This series focuses on the most important forms of Eastern art, providing a survey of the major stylistic and technical developments and the historical events which influenced them. Ceramic tiles have been produced for over 1,000 years in the Islamic world, from Iraq in the ninth century to Turkey in the 19th. The wealth of designs and colours used to decorate mosques, shrines and palaces also became a rich source of inspiration for European artists and designers. This book explains the techniques of the craftsmen including the invention of lustre and the use of blue and white, and traces the development of tilework across a wide geographic area, beginning with the pre-Islamic tradition. Later decorative trends followed those of other forms of Islamic art, ranging from the influence of Chinese ornament to the glorification of the word of God through beautiful calligraphy.