Typology of Square Kufic Script on the Basis of Design and Execution

Calligraphy is of a high position among the Islamic arts; hence it is applied in different art media especially in decorating religious buildings. As a result of conformity and its angular quality, Mua'qqeli script could be used in architectural decoration. As an Islamic graphic art, this script is an adaptation of Kufic script and Mua'qqeli motifs designed and executed on different geometrical shapes (especially square) by considering black and white space proportions. This matter has created various types of this script on the basis of different methods of designing and execution. But the categorizations offered in this respect are not complete and they don't include all the dimensions of this script. This article, done in analytical-descriptive methodology by gathering field information, tries to study connections between the designing and executive methods in angular Kufic inscriptions (Mu'aqqali) in some Islamic monuments. Here, it is tried to apply the common method of perceptual process for explaining the visual processes. Research findings indicate that the design and execution are similar and parallel, i.e. the execution of angular Kufic depends on the designing method of Kufic script calligraphy and vice versa. The Mua'qqeli Kufic calligraphic designs are done in six types, including Munfared, Gardān, Pichideh, Savād-Bayāz, Angular Calligraphy and Āzād. The first four

types have consistent rules in design, but the last two types, i.e. Angular Calligraphy and Āzād, have been created on the basis of innovative methods and modern graphic requirements which could be applied to different webs. On the other hand, the four techniques of simple, Yekragi, Se'ragi and Rāstehkhufteh establish similar connections with all the six types of Mua'qqeli Kufic type.