Lock mechanism with animal head finials,

12th century

A basic characteristic of Islamic art is a predilection for overall surface decoration using geometric or vegetal patterns. This tendency in part derives from opposition in Islam to the depiction of human and animal forms, which stems ultimately from the belief that the creation of living forms is unique to God. Although this resistance holds true for religious art and architecture, in the secular sphere such figural depictions have flourished in nearly all Islamic cultures, as demonstrated here by an Iranian vessel in the form of a water seller, his garments covered with black vegetal forms; by a bronze censer in the form of a lion—a popular Seljuk type; and by a lock mechanism composed of fantastic creatures. It remains true, however, that non-figural ornament—geometric, vegetal, calligraphic—dominates Islamic art. Ornamentation of this type reached a pinnacle in the Islamic world, but its sources already existed among the Greeks, Romans, and Sasanians. Islamic artists appropriated key elements from these traditions, and then elaborated upon them to invent a new form of decoration that stressed the importance of unity and order. It is likely that the contributions of Islamic mathematicians, astronomers, and scientists were essential to the creation of this exceptional new style, whose abstract motifs are largely devoid of symbolic meaning, serving as well to decorate both the dome of a mosque and the unglazed water flask exhibited here.