The Fatimids ruled in North Africa and Egypt from 909-1171 and produced some distinctive and spectacular art and architecture, which this lavishly illustrated book synthesises into an impressively detailed one volume study. The Fatimid period witnessed massive urban expansion and the building of many new mosques and palaces, mainly in stone. Decorative calligraphy was a distinctive feature of ornamentation. The decorative arts also saw major innovation, principally in the prevailing use of figurative scenes, unusual in other Islamic art. Above all this book makes it clear that Fatimid art was an evolving and dynamic phenomenon, with chapters dealing with different periods of development as well as media. A final chapter looks at the legacy of Fatimid art in Europe as well as in the Islamic world.