Dish
1580-1585 (made)
Artist/Maker | |
Place of origin |
The Ottoman court's patronage of Iznik ceramics was renewed during the construction of the Süleymaniye mosque in Istanbul in 1550-7. The first Iznik tiles were produced, and a bright red was added to the range of colours painted under the glaze. This was achieved with a slip made from a special clay.
In the following decades, tiles of high quality were decorated in red, green and tones of blue on a white ground. Dishes, bottles and other vessels had similar decoration on white or coloured grounds.
By the 1530s, small sprays of tulips and other recognisable flowers were a common motif, but from the 1550s these were replaced by compositions on a larger scale, as seen on this dish with a fish-scale ground.
In the following decades, tiles of high quality were decorated in red, green and tones of blue on a white ground. Dishes, bottles and other vessels had similar decoration on white or coloured grounds.
By the 1530s, small sprays of tulips and other recognisable flowers were a common motif, but from the 1550s these were replaced by compositions on a larger scale, as seen on this dish with a fish-scale ground.
Object details
Category | |
Object type | |
Materials and techniques | Fritware, polychrome underglaze painted, glazed |
Brief description | Dish with 'fish-scale' patterning forming a star motif, Turkey (Iznik), 1580-1585. |
Physical description | This medium sized dish is painted with red, white, green and blue, under a clear glaze. The decoration on the inside of the dish is separated into two sections; the bowl and the rim. The rim is decorated with a wave-scroll pattern. This is interrupted by a repeated abstract leaf motif in white and red, which cuts into the border from alternate sides. The bowl of the dish is covered with an all-over textural design resembling fish-scales. There is a central red flower motif which forms the middle of a six pointed star filled with green 'fish-scales', or imbrication. A large hexagon delimits the decoration on the flat of the bowl's interior from its sides. Inside the hexagon is decorated with blue imbrication; outside it is in green and red. The exterior of the dish is mostly left white, with a simple ring of small blue flowers. |
Dimensions |
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Styles | |
Gallery label |
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Production | Dating based on similarity to dish in Iznik catalogue (fig. 744). |
Subjects depicted | |
Summary | The Ottoman court's patronage of Iznik ceramics was renewed during the construction of the Süleymaniye mosque in Istanbul in 1550-7. The first Iznik tiles were produced, and a bright red was added to the range of colours painted under the glaze. This was achieved with a slip made from a special clay. In the following decades, tiles of high quality were decorated in red, green and tones of blue on a white ground. Dishes, bottles and other vessels had similar decoration on white or coloured grounds. By the 1530s, small sprays of tulips and other recognisable flowers were a common motif, but from the 1550s these were replaced by compositions on a larger scale, as seen on this dish with a fish-scale ground. |
Collection | |
Accession number | C.2028-1910 |
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Record created | May 6, 2005 |
Record URL |
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