Image of Gallery in South Kensington
On display at V&A South Kensington
Ceramics, Room 137, The Curtain Foundation Gallery

Kalian

1640-1680 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

A kalian is a tobacco pipe with a long flexible tube connected to a container where the smoke is cooled by passing through water. They are also known as a hookah, huqqa, qalian, qalyan, qaliyan, narghile, shisha, and a hubble-bubble.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Fritware painted in underglaze blue
Brief description
Kalian (water-pipe base), fritware, painted in underglaze blue; Iran, 1640-80.
Physical description
Kalian (water-pipe base) of fritware, melon shape, with a nozzle, the neck is broken. Painted in blue under a clear glaze, with figures in landscapes on the body, a scrolled band round the foot, a floral scroll round the shoulder, and a border of petals round the opening of the nozzle.
Dimensions
  • Height: 12.7cm
  • Diameter: 17.5cm
Production
Register
Subjects depicted
Summary
A kalian is a tobacco pipe with a long flexible tube connected to a container where the smoke is cooled by passing through water. They are also known as a hookah, huqqa, qalian, qalyan, qaliyan, narghile, shisha, and a hubble-bubble.
Collection
Accession number
982-1886

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Record createdApril 6, 2009
Record URL
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