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Lot Essay
Pottery vessels decorated in black and then covered in a plain turquoise glaze were produced in many centres throughout the Islamic lands during the mediaeval period. Kashan in Iran and Raqqa in Syria each produced very finely potted wares, Raqqa perfecting the most wonderful clear vibrant turquoise glaze with which to cover the design. It is not surprising that the fragments from the centres of such bowls were prized in the west and used in bacini, being inserted into Italian architectural compositions to contrast with the earth and stone tones that were used for the majority of the surfaces (Marilyn Jenkins, Raqqa Revisited, Ceramics of Ayyubid Syria, New York, 2006, pp.178-185).
The fourteenth century, with its heavier potting, continued to see examples of these black decorated turquoise glazed wares produced in various centres including Sultanabad in Iran and Damascus in Syria. Of all these wares later mediaeval Damascus pottery is the one that has attracted least attention and its products are frequently catalogued either as Raqqa or as Sultanabad. It shares many features with both, but the drawing is much freer than in Raqqa pottery, the calligraphy tends to be stylised, and there are features such as the zigzag infill seen on the large leaves here which are not found on Sultanabad wares. A dish sold in these Rooms 20 April 1999, lot 502, incorrectly attributed to Raqqa had a border that is almost identical to many vessels clearly attributed to Damascus such as a vase in the Victoria and Albert Museum (Arthur Lane, A Guide to the Collection of Tiles, London, 1960, pl.16A; also Arthur Millner, Damascus Tiles, Munich, London and New York, 2015, fig.1.4, p.25). Further examples of this group were in the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (sold Christie’s 15 October 2002, lot 64) and in the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum, (sold Christie’s South Kensington 7 October 2011, lot 184). The present ewer, also at one stage in an American institution, is of great size, apparently unique shape and is very well preserved indeed with original glaze surface and completely intact body.
The fourteenth century, with its heavier potting, continued to see examples of these black decorated turquoise glazed wares produced in various centres including Sultanabad in Iran and Damascus in Syria. Of all these wares later mediaeval Damascus pottery is the one that has attracted least attention and its products are frequently catalogued either as Raqqa or as Sultanabad. It shares many features with both, but the drawing is much freer than in Raqqa pottery, the calligraphy tends to be stylised, and there are features such as the zigzag infill seen on the large leaves here which are not found on Sultanabad wares. A dish sold in these Rooms 20 April 1999, lot 502, incorrectly attributed to Raqqa had a border that is almost identical to many vessels clearly attributed to Damascus such as a vase in the Victoria and Albert Museum (Arthur Lane, A Guide to the Collection of Tiles, London, 1960, pl.16A; also Arthur Millner, Damascus Tiles, Munich, London and New York, 2015, fig.1.4, p.25). Further examples of this group were in the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (sold Christie’s 15 October 2002, lot 64) and in the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum, (sold Christie’s South Kensington 7 October 2011, lot 184). The present ewer, also at one stage in an American institution, is of great size, apparently unique shape and is very well preserved indeed with original glaze surface and completely intact body.