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Bowl
Unknown - Enlarge image
Bowl
- Place of origin:
Fez, Morocco (made)
- Date:
ca. 1860 (made)
- Artist/Maker:
Unknown (production)
- Materials and Techniques:
Tin-glazed earthenware, painted in cobalt blue
- Museum number:
902-1869
- Gallery location:
Ceramics Study Galleries, Asia & Europe, room 137, case 32, shelf 6
Fez is an important centre for Moroccan pottery and is particularly associated with a distinctive form of blue and white ceramic ware which became popular in the late 19th century. These glazed Fassi (from Fez) wares were made by professional male potters as decorative tableware for urban consumers. Their style may have been influenced by the appearance of Chinese porcelain, historically made available through Mediterranean trade. Another factor was the availability of increasingly pure cobalt blue imported from Europe from the 1850s onwards.
This bowl is one of eight Fassi bowls purchased for the South Kensington Museum (later V&A) from the Paris Exhibition of 1867. Called zlafa, these are used for drinking water, milk and, especially, harira, a traditional soup. The bowls are particularly associated with the month of Ramadan, when they are used at sunset to break the fast.
