Ewer
ca. 1520-1525 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
The design of this ewer marks an important turning-point in Iznik ceramics. In the 1520s potters at the town in north-west Anatolia stopped using white on a blue ground and replaced it with blue decoration on a white ground. They expanded the range of colours to include turquoise (seen here on the neck) and later introduced black, sage-green and purple.
The small town of Iznik has given its name to some of the most accomplished ceramics produced in the Islamic Middle East. In the mid 15th century, potters there specialised in modest earthenware imitations of Chinese blue-and-white porcelain. But in the 1460s or 1470s, under the patronage of Sultan Mehmet the Conqueror, they began to manufacture bowls, dishes and other pieces of fritware. These were elegant in shape and decoration and often very large.
A number of large basins survive which were probably made as sets with equally large ewers. However, none of the ewers has survived. This smaller ewer shows what they may have looked like. Its angular shape was based on a metal ewer and it has been repaired with metal mounts after it was damaged.
The small town of Iznik has given its name to some of the most accomplished ceramics produced in the Islamic Middle East. In the mid 15th century, potters there specialised in modest earthenware imitations of Chinese blue-and-white porcelain. But in the 1460s or 1470s, under the patronage of Sultan Mehmet the Conqueror, they began to manufacture bowls, dishes and other pieces of fritware. These were elegant in shape and decoration and often very large.
A number of large basins survive which were probably made as sets with equally large ewers. However, none of the ewers has survived. This smaller ewer shows what they may have looked like. Its angular shape was based on a metal ewer and it has been repaired with metal mounts after it was damaged.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Fritware, underglaze painted in cobalt blue, glazed; later silver mounts |
| Brief description | Blue-and-white rectangular ewer, restored in the 19th century with silver mounts, Turkey (probably Iznik), 1520-1525. |
| Physical description | Blue and white rectangular ewer with arabesque designs in a diamond-shaped field, restored in the 19th century with silver mounts including a dragon's-head spout. |
| Dimensions |
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| Styles | |
| Gallery label |
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| Object history | Purchased in Istanbul in 1897 from Mrs Alice Whitaker, daughter and heir of William Henry Wrench (1836-96). Wrench was British consul in the city when he died, and he had formed a significant collection of Ottoman and Iranian objects while in the consular service. For images of how Wrench displayed his collection in his home in the Pera (Beyoğlu) district of the city, see V&A: PH.331 to 334-1892. |
| Production | Restored in the 19th century with silver mounts, including a dragon's-head spout. |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Summary | The design of this ewer marks an important turning-point in Iznik ceramics. In the 1520s potters at the town in north-west Anatolia stopped using white on a blue ground and replaced it with blue decoration on a white ground. They expanded the range of colours to include turquoise (seen here on the neck) and later introduced black, sage-green and purple. The small town of Iznik has given its name to some of the most accomplished ceramics produced in the Islamic Middle East. In the mid 15th century, potters there specialised in modest earthenware imitations of Chinese blue-and-white porcelain. But in the 1460s or 1470s, under the patronage of Sultan Mehmet the Conqueror, they began to manufacture bowls, dishes and other pieces of fritware. These were elegant in shape and decoration and often very large. A number of large basins survive which were probably made as sets with equally large ewers. However, none of the ewers has survived. This smaller ewer shows what they may have looked like. Its angular shape was based on a metal ewer and it has been repaired with metal mounts after it was damaged. |
| Bibliographic reference | Nurhan Atasoy and Julian Raby, Iznik: The Pottery of Ottoman Turkey (London: Alexandria Press, 1989), fig. 126, p. 106. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | 349-1897 |
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| Record created | November 28, 2003 |
| Record URL |
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