User:Sdolphin02/Paradise/Joe.harkins.richmond Peer Review

I thought your contributions to this article were great. You did a great job of identifying characteristics of paradise in several different iconic Islamic artworks. I also liked how you expanded on the explanation of the idea of paradise in the Qur’an. There were a few sentences that I think could have been worded a little more clearly. “Due to a lack of concrete evidence, it cannot be known for certain that particular artistic choices were made with the intention of reflecting the Qur'an's definition of paradise. However, there are many instances where it can be deduced that certain elements of Islamic art and architecture were in fact intended to create a reflection of paradise on Earth.” could be worded something like “Scholars can’t be sure that certain artistic choices were intended to reflect the Qur’an’s idea of paradise, due to a lack of explicit contemporary explanation. However, many elements of Islamic art and architecture can certainly be interpreted as reflections of paradise on Earth.” It could be helpful to link a source to or give an explanation for the sentence “Historical evidence does support the claim that certain Islamic garden structures and mosaics, particularly those of Spanish, Persian and Indian origins, were intended to mirror a scene of paradise as described in the Qur'an.” It could be helpful to provide an example, or provide a scholar’s viewpoint, in support of the sentences “There is not yet concrete evidence that Islamic gardens were solely intended to represent images of paradise. However, it can be deduced from certain inscriptions and intentions of structures, that creating an atmosphere of divinity and serenity were part of the artists' intentions.” Overall, I think your additions were great. This is a really interesting topic, and I like how you were able to connect a lot of the most important artworks from this semester to the theme of paradise.