Filter
1000-1200 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
This filter fitted into the neck of a water bottle and kept out flies and dust. Such filters were often pierced to form designs. These included abstract patterns, calligraphic inscriptions and figural imagery such as the camel seen here.
The filter and the water bottle had a porous body of unglazed earthenware. This allowed water to evaporate through the sides, keeping the contents cool. This practical advantage meant that unglazed water vessels were common in both the pre-Islamic and Islamic periods.
The filter and the water bottle had a porous body of unglazed earthenware. This allowed water to evaporate through the sides, keeping the contents cool. This practical advantage meant that unglazed water vessels were common in both the pre-Islamic and Islamic periods.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Earthenware, incised |
| Brief description | Filter from a water-jar, pierced and incised to form a picture of a camel, Egypt, 11th-12th century. |
| Physical description | A Fatimid water jar filter of buff earthenware in the shape of a camel. |
| Dimensions |
|
| Style | |
| Production type | Mass produced |
| Gallery label | Jameel Gallery
12–13 Filters from Two Water Bottles
Egypt, 1000–1200
Pierced earthenware
Museum nos. C.863, 902-1921
Given by G.D. Hornblower, Esq.
(Jameel Gallery) |
| Credit line | Given by G.D. Hornblower, Esq. |
| Object history | Found in excavations at Fustat, Egypt. |
| Historical context | Filters were intended to fit inside earthenware jars, most likely to keep insects away from the water or liquids they were meant to contain. A number of jars with their accompanying filters have been excavated in Fustat. Filters have been found with anthropomorphic as well as decorative designs and calligraphy. They were sometimes glazed or lustre-painted. Filters seem to have been used mainly in Egypt and during the Fatimid and Ayyubid periods. |
| Production | Found in excavations in Fustat. |
| Subject depicted | |
| Summary | This filter fitted into the neck of a water bottle and kept out flies and dust. Such filters were often pierced to form designs. These included abstract patterns, calligraphic inscriptions and figural imagery such as the camel seen here. The filter and the water bottle had a porous body of unglazed earthenware. This allowed water to evaporate through the sides, keeping the contents cool. This practical advantage meant that unglazed water vessels were common in both the pre-Islamic and Islamic periods. |
| Associated objects |
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| Collection | |
| Accession number | C.863-1921 |
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| Record created | July 14, 2003 |
| Record URL |
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