Dr. Stephennie Mulder
@stephenniem.bsky.social
Assoc prof of Islamic art at UT Austin, 24-25 NEH Fellow, Syria, archaeology, heritage. Formerly world-renowned author of "The Citizen Kane of Islam-centric cat-themed Twitter threads", now making an Arabic/English digital game set in 8th c. Syria
These funds have enabled Ahmad to not only come close to finishing his PhD but also to buy winter clothes for his daughter, to whom he is completely devoted.
I am not even making this up you guys this is a real photo of what he bought 😭 😭 Come on let’s help him out!
I am not even making this up you guys this is a real photo of what he bought 😭 😭 Come on let’s help him out!
October 14, 2025 at 7:47 PM
These funds have enabled Ahmad to not only come close to finishing his PhD but also to buy winter clothes for his daughter, to whom he is completely devoted.
I am not even making this up you guys this is a real photo of what he bought 😭 😭 Come on let’s help him out!
I am not even making this up you guys this is a real photo of what he bought 😭 😭 Come on let’s help him out!
No President Trump, people in the Middle East haven’t been fighting for thousands of years: actually, pragmatic coexistence was the historical norm
I wrote about this the last time this tiresome false claim was trotted out by a Trump administration official
time.com/5764119/midd...
I wrote about this the last time this tiresome false claim was trotted out by a Trump administration official
time.com/5764119/midd...
October 1, 2025 at 5:34 PM
No President Trump, people in the Middle East haven’t been fighting for thousands of years: actually, pragmatic coexistence was the historical norm
I wrote about this the last time this tiresome false claim was trotted out by a Trump administration official
time.com/5764119/midd...
I wrote about this the last time this tiresome false claim was trotted out by a Trump administration official
time.com/5764119/midd...
17th first day of school on UT Austin’s campus and despite everything I am just as excited as ever. The kids are alright everyone ❤️
August 27, 2025 at 5:38 PM
17th first day of school on UT Austin’s campus and despite everything I am just as excited as ever. The kids are alright everyone ❤️
Only a few days left to vote for our #sxsw & #swswedu proposal Gaming Islamic History, which seem to be the only entries on an Islamic topic out of 3K proposals! That's plain crazy, ya’ll.
Help us out! Username and password and you’re in!
tinyurl.com/gamingislamS...
tinyurl.com/gamingislami...
Help us out! Username and password and you’re in!
tinyurl.com/gamingislamS...
tinyurl.com/gamingislami...
August 19, 2025 at 6:24 PM
Only a few days left to vote for our #sxsw & #swswedu proposal Gaming Islamic History, which seem to be the only entries on an Islamic topic out of 3K proposals! That's plain crazy, ya’ll.
Help us out! Username and password and you’re in!
tinyurl.com/gamingislamS...
tinyurl.com/gamingislami...
Help us out! Username and password and you’re in!
tinyurl.com/gamingislamS...
tinyurl.com/gamingislami...
Our panel Gaming Islamic History has made it to the first selection round for @sxsw.com!
Want to see gaming embrace richer, more accurate representations of the Islamic world? Vote for us! @gamingislamshow.bsky.social
sxsw: tinyurl.com/gamingislamS...
sxsw edu: tinyurl.com/gamingislami...
Want to see gaming embrace richer, more accurate representations of the Islamic world? Vote for us! @gamingislamshow.bsky.social
sxsw: tinyurl.com/gamingislamS...
sxsw edu: tinyurl.com/gamingislami...
August 11, 2025 at 5:21 PM
Our panel Gaming Islamic History has made it to the first selection round for @sxsw.com!
Want to see gaming embrace richer, more accurate representations of the Islamic world? Vote for us! @gamingislamshow.bsky.social
sxsw: tinyurl.com/gamingislamS...
sxsw edu: tinyurl.com/gamingislami...
Want to see gaming embrace richer, more accurate representations of the Islamic world? Vote for us! @gamingislamshow.bsky.social
sxsw: tinyurl.com/gamingislamS...
sxsw edu: tinyurl.com/gamingislami...
Just discovered my edited volume Imagining Antiquity in Islamic Societies got a nice review in the Journal of Islamic Archaeology. Thank you @peterjbrown.bsky.social for the review and thanks to all the brilliant contributors!
journal.equinoxpub.com/JIA/article/...
journal.equinoxpub.com/JIA/article/...
June 9, 2025 at 5:39 PM
Just discovered my edited volume Imagining Antiquity in Islamic Societies got a nice review in the Journal of Islamic Archaeology. Thank you @peterjbrown.bsky.social for the review and thanks to all the brilliant contributors!
journal.equinoxpub.com/JIA/article/...
journal.equinoxpub.com/JIA/article/...
