Harem
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A harem or harim is a domestic space that is reserved for the women of the house, especially in a Muslim family. A harem may house a man's wife or wives, their pre-pubescent male sons, unmarried daugh
Ladies of Kabul (1848 lithograph, by James Rattray) showing unveiling in zenana areas.
New entrant to a prince's harem. Jaipur, late 18 century, National Museum, New Delhi
Khosrow and Shirin (Bukhara, 1648)
Jahangi seer and Prince Khurram with Nur Jahan, c. 1624. This scene is probably set in the Aram Bagh garden, which the empress Nur Jahan, a great patron of gardens, had re-modeled in 1621.
Islamic views on concubinage
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In classical Islamic law, a concubine was an unmarried slave-woman with whom her master engaged in sexual relations. Concubinage was widely accepted by Muslim scholars until the abolition of slavery i
Harem
…female domestic servants, and other unmarried female relatives. In the past, during the era of slavery in the Muslim world, harems also housed enslaved concubines. In former times, some harems were guarded by eunuchs who were allowed inside. The structure of the harem and the extent of monogamy or polygyny have…
13th-century slave market, Yemen.
A "cariye" or Ottoman concubine, painting by Gustav Richter (1823–1884)
A Reclining Odalisque, painted by Gustave Léonard de Jonghe, c. 1870