Comparative Study of Human Body Design in Three Versions of Suwar Al-Kawākib Ninth Century AH.

Many scientific books in various fields of knowledge prepared and produced by Muslim artists have been decorated with images of humans, animals and plants. Although human iconography in the art of Iran (Islamic period) was affected by the religious view of the Islamic society regarding the representation of the human body and living things, there were ups and downs, but it seems that the illustrators of scientific books had more freedom of action. One of these scientific books, which is considered one of the most famous educational books on ancient astronomy, is Suwar Al-Kawākib (about 355AH) written by Abdul Rahman Sufi Razi. This book is an illustrated map of the sky, and in addition to comprehensive information and detailed tables of celestial objects, it has pictures for understanding and memorizing constellations. The iconography of living beings (humans and animals) can be seen without any restrictions, even in the oldest versions of Suwar Al-Kawākib (belonging to the early fifth century of Hijri). It seems that the tradition of illustration of Suwar Al-Kawākib, which started from the first editions and at the same time as the book was written, has continued in the later editions, and the illustrators, in addition to preserving the general state of the illustrations, have also taken advantage of the artistic features of their era. To the extent that in the versions of the 9th, 10th and 11th centuries of Hijri, the effects of the artistic patterns of the era can be clearly recognized on the paintings of Suwar Al-Kawākib. Therefore, the pictures of Suwar Al-Kawākib can be studied as a representative of a type of science painting in different periods.In Suwar Al-Kawākib, the fourteen constellations Cepheus, Bootes, Hercules, Cassiopeia, Perseus, Auriga, Ophiuchus, Andromeda, Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, Aquarius, Orion and Centaurus are associated with “man”. The present