Keep the kufic or adopt the naskh?
The calligrapher at his bench faces an aesthetic and practical decision: keep the original squared kufic on every manuscript and sign, or adopt the faster, clearer naskh that serves copyists and readers better? The decision: authenticity or use?
The positions
the keepers
kufic is the face of the first manuscripts; dropping it severs the root
The evidence
kufic kept adorning gates and royal manuscripts
Sources: concept/islamic-calligraphy
the users
the script read faster serves the reader more
The evidence
naskh spread through chanceries and schools until it became learning's script
Sources: concept/islamic-calligraphyexhibit/pathway-g11-hrt3m-islamic-art-architecture
You decide
Which script would you have taught your pupil first? Write your reason.
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