Crescent Moon introduces the beauty and complexity of Southeast Asian Islamic art and cuture. This large book features major works of art from Malaysia, Indonesia, and Singapore, as well as extraordinary works from the National Gallery of Australia. The book reveals the sophistication and splendor of the Islamic courts in the archipelago—royal heirlooms recalling a glorious past enriched by the wealth of spice trade and lavish ceremonies of the life cyce, such as circumcisions, weddings, and funerals, as testimonies of faith and power. The revelation of new art forms in gold, silk, lacquer, porcelain, and stone illustrate the transformations of idigenous motifs and techniques and unique developments in the arts of Islamic Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines,a s well as the Muslim communities of Thailand, Burma, Cambodia, and Vietnam.