Nishapur

One of the most important towns of Khorasan in the early Islamic period (now in Iran); for a short period in the 9th century it replaced Marv as the regional capital. The town was a major commercial center, noted for its textiles. Nishapur became a capital again in 1037 under Tughril Beg, the first Salijuq ruler. His successor, Malik Shah, made the city a center of learning, the home of Omar Khayyam, among other famous scholars. It declined in the 12th century as a result of earthquakes (in 1115, 1145). In 1221, Nishapur was sacked by the Mongols, and never regained its former prominence. The most important contribution of the Samanid age (819-999 AD) to Islamic art is the pottery produced at Nishapur. The ceramics were of bold style and showed links with Sassanian and Central Asian work. The style originated in Transoxania, an ancient district of Iran, and showed such specific characteristics as black and ochre birds with dashes of white and green. There was also a rougher type portraying human and animal figures against an ornamental background.

In the early Islamic period, Nishapur in Iran was among the most important towns of Khorasan; indeed, for a short period in the 9th century it replaced Marv as the regional capital. The town was a major commercial centre, noted for its textiles and visited by merchants from all over Western Asia and Egypt. Nishapur became a capital again in 1037 under Tughril Beg, the first Saljuq ruler. His successor, Malik Shah, made the city a centre of learning, the home of Omar Khayyam, among other famous scholars. It declined in the 12th century as a result of earthquakes (in 1115 and 1145) and looting by Turkish tribesmen (1153). In 1221, Nishapur was sacked by the Mongols, and never regained its former prominence. As a result of excavations by the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (1935-9) and much illicit digging, Nishapur’s pre-Mongol slip-painted pottery is represented in many western collections.