{"title":"Series: Gingko Library Art Series","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe \u003cstrong\u003eGingko Library Art Series\u003c\/strong\u003e offers a diverse collection that spans a wide range of disciplines, from insightful explorations of \u003cem\u003ephilosophy and psychology\u003c\/em\u003e to practical guides on \u003cem\u003efinance and business\u003c\/em\u003e. Readers can immerse themselves in thoughtful analyses, compelling ideas, and expert knowledge that stimulate the mind and enrich understanding across multiple fields.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eBeyond intellectual pursuits, this series invites curiosity through engaging works on \u003cem\u003ehealth, travel, technology, and children’s stories\u003c\/em\u003e, providing both inspiration and education. Each title captures unique perspectives, making the series a valuable resource for lifelong learners and avid readers seeking depth and variety.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"the-image-debate-9781909942349","title":"The Image Debate","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe images released by the Islamic State of militants smashing statues at ancient sites were a horrifying aspect of their advance across Northern Iraq and Syria during 2015-16. Their leaders justified this iconoclasm by arguing that such actions were divinely decreed in Islam, a notion that has remained fixed in the public consciousness.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Image Debate\u003c\/em\u003e is a collection of thirteen essays which examine the controversy surrounding the use of images in Islamic and other religious cultures and seek to redress some of the misunderstandings that have arisen. Written by leading academics from the United States, Australia, Turkey, Israel and the United Kingdom, the book has a foreword by Stefano Carboni, Director of the Art Gallery of Western Australia, followed by an introduction by the editor Christiane Gruber, who sets the subject in context with a detailed examination of the debates over idols and the production of figural images in Islamic traditions.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eTwelve further articles are divided into three sections: the first deals with pre-modern Islam: Mika Natif looks at tensions between the Hadith prohibition on images and the praxis of image-making under the Umayyad dynasty and argues that the Umayyad rulers used imagery to establish their political and religious authority; Finbarr Barry Flood examines the practice of epigraphic erasure, i.e., the removal of names of rulers and patrons from historical inscriptions from the medieval Islamic world; and Oya Pancaroğlu focuses on the figural conventions of an illustrated manuscript of \u003cem\u003eVarqa and Gulshah\u003c\/em\u003e, a medieval Persian romance composed in the \u003cem\u003emasnavi\u003c\/em\u003e (rhyming couplet) form by the 11th-century poet ‘Ayyuqi.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe second section addresses the situation outside Islam: Alicia Walker surveys attitudes toward the production and veneration of religious images in Byzantium from the earliest years of the Christian Roman Empire (early 4th century) to the aftermath of the Iconoclast controversy (late 9th century); Steven Fine explores the history of Jewish engagement with ‘art’ from Roman antiquity through the high middle ages through a detailed exploration of the 3rd-century Dura Europos synagogue and its wall paintings; Michael Shenkar examines evidence for the employment of figural images in the cultic practices of some of the major ancient Iranian cultural and political entities, offering a broad perspective on perceptions of images in ancient Iranian worship; and Robert DeCaroli delves into the question of why no image of the Buddha was made during the first five hundred years of Buddhism.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe third section brings the reader back to Islamic lands with five articles examining aspects of the issue in the modern and contemporary periods: Yousuf Saaed investigates South Asian mass-produced images, especially posters that include illustrations of local Sufi shrines, portraits of saints and Shi‘i iconography; James Bennett explores the visual depiction of Javanese shadow puppets (\u003cem\u003ewayang kulit\u003c\/em\u003e), including the sage Begawan Abiyasa, whose narratives convey key elements of Sufi mystical philosophy; Allen and Mary Roberts consider images of Cheikh Amadu Bamba, the founding Sufi saint of the Senegalese Mouride order; Rose Issa addresses how the term ‘Islamic’ relates to contemporary art, how artists manage to create work in countries in constant turmoil and to what extent such works reflect their conceptual, aesthetic, and socio-political concerns; and finally Shiva Balaghi traces the use of the figure, along its symbolic shadows and silhouettes, in works by notable Iranian artists living in Iran and in diaspora.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Unknown","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47461576507628,"sku":"9781909942349","price":152.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/9781909942349-the-image-debate.jpg?v=1774971588"},{"product_id":"treasures-of-herat-by-barbara-brend-9781909942547","title":"Treasures of Herat","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAn illustrated reference book for students and scholars of Persian art, poetry, and literature.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eWith this book, Barbara Brend provides a thorough consideration of two celebrated Persian manuscripts housed in the British Library. These two copies of the \u003ci\u003eKhamsah\u003c\/i\u003e (Quintet), a set of five narrative poems by twelfth-century poet Nizami, a master of allegorical poetry in Persian literature, were produced in Herat in the fifteenth century, one of the greatest periods of Persian painting. Although well known, the manuscripts have never before been written about in relation to each other. Brend tells the story of each poem and the painting that illustrates it, and she formally analyses the images, placing them in their historical and artistic context.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe images from both highly prized manuscripts are beautifully reproduced in colour, and the ownership history of one of the manuscripts—recorded in the form of seal impressions and inscriptions—is also included. Ursula Sims-Williams provides a translation and commentary of these important marks of ownership which identify the Mughal rulers Akbar, Jahangir, Shah Jahan, and Aurangzeb, among many others.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Unknown","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47471860383980,"sku":"9781909942547","price":171.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/f60f235cfd90a998184669403e94f8fb.jpg?v=1775693332"}],"url":"https:\/\/bookhero.co.nz\/collections\/series-gingko-library-art-series.oembed","provider":"Book Hero","version":"1.0","type":"link"}