Jar
14th century (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
This jar is among the last lustre ceramics made in Syria. During the period 1300-1400, lustre production became concentrated in Spain, and large amounts of blue-and-white porcelain were shipped from China. Caught between the two, Syrian lustre production ceased.
The technique of lustre decoration on ceramics was first developed in Iraq in the 9th century. A glazed vessel or tile with little or no decoration was made in the normal way. When the piece had cooled, a design was painted over the glaze in metallic compounds. The pot or tile was then fired again, this time with a restricted supply of oxygen. In these conditions, the metallic compounds broke down, and a thin deposit of copper or silver was left on the surface of the glaze. When polished, this surface layer reflected the light.
Lustre continued to be made for many centuries, but the centre of production moved to Egypt and then to Syria and Iran.
The technique of lustre decoration on ceramics was first developed in Iraq in the 9th century. A glazed vessel or tile with little or no decoration was made in the normal way. When the piece had cooled, a design was painted over the glaze in metallic compounds. The pot or tile was then fired again, this time with a restricted supply of oxygen. In these conditions, the metallic compounds broke down, and a thin deposit of copper or silver was left on the surface of the glaze. When polished, this surface layer reflected the light.
Lustre continued to be made for many centuries, but the centre of production moved to Egypt and then to Syria and Iran.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Fritware with opaque cobalt-blue glaze and lustre-painted decoration |
| Brief description | Blue jar with lustre decoration of flying cranes, Syria (probably Damascus), 1300-1400. |
| Physical description | Fritware jar with lustre painting of flying cranes over a blue glaze. |
| Dimensions |
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| Styles | |
| Gallery label |
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| Subject depicted | |
| Summary | This jar is among the last lustre ceramics made in Syria. During the period 1300-1400, lustre production became concentrated in Spain, and large amounts of blue-and-white porcelain were shipped from China. Caught between the two, Syrian lustre production ceased. The technique of lustre decoration on ceramics was first developed in Iraq in the 9th century. A glazed vessel or tile with little or no decoration was made in the normal way. When the piece had cooled, a design was painted over the glaze in metallic compounds. The pot or tile was then fired again, this time with a restricted supply of oxygen. In these conditions, the metallic compounds broke down, and a thin deposit of copper or silver was left on the surface of the glaze. When polished, this surface layer reflected the light. Lustre continued to be made for many centuries, but the centre of production moved to Egypt and then to Syria and Iran. |
| Bibliographic references |
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| Collection | |
| Accession number | 1601-1888 |
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| Record created | October 24, 2003 |
| Record URL |
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