Al-Tawil.

DEARBORN — The Henry Ford Centennial Library will host an event titled “Arab Norman Cultural Exchange in Sicily: Islamic Visual Art in a 12th Century Christian Chapel” on Wednesday, April 8 at 7 p.m.. The event will include a presentation by Henry Ford College professor Dr. Hashim Al-Tawil. It is free and open to the public. 

“The presentation will shed light on the strong presence of Arab culture in Sicily during and after the Norman takeover in the 11th and 12th centuries. What does it mean to have a Christian church decorated with typical Biblical narratives but topped by a pure Arabic Muqarnas ceiling with Islamic paintings and Arabic writings?

Why does a 12th century Christian chapel have a ceiling decorated with both Biblical and Islamic and pictorial art? Dr. Al-Tawil will investigate the presence of Arabic inscriptions along with the pictorial images on the Muqarnas ceiling of the 12th century Cappella Palatina in Palermo, Italy. His lecture will illustrate the historical background of the Arab incursion in Sicily in the early 9th century and the establishment of a strong cultural presence that lasted through the 12th century with the Norman takeover.