George Michell

Review from the New York Times:

"Every art book list should include at least one piece of eye candy. And for sheer visual pleasure you won't do better than this splendid volume of close-up color photographs of patterning in Mughal art from the 16th to 19th centuries. Floral vines of semiprecious inlaid stones unfurl across the white marble surface of the Taj Mahal; tangles of gold calligraphy burst from the Koran pages; a field of carved sandstone stars forms the open-work screen of a palace show more window. The idea of Islamic ornament was to create an environment of total immersion, sensual and spiritual; this book does the same. The text by the art historian George Michell is solid and brief; looking, not reading, is the point."

- Holland Cotter

I cannot agree more. This is a wonderful book with beautiful visuals, excellent scholarship (though sometimes technical for non-architecture savvy folks), and a comprehensive sampling of some of the finest Mughal art objects and textiles. Some of the close-up shots of legendary Mughal art objects such as the V&A's wine cup of Shah Jahan, The Musee Guimet's horse-head dagger, and the carpet collection from the Met are some of the finest ever reproduced. This is a coffee-table book to savor without content fatigue, as each opening of the book reveals yet another excellent touch of craftsmanship in some work of art shown in this volume. Eye-candy indeed! show less

The Royal Palaces of India is a glorified coffee table book on the subject. Though better. A lot of history and anthropology of Indian culture is included, though mostly about the various rulers of India since 1300.

(Full review at my blog)

A look at the philosophies that contributed to the building of Hindu temples. More academic than Danielou's approach, and less focused on the erotic. A nice, academic compliment to Danielou.

Excellent read on the spirituality of Islam