Images

The Gar Minaret, Gar (east of Isfahan), Iran. An inscription reveals its date as 1121 CE. Decorated with square Kufic inscriptions that are carved into the brick shaft.

The minaret of the Ali Mosque Manar, Isfahan, Iran (1118-1157 CE). Erected during the reign of Seljuk sultan Sanjar (118-1157 CE). Decorated by two balconies. The shaft below the balconies embellished with interlocking stars in recess, altering...

An illustration by F.AlSulaiti of the Kirat Minaret, Khurasan, Iran (11th century CE). Seljuk era patron unknown. Balcony at the middle of the shaft missing which was supported on corbelled brick and decorated with Muqarnas vaulting, and...

The minaret of Vabkent (or Vobkent), 1196-7 CE. Location: Town of Vabkent north of Bukhar, Uzbekistan. Patron by Abd al-Aziz II. Embellished by wide bands with high relief carving and crowned by a lantern at the top.

Red-figure chous. This symposium scene depicts a youthful symposiast reclining on a coach whilst a hetaira plays the harp. In was found in the Theatre of Dionysus, and is painted by the Eretria Painter, 425- 420 BCE. National Archaeological...

Attic red-figure calyx krater. Depicted here is a symposium scene, the male guests are reclining whilst the female aulos-player serenades them. By the Uppsala Painter. 11559, National Archaeological Museum, Athens

A section of the cemetery of ancient Carthage (modern Tunisia). Used between c. 400 and 200 BCE, the grave stelae on the site were usually set up above an urn of cremated remains of the deceased.

A coin depicting Roman general and statesman Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus, Pompey the Great. The reverse side shows Neptune. (c. 40 BCE).

A scene from the interior bowl of a red-figure kylix or stemmed drinking cup (490-480 BCE) depicting a symposiast and hetaira - high-class prostitute. (Museum of Fine Arts, Boston)

In The Upanishads, the connection between Atman and Brahman is spiritual. When moksha or liberation is achieved, Atman returns to the Brahman, to the source, like a drop of water returning to the ocean.