Romance and Reason: Islamic Transformations of the Classical Past (Institute for the Study of Ancient World Exhibition Catalogs)

Within a century of the Arab Muslim conquest of vast territories in the Middle East and North Africa, Islam became the inheritor of the intellectual legacy of classical antiquity. In an epochal cultural transformation between the eighth and tenth centuries CE, most of what survived in classical Greek literature and thought was translated from Greek into Arabic. This translation movement, sponsored by the ruling Abbasid dynasty, swiftly blossomed into the creative expansion and reimagining of classical ideas that were now integral parts of the Islamic tradition. Romance and Reason , a lavishly illustrated catalogue accompanying the exhibition of the same name at New York Universitys Institute for the Study of the Ancient World, explores the breadth and depth of Islamic engagement with ancient Greek thought. Drawing on manuscripts and artifacts from the collections of the National Library of Israel and prominent American institutions, the catalogues essays focus on the portrayal of Alexander the Great as ideal ruler, mystic, lover, and philosopher in Persian poetry and art, and how Islamic medicine, philosophy, and science contended with and developed the classical tradition. Contributors include Roberta Casagrande-Kim, Leigh Chipman, Steven Harvey, Y. Tzvi Langermann, Rachel Milstein, Julia Rubanovich, Samuel Thrope, and Raquel Ukeles. Exhibition February 14May 13, 2018 Within a century of the Arab Muslim conquest of vast territories in the Middle East and North Africa, Islam became the inheritor of the intellectual legacy of classical antiquity. In an epochal cultural transformation between the eighth and tenth centuries CE, most of what survived in classical Greek literature and thought was translated from Greek into Arabic. This translation movement, sponsored by the ruling Abbasid dynasty, swiftly blossomed into the creative expansion and reimagining of classical ideas that were now integral parts of the Islamic tradition. 'Romance and Reason' explores the breadth and depth of Islamic engagement with ancient Greek thought. 00Exhibition: Institute for the Study of the Ancient World, New York, USA (14.02.-13.05.2018) Romance And Reason : Islamic Transformations Of The Classical Past / Samuel Thrope, Raquel Ukeles -- The Alexander Romance / Julia Rubanovich -- Picturing The Archetypal King: Iskandar In Islamic Painting / Rachel Milstein -- Islamic Medicine : Refractions Of The Classical Past / Leigh Chipman -- Mathematics, Astronomy, And Astrology / Y. Tzvi Langermann -- Rationalizing The Divine : Greek Philosophy In The Islamic World / Steven Harvey. Catalog Of An Exhibition Held At The Institute For The Study Of The Ancient World From February 14, 2018-may 13, 2018. Includes Bibliographical References (pages 140-147).