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A brown leather binding laid flat to show its outside: the cover tooled in gold with a central shamsa medallion and pendants, quarter-medallion cornerpieces and ruled borders, joined to a narrow fore-edge flap and a pointed envelope flap. Beside it the inside of the cover, the doublure, with gilt filigree over pale blue.
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The Pattern Atlas

Islamic Bookbinding

No. 68 of 100 · free · 300 dpi

What you seeA brown leather binding laid flat to show its outside: the cover tooled in gold with a central shamsa medallion and pendants, quarter-medallion cornerpieces and ruled borders, joined to a narrow fore-edge flap and a pointed envelope flap. Beside it the inside of the cover, the doublure, with gilt filigree over pale blue.

What it meansBindings from the Islamic lands typically have a flap that wraps around the fore-edge and tucks under the front cover, protecting the pages. Covers were stamped and gilded with medallions and cornerpieces, and the inside covers were often finished with fine cut-leather filigree laid over coloured grounds.

Where it worksA refined plate for a library, a study or a reading corner.

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2:3 · 7200 × 10800 px4×6 · 8×12 · 12×18 · 16×24 · 20×30 · 24×36 in
3:4 · 5400 × 7200 px6×8 · 9×12 · 12×16 · 18×24 in
4:5 · 7200 × 9000 px4×5 · 8×10 · 16×20 · 24×30 in
11:14 · 3300 × 4200 px11×14 in
A-series · 7023 × 9933 pxA5 · A4 · A3 · A2 · A1

Everything is one ZIP: every shape and size, the phone wallpaper, the SVGs and a printing guide.

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All 100 prints
A box lid covered in khatam work: a field of tiny triangles in brass, bone, ebony, rosewood and green bone forming a regular pattern of six-pointed stars, framed by borders of toothed brass strips. A magnified circle shows one bundle in section.KhatamkariNo. 69
A pair of cupboard doors in dark wood inlaid with mother-of-pearl: an eight-fold star pattern with large stars and kite-shaped pieces in pale iridescent shell, small four-pointed stars of tortoiseshell and pieces of bone, under small panels with shell cartouches and a border of inlaid lozenges.Mother-of-Pearl InlayNo. 70
A large roundel from an inlaid brass basin: a whirling rosette at the centre, a ring of silver scrolls, and a broad band of silver Arabic inscription on black, broken by two small whirl medallions. Beside it the basin itself in elevation, with its inscription band and roundels.Mamluk BrassNo. 71
A white-glazed dish painted in golden lustre: a palmette tree in reserve at the centre against a ground of dotted rings, a lustre band of dotted rings set with four lobed white panels and leaf shapes, and a rim of short strokes. Beside it an eight-pointed star tile with a reserved spiral scroll and a turquoise edge.LustrewareNo. 72
Two square panels of the same design, an eight-pointed star with leaves, corner rosettes and half-lozenges on cobalt: one as tile mosaic, every colour a separate cut piece set in pale grout, the other as cuerda seca, the colours divided by dark lines and laid across a grid of square tiles.Two Tile MethodsNo. 73
A glass mosque lamp hanging on three chains against a warm glow: a wide flaring neck banded in blue enamel with a white scroll and red and green palmettes, a rounded body with three visible loop handles and a band of roundels, and a high foot, all edged in gold.Mosque LampNo. 74
Six tools laid out and labelled: a reed pen with its cut nib, a narrow pen knife, a magnified view of the nib's slit and oblique cut, a lidded brass inkwell, an agate burnisher and a mistar, a card strung with cords for ruling lines.Calligrapher’s ToolsNo. 75
Five hanks of wool hanging from pegs, each with its dye source drawn beneath it: madder red with its roots, indigo blue with a leafy sprig and a cake of dye, weld yellow with its flower spike, walnut brown with a green husk and a split nut, and khaki yellow with a pomegranate and pieces of dried rind.Natural DyesNo. 76

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