Turkish-Islamic Art in Pre-Ottoman Anatolia
‘This world of human, animal and talismanic-mystic creatures is the result of good observation and vivid imagination.’
Anatolian Seljuq architectural decoration uses mainly tile, stone, wood and plaster. Due to the influence of Islam, floral and geometric decoration and inscriptions were preferred for the decoration of religious buildings, but there is also an intensive use of the figure, especially in palaces. This world of human, animal and talismanic-mystic creatures is the result of good observation and vivid imagination; its presence challenges the belief that the representation of figures was prohibited in Islamic art.
Rug

Hegira 7th century / AD 13th century
Anatolian Seljuq
Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts
Sultanahmet, Istanbul, Türkiye
A distinctive example of an Anatolian Seljuq carpet made with the Gördes knot.