The shrine of Sayyida Zaynab dates to the medieval era and the story of its important role in Syria's sacred history forms an important chapter of my 2014 book, the Shrines of the 'Alids in Medieval Syria. edinburghuniversitypress.com/book-the-shr...
January 11, 2025 at 3:29 PM
The shrine of Sayyida Zaynab dates to the medieval era and the story of its important role in Syria's sacred history forms an important chapter of my 2014 book, the Shrines of the 'Alids in Medieval Syria. edinburghuniversitypress.com/book-the-shr...
Good morning to
a free Syria!
سوريا حرة!
a free Syria!
سوريا حرة!
December 8, 2024 at 2:18 PM
Good morning to
a free Syria!
سوريا حرة!
a free Syria!
سوريا حرة!
My first book, the Shrines of the ‘Alids in Medieval Syria, was about these very shrines, which have been revered by both Shi’is and Sunnis for over a millennium. Hoping this ensures the continued care of these important and locally-beloved sites of holiness www.nytimes.com/2024/12/07/w...
December 7, 2024 at 11:06 PM
My first book, the Shrines of the ‘Alids in Medieval Syria, was about these very shrines, which have been revered by both Shi’is and Sunnis for over a millennium. Hoping this ensures the continued care of these important and locally-beloved sites of holiness www.nytimes.com/2024/12/07/w...
good afternoon from Ms. Layla, who is very elegant
December 3, 2024 at 8:34 PM
good afternoon from Ms. Layla, who is very elegant
came home to find my husband has been working on our retirement plan
December 3, 2024 at 12:39 AM
came home to find my husband has been working on our retirement plan
Over the next 1,400 years, Islamic artists would take these late Antique themes to extraordinary heights, creating one of the world's great artistic and intellectual traditions. Tune in next Monday for the next installment in #IslamicArt100Objects!
December 2, 2024 at 7:46 PM
Over the next 1,400 years, Islamic artists would take these late Antique themes to extraordinary heights, creating one of the world's great artistic and intellectual traditions. Tune in next Monday for the next installment in #IslamicArt100Objects!
So Islamic art continued this very serious late Antique exploration of the power of abstraction, and this is why the first two objects in my history of Islamic art in 100 objects are a Byzantine mosaic and a Sasanian gold platter inset with rock crystal, garnets, and glass.
December 2, 2024 at 7:46 PM
So Islamic art continued this very serious late Antique exploration of the power of abstraction, and this is why the first two objects in my history of Islamic art in 100 objects are a Byzantine mosaic and a Sasanian gold platter inset with rock crystal, garnets, and glass.
I mean no hate to European art, which did achieve remarkable heights in its pursuit of illusionism. But y'all illusionism is just one particular skill set. I mean good for you for figuring that out, Europe, but eventually you too came to understand that abstraction is powerful...
December 2, 2024 at 7:46 PM
I mean no hate to European art, which did achieve remarkable heights in its pursuit of illusionism. But y'all illusionism is just one particular skill set. I mean good for you for figuring that out, Europe, but eventually you too came to understand that abstraction is powerful...
As recently as 1904, the famed Egyptian jurist Muhammad Abduh issued a fatwa declaring that prohibitions of images in the Hadith were primarily relevant for idols and that images of other kinds were beneficial.
December 2, 2024 at 7:45 PM
As recently as 1904, the famed Egyptian jurist Muhammad Abduh issued a fatwa declaring that prohibitions of images in the Hadith were primarily relevant for idols and that images of other kinds were beneficial.
Two truths: One: Islamic art tends to make a strong distinction between figural imagery in religious contexts (mosques, Qur'ans) and what we might consider secular ones (palaces, inlaid basins). Two: Islamic art *does* represent a deep and sustained exploration of the possibilities of abstraction.
December 2, 2024 at 7:45 PM
Two truths: One: Islamic art tends to make a strong distinction between figural imagery in religious contexts (mosques, Qur'ans) and what we might consider secular ones (palaces, inlaid basins). Two: Islamic art *does* represent a deep and sustained exploration of the possibilities of abstraction.
Perhaps the most common myth about Islamic art is that it avoids figural imagery, using abstract forms of art like geometry and calligraphy instead of images of humans or animals. Like most myths, this one has a grain of truth and plenty to question. But the truth is important, so let's start there!
December 2, 2024 at 7:45 PM
Perhaps the most common myth about Islamic art is that it avoids figural imagery, using abstract forms of art like geometry and calligraphy instead of images of humans or animals. Like most myths, this one has a grain of truth and plenty to question. But the truth is important, so let's start there!
It's time for History of Islamic Art in 100 Objects!
