"Metalwork has always been to India what ceramics are to China. During the fabled Mughal age, the craftsmen of the Sultans and Rajahs of India produced an astonishing variety of objects in gold and gold enamel, silver, brass, bronze, gilt copper and the Deccani alloy known as bidri. The finest of these are among the most striking and poetic utilitarian wares ever made, in addition to being of the most outstanding technical refinement." "This, the first book on the metalwork of Mughal India, illustrates all the great surviving objects, the majority of which have never been published before and are unknown to the western connoisseur."--Jacket.

Annemarie Schimmel has written extensively on India, Islam and poetry. In this comprehensive study she presents an overview of the cultural, economic, militaristic and artistic attributes of the great Mughal Empire from 1526 to 1857.

James Achilles Kirkpatrick Landed On The Shores Of Eighteenth-Century India As An Ambitious Soldier Of The East India Company. Although Eager To Make His Name In The Subjection Of A Nation, It Was He Who Was Conquered Not By An Army But By A Muslim Indian Princess. Kirkpatrick Was The British Resident At The Court Of The Nizam Of Hyderabad When In 1798 He Glimpsed Khair Un-Nissa Most Excellent Among Women' The Great-Niece Of The Nizam'S Prime Minister. He Fell In Love With Khair, And Overcame Many Obstacles To Marry Her Not Least Of Which Was The Fact That She Was Locked Away In Purdah And Engaged To A Local Nobleman. Eventually, While Remaining Resident, Kirkpatrick Converted To Islam, And According To Indian Sources Even Became A Double-Agent Working For The Hyderabadis Against The East India Company. Possessing All The Sweep Of A Great Nineteenth-Century Novel, White Mughals Is A Remarkable Tale Of Harem Politics, Secret Assignations, Court Intrigue, Religious Disputes And Espionage.

The Grove Encyclopedia of Islamic Art and Architecture is the most comprehensive reference work in this complex and diverse area of art history. Built on the acclaimed scholarship of the Grove Dictionary of Art, this work offers over 1,600 up-to-date entries on Islamic art and architecture ranging from the Middle East to Central and South Asia, Africa, and Europe and spans over a thousand years of history. Recent changes in Islamic art in areas such as Afghanistan, Iran, and Iraq are elucidated here by distinguished scholars. Entries provide in-depth art historical and cultural information about dynasties, art forms, artists, architecture, rulers, monuments, archaeological sites and stylistic developments. In addition, over 500 illustrations of sculpture, mosaic, painting, ceramics, architecture, metalwork and calligraphy illuminate the rich artistic tradition of the Islamic world. With the fundamental understanding that Islamic art is not limited to a particular region, or to a defined period of time, The Grove Encyclopedia of Islamic Art and Architecture offers pathways into Islamic culture through its art.

White Mughals is the romantic and ultimately tragic tale of a passionate love affair that crossed and transcended all the cultural, religious and political boundaries of its time. James Achilles Kirkpatrick was the British Resident at the court of the Nizam of Hyderabad when in 1798 he glimpsed Kahir un-Nissa—'Most excellent among Women'—the great-niece of the Nizam's Prime Minister and a descendant of the Prophet. Kirkpatrick had gone out to India as an ambitious soldier in the army of the East India Company, eager to make his name in the conquest and subjection of the subcontinent. Instead, he fell in love with Khair and overcame many obstacles to marry her—not least of which was the fact that she was locked away in purdah and engaged to a local nobleman. Eventually, while remaining Resident, Kirkpatrick converted to Islam, and according to Indian sources even became a double-agent working for the Hyderabadis against the East India Company. It is a remarkable story, involving secret assignations, court intrigue, harem politics, religious and family disputes. But such things were not unknown; from the early sixteenth century, when the Inquisition banned the Portuguese in Goa from wearing the dhoti, to the eve of the Indian mutiny, the 'white Mughals' who wore local dress and adopted Indian ways were a source of embarrassments to successive colonial administrations. William Dalrymple unearths such colourful figures as 'Hindoo Stuart', who travelled with his own team of Brahmins to maintain his temple of idols, and who spent many years trying to persuade the memsahibs of Calcutta to adopt the sari; and Sir David Ochterlony, Kirkpatrick's counterpart in Delhi, who took all thirteen of his wives out for evening promenades, each on the back of their own elephant. In White Mughals, William Dalrymple discovers a world almost entirely unexplored by history, and places at its centre a compelling tale of love, seduction and betrayal. It possesses all the sweep and resonance of a great nineteenth-century novel, set against a background of shifting alliances and the manoeuvring of the great powers, the mercantile ambitions of the British and the imperial dreams of Napoleon. White Mughals, the product of five years' writing and research, triumphantly confirms Dalrymple's reputation as one of the finest writers at work today.

