With the help of scholars, historians and artists, and through a range of diverse media, this book sets out to follow in the footsteps of Prophet Muhammad (صلى الله عليه وسلم) retracing his movements during the famous Hijrah ‘migration’, from Makkah to the oasis town of Yathrib, soon to become Madinat an-Nabi, the “City of the Prophet”.

Founded in 1948, Hirmer Publishers soon established a name for art books produced to the highest standards. Over the past decade they have become equally well-known in English-speaking countries, with a reputation as one of the most prestigious publishers in this field. This survey of English titles from 2010 to 2020 encompasses a wealth of subjects across the centuries, from antiquity to the modern age.  

Lying between deserts, mountain chains and seas, Iran developed a fascinating cultural landscape. 360 objects from the time of the first advanced civilisations during the 3rd millennium BC until the end of the Safavid Empire in the early 18th century illustrate the outstanding significance of Iran as the initiator and centre of intercultural exchange.

"The Art of Orientation" explores the mosque through 125 artefacts from across the Islamic world. It employs an original and contemporary approach by incorporating essays by leading Arab and international authors, which provide a fresh interpretation of the cultural history behind the shown objects by interweaving concepts, histories and ideas.

The impressions which Paul Klee collected on his journey to Tunisia in 1914, and especially to the city of Kairouan, were of fundamental significance: »Colour and I are one.  I am a painter.« A few years later, in 1921, Wilhelm Hausenstein placed his friend Paul Klee at the centre of his book Kairuan and was thus one of the first people to recognise the artist’s genius.

"Buddha and Shiva, Lotus and Dragon" presents sixty-seven masterpieces collected by John D. Rockefeller 3rd and his wife Blanchette Hooker Rockefeller. Illuminating the cultures and history of Asia, the book presents a magnificent selection of sculptures, bronzes and ceramics that range from the late sixth century BCE to the early nineteenth century CE.

The world-famous Buddhist monastery of Alchi lies at 3,500 metres in Ladakh (Northwest India) and is the best-preserved temple complex in the Himalayas. Inside it houses thousands of rare and incomparable paintings and sculptures dating back to 11th-century Western Tibet. For the first and only time in their history the Dalai Lama has authorised their comprehensive documentation.

The Bruschettini Foundation is world-renowned for its collection of Islamic and Asian art. This fine publication reproduces a fascinating selection of 13th- to 17th-century carpets, textiles, polychrome Iznik wares, paintings, and precious inlaid metalwork chosen from the collection, revealing the enduring allure of Islamic masterpieces.

In this book, illustrations of rare archaeological artefacts and selected masterpieces from the very first centuries of Islam are used to chart the development of the religious culture forward into times of bold innovation. Additional illustrations of ancient aesthetic forms and practices also demonstrate their origins in pre-Islamic cultures.