Khalili. Parts of the city walls constructed by Badr al-Jamali – most notably three of its gates – also survive.
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