NORTH AFRICA, 9TH/10TH CENTURY

Details

A RAQQA GLAZED POTTERY SHALLOW BOWL
NORTH AFRICA, 9TH/10TH CENTURY
Of shallow conical form on flat foot with vertical sides, the pale yellow interior painted in underglaze black and with green highlights forming a central hatched lozenge within a square panel, stylised leaf motifs at each side, the lip with alternating green and black lobes, intact, rim chips, drilled hole in side
6 3/8in. (16.2cm.) diam.

Special notice

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Lot Essay

This small dish displays many of the most typical features of pottery from 9th century Raqqada. This city, situated 9km. from Kairouan, was the capital of the Aghlabid dynasty. Built over a very short period of time, contemporary records describe it a being filled with numerous palaces. Today very little indeed is left of this splendour.

The yellowish ground colour of the present dish, the design executed in a strong black coupled with an intense but slightly loose green and even the overall shape are all found on a number of vessels from this origin (Couleurs de Tunisie, 2500 siècles de céramiques, exhibition catalogue, Paris, 1994, pp.116-126).

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