
Arabic Paleography
Basics
The origins and development of the Arabic writing system.
9th-10th centuries
Manuscripts from Saint Catherine’s Monastery, Sinai, among the oldest to survive.
11th-13th centuries
The development of a standard form of Naskh script.
14th-16th centuries
Demonstrating variations in formality of script and position of letters.
17th-18th centuries
More examples of variation and of more casual script-types used in colophons and notes.
19th-20th centuries
A mix of informal and formal scripts, with many colophons and notes.