Glazed earthenware tile in the form of a 12-pointed star, Iran (Khargird), about 1444.

Large tile in the shape of a 12-pointed star, fritware, decorated in the technique known as 'cuerda seca' ('dry cord'), in which a thin outline of wax is painted around the decorative motifs to stop the pigments from running into each other during the firing process. The main ground of the tile is cobalt blue with the outer edge defined by a turquoise outline. At the centre of the tile is a small 6-pointed star in turquoise, which interlocks with a slightly larger 6-pointed star left in reserve (white). From each of the points of the white star a branch extends which divides into two back-to-back split palmettes. These all join up to form an 8-pointed star, which combines geometric and vegetal forms. Smaller flowers fill each of the points of the 12-pointed star, whose outlines are left in reserve, but details are added in red and turquoise pigments. Lotus-style flowers fill the gap between the interlocking 6-pointed stars at the centre of the tile, and the biomorphic 8-pointed star; these are outlined in red and infilled with gold leaf. A small round flower at the very centre of the tile is also outlined in red and infilled with gold leaf.

Thought to have come from the west iwan of the Ghiyathiyyah madrasah, built 1444 at Khargird in Khurasan, Iran, by the vizier of the Timurid ruler Shahrukh

Thought to come from the Ghiyathiyyah madrasah in Khargird, in Khurasan, Iran.

This tile once formed part of the decoration of a madrasah (religious college) in the town of Khargird in eastern Iran. The designer used geometric principles to structure the pattern. Here the stylised plant motifs are arranged around a pair of interlaced stars.

The technique used to create the multi-coloured pattern is known as ‘cuerda seca’. The designer used a greasy substance to draw the pattern on the surface of the tile. The pattern consisted of discrete compartments which were then filled with coloured glazes. The grease kept the different colours separate during firing. It burnt off during the firing process, leaving ‘cuerda seca’ (‘dry cord’) outlines.

C.747-1909