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Lot Essay
The bulbous jug with vertical mouth is a Timurid archetype. The earliest Timurid example of the form is the white jade jug made for Ulugh Beg (1420-1449), now in the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, Lisbon (Lentz and Lowry, 1989, fig.46, p.144). From the middle of the fifteenth century onwards brass examples of the same shape were produced, covered with intricate silver and gold overlay as seen here. There are around 30 published examples in museums around the world, and a small number of others that have appeared on the market. They have been studied in some detail, notably by Linda Komaroff in her work on Timurid Metalwork (Komaroff, 1992). As a group they are particularly interesting in that a considerable number of them are signed and/or dated. The dates range from AH 861/1456-57 AD (an example in the Museum für islamische Kunst, Berlin; Komaroff no.3, pp.153-155) through into the Safavid period as is shown by the black jade example made for Shah Isma’il Safavi (Lentz and Lowry, 1989., fig. 102, p.310 amongst many other publications). The latest dated brass example (Jumada al-akhira AH 918/August 1512 AD) is in the David Collection (inv. no.34/1986)
Each jug is slightly different in decorative layout, the designers playing with similar motifs to create multiple variations on the theme. While one can group the earliest ones as a subgroup with their large continuous inscriptions around the neck, it is less easy to divide those dating from 1480-1512 in terms of style. A Timurid jug in the Medici collection (inv. Bronzi 289), which shares some design features with our jug, is an example of the early arrival of such vessels to Europe. Their dense patterned surfaces have been suggested as sources of influence for Venetian Saracenic metalwork.
Of interest are the later added European base and top which have been very finely carved to imitate the 15th century designs, going as far as including pseudo Arabic inscriptions around the base. The later added elements on our jug closely follow that Venetian Saracenic school. The inner base of the jug was removed at the time of its inclusion into its European mounts. The exact function of this object is unknown, but it is possible that it operated as some sort of mechanical music box based on the parts found in the interior. Another similar jug was sold in these Rooms 20 October 2016, lot 6. The note to that lot lists further comparable examples.
Each jug is slightly different in decorative layout, the designers playing with similar motifs to create multiple variations on the theme. While one can group the earliest ones as a subgroup with their large continuous inscriptions around the neck, it is less easy to divide those dating from 1480-1512 in terms of style. A Timurid jug in the Medici collection (inv. Bronzi 289), which shares some design features with our jug, is an example of the early arrival of such vessels to Europe. Their dense patterned surfaces have been suggested as sources of influence for Venetian Saracenic metalwork.
Of interest are the later added European base and top which have been very finely carved to imitate the 15th century designs, going as far as including pseudo Arabic inscriptions around the base. The later added elements on our jug closely follow that Venetian Saracenic school. The inner base of the jug was removed at the time of its inclusion into its European mounts. The exact function of this object is unknown, but it is possible that it operated as some sort of mechanical music box based on the parts found in the interior. Another similar jug was sold in these Rooms 20 October 2016, lot 6. The note to that lot lists further comparable examples.