And I want to begin with two objects that are not "Islamic" but which illuminate two seemingly contradictory (and often misunderstood) themes:
1. Islamic art values abstraction
2. Islamic art has abundant figural imagery
#IslamicArt100Objects
And I want to begin with two objects that are not "Islamic" but which illuminate two seemingly contradictory (and often misunderstood) themes:
1. Islamic art values abstraction
2. Islamic art has abundant figural imagery
#IslamicArt100Objects
December 2, 2024 at 7:45 PM
It's time for History of Islamic Art in 100 Objects!
And I want to begin with two objects that are not "Islamic" but which illuminate two seemingly contradictory (and often misunderstood) themes:
1. Islamic art values abstraction
2. Islamic art has abundant figural imagery
#IslamicArt100Objects
And I want to begin with two objects that are not "Islamic" but which illuminate two seemingly contradictory (and often misunderstood) themes:
1. Islamic art values abstraction
2. Islamic art has abundant figural imagery
#IslamicArt100Objects
Syrian rebels have captured the Aleppo Citadel, one of the oldest and most magnificent castles in the world. Its earliest levels date to the 3rd millennium BC, and the upper fortifications and palace were built in the 13th century under Saladin’s son, the Ayyubid sultan al-Zahir Ghazi.
November 30, 2024 at 4:07 PM
Syrian rebels have captured the Aleppo Citadel, one of the oldest and most magnificent castles in the world. Its earliest levels date to the 3rd millennium BC, and the upper fortifications and palace were built in the 13th century under Saladin’s son, the Ayyubid sultan al-Zahir Ghazi.
So Islamic art is defined most simply as the art produced by Muslims or produced in lands that were under the sovereignty of Muslim rulers. That includes an incredible range, encompassing this mosque in China to these 17th century Safavid paintings of European women to Faig Ahmed's melting rugs
November 25, 2024 at 11:53 PM
So Islamic art is defined most simply as the art produced by Muslims or produced in lands that were under the sovereignty of Muslim rulers. That includes an incredible range, encompassing this mosque in China to these 17th century Safavid paintings of European women to Faig Ahmed's melting rugs
Rulers and their subjects also came from diverse backgrounds. For example, the Timurid dynasty (1370-1507) which produced some of the great masterpieces of Islamic art and architecture, spanned at least 14 modern nation-states. The Timurids themselves were of mixed Turko-Mongol ethnicity.
November 25, 2024 at 11:53 PM
Rulers and their subjects also came from diverse backgrounds. For example, the Timurid dynasty (1370-1507) which produced some of the great masterpieces of Islamic art and architecture, spanned at least 14 modern nation-states. The Timurids themselves were of mixed Turko-Mongol ethnicity.
Not so Islamic art. If you’re lucky you’ve got one scholar covering “Islamic art” which basically means you teach 1,400+ years and…well...the whole earth. I mean don’t get me started on the absurdity of this. We’re apparently not quite ready for a Chair in Mamluk Art, although WE SHOULD BE
November 25, 2024 at 11:53 PM
Not so Islamic art. If you’re lucky you’ve got one scholar covering “Islamic art” which basically means you teach 1,400+ years and…well...the whole earth. I mean don’t get me started on the absurdity of this. We’re apparently not quite ready for a Chair in Mamluk Art, although WE SHOULD BE
Yet the truth is our system of scholarship isn't ready to grant this level of complexity to the study of Islamic art history. Think about it: traditionally most art history departments (and textbooks) distinguish tiny slices of European history/geography like Roman art, Gothic art, Renaissance art
November 25, 2024 at 11:53 PM
Yet the truth is our system of scholarship isn't ready to grant this level of complexity to the study of Islamic art history. Think about it: traditionally most art history departments (and textbooks) distinguish tiny slices of European history/geography like Roman art, Gothic art, Renaissance art
Europe is so tiny guys. We forget because the Mercator map still messes with our brain, but this is your periodic reminder that in the immortal words of my colleague Raha Rafii “Europe is the thumb of Asia”. This map provides an illustration of European thumb-ness.
November 25, 2024 at 11:53 PM
Europe is so tiny guys. We forget because the Mercator map still messes with our brain, but this is your periodic reminder that in the immortal words of my colleague Raha Rafii “Europe is the thumb of Asia”. This map provides an illustration of European thumb-ness.
The Abbasid Caliphate was the fourth-largest contiguous land empire in history, over two times the size of the Roman empire (let alone the Carolingians). At its peak, it encompassed 8.25% of the landmass of the earth. The Abbasids ruled from Iraq, a fulcrum of Afro-Eurasia for over 500 years.
November 25, 2024 at 11:53 PM
The Abbasid Caliphate was the fourth-largest contiguous land empire in history, over two times the size of the Roman empire (let alone the Carolingians). At its peak, it encompassed 8.25% of the landmass of the earth. The Abbasids ruled from Iraq, a fulcrum of Afro-Eurasia for over 500 years.