Islamic Art

Iconoclasm and the Bamiyan Buddhas

The destruction of the Bamiyan Buddhas was a political, not religious act

Bamiyan valley, showing where the Bamiyan Buddha used to be. Photo by Zabihullah Habibi on Unsplash

Khadim Ali’s work often references the sixth-century Bamiyan Buddhas (examples here and here), whose destruction at the hands of the Taliban in 2001 received worldwide condemnation. Whilst there is often the perception of Islamic Art as iconoclastic, there are multiple examples where this is not the case. From the Seljuk incense burner in the shape of a bird to the multiple examples of Persian and Mughal portraiture, there is a strong tradition of anthropomorphic craftsmanship, illustrations and paintings within the Islamic Art canon.

Whilst it is certainly the case that there have been instances of iconoclastic behaviour throughout Muslim history, the same can be said for the Christian West. Pagan images were destroyed in early Christianity, and some Byzantine portraits of Jesus only survived the Byzantium mutilation of icons in the ninth century because they were housed in Umayyad — and therefore Muslim — lands. Even in the iconoclasm of the medieval Islamic world, images were rarely destroyed, but were rather altered in order to ‘neutralise’ them. Images were therefore decapitated or defaced, rather than physically obliterated.