Lot Essay
The inscription proves difficult to read. It appears to record the donation of the chalice 'to the vigilant and godly patriarch', asking for his blessing on the donor's soul.
The use of the word 'patriarch' rather than 'catholicos' would indicate that the chalice was given to the patriarch in Constantinople rather than Echtmiadzin. While the use of black as a colour in the enamelling is unusual in Persia, it seems probable from the technique and the other colours that the chalice was originally made in Julfa, Isfahan, an area famed for the quality of its metalwork, and only later brought bto Turkey.
The use of the word 'patriarch' rather than 'catholicos' would indicate that the chalice was given to the patriarch in Constantinople rather than Echtmiadzin. While the use of black as a colour in the enamelling is unusual in Persia, it seems probable from the technique and the other colours that the chalice was originally made in Julfa, Isfahan, an area famed for the quality of its metalwork, and only later brought bto Turkey.