.jpg?w=1)
Lot Essay
This ewer takes its shape fom the well known Indian brass ewers each of which has a raised central panel engraved with a floral motif (Zebrowski, Mark: Gold, Silver and Bronze from Mughal India, London, 1997, pl.229, p.163). The mouth is also known in other Indian brass ewers; only the handle is apparently unknown.
As with the other Safavid monochrome ewer in this sale (lot 349), not only is there a metal prototype, but there is also a trick as regards its use. In this example it is not the filling but the pouring which presents the confusion. The base of the spout is solid; any liquid must therefore exit through the mouth by which it came in. A further Kirman ewer in the Victoria and Albert Museum again with a metal protoype has no spout (Lane, Arthur: Later Islamic Pottery, London, 1957, pl.95). It would be interesting to establish whether the ewer illustrated on the facing page by Lane (pl.84) has a functioning spout.
As with the other Safavid monochrome ewer in this sale (lot 349), not only is there a metal prototype, but there is also a trick as regards its use. In this example it is not the filling but the pouring which presents the confusion. The base of the spout is solid; any liquid must therefore exit through the mouth by which it came in. A further Kirman ewer in the Victoria and Albert Museum again with a metal protoype has no spout (Lane, Arthur: Later Islamic Pottery, London, 1957, pl.95). It would be interesting to establish whether the ewer illustrated on the facing page by Lane (pl.84) has a functioning spout.