Practice of Iranian Book Design and its Development in Asia Minor in the Middle Period

The practice of book design and decoration has a long history in the Middle Asia and in particular, in Plateau of Iran. This art has acquired specific rules and principles since the Mongol rule and with the direct support of the court and has been considerably developed. The reputation of the activities of Iranian book design schools and high quality of the works prompted the neighboring countries to attempt to acquire these skills and set up similar workshops. The Asia Minor was one of these regions that in various periods was remarkable impressed by the Iranian literature and art, and particularly book design. The question is, “What factors caused the expansion and prevalence of Iranian book design in Asia Minor?” To this end, a collection of factors that have played a role in the entrance of the achievements of Iranian art of book design into the lands of Asia Minor in the middle period (from the time of Seljuk Sovereignty until the flourishing of the Ottoman book design) are introduced and analyzed by referring to the extant sources and documents.
The findings attest to the fact that such instances as the influence of Iranian art and literature, the migration of the artists, transfer of the illustrated manuscripts, and the presence of some of the supporters of Iranian book design in the Ottoman territory are among the significant factors in development and continuation of the achievement of Iranian book design in Asia Minor.