PROBABLY SYRIA, CIRCA 9TH CENTURY

In his catalogue of the al-Sabah collection of Islamic glass Stefano Carboni convincingly proposed a continuum of production of marvered glass in contrast to the previously held view that there was a break between its creation in the classical period and its extensive use under the Mamluks (Stefano Carboni, Glass from Islamic Lands, London, 2001, pp.291-293). The present vessel, with its looser flowing swags linked to a white band around the rim is reminiscent of a light blue cylindrical cup in the same collection and can thus be similarly dated to the 8th-9th century (Carboni, op. cit., cat.77, p.300 and cover). The colour of the body of the glass is also unusual, a mottled honey-brown colour that is very rare to find in marvered vessels.