This bottle was purchased by the V&A as one of the largest and finest of its kind. The decoration is relatively sparse. It includes cartouches of calligraphy in praise of Sayf al-Din Jurji, who served the Mamluk Sultan Hasan of Egypt in the mid 14th century.
A conspicuous motif with two dots and two stripes appears several times in the upper register of the body. This is a stylised penbox and indicates Sayf al-Din Jurji’s high rank in the Sultan’s household.
Physical description
Bottle with long neck, flaring slightly at mouth. Body of globular form leading to narrow foot. Design sketched and painted in gold. Body features series of alternating roundels and cartouches, the former encircled by two strips of braid which run parallel to each other between each roundel. The cartouches are rectangular in form, enclosing an inscription in Arabic. Above this are a further set of medallions featuring heraldic emblems alternating with decorative medallions against a background of arabesque. Above this is a band of running animals against an arabesque background around the base of the neck of the bottle. The neck features two bands of braided motif against sketchy arabesque.
Place of Origin
Egypt (made)
Date
1347-1370 (made)
Artist/maker
Unknown (production)
Materials and Techniques
Glass, blown, fired, gilded and enamelled, and fired again
Marks and inscriptions
His honorable and High Excellency, our lord, the royal, the well-served, Sayf al-Din Jurji, majordomo of the Noble Porte, (officer) of al-Malik al-Nasir, may God make his victories glorious and double his power.
Mamluk blazon of the penbox, referring to the rank of dawadar (secretary) in the Mamluk court
Object history note
The shape of this bottle links it to a similarly shaped and sparsely-decorated example in the Museum of Islamic Art, Cairo (E. Atil, Renaissance.., fig. 49) which she dates to the late 13th- early 14th century. Medallions were a popular type of motif, but are used here to enclose the blazon of Saif al-Din Jurgi, the Major-domo of the Noble Porte. Blazons became increasingly important in the decoration of enamelled glass during the 14th century.
Descriptive line
Bottle, gilded and enamelled glass, with Arabic inscription to Sayf al-Din Jurji, Commander in Chief under Mamluk Sultan Hasan, Egypt or Syria, around 1350
Bibliographic References (Citation, Note/Abstract, NAL no)
Mayer, Saracenic Heraldry, p.134.
Labels and date
Made for Saif al-Din Jurgi, officer of al-Malik al-Nasir, Mamluk Sultan of Egypt (1347-51 and 1354-61).
The inscriptions include a dedication to Saif ad-din Jurji, Commander-in-Chief under an-Nsir Hasan, Mameluke Sultan of Egypt.
SYRAIN; middle of 14th century.
Bought. [Used until 11/2003]
The inscriptions include a dedication to Saif ad-din Jurji, Commander-in-Chief under an-Nasir Hasan, Mamluke Sultan of Egypt.
SYRIAN; middle of the 14th century [Old gallery label]
Materials
Enamel; Glass; Gilt
Techniques
Gilding; Enamelling; Firing; Blowing
Categories
Islam; Glass; Africa
Collection code
MES
