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-{"008afac0-e38b-550a-a0d2-9a4b088b3083":{"name":"Bowl with inscription","short_description":"A ceramic bowl covered with a white slip and transparent glaze. The sole decoration on a white background is an Arabic inscription in black and a stylized flower in the centre. The inscription is benedictory in the *kufic* script: “Blessings and joy to the owner”. The bowl belongs to a type of pottery typical of the Samanid workshops in eastern Iran. The characteristic inscriptions usually include proverbs or wishes, and the reader is invited to rotate the object to read them.","type":"Bowl, earthenware, ceramic","holder":"Benaki Museum","dates":"Hegira 4th century / AD 10th century","location":"Athens","dimensions":"Diameter 24.8 cm","provenance":"Nishapur","keywords":["bowl","calligraphy","earthenware","kufic","Samanid"],"materials":["Earthenware"]},"019b1d84-e6f3-5e53-a049-f7191924c562":{"name":"Ottoman wooden spoons","short_description":"The Kunstkammer at Ambras contains a number of wooden Ottoman spoons. One such spoon is recorded in the Kunstkammer at Munich as early as AD 1596, suggesting that the ones at Ambras also date from the 16th century, despite only being listed on a later inventory. The spoons feature floral motifs such as tulips, carnations and hyacinths in gold paint. Their backs and part of the handles are decorated with wave-band motifs.","type":"Tableware","holder":"Kunsthistorisches Museum","dates":"Hegira second half of the 10th century / AD 2nd half of the 16th century","location":"Vienna","dimensions":"Length: 29cm; Length: 23.5cm; Length: 25cm; Length: 23cm; Length: 27cm; Length: 27cm","method_for_datation":"Comparison with similar objects","method_for_provenance":"Probably Ambras castle AD 1596","provenance":"Turkey?","obtention":"Collection of Ambras castle","bibliography":"Haag, Sabine (ed), *Fernsucht: Die Suche nach dem Fremden vom 16. bis 19. Jahrhundert*, exh. cat. Schloss Ambras, Wien: Kunsthistorisches Museum, 2009.  \nHaag, Sabine, Sandbichler, Veronika, Klarer, Mario (eds), *Piraten und Sklaven im Mittelmeer*, exh. cat. Schloss Ambras, Wien: Kunsthistorisches Museum, 1997.","author":"Veronika Sandbichler","copy_editor":"Liz Cooper","keywords":["domestic vessels","floral decoration","floral motifs","hyacinths","kitchenware","ottoman empire","spoons","stripes"],"materials":["lacquer painting","Wood"]},"01c7dad2-5f26-5c46-9416-87c4c613cb64":{"name":"Table and two chairs (*Peškuns*)","description":"Interested in woodcut and its application on both profane and sacral objects, artist Branko Šotra (1906–1960) created several ensembles of *peškuns* during the 1930s. In interwar Yugoslavia, *peškun* (Tr. *peşkun*), a richly decorated (with carving, mother-of-pearl, and other) circular or polygonal low table/chair of Oriental origin, was an indispensable element of the so-called *Bosnian room* that was popular in homes in Belgrade, as an emulation of the royal family’s furnishings. They were made and decorated by skilled craftsmen, the most appreciated being those from Konjic.  \nHowever, Šotra combined the traditional form of the *peškun* with the motifs he was personally interested in and treated them using the contemporary language of Art Deco. On the top hexagonal table and chair tops of the *peškuns*, he carved relief scenes of rural life, while the lower, supporting, parts with ogee arches are decorated with geometric ornaments, motifs of grain ears, flowers, affronted doves and parrots. On the tabletop, there is a representation of a kitchen where a mother is nursing a child, a father is sitting and smoking next to the table with a *fildžan* – a Turkish coffee cup (Tr. *kahve fıncanı*) – and a *džezva* – coffee pot (Tr. *cezve*) – while a cat is drinking milk from a bowl. On the chair-tops are depictions of a shepherdess spinning wool in a meadow under a tree, surrounded by sheep and a stack of hay, and, on another chair, a woman reaping grain, a tree, a water gourd, and, in the background, a road leading to the village.  \nThe introduction of contemporary features into tradition was not Šotra’s exclusive approach. As a contributor to the journal *Primenjena umetnost* (*The Applied Art*), he published, in 1937, a pattern and instruction for the woodcuts for peškun, with geometric and floral ornaments inspired by folk art. After graduating from The Royal Art School in Belgrade in 1929, Branko Šotra taught drawing in Sarajevo, Loznica, and Vršac, and woodcut in Ohrid. At the same time, he dealt with painting, fresco painting, icon painting, and woodcarving. After World War II, he dedicated himself to the art of printing and pedagogical work. He served as the rector and professor at The Academy of Applied Arts from 1948 to 1956.","type":"Furniture","holder":"Museum of Applied Art","dates":"Hegira 1352–1354 / AD 1934–1935","location":"Belgrade","dimensions":"Table: 65 x 55 x 71cm; chair: 46 x 40 x 45.5cm","place_of_production":"Sarajevo, Kingdom of Yugoslavia","method_for_datation":"Through curatorial research","obtention":"Given in 2006 by the author's niece, Ksenija Gaćinović from Belgrade.","bibliography":"Šotra, B., *Primenjena umetnost* 3 (1937): 11–12;  \n  \nKraut, V., \"Prilog za monografiju Branka Šotre\" (Summary: \"Contribution à la monographie de Branko Šotra\"), in *Matica Srpska Journal for Fine Arts* 17 (1981): 281–297;  \n  \nDamjanović, D., *Branko Šotra: Retrospektiva*, Sarajevo: Umjetnička galerija Bosne i Hercegovine, 1991;  \n  \nDamjanović D., \"Jedan iz Kolone: Branko Šotra (1906–1960)\", in: *Slikano perom*, Banja Luka: Art print, 2000: 28–40;  \n  \nPopović, B., \"*Peškuns* / Table and Two Chairs\", in: I. Zorić (ed.), *New in the Collections: Acquisitions 2001–2010*, Belgrade: Museum of Applied Art, 2010: 114–115.","author":"Bojana Popović","keywords":["carving","Ottoman Balkans","peškun","side table","stool","Yugoslavia"],"materials":["Beechwood","carving","dark varnish","matte polish"]},"021c9362-ae4c-5a9d-94f5-0755ebb9c1cc":{"name":"Mevlevi Kitchen (*Matbah-ı Şerif*)","description":"The term *somat* (feast table) was used to describe the table where Mevlevis ate. Spoons would be placed face down to indicate the dervishes’ gratitude and to prevent the contents from being seen. A pinch of salt was placed in front of everyone. When the food had been cooked, Kazancı Dede would bring the cauldron to the table and open its lid. After reciting a prayer, those present would invoke the name of Allah Hu.","type":"Room Restoration","holder":"Konya Mevlana Museum","location":"Konya","bibliography":"Bakırcı, Naci, *Konya Mevlana Müzesi*, Istanbul: BKG Yayinlari, 2010.","copy_editor":"Judy Harter"},"02992f2b-3701-5bc3-ba32-d5f6226b56ef":{"name":"Bowl (*Sakızlık*)","description":"From historical sources, we learn that vessels made of gold and silver were widely used in the Ottoman palace. Starting from the end of the 18th century, Baroque and Rococo forms of Western style replaced classical Ottoman designs. We find roses in relief, the Ottoman coat-of-arms, architectural compositions, casted flowers, birds and animals on a multitude of the vessels of the era. This cylindrical cup with pedestal foot and cupola-like hinged lid was made of vermeil silver. On the body of the cup we see a floral pattern and hanging lambs placed alternatingly. Flowers, buds and leaves are made from rubies and diamonds nailed into gold and silver contours. On the lid – instead of lamb motif on the body – a chalice was used. The foot of the chalice is in the form of a cherub from which a bundle of rays projects.","type":"Bowl; golden; Minor art","holder":"Vehbi Koç Foundation Sadberk Hanim Museum","dates":"19th century","location":"Istanbul","copy_editor":"Daniel de la Vega"},"02c23c32-bafe-5d35-af62-5391f4a033ad":{"name":"The Coffee Shop of Cairo","description":"This colourful print depicts a typical 19th century coffeeshop in Cairo. An exclusively male domain, its design was characterised by an open front and wide benches for seating, to allow for easy congregation and the gathering of friends and acquainances. Not only in Cairo, which had over a thousands coffeehouses in Roberts's time, but all over the Middle East, coffeehouses were important social hubs for the exchange of news, entertainment, smoking (customers brought their own pipes and waterpipes) and - not rarely - political dissent. Musicians and storytellers often enhanced the experience further. In this image, the proprietor or an employee of the cafe can be seen serving a beverage in the centre. Interestingly, both the ewer and the large copper cup he uses are of a type usually associated with water, not coffee. Perhaps Roberts introduced these items for artistic effect.","type":"Lithograph","holder":"Sharjah Art Museum / Sharjah Museums Department","dates":"Published in 1849","location":"Sharjah","provenance":"London","author":"Ulrike Al-Khamis"},"02d54027-4e37-5e8b-a5f1-0828055c346d":{"name":"*Âftâbe* ewer","description":"The profile of this ewer for water or wine suggests glass pieces, which are more expensive to produce and more fragile. Coppersmiths translate the models into bronze or brass because Islam disapproves of gold and silver dishes.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","dates":"Hegira last quarter of 3rd-4th century / AD 10th-11th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 34.4cm, Diameter: 15cm, Opening diameter:  7.2cm, Base diameter: 8cm","provenance":"Iran","obtention":"Purchased on advice of Delavenne-Lafarge, 1988.","bibliography":"Allan, J.W., *Nishapur: Metalwork of the Early Islamic Period*, New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1982: 42-43, 82-83.  \n  \nBaer, E., *Metalwork in Medieval Islamic Art*, New York: State University of New York Press, 1983: 90; Fig. 70.  \n  \nDelpont, E., et al., *Album du musée*, Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, 2012: 386.  \n  \nFehervari, G., *Islamic Metalwork in the Keir Collection*, London: Faber and Faber, 1976: 34-35; Fig. 5 and Pl. Iic.  \n  \nFondation L. A. Meyer, Institut d'art musulman, Jerusalem, 1980: p. 10.  \n  \nKeene, M., *Selected Recent Acquisitions*, Kuwait: Kuwait National Museum, 1984: Fig. 26  \n  \nLutfiya, A., *The Central Asian art of Avicenna Epoch* Dushanbe: Irfon Publishing House, 1980: 119.  \n  \nMelikian-Chirvani, A.S., *Islamic Metalwork from the Iranian World. Catalogue of the Victoria and Albert Museum*, London: H.M.S.O., 1982: 85-86, Fig. 19.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["Cast bronze and engraved decoration","with an ornamental band"]},"03a41b10-16ab-52d7-8fef-d551e00d69c7":{"name":"Vase (three items)","description":"These massive gold and silver damascened engraved steel vases from 19th century Qajar-era Iran showcase exquisite craftsmanship and elaborate design. They feature a distinct shape, characterised by a trumpet foot, bulbous body, and decorative handles resembling curling arabesques.  \nThe surface of these metalworks is adorned with intricately etched and damascened decorations depicting scenes probably inspired by the *Shahnameh* (*The Book of Kings*). These scenes primarily portray royal garden parties, known as *bazm* or feast, where music, dance and merrymaking prevail. This decorative tradition reflects Persian kingly protocol, emphasising the concepts of *bazm* (feast) and *razm* (fight). *Bazm* is illustrated with joyful gatherings in royal gardens, while *razm* is depicted through scenes of combat and hunting.  \nWith their intricate designs and symbolic motifs, these metalworks provide insight into the rich cultural legacy of Qajar Iran in the 19th century. They serve also as ceremonial items used in dining and festive gatherings, enhancing their significance in depicting the customs and practices of the time. The vases are crafted using damascening, an ancient metalworking technique that involves inlaying gold and silver onto hard metal surfaces. The intricate designs are engraved in the steel surface, and then gold and silver are carefully hammered into these grooves. This meticulous process resulted in the detailed decorations on the vases, highlighting the skill and artistry of Qajar-era Iranian craftsmen.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani Museum","owner":"His Excellency Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"Hegira 13th century / AD 19th century","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Height: 74cm, length: 22cm","place_of_production":"Iran, Khorasan or Herat","method_for_datation":"The date and origin were established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, techniques, style and analogies.","method_for_provenance":"The date and origin were established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, techniques, style and analogies.","provenance":"Iran","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Mahmoud Saber","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["gold","hunting","Iran","Qajar","Shahnameh","silver","steel","vase"],"materials":["brass","embossing","Engraving","metal"]},"03af3ec3-8778-533c-8919-fead5482c63d":{"name":"Coffee Grinder","description":"A wooden coffee grinder with metal bowl attached to a cubed box on a flat extended base. The user would grind the roasted beans in the chamber by turning the handle. The ground coffee accumulated in the cubed box.","holder":"Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts","dates":"13th-14th century/AD 19th century","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"26cm x 40cm x 21cm","materials":["metal","Wood"]},"061b77bb-faee-50ba-9c83-99e488d5500a":{"name":"Dish","description":"Large, white plate densely covered with vivid floral decoration consisting of tulips, roses and hyacinth on curved stems in addition to other flowers and leaves. Rim decorated with simplified plant motifs. On the back side of the rim five green and three blue spots.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"National Museum in Kraków","initial_owner":"Muzeum Techniczno-Przemysłowe w Krakowie / Industrial Museum in Kraków","dates":"11th century Hegira / 17th century AD","location":"Kraków","dimensions":"Diameter: 28.5cm, height: 5cm","method_for_datation":"Dating and origin based on similar pieces from other collections","method_for_provenance":"Material, technique and design are characteristic for İznik, which was a centre of quality ceramic production in this period","obtention":"Purchased by the Industrial Museum in Kraków in 1900.","bibliography":"Abrahamowicz, Z., *Wojna i pokój. Skarby sztuki tureckiej ze zbiorów polskich od XV do XIX wieku*, Warsaw: Muzeum Narodowe, 2000: p. 455, fig. 74","author":"Bożena Kostuch","keywords":["flowers","Islam","Iznik"],"materials":["polychrome painted under transparent glaze","Stone-paste (fritware)"]},"065ee648-ada2-516d-a7cd-4adf36e94026":{"name":"*Habb* water jar","description":"This large water jar (*habb*) combines a utilitarian function with ostentatious decoration. It occupied a place of honour in the domestic space. Water was drawn from it with a jug or pitcher as needed for daily living. The surface is adorned with stylised female figures that reflect the persistence, through millennia and civilisations, of the mother goddess.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","dates":"Hegira 5th-7th / AD 12th-13th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 79cm, Opening dimension: 22.5cm, Maximum diameter: 45.5cm","provenance":"Meskeneh, Syria","obtention":"Purchased at Christie, Manson & Wood Ltd, 1991.","bibliography":"Candy, S. and Beyazit, D., *Court and Cosmos. The Great Age of the Seljuqs*, New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 2016: 131, Fig. 60.  \n  \nCroisier, J-P. and Dürr, N., *Céramiques islamiques dans les collections genevoises*. Geneva: Editions du Tricorne, 1981: Fig. 241.  \n  \nDelpont, E., *L'Orient de Saladin. L'art des Ayyoubides*, Paris: Gallimard, Paris, 2001: 154, Fig. 135.  \n  \nDelpont, E., et al., *Album du musée*, Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, 2012: 295.  \n  \nMoulierac, J. and Vaudour, C., *La médecine au temps des califes: à l'ombre d'Avicenne*, Paris: Institut du monde arabe, 1996: 203, Fig. 126.  \n  \nMoulierac, J., et al., *Céramiques du monde musulman: collections de l'Institut du monde arabe et de J.P. et F. Croisier* , Paris: Institut du monde arabe, Paris, 1999: 151.  \n  \nReitlinger, G., \"Unglazed Relief Pottery from Northern Mesopotamia\", *Ars Islamica*, Vol: XV-XVI, 1951: 11-22.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["modeled and slip decoration","Unglazed clay"]},"06945f29-b3f5-5c43-b860-5d861b0794e2":{"name":"al-Ghuta ash-Sharqiyya","description":"Apricot paste is made from an apricot very specific to the Damascus oasis, the so-called *klabi*, a small, very juicy apricot with a bitter pit that grows on large trees with abundant foliage. Klabi apricots notably were found in some of the villages of Eastern Ghouta, south of the Barada valley. Klabi is characterised by its rapid ripening, with the fruit falling off as soon as it is ripe. As a result, the fruit had to be picked up from the ground day after day. Workshops for making *Qamr ad-Din* are always set up in sunny open fields in an oasis.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Anne-Marie Bianquis","initial_owner":"Anne-Marie Bianquis","dates":"Hegira 1421 / AD 2001","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Ghutat Dimashq/Syria","method_for_provenance":"Direct contact","provenance":"Ghutat Dimashq/Syria","bibliography":"Bianquis, A.-M., “Modernisation d'un artisanat traditionnel: la pâte d'abricot dans la ghouta de damas”, *Bulletin d'études orientales*, T. 56 (2004-2005): 301-328.  \n  \nDenker, J., \"'Moon of the Faith:' A History of the Apricot and Its Many Pleasures\", (14 June 2016).","author":"Hiba Bizreh","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Photographic negative"]},"0785d4ab-66cd-56c3-9f20-d7b522279ae6":{"name":"Black Cauldron","description":"The Black Cauldron, which is considered sacred by Bektashi devotees and the Janissary Corps, is situated on the large hearth at the axis of the entrance door. The Black Cauldron was constructed by fusing six substantial pieces of forged copper. Four distinct handles, two large and two small, are positioned on the exterior of the vessel. To grieve the martyrdom of Hz. Hussein – son of Hz. Ali, grandson of Hz. Muhammad – and his relatives in Karbala on Friday, 10 Muharram of the 61st year of the Hijra, Alevi-Bektashis observed a period of mourning. This was followed by a fast of mourning on the days of 1–12 Muharram, during which time the pain of those who were martyred was shared and the descendants of Ehlibeyt were commemorated. This practice continues today.  \nIn observance of the 10 Muharram, the Alevi-Bektashis engage in a water fast, which concludes at noon on the 10th day. The 10th day of Muharram is commemorated as Ashura, a period of solemn reflection and mourning. Ashura is observed as an important value that ensures social solidarity and unity. It is served to guests, neighbours and the needy.  \nDuring the period when the Külliye was operating as a lodge, the Ashura (dessert)in question was cooked and distributed in the Black Cauldron Currently, people oberve this ritual in their homes and concludes with a visit to the Külliye.","type":"Utensil","holder":"Nevşehir Hacıbektaş Museum","location":"Konya","dimensions":"Height: 83cm, width: 130cmm","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda"},"0801264d-8475-5c87-a800-17b6d0cc190e":{"name":"The drawings of Janissary clothes from The Album of Mecmua-i Tesavir-i Osmaniye (The collection of Ottoman Pictures)","description":"Arif Mehmed Pasha is considered one of the leaders of the western style of painting in Turkey. He developed a talent for drawing and produced a series of pictures detailing the clothes Ottoman state officials wore. He prepared these pictures under the name *Mecmua-i Tesavir-i Osmaniyye*. Although his work was supposed to come out in 12 volumes, only one volume was actually published in French in Paris in 1863 and in Turkish the same year. The other 11 volumes have been lost. The published volume is considered to be the first illustrated book in Turkey. What is amazing is the praise heaped onto Arif Mehmed Pasha for his portraits, the harmony of their colours and tones, the maturity of attitude and delicate detail, the artist’s control over his pen and watercolours. The clothing reflects the time when the Janissaries were still on the scene (before 1826 when the corps was disbanded).","type":"Drawings","holder":"Military Museum and Cultural Centre Command","dates":"1863","location":"Istanbul","copy_editor":"Daniel de la Vega"},"08735bbc-752f-5c86-962d-667f390393f6":{"name":"Nails","short_description":"These tools represent *baraka* (blessings) or *barkati* nails made of iron and adorned with fine inscriptions. Originating in Oman, talismanic qualities were attributed to the nails to protect property or vehicles.  \n  \nWhen constructing a home, furniture or vehicles such as dhows (boats), these blessed nails are hammered into the wood for additional support and protection. Islamic prayers in *naskh* calligraphy instil hidden blessings for oneself or on behalf of someone else for good fortune.  \n  \nSmall ordinary objects like nails are transformed into talismans to dispel demons (*jinn*), evil and accidents on long journeys. As iron is a precious material in Islam, the nails gain further protective properties.","type":"Domestic tools","holder":"FBQ Museum","owner":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"18th century","location":"Shahaniya","dimensions":"Length: 15cm, Width: 1cm","place_of_production":"Oman, Muscat","method_for_datation":"The date and origin were established in anthropological research-based comparison from an examination of material, engraving and pattern.","method_for_provenance":"The date and origin were established in anthropological research-based comparison from an examination of material, engraving and pattern.","provenance":"Oman","obtention":"Purchase","bibliography":"Al-Saleh, Y., \"Amulets and Talismans from the Islamic World\" in *Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History*, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000.  \nPorter, V., Saif, L. and Savage-Smith, E., \"Medieval Islamic Amulets, Talismans, and Magic\", in F.B. Flood and G. Necipoğlu (eds), *A Companion to Islamic Art and Architecture*, Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons, 2017.","author":"Sarah Schroeder","copy_editor":"Janice Medina","keywords":["Dhows","India","Oman","Talismans"],"materials":["Engraving","Iron"]},"08b6e3c0-94d9-573c-a123-ddbc53534246":{"name":"Ewer with epigraphic decoration","description":"In Iran, during the Seljuq period, a large number of moulds were produced, typically with epigraphic expressions, though figures or foliage are also found. The potters shaped ewers that often borrowed forms developed by coppersmiths. The turquoise glaze replaces with colour the detailed decoration of carving and silver inlay found in metal pieces.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","dates":"Hegira 6th-7th / AD 12th-13th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 31.5cm, Diameter: 16cm, Neck height: 8.5cm, Neck diameter: 7.5cm, Base height: 1.9cm, Base diameter: 10cm","provenance":"Iran","obtention":"Purchased at auction on advice from Claude Boisgirard, 2003.","bibliography":"Delpont, E., et al., *Album du musée*, Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, 2012: 387.  \n  \nGrube, E.J., *Islamic Pottery of the Eighth to the Fifteenth Century in the Keir Collection*, London: Faber and Faber, 1976: Fig. 116.  \n  \nPinder-Wilson, R.H., *Islamic Pottery 800-1400*, London: Victoria and Albert Museum, London, 1969: Fig. 77.  \n  \nSoustiel, J., *La céramique islamique*. Fribourg: Office du Livre, 1985: 101, 372; Fig. 25, 93.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["moulded and under glaze","Siliceous clay"]},"08c11707-3223-5e4f-98b6-ce06bf917293":{"name":"*Zafraan* (Saffron)","description":"*Zafraan* (Saffron) used to flavour coffee.  \nCoffee is always served at the beginning of a visit and is repeatedly offered until guests politely signal that they have had enough by rocking their cup from side to side. In order to keep coffee hot and fresh for unexpected guests it goes through many stages. After roasting and grinding the coffee beans the grains are added to boiling water inside a large *dallah* (coffee pot) called a *khamra*. Next, the liquid is poured into a medium-sized coffee pot called a *taljeemah*. At this stage cardamom seeds, saffron and rose water may be added for flavour. From this jug, the coffee is poured into a serving *dallah* referred to as a *mezallah*, where the coffee is refined and filtered. The server must hold the mezallah with their left hand and distribute the *fanayeel* (coffee cups) using the right hand. The coffee should fill less than half of the cup.","type":"Saffron","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century / AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Varies and depends on the strand. Length: 15mm","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Amanda Snyder","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["coffee","saffron"]},"0c64afe8-ef31-5013-ab4c-0e70f49a6799":{"name":"Traditional blue ceramic plate from Fez","description":"This ceramic dish is a remarkable example of craftsmanship in Fez, a Moroccan city renowned for its pottery production since the Middle Ages. The decoration is dominated by a circular rosette in the shape of a six-petaled flower, an emblematic motif of Islamic art combining geometry and symbolism. The centre is decorated with an interlaced six-pointed star (Star of David), symbol of infinity and universal harmony. The petals, finely filled with small blue dots on an off-white background, add texture and depth. Secondary floral motifs occupy the spaces between the petals, accentuating the decorative richness of the piece. The design is framed by a thick cobalt blue border, lending the work an elegance and striking visual contrast. This technique, which combines meticulous painting under a protective glaze, testifies to the mastery of its artisans. After being painted, the dish was baked at a high temperature to fix the colours and obtain the glossy finish characteristic of Fez ceramics.","type":"Plate","holder":"National Foundation of Museums","dates":"Hegira mid of 13th century / beginning of the 14th century – AD end of 19th century","location":"Rabat","dimensions":"Diameter: 41.5cm, height: 10.02 cm, base: 19.8 cm","place_of_production":"Fez","provenance":"Fez","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["Blue glazed ceramic"]},"0c8d4c10-e0c7-58fa-9a01-827cb349e0f8":{"name":"Perfume flask","description":"This type of bottle with a long and narrow neck, also called *qumqum*, was used to disperse perfumed waters – orange blossom, rose water – on the hands and faces of guests: a gesture of hospitality also intended to expel evil forces from the house.  \nOn the surface of the pear-shaped body, cypress and bouquets of leaves alternate, and flowers emerge from a vase flanked by two seals of Solomon.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","dates":"End of 12th century-1st half of 13th century / AD end of 18th- beginning of 19th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 35.5cm, Diameter: 10cm, Base diameter: 9cm","provenance":"Morocco","obtention":"Purchased at 'Art Musulman gallery', 1992.","bibliography":"Delpont, E., et al., *Album du musée*, Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, 2012: 387.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["Cast steel","gold and silver decoration"]},"0dd50fe0-14f2-5280-8a34-a024885bc7dc":{"name":"Bedouin women cooking for a festival at Rusafa","description":"The tradition of cooking mutton in huge copper pots (*gidr*) on an open fire is still alive, although aluminium pots are available and weigh less. Surprisingly, these cooking pots do not come with lids, but serving plates (*siniyyat sufra*) are used instead. Food can be served directly on these while they are still hot. A big spoon (*jabjir*) is used to stir and distribute the meat and broth onto huge plates. The fatty mutton meat is cooked in broth that has been enriched with spices such as coriander, cumin, pepper and hot paprika.  \nA copper pot is passed down from one generation to another, as it represents the generosity of ancestors. From the size of the pot one can imagine the number of people who were fed from it.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Karin Pütt","initial_owner":"Karin Pütt","dates":"Hegira 1311 / AD 1993","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Ar-Rusafa/Syria","method_for_provenance":"Direct contact","provenance":"Ar-Rusafa /Raqqa Province","bibliography":"- Euting, J., \"Tagebuch einer Reise in Inner-Arabien\" (First Edition Leiden 1896), Hamburg, 1993, 177.
- al-Hroub, I., Atlas of Palestine Rural Heritage, Bethlehem, 2015, 74.","author":"Karin Pütt","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Slide"]},"0e671219-31d0-5818-8e46-222c869924d9":{"name":"al-Ghuta ash-Sharqiyya","description":"After being weighed, sorted and washed, then treated with sulphur, apricots are placed on a large cement platform sheltered from the sun. Exposing the apricots to sulphur vapour before pressing is a major innovation in the process. After some trial and error, sulphurisation is now a well-established part of the process; although the main argument in favour of it is commercial, the operation has the essential advantage of purifying or sterilising the fruit, therefore allowing better preservation of the *Qamr ad-Din*. A suction pump on the platform is used to load the press. A worker in boots enters the platform and pushes the apricots towards the mouth of the suction pump with a wooden shovel.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Anne-Marie Bianquis","initial_owner":"Anne-Marie Bianquis","dates":"Hegira 1320 / AD 2002","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Ghutat Dimashq/Syria","method_for_provenance":"Direct contact","provenance":"Ghutat Dimashq/Syria","bibliography":"Bianquis, A.-M., “Modernisation d'un artisanat traditionnel: la pâte d'abricot dans la ghouta de damas”, *Bulletin d'études orientales*, T. 56 (2004-2005): 301-328.  \n  \nDenker, J., \"'Moon of the Faith:' A History of the Apricot and Its Many Pleasures\", (14 June 2016).  \n  \nAl-Dawudi, F., \"L’abricot est ses dérivés dans la région syrienne\", thesis on pharmacy and chemistry, 1960, Damascus (in Arabic).","author":"Hiba Bizreh","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Photographic negative"]},"0e898325-2ca7-55a3-9b21-31bfc911229e":{"name":"Lunchbox","description":"Tin-plated copper casket for transporting food on journeys and campaigns. The whole surface is decorated with intricated designs, inscriptions and medallion with geometric motifs.","type":"Casket","holder":"Benaki Museum","dates":"AH 905-956/early 16th century","location":"Athens","dimensions":"Height: 21,3 cm, length: 34 cm, width: 20 cm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Egypt","obtention":"Antonis Benaki collection","bibliography":"Ballian, A. (ed.), *Benaki Museum: a Guide to the Museum of Islamic Art*, Athens: Benaki, 2006: fig. 184, p. 143.","author":"Mina Moraitou","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Tinned copper"]},"0ec7070c-4723-5d21-8d20-fb151e3e884f":{"name":"Coffee pots (*dallah*)","description":"With its slender waist, graceful handle and elegant spout, this coffee pot (or *dallah*) is an exquisite example of Nazwa silversmithing. The silver souq in Nazwa is famed for its superb wares; smiths tend to work alongside jewellers and khanjar-makers to produce particularly fine goods. This *dallah* features a combination of arabesque and geometric designs, while the inscription at the bottom reads, in Arabic, \"K. R. 21/6/1974\" – a reference to its maker, Khalfan bin Rashid al-Sabahi, and its date of completion.","type":"Copper, silver and brass (some with tin wash)","holder":"The National Museum – Sultanate of Oman","dates":"Hegira 13th–14th/AD 19th–20th centuries","location":"Muscat, Sultanate of Oman","dimensions":"Height: 29cm, width: 22cm, depth: 15cm, Q: 8cm","provenance":"Northern Oman","author":"Noora Al Balushi","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["copper","silver and brass (some with tin wash)"]},"0f423815-f3be-51a7-ab13-23fc5d185723":{"name":"Takiyya al-Sulaymaniyya.","description":"Together with a *madrasa*, the Takiyya al-Sulaymaniyya was erected on the meadow belonging to a former Zangid parade ground, the Maydan al-Akhdar, located about 800 m west of the Old City of Damascus on the southern shore of the Barada River. It is the spot where once the Qasr al-Ablaq, the palace belonging to Sultan Baybars (r. AH 658–75 / AD 1260–77) stood, and where Timur resided during his attack on Damascus. The *takiyya* functioned as an inn for the accommodation of pilgrims where food was served, gratis.  \nThe whole complex was surrounded by an enclosure wall; to the west of the enclosure there was a vast area that was used as a tent encampment for pilgrims. From the main entrance on the east side, the visitor steps into the large courtyard where a central rectangular pool served as a meeting place. The mosque, preceded by a double portico, is by its twin minarets announced as a royal foundation. A row of cells is placed along either side of the courtyard while opposite the mosque is the *imaret* flanked by two long refectories along the east and west walls, each covered with 14 domes. Between them a large kitchen is preceded by a portico, the purpose of which may have been to offer shade to the pilgrims queuing for food, but which also gives a sort of splendour to the kitchen area. On each side of the kitchen, there are two twin-domed smaller rooms, which may have served as stores or dining chambers for the leaders of the *Hajj*. The enclosure to the north of the *imaret* is provided with a small entrance used by servants and to take in deliveries.  \nImmediately after the Ottoman conquest and up until the AH mid-10th / AD mid-16th century, the local – and likewise modest – building activity continued in a traditional way indicating a tolerant takeover of power. This is manifested not only by the fact that Mamluk governors were re-instated to office, but also by the employment of Damascene master architect, Shihab al-Din Ahmad ibn al-Attar who, for example, was employed by Sultan Selim I for the renewal of the funeral mosque of the renowned Sufi, Ibn Arabi in Salihiyya. Although the *takiyya* was planned by the Turkish master architect of the Sultan, Sinan (AH 895–996 / AD 1490–1588), he did not supervise the work personally but delegated much of it to a local subordinate. Native workmen were consulted, leaving their fingerprints on details of the décor such as the horizontal rows of alternating dark-and-light stone walls (*ablaq*). The tiles also show the characteristics of locally produced Damascene tiles, referring to the Turkish production of Iznik, but paler in colour.  \nThe complex's location at a prominent place amidst the long-distance trade and pilgrimage routes made it popular stop-off point for pilgrims from all over the Ottoman Empire and beyond, who were accommodated before continuing to the Holy places in the Arabian Peninsula. Its characteristically Ottoman style, with porticoes and dominant use of cupolas and pencil-shaped minarets make it a clear display of Ottoman supremacy.","short_description":"Several hundred metres before the city gates, one of the early Ottoman sultans, Sulayman the Magnificent (r. AH 926–74 / AD 1520–66), built a hospice for pilgrims who gathered in Damascus from all over the empire before turning south towards Mecca. The complex comprises a mosque, a kitchen, dormitories and a *madrasa*. For the first time, Ottoman features such as multiple cupolas and pencil-shaped minarets appear in Damascus, doubtless meant as architectural symbols of Ottoman supremacy. This is the only building in Bilad al-Sham (Greater Syria) designed by the celebrated Turkish architect Sinan.","dates":"Hegira 962–74 / AD 1554/5–1566/7.","location":"Damascus","method_for_datation":"Several Arabic sources discuss the building activities of Sultan Suleyman (see Rihawi, 1957, p.132) for a detailed list of these sources.","bibliography":"Goodwin, G., *A History of Ottoman Architecture*, London, 1971, p.256ff.  \nKafesçioğlu, C., “'In the Image of Rum': Ottoman Architectural Patronage in Sixteenth-century Aleppo and Damascus”, *Muqarnas*, 16, 1999, pp.70–96.  \nMeinecke, M., “Die osmanische Architektur des 16. Jh”, *Damaskus*, *Fifth International Congress of Turkish Art*, Budapest, 1978, pp.580–2, p.590.  \nRihawi, Abd al-Qadir, “al-Abniya al-Athariyya fi Dimashq 1: al-Takiyya wa-al-madrasa al-Sulaymaniyyatan bi-Dimashq \\[The Archaeological Buildings of Damascus: The Takiyya and the School of Sulayman in Damascus\\]”, *Annales Archéologiques de Syrie*, 1957, pp.125–34.  \nWulzinger, C., and Watzinger, C., *Damaskus, die islamische Stadt*, Berlin–Leipzig, 1924, pp.102–14.","patrons":"Sultan Suleyman ‘the Magnificent’ I (r. AH 926–74 / AD 1520–66).","architects":"The Turkish architect Sinan; the master builder was a Persian called Mullah Agha, partly substituted by Turkish building inspectors, one of them called Mustafa.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_TR_EN_001","author":"Verena Daiber","copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["ceramic building decoration","Mosque","pilgrims","religious object"]},"109ed34a-507a-5652-bb30-736569eca0ac":{"name":"Drum","alternate_name":"Awakener drum; *Musahirati* drum","description":"Small round drum, pointed on the bottom, covered on the top with leather, and fastened with a linen rope. It was played with a wooden stick to create special sounds of music, and it was used during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan to wake up people to eat (*suhur*) before sunrise. Some people used to volunteer to go around before dawn to wake people up during Holy Ramadan, reflecting community spirit.","type":"Cultic drum; musical instrument","holder":"Jordan Folklore Museum, Department of Antiquities","dates":"Late 19th century – early 20th century","location":"Amman","provenance":"Jordan","author":"Huda Kilani","copy_editor":"Daniel de la Vega"},"115adb41-ded2-5669-b97c-a902df406833":{"name":"Stone blazon.","description":"In the Mamluk period, heraldry played an important role and was widely used on architecture, metalwork, textiles, glass and pottery. Its use was strictly the reserve of sultans and particularly of the officers who were awarded individual blazons, each according to their rank. While the early Bahri Mamluks used blazons which represented a distinct office held by an individual, the later Burji Mamluks combined several heraldic emblems which were commonly shared by a corps of *amirs* who served a distinct master.  \nThe stone roundel with the tripartite blazon from the Aleppo Museum represents a widely used composition from the late Mamluk period: it contains the symbol of the *jamdar* (master-of-the-robes) with a so-called “napkin” in the upper field, the stemmed cup of the cup-bearer (*saqi*) charged with the pen box of the *dawadar* (secretary) in the central field, flanked by what has been identified as a pair of powder horns. A second, smaller, stemmed cup is placed in the lower field.  \nAccording to Meinecke (1972), this particular emblem was the most popular blazon of the late Burji period and is known to have been used by at least 47 *amir*s. Its first employment can be traced back to Sultan Qaytbay (AH 872–901 / AD 1468-96) when he was still an officer himself and he then conferred it upon his own followers. It was in use up to AH 922 / AD 1517 and came to represent something like the Mamluk “State blazon”.","short_description":"The use of royal emblems reached a high point during the Mamluk period. This carved stone roundel reveals a composition of symbols including those of the cup-bearer, the secretary and the master of robes.","type":"Blazon, stone","holder":"National Museum of Aleppo, Islamic Department","dates":"Hegira late 9th–early 10th century / AD late 15th–early 16th century.","location":"Aleppo","dimensions":"Height 51.4 cm, width 55 cm, depth 18.7 cm.","method_for_datation":"The piece was dated by comparison with other similar pieces.","method_for_provenance":"Although the provenance is unknown, this medallion probably belonged to either Amir Uzdamur (also known as Özdemir), who ruled Aleppo twice in 884 / 1479 and between 889–99 / 1484–93, or the last Mamluk *amir*, Kha'irbak b. Bilbay. Both were closely connected to Sultan Qaytbay, leaving examples of this emblem on various buildings in the city: Uzdamur on his *caravanserai* (Khan al-Sabun), the Qastal al-Ramadaniyya, the Qastal Jami' al-Sharaf and the Jami' al-Sharaf itself; Kha'irbak on his mausoleum south of Bab al-Maqam and his *khan* in the *suq* not far from the citadel.","provenance":"Unknown (Aleppo, Syria).","obtention":"It is not known how the Museum came by this object.","bibliography":"*Syrie: Mémoire et Civilisation*, exhibition catalogue, Paris, 1994, p.475 ; cat. no. 379.  \nHerzfeld, E., *Matériaux pour un Corpus Inscriptionum Arabicarum: Syrie du Nord, Part 2: Inscriptions et monuments d'Alep,* 3 Vols, Cairo, 1954–6, p.393ff, p.396 ff, pp.404–6; figs. 126, 128, 130; plates CLXX a, CLXXII c.  \nMayer, L. A., *Saracenic Heraldry*, Oxford, 1933, pp.136–8.  \nMeinecke, M., “Zur mamlukischen Heraldik”, *Mitteilungen des Deutschen Archäologischen Institutes, Abteilung Kairo,* XXVIII/2, 1972, pp.213–87.  \nSauvaget, J., *Alep. Essai sur le développement d'une grande ville syrienne des origines au milieu du XIXe siècle*, 2 Vols, Paris, 1941, plates XXII, XXIII.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_EG_EN_001","author":"Julia Gonnella","copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["Aleppo","blazons","coat of arms","Emblems","Michael Meinecke","stone-carving"],"materials":["Carved stone."]},"12bc77cd-3251-54d2-a1a9-9f5a47163fc7":{"name":"*Dallah* (Coffee pot), *Khamra*; preparing stage largest pot","description":"This copper *dallah* goes back to a type allegedly first used in 17th-century Baghdad, and by the 19th century, there were several production centres in the Arabian peninsula. Its design cleverly reflects its functional needs. The broad base ensures stability on the fire or in the sand, whilst the large spout prevents too much coffee sediment from reaching the cup. The lid is purposely weighted to avoid it opening during the pouring process. Throughout the Near and Middle East coffee lay at the heart of social rituals and hospitality, while providing sustenance during chats, debate and political discourse in the many coffee houses in the region. In this light, the quality of the coffee served was an important indicator of both the wealth of the host and status of the guest. In continental Europe, the fashion for coffee was at its height in the 17th and 18th centuries, with coffee houses the preferred meeting places for intellectuals and artists. In Britain, meanwhile, tea soon overtook coffee in popularity, even though certain religious organisations tried to promote coffee houses for the poor in order to steer them away from public houses that primarily sold alcohol.","type":"Coffee pot; *Khamra*","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"Hegira late 13th – early 14th century / AD late 19th – early 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Length: 414mm, width: 375mm, base diameter: 161mm, opening diameter: 110mm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","method_for_provenance":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Ulrike Al-Khamis","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["coffee pot","dallah"],"materials":["Sheet and cast copper alloy"]},"1304f4ee-e28f-57f0-a08d-b92839b37afe":{"name":"Incense burner","description":"Incense burners like this are usually made of clay mixed with water and kneaded until a mixture is formed that can then be shaped. The burner is then adorned with engravings, intricate drawings, and different colors. The incense burners are then fired in a kiln, after which they are ready for use. Note the handle; it makes the burner safe to carry from room to room. Incense occupies a central place in Omani life, as the passing of a fragrant burner at the end of a visit is customary in every region of the country.","type":"Ceramic, earthenware, acrylic colours","holder":"The national Museum - Sultanate of Oman","dates":"Hegira early 15th/AD early 21st century","location":"Muscat, Sultanate of Oman","dimensions":"Height: 12, width: 14.5","provenance":"Dhofar Governorate","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["acrylic colours","Earthenware"]},"13bd50fd-6740-5159-92f1-64ca153e073c":{"name":"Measuring instrument (*mudd*).","description":"This measuring instrument, shaped like a trunk, consists of three welded pieces. The decoration is featured along three bands. The upper band holds the beginning of an inscription written in Maghrebi characters, which indicates that the object was made under the orders of the sovereign, Abu al-Hasan, as well as indicating its function. The space left empty by the writing is decorated with double palms. The middle band is adorned with four arches; each holds an inscription in Maghrebi characters that completes the preceding one; and one of these completes the inscription on the upper band. These four inscriptions offer information on both the genealogy of the sovereign and the calibration's origin, which goes as far back as the Prophet Muhammad. The space between the arches is decorated with double palms and floral ornaments. The lower band is decorated with two curving interlacing lines. This measuring instrument features a slit-pin to which a chain is attached made of foliage hooks at either end of which are double-palm shapes that are linked to two rings.  \nThis measuring weight of the *zakat al-fitr* (alms of the breaking of the *Ramadan* fast), used to weigh out the various cereals, was also used in commercial transactions.","short_description":"Alms-measure divided into three decorative sections including an inscription in Maghrebi characters mentioning the sovereign and the purpose of the object: to measure the *zakat al-fitr* (religious alms) or commercial transactions.","type":"Mudd, measuring instrument, copper","holder":"National Museum of Antiquities and Islamic Arts","dates":"Between Hegira 731 and 749 / AD 1331 and 1348.","location":"Algiers","dimensions":"Height 10 cm, diameter of the base 11.6 cm, diameter of the opening 8.1 cm.","method_for_datation":"The inscription on the measuring instrument mentions the name of the Marinid sovereign Abu al-Hasan (r. 731–49 /1331–48).","bibliography":"Dessus-Lamare, A., “Matériaux pour un catalogue du musée de Mustapha: Note sur un vase en cuivre gravé, employé comme mesure étalon”, *Revue africaine*, 1929, pp.162–95.  \nMarçais, G., *Le musée Stéphane Gsell, musée des antiquités et d'art musulman d'Alger*, Algiers, 1950.","author":"Ali Benbella","copy_editor":"Margot Cortez","translator":"Maria Vlotides","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["abstaining","Copper","epigraphy","fasting","floral adornments","floral decoration","gauging tool","lettering","Marinid","measuring instrument","mudd","zakat al-fitr"],"materials":["engraved and incised.","Yellow copper"]},"13d87f91-5798-5982-ac33-c5d1d97a1228":{"name":"Ewer","description":"This brass ewer stands out among a series of distinctive brass vessels in the FBQ museum that are known for their unique shapes, sizes, and intricate designs. Many examples feature cylindrical bodies with fluted or faceted patterns and lions in relief on their necks. These Persian Islamic ewers served various purposes, including holding beverages, serving at parties, holding water for hand washing, or ablutions for affluent owners and guests. Crafted by artisans for the ruling class and aristocrats, this handle-less ewer is meticulously embossed and engraved with mythical creatures, calligraphy, and arabesques. The neck of the ewer bears two seated lions and a deer in relief, while the flattened shoulder displays an unusual pseudo-Kufic script and a human head. The faceted body is adorned with richly detailed decoration divided into four horizontal sections, featuring winged hares (some with human heads) and pseudo-Kufic script (some letters are human-headed).  \nThe use of a ewer carries religious significance, as running water is necessary for Muslims to perform ritual ablutions before prayer. Thus a family member would pour fresh water from the ewer over the individual’s hands, symbolising purification and spiritual cleansing. Crafted from brass, this ewer showcases meticulous beating and engraving techniques characteristic of Persian Islamic metalwork from the 12th to 13th centuries. The relief craftsmanship depicting mythical creatures and calligraphy would have been achieved through embossing and engraving, while the pseudo-Kufic script and arabesque designs show the influence of Islamic artistic tradition. The richly detailed decoration reflects the skill and artistry of the artisans of Khorasan or Herat in Iran during this period.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani Museum","owner":"His Excellency Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"Hegira 6th–7th century / AD 12th–13th century","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Length: 18cm, diameter: 5.5cm, base diameter: 7.5cm","place_of_production":"Iran, Khorasan or Herat","method_for_datation":"The date and origin were established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, techniques, style and analogies.","method_for_provenance":"Provenance was established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, techniques, style and analogies.","provenance":"Iran","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Mahmoud Saber","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["brass","embossing","Engraving","metal"]},"14764713-cb27-5756-8029-2aade64971eb":{"name":"Lidded bowl.","description":"A squat, elliptically shaped, lidded bowl of stone-paste (fritware) with a flattened domical lid topped by a gilded copper-alloy finial. A blue, red and green rosette enhances the base of the finial; the pattern on the lid itself then opens out from the base of the finial where, from leafy stems, four mythical, blue, serrated *saz* leaves with red centres sprout, moving in an anti-clockwise direction, their stems crossing. In between the *saz* leaves, there are four floral pairs, each consisting of a blue lily and a red-orange hyacinth. These also emerge from leafy stems, sinuously crossing over each other.  \nThe edge of the rim is decorated by a scalloped border of white on blue, a black dot in the centre of each scallop. The upper edge of the body receives a guilloche border rendered in red and green. Below, nine blue tulips with red dotted detailing flow around the bowl in a clockwise direction, giving the impression of a horizontally disposed garland, although they all rise in fact from the base. A second band below the tulips is composed of carnations, this time flowing in an anti-clockwise direction, their stems again springing from the baseline below. The well of the bowl receives a decorative roundel defined by three linear borders. It contains five flower sprays with red and blue petals. Six abstract motifs in blue fill the remaining spaces.  \nThe shape of this bowl recalls Iranian metal and ceramic bowls dating to the AH 7th / AD 13th century and also appears among the tableware of the Italian courts during the 15th century (as seen, for example, in an engraving by Mantegna where an attendant serves at table during a card game). In Ottoman court culture lidded bowls such as this were produced in gilt copper (*tombak*), and occurred as an integral part of the tableware used to serve food at mealtimes.","short_description":"In Ottoman court culture lidded bowls like this one were produced in gilt copper (*tombak*) as well as pottery and occurred as an integral part of the crockery used to serve food at mealtimes. Its style of decoration places it among other floral Iznik wares dated to the AH 10th / AD late 16th century.","type":"Ottoman ceramic, stone paste","holder":"National Museums of Scotland (NMS).","dates":"Hegira 10th century / AD late 16th century.","location":"Edinburgh, Scotland","dimensions":"Height 15.24 cm, diameter 20.3 cm.","method_for_datation":"The decorative style of this lidded bowl places it among a group of floral Iznik wares dated to the 10th / late 16th century.","method_for_provenance":"This type of ceramic ware is known to have been produced in Iznik during the 10th / late 16th century.","provenance":"Iznik, Turkey.","obtention":"Bought from the Castellani Collection in 1884.","bibliography":"Atasoy, N., and Raby, J., *Iznik: The Pottery of Ottoman Turkey*, London, 1989, figs. 559, 678, 742.  \nCarswell, J., *Iznik Pottery*, London, 1998, p.82, fig. 61.  \nScarce, J., *Domestic Culture in the Middle East: An Exploration of the Household Interior*, Edinburgh, 1996, p.60.  \n*Türkische Kunst und Kultur aus osmanischer Zeit*, exhibition catalogue, Recklinghausen, 1985, p.144, cat. no. 2/13.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_TR_EN_001","author":"Ulrike Al-Khamis","copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["Iznik","stone-paste (fritware)","tombak"],"materials":["black and bole-red underglaze","Blue","green","over which a clear glaze.","Stone-paste (fritware)"]},"15a93784-d4c1-54ce-9448-02770e8b923f":{"name":"Coffee Cup Holder","description":"The rim is decorated with filigree. There are three coats of arms on it. There is a row of coral ornaments on the rim and triangular coral ornaments between the crests.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Ankara Ethnography Museum","owner":"The Republic of Türkiye Ministry of Culture and Tourism","location":"Ankara","dimensions":"Height: 5.2cm, diameter: 5.2cm","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["telkari (filigree) technique","Tombac and coral"]},"15d519f5-c26e-5c05-ba07-ac169b9cafb2":{"name":"‘Attarin Suq","description":"As well as *funduq*s, Fez possessed markets, *suq*s, whose reputation extended far beyond the town walls. The *qaysariya*, a term signifying a commercial neighbourhood, which was situated at the heart of the Qarawiyin Quarter, with its numerous *suq*s and shops, is one of the oldest of its kind, offering goods imported from Europe and the East ever since the Middle Ages.  \nDestroyed at first by a great fire in 724/1324, and then by floods in 725/1325, the *qaysariya*, with its thousands of terraced houses, was then rebuilt. The ‘Attarin Suq, one of the most reputable in the *qaysariya*, occupies the length of a long street which links up to the Merinid *madrasa* of the same name, at *Bab al-Faraj*. Complemented by trade on adjacent streets and places, this market extends over more than 600 m. and was equipped with a large gate at each end, whose “*guardians*”, wrote Leon the African, “*do their rounds at night, with dogs, with weapons, holding up lanterns in their hands. They were paid by the traders themselves*”.  \nThe *suq*, according to Leon the African, consisted of 150 stalls, which grew in number to 170 a few years later according to the Portuguese historian Mármol de Carvajal (16th century). Originally specialising in the sale of medicinal products and groceries, medicinal stalls stood shoulder to shoulder with hardware stalls which were distinct for the opulence of their ornamentation. Doctors themselves made up the medicinal preparations, and then sent them to specialised stalls where staff would dispense them under medical supervision.  \nIn the 10th/16th century, the *suq*, through the importance it had gained in terms of the geographical area it fulfilled, through the number of important shops it represented and through the abundance of specialised products it sold, was unrivalled. Even if the *suq* of today has lost a little of its identity through the growth of product variety, one can still find some traditional hardware sellers who are living examples of this market, typical of its kind.","type":"","dates":"","bibliography":"","author":"Mohamed Mezzine, Naïma El-Khatib Boujibar"},"17063181-2e66-5196-bb7a-7cc70632a717":{"name":"Bani Isguen.","description":"When Abu al-Hattab, lord of the town of Kairouan under the orders of the Kharijites, was killed, the Ibadi appointed his companion, Ibn Rustam, as their leader, who went on to found a kingdom in AH 161 / AD 778 within the central Maghreb that extended from Kairouan to Fez, with Tahert as its capital. The word 'Kharijite' (from *kharaja*, to leave) is illustrative of recurring dissents that lead to a rupture with the dominant doctrine. In AH 37 / AD 658, four thousand followers left the town of Kufa, outraged by the decision to deny 'Ali, the Prophet's son-in-law, of his rights of succession in favour of Mu'awiya. The event is at the heart of the fracture that continues to run through and divide the Islamic world into Shi'ites and Sunnis.  \nThe Rustamids dominated the central Maghreb for a century and a half, but, under the assaults of the Fatimids, they were forced to take refuge first at Sédrata (near Ouargla), then in the M'zab region, where they founded five towns in succession that constitute the 'Pentapolis' (Ghardaïa, Mélika, Bani Isguen, Bou Noura and El Atteuf). Through ingenious means of capturing and distributing the little water that was available, they were able from as early as the AH 6th / AD 12th century to create plantations of palm trees and gardens that still testify to an efficient ecological control of natural resources.  \nBuilt on the face of a rocky hillside, Bani Isguen, founded in AH 441 / AD 1050, is the holy town of the M'zab. It is surrounded by a vast rampart that is flanked by towers and pierced by three gates, which, until recently, were closed every night. Another tower, which dominates the town, is believed to have been built in a day in anticipation of an attack.  \nThe houses that sit in the valley of the M'zab were designed to allow for a certain amount of diurnal 'nomadism'. They are usually built on two levels, on which one can find the same items necessary for daily life: the hearth, the latrines, the washroom, the bedrooms, the living room and the loom. This configuration allows one to live in the cool shade of the ground floor in summer, and at night-time, to carry on with the activities upstairs where it is fresher at night. In winter, the reverse applies. The summerhouses within the palm plantations are designed along the same lines. Beyond their functionalism, 'they were additionally endowed with beauty. The heterodox puritans preferred to live according to their own beliefs in the desert, rather than consent to live in opulence but according to the truths of others; however they did not concern themselves with beautifying their own homes. This was not through lack of good taste, rather, it was because they did not have the opportunity or the spare time to do so. Survival was first and foremost.'(From Ravereau, see Bibliography.)","short_description":"Built on the side of a rocky hill, Bani Isguen is the holy town of the M'zab region. It is defended by a vast rampart flanked by towers and crossed via three gateways, and a tower that dominates the town. The rooms, built on two storeys, included bathrooms, bedrooms and a living room, along with a loom. The summer houses in the palm grove are laid out in the same fashion. Gardens could be cultivated thanks to ingenious devices that allowed the little available water to be used.","dates":"Hegira 441 / AD 1050.","location":"Ghardaïa.","method_for_datation":"Through oral tradition.","bibliography":"Bourouiba, R., *L'art religieux musulman en Algérie*, Algiers, 1973.  \nMinistère de l'information et de la culture, *Les mosquées en Algérie*, Algiers, 1973.  \nRavereau, A., *Le M'zab, une leçon d'architecture*, Paris, 1987.","author":"Ali Lafer","copy_editor":"Margot Cortez","translator":"Maria Vlotides","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["civic architecture","irrigation","M’zab.","religious architecture","Town","water"]},"172c7d19-97b3-552c-8815-9f6af6f53379":{"name":"Pitcher for rose extract (*gulabdan*)","description":"In the past, people poured *gulab* (rose extract) over their hands for purification purposes after eating.","type":"Tableware","holder":"Azerbaijan National Carpet Museum","dates":"Late Hegira 13th / AD 19th century","location":"Baku","dimensions":"Height: 30cm, diametre: 10cm","place_of_production":"Azerbaijan","method_for_datation":"By stylistic and comparative analyses with related material","obtention":"Purchased in 1994","author":"Rustam Afandiyev","keywords":["Azerbaijan","Copper","gulabdan","pitcher","rose extract"],"materials":["copper","engraved"]},"17634e8b-75c4-531c-a525-4f57d46e78f9":{"name":"Bowl","description":"This bowl is a fine example of pottery from the Samanid (AD 819–1005) workshops of eastern Iran. Its design is stark and striking, featuring a single line of Arabic calligraphy that encircles the deep rim. The script, with its elegantly elongated horizontals and sharp-tipped verticals, is an early form of Arabic calligraphy known as New Style Kufic. The bowl's decoration is minimal yet visually compelling, with the inscription reading: “Knowledge is the most noble lineage and chivalry the most intricate.” The inscription’s meaning is elevated by the artistic manipulation of the letters. Through shortening, bending, and elongating, the script is transformed into abstract motifs of remarkable visual impact. The vertical flourishes interspersed among the horizontal flow create a rhythmic interplay that draws in the viewer. Likely used for serving on special occasions, the bowl’s message about the virtues of knowledge and chivalry is particularly apt.","type":"Pottery","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art","owner":"Qatar Museums","dates":"Hegira 4th century / AD 10th century","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Diameter: 27.8cm","place_of_production":"Iran, Khorasan province","provenance":"Iran, Khorasan province","bibliography":"Christie's London, *Art of the Islamic and Indian World*, 2011.","author":"Teslim Sanni","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Earthenware","opaque white glaze with black painting"]},"17822504-ba29-52b3-9e9c-841ecbda9631":{"name":"Plate with seven compartments","description":"The compartments of this serving dish contained spices to improve the flavours of food and enhance the diet. In Iran, when celebrating the arrival of spring, it is customary to present “the seven spices”.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","dates":"Hegira 7th century / AD 13th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 10.5cm, Diameter: 29cm","provenance":"Iran","obtention":"Purchased at auction on advice from Pierre Bergé & Associates, 2003.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["lustre decoration over opaque glaze","Siliceous clay"]},"17d6e18b-8628-5642-bf1b-3e753e6d63d6":{"name":"Painted wooden ceiling of the Palatine Chapel.","description":"The painted wooden ceiling of the Palatine Chapel, erected by Ruggero II immediately after his coronation in 1131, is the only monumental-scale pictorial cycle from the Fatimid period in the Mediterranean basin to have survived in its entirety. The ceiling, made up of star-shaped polygons, is decorated with lively scenes, painted in a clean, clear style with an undeniable Middle Eastern influence, depicting dancing girls, musicians, gamblers, lions and other animals, horsemen and wrestlers, all combined with geometric and vegetal decorations. The polygons are surrounded by inscriptions of good omens in *kufic* script. The band between the ceiling and the walls is decorated with *muqarnas*.  \nThe identification of the craftsmen responsible for the decoration remains the subject of lively debate. G. D’Erme (1995) suggests the persistence of a late Sassanid, early Islamic pictorial tradition probably upheld in the Mediterranean basin over the centuries due to the circulation of collections of figurative models. The extremely cultured artists could have been either descendents of the island’s Iranian conquerors (whose presence in Palermo is confirmed by historical sources) or indeed Iranian Seljuq craftsmen brought to Palermo by the Norman king. D’Erme is inclined to exclude the possibility of craftsmen from North Africa or Cairo.  \nJ. Johns (1995) maintains that the paintings would have been done by a workshop imported at the behest of Ruggero II directly from Fatimid Egypt, challenging the traditional theories according to which the painters were Sicilian Arabs and the chapel ceiling the ultimate expression of the artistic legacy of the island’s Islamic past, now passed on to the new Norman kingdom and used by it for political and ideological ends. Among other things, Johns provides evidence of the close political and cultural links established between Ruggero II and the Cairo Caliphate, through the personal correspondence with Caliph al-Hafiz, the frequent exchange of gifts, the presence of Egyptian diplomatic experts at the Palermo court and the use of the same epigraphic formulas, as in the exquisite Fatimid inscription once in the Palatine Chapel (now in the Abatellis Palace regional gallery) likening the king’s palace to a sanctuary.  \nWith regard to the possible meaning of the pictorial cycle, many academics, drawn by the apparently irreconcilable nature of the secular character of the cycle and its ecclesiastical context, contrive to see a celebration of the pleasures of Qur’anic paradise, often overloading their interpretation of individual figures with religious symbolism when a more simple interpretation would be a joyful celebration of life in the royal court (celebrations that were also common in court culture in the Islamic world) and its earthly pleasures: gambling, drinking, music and hunting. Both Johns (1995) and Aurigemma (2004) interpret the cycle on the basis of this assumption, stripped of symbolic and religious implications, with the latter drawing plausible comparisons between these paintings and their contemporaries on the wooden ceiling of Cefalù Cathedral, also commissioned by Ruggero II.","short_description":"This painted wooden ceiling, produced during the reign of Ruggero (Roger) II, depicts lively scenes of dancing girls, musicians, gamblers, lions and other animals, all set against a background of plant and geometric decoration. The transition from ceiling to wall is softened by *muqarnas* (honeycomb decoration). Recent studies have revealed that the craftsmen employed included painters from Egypt, or at least painters influenced by contemporary Fatimid art.","dates":"Between 1131 and 1140.","location":"Palermo","method_for_datation":"Historical sources report the date the chapel was founded (1131) and consecrated (1140).","bibliography":"Aurigemma, M. G., *Il Cielo Stellato di Ruggero II: Il Soffitto Dipinto della Cattedrale di Cefalù*, Milan, 2004.  \nCruikshank Dodd, E., “Christian Arab Sources for the Ceiling of the Palatine Chapel, Palermo”, in *Arte d’Occidente: Studi in Onore di Angiola Maria Romanin*i, Roma 1999, pp.823–31.  \nD'Erme, G.M., “Contesto Architettonico e Aspetti Culturali dei Dipinti del Soffitto della Cappella Palatina di Palermo”, *Bollettino d’Arte* Series 6, 80, 1995 (1996), 92, pp.1–32.  \nGrube, E., “La Pittura Islamica nella Sicilia Normanna”, in *La Pittura in Italia: L’Altomedioevo*, Milan, 1994, pp.416–31.  \nJohns, J., “I Re Normanni e i Califfi Fatimidi. Nuove Prospettive su Vecchi Materiali”, in *Del Nuovo Sulla Sicilia Musulmana*, Rome: Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei, Rome, 1995, pp.9–50.  \nMonneret de Villard, U., *Le Pitture Musulmane al Soffitto della Cappella Palatina in Palermo*, Rome, 1950.  \nTronzo, W., *The Cultures of His Kingdom: Roger II and the Cappella Palatina in Palermo*, Princeton, 1997.  \n*Siculo-Norman Art: Islamic Culture in Medieval Sicily*, pp.129–32.","patrons":"King Ruggero (Roger) II.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_IT_EN_001","author":"Pier Paolo Racioppi","translator":"Laurence Nunny","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["figurative decoration"]},"183d0851-83f1-5a08-b1d0-f8ac2812cc73":{"name":"Spoon","description":"The spoon's rim and handle are made of black horn with nacre and metal pieces at the end of the handle. The spoon has an oval shaped rim with a rounded tip. A long cylindrical handle extendsfrom the spout and slightly narrowing towards the end. At the end of the handle is a nacre piece with a floral motif. On the handle there are round nacre and coral pieces.","holder":"Ankara Ethnography Museum","owner":"The Republic of Türkiye Ministry of Culture and Tourism","location":"Ankara","dimensions":"Length: 21.3cm","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["horn","metal","nacre"]},"1a0d6f2a-0a7e-5fdf-98b4-9f6cc792909b":{"name":"Norias (*nawa’ir*) of Hama.","description":"The waterwheel, or *noria* (properly pronounced *na'ura* (singular) and *nawa'ir* (plural)), is an ancient hydraulic structure designed for collecting and distributing water by utilising the power of a running stream. It is also the visual and aural hallmark of the city of Hama, 226 km north of Damascus, straddling the meandering River Orontes. The use of waterwheels in Syria dates to the Classical and Hellenistic periods, possibly even the Nabataean period (2nd century BC–AD 2nd century), and the first visual depiction of a *na'ura* is found on a mosaic from the ancient city of Apamea, 55 km north of Hama, dated AD 469. During the medieval period, however, there was a marked increase of references to *nawa'ir* in Islamic geographical writing, indicating their improved and multiplied development.  \nUnder the Seljuq sultanate and their various Atabeg, Zangid and Ayyubid vassals, when Syria's cities witnessed robust urban development, the *nawa'ir* of Hama received special attention. Nur al-Din Mahmud bin Zangi went on a rebuilding campaign after the earthquake of AH 551 / AD 1157, which included the restoration of Hama's water system and *nawa'ir*.  \nThe earliest of the surviving *nawa'ir* are attributed to the Ayyubid period (late AH 6th – 7th / AD 11th - 12th centuries) while the earliest inscribed *na'ura* tower, named al-Muhammadiyya, dates to the Mamluk period in AH 763 / AD 1361. This is also one of the two largest *nawa'ir* of the city: 21 m in wheel diameter and 17.5 m in aqueduct height. The aqueduct of al-Muhammadiyya is particularly long as it supplies water for the Great Mosque quarter, nearly a kilometre away from the banks of the River Orontes. The second largest *na'ura*, also 21 m in diameter and known as al-Mamuriyya, is early Ottoman, dated AH 867 (1453).  \n*Nawa'ir* are constructed basically in two parts: the mobile wheel, usually made of poplar wood, and the static aqueduct, usually made of stone. The wheel consists of a group of broad beams fixed perpendicularly around the axle, creating a quadrangular formation in the centre, and radiating out towards the wheel's periphery. These beams are held together by circular frames and further supported by more beams that are nailed in at successive angles. At the periphery of the wheel are paddles that facilitate the wheel's circular movement and compartments (*sanadiq*) that collect the water. Given that the wheel is largely a wooden construction, its beams need regular maintenance and changing every 15 years or so.  \nStone constructions, like the aqueduct for transporting water and the small dam controlling the river's water level, are also part of the *noria's* successful construction. The aqueduct is a tall rectangular receptacle standing parallel to the wheel and designed to be as wide as possible in order to receive maximum water per rotation. Attached to this receptacle is the long duct set on an arcade that serves the adjacent areas, providing them with water for domestic and irrigation purposes. On average, a *na'ura* can raise 50 litres of water per second, and irrigate no less than 75 hectares.","short_description":"The city of Hama is famous for its waterwheels, or *norias*, which charmingly dot the meandering River Orontes, which passes through the city. The technique for building these waterwheels is an ancient one, but remarkably effective and still in use. The wheels are typically made of poplar wood, requiring regular maintenance, while their supportive structures, like aqueducts and dams, are made of stone. The dimensions of the total hydraulic construction are inter-related, depending on each other to collect the maximum amount of water efficiently and ensure its most effective distribution.","dates":"Hegira 6th–10th century / AD 12th–16th century.","location":"Hama along the Orontes River.","method_for_datation":"Some *nawa'ir* are dated by inscriptions but mostly by approximation based on archaeological evidence and historical sources. Recent excavations that have taken place under water are proving that most *nawa'ir* have ancient origins and have been continuously restructured throughout the ages.","bibliography":"Burns, R., *Monuments of Syria: An Historical Guide,* 1999, pp.126–9.  \nDelpech, A., et al, *Les norias de l'Oronte: analyse technologique d'un éléments du patrimoine syrien,* Damascus, 2005.","author":"Waal Hafian","copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["Hydraulics","Orontes River","urban architecture","water supply"]},"1b55ef6a-0fb1-56d2-9274-4f0775c2cee9":{"name":"Austrian toy theatre set: 'The Caravan to Mecca. The Halt in the Desert' by Trentsentsky","short_description":"With a desert landscape backdrop and cut-out figures on wooden stands, this toy theatre uses intricate detail and imagination to depict the stopping of a pilgrim caravan. With 45 cut out figures and with an original box, the set was made by Matthias Trentensky (1790–1868), a retired army officer and printer who became the Austrian Empire’s foremost maker of toy theatres. Miniature theatres based on popular plays were common in the 19th century particularly in Europe, although this theatre may have been produced as a result of the increasing fascination with the Arab world at the time. The artist is likely to be Theodor Jachimovicz who studied painting at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna and worked as a theatre stage painter for the State Opera House. Trentensky exported his toy theatres to England through the London company A&S Joseph Myers and Co. of 144 Leadenhall Street, importers of French, German, Swiss and Italian goods and toy merchants. It has been suggested that the theatres produced for London may be of better quality than those for the Austrian market. Other theatres produced for A&S Myers included those closely related to English themes, such as contemporary pantomimes. The collection also holds an uncut version of the theatre, a complete set of 24 plates with 168 illustrations.","type":"Toy; theatre","holder":"Khalili Family Trust – Hajj and the Arts of Pilgrimage Collection","dates":"Around early 1800s AD","location":"London","dimensions":"ARC.mx 570 box: 21x27.5x4cm, ARC.pt 401: 25x40cm","method_for_datation":"Tentensky began lithographic printing in 1815","provenance":"Europe","author":"Qaisra Khan","keywords":["camel","Childhood","Children","geography","hajj","Hijaz","Holy place","Ka'ba","Mecca","Medina","Mosque","Paper","pilgrimage","prayer","Prophet Muhammad","Qur'an","Religion","theatre","travel","Traveller"],"materials":["Paperboard"]},"1bd4ddad-a3bc-5a69-8b22-cef129e37f47":{"name":"Figurine","description":"Animal figurines were a short-lived phenomenon of the late 12th to 13th centuries AD in Syria and Iran. The cow or bull figure was especially popular, but in Iran it was made to function as a vessel with a filling spout in the back and an open mouth through which the liquid poured, whereas in Syria the trend was for figurines with a purely decorative function. However, as the basic form of the cow would have been moulded – suggesting that multiple versions of the same figure were made – the function of these decorative figurines remains a mystery. The present example is rendered with perfect naturalism. It can be identified as a zebu cow and calf. The mother is shown standing while her calf suckles; the hanging dewlap, small hump, swept-back horns and large cloven hooves of the breed are accurately modelled. This breed is indigenous to Syria, and would have been what people saw in the fields of the Euphrates Valley.","type":"Pottery","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art","owner":"Qatar Museums","dates":"Hegira 7th century / AD 13th century","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Height: 29.1cm, length: 37.2cm","place_of_production":"Syria","provenance":"Syria","bibliography":"Google Cultural Institute, *Google Art Project*, 2012.  \n  \nSotheby's London, *Arts of the Islamic World, including Fine Carpets and Textiles*, 2008.","author":"Tara Desjardins","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Stonepaste painted under transparent turquoise glaze"]},"1e36e46d-3a70-5c50-9e85-b70b2c3e4435":{"name":"Lahri (grain silo).","description":"During the reign of Sultan Mulay Isma'il, tribes often paid their taxes in kind, in particular with grain. The silos used to store the produce paid as taxes occupied a preferential position in the layout of royal towns and constituted an indispensable food reserve for supplying towns.  \nControlling these reserves was a strategic priority for the ruling body, especially during times of conflict and drought.  \nFor this purpose, Sultan Mulay Isma'il had a vast grain silo constructed, the Lahri, near to his palace. Its walls are built of pink adobe, a mix of clay earth, lime and stones, with occasional stone ashlars.  \nThe monument extends over an area measuring 182 m by 104 m. It rests on 305 arches and 23 south–east / north–west naves, giving an impression of depth and equilibrium.  \nComposed of a series of relatively cramped rooms around a spacious central room (26.30 m by 10.70 m and 9 m to the ceiling), the building was used to store foodstuffs and the fodder needed for the 12,000 horses of the royal stud farm. A central avenue is still maintained all the way to the rear wall. The pillars supporting the semi-circular arches, 3 m in diameter, divide the room into 18 rows and 23 naves, originally covered with barrel vaults. This part of the monument is particularly impressive. A large space was reserved for the mules who brought the grain from different areas of the country.  \nIts very thick walls maintained a constant temperature for the preservation of the foodstuffs. Moüette, who was a prisoner in Morocco for 11 years and who participated in the construction of Isma'il's *kasbah*, speaks of walls 30 spans, or 7 m, thick.  \nThe silo is now in partial ruin. A tower, which used to house cannons and other instruments of war to protect the royal palace and the *medina*, dominates the upper part.  \nIn the AH 12th / AD 18th century, the building was abandoned following the 1755 Lisbon earthquake, which affected the town of Meknès and destroyed part of this monument.  \nNow restored, the silo is a highlight of the 'Alawid heritage of Meknès.","short_description":"Built in the AH 11th / AD 17th century during the reign of Sultan Mulay Isma'il on a site measuring 182 m by 104 m, these vast rectangular structures were in fact underground granaries whose vaults and ceilings have collapsed. Supported on a series of 22 arcades of 14 arches each, these silos adjoin the west walls of the House of the Norias, and dominate the Sahrij Swani. These granaries were used to store foodstuffs, in particular wheat, as a contingency for sieges and wars. They have been recently restored.","dates":"Hegira 11th–12th centuries / AD 17th–18th centuries.","location":"Meknès.","method_for_datation":"John Windus, who came to Meknès to arrange the purchase of captives on behalf of King George I, described it in 1720.","bibliography":"Barrucand, M., *Urbanisme princier en islam: Meknès et les villes royales islamiques post-médiévales*, Paris, 1985.  \nMoüette, M., *Relation de la captivité du Sr Moüette dans les royaumes de Fez et du Maroc*, Paris, 1682.  \nTerrasse, H., *Villes impériales du Maroc*, Grenoble, 1937.  \nWindus, J., *A Journey to Méquinez*, London, 1725.  \n*Andalusian Morocco: A Discovery in Living Art*, p.79–81.","patrons":"Sultan Mulay Isma‘il (r. AH 1083–1140 / AD 1672–1727).","author":"Mohamed Mezzine","copy_editor":"Margot Cortez","translator":"Laurence Nunny","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["granary","security","Silo"]},"1f5849a0-4eae-5275-9603-dfe4acb6e862":{"name":"Ewer (*ibrik*).","description":"A ewer (*ibrik*) with a pear-shaped body, a handle and a spout decorated with plant motifs and inscription friezes. The shoulder of the ewer is filled with a frieze written in *naskhi* script. A second frieze, formed of plant motifs, appears directly below. Further inscriptions in *naskhi* script are found on the neck and spout. The floral motifs and inscriptions adorning the ewer are embellished with silver leaf, while the frame of the inscription on the shoulder is embellished with red-copper leaf. The inscriptions on the shoulder and spout wish glory, fame, success and long life to the owner of the vessel. This ewer is of great importance both as a dated example of Mesopotamian work and because its inscriptions provide the names of two Mosul craftsmen.","short_description":"Mosul was an important centre of Islamic metalwork during the Zangid period. This centre had a great influence on the technique and style of Artuqid metalwork in Anatolia. The inscription states that it was made by a master called 'Iyas of Mosul. It has the characteristics of its period.","type":"Ewer, metalwork","holder":"Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts.","dates":"Hegira 627 / AD 1229.","location":"Sultanahmet, Istanbul","dimensions":"Height (without lid) 39 cm; diameter (of base) 16.5 cm; maximum diameter 20 cm.","method_for_datation":"An inscription on the neck states that the ewer was made by 'Iyas, the assistant of master Abd al-Karim ibn al-Turabi of Mosul' in 627 / 1229.","obtention":"Brought from the tomb of Süleyman Pasha in Gelibolu on 11 December 1911.","bibliography":"Erginsoy, ü., *İslam Maden Sanatının Gelişmesi*, Istanbul 1978.  \n  \nölçer, N. *et al, Museum of Turkish and Islamic Art,* Istanbul, 2002, pp.78–9.","author":"Alev Özay","translator":"Barry Wood","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["brass","calligraphy","ewer (ibrik)","floral decoration","inscription","naskhi","vegetal decoration","zangids"],"materials":["Cast and engraved brass inlaid with red-copper and silver."]},"21047089-512d-5bfc-bf75-ac1b87ba6c5e":{"name":"Engraved cup","description":"Whether banned by the Muslim religious or celebrated by mystics for intoxication that approaches the divine, wine is praised by the poets, who compare its colour and bouquet to the beauty of the beloved.","type":"Glassware","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","dates":"Hegira End of 3th century-end of 4th century / AD 10th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 9.3cm, Diameter: 9.7cm","provenance":"Iran","obtention":"Purchased at auction on advice of Claude Boisgirard, 2002.","bibliography":"Delpont, E., et al., *Album du musée*, Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, 2012: 387.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["Engraved glass"]},"21515d04-3a00-5d77-8767-38df44429375":{"name":"Tall Abu Sarbut.","description":"Tall Abu Sarbut is located in the Central Jordan Valley about 70 km northwest of Amman, 1.5 km from Dayr Alla. It is a low hill that measures 250 m east to west and about 125 m from north to south. The highest point of the tall is at 252 m below sea level.  \nThree seasons of archaeological investigations were conducted at the site between 1988–90 as a joint venture between the Department of Antiquities of Jordan, the University of Leiden and the Netherlands Institute for the Near East. The main objective of the project was to verify the nature and the extent of the site.  \nArchaeological excavations uncovered a large Mamluk multi-roomed building with courtyards. In one of the courtyards a bread oven (*tabun*) was found. The walls were built of sun-dried mud bricks on stone foundations. The walls and the floors were plastered. Archaeological investigations demonstrated that the site was an important part of the sugar-production industry in the area; the sugar industry being a main source of revenue in the Jordan Valley during the Mamluk period. The nature of the archaeological finds discovered during the excavations showed that the site was not associated directly with the actual refinery of sugar but it was an important storage and distribution centre for the sugar that was produced in the area.","short_description":"Tall Abu Sarbut is located in the Central Jordan Valley about 70 km northwest of Amman. It is a low hill that measures around 250 m x125 m, and its highest point is 252 m below sea level. It has structures built of sun-dried mud bricks on stone foundations. The site was an important part of the sugar-production industry in the area; the sugar industry being a main source of revenue in the Jordan Valley during the Mamluk period. Although not associated directly with the actual refinery of sugar, it was an important storage and distribution centre for the sugar that was produced in the area.","dates":"Hegira 8th–9th centuries / AD 14th–15th centuries.","location":"Central Jordan Valley","method_for_datation":"The monument was dated by analysis of the material remains comprising mainly ceramics discovered during the course of archaeological investigations at the site, which dated the site to the 7th–9th / 14th–15th centuries.","bibliography":"Haas, H., et al, “First Season of Excavations at Tall Abu Sarbut, Jordan Valley”, Preliminary Report, *Annual of the Department of Antiquities of Jordan*, XXXIII (1989), pp.323–6.  \nHaas, H., et al, “Second and Third Seasons of Excavations at Tall Abu Sarbut, Jordan Valley”, Preliminary Report, *Annual of the Department of Antiquities of Jordan*, XXXVI (1992), pp. 335–43.  \nMusil, A., *The Northern Hegaz, New York, 1926.*  \nPeterson, A., *Early ottoman Forts on The Hajj Route in Jordan*, unpublished MA thesis, University of Oxford, 1986.  \nYassine, K. H., *The Archaeology of Jordan, Essays and Reports*, Amman, 1988, pp.187–206.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_EG_EN_001","author":"Mohammad Najjar","copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["Industrial site","Jordan Valley","mud bricks","stone foundations","sugar production"]},"21645a7b-fc42-55ef-a2ec-27424e1c67fc":{"name":"Tile Plate","description":"The surface is covered in white clay and slip decorated in cobalt blue, coral red and green with black contours under a transparent colourless glaze. The plate’s surface is decorated with symmetrically distributed branches of tulips and red carnations with blue spots rising vertically from a single stem. Two tulips and carnations in the centre of the composition are held in place by a bracket. The composition is embellished with tulip and carnation buds, small stylised flowers, with cobalt blue Chinese-style clouds interspersed throughout the design. The use of bud and clover motifs in the decoration of plates was common during this period. A narrow border of white half-rosette flowers with red centres is framed by cobalt blue inside the rim. A double tulip and open rose motif alternate on the back.","type":"Utensil","holder":"Istanbul Archaeological Museums (The Tiled Kiosk)","dates":"Hegira 982-987 / AD 1575–1580","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"Diameter: 30.2cm, height: 5.1cm","place_of_production":"İznik/Bursa","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Glazed terracotta/Tile"]},"22d721a5-3840-5af9-8c84-912b213423e2":{"name":"Citadel of Amman (Water Reservoir).","description":"Within the Umayyad Citadel to the east of the palatial complex is a round water cistern, 6 m deep with a diameter that exceeds 17.5 m, and which could hold up to 1300 cu m of water. This cistern was the most important source of water at the Citadel. It was fed through inlet channels connected to a system for the collection of rainwater. These channels and the associated settling tank are partially preserved to the west of the cistern. Some earlier architectural elements including columns, shafts and capitals were incorporated into the wall of the cistern as building materials, such as the shaft of a stone column which was placed in the centre of the cistern and re-used as a depth gauge. The base and the walls were covered with a thick layer of hydraulic plaster which can still be seen. Stone steps along the western side lead down into the cistern. This access was necessary in order to clean the interior from the debris collected with the run-off water and to prepare the cistern for the rainy season. A deep well adjacent to the cistern from the north may be part of the water installations necessary to feed water to the bath complex located to the west of the citadel. This round cistern is closely related architecturally and stylistically to the local tradition of rectangular cisterns, despite the superficial similarity to the round Aghlabid cisterns found at Kairouan Tunisia","short_description":"The water cistern on the Amman Citadel lies to the east of the Umayyad palatial complex. It is round, 6 m deep with a diameter of over 17.5 m, and could hold up to 1300 cu m of water. This cistern, fed by inlet channels connected to a rainwater collection system, was the most important source of water at the Citadel. Some earlier architectural elements were incorporated into the cistern wall, and a column shaft was re-used as a depth gauge. The interior was covered with a thick layer of hydraulic plaster. Stone steps along the western side led down into the cistern.","dates":"Around hegira 110 / AD 728.","location":"Amman","method_for_datation":"By way of archaeological excavations within the palatial complex the cistern was dated to around 730 / the first half of the eighth century AD.","bibliography":"Almagro, A., “El Palacio Omeya de Amman”, in *La Arquitectura*, Madrid, 1983.  \nCreswell, K. A. C., and Allan, J. W., *A Short Account of Early Muslim Architecture*, Cairo, 1989, pp.169–73.  \nKhouri, R. G., *Amman: A Brief Guide to the Antiquities*, Amman, 1988, p.17.  \nKoutsoukou, A., et al, *The Great Temple of Amman: The Excavations*, Amman, 1997, pp.16–18.  \nNorthedge, A. E., *Studies on Roman and Islamic Amman*, Vol. I., Oxford, 1992, p.152.","patrons":"Hisham ibn ‘Abd al-Malik (105–25 / AD 724–43).","linkcatalogs":"IAM_JO_EN_001","author":"Mohammad Najjar","copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["Amman Citadel","bath complex","hydraulic plaster","palatial complex","water gauge","water installations"]},"2381cf08-bf5c-5cdf-8287-59a5e7134b2e":{"name":"Dish with cover","description":"This is an example of a lidded copper plate, dated and bearing the name of its owner, al Sayyid-Muhammad ibn […]`Alî.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","dates":"Between 1775 and 1776","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 17cm, Dimension: 24.3cm","provenance":"Tunisia","obtention":"Purchased at 'Art Musulman' gallery in 1987.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["and engraved","champlevé","embossed decoration","Tinned copper"]},"23d6b4ee-6380-5185-a38f-672a711e7d14":{"name":"Shaykh Safi al-Din asking his disciples to accept honey from the villagers but not meat  \nFrom the manuscript of *Safvat al-Safa* (The Quintessence of Purity), the Hagiography of Shaykh Safi al-Din Ishaq Ardabili (1252/3–1334)","short_description":"“Shaykh Safi al-Din asking his disciples to accept honey from the villagers but not meat” is one of fourteen paintings in the only known illustrated copy of *Safvat al-Safa* (The Quintessence of Purity), a tazkira and hagiography of Shaykh Safi al-Din Ishaq Ardabili (1252/3–1334). *Safvat al-Safa* gives detailed information about the life, sayings, virtues, and miracles of Shaykh Safi, the spiritual founder of the Safavid dynasty (1501–1736). *Safvat al-Safa* is a biography book with hagiographical accounts which falls under both genres. In Islamic literature, the term \"tazkira\" is used for biographical texts and \"hagiography\" is used for books on the lives of the mystics. *Safvat al-Safa* includes actual information on the life of Shaykh Safi al-Din Ishaq Ardabili as well as mystical and supernatural stories. It appears to have been the main source of the Safavid chroniclers for the early period of the dynasty, as there are numerous copies and translations. Safvat al-Safa has an introduction (*muqaddima*), twelve chapters (*bab*), and an epilogue (*khatima*). Each chapter has numerous sections (*fasl*) which include multiple short episodes (*hikayat*).","type":"Manuscript","holder":"Aga Khan Museum","dates":"Heigra Sha'ban 990 / September 1582 AD","location":"Toronto, Ontario","dimensions":"35.2 x 22cm","provenance":"Iran, Shiraz","obtention":"Former Prince Saddrudin Aga Khan Collection","keywords":["folio","manuscript","painting","Safvat-al-Safa","The-Quintessence-of-Purity","work-on-paper","works-on-paper"],"materials":["and gold on paper","Ink","Opaque watercolour"]},"2461a3b5-4ba8-5298-867c-456770c4b426":{"name":"Bowl","description":"Bowls are among the most important copper artifacts in Omani hospitality. They are usually either wholly circular or circular with a channel and include various decorative designs. They may serve to either hold the cups in which Omani coffee is served, or as basins for guests to wash their hands.","type":"Metalwork, copper","holder":"The National Museum - Sultanate of Oman","dates":"Hegira 13th–14th/AD 19th–20th century","location":"muscat, Sultanate of Oman","dimensions":"Height: 6.5cm, diameter: 13cm","provenance":"Northern Oman","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["copper"]},"255f45d9-17b4-565e-8c90-1983dbce43f3":{"name":"*Majlis* Carpet","short_description":"This large-scale textile is termed the *majlis* (council) carpet. Handcrafted in Hamdan from wool and camel hair utilizing the Seneh knot, it represents the spatiality of the Gulf-Arab \"sitting place\". The *majlis* unites notions of privacy and hospitality appearing to be incompatible in one entity.  \n  \nWhile the carpet would have stretched from one corner of the *majlis* to the other with design elements such as the paisley, damascene rose, diamond-shapes and symmetry characteristic of Persian carpets, the discrete sections of the textile embody the different spatial components of the room. The outer segments reflect sitting positions of the head of the household, the family, friends and guests. The centrepiece would offer room to dance, perform music, play board games or display food and coffee. It would have stretched from one corner of the *majlis* to the other.  \n  \nDue to the cost of these large pieces of art, merchants began cutting apart the separable sections and selling fragments to decorate hallways and corridors. Only few of such majlis carpets may still be reassembled into their original composition.","type":"Carpet; Rug","holder":"FBQ Museum","owner":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"19th century","location":"Shahaniya","dimensions":"Length: 430cm, Width: 340cm","place_of_production":"Iran, Hamedan","method_for_datation":"Date and origin were derived from material, colour, pattern and knot examination.","method_for_provenance":"Date and origin were derived from material, colour, pattern and knot examination.","provenance":"Iran","obtention":"Purchase","bibliography":"Asmi, R., \"Finding a Place to Sit\", *Anthropology of the Middle East*, 11 : 2 (2016): 18-38.  \nSobh, R. and Belk, R., \"Domains of Privacy and Hospitality in Arab Gulf Homes\", *Journal of Islamic Marketing*, 2 : 2 (2011): 125-137.  \nSobh, R. and Belk, R., \"Privacy and Gendered Spaces in Arab Gulf Homes\", *Home Cultures*, 8 : 3 (2011): 317-340.","author":"Sarah Schroeder","copy_editor":"Valerie Pulsifer","keywords":["Arabian Gulf","carpet","Hamadan","Hamdan","Iran","Majlis","rug"],"materials":["camel hair","Senneh knot","wool"]},"26f69a41-3873-5f60-92a8-ec686e31453e":{"name":"Lunch Box","description":"This brass box, inlaid with silver, was intended for holding food. It is rectangular with rounded ends and a coffered lid. The lid is secured by a central, frontal clasp terminating in a teardrop finial, flanked by two additional clasps on the sides and a curving handle secured by two rings on top. The body is divided into three horizontal zones. The central band bears an Arabic inscription written in bold thuluth script interrupted by four eight-petalled swirling rosettes, while the upper and lower bands are comparatively plain, containing only four rosettes and eight knotted arabesques. The inscription across the centre reads: “*umila birasm al-janab al-’ali al-maulavi al-imami al-muthaghiri al-mujahidi mawlana ‘izz al-dunya wa-al … al-din nasrallaha*”, (Made by order of his great Excellency, the lordly Imam, the defender of frontiers, the striver for the faith, our lord ‘Izz al-Dunya wa’l \\[-Din\\] … al-Din, may God grant him victory). Another box in the Museum of Islamic Art in Cairo bears a similar style of inscription, stating that it was made in Sana’a, Yemen. This attribution points to a similar place of production for the present box.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art","owner":"Qatar Museums","dates":"Hegira 9th century / AD 15th century","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Height: 17.8, length: 28cm","place_of_production":"Egypt or Yemen","provenance":"Egypt or Yemen","bibliography":"Christie's London, *Islamic Art and Manuscripts*, 2000.  \nQatar Museums, et al. MIA Collection Online, 2013.","author":"Tara Desjardins","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Hammered brass inlaid with silver"]},"2778ce78-5836-53cd-89f8-bb048bc613b1":{"name":"Bottle with stamped design","description":"The overall shape of the object consists of four distinct parts: neck, handle, and upper and lower hemispheres of the body. The decoration, of great complexity, consists of patterns frequently found on jewellery, which gives the impression of a goldsmith’s work transposed to clay. Included in this profusion are roundels framing a bird downed by a hawk or passing lion, twisted columns topped with discs in the shape of flowers, fish, lotus buds, palmettes, and palm trees, circular marks…  \nIt is a utilitarian but decorative piece intended for pouring water in apartments or reception rooms.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","dates":"Hegira 5th-6th century / AD 12th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 15.5cm, Diameter: 7cm","provenance":"Syria or Iraq","obtention":"Purchased on advice from Couturier-De Nicolay, 1989.","bibliography":"Atil, E., *Renaissance of Islam. Art of the Mamluks*, Washington: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1981: 128.  \n  \nBaer, E., \"Jeweled Ceramics from Medieval Islam: a Note on the Ambiguity of Islamic Ornament\", *Muqarnas, an Annual on Islamic Art and Architecture*, vol. VI (1989): 83-97.  \n  \nDelpont, E., et al., *Album du musée*, Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, 2012: 291.  \n  \nMoulierac, J., et al., *Céramiques du monde musulman: collections de l'Institut du monde arabe et de J.P. et F. Croisier* , Paris: Institut du monde arabe, Paris, 1999: 44.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["on-wheel and stamped design","Unglazed clay"]},"27f79699-e917-57d4-9288-b307d6f5229b":{"name":"*Mahbes* floral bowl","description":"This bowl, *mahbes*, has a *tawq* (collar) and lotus flower design. It is intended for washing, salted meat preparation, bread dough, or couscous. Beginning in the 18th century, workshops in Qallaline, Tunisia, reached an apogee, marked by a mastery of colour and a variety of compositions.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","initial_owner":"Alain and Dalila Loviconi","dates":"Hegira 11th-12th century / AD 17th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 23cm, Diameter base: 26cm, Diameter maximum: 39cm","provenance":"Qallaline, Tunisia","obtention":"Gift from Alain and Dalila Loviconi in 1994.","bibliography":"Daoulatli, A., *Poteries et Céramiques tunisiennes*, Tunis: Institut National d'Archéologie et d'Art, 1979: 69, Fig. 29.  \n  \nDelpont, E., et al., *Album du musée*, Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, 2012: p. 294.  \n  \nHarbi-Riahi, M., *30 ans au service du patrimoine : XXVIII centenaire de Carthage, 814 av. J. C. - 1986: de la Carthage des Phéniciens à la Carthage de Bourguiba*, Tunis: Institut National d'Archéologie et d'Art, 1986: 306, Fig. V.47.  \n  \nLoviconi, A. and Loviconi D., *Faïences de Tunisie : Qallaline et Nabeul*, Aix-en-Provence: Edisud, 1994: 46, 74.  \n  \nMouliérac, J., et al., *Céramiques du monde musulman : collections de l'Institut du monde arabe et de J.P. et F. Croisier* , Paris: Institut du monde arabe, 1999: 150.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["Clay","design painted under glaze"]},"27f89076-7ab0-561d-a64d-238a0e99fb26":{"name":"Bottle with bulbous neck","description":"This ceramic bottle with a long neck with ovoid spout has a shallow moulded and incised decoration under glaze. A gadroon frieze (ornamental series of convex forms) belts the shoulder.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Museum of the Arab word Institute","dates":"Hegira end of 7th century - beginning of 8th century / AD end of 13th century - beginning of 14th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 34.5cm, Diameter: 20.5cm","provenance":"Iran","obtention":"Purchased at auction on advice from François de Ricqlès, 1998.","bibliography":"Moulierac, Jeanne, et al., Céramiques du monde musulman: collections de l'Institut du monde arabe et de J.P. et F. Croisier, Paris: Institut du monde arabe, Paris, 1999: p. 21.  \n  \nDelpont, E. (et al.), *Album du musée*. Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, Paris, 2012:, p. 343.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["moulded design under monochrome glaze","Siliceous clay"]},"28485e93-6aee-597e-b6d4-519ba9eeb8e4":{"name":"Caucasian Rug","short_description":"Although the Ummayad and Abbasid caliphates overthrew the Iranian empires in the Caucasus and Azerbaijan, the cultural influence of Persia remains. This Caucasian carpet displays a blend of influences from Islam and pre-Islamic Persia.  \n  \nPrimary colours from natural dyes typically brighten carpets from the Shirvan region with blue likely representing water as a life's source. The symmetry in these textiles creates harmony with repeated shapes such as the *kubpa* (hexagonal medallion) with tooth-like edges and diamonds to protect from the evil eye.  \n  \nBright colours and geometric figures adorn this rug with abstracted religious symbols. The *mehrab* (arched prayer niche) denotes the direction toward toward which Muslims pray, Mecca. The upper end of the carpet displays the date, 1281 Hegira (1864 AD). Two chequered rectangles resemble a chess board, which suggests a possible alternative use for this carpet for entertainment during travels.","type":"Carpet; Rug","holder":"FBQ Museum","owner":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"1864 AD / 1281 Hegira","location":"Shahaniya","dimensions":"Length: 130cm, Height: 110cm","method_for_datation":"The date can be read on the upper side of the carpet, while the origin was derived from an examination of material, colour, pattern and knot.","method_for_provenance":"The date can be read on the upper side of the carpet, while the origin was derived from an examination of material, colour, pattern and knot.","provenance":"Caucasus, Daghistan, Shirwan","obtention":"Purchase","bibliography":"Bier, C., *Carpets For Commerce: Rug-Weaving In The Caucasus. Proceedings of The Textile Society of America Biennial Symposium*, 1990: 166-177.  \nBoggs, J., *Carpets as Signifiers of Historical Change: The Azerbaijani Carpet Industry from the Mid-nineteenth to Late Twentieth Century*, Senior Theses, University of South Carolina, 2011: 394.  \nGoswami, K. K., \"Developments in Handmade Carpets: Introduction\", in K.K. Goswami (ed), *Advances in Carpet Manufacture*, Duxford: Woodhead Publishing, 2018: 213-268.  \nMast, T. M., *Ruglore and Ruglife: A folkloric Study of Oriental Rugs, Rug Weaving and Rug Scholarship with a Focus on Turkey and the Caucasus*, Dissertation, University of Pennsylvania, 1995.","author":"Sarah Schroeder","copy_editor":"Valerie Pulsifer","keywords":["carpet","Caucasus","Mehrab","rug"],"materials":["Ghiordes knot","wool"]},"29f83378-fe07-5531-90be-4912dbf80f0f":{"name":"Coffee Cup","description":"Tile red in colour and in the shape of a Bektashi headdress.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Ankara Ethnography Museum","owner":"The Republic of Türkiye Ministry of Culture and Tourism","location":"Ankara","dimensions":"Height: 5cm, diameter: 5cm","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["Terracotta"]},"2a96e20e-2325-5bea-be93-cd4c4d73eac0":{"name":"Citadel of Salah al-Din al-Ayyubi.","alternate_name":"Citadel of the Mountain (Qala’a al-Jabal).","description":"The Citadel of Salah al-Din al-Ayyubi, known also as Citadel of the Mountain (Qala'a al-Jabal), is one of the most important landmarks of Cairo and amongst the most imposing military citadels to be built in the Middle Ages. Having assumed power in Egypt Salah al-Din al-Ayyubi (Saladin) noted that despite its grandeur and vastness Cairo did not have a citadel to protect her like other great cities in the Levant such as Damascus and Aleppo. He therefore began to construct the citadel, ordering construction of its walls, semi-circular towers and its two gates: Bab al-Qarafa and Bab al-Mudarraj. Saladin's son, Al-Malik al-‘Adil (r. AH 596–615 / AD 1200–18) completed the building of the citadel and surrounded some of the towers with outer encasing towers, in order to increase their impregnability, these included three towers: Burg al-Imam, Burg al-Ramla and Burg al-Haddad. He also added two square towers: Burg al-Turfa and Burg al-Karkialan. These works were completed in AH 604 / AD 1207.  \nIn its present form the citadel is a great city, the borders of which are marked by massive walls and towers. It is divided into two parts: the northeastern section and the southwestern section. The northeastern section represents the citadel's military fortifications. It is confined inside an irregular rectangular area whose length from east to west measures 560 m and whose width from north to south is 317 m. The walls of this section are in proportion to each other due to the fact that they were built in, and are associated with, a single period.  \nThe southern side of the wall of the northeastern military section begins with Burg al-Muqattam, from the western side. This is a circular tower, dating back to the Ottoman period. Next is the Burg al-Suffa a quasi-rectangular tower, adjacent to which is the square tower, Burg al-Karkialan. This tower is followed by another, square tower, Burg al-Turfa. The southern side ends in the east with a circular tower, Burg al-Mubalat. The eastern side consists of four circular towers: Burg al-Muqawsar, Burg al-Imam, Burg al-Ramla and Burg al-Haddad. The northern side is composed of two great quasi-circular towers: one of which is Burg al-Sahraa, and the other does not have a name. On the western side of this section there is a gate, Bab al-Mudarraj, and the shared wall between the northern military section and the southern residential section.  \nThe walls of the citadel are 3 m thick and their height from within the citadel averages 10 m. The heights of the towers increase at times to over 20 m. A passageway leading to narrow, square rooms passes through the walls, the width of which measures about 90 cm. The towers contain rectangular chambers. There are two side-rooms in each tower in the form of two arms; the rooms have slits for shooting arrows. This section of the walls was built in a relatively short period of time that did not exceed seven years (AH 572–9 / AD 1176–83).  \nThe southwestern section of the citadel still preserves the features of a royal city resplendent with palaces and mosques. A successive number of rulers participated in building it, from the period of Saladin to the period of the Ottoman Pasha Muhammad Ali (r. AH 1220–64 / AD 1805–48). This section occupies an irregular surface area, which is slightly smaller than the area of the military, northeastern section. The greatest distance in it from north to south reaches 510 m, and from east to west 270 m. Al-Malik al-Kamil bin al-‘Adil (r. AH 615–35 / AD 1218–37) is considered to be the first to transfer the seat of government and administration to the citadel in AH 604 / AD 1208 during his occupation of the position of deputy (to his father) of the sultanate in Egypt. The Citadel of Salah al-Din al-Ayyubi continued to be the seat of government for close to seven centuries until Khedive Isma'il made the 'Abidin palace located outside the citadel the official seat of his rule in the year AH 1276 / AD 1874.  \nThe style used in the construction of the citadel walls and towers follows those used in the building of the walls of Fatimid Cairo in AH 480 / AD 1087, seen in features such as the attention paid to the alignment of stone, as well as the use of interlocking voussoirs seen in Bab al-Mudarraj, and the projecting balconies of Burg al-Haddad. However, new architectural elements also appear in the Citadel, such as the circular towers. There is a similarity between the architectural components of Citadel of Salah al-Din al-Ayyubi and those which are specific to two citadels in Jordan: the Citadel 'Ajlun (built AH 580 / AD 1184) and Citadel al-Kark which, incidentally, was restored by al-Malik al-‘Adil.","short_description":"This citadel is one of the most important Islamic monuments in Cairo, standing proudly through the ages since its foundation by Salah al-Din (Saladin) on an outcrop of Muqattam Hill to the east of the city. A defensive fortress against the Crusaders, it served also as a residence for the rulers in times of unrest and continued as such until the time of Khedive Isma‘il in 1874 when he built ‘Abidin Palace to be his seat of rule. The citadel was divided within its walls into a military area and a residential area.","dates":"Hegira 579 / AD 1184.","location":"Cairo","method_for_datation":"This building was dated based on two epigraphic inscriptions bearing the name of the builder and the date of construction. The first inscription is on Bab al-Qarafa and bears the date, 576 / 1180; the second is on Bab al-Mudarraj and bears the date, 579 / 1184. Historical sources such as that by Maqrizi, *al-Khitat,* and *al-Nujum al-Zahira* by Taghri Bardi, confirm the validity of these dates. Further information with regard to dating can be found in Combe *et al*, detailed in the bibliography.","bibliography":"Abu al-Mahasin, *Jamal al-Din Yusuf ibn Taghri Bardi al-Atabki* (d. 874 / 1469), *Al-Nujum al-Zahira fi Muluk Misr wa al-Qahira \\[Shining Stars in the Rulers of Egypt and Cairo\\],* Cairo, 1939; reprinted 1956.  \nAbu-Lughod, J., *1001 Years of the City Victorious*, Princeton, NJ, 1971.  \nCasanova, P., “Histoire et Description de la Citadelle du Caire”, *Mémoires de la Mission Archéologique Française du Caire*, No. 6, Paris, 1897.  \nCombe, E., Sauvaget, J., and Wiet, G. *Répertoire Chronologique *d'épigraphie* Arabe*, Vol. 9, Cairo, 1931.  \nLyster, W., *The Citadel of Cairo: A History and Guide,* Cairo, 1993.  \nMackenzie, N., *Ayyubid Cairo: A Topographical Study*, Cairo, 1992.  \nRabbat, N., *The Citadel of Cairo,* Geneva, 1989.  \nZaki, Abd al-Rahman, *Qala'a Salah al-Din al-Ayyubi wa ma hawlaha min al-Athar \\[Citadel of Salah al-Din al-Ayyubi and the Monuments Surrounding it\\],* Cairo, 1971.","patrons":"Al-Malik al-Nasir Salah al-Din al-Ayyubi (also known as Saladin, r. AH 564–89 / AD 1169–93).","author":"Tarek Torky","copy_editor":"Majd Musa","translator":"Amal Sachedina (from the Arabic).","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["citadel.","military architecture","tower","wall"]},"2bb20c6b-1cd4-5c87-a1f5-c0764436f8b3":{"name":"*Taḏkerat al-Awliāʾ by Farid-al-Din ʿAṭṭār Neishabouri* (Social Gathering for Entertainment in Meadow)","description":"The *Taḏkerat al-Awliāʾ*, in which Farīd al-Dīn Attār (Hegira 618 / AD 1221) narrates stories of the saints, begins with the chapter devoted to Ja'far al-Sādiq and ends with Hallāj al-Mansūr. The work contains information about the lives of 72 individuals, including Imām al-ʿĀzam, Imam Shāfi'ī, Ahmad b. Ḥanbal, Weysel Karānī and Rābia al-Adawiyya, and their stories and sayings. Each person is allocated a chapter, and the word *zikr* (remembrance) is placed at the beginning of each chapter. The work is written in Persian in *taliq* calligraphy on paper. On pages 1b-2a an entertainment scene is depicted that covers the entire page, while on pages 2b-3a the first section is written in two facing medallions. The work contains 27 miniature scenes depicting various parables. The outer edges of the medallions are embellished with a profusion of *simurgh* birds (benevolent mythical creatures) and a variety of floral motifs crafted in the *ringar* technique. The chapter headings are illuminated in a style characteristic of the period.","type":"Manuscript","holder":"Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts","dates":"Hegira 11th century/ AD 17th century","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"35cm x 24cm","place_of_production":"Iran","obtention":"Brought to the Museum on 13 April 1914  from the Sadreddin Konevi Tomb in Konya.","materials":["Finished (aharli) paper","Ink","leather binding"]},"2beef8e7-b877-5cfe-9c4a-0c073bef5099":{"name":"*Khameer wa Dibs* (Leavened bread and date molasses)","description":"Leavened bread and date molasses","type":"Bread","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century / AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Bread varies. Diameter: 120mm, thickness: 5mm; Date molasses (*dibs*) is liquid.","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Amanda Snyder","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["Bread","Dibs"]},"2c11d15b-86e5-562f-bbfd-ef12cbbb45f1":{"name":"İmaret Mosque","description":"","type":"","dates":"","bibliography":""},"2c1e6a09-4e26-51fb-a7ae-7206e8f1288d":{"name":"Tray (*sinija*)","description":"The term *sinija* (Tr. *sini*) relates to a large round brass or copper tray that functioned as a low table on which food was served.  \nThis artefact is a large, circular brass tray with stepped flat rim. The central medallion is decorated with incised geometric arabesque filled with intricate scroll ornamentation. It is further encircled by several narrow and broader bands decorated in the same manner of combining different geometric shapes with vine and scroll patterns.","type":"Tableware","holder":"Museum of Applied Art","dates":"Hegira 13th century / AD 19th century","location":"Belgrade","dimensions":"Diameter: 825mm, weight: 4250g","place_of_production":"Persia","method_for_datation":"By stylistic and comparative analysis with related material.","obtention":"Purchased in 1951.","bibliography":"Karamehmedović, M. A., *Umjetnička obrada metala*, Sarajevo: Veselin Masleša, 1980: 186–187.","author":"Mila Gajić","keywords":["brass","Persia","sinija","Tableware","Tray"],"materials":["brass","Engraving","hammering"]},"2d3a9974-408a-5de5-bdff-8cfdae9e0b29":{"name":"*Akbarnama*","short_description":"The Mughal emperors ruled India for more than three centuries. Akbar (r. 1556–1605), the third emperor, was the longest ruling and is considered the greatest of them all. His biography is known as the *Akbarnama* (‘Book of Akbar’) and is an official, imperial biography written by the emperor’s close friend and associate, Abu ’l-Fazl. Begun in 1598, it took almost ten years to complete the text. Two illustrated copies of the text were produced during Akbar’s lifetime, this being the later of the two. In the numerous illustrations that accompany the text, Akbar is portrayed as a powerful, dynamic and highly heroic figure, much as he seems to have been perceived by his contemporaries.","type":"Manuscript","holder":"The Chester Beatty Library","dates":"Hegira c. 1008–12 / AD 1600–03","location":"Dublin","dimensions":"43.5 x 26.8 cm","provenance":"India","catalogue_holding_link":"https://viewer.cbl.ie/viewer/image/In_03/1/LOG_0000/","keywords":["battle","ceremony","court","Elephant","figural decoration","Illustration","Jesuit","manuscript","miniature painting","Religion","royal","warfare"],"materials":["coloured pigments and gold on paper"]},"2de63d8c-14d0-5261-834c-c9e9983b302a":{"name":"*Al Hammath* (Sorrel), *Rumex Pictus*","description":"The leaves of this plant were eaten with dried fish and white rice. People still collect and eat the leaves following the annual rainfall. The plant was also valued for its therapeutic qualities, specifically its use as a pain reliever.","type":"Sorrel","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"Hegira 15th century / AD 21st century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Varies and depends on the piece. Length: 55mm, Wwidth: 55mm","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Field collection","author":"Amanda Snyder","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["desert","hammath","rumex pictus","sorrel"]},"2e402c4d-0004-5e48-84c2-e6f4b24d7d3e":{"name":"Bowl with dark brown slip and white slip decoration","short_description":"This earthenware bowl was covered in a dark brown slip before receiving an as yet unread, white floriated *kufic* inscription – possibly containing blessings. The secondary motifs evoking a textured background and rim, may suggest that the bowl was inspired by a metal prototype. Vessels like this have been associated with Nishapur and Afrasiyab.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Sharjah Museum of Islamic Civilisation","dates":"Hegira 4th century / AD 10th century","location":"Sharjah","provenance":"Iran, probably Nishapur","keywords":["bowl","calligraphy","ceramic","inscription","kufic"]},"2f89b9bc-9361-56b1-82d3-0071ee525367":{"name":"*Oomah* (Sardine Fish)","description":"*Al Ooma*, sardines were fried before being eaten, or more often dried and crushed into a fine powder and eaten with rice. They were also used as fertilizer and livestock fodder.","type":"Sardine","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century / AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Varies, Length: 70mm","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","author":"Amanda Snyder","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["fish","sardine"]},"2fe554a9-e532-5b15-814f-963ca40c1b1c":{"name":"Small water-basin.","description":"On the broad border of this wide basin there are depicted, between four round medallions, scenes of courtly pleasure hunts. Three riders are shown in every scene, undertaking various hunting practices. The hunters are fighting in tournament, armed with lances, swords, bows and arrows. One rider is accompanied by a hunting cheetah on a horse. These illustrations represent a view of an idealised life. Images of riders and hunters refer not only to the riding abilities of the princes, but also to the courage, strength and perseverance of the rulers. Depictions of hunters with falcons and leopards could be referring to the immense wealth of the rulers. Only rulers such as these could afford to keep and train such expensive hunting animals, only they could hold such lavish hunting parties. This princely lifestyle reached its height during the Mamluk period. The underside of the basin is decorated with plaited bands, and arabesques, vines and birds fill the spaces in between. The decoration is finished in gold and silver inlay. The precious metal decoration gives the brass receptacle a multicoloured appearance and rich tone.  \nThe coat of arms of Amir Sumul Abu’l-‘Izz, who belonged to the retinue of the ruling Sultan al-Nasir Muhammad bin Qalawun, is set at the centre of each of the round medallions. It can be only guessed that Abu’l-‘Izz commissioned the basin on the basis of a fragment of inscription. Abu’l-‘Izz and his brother Salar, viceroy of Egypt, rebelled against the Sultan and were captured and imprisoned in 1310. At the bottom of the basin, two well-wishing inscriptions are addressed to the person who commissioned it, whose identity remains unclear. Sumul Abu’l-‘Izz’s name could have been inscribed here. If it had, the basin would have been dateable to between AH 693 and 710 / AD 1293 and 1310.","short_description":"The design of this brass water-basin with gold and silver inlays shows a frieze with riders hunting or at a tournament. They are separated by four medallions holding a coat of arms typical of the Mamluk nobility. The basin was commissioned for a Mamluk *amir*.","type":"Basin, metalwork","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art at the Pergamon Museum","initial_owner":"Sumul Abu’l-‘Izz.","dates":"Around hegira 700 / AD 1300.","location":"Berlin","dimensions":"Height 10 cm, diameter 21 cm.","method_for_datation":"The coat of arms suggest that the basin belonged to the patron Sumul Abu’l-'Izz. He was in the service of the Mamluk Sultan al-Nasir Muhammad bin Qalawun from 693 to 710 (1293–1310).","method_for_provenance":"The Mamluk coat of arms, which establishes the identity of the basin’s patron, points towards Egypt as the country of origin.","provenance":"Cairo, Egypt.","obtention":"As a donation from the Berlin collector Friedrich Sarre, who bought it in 1897.","bibliography":"Hagedorn, A., *Die Blacas-Kanne: Zu Ikonographie und Bedeutung Islamischer Mettallarbeiten des Vorderen Orients im 13. und 14. Jahrhundert*, Münster, 1992, pp.127–33, 152–3, no. 162.  \nMayer, L. A., “Three Heraldic Bronzes from Palermo”, *Ars Islamica* 3, 1936, pp.184–6.  \n*Museum für Islamische Kunst*, Catalogue, Mainz, 2001, p.76.  \nSarre, F., *Erzeugnisse Islamischer Kunst*, Part 1, *Metall*, Berlin, 1906, no.64.  \nWard. R., *Islamic Metalwork*, London, 1993, 71–93.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_EG_EN_001","author":"Annette Hagedorn","translator":"Maria Vlotides","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["amir","Basin","brass","inlay","Mamluk"],"materials":["brass","silver and gold inlay."]},"30c59814-d0f8-5ae7-87c8-2350a319fd1f":{"name":"Men meeting in a guesthouse","description":"The coffee fireplace is located on the narrow side of the guesthouse near the entrance door, and coffee pots of various sizes adorn its cornice. Guests are offered bitter coffee as soon as they enter the typically one-room building. The pot of coffee is ready and needs only to be heated.  \nIf necessary to support the guesthouse, villagers bring coffee beans or coffee powder from the nearest town. Bitter coffee is also served in private households on happy and sad occasions, such as religious feasts and funerals. The use of these guesthouses in rural northeast Syria corresponds to that of the urban room type *diwan* in Damascus, the *qa’a* in Aleppo, the *mudif* in southern Iraq, and the *mafraj* in Yemen.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Karin Pütt","initial_owner":"Karin Pütt","dates":"Hegira 1408 / AD 1988","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Al-Hazima/Syria","method_for_provenance":"Direct contact","provenance":"Al-Hazima /Syria","bibliography":"Ababsa, M., “La madâfa à Raqqa : mutation d’un lieu de sociabilité tribale en attribut de notabilité citadine”, Géographie et cultures, L’Harmattan, 2001, 17-36.  \n  \nNippa, A., “Haus und Familie in arabischen Ländern”, 1991, 57.  \n  \nPütt, K. Article “Guesthouse”, *Encyclopedia of Vernacular Architecture of the World*, Paul Oliver (ed), vol 1, “Theories and Principles”, 668.  \n  \nPütt, K., “Zelte, Kuppeln und Hallenhäuser – Wohnen und Bauen im ländlichen Syrien“, Petersberg, 2005, 162.","author":"Karin Pütt","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Slide"]},"30cafd37-23c3-561f-9f01-a12c90b5d8b6":{"name":"Base for a tray (*sinija*)","description":"The *Sinija* (Tr. *sini*) is a large, round tray made of copper or brass. It was used for serving food or as a floor dining table – a *sofra* (Tr. *sofra*). tTherefore it had an important place in the shared living culture of the Ottoman Balkans among urban populations of different confessional and ethnic backgrounds. The diameter of *sinijas* sometimes reached 1–2 meters or more. When used as a floor dining table, the *sinija* was placed on a wooden or iron base. Valued for their craftsmanship, locally produced or imported *sinijas* have also found a place in the interiors of the modern age as wall decor or top parts of decorative side tables placed on custom-made bases of different styles.","type":"Table","holder":"Museum of Applied Art","dates":"Hegira late 13th–early 14th century / AD late 19th–early 20th century","location":"Belgrade","dimensions":"Height: 34.5cm, width: 34.5cm","place_of_production":"Ottoman Empire","method_for_datation":"By stylistic analysis, material, technique, and analogy with other similar examples","obtention":"Purchased in 1954.","author":"Ana Samardžić","keywords":["carving","floor dining table","Ottoman Balkans."],"materials":["carving","turning","Walnut"]},"315346db-710f-5c89-a554-c7db806dc960":{"name":"Ram mould.","description":"A ram-shaped mould made from two equal parts to form the body, and another small piece that forms the head. There are four hinged joints: one on its back, one on the top of its head and two at its feet. The horns of the ram are clearly visible behind the ears.  \nThe object seems to have functioned as a special kind of mould used for shaping bread or cake for children. Another mould in the shape of an elephant was found along with this one.  \nThe ram has particular significance for Muslims. It is mentioned several times in the Qur'an in for instance, *sura* 'Al Saffat' (chapter 37, verses 102–7), where the story of Abraham's sacrifice of his son Isaac is related and how ultimately Abraham sacrificed a ram in place of his son. Within the Muslim festival calendar is that of Eid Al-Adh'ha (Greater Bairam) when a ram is sacrificed, along with other animals such as a camel, a cow or a lamb.  \nRams are also a feature of the mosaic floors found in Jordanian Byzantine-period churches. The ram is also evident on the mosaic floor of the Umayyad palace, Qasr Hallabat. A number of Islamic-period metalwork pieces are made in the form of animals.","short_description":"A cast iron mould shaped in the form of a ram from the Umayyad palace of al-Fudayn. It was found along with another mould in the shape of an elephant and they were probably meant to produce bread or cakes for children. Metalwork representing animals is common in early Islamic art.","type":"Mould, metalwork","holder":"Jordan Archaeological Museum.","dates":"Hegira 2nd century / AD 8th century.","location":"Amman","dimensions":"Height 17 cm, width: 16.5 cm, depth 6 cm.","method_for_datation":"The object was dated by its location in the archaeological strata and also in association with pottery located close to it which was characteristically Umayyad.","method_for_provenance":"The provenance is unknown, but the mould was probably produced in Syria.","provenance":"Hallado en al-Fudayn.","obtention":"The mould was obtained as a result of an excavation which was carried out in al-Fudayn, a site located 70 km northeast of Amman, where an Umayyad palace and a mosque were discovered.","bibliography":"Humbert, J. B., \"El-Fedei-Mafraq”, in *Contribution française à l'archéologie française jordanienne*, Amman, 1989, pp.125–31.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_JO_EN_001","author":"Aida Naghawy","copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["Abraham","metal","mould","Ransom Story"],"materials":["Cast iron."]},"315f5403-c2b3-5aaf-8a31-139f4ec1548a":{"name":"*Reposadero* or vat-base","description":"It has a cylindrical, hollow body with a straight base and a square-shaped rim, featuring a hole that would have served as a conduit for drainage. Both the base and the rim are slightly concave, the latter also has a whitish colour that could be interpreted as calcareous remains.  \n  \nThe decoration is concentrated on the wall and consists of an epigraphic frieze between concave mouldings with marked edges. The central frieze is stamped with the inscription al-mulk with a six-pointed star positioned above the “m”.  \nFunctionally, the objects are known as *reposaderos* and served as supports for large water vats, which were both placed either in the courtyard or in domestic interiors. They preserved the water from impurities and kept it fresh, while also collecting any oozes liquid. By the spout of the *reposadero*, the water was transferred to basins or other vessels and could be used for washing hands or for human consumption. Furthermore, the stamped decoration, which repeats the word \"*al-mulk*\" or \"the power\", alludes to prophylactic practices of protection and praise of God.","type":"*Reposadero* or Vat-base","holder":"National Archaeological Museum","initial_owner":"Unknown","dates":"Second half of Hegira 6th century / AD 12th century","location":"Madrid","dimensions":"Height: 13cm, mouth diameter: 27cm, Base diameter: 23.5cm","place_of_production":"Al-Andalus","method_for_datation":"Art-historical and archaeological studies have demonstrated the proliferation of different types of *reposaderos* in the domestic environments of al-Andalus from the end of the Hegira 6th / AD 12th and beginning of the Hegira 7th / AD 13th centurycenturies, following oriental models (Navarro 1995). This coincides with the generalisation of stamped decoration on ceramics for everyday use.","provenance":"Málaga","obtention":"In the Museum's collection before 1980.","bibliography":"Fernández López, M. Á., “El ajuar cerámico andalusí de almacenamiento de agua en la región de Murcia”, in L. Cara Barrionuevo (ed), *El agua en zonas áridas. Arqueología e historia. Hidráulica tradicional de la provincia de Almería*, Instituto de Estudios Almerienses, 1989: 199-225.  \n  \nNavarro Palazón, J. and Jiménez Castillo, P., “Maquetas arquitectónicas en cerámica y su relación con la arquitectura andalusí”, in J. Navarro Palazón (ed.), *Casas y palacios en Al-Andalus: siglos XII-XIII*, Madrid: Lunweg, 1995: 287-230.","author":"Helena Lahoz Kopiske","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","keywords":["Conservation","Household goods","Prophylactic practices","Technology","water"],"materials":["Ceramic","firing","modelling","stamping"]},"32d8b057-33a0-5b68-b4bf-587d420f1185":{"name":"Ford Model-T popcorn car","description":"This extraordinary truck popularised popcorn, an American movie snack. The Columbia Buddy Company converted one of three Ford Model-Ts into a popcorn vending machine on wheels. Besides fresh buttered popcorn made with the original popcorn equipment, this crimson red vehicle would sell ice-cold sodas and roasted peanuts. Special-purpose vehicles were not unknown, as model-Ts were also transformed into ambulances and fire trucks. The popcorn wagon presented a unique marketing and entertainment opportunity within a charming circus-like aesthetic.","type":"Cardamom","holder":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani Museum","owner":"His Excellency Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"Hegira 1330 / AD 1912","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Length: 511cm, height: 280cm, width 191cm","place_of_production":"USA, Detroit, Michigan","method_for_datation":"Based on research.","method_for_provenance":"Based on research.","provenance":"USA","obtention":"Purchased","workshop":"Ford Motor Company","author":"Marc Martinez","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["car","circus","entertainment","food","Ford","movie","peanut","popcorn","soda","truck"],"materials":["chemicals","glass","leather","magnet","metal","Paint","rubber","spray-paint","Wood"]},"33362f44-34f0-5545-a2a1-056208f5dff6":{"name":"Sahrij Swani (Basin of the Norias).","description":"According to the Meknès historian Ibn Zaydan, Mulay Isma'il had an ornamental lake, large enough to sail pleasure boats on, built inside the *kasbah*. In fact, the 'Alawid prince, a contemporary of Louis XIV, had this lake constructed to guarantee the supply of water, in times of siege or drought, to the palaces and mosques of the town, as well as to the public baths, homes, gardens and the orchards that surrounded the town and provided for its daily fruit and vegetable requirements.  \nThe masterpiece of the complex known as Hri Swani, the Basin of the Norias, Sahrij Swani, is an artificial lake notable for its size (148.75 m by 319 m with a depth of 3.20 m). Three tall crenellated walls that stood around the lake have today been reduced to an isolated section of rampart located on the southwest side towards the Bani Ahmad district and the remains of the base of an enclosure wall more than 2 m thick.  \nThe size of the lake is reminiscent of the lakes of the Middle Atlas mountains located to the south of the town. The lake was filled from two sources:  \n\\- Water from the ten wells dug near the Sahrij, below the silo, brought up using ten norias and ceramic channels. Water from the wells was used at times of trouble (war, etc.) and drought.  \n\\- Water from the Wadi Bufekrane which descends from the Middle Atlas mountains, crosses the southern part of Meknès and feeds the lake and part of the town of Meknès.  \nToday the lake attracts tourists visiting the town and also its inhabitants, who come at weekends to cool down during the summer.","short_description":"Located beside the building containing the Meknès grain silos within the enclosure wall of the Royal Palace, the Sahrij Swani lake, or Basin of the Norias, or House of the Ten Norias, was created in the AH 12th / AD 18th century. A rectangular artificial reservoir, like the one at the Menara in Marrakesh, this hydraulic structure was intended to provide water for the buildings and monuments in Mawlay Isma'il's town in times of siege. It was supplied by the ten norias (waterwheels) of the neighbouring building and surrounded by three tall crenellated walls more than 2 m thick. This site has been restored very recently.","dates":"Hegira 11th–12th centuries / AD 17th–18th centuries.","location":"Meknès.","method_for_datation":"Ibn Zaydan provides the approximate date of 1107 / 1695 in *al-Ithaf*.","bibliography":"Barrucand, M., *Urbanisme princier en islam : Meknès et les villes royales islamiques post-médiévales*, Paris, 1985.  \nMennouni, M., *Four ages of urban planning in the town of Meknès* (in Arabic), Rabat, undated.  \nTerrasse, H., *Villes impériales du Maroc*, Grenoble, 1937.  \n*Andalusian Morocco: A Discovery in Living Art*, p.81.","patrons":"Sultan Mulay Isma‘il (r. AH 1083–1140 / AD 1672–1727).","author":"Mohamed Mezzine","copy_editor":"Margot Cortez","translator":"Laurence Nunny","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["channels","lake","reservoir","security","water"]},"336e6afb-8f0e-5f3a-a491-c18e56f13628":{"name":"*Hag Al Layla'* celebration","description":"*Hag Al Layla'* takes place in Sha’ban, the month before Ramadan. On this night, families hand out sweets and nuts – peanuts, almonds, *meez* and *nakhi* (chickpeas) – to the neighbourhood children. The children recite *dua’as* (verbal prayers) as they collect treats inside handmade cloth bags, however, should their neighbour refuse to hand out treats they may express anger toward that person. Traditionally, women give out the sweets, which are kept in a *geffah* (palm leaf basket), while sitting outside their front door. Each child would take care to visit every house in the neighbourhood.","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"In current practice","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","author":"Amanda Snyder","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["hag al layla","ramadan","shaban"]},"33fb43d3-39d9-5067-a872-1b4b9314584b":{"name":"Covered al-Buzuriyya Market","description":"During the Mawlid (Feast of the Birth of Prophet Muhammad), people from all over Damascus rush to buy the first gift of this occasion, the *Mulabbas*, distinguishing the capital from other Syrian cities. This sweet, made of roasted almonds coated with sugar, is linked to the emotional history of the people of the capital because it is white, symbolising new birth, as in the birth of the Prophet. Many shops in the historic Buzuriyya market in Damascus are filled with sweets and chocolates in preparation for Mawlid al-Nabawi. According to one of its makers, the *Mulabbas* industry in Damascus dates back more than 150 years, and its main sales area is centred in the historic Buzuriyya Market.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Christine Delpal","initial_owner":"Christine Delpal","dates":"Hegira 1412 / AD 1992","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Damascus/Syria","method_for_provenance":"Direct contact","provenance":"Damascus/Syria","bibliography":"al-Maliki, M. A., “On Celebrating the Birth of the Prophet”, Imam Ghazali Institute, 2016.  \n  \nRabbat, N., “Ideal-type and Urban History: The Development of the Suq in Damascus”, Gharipour, Mohammad, ed. *The Bazaar in the Islamic City: Design, Culture, and History*. American University in Cairo Press, 2012.  \n  \nZarcone, T., Mevlid Kandili. “La fête de la naissance du Prophète en Turquie”, Nathalie CLAYER et Erdal KAYNAR, “Penser, agir et vivre dans l'Empire ottoman et en Turquie”, Paris, Louvain, Walpole, MA, 2013: 308-320.","author":"Hiba Bizreh","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["black and white","photography"]},"33fcf5d8-adfd-5c10-84bb-8756c9079c6e":{"name":"Coffee set","description":"Set contains tray and six porcelain inner cups with copper handles and saucers.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"National Museum in Kraków","initial_owner":"Muzeum Techniczno-Przemysłowe w Krakowie / Industrial Museum in Kraków","dates":"13th century Hegira / 19th century AD","location":"Kraków","dimensions":"Tray diameter: 34cm","method_for_datation":"Dating and origin based on stylistic grounds and similar pieces from other collections.","method_for_provenance":"Material and technique are characteristic for Turkish metalwork production in this period","provenance":"Turkey","obtention":"Gifted to the Industrial Museum in Kraków by Zdzisław Hordyński in 1920; collection taken over by NMK in 1950.","author":"Monika Paś","keywords":["coffee","Islam"],"materials":["engraved copper","forged","Porcelain","traces of silver plating"]},"3440c04d-68d2-580e-aa99-011805aecccb":{"name":"*Dallah* (Coffee pot), *Mezallah*; serving stage smallest pot","description":"This copper *dallah* goes back to a type allegedly first used in 17th-century Baghdad, and by the 19th century, there were several production centres in the Arabian peninsula. Its design cleverly reflects its functional needs. The broad base ensures stability on the fire or in the sand, whilst the large spout prevents too much coffee sediment from reaching the cup. The lid is purposely weighted to avoid it opening during the pouring process. Throughout the Near and Middle East coffee lay at the heart of social rituals and hospitality, while providing sustenance during chats, debate and political discourse in the many coffee houses in the region. In this light, the quality of the coffee served was an important indicator of both the wealth of the host and status of the guest. In continental Europe, the fashion for coffee was at its height in the 17th and 18th centuries, with coffee houses the preferred meeting places for intellectuals and artists. In Britain, meanwhile, tea soon overtook coffee in popularity, even though certain religious organisations tried to promote coffee houses for the poor in order to steer them away from public houses that primarily sold alcohol.","type":"Coffee pot; *Mezallah*","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"Hegira late 13th – early 14th century / AD late 19th – early 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Length: 283mm, width: 250mm, base diameter: 80mm, opening diameter: 75mm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","method_for_provenance":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Ulrike Al-Khamis","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["coffee pot","dallah"],"materials":["Sheet and cast copper alloy"]},"346fd021-610d-5725-a5ab-51fb974e49fc":{"name":"Coffee preparer and his utensils","description":"The coffee cook usually sits next to the fireplace. The embers might be in a portable fire bowl (*mawqid* or *manqal*), or in a chimney with a smoke outlet built into the guesthouse wall (*fkhayriyya, bakhura, nafila, tafiyya*).  \nThe making and serving of bitter coffee follows certain rules and traditions, among them that the coffee cook serves himself first and drinks in front of the guests. The explanation given for this tradition is that the *qahwaji* wants to control both the quality and temperature of the coffee.  \nThe order in which guests receive their coffee was traditionally fixed, but is not necessarily followed today. The highest-ranking or eldest man received his coffee first, followed by the men sitting to the right of this person to the end of the row, then beginning again with those persons to the left of the highest-ranking person to the last one, who was often seated near the door. During funeral services, and in Damascus today, the coffee will be served counterclockwise from right to left, regardless who sits where.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Karin Pütt","initial_owner":"Karin Pütt","dates":"Hegira 1409 / AD 1989","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Al-Mustafawiyya /Syria","method_for_provenance":"Direct contact","provenance":"Al-Mustafawiyya /Syria","bibliography":"- Myriam Ababsa. “La madâfa à Raqqa: mutation d’un lieu de sociabilité tribale en attribut de notabilité citadine ”, Géographie et cultures, L’Harmattan, 2001, 16.","author":"Karin Pütt","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Slide"]},"34f380b0-4a42-5a73-b60e-c3be05e1e957":{"name":"Bukhara Ewer","short_description":"Fine engravings of Islamic motifs such as plaited bands, rows of ellipses and floral patterns such as rose and palm scrolls cover the pear-shaped body of this copper ewer originating from Bukhara (Uzbekistan), a hub of trade and culture located on the Silk Road. Additionally, the object is engraved with the inscription of the owner’s name - Ibrahim.  \n  \nBecause food is eaten with the hands in Arab and Persian custom, hosts would frequently offer to pour water from this vessel into a guest’s hands in a washing ceremony. Until this day, people in the region may offer an opportunity to clean one’s hands in their home or majlis. Often, guests receive soap and a fresh towel as an act of politeness and hospitality.","type":"Domestic tool","holder":"FBQ Museum","owner":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"17th century","location":"Shahaniya","dimensions":"Length: 15cm, Width: 9cm, Height: 37cm","place_of_production":"Uzbekistan, Bukhara","method_for_datation":"The date and origin were established from a research-based comparison of metalwork of Bukhara.","method_for_provenance":"The date and origin were established from a research-based comparison of metalwork of Bukhara.","provenance":"Uzbekistan","obtention":"Purchase","bibliography":"Baer, E., *Metalwork in Medieval Islamic Art*, Albany: State University of New York Press, 1983.  \nChaffetz, D., *A Journey Through Afghanistan*, Chicago / London: University of Chicago Press, 2001.  \nGray, B., \"Post-Sasanian Metalwork\", *Bulletin of the Asia Institute*, 5 (1991): 59–64.  \nRahmonī, R., Perry, J. R., \"Traces of Ancient Iranian Culture in Boysun District, Uzbekistan\", *Asian Folklore Studies*, 60 : 2 (2001): 295–304.","author":"Sarah Schroeder","copy_editor":"Valerie Pulsifer","keywords":["Bukhara","ewer","metalwork","Uzbekistan"],"materials":["copper","Engraving"]},"34f94cfa-2246-5c81-93dc-34dc25afa481":{"name":"al-Ghuta ash-Sharqiyya","description":"Stainless steel trolleys are used to transport the apricot paste to the drying area in the oasis, where it is spread onto the wooden boards. In this last operation, we find the traditional gestures: the workers coat the board with olive oil, and the boss, the most experienced, spreads the paste with a sure hand and using the old measure *kayl* (about 2.5 kg) of liquid paste.  \nAt daybreak, the apricot paste is left to dry on boards that are placed on the open ground. From the small workshop with rudimentary equipment to today’s industrial enterprise, this vast drying area in full sun remains the essential element of the *Qamr ad-Din* installation. The dough stays in the drying area for several days until it can be peeled off in long dark orange strips at the end of the day. Strips are folded and transported to the workshops, where the second phase of preparing the *Qamr ad-Din* takes place: the dough is cleaned, cut and packaged for the local market or for export.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Anne-Marie Bianquis","initial_owner":"Anne-Marie Bianquis","dates":"Hegira 1320 / AD 2002","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Ghutat Dimashq/Syria","method_for_datation":"Direct contact","provenance":"Ghutat Dimashq/Syria","bibliography":"Al-Dawudi, F., \"L’abricot est ses dérivés dans la région syrienne\", thesis on pharmacy and chemistry, 1960, Damascus (in Arabic).  \n  \nBianquis, A.-M., “Modernisation d'un artisanat traditionnel: la pâte d'abricot dans la ghouta de damas”, *Bulletin d'études orientales*, T. 56 (2004-2005): 301-328.  \n  \nDenker, J., \"'Moon of the Faith:' A History of the Apricot and Its Many Pleasures\", (14 June 2016).","author":"Hiba Bizreh","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Photographic negative"]},"3618877a-1f1a-5330-864f-53d4725fe233":{"name":"*Mokhfia* conical dish","description":"This *mokhfia*, a conical dish on a short pedestal, is polychrome earthenware, with a design known as “turtle”. The example is characteristic of Moroccan ceramics in its shape and decoration.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","initial_owner":"Catherine Dolla","dates":"Hegira 2nd quarter of 14th century / AD first quarter of the 20th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Dimension: 30cm","provenance":"Fes, Morocco","obtention":"Gift of Catherine Dolla.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["Clay","design painted under glaze"]},"36adfe60-d1bb-5d20-835e-c6987c2d3ca0":{"name":"Coffee group","description":"Coffee is always served at the beginning of a visit and is repeatedly offered until guests politely signal that they have had enough by rocking their cup from side to side. In order to keep coffee hot and fresh for unexpected guests it goes through many stages. After roasting and grinding the coffee beans the grains are added to boiling water inside a large *dallah* (coffee pot) called a *khamra*. Next, the liquid is poured into a medium-sized coffee pot called a *taljeemah*. At this stage cardamom seeds, saffron and rose water may be added for flavour. From this jug, the coffee is poured into a serving *dallah* referred to as a *mezallah*, where the coffee is refined and filtered. The server must hold the *mezallah* with their left hand and distribute the *fanayeel* (coffee cups) using the right hand. The coffee should fill less than half of the cup.","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Amanda Snyder","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["beans","coffee","coffee beans"]},"370c5dcb-5b24-584f-9109-fe182b74b751":{"name":"Long-necked amphora","description":"This long-necked terracotta amphora from 19th-century Algeria is a prime example of impressive Kabyle pottery. These large terracotta amphorae are distinguished by their elongated necks, multilinear decorations, and distinctive horned handles.  \nEven today, Kabyle women continue the tradition of coil-building and mould pattern techniques, decorating pottery with intricate geometric designs for household use.  \nSkilled artisans create vessels of diverse sizes and shapes for storing water, milk, and oil, and for cooking and dining. The amphora’s decorative motifs, in black and brick red on a yellow slip, under a glaze, bear profound symbolic significance within Amazigh culture. These patterns, deeply ingrained in the Kabyle tradition, include a distinctive U-shaped design at the centre of the vessel that corresponds to the letter \"ⵓ\" in the Amazigh language, pronounced \"oo\" as in \"moo\". This symbolises either the moon, representing female fertility, or a horseshoe, symbolising fidelity.
