A Study of Herat Metalwork at Museum of Islamic Art in Qatar

This study aims to investigate and appraise works produced in Afghanistan, specifically considering Herati Metalwork in Afghanistan during the different dynasties who ruled in Herat, such as the Ghaznavids (975-1187), Seljuk (1037-1194), Ghurids (1170-1215), Ilkhanids (1256-1335) and the Timurid (1370-1507). Herat was a very important place for producing metalwork’s inlaid with either gold or silver, in which the inlay was usually presented calligraphy or naturalistic motifs. The thesis aims to shed light on the metalwork objects which were produced in the city of Herat; the case study considered in this research will be the metalwork of Herat located at the Museum of Islamic art (MIA) in Doha, Qatar. The method used in this thesis is focused on analyzing the different motifs, techniques used in producing the metalwork objects in Herat. The thesis will also engage a comparison between some of the metalwork objects from the Museum of Islamic art in Doha, with some other Herati metalwork objects located in different museums. This study reveals that the metalwork of Herat are considered the best metalwork produced in the world due to the location of the city of Herat, since its located on the trade routes from the Levant to India and China, further commanding a rich hinterland.