Jar
- Place of origin:
Iran (made)
Kashan, Iran (possibly, made)
- Date:
1150-1220 (made)
ca. 1850 (made)
- Materials and Techniques:
Fritware ceramic, with moulded decoration under a turquoise glaze
- Museum number:
- Gallery location:
Islamic Middle East, room 42, case 1W
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This monumental storage jar was produced in a mould. Creating such a complex design on so large an object by this method was a great achievement by the potters. They made the jar from an artificial paste called fritware, composed mostly of ground quartz rather than clay. Fritware was preferred because of its whiteness, which here enhances the brightness of the turquoise glaze.
The jar is decorated all over with a honeycomb pattern. The nine rows of cells, which vary in size according to the changing profile of the jar, each contain a repeated or related motif. The incomplete cells at the foot contain plant designs, and the small cells above this and in the two top rows contain birds or animals. The remainder show human figures engaged in activities associated with Islamic courtly activities, such as a seated drinker, a musician playing a lute or a flute, a dancer and a horseman. The camel rider at the shoulder may be an allusion to Bahram Gur, a pre-Islamic king of Iran who went to the hunt on a camel.
Physical description
Storage jar of earthenware moulded into rows of hexagonal compartments, each row containing a different motif including seated figures, horsemen, and camel-riders. The glaze is turquoise. A brass lid was added in the nineteenth century.
Place of Origin
Iran (made)
Kashan, Iran (possibly, made)
Date
1150-1220 (made)
ca. 1850 (made)
Materials and Techniques
Fritware ceramic, with moulded decoration under a turquoise glaze
Dimensions
Height: 78 cm, Diameter: 47 cm, Weight: 28 kg
Descriptive line
Storage jar, moulded fritware with turquoise glaze, Iran (perhaps Kashan), 1150-1220.
Bibliographic References (Citation, Note/Abstract, NAL no)
Jones, Mark, ed. Fake? The art of deception. London: British Museum Publications, 1990. 312 p., ill. ISBN 071411703X (9780714117034). Catalogue entry 245a, p 225, illustration p 226.
Labels and date
Turquoise Storage Jar
Iran, perhaps Kashan
1150-1220
This jar has a turquoise glaze, but is otherwise of a new, entirely Islamic type. This is true of both the techniques employed and the moulded decoration, which consists of rows of hexagonal compartments. Each row contains a different motif, such as a seated figure, horseman or camel-rider.
Moulded fritware with coloured glaze; Iranian brass lid of about 1850
Museum no. 2433-1876 [Jameel Gallery]
Categories
Containers; Islam
Collection code
MES