The firing process not only ensures the vessel’s durability, but also enhances the vibrant colours of the glazes, showcasing the exceptional skill and craftsmanship of Kabyle artisans. These artefacts speak to the cultural heritage and linguistic richness of the Amazigh people.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani Museum","owner":"His Excellency Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"Hegira 13th century / AD 19th century","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Height: 40cm, length: 20cm","place_of_production":"Algeria","method_for_datation":"The date and origin were established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, techniques, style and analogies.","method_for_provenance":"Provenance was established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, techniques, style and analogies.","provenance":"Algeria","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Mahmoud Saber","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["Algeria","Amazigh","amphora","ceramic","Glaze","Kabylie","pottery","Terracotta"],"materials":["Glazed","painted","Terracotta"]},"3879f402-ef45-5009-af10-a145fd162aa2":{"name":"Bowl.","description":"A bowl on a high foot-ring, painted in lustre on a white clay slip. The interior is decorated with a bold design of a robed and hooded figure, traditionally thought to be a Coptic priest, carrying a lamp or censer. Beside him stands an object often thought to be a cypress tree, but sometimes interpreted as an *ankh* or ‘key of life’ cross, an ancient Egyptian hieroglyphic sign which the Copts adapted for Christian use. The priest’s robe, his lamp, and the tree are all decorated with thin white lines scratched through the lustre to create spirals and other motifs. On the outside of the bowl, the word ‘Sa‘d’’ is written twice in *kufic* script. Oddly, the word is written in reverse, i.e. beginning with the last letter. It is unclear whether the word is a blessing (‘good luck, good fortune’) or whether it is the name of a particular craftsman or workshop. It appears on a group of similar Fatimid ceramics over a number of decades during the reign of the Caliph al-Mustansir (AH 427–87 / AD 1035–94).","short_description":"A footed bowl painted in lustre with a picture of a robed and hooded figure holding a lamp or censer. He is a Coptic Christian priest, and his presence on such a fine object suggests the importance of this community in Fatimid Egypt.","type":"Painted glazed ceramic","holder":"Victoria and Albert Museum.","dates":"About hegira 427–87/ AD 1035–94.","location":"London, England","dimensions":"Height 9.8 cm, diameter 22.1 cm.","method_for_datation":"This bowl belongs to a group of objects which all have the word ‘Sa‘d’ painted on them. These have been assigned to the reign of the Fatimid Caliph al-Mustansir based on comparisons with other media such as textiles.","method_for_provenance":"Cairo was the Fatimid capital and thus the likeliest place that an object of such quality would have been made.","provenance":"Probably Cairo, Egypt.","obtention":"In 1910 the art collector Dikran Garabed Kelekian placed his collection of Islamic ceramics on loan to the V&A.  Fifteen of the finest pieces, including this bowl, were purchased by the Museum (with the assistance of the National Art Collections Fund) after Kelekian’s death.","bibliography":"Caiger-Smith, A., Tin-Glaze Pottery in Europe and the Islamic World, London, 1973, p.37 and plate B.  \n  \nContadini, A., Fatimid Art at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, 1998, p.86.  \n  \nJenkins, M. \"Sa‘d: Content and Context,\" Content and Context of the Visual Arts in the Islamic World (ed. P. Soucek), Pennsylvania and London, 1988, pp.67–75 and fig. 6.  \n  \nSoustiel, J., La céramique islamique, Fribourg, 1985, p.133 no. 148.  \n  \nStanley, T., with Rosser-Owen, M. and Vernoit, S., Palace and Mosque: Islamic Art from the Middle East, London, 2004, pp.118–22.","author":"Barry Wood","copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["Christian themes","figurative decoration"],"materials":["Painted glazed ceramic."]},"388b0d1b-5233-57de-a649-d3f01bcaafa3":{"name":"Lidded Jar","description":"This baluster-shaped pot is typical of imperial Mughal-style production. The decoration includes the traditional Kundan technique, where the stones are foil-backed and set into metal collets using high-carat gold foil, as opposed to being soldered. The technique dates back centuries in India but gained popularity during the Mughal period (AD 1526–1858), where today it remains the most popular method of setting stones. This lidded jar is decorated almost exclusively with green enamel in the champlevé technique, which etches the metal ground with fine lines before applying and fusing the enamel to the surface. Here, a series of fine lines can be seen through the translucent green enamel. The table-cut diamonds are arranged into six foliated panels set with floral sprays. The most unusual decorative feature is the green enamelled flower at the bottom of the base, detailed with petals ascending in size from the centre.","type":"Jewellery","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art","owner":"Qatar Museums","dates":"Hegira late 12th, 13th century / AD 18th, 19th century","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Height: 12.2cm","place_of_production":"India, probably Jaipur or Delhi","provenance":"India, probably Jaipur or Delhi","bibliography":"Christie's London, *Arts of India*, 2003.","author":"Tara Desjardins","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Copper alloy","diamonds","enamel"]},"3b8b9f68-e0cc-5ffc-84c6-1dee91c19a09":{"name":"Nejjarin Funduq.","description":"Although they were constructed almost one century apart, the *funduq* (caravanserai) and *seqqaya* (fountain) of the Place Nejjarine (Carpenters' Square) constitute a single social and civic entity.  \nUsually erected charitably and often as an annex to a mosque, this fountain is unusually connected to a hostel.  \nThe Nejjarin *funduq* occupies an almost regular rectangular space and faces northeast/southwest. It is accessed through a large opening extending onto a straight hallway. Two steps give access to the courtyard. This rectangular courtyard is surrounded on all four sides by galleries that in turn lead to bedrooms of different sizes.  \nThere are two upper floors above the ground floor. The façades of the courtyard are symmetrical.  \nThe building is noteworthy for its large portal (5 m high by 3 m wide) that dominates the square and the building. The composition of the portal is uniform and harmonious. Its decoration is based on a horseshoe arch resting on two full brick pillars set into the wall. This arch is surrounded by a second poly-lobed arch in sculpted plaster, whose spandrels are tiled with *zellij* (small tiles) bearing floral, and epigraphic decoration. Above the arch there is a band bearing an inscription and a succession of arcades in sculpted plaster or wood. The ensemble is crowned by consoles that support a large canopy in sculpted wood. They are marked by series of arches resting on pillars and wooden beams.  \nThe interior, similar to all *funduq*, was restored in 1998 and converted into a museum of woodwork.  \nThe Nejjarin fountain opposite the *funduq*, located near the centre of the square, is a rectangular pool which served as a drinking trough, in particular for the horses of the customers of the *funduq*. Its upper part and the back of the pointed horseshoe arcature that rises behind it are covered with ceramic marquetry. On either side of the arcature, two demi-columns support overhanging wooden lintels and cornices.","short_description":"Al-Nejjarin Funduq is a *caravanserai* built in the AH 12th /AD 18th century by Sultan Mulay Isma'ïl to house the large numbers of passing merchants in Fez. Built on a rectangular site, the *funduq* is noteworthy for its gateway, which dominates the square. The ground floor was used exclusively for stabling, with the guest rooms on the first floor. At the beginning of the 20th century, the *funduq* was used as a police station by the Protectorate. It was recently restored (1998) and turned into a museum of woodwork. It stands beside a beautiful 19th-century fountain.","dates":"Hegira 1123 / AD 1711.","location":"Fez.","method_for_datation":"There are no dates on the monument or the fountain, but classical texts such as Ibn Zaydan's *Ithaf* date the *funduq* to 1123.","bibliography":"Aouni, L.M., “Les monuments de Moulay Ismaïl à Fès”, Actes du colloque Moulay Ismaïl, Meknès, 1995, pp.87–109.  \n*Schéma directeur d'urbanisme de la ville de Fès*, Dossier technique no. IV, Les inventaires, Paris, 1980, p.20.  \n*Andalusian Morocco: A Discovery in Living Art*, pp.123–4.","patrons":"Mulay Isma‘ïl (AH 1083–1140 / AD 1672–1727) for the funduq, Mulay ‘Abd Al-Rahman (AH 1238–76 / AD 1822–59) for the fountain.","author":"Mohamed Mezzine","copy_editor":"Margot Cortez","translator":"Laurence Nunny","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["ceramic","fountain","funduq","hostelry","trade","water"]},"3de78d7d-0ff4-5d07-a1ac-c4173aa7e91e":{"name":"*Peškun*","description":"Hexagonal *peškun* (Tr. *peşkun*) is made of carved walnut wood. It is divided into a bottom middle part with a hexagonal plate in the form of a shelf, making two stories for storing – an upper and a lower plate. Both plates are richly decorated with interlacing floral motifs. In the center of the upper plate, there is a motif of the six-pointed star, while beneath its edges a frieze of trefoil elements is formed. Each of the six vertical sides is divided by a plate into two zones with three openings in the shape of the oriental arch each.  \n*Peškun* is the name of a traditional piece of Ottoman furniture in the shape of a table or stool. It was originally meant for sitting, although it had different purposes throughout history, especially as a decorative table in Balkan oriental interiors of the 19th and of the first half of the 20th century. Over time, the larger table (in the set of usually three pieces,) began to be used as a coffee table, while the smaller ones were used as stools. *Peškun* were ordinarily made of walnut wood, ornamented with incrusted floral and geometric motifs made of mother of pearl and bone.","type":"Table","holder":"Museum of Applied Art","dates":"Hegira late 13th–early 14th century / AD late 19th–early 20th century","location":"Belgrade","dimensions":"Height: 44.5cm, width: 46cm","place_of_production":"Ottoman Empire","method_for_datation":"By stylistic analysis, material, technique, and analogy with other similar examples.","obtention":"Purchased in 1964/65.","author":"Ana Samardžić","keywords":["carving","Ottoman Balkans","peškun","side table","stool"],"materials":["carving","turning","Walnut"]},"3e0c77fe-e569-53cb-a6e6-0d26f3ac626b":{"name":"Coffee pot","description":"This copper pot has been covered in a thin layer of silver and lavishly decorated. Its swelling shape shows the influence of the European Baroque style on the Ottoman decorative arts. Most metal coffee pots were made of cheaper materials such as tinned copper. In richer homes, coffee was served to honoured guests in pots like this one, made of precious metals (or imitations of them) and decorated in the latest taste.  \nThe Ottoman Baroque style developed from the 1740s as artists and designers began to apply non-figurative European motifs to Ottoman forms. It flourished until the 1820s, when new types of European ornament were introduced.","type":"Coffee pot","holder":"Victoria and Albert Museum","dates":"early 19th century","location":"London","provenance":"Turkey","author":"Victoria and Albert Museum"},"3e51e99d-8ff0-545e-95fc-52a15be8b042":{"name":"*A Coffee House in Tophane*","description":"A Thomas Allom composition which appears in the first volume of Robert Walsh’s book *Constantinople and Scenery of Seven Churches of Asia Minor* is *The Coffee-House*. This is an oil copy of the composition by Civanyan. Written by Robert Walsh, who served as the private priest of British ambassador Lord Strangford after 1820, the book was published in two volumes in London in 1838. It includes engravings and the book, which was later published in French, acted as an important visual resource on Istanbul and its engravings were used as models by numerous artists. In the corresponding text, Robert Walsh provides information on the interior organisation and decoration of the coffeehouse and relates various details ranging from making music and smoking pipes to the plays of the *meddah* (storytellers).","type":"Painting","holder":"Pera Museum","dates":"Late 19th century","location":"Istanbul","copy_editor":"Daniel de la Vega"},"3ed0bda5-ca9d-536f-b3ed-1c1519674199":{"name":"The rocky lotus: Sumulutun  \nFolio from the manuscript of *Khawass al-Ashjar* (The Characteristics of Trees)","short_description":"Born around 40 AD in Anazarbus in Cilicia (today’s Turkey), Dioscorides exerted a great influence on scholarship and practice from the Middle Ages until the 16th century. His treatise *De Materia Medica* was first translated into Syriac, a language generally familiar to physicians in the Abbasid empire (750–1258).\\[1\\] The earliest Arabic translation directly translated from a Greek copy\\[2\\] was made by two scholars, Istafan ibn Basil and Hunayn ibn Ishaq, in the mid 9th century in Baghdad under the reign of the Abbasid caliph al-Mutawakkil (r. 847–61).1 Ibn Ishaq was a physician, Arab scientist, and Nestorian Christian. Known as the “master of translators,” he was active in the Bayt al-Hikm (House of Wisdom) in Baghdad.  \nAccording to sources, in 948, Byzantine Emperor Romanus I offered a Greek copy of *De Materia Medica* as a gift to the Umayyad caliph of Cordoba, ‘Abd al-Rahman III (912-961). There is no evidence to suggest a full Arabic translation of this copy was ever made in Cordoba.\\[3\\] In the intervening years, both the Greek text and accompanying illustrations continued to undergo revision as new copies were made.  \nA famous Arabic copy made in the first quarter of the 13th century was widely recopied and distributed and is now dispersed throughout many private and public collections, including the Aga Khan Museum Collection. Known as the Khawass al-Ashjar, it describes the fabrication of medicines from some 500-600 plants; animals, like fish and shellfish; and minerals that serve as the basis for pharmacology in Near Eastern countries and beyond.","type":"Folio","holder":"Aga Khan Museum","dates":"13th Century","location":"Toronto, Ontario","dimensions":"29.6 x 20cm","provenance":"Iraq","obtention":"Former Prince Saddrudin Aga Khan Collection","bibliography":"Notes:  \n\\[1\\] See Saliba, George and Komaroff, Linda, “Illustrated Books May Be Hazardous to Your Health: A New Reading of the Arabic Reception and Rendition of the ‘Materia Medica’ of Dioscorides,” *Ars Orientalis*, 35 (2008): 8.  \n\\[2\\] Ibid.  \n\\[3\\] Ibid., 9.  \n  \nBloom, Jonathan, “The introduction of Paper to the Islamic Lands and the development of the illustrated Manuscripts,” *Muqarnas*, 17 (2000): 17–23. ISBN: 9789004116696.  \nD’Andiran, Gerald, *Early Medicine, from the body to the Stars*, Basel: Schwabe, 2011. ISBN: 9783796527098.  \nGraves, Margaret S. et al. (eds), *Treasures of the Aga Khan Museum: Arts of the Book & Calligraphy*, Istanbul: Sakıp Sabancı Müzesi, 2010: 200–05. ISBN: 9786054348084.  \nSaliba, George and Komaroff, Linda “Illustrated Books May Be Hazardous to Your Health: A New Reading of the Arabic Reception and Rendition of the ‘Materia Medica’ of Dioscorides,” *Ars Orientalis*, 35 (2008): 6–65.","keywords":["folio","plants","science","science-and-learning","work-on-paper","works-on-paper"],"materials":["and silver on paper","Ink","Opaque watercolour"]},"3f16b552-d46e-5615-93a4-6d3aa09a3cdd":{"name":"Ewer.","description":"A ewer made of copper and inlaid with silver. Decorated with ornamentation and inscriptions in *naskhi* script; the text reads: 'The honourable Excellency, Tabtaq. Glory to his triumph'. Blazons decorate the surface of the ewer, bearing depictions of a goblet, thereby alluding to the position of cupbearer. Adorning the upper section of the ewer's body is a decorative band featuring a series of prominent roundels inside each of which is depicted a pair of confronting birds. The mouth is decorated with vegetal motifs and is equipped with a two-hinge cover and a strainer, which sits inside the mouth. The spout of the ewer has three decorative bands: the middle one carries propagandistic inscriptions in the *naskhi* script, while the other two are adorned with diamond-shaped units filled with vegetal motifs. The name on the ewer dates back to Amir Tabtaq, one of the elite officers of al-Malik al-Ashraf Khalil, who ruled from AH 689–93 / AD 1290–4. Tabtaq was Governor of the City of Qus in Upper Egypt during the third reign of the Sultan al-Nasir Muhammad ibn Qalawun (r. A.H. 709–41 / AD 1309–40).  \nThe crafting of ewers was an industry that flourished in Iran; it then transferred to Iraq and from there to Egypt, during the Ayyubid and Mamluk periods. The different forms of ewers and the roles that they played were manifold; they were used to pour water for bathing, for hand-washing, or for *wudu* (obligatory ablutions before prayer). However, ornamental ewers were used to decorate the palaces and houses of *amirs* and sultans.","short_description":"The importance of this ewer stems from its fine decoration. It bears the name of Amir Tabtaq, a follower of Sultan al-Nasir Muhammad, and a cup blazon, the emblem of his post as cupbearer. Ewers came to Egypt and Iraq from Persia and took many shapes. They were used in palaces and houses for bathing, hand-washing and obligatory ablutions.","type":"Ewer, copper","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art","dates":"Hegira 709–41 / AD 1309–40.","location":"Cairo","dimensions":"Height 40 cm, diameter (of base) 15 cm; diameter (of mouth) 10 cm.","method_for_datation":"The ewer is dated based on the name that it carries: Amir Tabtaq, who was one of the officers of al-Malik al-Ashraf Khalil, and the Governor of the City of Qus, during the third reign of the Sultan al-Nasir Muhammad ibn Qalawun (r. A.H. 709–41 / AD 1309–40).","method_for_provenance":"The ewer was crafted in Egypt, specifically for Amir Tabtaq, a fact verified by the inscription. Furthermore it was uncovered during an archaeological excavation in the Egyptian City of Qus. Likewise, the technique of inlay used is typical of the style that flourished in Egypt during the Mamluk period.","provenance":"Egypt.","obtention":"This piece was uncovered during the course of archaeological excavations in the City of Qus in Egypt in 1966.","bibliography":"Abd al-Razzaq, A., “Al**\\-**Runuq ala 'asr Salateen al-Mamalik \\[Blazons in the Period of the Mamluk Sultans\\], *Mijala al-Jam'iya al-Tarikhiya \\[Journal of the Historical Association\\],* 21, Cairo, 1974.  \nAtil, E., *Renaissance of Islam: Art of the Mamluks,* Washington D.C., 1987.  \n\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_, et al, *Islamic Metalwork in the Freer Gallery of Art*, Washington D.C., 1985.  \nMusilhi, S., *Adawat wawani al-Matbakh al-Ma'adaniya fi 'Asr al-Mamluki \\[Metal Implements and Tools of the Kitchen During the Mamluk Period\\],* thesis, University of Cairo, 1983.  \nStierlin, H., and Stierlin A., *Splendours of the Islamic World: Mamluk Art in Cairo (1250–1517),* London, New York, 1997.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_EG_EN_001","author":"Muhammad Abbas Muhammad Selim","copy_editor":"Majd Musa","translator":"Amal Sachedina (from the Arabic).","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["blazon","Copper","epigraphic decoration","ewer","inlay","inscription","naskhi script","Propaganda"],"materials":["Copper inlaid with silver."]},"3f5acf05-17af-5634-925f-1feecdda3b69":{"name":"Tray (*sinija*)","description":"The term *sinija* (Tr. sini) refers to a large circular brass or copper tray, that functioned as a low table on which food and beverages were served.  \nThis large, circular plate is decorated with the court life theme. In the center of the composition is a large scene depicting the ruler on the throne, surrounded by courtiers, servants, musicians, and dancers, with small tables with jugs and cups. The central scene is encircled with small medallions with seated human figures in each of them. The background is filled with floral and vegetal patterns, as in the case of the next decorative band. In that band, there are twelve roundels with alternately combined court life scenes and inscriptions – verses from Omar Khayyam's Rubaiyat and Ghazaliyat of Hafiz. Next to the raised sides and lobbed rim is the last decorative frieze, with medallions with, again, seated human figures and animals.  \nInscriptions in medallions:  \nرد هد یم لعل هلل نوگ یا ( یقاس  \n1  \nاشگب ز یولگ هشیش نوخ یا ( اس )  \n2  \nزورماک نورب ز ماج یم تسین  \n3  \nکی مرحم کاپ نوردنا یا  \n4  \nب زور هعقاو مغ اب بارش دیاب و ( تفگ  \n5  \nهک دامتعا هب سک تسین رد نینچ (ز ینم )  \n6","type":"Tableware","holder":"Museum of Applied Art","dates":"Hegira 12th century / AD 18th century","location":"Belgrade","dimensions":"Diameter: 655mm, weight: 4490g","place_of_production":"Persia","method_for_datation":"By stylistic and comparative analysis with related material.","obtention":"Purchased in 1951.","bibliography":"Karamehmedović, M. A., *Umjetnička obrada metala*, Sarajevo: Veselin Masleša, 1980: 162–164.","author":"Mila Gajić","keywords":["Copper","Persia","sinija","Tableware","Tray"],"materials":["brass","Engraving","hammering"]},"3fb68c28-e2b3-5087-9283-6b67b63e3936":{"name":"Wellhead","description":"Wellhead in the shape of an external octagonal and internal semicircular prism, made of sifted reddish clay on which various decorative motifs have been stamped and complemented with green glaze. On a circular and smooth base, a prismatic shape rises, which is reinforced by the moldings that vertically decorate each of the walls, ending at the top with lobed modillions. Two decorative motifs alternate on its eight fronts. The first consists of a decoration of quadrilobed flowers included in a rhomboidal pattern, in the manner of the sebka network, all glazed in green and bordering its contours with manganese oxide. The second has a trilobed arch, whose central lobe is a sharp pointed horseshoe arch, and which houses a decoration with a mirror pseudoepigraphic motif ending in palmettes that end in a twisted stem. It ends, under the mouth of the border, with two borders: the lower one with a stamped seven-point star decoration, on which three bands with incised zig-zag lines and a central one with knife-corded thread, and the upper one contains a inscription in florid Kufic, transcribed by Sahwki Zayed (2015) as *at-tawfiq*, \"The Providence\", repeated five times on each side of the octagon. The presence of this inscription is confirmed in numerous Almohad works, and is common in the Merinid and Mudéjar works, but not in the Nasrid works. Its upper edge, thickened on the outside and rectangular in profile, is octagonal and smooth.  \n  \nSuch wellheads can be understood within the broader development of water management systems in al-Andalus. Methods and objects were introduced and disseminated to optimise the water usage, an essential resource that significantly shaped everyday life. As part of these innovations, systems for water collection, distribution, and storage were devised. Among these, wells played a key role in accessing underground water, and wellheads such as this one were installed both in public spaces and in domestic courtyards.","type":"Wellhead","holder":"National Archaeological Museum","owner":"Spanish State","initial_owner":"Unknown / Daniel Aguilera Camacho (owner of the Córdoba house)","dates":"Hegira 6th–7th century / AD 12th–13th century","location":"Madrid","dimensions":"Height: 70cm, inside diameter: 55cm, outside diameter: 70cm","place_of_production":"Córdoba (attributed)","method_for_datation":"The techniques of stamping and the *cuerda seca* technique (original and innovative technique, created in al-Andalus at the end of the 10th century that will continue to be used in later centuries), become widespread and reach their best expression in the AH 6th - 7th / AD 12th–13th centuries. Decorative motifs such as stars are frequent in pieces from the Almohad, Mudejar and Nasrid periods, throughout the AH 6th - 8th / 12th–14th centuries.","method_for_provenance":"The stamping and the dry rope techniques (which were created in al-Andalus at the end of the 10th century and would continue to be used long afterwards) became widespread and reached their best expression in the Hegira 6th–7th / AD 12th–13th centuries. Decorative motifs such as stars are frequent in pieces from the Almohad, Mudéjar and Nasrid periods throughout the Hegira 6th–8th / AD 12th–14th centuries.","provenance":"House No. 6, Ambrosio de Morales Street, Córdoba.","obtention":"Bought from the antique dealer Apolinar Sánchez Villalba in 1943.","bibliography":"Galván, M. L., “Brocal de pozo morisco”, in *Adquisiciones del Museo Arqueológico Nacional (1940-1945)*. Madrid: Aldus, S.A. Imp., 1947: 168.  \n  \nSantos Gener, S., “Nuevos brocales de pozo hispano-mahometanos”, *Boletín de la Real Academia de Ciencias Bellas Letras y Nobles Artes de Córdoba*, Año XV: No. 49 (1944): 71-86.  \n  \nBernus-Taylor, M., “Brocal de pozo”, en Marte Bernus-Taylor (Com), *Las Andalucías. De Córdoba a Damasco.* Exposition presented in the Institut du Monde Arabe from 28 November 2000 to 15 April 2001, Paris: Ed. Hazan-IMA-Fundación El Legado Andalusí, 2000: 148.  \n  \nArias Sánchez, I., “Brocal” en Félix Jiménez Villalba (Dir.), *España, encrucijada de civilizaciones*. México. Madrid: Lundwerg Editores, 2007: 221.  \n  \nShawky Sayed, Z., *Brocales de pozo y aljibes andalusíes y mudéjares*. Doctoral thesis. Univesidad Complutense de Madrid, 2015: 135-137. \\[Date accessed: 3 January 2024 https://produccioncientifica.ucm.es/documentos/5d1df62d29995204f76639e1\\]","author":"Beatriz Campderá Gutiérrez","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","translator":"Dept. of Medieval Antiquities of the MAN","keywords":["cuerda seca technique","dwelling","stamped decoration","water"],"materials":["Clay","Engraving","firing","kaolin","metal oxide","partial dry rope","stamping"]},"40153d07-6252-5b57-89aa-964009f142c0":{"name":"Bowl with horseman.","description":"The main decoration of the bowl consists of a large figure of a horseman, whose face clearly shows some Mongol features, on a background filled with plant shoots in relief.  \nThe decoration is characterised by a particularly delicate and elegant design painted in polychrome, with each colour requiring a separate firing.  \nThis piece belongs to a type known as *mina’i*’, in Persian ‘*haftrang*’(‘seven colours’). This technique effectively uses seven colours (red, blue, green, yellow, gold, white and black) applied on top of the glaze and occasionally, as in this case, with some details worked in relief and gilded.","short_description":"This piece belongs to a type of ceramic known as *mina’i*, recognisable through the use of seven colours in its decoration. In antiquity, the main centre of production for *mina’i* ceramics was Kashan in central northern Iran.","type":"Bowl, ceramic","holder":"Museum of Civilisations | Museum of Oriental Art “Giuseppe Tucci”","dates":"Hegira 6th–7th / AD 12th–13th centuries.","location":"Rome","dimensions":"Height 9.2 cm, diameter 21.8 cm.","method_for_provenance":"*Mina’i* ceramics were mainly produced in Kashan (central northern Iran) and in all probability would have been made by the illuminators of the manuscripts produced at that time that were lost with the Mongol invasion of 1220. Consequently, they are an important historical document for the study of illuminations of that time.","provenance":"Iran.","obtention":"Purchase.","bibliography":"Allan, J.W. , “‘Abûl Qâsim’s Treatise on Ceramics”, *Iran* XI, 1973, pp.111–20.  \nFèhervari, G., *La Ceramica Islamica*, Milan, 1985.  \nFolsach, K. von, *Islamic Art: The David Collection*, Copenhagen, 1990.  \nGrube, E.J., *Cobalt and Lustre. The First Centuries of Islamic Pottery. The Nasser D. Khalili Collection of Islamic Art*, Vol. IX, London, 1994.  \nLane, A., *Early Islamic Pottery*, London, 1953.","author":"Paola Torre","copy_editor":"Pier Paolo Racioppi","translator":"Laurence Nunny","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["ceramics","figurative decoration","Minai"],"materials":["Glazed ceramic (mina'i)"]},"40301340-cb49-5d31-8fc4-0266c8f1e953":{"name":"*Medbasa* (Dibs/date-molasses Extraction Room)","description":"Many markets in the UAE had medbasas, which were special rooms that contained grooves in the floor for collecting *dibs* (date molasses). Date palm leaf bags full of dates were piled on top of each other above the grooved floor. The combined weight of the bags pressed molasses out of the dates. The molasses drained between the grooves and into a pot where it could be collected and sold. Several *medabasa* rooms still exist in Sharjah and can be visited at Al Hisn (Fort) Museum and Souq Shinasiyya.","holder":"Sharjah Hisn (Fort) Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century / AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","author":"Amanda Snyder","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["date","date molasses","Dates","Dibs","medbasa"]},"4045cd73-fd45-55dc-bfc3-29df4bf6d174":{"name":"Lidded bowl (*sahan*)","description":"A deep bowl on a rounded foot, with lid – *sahan* (Ar. *sân*) – was used for serving food. The bell-shaped lid is decorated with vegetal and geometric motives, with a small, circular, star-like handle on the top. The same type of leafy, vegetal pattern is engraved on the bowl.","type":"Tableware","holder":"Museum of Applied Art","dates":"Hegira 13th century / AD 19th century","location":"Belgrade","dimensions":"Height: 220mm, length: 210mm, weight: 565g","place_of_production":"Ottoman Balkans","method_for_datation":"By stylistic and comparative analysis with related material.","obtention":"Purchased in 1953.","author":"Mila Gajić","keywords":["Copper","lidded bowl","Ottoman Balkans","sahan","sân","Tableware"],"materials":["black compound","copper","Engraving","hammering","tinned"]},"40da55c5-df3f-5ef8-9186-8a1b2ad360ca":{"name":"Lidded bowl (*sahan*)","description":"The term *sahan* (Ar. *sân*) refers to a bowl or plate, usually made of copper, in which food was served. This particular nickel alloy bowl is deep and heavy, on a round foot and with a wavy rim. The lid is bell-shaped with a lifting handle on the top. All surfaces are decorated with leafy scrolls and flowers, using the cutting technique and black compound.","type":"Tableware","holder":"Museum of Applied Art","dates":"First half of the Hegira 14th century / AD 20th century","location":"Belgrade","dimensions":"Height: 185mm, length: 222mm, weight: 1665g","method_for_datation":"By stylistic and comparative analysis with related material","obtention":"Purchased in the 1950s.","author":"Mila Gajić","keywords":["lidded bowl","nickel alloy","sahan","sân","Tableware"],"materials":["black compound","Casting","Cutting","Nickel alloy"]},"41a3ec4b-1e2e-5b41-a889-b733678cd8fd":{"name":"Pear-shaped bottle.","description":"This piece is distinguished by its fine decoration painted in white, red and black with gold leafing on a blue background (*lajvard* in Persian, ‘lapis lazuli’) consisting of tiny stylised spiral motifs, large gold-leaf poly-lobed medallions and geometric decoration.  \nUnlike *mina’i* ceramics, the decoration on lajvardina ceramics is mostly non-figurative and is characterised by the presence of floral, calligraphy and geometric motifs. This type of ceramic was used to produce elegant long-neck vases, polygon-sided recipients, cylindrical containers and diamond- or cross-shaped tiles.","short_description":"This bottle is recognisable as an example of the type known as ‘lajvardina’ by its white, red and black paint with gold leaf on a blue base. This latter gives the style its name, as *lajvard* mean lapis lazuli in Persian.","type":"Bottle, ceramic","holder":"Museum of Civilisations | Museum of Oriental Art “Giuseppe Tucci”","dates":"Hegira 7th–8th / AD 13th–14th centuries.","location":"Rome","dimensions":"Height 35 cm.","method_for_datation":"Lajvardina work has been dated using the famous treatise of the techniques of Islamic ceramicists written by Abûl Qâsim of Kashan in 1301. By that time, the *mina’i* ceramic technique was no longer in use, with Kashan ceramicists appearing to prefer the lajvardina technique. Production of these ceramics must therefore have started before 1301, as suggested by archeological finds at Takht-i Sulayman in northwest Persia from the excavations recently carried out in the Palace of Abaka-Khan (1265–81).","provenance":"Iran.","obtention":"Purchase.","bibliography":"Allan, J.W., “ ‘Abûl Qâsim’s Treatise on Ceramics”, *Iran* XI, 1973, pp.111–20.  \nFèhervari, G., *La Ceramica Islamica*, Milan, 1985.  \nFolsach, K. von, *Islamic Art: The David Collection*, Copenhagen, 1990.  \nLane, A., *Early Islamic Pottery*, London, 1953.  \nTorre, P., *Le Mille e una Notte: Ceramiche Persiane, Turche e Ispano-Moresche*, Faenza, 1990.","author":"Paola Torre","copy_editor":"Pier Paolo Racioppi","translator":"Laurence Nunny","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["bottle","ceramic","floral decoration","geometric decoration","Glazed"],"materials":["Glazed ceramic (lajvardina technique)"]},"41ddc5d1-7460-5d12-80ee-4872e35c50e0":{"name":"Incense Burner","short_description":"This bird-shaped incense burner would waft fragrance throughout homes, reception areas and mosques in Iran. Often hosts would sprinkle scented water over the censers for religious or ceremonial occasions.  \n  \nThe province of Khurasan became known for intricate and distinct metalwork during the early Islamic Seljuq dynasty (12th - 13th centuries). Borrowing influences from Sassanid Persia and blending in new approaches to metalwork, the school of Khurasan produced candlesticks and incense burners in animal and bird shapes.  \n  \nWhile birds symbolize freedom, heaven and the power of soul over body in Islam, the feathered animal bestowed good fortune upon its owner in the Seljuq era. The censer displays words about nature in old *Saljuqi* calligraphy. Today the pigeon-appearing burner represents the unique class of zoomorphic metalwork with enduring influences on enchanted objects transformed into animals.","type":"Domestic tools","holder":"FBQ Museum","owner":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"13th century","location":"Shahaniya","dimensions":"Length: 24cm, Width: 17cm, Height: 21cm","place_of_production":"Iran, Khurasan","method_for_datation":"The date and origin were established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, style and calligraphy.","method_for_provenance":"The date and origin were established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, style and calligraphy.","provenance":"Iran","obtention":"Purchase","bibliography":"Aga-Oglu, M., \"An Iranian Incense Burner\", *Bulletin of the Museum of Fine Arts*, 48: 271 (1950): 8–10.  \nAllan, J. W., *Nishapur: metalwork of the early Islamic period*, New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1982.  \nCanby, C. S. (ed), *Seljuqs and their Successors: Art, Culture and History*, Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2020.  \nO'Kane, B. (ed), *Iconography of Islamic Art: Studies in Honour of Robert Hillenbrand*, Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2019.  \nShıran, H. S., Parvın, S. and Mastalızadeh, M., \"THE THEMES OF METALWORKING IN THE SALJUQID PERIOD VIS-ÀVIS KHORASAN AND MOSUL SCHOOLS\", *Art-Sanat Dergisi*, 9 (2018): 95–107.","author":"Sarah Schroeder","copy_editor":"Janice Medina","keywords":["bird","Incense burner","Iran","Khurasan","metalwork","Seljuq"],"materials":["Engraving","Iron"]},"4312ed57-80a5-53ca-a579-d77d2e79388d":{"name":"Hexagonal dinner stand.","alternate_name":"Dining pedestal.","description":"This piece assumes the shape of a hexagonal (six-sided) pedestal upon which dinner trays would be placed; it is therefore known as a dinner stand. Its top surface, which is also hexagonal in shape, has a central circular decoration comprising a radiating inscription in a plaited *kufic* script. The radiating form of the inscription increases its decorative impact as it appears to simulate the rays of the sun coming from a central medallion, in which the artist has inscribed the name of Sultan al-Nasir Hasan ibn al-Nasir Muhammad ibn Qalawun, for whom this table was probably made. Framing the surface of this piece, is an inscription in Mamluk *thuluth* script which includes the name of the sultan and a number of his titles, it reads: 'Glory to our lord the Sultan al-Malik al-Nasir al-'Alam, al-'Adil, al-Mujahid, al-Murabit, al-Muthaghir, al-Mu'ayyad, al-Mansur, the Sultan of Islam and the Muslims, the Destroyer of Apostates and Infidels, the Reviver of Justice to all, the Protector of the oppressed against the oppressors, the Protector of the Muslim community, the Protector of worldly and spiritual matters, ibn al-Sultan al-Malik al-Mansur Qalawun Al-Salihi'. And surrounding these inscriptions along the interior are a series of lobed semi-circles decorated with flying ducks that are distinguished by their vitality and movement.  \nEach of the six sides of the pedestal's surfaces is comprised of four decorated panels arranged vertically one on top of the other. In the centre of one of these panels is a small door with two arched leafs which open to reveal an internal shelf. The panels are ornamented with openwork arabesque designs, composed of intertwining vegetal leaves and stems, lotus blossoms, and epigraphic inscriptions in *thuluth* script, on a background of openwork decorative motifs. The table has six short 'supports', posts that rest on the legs. A series of inscriptions are recorded on them, which indicate the name of the craftsman and his titles the English translation of which reads: 'Made by the poor slave hopeful of his God's forgiveness, known as the son of the teacher professor Muhammad, son Sunqur al Baghdadi al-Sanqari, in the year AH 728 \\[1327\\] in the days of our lord al-Malik al-Nasir, glory to his triumph'.  \nSuch objects, although used extensively as stands for food trays, were also used to carry the Qur'an or torches at night in mosques or palaces, as well as to carry drinks, vases and incense burners. It is possible that this pedestal, which belonged to al-Nasir Muhammad, had been used to carry these types of items in his private palace or in his *madrasa* which was built on the street of the coppersmiths *(Shari' Nahhāsin)* in Cairo. This supposition is made more likely in view of the fact that the object was recovered from the Bimaristan (hospital) of al-Mansur Qalawun, which is adjacent to the Madrasa of al-Nasir Muhammad.  \nThe dinner stand is one of the most valuable acquisitions in the collections of the Museum of Islamic Art in Cairo for it demonstrates the prolific production of metalwork in the Mamluk period. The importance of this particular piece stems from its having been crafted specifically for Sultan al-Nasir Muhammad ibn Qalawun, not to mention the fact that it contains the name of the craftsman who made it along with the date of manufacture. Its exceptional quality is magnified when its splendour and size are considered.","short_description":"This type of table, made from metal or wood, was extensively produced during the Mamluk period in Cairo. It was used to hold food or items that need to be elevated from the floor. This table is made of brass inlaid with silver on which the name and titles of Sultan al-Nasir Muhammad and the maker's name were inscribed.","type":"Stand, hexagonal dinner, copper","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art","initial_owner":"Sultan al-Nasir Hasan ibn al-Nasir Muhammad ibn Qalawun who reigned three times: AH 693–4 / AD 1294–5; AH 698–708 / AD 1299–1309; AH 709–41 / AD 1309–40.","dates":"Hegira 728 / AD 1327.","location":"Cairo","dimensions":"Height 81 cm, diameter 40.5 cm.","method_for_datation":"This piece can be dated based on the inscription it carries, which includes the name of the craftsman who made it and the date it was manufactured. This is in addition to the inscriptions on the piece which specifically name Sultan al-Nasir Muhammad ibn Qalawun.","method_for_provenance":"It is highly probable that the piece was crafted in Cairo, especially in view of the fact that it is decorated with epigraphic inscriptions in Mamluk *thuluth* script, a style prevalent in Mamluk pieces attributed to Egypt. Additionally, the design technique used in its manufacture and the decoration, closely resemble those used in a number of other objects known to have been made in Egypt, including a box (for a Qur'an manuscript) made of copper and inlaid with gold and silver, currently housed in the library of al-Azhar Mosque, which bears the name of Sultan al-Nasir Muhammad ibn Qalawun and is dated 723 (1322). There is an almost identical box in the collections at the Museum of Islamic Art in Berlin, known to have been taken from a mosque in Cairo; this is inscribed with the name of the same craftsman as the pedestal under discussion here: Muhammad ibn Sunqur al-Baghdadi. There is also a silver inlaid candlestick currently in the collections of the Islamic Art Museum in Cairo (reg. no. 15080) which bears the name of Sultan al-Nasir ibn Muhammad ibn Qalawun.  \nFurthermore, in Cairo during the Mamluk period there was a *suq* dedicated to the manufacture and sale of inlaid metalwork. The author and historian al-Maqrizi refers to the market in his work *al-Khitat* (1853) as 'the *suq* of the inlay craftsmen' (Suq al-Koftiyin), which was located in a street that in present-day Cairo lies between al-Ghuriyya Street and al-Azhar Street. The market's documented presence further supports the supposition that this piece was crafted in Cairo.","provenance":"Cairo.","obtention":"This piece was transferred from the Bimaristan of Sultan al-Mansur Qalawun to the Museum of Islamic Art. It was one of the first pieces to enter the collections at the time of the inauguration of the Museum in 1903.","bibliography":"Al-Maqrizi, *Al-mawā'iz wa'l-i'tibār bi-dhikr al-khitat wa'l-āthār \\[Exhortations and Contemplation of the Recollection of Plans and Monuments\\],* 2 vols, Cairo, 1853.  \nAl-Pasha, H., et al, *Al-Qāhira,Tārikhuha, Fūnunuha, Āthāruha \\[Cairo: Its History, Arts and Monuments\\],* Cairo, 1970.  \nAllan, J., *Islamic Metalwork: The Nuhad Es-Said Collection,* London, 1982.  \nAtil, E., *Renaissance of Islam: Art of the Mamluks,* Washington D.C., 1987.  \nHamdi, A., et al, *Katalog Ma'rid al-fan al-islāmi fi misr \\[Catalogue of the Islamic Art Exhibition in Egypt\\],* Cairo, 1969.  \nStierlin, H. and Stierlin A., *Splendours of the Islamic World: Mamluk Art in Cairo (1250–1517),* London, New York, 1997.  \nWiet, G., “Les Objets en Cuivre”, in *Catalogue général du Musée arabe,* Cairo, 1932.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_EG_EN_001","author":"Salah Sayour","copy_editor":"Majd Musa","translator":"Amal Sachedina (from the Arabic).","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["copper.","decorative motif","furnishing","inlay","inscription","openwork","Thuluth","vegetal motif"],"materials":["copper","inlaid with silver and decorated in filigree and openwork."]},"43af2c13-f67f-56c2-8949-67eff891e370":{"name":"Rosewater sprinkler","short_description":"This rosewater sprinkler belongs to a group of brassware that has sculpturally shaped motifs as its most distinctive decorative element.  \nThe most monumental pieces are a group of large candlesticks. But despite their size, they are surpassed by this masterfully executed bottle when it comes to decoration. Ten lions, and six birds were embossed in incredibly high relief and furthermore engraved and punched.","type":"Rossewater sprinkler, metalwork","holder":"The David Collection","dates":"Hegira 2nd half of the 6th century / AD 2nd half of the 12th century","location":"Copenhagen","provenance":"Eastern Iran or Afghanistan","keywords":["animal decoration","Ghurid","metalwork","Rosewater sprinker"],"materials":["and punched brass","embossed","engraved","inlaid with copper and silver"]},"43ffaf04-43ad-5080-a54a-5966af0905ea":{"name":"Rosewater sprinkler","description":"This *mirash* vessel is designed to hold and sprinkle rosewater onto the hands of guests as a sign of hospitality. These vessels come in a variety of shapes and decorations; the people of the Green Mountain in eastern Oman have traditionally pursued this craft for thousands of years, and their goods are known today for their quality and precision in manufacturing.","type":"Metalwork, silver","holder":"The National Museum - Sultanate of Oman","dates":"Hegira 12th–13th/AD 18th–19th century","location":"Muscat, Sultanate of Oman","dimensions":"Height: 24cm, diameter: 7.5cm","provenance":"Northern Oman","author":"Noora Al Balushi","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["Silver"]},"48232ccd-b83a-5ed3-a7ae-09f26487f289":{"name":"Large tray (*s’ni*).","description":"The decoration on this circular tray is arranged in concentric bands encircling a rosette with many petals. The first band is adorned with stylised leaves, followed by another band that is wider and engraved with alternating vegetal elements representing the cypress tree, as well as arabesque medallions. A signature in cursive lettering carries the name of the owner, 'sahibihi Al-Hadj Ibrahim (Zaytuna)' and, composed in Indian numerals, the date of the object's fabrication, 1156; which can be translated as: 'its owner al-Hadj Ibrahim (Zaytuna) 1156' (AD 1743). The last letter of the word *sahibihi*, which surrounds the whole of the inscription, ends in the form of a tulip, in imitation of the *tughra* (the signature of the Ottoman sultans). The third band features interweaving foliar ornaments enclosing small rosettes, and the last band features semi-circular arches adorned with flowers.  \nIn former times, the *s'ni* would be placed on a small painted wooden table as a means of serving the different daily meals. It is still used in Algeria.","short_description":"Large circular dish decorated with concentric incised circles around a central rosette with several petals. The decoration in the gaps is mainly plant-based. A signature in cursive characters states the name of the owner and the date when the piece was made.","type":"Metalwork, red copper, kitchenware","holder":"National Museum of Antiquities and Islamic Arts","initial_owner":"Al-Hadj Ibrahim (Zaytuna).","dates":"Hegira 1156 / AD 1743.","location":"Algiers","dimensions":"Width 2.7 cm, diameter 94.2 cm.","method_for_datation":"According to the date on the object.","method_for_provenance":"Algiers was the main manufacturing centre for this type of brassware.","provenance":"Algiers.","bibliography":"*Catalogue descriptif et illustré des principaux ouvrages d'or et d'argent de fabrication algérienne*, Algiers, 1900.  \nEudel, P., *Dictionnaire des bijoux de l'Afrique du Nord, Maroc, Algérie, Tripolitaine*, Paris, 1906.  \nMarçais, G., *Le musée Stéphane Gsell, musée des antiquités et d'art musulman d'Alger*, Algiers, 1950.","author":"Ali Benbella","copy_editor":"Margot Cortez","translator":"Maria Vlotides","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["brass","Copper","cypress","food","Tray","vegetal decoration"],"materials":["Hammered and incised red copper."]},"4859f5a8-7af7-59f7-8271-982ef083627b":{"name":"*Fellahs* (peasants) use a *shadouf* to draw water from the Nile from a well.","description":"Ernest Benecke (1817–1894), a French photographer of Anglo-German origins, was one of the first to be interested in the people rather than the monuments he saw during his travels in the Middle East. His pictures foreground daily life, as we can see from this photograph, which was taken in Egypt and shows a traditional mode of irrigation using the *shadouf*, a weighted appliance which allowed water to be poured from a well over a field.","type":"Photograph","holder":"National Library of France","dates":"1852","location":"Paris","translator":"Flaminia Baldwin"},"48bdc968-6993-58b8-bc33-10fac1289cbd":{"name":"Showing how to roast the coffee beans","description":"After roasting and crushing the coffee beans, the equally complex cooking begins. The coarse coffee powder is boiled down in a large quantity of water.  \n“In the meantime, the three *dells* (tinned copper pots with handle and lid) are put in readiness. The first and largest of these, containing either pure water or water with old coffee grounds, is put on the fire and heated until it boils. The swirling contents are then poured into the second container, which contains the ground coffee that has just been crushed; this second container is then placed on the fire (for about ten minutes), and carefully prevented from overflowing, until no more foam rises and the grounds remain completely boiled on the bottom. In the meantime, the landlord will have fetched some beans of *hêl* (cardamom.) and given them to be pounded in a mortar. The *hêl* is then thrown into the third *delleh* and the contents of the second are poured on top. This third pot is put on the fire again for a short time, but soon is put to one side so all the sediment settles finely on the bottom.” Formerly in some regions the coffee was strained through a piece of palm cloth inserted into the pot. But usually it is enough to let the coffee grounds settle, before the *qahwaji* pours the coffee into the serving pot (*masabb, delle*), from which the small cups can be filled with the three sips. Often the *masabb* is set on the edge of the embers to keep the coffee hot.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Karin Pütt","initial_owner":"Karin Pütt","dates":"Hegira 1409 / AD 1989","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Al Yusufiyya/Syria","method_for_provenance":"Direct contact","provenance":"Al Yusufiyya/Syria","bibliography":"al-Hroub, I., Atlas of Palestine Rural Heritage, Bethlehem, 2015, 139.  \n  \nBlunt, A., “Bedoun Tribes of the Euphrates“, 1879 New York, 123.  \n  \nEuting, J., \"Tagebuch einer Reise in Inner-Arabien\" (First edition Leiden 1896), Hamburg, 1993, 84.  \n  \nKalter, J., “Die Kultur der Nomaden”, Kalter, J., Pavaloi, M., Zerrnickel, M. (eds), “Syrien – Mosaik eines Kulturaumes”, Stuttgart, 1991, 130, photo 308.","author":"Karin Pütt","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Slide"]},"49103ef0-90f2-547a-8043-173577467243":{"name":"Dates group","description":"As a sign of hospitality guests are given *fuala* (light refreshments). Coffee, dates, *betheetha* (a sweet made of dates and fired flour), *khabees* (a sweet made of saffron, ghee and fried flour), leavened bread, and *dibs* (date molasses) were served on a *saroud* (palm mat) and covered with a *mechabeh* (palm food cover) to protect the food from dirt and insects.  \nWhen guest finished eating they were offered a *ghasool* (a bowl of water) or a *maghsal al yad* (pitcher and vessel) to wash their hands. At the end of a visit, guests were perfumed with a *merash* (perfume sprinkler) filled with rose water and other fragrances. Guest were also perfumed with '*oud* incense'.","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","initial_owner":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century/AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Amanda Snyder","copy_editor":"Judy Harter"},"49271df4-3589-5288-9f2d-848a3ad34181":{"name":"Cup","description":"Cup decorated with a series of lozenges with floral and leaf motifs. In the center a circular medallion dispays three fish and the number 25.","type":"Cup","holder":"Benaki Museum","dates":"AH 1215-1317/19th century","location":"Athens","dimensions":"Height: 10 cm","place_of_production":"Istanbul","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Turkey","obtention":"Donation","bibliography":"Moratiou , M. (ed), *The Mando & Londos Oeconomides Collection of Coloured Glass*, Athens: Benaki Museum, 2013: cat. no. 17, p. 62.","author":"Mina Moraitou","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["gilt decoration","glass"]},"493fd5de-9ad8-584b-b87f-0c109a23012d":{"name":"Tile Plate","description":"The plate is coated with white clay and slip decorated with shades of grey and blue beneath a transparent colourless glaze. The plate’s scalloped, rimmed interior is adorned with a large medallion featuring flowers and leafy curling branches. The body is divided vertically into thirteen sections separated by grooves, each section decorated with a floral bouquet. The wide rim is encircled by a curving vine of alternating large and small flowers and leaves. The back of the plate is embellished with floral bouquets. The motifs are delineated in dark cobalt blue. Examples of this technique can be observed in the dull grey-blue flowers used in Chinese-influenced Iznik ceramics and pointed leaves seen on late 15th-century Ming porcelain. The production of plates in this style continued until the second half of the 16th century. In form and decoration these plates resemble Chinese porcelain of the Early Ming, Hsuan-te period (1426–1435).","type":"Utensil","holder":"Istanbul Archaeological Museums (The Tiled Kiosk)","dates":"Hegira second quarter of the 10th century / AD first quarter of the 16th century","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"Diameter: 36.6cm, height: 9.4cm","place_of_production":"İznik/Bursa","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Glazed terracotta/Tile"]},"49b2df90-5908-57b9-bdfe-fdda5ade09fe":{"name":"*Mehmaas* (Coffee roasting stirrer)","description":"*Mehmaas* (Coffee roaster) used to stir roasting coffee beans.  \nCoffee is always served at the beginning of a visit and is repeatedly offered until guests politely signal that they have had enough by rocking their cup from side to side. In order to keep coffee hot and fresh for unexpected guests it goes through many stages. After roasting and grinding the coffee beans the grains are added to boiling water inside a large *dallah* (coffee pot) called a *khamra*. Next, the liquid is poured into a medium-sized coffee pot called a *aljeemah*. At this stage cardamom seeds, saffron and rose water may be added for flavour. From this jug, the coffee is poured into a serving *dallah* referred to as a *mezallah*, where the coffee is refined and filtered. The server must hold the *mezallah* with their left hand and distribute the *fanayeel* (coffee cups) using the right hand. The coffee should fill less than half of the cup.","type":"Stirrer","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century / AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Length: 490mm, diameter: 35mm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","method_for_provenance":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Amanda Snyder","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["coffee","coffee beans","roaster","stirrer"],"materials":["Iron"]},"4a2ff8cf-3035-5df6-b37d-f996ba871f8d":{"name":"Illustrated manuscript of Sa'di's *Bustan*","short_description":"This illustrated manuscript of Sa‘di’s *Bustan* features a spurious colophon and four paintings, presumably all by the early twentieth-century artist Turabi Bek Khurasani. Turabi Bek was active during the first decades of the twentieth century – the final years of the Qajar dynasty. As confirmed by the paintings in this *Bustan*, some of which recall those in the renowned *Haft Awrang* of Jami (Mashhad, 1556–65) in the Freer Gallery of Art, he excelled in the Safavid revival style.","type":"Islamic, Indian & Southeast Asian works of art; manuscript","holder":"Shangri La, Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Art","dates":"Hegira early 14th century / AD early 20th century (spurious colophon dated 779 AH / 1377 AD)","location":"Honolulu, Hawai'i","dimensions":"Overall: 27.9 x 17.1 cm","provenance":"Iran","keywords":["Bustan","Illustration","manuscript","revivalism","Sa'di","Safawid revival","Turabi Bek Khurasani"],"materials":["and gold on paper","gilded leather binding","Ink","opaque watercolor"]},"4a7d2384-96d3-5574-ba51-84cb41cd1805":{"name":"*Madkhan* (Incense burner)","description":"The burning of incense is part of the routine for welcoming a guest. A *Mmadkhan* (incense burner) is used to hold a smouldering piece of charcoal on which incense is placed. The heat causes incense to burn thus, releasing its scent. The *madkhan* is passed around from person to person to share and perfume their clothing.","type":"Incense","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century / AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Height: 125mm, width: 120mm, diameter: 117mm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","method_for_provenance":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Amanda Snyder","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["ceramic","Incense","Incense burner"],"materials":["Ceramic"]},"4b5af6a4-7de4-5e18-87de-8bf5e62763db":{"name":"Dish","alternate_name":"Plato","description":"The Orientalism or Neo-Mudéjar style gave new light to old techniques such as ceramic with lustre decoration; the Manises workshops begun again to use lustre decorations and shapes from the Middle Age period.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"National Museum of Decorative Arts","dates":"1876–1925","location":"Madrid","provenance":"Manises","author":"Manuel Alonso","copy_editor":"Anne Dowell"},"4b991957-3850-5dff-ab19-d438bef7536d":{"name":"Pre-Islamic ewer with female figures","short_description":"This silver-gilt ewer was made in Pre-Islamic times during the Sassanid dynasty. Four dancing female figures are depicted on the vessel’s pear-shaped body, each holding a ceremonial object. The women are framed by embossed arches and accompanied by birds. The neck of the vessel is decorated with a vine-leaf pattern.  \nThe iconography of dancing female figures is often associated with the maenads, attendants of the god Dionysus in Greek mythology. As the vessel is from the Sassanid dynasty, the link to Greek mythology is uncertain. It has been suggested that the motif of dancing figures originated in the Iranian cult of the goddess Anahita, where the ewer could have been used to serve wine during court celebrations or religious ceremonies. There is no evidence, however, to support this hypothesis.","type":"Bottle","holder":"MKG Museum for Applied Arts","dates":"AD 5th-7th century","location":"Hamburg","dimensions":"Height: 16.5cm, Diameter: 10cm, Mouth Diameter: 5cm","method_for_datation":"By comparison with similar objects e.g. the Sassanian ewer (67.10 a, b) in the collection of The Metropolitan Museum of Art.","method_for_provenance":"Purchased from Saeed Motamed.","provenance":"Iran","obtention":"Purchased in 1990.","bibliography":"Lebas, F., Lienert, U. and Rowinski, S., \"Erwerbungen für die Asien-Sammlungen in den Jahren 1988 bis 1990,” *Jahrbuch des Museums für Kunst und Gewerbe Hamburg*, 9/10 (1990-1): 253-286.  \nLuckhardt, U. and Heitmann, B., *Kunst für Hamburg von laut bis leise; 50 Jahre Stiftung für die Hamburger Kunstsammlungen*, Hamburg: Stiftung für die Hamburger Kunstsammlungen, 2006.","copy_editor":"Caitlin Link","keywords":["metalwork","Sasanid"],"materials":["embossed and chased","Silver-gilt"]},"4bc307ac-f977-5e18-aec7-21b9827679aa":{"name":"Cup with turned-out rim","description":"Several examples of this type of tumbler with a wide rim are known and variously decorated. They belong to the production of Syrian and Egyptian workshops at the time of the Ayyubid sultans (1169-1260). This one bears an incomplete circular band with the calligraphic inscription in *naskhei*: “\\[…\\] glory to the sultan our master \\[…\\]”.","type":"Glassware","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","initial_owner":"Irène Montaz","dates":"Hegira 7th century / AD 13th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 16cm, Opening diameter: 14cm","provenance":"Aleppo, Syria","obtention":"Purchased in 1993.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["Blown glass"]},"4bccb3e9-a964-52ef-937f-7a6d6e11e5cf":{"name":"*Interior of a house in Boussaada*","description":"This painting, showing the interior of a traditional house in the Boussaada region, elicits a certain intimacy, recalling the muted atmosphere also evoked by Guillaumet's *Fileuse*. The nervous, moving brushstrokes and his use of melted or soldered lead are clear references to the style of the Dutch masters.","type":"Painting","holder":"Musée National des Beaux-Arts","dates":"c. 1920","location":"Algiers","author":"Dalila Orfali","translator":"Flaminia Baldwin"},"4c1bace8-ab18-5e91-a949-35cf6a8187e1":{"name":"Mevlevi Dining Table (*Somat*)","description":"The term *somat* (feast table) was used to describe the table where Mevlevis ate. Spoons would be placed face down to indicate the dervishes’ gratitude and to prevent the contents from being seen. A pinch of salt was placed in front of everyone. When the food had been cooked, Kazancı Dede would bring the cauldron to the table and open its lid. After reciting a prayer, those present would invoke the name of Allah Hu.","type":"Room Restoration","holder":"Konya Mevlana Museum","location":"Konya","bibliography":"Bakırcı, Naci, *Konya Mevlana Müzesi*, Istanbul: BKG Yayinlari, 2010.","copy_editor":"Judy Harter"},"4c9c682b-e3ff-589b-807b-5e22f9819c18":{"name":"Tankard","description":"A cylindrical tankard with one handle. The body is decorated with a series of white flowers with a blue centre and green leaves on a red ground. On the top and bottom there is a band in the form of a chain. The handle is decorated in blue and white.","type":"Tankard","holder":"Benaki Museum","dates":"AH 983 / c. AD 1575","location":"Athens","dimensions":"Diameter of base: 13.8cm, height: 22.7cm","place_of_production":"Iznik","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Turkey","obtention":"Donation","bibliography":"Carswell, J., Gibson, M. (ed.), and Moraitou , M., *Iznik Ceramics at the Benaki Museum*, London: Gingko, and Athens: Benaki Museum, 2023: cat. no. 58, p. 112.","author":"Mina Moraitou","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Glazed ceramic"]},"4d271fb9-86f6-54f6-8ff7-b1f5b8365eb6":{"name":"Plate","description":"White clay and slip, decorated in yellow, green, blue, red and manganese purple tones under transparent glaze. The motifs are outlined in black. On the plate’s surface a female figure is seen from the front in a garden. She is wearing a yellow robe and blue and white striped shalwar. The shalwar, a garment of traditional Turkish origin, was made from the fabric called *selimiye*, which was widely worn in the Ottoman Empire during the second half of the 18th century. Figures depicted on Kütahya ceramics sometimes are presented in a schematic manner in traditional Ottoman attire. Female figures on these plates, which were mainly produced for export in the late 18th century, were sometimes referred to as concubines. In the years following the proclamation of the Republic, these plates, colloquially referred to as *kızlı tabak*, were included in the dowries of girls who were about to be married.","type":"Ustensil","holder":"Istanbul Archaeological Museums (The Tiled Kiosk)","dates":"Hegira second half of the 12th century / AD Second half of the 18th century","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"Diameter: 15.7cm, height: 3.7cm","place_of_production":"Kütahya","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Glazed terracotta"]},"4f35a232-fd44-5945-a2d3-5c34f4b1ae6a":{"name":"Incense burner","description":"Incense burners like this are usually made of clay mixed with water and kneaded until it forms a mixture that can then be shaped. The burner is then adorned with engravings, intricate drawings, and different colors. The incense burners are then fired in a kiln, after which they are ready for use. Note the handle; it makes the burner safe to carry from room to room. Incense occupies a central place in Omani life, as the passing of a fragrant burner at the end of a visit is customary in every region of the country.","type":"Ceramic, earthenware, natural dye (ochre)","holder":"The National Museum - Sultanate of Oman","dates":"Hegira early 15th/AD early 21st century","location":"Muscat, Sultanate of Oman","dimensions":"Height: 12cm, diameter (bowl): 12.3cm, diameter (base): 10cm","provenance":"Musandam Governorate","author":"Noora Al Balushi","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["Earthenware","natural dye (ochre)"]},"4ff662e6-ce17-5b02-96f0-77d7ed40404e":{"name":"*Shahnameh by Firdowsi* (Sassanid Emperor Anushirvan Feasting)","description":"The work begins with praise written in the centre of a multicoloured gilded illumination on a navy blue background on facing pages. All pages containing the eulogy and inscriptions on the pages with miniatures are illuminated in the style of Beynes Sudûr. All chapters in the *Shahnameh* begin with the illumination of the title page. The white text written above and below the miniatures and enclosed in an illuminated frame at the end of the *Shahnameh* states that the *Shahnameh*, which tells the history of Persia, was completed in seven years, that 12 of the most famous artists of the period worked on it, and that it was written by Mehmed al-Kâtib in Shiraz. The illumination of the work was by Mehmed bin Hüseyin of Shiraz in 1549. The book, one of the most distinguished works of the period, is notable for its intricate miniatures created in a superior technique characteristic of the Shah Tahmasb period. These miniatures were made by calligraphers and *musehhep* in Shiraz, for centuries a centre of the art of miniatures. Consequently, the decorative style of the Shiraz-Turkmen miniature school, evident in works created in Shiraz during the first half of the 16th century, is also noteworthy in this work. It is characterised by thin, elongated and elegant figures.","type":"Manuscript","holder":"Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts","dates":"Hegira 956 / AD 1549–1550","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"37cm x 23xm","place_of_production":"Shiraz/Iran","obtention":"Brought to the museum in 1915 from the Pertevniyal Valide Sultan Library.","materials":["Finished (aharli) paper","gilding","Ink","leather binding"]},"50900128-bb54-580c-9129-d9d24be9c5ef":{"name":"Ten folios from the *Shahnamah* of Firdawsi made for Shah Tahmasp I","short_description":"The ten folios come the *Shahnamah* made for the Safavid ruler, Shah Tahmasp I (r. 1524–1576). One of the finest illustrated Persian manuscript ever made, it has been referred to as the ‘Houghton’ *Shahnamah* after the collector who broke it up in New York in the 1970s. It is of large format, on fine gold-sprinkled paper, and with 258 illustrations. The format is independently conceived for each painting and must have involved constant consultation between scribes, painters and marginators. Folio 516, which in the Khalili Collection, is the only folio in the manuscript to bear a date.  \nThe manuscript was given by Shah Tahmasp to the Ottoman Sultan Selim II at the time of the latter’s accession in 1566. By 1903, the manuscript was in the possession of Edmond de Rothschild. It changed hands once again in the 1960s, when its then owner, Arthur Houghton Jr, began to disperse it. Today, some 140 of its paintings are in museums and collections throughout the world. The rest of the manuscript – the binding, the text block and 118 paintings – have been in the Contemporary Art Museum in Tehran since 1994.","type":"Manuscript; miniature painting; *Shahnamah*","holder":"Khalili Family Trust – Nasser D. Khalili Collection of Islamic Art","dates":"Manuscript: 1520s – 1540s; folio 516b: dated Hejira 934 / AD 1527–8","location":"London","dimensions":"Folio: 47 x 32cm","method_for_datation":"Date and provenance are based on information within the paintings themselves, on historical records and on numerous detailed studies by a number of academics and authors.","provenance":"Iran, Tabriz","obtention":"Folio 119 only: ex-Edmond de Rothschild; Arthur Houghton Jr, Diane Woodner and Andrea Woodner; Christie’s, London, sale of 27 April 1993, lot 71.  \nRemaining 9 folios: ex-Edmond de Rothschild, Arthur Houghton Jr and Khosrovani Collections.","bibliography":"Canby, S.R., *The Shahnamah pf Shah Tahmasp. The Persian Book of Kings*, New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2014.  \nDickson, M.B., and Welch, S.C., *The Houghton Shahnameh* (2 vols), Cambridge, MA, and London: Harvard University Press, 1981.  \nFalk, T. (ed.), *The Treasures of Islam*, exhibition catalogue, Geneva: Musée Rath, 1985: 68–71, n. 42–4, 46, 49, 50, 53, 57 and 61.  \nRogers, J.M., *The Arts of Islam. Masterpieces from the Khalili Collection*, London: Thames & Hudson, 2010: n. 299–308, pp.262–69.","keywords":["gold","ink","Iran","manuscript","painting","Paper","Safavid","Shahnamah","watercolour"],"materials":["gold and opaque watercolour on paper","headings are in riqa‘","Ink","margins heavily sprinkled with gold","text copied in a superior nasta‘liq"]},"525fce2f-a859-5439-8cdd-d1b640752ea5":{"name":"*Ghotar* plate","description":"In Morocco, the *ghotar* is a large dish for the presentation of food, such as *pastilla* (chicken cooked in pastry), or fruit.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","initial_owner":"Bernard Aubert","dates":"Hegira end of 12th century - beginning 13th century / AD end of 18th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 10cm, Diameter: 46.4cm, Base diameter:  24.4cm","provenance":"Fes, Morocco","obtention":"Purchased from Bernard Aubert, 1989.","bibliography":"Boukobza, A., *Poteries et céramiques marocaines*, Casablanca: Alpha, 1974: 38-39, 115-116, 143-144.  \n  \nDelpont, E., et al., *Album du musée*, Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, 2012: 372, 386-387.  \n  \nMoulierac, J., et al., *Céramiques du monde musulman: collections de l'Institut du monde arabe et de J.P. et F. Croisier* , Paris: Institut du monde arabe, Paris, 1999: 149.  \n  \nSoustiel, J., *La Céramique islamique*, Fribourg: Office du Livre, 1985.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["Clay","painted decoration on glaze"]},"53cfa936-38e2-5b23-a6c4-d57b4297fc81":{"name":"Peacock-shaped incense burner","description":"This peacock-shaped object, an incense burner (*mabkhara* or *majmar* in Arabic, *ud-suz* in Persian), is a stunning example of medieval Islamic artistry. It belongs to a common tradition of incense burners shaped like falcons, peacocks, and cockerels from Iraq and Iran, with examples dating back to the 9th century in the FBQ Museum collection. The artist ingeniously adapted anatomical elements to accommodate incense burning, concealing the incense chamber within the bird’s belly. The removable upper part facilitated the placement of coal and incense, while open metalwork allowed the release of scented smoke. The elongated tail served to disperse the fragrance. Crafted from bronze, this incense burner showcases exquisite inlay work with turquoise beads, adding to its aesthetic allure. The intricate details and figurative scenes were likely achieved through engraving and embossing.  \nDespite its ornamental appearance, the incense burner is adorned with engraved animal-like imagery, figurative scenes, and turquoise bead embellishments. These beads, characteristic of Khorasan origin, enhance its decorative appeal, adding a touch of colour and vibrancy. The handle-less design and heat-sensitive turquoise beads suggest it might have been used as a pomander in ceremonies or palaces. In this role it would have held a mixture of ambergris and spices to produce an exotic fragrance. The unprofessional welding on the movable part suggests it might have become dysfunctional and been repurposed as a purely decorative item.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani Museum","owner":"His Excellency Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"Hegira 11th century / AD 17th century","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Height: 63cm, length: 26cm, width: 32cm","place_of_production":"Iran, Khorasan province","provenance":"Iran","author":"Mahmoud Saber","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Bronze","embossing","Engraving","inlay","metal","turquoise"]},"53e8326b-0e17-5ddf-979b-47c8bb8ffcd0":{"name":"*Marash* (Rosewater sprinkler)","description":"*Marash* (rosewater sprinkler) holds rosewater and is offered to a guest to perfume and cleanse their hands.","type":"Sprinkler","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century / AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Height: 280mm, Diameter: 70mm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","method_for_provenance":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Amanda Snyder","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["copper alloy","rosewater","sprinkler"],"materials":["Copper alloy"]},"548a0da4-daad-5893-abb1-4453dabee1bc":{"name":"Maulana Shams ad-Din Muhammad ‘Assar at-Tabrizi, *Mihr u Mushtari* (Romantic epic of the friendship of Prince Mihr with the youth Mushtari)","short_description":"Maulana Shams ad-Din Muhammad 'Assar at-Tabrizi (died 784 AH / 1382-83 AD) completed this romantic epic of the friendship of Prince Mihr and the youth Mushtari (*Mihr u Mushtari*) in 778 AH / 1377 AD. This manuscript was acquired for the Austrian National Library in 1677 in Constantinople by Peter Lambeck for 30 gold ducats and 15 kreuzer. It was copied in *nasta’liq* script by the scribe Hidayat-Allah in c. 977-88 AH / 1570-80 AD, possibly in Shiraz, Iran. According to the 16th-century Turkish historian Mustafa 'Ali, Hidayat-Allah came from Isfahan and was the pupil of the calligrapher Mu'izz ad-Din Muhammad Amin from Kashan. Four other manuscripts with miniatures – produced between 1564 and 1584 – are signed by him. Stylistically, the eight full-page paintings can be linked to the artistic output of the city of Shiraz, where the manuscript was likely created between 1570 and 1580. Its dating to the end of the 16th century becomes more certain through closer inspection of the compositions throughout; the stylization of landscape and architectural forms, the colour scheme, and sparse presence of the *taj-i haidari* (Safavid staff turban) that went out of fashion during this period.","type":"Manuscript","holder":"Austrian National Library (ANL)","dates":"c. 977-88 AH / 1570-80 AD","location":"Vienna","dimensions":"242 x 170 mm (165 x 97mm), ff. I, I*, 435 folios.","method_for_datation":"One colophon: scribe's name mentioned.","method_for_provenance":"On fol. 1a, there is a destroyed oriental owner's stamp. It was acquired in 1677 by Peter Lambeck in Constantinople for 30 gold ducats and 15 kreuzer. On fol. IIa: 'Ex Augustissima Bibliotheca Caesarea Vindobonensi N. 6'.","provenance":"Possibly Shiraz","obtention":"Unknown but part of the Austrian National Library in the second half of the 17th century.","bibliography":"Duda, Dorothea, *Islamische Handschriften I. Persische Handschriften, Die illuminierten Handschriften und Inkunabeln der Österreichischen Nationalbibliothek*, vol. 4, Vienna: Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, 1983: 25-28.","scriber":"Shams ad-Din b. Giyath ad-Din al-Hafiz al-Kirmani","binding_desc":"The dark brown leather binding has a flap, and on its front cover displays a central field with gold arabesque decoration of florals and cloud scrolls that are pressed from two matrices, incorporating the central medallion with two pendants. Flanking the shorter edges of the central block, circles and ovals form pseudo-title cartouches with inlays of gold leather filigree on red and blue paper and green silk backgrounds. All around, the frame mouldings are stamped in two shades of gold with rowed, elongated vine medallions. The back cover and the flap are decorated in the same manner. Doublures of lighter-coloured leather are overlaid with a medallion design of gold and brown arabesque filigree fillings against a pink, red, blue paper background, and green silk inlays. Their central panels are decorated with gold cloud band and floral vine ornamentation pressed with matrices. The binding was probably made in late 16th-century Shiraz, Iran.","catalogue_holding_link":"http://data.onb.ac.at/rec/baa18848907","author":"Theresa Zischkin","copy_editor":"Sophie-Anne Mullen","keywords":["Epic","mi'raj","painting","romance","Safavid"],"materials":["Ink","opaque watercolour and gold on paper. Calligraphic nasta'liq script of 14 lines per page."]},"5501e9aa-67d7-5274-a82e-34b2b10220d6":{"name":"Huge tray for the *shaykhs’* banquets","description":"Today's visitors in the houses of tribal *shaykhs* or village notables are often shown large trays to illustrate the historical stories that are told on site. They are a symbol of hospitality and generosity. On a huge tray the meat of a complete sheep could be served. At other times the heavy giant tray, unusable in everyday life, is kept in a storage room.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Karin Pütt","initial_owner":"Karin Pütt","dates":"Hegira 1409 / AD 1989","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Al-Mansura/Syria","method_for_provenance":"Direct contact","provenance":"Al-Mansura/ Raqqa Province","bibliography":"Kalter, J., \"Die Kultur der Nomaden\", Kalter, J., Pavaloi, M., Zerrnickel, M., “Syrien – Mosaik eines Kulturaumes”, Stuttgart, 1991, photo 316 - Euting, J., \"Tagebuch einer Reise in Inner-Arabien\" (First Edition Leiden 1896), Hamburg, 1993, 177.  \n  \nLange, K., \"Heroic Faces, Disruptive Deeds. Remembering the Tribal Shaykh on the Syrian Euphates\", Dawn Chatty (ed), *Nomadic Societies in the Middle East and North Africa: Entering the 21st Century*. Leiden, 946.","author":"Karin Pütt","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Slide"]},"556ddc9e-29c0-523e-bb8e-eb53f4c45d06":{"name":"Ablutions basin.","description":"This parallelepipedic tank marked with plain striations on the inside, the short sides and the corners, was beautifully adorned on the outside, and almost all of the decoration has survived on two sides. The design on the decorated face, whose inscription has been destroyed, is divided into two styles. The first one, rising from the base, consists of a large frieze of grooved foliage, dotted with buds and rosettes and wide-veined plain palms with calyxes, and double ones with acanthus leaves and buds. The second comprises a strip in relief with two lines of grooved intersecting knotwork, one curved and the other straight, bearing fleurons and veined palms. It is framed by an edge, set back, formed by vegetal knotwork accentuated with small stylised palm leaves in the shape of six-pointed stars.  \nThe short side is occupied by two identical animal scenes, sculpted on two vertical panels separated by an empty space. On each panel, there is an eagle spreading its tail, carrying two quadrupeds on its wings and two gazelles from its claws. Two winged ibex confronting each other on either side of a fleuron finish the scene in the lower part.  \nMost of the ornamentation on the other two sides has been destroyed, leaving only the text in *kufic* characters sculpted in relief on the rim and the decoration of the framing ribbon on the large side, which consists of a frieze of aquatic birds and fish alternating on a plant background.  \nThe surviving elements of the inscription that crowned the entire rim of the tank include the last digit of the hegira date (300), and the name of the patron, 'Abd al-Malik, *hajib* (chamberlain) of Hisham II.  \nThe design and animal scenes of this beautiful example of Caliphate artwork are reminiscent of the tank at al-Mansur and would appear to be from the same Madinat al-Zahira marble workshop in Córdoba.","short_description":"This basin is the work of a marble workshop in Madinat al-Zahira, Córdoba, the princely city built by al-Mansur. It was brought to Marrakesh by 'Ali ibn Yusuf and placed in the ablutions room of the Great Mosque.","type":"Basin, marble","holder":"Dar Si Saïd Museum.","dates":"Hegira 381–98 / AD 991–1008 (when 'Abd al-Malik served as *hajib*).","location":"Marrakesh.","dimensions":"Height 70 cm, length 155 cm, width 82 cm, depth 50 cm, thickness of sides 10 cm, thickness of base 20 cm.","method_for_datation":"1\\. The inscription, partially destroyed, sculpted on the upper rim of the tank reads '(the year) three hundred, in the name of God! God's blessing. Victory and divine assistance to the Hajib \\[followed with his honours\\] Abu Marwan 'Abd al-Malik ibn Amir (…), this is part of what he commissioned (…)'.  \n2\\. We know that 'Abd al-Malik was appointed *hajib* of Hisham II between 381 and 398 / 991 and 1008) by his father al-Mansur.","method_for_provenance":"Although it was discovered in the Ibn Yusuf Madrasa in Marrakesh, which belongs to the Sa'did period (10th / 16th century), the name of the patron and the comparative study with the al-Mansur basin in the National Archaeological Museum in Madrid suggest that it was originally from Madinat al-Zahira in Córdoba.","provenance":"Córdoba.","obtention":"As state property from a historical monument.","bibliography":"Deverdun, G., *Marrakech des origines à 1912*, Rabat, 1959.  \nDeverdun, G., *Inscriptions arabes de Marrakech*, Rabat, 1956.  \nGalloti, J., “Sur une cuve de marbre datant du Khalifat de Cordoue”, *Hespéris*, III, fasc. 3, Rabat, 1923, pp.363–91.  \nLévy-Provençal, É., *Histoire de l'Espagne musulmane*, Vol. III, Paris, 1953.  \nPigeon, G., *Manuel d'art musulman*, Vol. I, Paris, 1927.","workshop":"Madinat al-Zahira workshop, Córdoba.","author":"Naima El Khatib-Boujibar","copy_editor":"Margot Cortez","translator":"Laurence Nunny","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["epigraphic decoration","figurative decoration","floral decoration","geometric decoration","religious object","vegetal decoration","water"],"materials":["Sculpted white marble."]},"559aa521-7185-5807-b191-e79fc16098c9":{"name":"Tree of Life Carpet","short_description":"Vegetal and animal motifs decorate this Iranian carpet with the central Tree of Life motif. Originating from Kerman in the Qajar dynasty, the pile is only cut once the knotting process is complete and the textile is taken off its loom.  \n  \nPeople of different faiths and geographic contexts have embraced the tree of life as a symbol of the essence and interconnectedness of all living things. As such, the motif becomes a thread binding people in their shared ideas of the evergreen tree from Bhutan to Germany, the Mayan Empire and the Iroquois People.  \n  \nQajar depictions of the tree of life stem from pre-Islamic Zoroastrianism, considered to be the ancestor of all humans, animals and plants. In Islam, the life tree is called *sidra* or *tuba* and grows in paradise. The fruits known as *haoma* (also *homa*) feed those who enter heaven after death. The carpet displays fruits including grapes, pears, figs and pomegranate. The woven peacock, phoenix and eagle are protectors of the tree according to Persian mythology.  \n  \nA poem by Sufi poet Saadi frames the carpet within its border. The poetry mirrors the garden imagery, as one of Saadi's central themes and symbols of Persian cultural continuity.","type":"Carpets and rugs","holder":"FBQ Museum","owner":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"19th century","location":"Shahaniya","dimensions":"Length: 200cm, Width: 140cm","place_of_production":"Iran, Kerman","method_for_datation":"Date and origin were derived from material, colour, pattern and knot examination.","method_for_provenance":"Date and origin were derived from material, colour, pattern and knot examination.","provenance":"Iran","obtention":"Purchase","bibliography":"Abed-doust, H. and Kazempour, Z., \"Various forms of 'life tree' on Persian carpets\" *Journal Scientific Goljaam*, 5 : 12 (2009): 123–139.  \nAckles, S. F., *Symbols and their meanings in the carpets and prayer rugs of the Turkish, Armenian and Persian traditions,* Doctoral dissertation, Colorado: Colorado State University Libraries, 1998.  \nGans-Ruedin, E., *Iranian Carpets: Art, Craft, and History,* London: Thames and Hudson, 1978.  \nFarzin, A. A. and Hashemi Zadegan, A., \"Interpretation of Garden Position in Saadi Poems\", *Journal of Art and Civilization of the Orient*, 4 : 13 (2016): 3–12.  \nLechler, G., \"The Tree of Life in Indo-European and Islamic Cultures,\" *Ars Islamica*, 4 (1937): 369–419.  \nNikandish, B., Askari, S., Chitsazian, A. \"Symbology of Bird Motifs in Persian and Indian Carpets\", *Peykareh*, 7 : 14 (2019): 33–51.  \nSharbatian, Y. and Bagheri, R., \"Anthropological Study of Kerman Carpet Symbols, Shapes, and Designs\" *American International Journal of Social Science Research*, 7 : 1 (2021): 15–29.  \nSoltis, D. E. and Soltis, P. S. \"Tree of Life in Ancient Human Culture and Art\", *The Great Tree of Life*, (2019): 1–19.","author":"Sarah Schroeder","copy_editor":"Janice Medina","keywords":["Carpets","Iran","Kerman","Qajar","Rugs","tree of life"],"materials":["Senneh knot","wool"]},"564aae8a-774b-5338-a643-bbb087c1fa49":{"name":"Tray (*sinija*)","description":"A large, brass tray – *sinija* (Tr. *sini*) – of circular form, with raised sides, intended to be placed on a low wooden stand to serve as a table for food and beverages. The whole surface is decorated with intricate compositions of engraved ornaments and calligraphy. The small central medallion is filled with an ornament inspired by Rumi. Around it, there is a radial Arabic inscription with the year 1129 (Mamluk *thuluth* script) within a broader band, combined with flowers and leaves. The next frieze is filled with a complicated pattern made of interlaced palmettes and flowers.  \nInscription: ...كونوا أهل خير، تفضلوا، كلوا، واشربوا (Be good people, come \\[please\\], eat and drink...).","type":"Tableware","holder":"Museum of Applied Art","dates":"Hegira 1129 / AD 1716","location":"Belgrade","dimensions":"Diameter: 670mm, weight: 3480g","place_of_production":"Ottoman Empire, possibly Syria","method_for_datation":"By stylistic and comparative analysis with related material.","obtention":"Purchased in 1951.","bibliography":"Karamehmedović, M. A., *Umjetnička obrada metala*, Sarajevo: Veselin Masleša, 1980: 188–190.","author":"Mila Gajić","translator":"Alaa El-Din Daoud","keywords":["brass","ottoman empire","sinija","Tableware","Tray"],"materials":["brass","Engraving","hammering"]},"567ac179-c89c-5f43-a912-af9c71a221ec":{"name":"Collection of Mughal miniatures","short_description":"This album contains 70 miniature paintings realised using the courtly Mughal style, arranged on 66 folios. As the miniatures were composed by different artists they vary greatly in size and execution. It is assumed that these miniatures constituted a part of a large collection of miniatures that Maria Theresia had purchased to decorate the so-called \"Millionenzimmer\" (Millions Room), one of her private reception rooms in Schönbrunn Palace. Most likely, only part of the overall collection was used for the decoration resulting in the remaining miniatures then being gathered into two albums, Min. 44 and this one, Min 64. This thesis is supported by the contemporaneous renovations of the Millions Room, which we know for a fact that Maria Teresia undertook around the 1760's AD, and the arrival of the two albums into the collection of the Imperial Court Library in 1762 AD.  \nThe themes of the miniatures range from intricate courtly portraits and illustrations of Persian epics to classical scenes from Hindu-mythology.","type":"Album","holder":"Austrian National Library (ANL)","dates":"10th to 11th century AH / 17th to 18th cenutry AD","location":"Vienna","dimensions":"530 x 398mm, 70 miniatures on 66 folios","method_for_datation":"The date and origins of the miniatures were establish based on the artistic style of the paintings.","method_for_provenance":"There are many Dutch marginalia throughout the album, mainly providing the titles of miniatures. It is likely that the miniatures in this album came to Amsterdam through the Dutch East India Company, from where they made their way to Vienna.","provenance":"India","obtention":"A written record of the album appears in the card catalogue of the Imperial Court Library in the 19th century. Despite this, there is no information on how the miniatures and the album were obtained initially. It appears to have entered the collection at the same time as a similar album of Mughal miniatures (Min. 44), around 1762 AD.","bibliography":"Duda, Dorothea, *Islamische Handschriften I. Persische Handschriften, Die illuminierten Handschriften und Inkunabeln der Österreichischen Nationalbibliothek*, vol. 4, Vienna: Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, 1983: 256-290.  \nDuda, Dorothea, \"Islamische Buchkunst\" in O. Mazal (ed), *Kultur des Islam: Orientalische Handschriften der Österreichischen Nationalbibliothek* , Vienna: Österrichische Nationalbibliothek, 1980: 256-258.  \nIrblich, Eva, \"Das Unternehmen der Konservierung und wissenschaftlichen Bearbeitung der indischen Miniaturen des Millionenzimmers von Schloss Schönbrunn in Wien\" in W. Koschatzky (ed), *Maria Theresia und ihre Zeit*, Salzburg/Vienna: Residenzverlag, 1979: 89-92.  \nHolter, Kurt, \"Die indischen Miniaturen des Millionenzimmers im Schloss Schönbrunn\" in W. Koschatzky (ed), *Maria Theresia und ihre Zeit*, Salzburg/Vienna: Residenzverlag, 1979: 109-111.","binding_desc":"The brown leather binding was done in a classical style. A golden, double-headed eagle, the coat of arms of the Austrian Empire, is embossed in the centre of both the front and back cover, whilst the spine of the album is embossed with gold ornaments. The binding was expertly crafted in Vienna around 1820 AD.","catalogue_holding_link":"http://data.onb.ac.at/rec/AC14450761","author":"Leonie Fernsebner","copy_editor":"Jonathan Turnbull","keywords":["Album","Millions Room"],"materials":["European paper stamped with a watermark by the Dutch paper mill C. et J. Honig.","The album is made of thick","white"]},"56f05326-4b1d-5eff-9a58-a822374155ee":{"name":"Portrait Of Binjamin Uziyel","description":"In 1911, when the Ottomans had to leave Tripoli, Binjamin Uziyel, who served in the consulate there, did research on a project of setting up sugar factories in Turkey after going to Genoa. He presented it to the Istanbul Chamber of Commerce by preparing a detailed report about setting up sugar factories in Turkey and ways to use the sugar beet.","type":"Photograph","holder":"The Quincentennial Foundation Museum, Archive of Turkish Jews","dates":"19th century","location":"Istanbul","copy_editor":"Daniel de la Vega"},"5744051d-d0c3-5168-aa40-d29af0d0c410":{"name":"Communal serving tray (*siniyyah*)","description":"This copper serving tray (*siniyyah*) was made by a family-owned copper and iron workshop located in Bahla souq, al-Dakhiliyah Governorate, and is just one example of the millennia-long tradition of artisinal metalworking in Oman. Its decoration is suitably domestic: the palm motif is a prevalent symbol of hospitality, and its ceremonial importance is manifested in particularly fine workmanship.","type":"Copper work","holder":"The National Museum - Sultanate of Oman","dates":"Hegira mid-to-late 14th/mid-to-late 20th century","location":"Muscat, Sultanate of Oman","dimensions":"Height: 5cm, diameter: 58cm","place_of_production":"Northern Oman","author":"Noora Al Balushi","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","keywords":["Copper","hospitality","Oman","Tray"],"materials":["copper"]},"5759f401-121f-5cef-8f4b-62d3d8fa9962":{"name":"Spoon","description":"The rim of the spoon is made of coconut shell and the long, cylindrical handle is made of bone, glass and brass. The spoon has an oval rim with a slightly pointed tip. The end of the spoon's handle is carved to resemble a Mevlevi cap . The handle  is decorated with a series of small cylindrical pieces of brass and coloured glass. A round piece of coral is attached to the handle of the spoon near the rim.","holder":"Ankara Ethnography Museum","owner":"The Republic of Türkiye Ministry of Culture and Tourism","location":"Ankara","dimensions":"Length: 23.7cm","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["Bone","brass","Coconut shell","glass"]},"57c9e92a-cab4-5c9c-a712-2d7757fdd1cc":{"name":"Four ivory panels.","description":"The four panels made of carved and openworked pieces of ivory are outstanding examples of the repertoire of work commissioned by the court of the Fatimid period. They are among the most important works of art from this period.  \nTwo of these panels display a horizontal pattern, while the other two have been decorated linearly along the vertical axis. These latter vertical panels have been shortened slightly. Traces of red indicate that there was once a coloured frame or mount.  \nFigures, carved to stand out in high relief, are depicted undertaking a variety of activities. Spiralling grapevines form a backdrop against which people are portrayed in action. Thick grapes hang off the plants. Huntsmen with falcons, helpers carrying small hoofed game, musicians (flute, oboe, lute, plucked stringed instruments), a reveller, pouring into his goblet from a jug, workers picking grapes, and falcons on the hunt – are all depicted in a lifelike and realistic fashion. The illustrations of animal fighting show a lion hunting down a bull, a falcon hunting a deer. A prince reclines on a bolster holding a goblet in his left hand. Everyone wears robes common to that era, made of fabrics decorated with a variety of designs. Even the headdresses are illustrative of the period rather than creations of fantasy.  \nSome depictions refer to pre-Islamic art and reflect the continuing existence of older traditions. It was especially during the Fatimid period that the ban on pictures was circumvented in courtly circles and that representations of the human form were undertaken.  \nFrom stylistic and thematic similarities, a good comparison can be drawn between the works on ivory and the woodwork and ceramics created during the Fatimid period, in which the finer technique seen in the ivory engraving demonstrates greater skill.  \nWhat remains unexplained is their function. The panels could have been used to decorate or coat a wooden surface (such as a door or large trunk), or could have been used as part of a throne. The Arab historian al-Maqrîzî (AH 766–845 / AD 1364–1442) described a Fatimid throne made of ebony and ivory.","short_description":"The function of these panels with themes from princely life is not known, but the carving of hunters with hawks, musicians and revellers against a background of vine scrolls demonstrates the artistic quality of Fatimid ivory carving at its best and thus may be a ruler’s commission for a palace.","type":"Panel, ivory","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art at the Pergamon Museum","initial_owner":"Freiherr von Zu-Rhein Collection; F. v. Amerling Collection; A. Figdor Collection.","dates":"Hegira 5th–6th centuries / AD 11th–12th centuries.","location":"Berlin","dimensions":"Horizontal panels: length 36.5 cm, width 5.8 cm. Vertical panels: height 30.3 cm, width 5.8 cm. Depth of panels 1–1.5 cm.","method_for_datation":"The fact that these panels have not been attributed to a particular building, and that stylistic comparisons to other works of ivory from southern Italy have demonstrated substantial differences, indicates that they might date from the Fatimid period, as they compare stylistically to other artworks from Egypt, above all to Fatimid woodwork.","method_for_provenance":"As Fatimid woodwork from Egypt is the only art form that bears close stylistic comparison to these panels, so far it is thought that these most probably come from Egypt.","provenance":"Egypt.","obtention":"Bought from a private art gallery in 1936.","bibliography":"Ettinghausen, R. and Grabar, O., *The Art and Architecture of Islam, 650–1250*, Harmondsworth, 1987, pp.202–206.  \nHoffman, E. R., “A Fatimid Book Cover: Framing and Re-framing. Cultural Identity in the Medieval Mediterranean World”, in *L’Egypte Fatimide: Son Art et Son Histoire*, (ed. M. Barrucand), Paris, 1999, pp.403–19.  \nKühnel, E., *Die Islamischen Elfenbeinskulpturen, VIII-XIII. Jh*., Berlin, 1971, pp.68–9, no. 88, plates 97–8.  \n*Museum für Islamische Kunst*, Catalogue, Berlin, 1979, no. 21.  \n*Museum für Islamische Kunst*, Catalogue, Stuttgart; Zürich, 1980, no. 19, pp.50–1.","author":"Annette Hagedorn","translator":"Maria Vlotides","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["engraving","Fatimid","framed/mounted","ivory"],"materials":["Ivory."]},"58571b94-fb2a-50e6-8245-cbdd1f785d50":{"name":"Floor Spread (*sofra*) with Design of Tulips and Pomegranates","short_description":"A circular floor spread (*sofra*) with design of tulips and pomegranates. Around the outer edge is a narrow border of floral motifs. Within this comes a wide ring containing large tulips and artichoke or pomegranate motifs which have tulips within them set alternately. In the center is a double circle containing floral motifs like those in the border. The textile is mounted on a red velvet background. The design features red, blue, green, white, and yellow embroidered elements on a natural plain cloth background. There are slight repairs and many stains. The textile is pieced down the middle.","type":"Textiles and Clothing","holder":"Saint Louis Art Museum","dates":"Hegira 11th century to early 12th century / AD 17th century","location":"Saint Louis","dimensions":"Diameter: 106.7cm","method_for_datation":"Scholarly review and/or comparison to similar objects from the period.","method_for_provenance":"This circular shaped *sofra* is filled with tulip motifs characteristic of Ottoman embroidery. Tulips were originally a wild flower growing in Central Asia, and by the late seventeenth century Ottoman artists had perfected representations of the tulip form.","provenance":"Istanbul, Turkey, Asia","obtention":"Gift of Mrs. Frank H. Cook, 1952","bibliography":"Denny, Walter and Krody, Sumru Belger, *The Sultan’s Garden: The Blossoming of Ottoman Art*, Washington D.C.: The Textile Museum, 2012.","keywords":["Asia","embroidery","Floor","Istanbul","linen","Ottoman","silk","Sofra","Spread","textile","Turkey"],"materials":["Linen with silk embroidery"]},"588403a2-2a6d-58c2-a765-7c8f4bdf08f0":{"name":"Lid (*sarpush*) for the plate (*dovra*)","description":"The conical food cover (*sarpush*) was placed atop a round dish (*dovra*) to keep food warm while serving. It is usually made of copper and richly engraved with zoomorphic and floral motifs and inscriptions containing mainly name of the owner and/or master, year of production, *ayahs* from the Quran, as well as wishes for the owner's well-being. Such inscriptions were normally depicted inside cartouches. In 2015, the copper craftsmanship of Azerbaijani Lahij was inscribed on the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.  \n  \nOn this item, the year Hegira 1280 (AD 1859–1860) and floral motifs are depicted. On the upper border there are two lines of Hafez and an inscription stating that the artifact's owner is Agha Bayram, son of the late Aghadadash. Additionally, another inscription reads as follows:  \n\"Remove the sarpush,  \nSo the beloved one could taste the food.  \nSarpush hugged the bowl.  \nImmediately his heart forgot grief.  \nHe calmed down as his lips touched the dish and he ate food.  \nHe was born smart.  \nMay the conversations accompany the feast.\"","type":"Tableware","holder":"Azerbaijan National Carpet Museum","dates":"Hegira 1280 / AD 1863–1864","location":"Baku","dimensions":"Height: 34cm, diametre: 24.5cm; height: 6cm, diametre: 29cm","place_of_production":"Azerbaijan","method_for_datation":"By stylistic and comparative analyses with related material","obtention":"Purchased in 1988; puchased in 1974","author":"Rustam Afandiyev","keywords":["Azerbaijan","Copper","dovra","Lidded plate","sarpush","Tableware"],"materials":["copper","engraved.","hammered"]},"58b05d1c-5f36-5062-be5d-8dc0b6573bbf":{"name":"Plate of polychrome ceramic from Fez","description":"This polychrome ceramic dish illustrates the refinement of Moroccan craftsmanship, especially that of Fez, a city famous for its pottery. In the centre, a six-pointed star outlined in yellow and blue immediately catches the eye. This motif is surrounded by rich floral and vegetal ornaments, arranged symmetrically, evoking the harmony and proliferation of nature. Stylised flowers, mainly blue and yellow, occupy spaces between the star’s branches, while green arabesques add dynamic and contrasting touches. The border of the plate is decorated with a multicoloured diamond pattern, alternating among blue, yellow and green, framed by a thin blue line. This detail gives a captivating finish to the whole, enhancing the composition’s effect.","type":"Plate","holder":"National Foundation of Museums","dates":"Hegira mid of 13th century/ beginning of the 14th century - AD End of 19th century\"","location":"Fez","dimensions":"Diameter: 30 cm, height: 10.02 cm; base: 19.8 cm","place_of_production":"Fez","provenance":"Fez","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["Polychrome glazed ceramic"]},"596c14fe-038a-5166-8b18-291ff7388f1d":{"name":"Dish","description":"Large, white plate decorated with chequered pattern: squares painted either white with black dots, pale blue or green. Rim decorated with a twigs and simplified leaves. On the back side of the rim five blue spots.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"National Museum in Kraków","initial_owner":"Muzeum Techniczno-Przemysłowe w Krakowie / Industrial Museum in Kraków","dates":"11th century Hegira / 17th century AD","location":"Kraków","dimensions":"Diameter: 28.7cm, height: 6cm","method_for_datation":"Dating and origin based on similar pieces from other collections.","method_for_provenance":"Material and technique are characteristic for Turkish ceramic production in this period","provenance":"Turkey","obtention":"Purchased by the Industrial Museum in Kraków.","bibliography":"Holender A., et al., *Katalog wystawy kobierców mahometańskich, ceramiki azjatyckiej i europejskiej : urządzonej w Muzeum Narodowem w Krakowie, luty - czerwiec 1934*, Kraków: Muzeum Narodowe, 1934: p. 97, fig. 217.  \n  \nAbrahamowicz, Z., *Wojna i pokój. Skarby sztuki tureckiej ze zbiorów polskich od XV do XIX wieku*, Warsaw: Muzeum Narodowe, 2000: p. 455, fig. 74.","author":"Bożena Kostuch","keywords":["chequered pattern","Islam"],"materials":["polychrome painted under transparent glaze","Stone-paste (fritware)"]},"59c2fb21-a451-5ddc-860d-380e07ae8190":{"name":"Ceramic bowl","short_description":"The bowl has a broad centre painted in underglaze blue with a round tripartite blazon showing in the middle a stemmed cup. This is the emblem of the office of the Mamluk cupbearer or *saqi*. Blazons are not often met on underglaze painted ware but are most commonly represented on metalwork and earthenware ceramics of the sgraffiato type from the end of the 13th century on.","type":"Bowl, ceramic","holder":"Benaki Museum","dates":"Hegira 7th-8th century / AD late 13th-early 14th century","location":"Athens","provenance":"Syria","keywords":["bowl","ceramic","Mamluk","Saqi"],"materials":["Frit body","underglaze painted"]},"5d530e40-18f0-5e71-b689-999b1ed68ae4":{"name":"Medical prescription.","description":"A medical prescription written on paper using a simple *naskhi* script used in daily life. This prescription is attributed to Shams al-Din ibn al-'Afif, one of the most famous physicians practising during the reign of the Mamluk sultan, al-Ashraf Barsbay (r. AH 825–41 / AD 1422–37). The historian Ibn Iyas (d. AH 930 / AD 1524) mentions that al-'Afif was the most eminent doctor in Egypt, and that he was the head of Bimaristan (hospital) of Sultan Qalawun, in Egypt. In addition he was the personal physician to Sultan al-Ashraf Barsbay, and also responsible for granting doctors authorisation to practice. It is important to note here, that the afflicted who resided in Egyptian hospitals during the Mamluk period underwent both social and medical care, for they were clothed and paid until their treatment was finished. There were *Awqaf* (Endowments) made out to these hospitals, the proceeds of which defrayed the costs incurred by these institutions.  \nThe prescription itself is describing a treatment for the celiac disease. And although there are some grammatical errors in the writing of the description it is readable as follows:  \n'*Praise be to the one God* ///  \n*A* \\[medicinal\\] *powder known as “Sufuf al-Kifaya” \\[complete in its treatment\\] from the diwan of ///*  \n*ibn al-'Afif, the head of the maristan of Egypt who said: Take /// a quarter cup of Qaraz \\[a pod-like fruit of* Acacia Nilotica*\\], the same \\[measure\\] of aniseed, the same \\[measure\\] of fennel,/// 2 ounces of Kirmani cumin, … an ounce of mahagony wood, /// an ounce of seed of clover dodder, an ounce of wormwood from al-Sham \\[Syria\\] and two ounces of almonds./// Roast the qaraz and fennel and grind and crush the remaining components. /// Put hem together and add 3 ounces of water of the sand \\[al-ramli\\] radish \\[to the mixture\\] /// and the same measure of the water of green fennel. The leaves /// of two bunches of sweet basil and the leaves of one bunch of mint, 3 ounces of the water of bearberry, /// then the leaves of a fresh chopped-up bunch of sweet myrtle /// and 3 ounces of celery water. /// Mix them together and add to the \\[medicinal\\] powder, then dry the mixture /// and continue this process until it has soaked up all the water. /// Then add a quarter of a ratl \\[a measure, 449.28 g in Egypt today\\] of white sugar /// and take it in the morning and evening. This is good /// for the celiac disease.'