Islamic calligraphy at its best: Centuries-old artefacts wows all

The 59-day exhibition has artefacts on display that are as old as from circa 1495 CE. These have been arranged into five main group: writing implements, religion, faith, tradition and trade

The gallery at National Museum stands ornamented with metalware, wood, textiles and semi-precious stones. What, makes them special? The artifacts on display are adorned with Islamic calligraphy inscriptions dating back to the fifteenth century.

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Union Minister of Culture and Tourism, Mahesh Sharma inaugurated the exhibition 'Art of Calligraphy and Beyond: Arabic-Persian inscriptions on decorative art objects' on May 15. (National Museum Gallery)

The 59-day show, curated by Anamika Pathak and Zahid Ali Ansari, portrays the aesthetics of Arabic-Persian inscriptions, known for their tasteful blend of flora-fauna designs that add to the charm of the objects.These artefacts have been arranged, as per their utilities, into five main groups: writing implements, religion, faith, tradition and trade.

A brass shallow bowl from circa 1495 CE, belonging to the ruling period (1489-1517) of Delhi Sultan Sikandar Lodi, is the oldest exhibit at the show. Sanjiv Mittal, director-general of the National Museum, said the exhibition assumes significance keeping in mind the fact that lettering of a script has been considered to be one of the most important aspects of certain cultures.

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According to Pathak, the artefacts at the exhibition are ones that were crafted for daily, ceremonial and religious uses from a variety of materials like ivory, jade, ceramic, textile, wood, metal, glass, paper, leather and bone.

The exhibition, closing on July 12, showcases the vast scope of calligraphy, which is not confined to paper and architecture.