Byzantine Tombstone

Both artworks have religious text. The pattern on the upper left of the Tomb Door of Byzantine recalls a symbolic monogram, in which the Greek letter ‘rho’ is superimposed on the top of the letter ‘tau’ in order to create an abbreviation for ‘stauros’, Greek for ‘cross’ (citation). The Tombstone of Iran portrays the mihrab, which identifies the focal, or kibla, wall with a central niche that is present in every Islamic prayer hall. Compared to the Tomb Door of Byzantine, the Tombstone of Iran is decorated with extensive calligraphy. This is because calligraphy played a dominant role in Islamic art and was integrated into every sort of decorative scheme. The form of inscription on the Tombstone is the cursive Naskhi. The text of the Tombstone

Byzantines used figures and illustrations to show the almighty of God. The motif on the upper right of the Tomb Door, called the ‘Master of the Animals,’ provides continuity with earlier art of the ancient Near East. The image of a man flanked by two animals, usually beasts of prey or mythological creatures, was used by many ancient cultures to express physical and spiritual mastery over the natural world. The same composition was also used in early Christian art-on roman sarcophagi and in wall paintings in catacombs- to depict Daniel in the lion’s den, a symbol of Christian hopes for resurrection (AIC). Islamic art rejected figurative depiction in their architectures, in order to keep prayer focused on praying. In addition, the depiction all humans and non-human animals was discouraged in the hadith and by Sunni Muslim authorities, Abbasid at the time (Grube.11) Hence, there is no representation of living creature on the Islamic Tomb Stone. Therefore, the absence of figuration in Islamic tombstone was due to religious beliefs of the

The carvings on the Byzantine Tomb Door, which dates centuries earlier, are mostly simple geometric designs with little variety, whereas the Islamic Tombstone is carved with cursive calligraphy, abstract and geometric pattern, floral and vegetal designs, hence showing technical mastery. Such design on an Islamic architecture or artwork is called an arabesque design, based on an infinite leaf-scroll pattern that by division of elements (stem, leaf, blossom) generates new variations of the same design and can be applied to any given surface (Grube.11). This idea echoes one of the most fundamental principles of the Islamic style deriving from the same basic idea of dissolution of matter. The decoration of surface of the tomb stone with the infinite pattern serves the purpose of disguising or dissolving the subject matter. Hence, as Islamic craftsman learnt their carving skills from Byzantine masters, the further elaboration and development in designs were driven by their own religious beliefs instead of merely showing their artistic skills. In conclusion, I argue that although at the first glance, the two artworks look similar, because of their function and appearance, as we study the reason for variation in designs, we can observe that these differences were driven by differences in religious beliefs. It can be said that Islamic craftsmen learnt their techniques from Byzantine artists, but they utilized