Building Complex
Unknown Artist
probably 16th century
Medium
Ink, white and colored chalk on paper
Dimensions
H. 4 1/16 in. (10.3 cm) W. 3 1/2 in. (8.9 cm)
Classification
Codices
Department
Islamic Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Fletcher Fund, 1971
Accession Number
1971.237.5
Tags
Art Historical Context
This delicate ink drawing with white and colored chalk on paper, titled *Building Complex*, offers a glimpse into 16th-century Islamic architectural. Measuring just 4 1/16 by 3 1/2 inches, it likely originates from a codex—a bound manuscript volume common in Islamic scholarly and artistic traditions. Such small-scale sketches often illustrated treatises on architecture, urban planning, or engineering, capturing intricate designs for palaces, mosques, or madrasas in the Ottoman, Safavid, or Mughal realms. The use of ink for precise lines, enhanced by white and colored chalk highlights and shad...