The Evolutions of Form and Content of Calendars in Islamic Period, According to the Documents in the Pension National Library, National Malek Library, Astan Quds Razavi and Parliament Library

Islamic calendars are unique examples manuscript according to the appearance and content characteristics. They are valuable and considerable collections of Islamic art. This research was tried to answer these questions that; what is the evolution of appearance and content Islamic Calendars and, what is relationship between ancient Islamic calendars and contemporary calendars. The authors collected some manuscript calendars of Saljughi, Illkhani, Safavi, Ghajar and contemporary calendars and studied appearance and content characteristics of these calendars and their relationships. Principal hypothesis is of this research that there is a traditional illustration in Islamic calendars and their content. The main aim is to explain formal characteristics, aesthetic arguments and artistic characteristics of Islamic calendars. Based on the research results, old calendars of Islamic period associated with table and information was entered into it, and these charts have imitated of ancient Zigs (zig or zaeeche, astronomical table) from per Islamic periods. Numerical calendars were associated with the name of solar months (Houses of the Zodiac) like, Taurus, Gemini, and Cancer. Old calendars didn’t have any decorations, while the calendars of Safavid period were decorated and illuminated. Lastly calendars are simple without decorations due to the printing industry; these calendars have the same structures of ancient calendars.