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On the Kond style of Islamic tiling: a study in practical Islamic geometry

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Abstract

This paper is a contribution to the studies of practical Islamic geometry. The Kond style is one of the principal Islamic tiling styles in Anatolia, Iran and Central Asia. Its fundamental features are described and discussed as a basis of the decagonal quasiperiodic tiling in Maragha (Iran) and its follow-ups. It was richly employed in the stone carved reliefs of central Anatolia. Construction principles of non-decagonal Kond tiling are derived in the paper and examples from Iran and Uzbekistan described and illustrated. Interpretation of the Persian construction principles for the Kond patterns as well as a tentative explanation of rare curvilinear Kond patterns is given.

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Redrawn from Makovicky (1992) with modifications

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Modified from Makovicky (1992)

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute for Geoscience and Natural Resource Management, University of Copenhagen, Østervoldgade 10, 1350, Copenhagen, Denmark

    Emil Makovicky

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  1. Emil Makovicky
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Correspondence to Emil Makovicky.

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Makovicky, E. On the Kond style of Islamic tiling: a study in practical Islamic geometry. Rend. Fis. Acc. Lincei 28, 35–51 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12210-016-0571-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12210-016-0571-1

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