An enduring monument of haunting beauty, the Taj Mahal seems a symbol of stability itself. The familiar view of the glowing marble mausoleum from the gateway entrance offers the very picture of permanence. And yet this extraordinary edifice presents a shifting image to observers across time and cultures. The meaning of the Taj Mahal, the perceptions and responses it prompts, ideas about the building and the history that shape them: these form the subject of Giles Tillotson's book. More than a richly illustrated historyÑthough it is that as wellÑthis book is an eloquent meditation on the place of the Taj Mahal in the cultural imagination of India and the wider world. Since its completion in 1648, the mausoleum commissioned by the fifth Mughal emperor, Shah Jahan, for his wife Mumtaz Mahal, has come to symbolize many things: the undying love of a man for his wife, the perfection of Mughal architecture, the ideal synthesis of various strands of subcontinental aesthetics, even an icon of modern India itself. Exploring different perspectives brought to the magnificent structureÑby a Mughal court poet, an English Romantic traveler, a colonial administrator, an architectural historian, or a contemporary Bollywood filmmakerÑthis book is an incomparable guide through the varied and changing ideas inspired by the Taj Mahal, from its construction to our day. In Tillotson's expert hands, the story of a seventeenth-century structure in the city of Agra reveals itself as a story about our own place and time.

Metalworking Through History provides a comprehensive, historic overview of the subject of metalworking while exploring it within its cultural context. It is written from the perspective that the crafting of objects in metal is a unique way of understanding a particular time and culture. As a broad encyclopedia of metalworking, it allows the reader to view the different societies and periods that produced work in this medium as part of a global, interrelated practice. Comprised of over sixty entries on relevant time periods, cultures, makers and processes, the book is a much-needed general reference text in the survey of this craft. The subjects span all the major metalworking periods and peoples, from the rituals of African iron smelting to the twentieth century studio movement. Outstanding individual makers are highlighted to give additional insight into the times at which they were active. Furthermore, the materials and techniques used in the act of metalworking are clearly explained in terms that are easily understood by a practitioner with tacit knowledge of the medium. Suggested further readings and cross-references allow for the expansion of research and additional study. It is an excellent first resource for understanding the concepts and terminology of the ancient and pervasive craft of metalworking. Volume includes eight pages of color plates, and black and white photos throughout. Metalworking Through History provides a comprehensive, historic overview of the subject of metalworking while exploring it within its cultural context. It is written from the perspective that the crafting of objects in metal is a unique way of understanding a particular time and culture. As a broad encyclopedia of metalworking, it allows the reader to view the different societies and periods that produced work in this medium as part of a global, interrelated practice. Comprised of over sixty entries on relevant time periods, cultures, makers and processes, the book is a much-needed general reference text in the survey of this craft. The subjects span all the major metalworking periods and peoples, from the rituals of African iron smelting to the twentieth century studio movement. Outstanding individual makers are highlighted to give additional insight into the times at which they were active. Furthermore, the materials and techniques used in the act of metalworking are clearly explained in terms that are easily understood by a practitioner with tacit knowledge of the medium. Suggested further readings and cross-references allow for the expansion of research and additional study. It is an excellent first resource for understanding the concepts and terminology of the ancient and pervasive craft of metalworking. Volume includes eight pages of color plates, and black and white photos throughout. *Art Deco *Marianne Brandt *Chinese *Dark Ages *Enamel *Engraving *Georg Jensen *Judaica *Metals and their Alloys *Native American *Plating and Leaf *Renaissance *June Schwartz *Soldering *South American *Samuel Yellin