Kalian
1658 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
This object is a kalian, the base for a water pipe or hookah. Smoke from the pipe was filtered through the water in the kalian before it was inhaled. The kalian's shape was developed by potters in Iran as a redesign of the kendi, a traditional drinking vessel from South East Asia, which was shorter and squatter with a larger spout. These are also known as hookah, huqqa, qalian, qalyan qaliyan, narghile, shisha and hubble-bubble.
Object details
| Category | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Fritware decorated with yellow and white slip on a blue ground. |
| Brief description | Kalian (water-pipe base), fritware, blue glazed and painted in white and yellow slip; Iran, 1658-9. |
| Physical description | Blue vessel with a narrow neck and small domed 'spout' at the shoulder, decorated with designs in white slip. |
| Dimensions |
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| Style | |
| Marks and inscriptions | (Base inscribed with a date 1658-9.) |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Summary | This object is a kalian, the base for a water pipe or hookah. Smoke from the pipe was filtered through the water in the kalian before it was inhaled. The kalian's shape was developed by potters in Iran as a redesign of the kendi, a traditional drinking vessel from South East Asia, which was shorter and squatter with a larger spout. These are also known as hookah, huqqa, qalian, qalyan qaliyan, narghile, shisha and hubble-bubble. |
| Bibliographic reference | Lane, Arthur. Later Islamic Pottery. London: Faber and Faber, 1957. 133p., ill. Pages 73, 106, plate 88B |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | 616-1889 |
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| Record created | November 19, 2003 |
| Record URL |
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