9 - THE VISUAL ARTS

Summary

At this stage of our knowledge it is impossible to write a coherent history of Islamic art in Iran before the appearance of the Saljuqs. There are at least three reasons for this state of affairs. One lies in the nature of the documents which are available. Many early monuments of architecture whose existence can be surmised from texts, inscriptions or simple logic have either disappeared or have been so completely transformed in later times (including improperly recorded contemporary restorations) as to make any reconstruction most uncertain. Clearly dated architectural remains from early Islamic times are few for the immense territory of Iran and therefore stylistic or typological classifications are tenuous and liable to modification after every new discovery. Archaeological investigations have not been so far as useful as might have been expected, for the two most important ones, at Ray and Nīshāpūr, have not yet been published, while the very exciting ongoing excavation of Sīrāf has only appeared in the form of preliminary reports. And if one turns to the other arts, matters are both simpler and more complicated. They are simpler because certain series of works such as northeastern Iranian ceramics or the so-called post-Sāsānian silver are at least typologically identifiable. But matters are still complicated because the exact development of styles within either one of these techniques is still very unclear. Furthermore, because of the limited archaeological exploration of Iran in this early period, the degree to which any one type is valid for the whole of Iran is still almost impossible to determine.