Dabire Collective

Arabic printing did not start in Europe, as is sometimes stated. In fact the Arabic script first appears in printed documents in Egypt, as early as the 10th century CE. Although these include passages from the Qur'an and other Islamic religious texts, it seems that they were not really designed to be read, nor were they generally intended to be artistic: some pieces have rather crude decoration, but calligraphy was beyond the capability of those who produced them.

The art of Qattai (Scrapping) is eloquent of distinct elegance, concentration and overflowing talent of the Iranian artist. The old Qattai works help us determine the genesis of this art which can date back to early 9th century A.H. Indubitably enough, this art is regarded as a specific branch of  calligraphy as most of the survived pieces bear calligraphic themes.