THE CHINESE PORCELAIN WITH ARABIC MAGIC SQUARES DURING QING DYNASTY: AN ARCHAEOLOGICAL STUDY

Document Type : research articles

Author

Islamic Archaeology, Faculty of Archaeology l, Fayoum Univ, Egypt

Abstract

ABSTRACT
Some museums display a group of Chinese porcelain with Quranic and Shiite writings and squares with numbers according to a'dad al-wafq “harmonious dispositions of numbers”, known as magic squares. Muslims used magic numbers as religious mandalas, meditation tools, talismans, and amulets. These numbers were used on a variety of raw materials such as ceramics, metal, wood, fabric, and more. This type of magic square is known as a 4×4 magic square or a magic square of the order 4, which is that matrix consisting of 16 cells, each of which has an integer number, the sum of these numbers in any of rows, columns, or diagonals leads to the same sum, which is the number 195, That quotient is known as the magic constant. In this context; The study seeks to examine and collect these numbers. And counting its mathematical operations. The study relies on many scientific approaches: the historical, analytical, and comparative approaches. The study also aims to know the meaning of these magic numbers and analyze them to reach their symbolism. The study raises several scientifically supported hypotheses. The study examines the Arabic writings surrounding the numbers and also presents attempts to link the numbers with the surrounding religious scripts.

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