Overview

Elaborate and sensational gifts were the hallmark of Mamluk diplomacy. From Cairo, where they controlled the medieval spice trade and the holy sites of Christianity and Islam, the Mamluk Sultans-conscious of their humble slave origins-augmented their claims to legitimacy through brilliant displays of diplomatic gift-giving, creating a celebrated reputation for the Sultanate from Europe to the Far East. From spices, ceremonial textiles, and military objects, to elephants and giraffes, and even humans-either living or as severed heads. The offerings varied in combination and emphasis according to the status and circumstances of giver and receiver, but always created a sensation. Through an unparalleled study of primary sources and rigorous fieldwork, this original book-richly illustrated in colour-explores the unpredictable and nuanced art of the regal gift in the Mamluk Sultanate from 1250-1517. Doris Behrens-Abouseif not only provides the first study of this subject, but makes an important contribution to the study of diplomacy, economics, visual arts, and material culture in the medieval period.

Full Product Details

Author:   Doris Behrens-Abouseif
Publisher:   Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Imprint:   I.B. Tauris
Dimensions:   Width: 13.80cm , Height: 2.30cm , Length: 21.60cm
Weight:   0.365kg
ISBN:  

9781784537036

ISBN 10:   1784537039
Pages:   264
Publication Date:   16 October 2016
Audience:   General/trade ,  General
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   Manufactured on demand  
We will order this item for you from a manufactured on demand supplier.

Table of Contents

List of Illustrations (with copyright credit) Acknowledgement Note to the Reader Introduction PART ONE: THE CULTURE OF GIFTS I. The World of the Mamluks II. Protocol and Codes of Gift Exchange Diplomatic Hospitality and Safety The Meaning of Diplomatic Gifts Monetary Value of Gifts Recycled, Used and Requested gifts PART TWO: GIFTS IN GEO-POLITICAL CONTEXTS III. The Red Sea and Indian Ocean Connection Yemen India IV. Africa Ethiopia Nubia The Maghrib West Africa (Mali and Borno) V) The Black Sea, Anatolia, Iran, Central Asia The Golden Horde at the Black Sea The Ilkhanids and the Jalayirids in Iran and Iraq The Timurids in Central Asia The Turkmens Qara Qoyunlu Aq Qoyunlu Dhul Qadir The Safavids The Ottomans VI Europe Castile and Aragon The Cyprus Connection Venice Florence PART THREE: THE GIFTS VII Tradition and Legacy Traditional Diplomatic Gifts in the Middle-East and the Muslim World The Fatimid and Ayyubid Legacies VIII From and for the Mamluks Gifts for the Mamluks The Mamluk Assortment of Diplomatic Gifts Spices and porcelain Mamluks and Craftsmen Giraffes, Elephants and other Animals Balsam, Theriac and other Local Products Religious Gifts Textiles Material Witnesses of Mamluk Diplomatic Textiles The Knight's Outfit Material Witnesses of Mamluk Military and Equestrian Gifts IX Gifts and Mamluk Identity Export Iconography of Mamluk Gifts Conclusion Index

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Author Information

Doris Behrens-Abouseif is the Nasser D. Khalili Professor of Islamic Art and Archaeology at SOAS, University of London. She previously taught at the American University in Cairo and the University of Munich. She is widely acknowledged as the pre-eminent scholar on the architecture of Cairo, and a leading specialist in the art and cultural history of the Middle East. She has written a number of books on Islamic art and architecture, including Cairo of the Mamluks: A History of Architecture and its Culture (I.B.Tauris), The Minarets of Cairo: Islamic Architecture from the Arab Conquest to the end of the Ottoman Period (I.B.Tauris), and Beauty in Arabic Culture and Egypt's Adjustment to Ottoman Rule .

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