The Hilya — a portrait made of wordsالحلية — صورة من كلمات

Islam's reluctance toward figurative portraits of the Prophet produced one of calligraphy's most moving inventions: the hilya, a 'portrait' composed purely of words describing him. Hâfiz Osman fixed its layout in seventeenth-century Istanbul — a crown of bismillah, a round centre of description like a face, flanking medallions with the four caliphs' names, a verse across the waist, and a base of prayer. Families hung hilyas where other cultures hung portraits. It is the ultimate proof of the Arabic premise: the word does not describe the image. The word is the image.