CalligraphyChinese

Poster depicting Noah's ark as a calligraphic composition

Description

Published in Beijing in the 1930s, this lithographic poster shows a calligraphic composition in the form of a ship. The title “Noah’s Ark” is written in Chinese at the top. Above it in the red cartouche is a well-known hadith (saying of the Prophet Muhammad) that likens the Prophet Muhammad’s household (Ahl al-Bayt) to Noah’s ark: whoever takes refuge in it is saved, and whoever is left behind is drowned. Muhammad’s family members are named on the small gray flags, as are the four caliphs. The words written in blue on the four white sails praise Ali, son-in-law of Muhammad, first Shiʿi Imam and the fourth caliph. His assistance is invoked in the verses on the ship’s black hull. Other verses proclaim God as the light in darkness and the true savior. The publishing house Qing Zhen Shu Bao She was founded in 1922 by Imam Ma Kuilin in Beijing to distribute Islamic religious books and other materials, such as this poster, to its Chinese Muslim clients.

Classification

Calligraphy

Culture

Chinese

Division

Asian and Mediterranean Art

Department

Department of Islamic & Later Indian Art