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
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
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
Islamic views on concubinage
…as a concubine was acquired for pleasure (as opposed to labor), from sirr, meaning secrecy, as the concubine was secluded in private quarters (e.g. harem) Most Western scholarship translates surriyya as "concubine", though some use the term "slave-concubine". Neither the word surriyya nor any dedicated…
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.