从先知穆罕默德去世到今天，罗伯特•希伦布兰德描述了一系列非凡的艺术形式的演变，包括建筑、书法、书画、绘画、陶瓷、玻璃器皿、纺织品和金属制品。本版新增加了一章，从1700左右年到约1900左右，这一时期在有关这一主题的书籍中常常被忽视。

From the death of the Prophet Muhammad to the present day, Robert Hillenbrand traces the evolution of an extraordinary range of art forms, including architecture, calligraphy, book illumination, painting, ceramics, glassware, textiles and metalwork. New to this edition is a chapter ranging from c. 1700 to c. 1900, a period very often neglected in books on this subject. Hillenbrand explores how recent centuries, far from being a dark age, have seen incredible artistic ferment and creativity across the Islamic world. Full-colour illustrations of masterpieces of Islamic art and architecture – from Moorish Spain to contemporary Iran – show the far-reaching stylistic developments as well as the recurrent preoccupations that have shaped the arts of Islam since the seventh century.