Birth of the Prophet Muhammad. Miniature illustration on vellum from the book Jami' at-Tawarikh (literally 'Compendium of Chronicles' but often referred to as 'The Universal History or History of the World'); by Rashid al-Din; Tabriz; Persia; 1307 CE; now in the collection of the Edinburgh University Library; Scotland.

Representations of the Prophet Muhammad are controversial; and generally forbidden in Sunni Islam (especially Hanafiyya; Wahabi; Salafiyya). Shia Islam and some other branches of Sunni Islam (Hanbali; Maliki; Shafi'i) are generally more tolerant of such representational images; but even so the Prophet's features are generally veiled or concealed by flames as a mark of deep respect.