Formal analysis of an art work: Capital from Spanish Umayyad Palace

Visual, Formal analysis of an art work: Capital from Spanish Umayyad Palace
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Introduction
The Capital, from Spanish Umayyad palace, Inv. No. LNS 2 S, was chosen as the central artwork to be analyzed in this paper. According to the wall text of the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston (MFAH,) (n.d.), the artwork was carved around 362 AH or 972-73 AD from marble and was retrieved from a Spanish Umayyad palace in Andalusia, Spain. The size of the capital was not indicated in the wall text since the only part of the column displayed was the upper projection of the capital, where most of the inscriptions and design can be observed. According to the wall text of MFAH (n.d.), the inscriptions and design of the capital is generally observed to have Islamic motifs due to the recurring pattern of overlapping carvings of curved lines and flowers that are found at the surface of the column; however, the general form of the capital’s design is based from a classical Greek-Roman architecture called the Corinthian order. Added in the wall text, there were Islamic inscriptions about the names of the carver, Fulayh al-Asir, and the supervisor of the artwork, Shukr al-Fata al-Katib, found at the upper area projections the capital. Additionally, the name of the Islamic Umayyad Caliph, Abdallah al-Hakam al-Mustansir bi-llah, was included among the inscription found on the capital. Although the artwork is regarded as an Islamic collection in Spain, the implications of the visual elements of the Islamic motifs and lines combined with the form of Greek-Roman architecture of the capital should be further studied since these visual elements convey the rise of the influence, coexistence and culture mixing of Islamic and Greek-Roman traditions in Spain during this era.
At first glance, the most recognizable cultural influence that was considered in making the capital was the Greek-Roman architecture, since the general form is from the design of the Corinthian order. The capital is complete with the basic elements of the Corinthian order, which includes the form of the scrolls at the upper projections and the protruding leaves around the base of the scrolls carved on marble. Thorough observation suggest that the general form of the capital was first to be made, since the sculptor needs a base before adding inscriptions, then the low-relief carvings of the overlapping lines was done after. The overall design shows a great combination of practices of very different cul...