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Not on display

Box

ca. 1350 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Ivory box, Egyptian (Cairo), middle of the 14th century

Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Ivory carved with an openwork design and the inscription inlaid with bitumen
Brief description
Ivory, Egyptian (Cairo), middle of the 14th century
Physical description
Ivory box, Egyptian (Cairo), middle of the 14th century
Styles
Marks and inscriptions
(Arabic; cursive; encircling the base; carved)
Translation
'Be of good cheer for you will obtain what you will of your enemies... and they will not get what they desire, rather God will do that which He wills; be of good cheer for you will obtain... and fortune will go in the way that you choose and will help you against the vicissitudes of time by glory and victory and prosperity and good fortune.'
Object history
Purchased for £7 in 1856 from the collection of Major Rohde Hawkins (1821-1884). The box is said to have been acquired by him in Naples.

This piece displays the closeness of the interchange between Mamluk and Nasrid art.
Production
This box is almost identical to a piece formerly in the Rothschild Collection, whose inscription bears the names and titles of the Mamluk Sultan Salih, who reigned between 1351 and 1354.

While traditionally attributed to Mamluk Cairo, it is possible that it is infact an example of Nasrid ivory production. The stylistic elements apply to both Mamluk and Nasrid art. In addition, the style and content of the poetry is not very Mamluk, and there are no other known examples of ivory objects made for the Mamluks, who tended to use ivory in inlay or as carved elements in marquetry. There is however, a long tradition of ivory carving in al-Andalus. Al-Salih's dates coincide with the reign of Yusuf I - it is possible that Yusuf commissioned this casket as a gift for the new Mamluk sultan. (M. Rosser-Owen, 2010).
Bibliographic references
  • Atıl, Esin Renaissance of Islam : Art of the Mamluks. Smithsonian Institute, Washington D.C., 1981
  • Longhurst, Margaret H. Catalogue of carvings in ivory. London : Pub. under the authority of the Board of Education, 1927-29, part 1, p.60 & pl.XL.
  • M. Rosser-Owen. Islamic Arts from Spain (London: V&A Publishing, 2010)
Collection
Accession number
4139-1856

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Record createdSeptember 30, 2003
Record URL
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