For the next few months (until 31 March), the first volume of Encyclopaedia Islamica (containing articles from “A” to “Abu Hanifah”) is available in online format. During this period of trial access, you can get to the text by choosing “Encyclopedia of Islam” from the list of articles and databases on the library’s web page.
This volume of Encyclopaedia Islamica is the first of a projected 16-volume publication, consisting of an abridged and edited translation of the Persian Dāʾirat al-Maʿārif-i Buzurg-i Islāmī, one of the most comprehensive sources on Islam and the Muslim world. One unique feature of this work of reference lies in the attention it gives to Shiʿi Islam and its rich and diverse heritage, which makes it complementary to other encyclopaedias. In addition to providing entries on important themes, subjects and personages in Islam generally, it offers the western reader an opportunity to appreciate the various dimensions of Shiʿi Islam, the Persian contribution to Islamic civilisation, and the spiritual dimensions of the Islamic tradition.
http://www.artstor.org/news/n-html/an-080605-wade.shtml
David Wade has partnered with ARTstor to distribute approximately 1,500 images of Islamic art in the Digital Library. These images illustrate patterns and design features found throughout the Islamic world, from the Middle East and Europe to Central and South Asia. The collection has been drawn from Wade’s photographic archive of over 4,000 images, which he has made available on his website, . In addition to works photographed during his travels, Wade has supplemented the collection with drawings and diagrams produced for his various publications. These additional materials reflect Wade’s particular interest in symmetry and geometry. They illustrate common patterns, analyzing and breaking them down into their basic geometrical elements, thereby revealing the underlying principles of order and balance in Islamic art. Islamic artists and craftsmen employed these intricate patterns to adorn all types of surfaces, such as stone, brick, plaster, ceramic, glass, metal, wood, and textiles. The collection will contain examples of ornamentation from monumental architecture to the decorative arts.
Empire Online provides full text access to primary source documents from the British Empire (the Empire encompassed Africa, the Americas, Australia, Oceania, and South Asia). The documents include travel accounts, the literature of Empire, photography and illustration, religious material, and records on issues of race and class in the colonial context. The years of coverage are from 1492 until 2007.
Empire Online is available from the library’s “Databases & Indexes to Articles” page, http://www.lib.utexas.edu/indexes/titles.html?let=E
