Human Representation
‘Islamic art adapted and stylised the human figure of pre-Islamic art without hesitation.’
Islamic art adapted and stylised the human figure of pre-Islamic art without hesitation. Human figurative motifs are found on the surface decoration of both artefacts and monuments (the exception being as a general rule mosques) as part of woven or applied patterns, in sculptural forms, on coins, and in manuscript illustrations. Religious figures such as prophets and angels were drawn from the Byzantine tradition, and mythical themes such as harpies (female-headed birds) were drawn from antiquity, other figurative forms were created through the customisation of well-established, culturally familiar, visual forms.
Painted wooden ceiling of the Palatine Chapel

Between 1131 and 1140
Norman
Palermo, Italy
Executed during the Fatimid period (AH 297–567 / AD 909–1171), the ceiling was commissioned by King Ruggero II of Sicily. Dancers, flautists, gamblers, horsemen and wrestlers are depicted together with lions (Ruggero's heraldic emblem) and other animals.