*  \nThe latest scientific studies in nutrition indicate that some foods might cause illnesses, which can lead to death. One of these ailments is celiac disease. Those who are afflicted with this disease are not able to absorb wheat protein as a result of a disorder in the function of the intestines. If the sufferer does eat wheat or one of its by-products he or she may develop chronic diarrhoea and weight loss, ending, finally, in death. Doctors during the Mamluk period knew about this illness, and this prescription describes a treatment which modern science arrived at only very recently. Worth contemplating is the variety of herbs and plants that appear on this prescription which have a number of positive effects in the treatment of stomach ailments.","short_description":"This medical prescription describes a cure for a stomach ailment. It is attributed to Ibn al-‘Afif, the most eminent doctor of the Mamluk period and head of the Bimaristan (hospital) of Sultan Qalawun, where patients were provided with free medicine, clothes and an allowance as well as medical care until their treatment was finished","type":"Prescription, medication, paper","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art","dates":"Hegira 9th century / AD 15th century.","location":"Cairo","dimensions":"Length 16 cm, width 10 cm.","method_for_datation":"This prescription is dated in accordance with historical sources with regard to Doctor Ibn al-‘Afif, which mentions that in addition to the above, Ibn al-‘Afif treated Sultan al-Ashraf Barsbay during the final days before his death in 841 / 1437 while he was suffering from a malady of the stomach.","method_for_provenance":"Provenance of this object was established based on the fact that the document was uncovered during the course of archaeological excavations in Fustat.","provenance":"Fustat, Egypt.","obtention":"This document was uncovered during archaeological excavations that took place in 1931 in the city of Fustat.","bibliography":"Ibn Iyas, Muhammad ibn Ahmad (d. 930 / 1524), *Bada'i al-Zuhur fi Waqa'i al-Duhur \\[The Wonders of Flowers in Events Through the Ages\\],* Cairo, 1894.  \nIbn Maymun (known as Maimonides), Musa ibn Abd Allah (1135–1204), *Sharh asma' al-'iqar \\[Explanation of the Names of Drugs\\], Cairo, 1940.*  \nMuhammad, Sobhi Eid, *“*Tathkara Tibiyya Nadira Min 'Asr Barsbay \\[A Rare Medical Prescription From The Time of Barsbay\\]” *in Majala Dirasat Athariyya \\[Journal of Archaeological Studies\\],* Vol.3, Cairo, 1988.  \nSaid, M. H., (ed., with translation), *Al-Biruni's Book on Pharmacy and Materia Medica,* 2 Vols. Karachi, 1973.  \nYusuf, M. M., \"Wa min al-Ghidha' ma Katal \\[And Some Food May Kill\\]*\",* in *Al-Ahram* Newspaper, 22 August 2003.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_EG_EN_001","author":"Salah Sayour","copy_editor":"Majd Musa","translator":"Amal Sachedina (from the Arabic).","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["Disease","ink","medicine","naskhi script","paper."],"materials":["Paper and black ink."]},"5dc7ada7-555b-5b55-b162-ac8e969fa698":{"name":"*A Place for Breakfast in the Algerian Pavillion* \\[Paris Exhibition 1878\\]","alternate_name":"*Un asciolvere nel padiglione algerino*","description":"Within the International Exhibition in Paris, 1878, commercial activities typical of the colony were performed in the park next to Trocadero Pavilion This scene shows a refreshing small space that the author used to depict the tradition of sharing a couscous with friends or work colleagues. The recreation of an – even only hypothetically - typical setting had to include also works and related activities.","type":"Photo from magazine","holder":"National Central Library","dates":"1878","location":"Rome","copyright":"Copyright image: Biblioteca Nazionale Centrale, Roma.","author":"Marina Minozzi","copy_editor":"Anne Dowell"},"5dd25402-aa83-5544-9e46-d6ccfe8b2a79":{"name":"Small magic cup","description":"Religious formulas or numbers written on magic bowls are used to compensate for medicine’s limitations. Liquid that comes into contact with these formulas acquires their curative property. The centre is decorated with a representation of the *Ka'ba* on top and a six-pointed star on the reverse.","type":"Copperware","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","dates":"Hegira 10th-11th century / AD 16th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 4.5cm, Diameter: 20.5cm","provenance":"Near East","obtention":"Purchased at auction on advice of François de Ricqlès, 2001.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["Copper alloy with engraved decoration"]},"5e49717d-377e-51a8-a5cc-e5b4d8ad7979":{"name":"Water jar","description":"This piece belongs to a set that came from a Turkish shipwreck in the Red Sea, in the Gulf of Aqaba, near Sharm al-Sheikh, during the second quarter of the 18th century. The precise origin of these ceramics is not known, but these water jars are similar to those still used in Egypt today. After the Ottoman conquest, Sultan Selim I deported Egyptian craftsmen from various trades to Istanbul. As a result, ceramics declined irremediably, and production was limited to utilitarian objects such as this one, whose designs are incomparable to those produced from the 9th to the 15th centuries.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","initial_owner":"Jean Soustiel","dates":"Hegira 2nd to 3rd quarter of the 12th century / AD 2nd quarter of the 18th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 28.5cm, Diameter: 12.4cm","provenance":"Near East, from a marine wreck","obtention":"Purchased from the Art Musulman gallery in 1985.","bibliography":"Delpont, E., et al., *Album du musée*. Eric DELPONT (et al.), Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, 2012: 291.  \n  \nMoulierac, J., et al., *Céramique du monde musulman: collections de l'Institut du monde arabe et de J.P. et F. Croisier* , Paris: Institut du monde arabe, 1999: 39.  \n  \nRaban, A. \"The Shipwreck Off Sharm el-Sheikh\". *Archeologia*, volume 24:2 (1971): 146-155.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["Clay","incised and applied decoration","smooth on surface"]},"5e68b14d-8eb3-5454-8d3b-cd5efa2239df":{"name":"Pilgrim bottle.","description":"A free-blown, globular-shaped glass vessel with enamel decoration. One of the wider sides and the lower half of both narrower sides are flattened. The colours of the enamel are wide-ranging: red, white, blue, pale-green, yellow, pink, mauve, and greyish black. Two applied handles sit on either side of the cylindrical neck. An eleven-pointed rosette within an eight-lobed flower containing vegetal scrolls decorates the flattened side. Decorating the curved side is a four-sided lobed motif, with a geometric shape filled-in with arabesques and surrounded by scrolls, terminating in human, animal, or bird heads. On the left of the curved side is a horseman in the act of killing an animal with a spear, he has a beard and a halo around his head and wears a conical hat with ribbons. Below this figure is a medallion with a female harp player, wearing a veil and a long tunic. On the other narrow side is a horseman under a tree killing a lion with a javelin; birds are flying overhead. He has a halo and wears a long coat and boots. In the circular medallion below him is a man sitting cross-legged, with a beaker in one hand, drinking. His tunic has decorative tiraz bands on the sleeves.  \nThe two horsemen recall those found in Christian iconography, whereas the figures in the medallions are typical of figures depicted in Islamic art. The mixture of motifs suggests the patron was either a Muslim who was familiar with Christian imagery or a Christian who appreciated the work of Muslim craftsmen. The shape of this vessel recalls leather flasks or unglazed ceramic pilgrim bottles, rather than other glass and metal objects. Although made of glass, this flask may have been carried on journeys or pilgrimages in a leather container. It was certainly a luxury object, perhaps made specifically as a gift.","short_description":"This enamelled glass pilgrim bottle is an interesting example of the crossover of Christian and Islamic cultures. Two of the figures decorating the vessel derive from Christian iconography of St George and the dragon, whereas the musician and drinker are found in Islamic art.","type":"Glasswork, gilded glass","holder":"The British Museum.","dates":"Hegira third quarter 7th century / AD third quarter 13th century.","location":"London, England","dimensions":"Height 23 cm, length 23 cm, width 16.2 cm.","method_for_datation":"The decoration resembles late Ayyubid and early Mamluk compositions.","method_for_provenance":"The technique and decoration are close to other glass objects produced in the Mamluk domains of Egypt and Syria.","provenance":"Egypt or Syria.","obtention":"Bequeathed to the British Museum by Felix Slade in 1869.","bibliography":"Carboni, S., and Whitehouse, D., Glass of the Sultans, New York, 2001, p.247–9, cat. no. 123.  \nHarden, D., Painter, K., Pinder-Wilson, R., and Tait, H., Masterpieces of Glass, London, 1968, p.114–5, cat. no. 153.  \nPinder-Wilson, R., \"The Islamic Lands and China\", in Five Thousand Years of Glass (ed. H. Tait), 1991, p.134, cat. no. 170.  \nRogers, J. M., \"European Inventories as a Source for the Distribution of Mamluk Enamelled Glass\", in Gilded and Enamelled Glass from the Middle East, (ed. R. Ward), 1998, pp.69–73.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_EG_EN_001","author":"Emily Shovelton","copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["arabesque","drinker","figurative decoration","horsemanship","musician","Pilgrim flasks","pilgrimage","vegetal decoration"],"materials":["enamelled and gilded glass."]},"5eb1c735-e657-5f39-8791-b8112b9f9ac5":{"name":"Mamluk candlestick","description":"Crafted from copper alloy, this bell-shaped candlestick is a testament to the remarkable craftsmanship of the Mamluk period. Its design features intricate cursive inscription bands interrupted by roundels adorned with whirling rosettes, each meticulously engraved with the official titles of the owner. Notably, the inscription on the cylindrical base is upside down, adding a captivating detail to its design that invites further scholarly inquiry.  \nOne of the most intriguing aspects of this candlestick is the inscription on its neck, which suggests its ownership by a Mamluk sultan. However, the illegibility of the name presents a challenge to dating the object with certainty, leaving room for scholarly debate and analysis. Nevertheless, the presence of such prestigious ownership hints at the candlestick’s significance within the context of Mamluk court culture and patronage.  \nFurther examination reveals variations in copper composition between the base and the neck, and differences in script styles in the inscriptions. These subtle variations suggest the possibility that the candlestick was repurposed from a different object; perhaps originally one part served as a tray stand or another decorative item. This adaptive reuse highlights the resourcefulness and ingenuity of Mamluk artisans, who were adept at recycling materials to create new and innovative works of art.  \nIn addition to its artistic and historical significance, this candlestick offers valuable insights into the material culture and artistic practices of the Mamluk period through meticulous analysis of its craftsmanship, inscriptions and materials, with intricate details likely achieved through engraving and embossing.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani Museum","owner":"His Excellency Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"Hegira c. 7th to 10th century / AD c. 13th to 16th century","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Height: 20cm, diameter: 5cm, base diameter: 20.5cm","place_of_production":"Egypt or Syria","method_for_datation":"The date and origin were established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, techniques, style and analogies.","method_for_provenance":"Provenance was established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, techniques, style and analogies.","provenance":"Egypt or Syria","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Mahmoud Saber","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Copper alloy","embossing","Engraving","metal"]},"611887bb-d44c-51a1-b6d3-d89221fb788c":{"name":"Ewer","short_description":"The late 17th century witnessed the rise of Kütahya, the Ottoman second largest ceramic centre, situated in the south-eastern outskirts of Istanbul. Europeans, impressed by richness and refinement of its exotic patterns, called Kütahya \"The Sevres of the East\".  \nThis large egg-shaped ewer with strikingly thin walls belongs to rare samples of Kütahya ware. Painted with short rapid strokes of cobalt pigment on a snow white background it represents the best achievements of the second half of the 18th century.  \nThe original style of Kütahya décor genuinely combines different artistic traditions of East and West which were brought to the Ottoman culture due to trade activities of the Armenian community, settled in the town. Some researchers also suggest that the major part of the Kütahya ceramics was produced by Armenian potters.","holder":"The Khanenko Museum","dates":"AD 18th century","location":"Kyiv","dimensions":"Height: 28.8cm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis by M. Vyazmitina (examination, 1930, date, origin), Yu. Miller (publication, 1972, date specified).","method_for_provenance":"According to the entry in the old Museum Inventory Register (1925-1946).","provenance":"Kütahya, Turkey","obtention":"Purchased by Bohdan and Varvara Khanenko. Donated by Varvara Khanenko in 1918, nationalized by Bolshevik regime in 1919.","bibliography":"Carswell, J. and Dowsett, C.J.F., *Kütahya tiles and pottery from the Armenian cathedral of St. James*, 2 vols, Jerusalem: Oxford, 1972.  \nCrowe, Yo, \"Armenians and Kutahua ceramics\" in H.C. Evans (ed), *Armenia: Art, Religion, and Trade in the Middle Ages*, New Haven: The Metropolitan Museum of Art and Yale University Press, 2018: 221-224.  \nMiller, Yu, *Art of Turkish Ceramics*, Leningrad: Aurora Publishing House, 1972.  \nRudyk, Hanna, \"Ottoman Collection in The Khanenko Museum\", *Chronicles-2000*, 1: 95 (2013): 479-495.  \nVyazmitina, M. (ed), *Mystetstvo krain islamu (Art from Islamic Countries)*, catalogue, VUAN Museum of Art, Kyiv: All-Ukrainian Academy of Sciences, 1930.","author":"Antonina Makarevych","copy_editor":"Janice Medina","keywords":["ceramics","ewer","Kütahya","Ottoman","stonepaste","Turkey"],"materials":["painted in cobalt blue under transparent glaze","Stonepaste"]},"611b1a5d-121e-5d2d-aabc-4a2151130229":{"name":"Aghlabid Reservoirs.","description":"These two reservoirs were built using the same method. They are constructed of rubble and surfaced with a waterproof coating. The walls are consolidated by internal and external buttresses which alternate, thus providing maximum resistance against the water pressure. These buttresses are semi-cylindrical in shaped and topped with semi-spheres, combining aesthetics with technical performance.  \nThey are composed of three main sections:  \n– The small reservoir measures 17 m in diameter and is reinforced by 17 internal and 26 external buttresses. Its holding capacity is 4,000 cubic metres. It is a filtering basin which receives the untreated water and rids it of most of the debris that it carries before decanting it into the large reservoir.  \n– The large reservoir is circular in shape, measures 128 m in diameter and is 4.8 m deep. Its holding capacity is 57,000 cubic metres. No less than 182 buttresses were needed (118 external and 64 internal) to contain the pressure and guarantee the viability of the project, which was to store enough water for the needs of daily life in the town. A squat poly-foil pillar rises up from its centre. Formerly surmounted by a dome, it was used as a leisure pavilion.  \nThe water travels from here into two parallel dispensing water-tanks set perpendicular to the reservoirs. They are covered with barrel vaults held up by arch-beams that rest on pillars. Six openings at the top of the vaults allow the water to be drawn.","short_description":"These hydraulic structures are the most famous in the Muslim world. They were among 15 pools outside the city walls that provided water to Kairouan. The imposing majesty of these installations earned Kairouan the epithet ‘city of water tanks’ in the Middle Ages. There are two semi-cylindrical pools supplied by an ingenious system for draining rainwater and the water from a nearby depression filled by tributaries of the *wadi* Merguelli.","dates":"Hegira 248 / AD 862.","location":"Kairouan","method_for_datation":"Historical sources: Ibn Khaldoun, *Histoire des Berberes*.","bibliography":"Lezine, A., *Architecture de l'Ifriqiya, recherches sur les monuments Aghlabides*, Paris, 1966.  \nMaoudoud, K., *Kairouan*, Tunis, 2000, pp.37–9.  \nSolignac,M.M., *“Les installations hydrauliques de Kairouan et des steppes tunisiennes du VIIIe au XIe siecle”*, t.X, Algiers, 1953, pp.187–92.  \n*Ifriqiya: Thirteen centuries of Art and Architecture in Tunisia*, pp.162–3.","history":"The Aghlabid reservoirs, of which only two survive, were part of a group of about 15 reservoirs, located outside the city walls, which supplied the town with water. They are considered to be among the most important hydraulic works of the Muslim world. They provoked the admiration of travellers and led to the town being given the name 'city of the cisterns'. They were filled by draining rainwater as well as water from the tributaries of the *wadi* Merguelli, which flow in the surrounding lowlands. Its waters were harnessed by small dams and a conveyance canal which transported it to the small pool. In 350 (961), the Fatimid Caliph al-Mu'izz built an aqueduct that brought water from the Shreshira springs, located 40 km to the west of Kairouan.","patrons":"Abu Ibrahim Ahmed.","author":"Jamila Binous","keywords":["Aghlabid","aqueducts","buttresses","Cisterns","filtering pools","hydraulic works","leisure pavilion","reservoirs","Umayyad"]},"61338d55-fb32-555c-a06d-c7ca35110c05":{"name":"Les foggaras","description":"An ingenious system of drawing and distributing water simultaneously in an extremely dry area, foggaras consist of a row of wells on a gentle and uninterrupted slope that allows surface water to flow to gardens.  \n  \nThe well shafts are made by drilling a tunnel at the base of a mountainous area and following an aquifer, with the goal of bringing water to the surface for irrigation of agricultural land. The tunnels are horizontal and dug with extreme precision on a regular slope to allow the water to flow steadily.  \n  \nThe tapped foggara water table is deeper than the water table under the dunes, but closer to the surface in the nearby plateau of Tadmaït (to the east), which makes it accessible by digging horizontally. The size of this network of wells is estimated at thousands of kilometres between the Gourara and the Touat; seven kilometres for just the Mghayer, the foggara of Timimoun. The punishing work of digging could not have been accomplished without the exploitation of many slaves. For this reason maintaining foggaras that collapse or become silted is problematic.  \n  \nThe term foggara refers not only to this system of pumping from the water table, but also to the pooling of water to irrigate the palm groves. The oases of Gourara and Touat have comb-like structures (*kesria*) that direct the water flowing between the “teeth” (*kiel el-Ma*). The water is distributed according to the requirements of the private gardens, and routed through channels (*seguias*) that drain into ponds (*majens*) from which farmers draw water to the extent allowed. This system, specific to Saharan regions, is evidence of its early use, and of the people’s deep desire to live in harmony by sharing with each other the meagre resources of the Sahara in a strict but fair manner.","type":"","dates":"","bibliography":"","author":"Curatorial committee (Farida Benouis, Houria Chérid, Lakhdar Drias, Amine Semar)","translator":"Judy Harter (French to English)"},"61c3680d-7e1f-5627-a43b-1ebb99008f0e":{"name":"Folio with two miniatures from Persian translation of 'The Wonders of Creation and the Oddities of Existence' by Zakaria Qazwini","short_description":"A folio from Persian translation of a popular cosmography treatise \"The Wonders of Creation and the Oddities of Existence\" by Zakaria bin Muhammad al-Qazwini. The book, written in AD 13th century, covers the fields of geography, astronomy, astrology and natural history, in a mixture of science and superstition. Both sides of the folio are embellished with miniatures featuring fruit-bearing trees.","type":"Manuscript; Miniature; Calligraphy","holder":"The Khanenko Museum","dates":"AD 16th century","location":"Kyiv","dimensions":"Length: 11.5cm, Width: 11.5cm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis by V. Krachkovskaya (publication, 1926, origin), A. Ivanov (examination, 1966, date).","method_for_provenance":"Publication of Vera Krachkovskaya (1927): the Khanenkos' collection.","provenance":"Iran","obtention":"Purchased by Bohdan and Varvara Khanenko in Paris, 1914, presumably from Fredrik Robert Martin's collection. Donated by Varvara Khanenko in 1918, nationalised by Bolshevik regime in 1919.","bibliography":"Berlekamp, Persis, *Wonder, Image, and Cosmos in Medieval Islam*, New Haven: Yale University Press, 2011.  \nBilenko, H. and Rudyck (Rudyk), H., *Oriental Collection*, guidebook, Kyiv: The Khanenko Museum, 2005.  \nKrachkovskaya, V., \"Musulmsnskoye iskusstvo v sobranii Khanenko (Muslim Art from the Khanenkos' Collection)\", in Bartold V.V. (ed), *Zapyski Kollegii Vostokovedov (Notes of the College of Orientalists)* at Asian Museum of USSR Academy of Sciences, Vol II, Leningrad: USSR Academy of Sciences, 1927.  \nNewman, Andrew (ed), *Society and Culture in the Early Modern Middle East: Studies on Iran in the Safavid Period*, Leiden: Brill, 2003.  \nVyazmitina, M. (ed), *Mystetstvo krain islamu (Art from Islamic Countries)*, catalogue, VUAN Museum of Art, Kyiv: All-Ukrainian Academy of Sciences, 1930.","author":"Antonina Makarevych","copy_editor":"Janice Medina","keywords":["calligraphy","Iran","manuscript","miniature","Safavid"],"materials":["Paints and ink on paper"]},"63a0f023-76ca-5378-a69c-036e6ca9862e":{"name":"*Divan-ı Hafız* by Şemşeddin Muhammed Hafız Şirazi","description":"The miniature depicts a social gathering for entertainment. A servant offers a plate of pomegranates to the individual seated on the carpet in the centre, who is accompanied by a beautiful young boy clapping his hands and reciting a *ghazal* (love poem) to the accompaniment of musicians.","type":"Book","holder":"Konya Mevlana Museum","dates":"AH 958/AD 1560","location":"Konya","copy_editor":"Judy Harter"},"643b2b9c-20f5-5b36-9e17-3be5e6f47f5b":{"name":"Khassaki Sultan Complex","description":"","type":"","dates":"","bibliography":""},"65786a69-ccf0-52e9-acec-40d5ded53000":{"name":"Covered al-Buzuriyya Market","description":"Before the celebrations of Mawlid al-Nabawi (Feast of the Birth of the Prophet), shops in the historic Buzuriyya market in Damascus are filled with many types of sweets and chocolates. The most important sweet for Aid al-Mawlid is the *Mulabbas*, which consists of roasted almonds coated with a thin layer of sugar mixed with rose water. The shopkeepers arrange the various sweets inside the shops, while they place large bags of *Mulabbas* at the entrance to attract customers. The mosques organise the Mawlid celebrations, which take place between the Maghrib and Isha prayers in the evening, and a number of women like to host a Mawlid party in their homes. During the celebration of Mawlid, *Mulabbas* are distributed to all celebrants. Damascenes believe it is important to cook white food or serve white sweets on religious occasions, in order to greet the coming days with optimism symbolised by the colour white.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Karin Pütt","initial_owner":"Karin Pütt","dates":"Hegira 1408 / AD 1988","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Damascus/Syria","method_for_provenance":"Direct contact","provenance":"Damascus/Syria","bibliography":"al-Maliki, M. A., “On Celebrating the Birth of the Prophet”, Imam Ghazali Institute, 2016.  \n  \nRabbat, N., “Ideal-type and Urban History: The Development of the Suq in Damascus” in Gharipour, Mohammad, ed. *The Bazaar in the Islamic City: Design, Culture, and History*. American University in Cairo Press, 2012.  \n  \nZarcone, T., Mevlid Kandili. “La fête de la naissance du Prophète en Turquie”, Nathalie CLAYER et Erdal KAYNAR, “Penser, agir et vivre dans l'Empire ottoman et en Turquie”, Paris, Louvain, Walpole, MA, 2013: 308-320.","author":"Hiba Bizreh","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Colour photography"]},"65a53b99-07d5-5553-b2ed-33b6de70f6c6":{"name":"Covered Vessel with Relief Design of Arabic Inscription in *Kufic* Script","short_description":"A circular steatite vessel with a thin, flat lid with a vertical, eared wing handle that has a mushroom-shaped cut-out in the center. Around the exterior of the lid is a band of cross-hatching, and another band of the same width crossing the diameter of the lid. This band is also cross-hatched on one half, up to where it intersects with the handle, then becomes \"transparent,\" filled only with the raised relief inscription beneath that covers the remaining surface of the lid.  \nThe vessel has straight sides with an upper and lower border of cross-hatching, enclosing a relief band of inscription. The stone is carved to form an Arabic inscription in relief, in an angular script style known as *Kufic*. The tops of the taller letters end in leaves and flowers, a popular calligraphic device in the 10th century. On opposing sides of the vessel are bar-like handles with deep gouges on their outer edges. The area where each handle attaches to the vessel is bordered by cross-hatching.","type":"Stone and Mineral","holder":"Saint Louis Art Museum","dates":"Hegira Late 2nd to late 4th / AD 10th century","location":"Saint Louis","dimensions":"Height with cover: 14.9cm; Diameter of cover: 21.9cm; Height of vessel without cover: 10.2cm; Diameter of mouth: 22.2cm; Width across handles: 24.8cm; Diameter of base: 22.2cm","method_for_datation":"The stone is carved to form an Arabic inscription in relief, in an angular style known as *kufic*. The tops of the taller letters end in leaves and flowers, a popular calligraphic device in the 10th century.","method_for_provenance":"Steatite vessels such as this one were used for cooking in the 9th–10th centuries in the northeastern Iranian city of Nishapur. Many small steatite objects have been excavated, but this is the largest complete vessel known.","provenance":"Nishapur, Khorasan, Iran, Asia","obtention":"Museum Purchase, 1949","keywords":["Asia","bowl","Covered","Iran","Khorasan","Mineral","Nishapur","Persian","steatite","stone"],"materials":["steatite"]},"6683cc1c-52e6-5a4a-a227-4855d653487b":{"name":"Rosewater bottle.","description":"The rosewater bottle has a pear-shaped body and a short round base. The tall, slender neck is shaped like a cypress tree and is fitted to the body with a knob, which has vegetal decoration and turns on a shaft.  \n  \nPieces of polished turquoise are attached to the body, a technique called *firuzekari*. An openwork design with alternating bunches of tulips, roses and carnations, and cypress trees, has been created by carving out the metal background. There are *firuzekari* cypress trees on the sprinkler as well as palmettes in the same technique on the base. The entire surface is decorated with rubies and emeralds fitted into sockets. *Firuzekari* and gold were used decoratively on Qur'an covers in particular, during the last quarter of the AH 10th century / AD 16th century.  \n  \nTurquoise, a greenish-blue gemstone, is considered in Turkish popular culture to this day to be a talisman against the evil eye and is thought to prevent bad luck and accidents.  \n  \nIn the Ottoman period such rosewater bottles, exquisitely crafted and decorated with precious stones, were used mostly by palace officials. Rosewater bottles were made of gold, silver, porcelain and glass; they had long necks, narrow mouths and large bodies. They were used for pouring or sprinkling rosewater over the hands of guests, including at religious gatherings such as *mevlid* (the celebration of the birthday of the Prophet). Normally a rosewater bottle would also have a tray and be used together with an incense-burner during such ceremonies.","short_description":"Rosewater was sprinkled on guests' hands during religious ceremonies and private meetings. Gold rosewater bottles were especially used by courtiers. According to Islamic tradition, rosewater carries the fragrance of 'rose', the symbol of Prophet Muhammad and its use adds to the meaning of the worship.","type":"Gold, silver, metal","holder":"Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts.","dates":"Hegira last quarter of the 10th century / AD 16th century.","location":"Sultanahmet, Istanbul.","dimensions":"Height 32 cm.","method_for_datation":"Naturalistic motifs of tulips, roses, hyacinths, cypresses and pomegranates started to infuse the Ottoman decorative repertory in about the middle of the 10th / 16th century. As such motifs are found on our example as well as on similar works of art at the Topkapı Palace Treasury, this rosewater bottle is dated to the last quarter of the 10th / 16th century.","method_for_provenance":"The high-quality workmanship, as well as the existence of similar objects at the Topkapı Palace, suggests that this bottle was made in the Topkapı Palace workshops in Istanbul.","provenance":"Istanbul, Turkey.","obtention":"It was brought to the museum on 10 January 1919 from the Tomb of Eyüp Sultan (Ayyub al-Ansar).","bibliography":"*Anadolu Medeniyetleri III, Selçuklu–Osmanlı* (*Anatolian Civilizations III, Seljuqs–Ottomans*), Istanbul, 1983, p.181.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_TR_EN_001","author":"Alev Özay","translator":"Barry Wood","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["Firuzekari technique","hyacinths","rosewater bottle"],"materials":["Gold","porcelain and glass. Decorated with turquoise-work (firuzekari) and openwork.","Silver","various metals"]},"66adc4ae-b72a-5645-9464-e6b42ed42fe6":{"name":"Plate","description":"Red clay with cream slip, decorated with purple-brown and mustard tones under a transparent colourless glaze. A traditional latticed decoration encircles the rim of the plate. The interior surface displays a particularly intriguing example of early Çanakkale ceramics. The centrepiece is a tow boat with waving pennant and regimental banners. In the 16th–18th centuries, depictions of the Ottoman navy can be found in various examples of ceramics, miniatures and wall paintings. These decorations are likely related to the city's seafront location and to Ottoman ships, of which the city's inhabitants were very proud. The unadorned lines of the oared and unmanned boats impart a naive quality to these plates, reflecting the diverse and creative enthusiasms of folk art.","type":"Utensil","holder":"Istanbul Archaeological Museums (The Tiled Kiosk)","dates":"Hegira late 12th century / AD late 18th century","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"Diameter: 29cm, height: 7.5cm","place_of_production":"Çanakkale","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Glazed terracotta"]},"66ef3821-0608-5a20-9446-662a31c4e610":{"name":"*Divan-ı* Ali Şir Nevai (Social Gathering for Entertainment)","description":"This copy of Ali Şîr Nevâî's *Divan*, a collection of poems written under his pseudonym, Fânî, is dated Hegira 943 / AD 1536–1537, and is signed by Mir Ali al-Bukhârî. It is written in Chagatai Turkish in *Nastaliq* calligraphy in two columns on papers of various colours with different patterns and *zerefşan* (gold leaf).  \nOn page 1a is a text written in a circular medallion with superscript text. This states that the work was prepared for Abdülazîz Khan, b. Ubeydullah Khan, one of the rulers of the Shaybânî Dynasty, an Islamic dynasty that ruled in Mâverâünnehir, Khârezm and Khorasan. At the top of the same page is the seal of Sultan Mahmud I's foundation, and below it is the seal of Derviş Mustafa Efendi, inspector of Evkaf. On the following facing pages is a scene of entertainment in the countryside. The title page is decorated with floral and geometric motifs. There are a total of eight miniatures in the work.  \nThe binding comprises two covers, the outer of which is leather over cardboard. It is decorated with Chinese clouds and various floral motifs on a gilt ground. The inner cover is made of brown leather, and the backgrounds of borders, corners, and edges of panels are navy blue. These sections with navy blue grounds are decorated with floral motifs obtained by the *kat’ı* (paper cutting) technique.","type":"Manuscript","holder":"Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts","dates":"AH 943/AD 1536–1537","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"30cm x 17cm","obtention":"The item was brought to the Museum from the Mahmud I Library on 13 April 1914.","materials":["Finished (aharli) paper","gilding","Ink","leather binding"]},"670eba93-83b0-54bf-987d-360af123a3ea":{"name":"Coffee cups","description":"Coffee in Oman is traditionally served in small cups without any added sugar or milk. The host holds the cup between the fingers of their right hand and pours in coffee from a *dallah* held in their left. Coffee is typically served first to the most honored guests.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"The National Museum - Sultanate of Oman","dates":"Hegira 14th / AD 20th century","location":"Muscat, Sultanate of Oman","dimensions":"Height: 4.8cm, diameter: 6.3cm","provenance":"Northern Oman","author":"Noora Al Balushi","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Clay"]},"67ae5352-aaad-57a1-9050-4df90cfc07e6":{"name":"*Suz u gudaz* (‘Burning and Melting’)","short_description":"*Suz u gudaz* (‘Burning and Melting’) is a romance, an allegorical poem that tells of the soul’s yearning for God through the story of a Hindu woman who, following the custom known as *sati*, ended her life on her husband’s funeral pyre. The poet Muhammad Riza, known as Naw‘i (d.1619), was born in Khabushan in north-eastern Iran, but later travelled to India where he composed the poem for Prince Daniyal, son of the Mughal emperor Akbar (r. 1556–1605). The three paintings shown here depict the worship of fire, the young man telling his father of his beloved, and the two lovers seated in a garden with an attendant standing nearby.","type":"Manuscript","holder":"The Chester Beatty Library","dates":"Hegira mid 11th century / AD mid 17th century","location":"Dublin","dimensions":"24.6 x 14.5 cm","provenance":"Iran","catalogue_holding_link":"https://viewer.cbl.ie/viewer/image/Per_268/1/LOG_0000/","keywords":["calligraphy","illumination","Illustration","miniature painting","script"],"materials":["coloured pigments and gold on paper"]},"68325b3d-407d-58cd-871d-f55852f7184e":{"name":"Albarello","description":"An albarello (plural: albarelli) is typically an earthenware jar originally designed for medicinal purposes and used to hold apothecaries' ointments and dry drugs. The origins of this type of pharmacy jar trace back to the Islamic world. Its craftsmanship and design influence spread to Europe through Muslim-European interaction. This particular albarello exemplifies 14th-century AD Valencian ware by Muslim potters. It has a cylindrical body, tall neck, and slanting shoulder on a short foot. It is decorated in blue and lustre glazes, with seven horizontal geometric bands that include many abstract motifs favoured for pharmacy jars, including two bands bearing *al-afiya*, a stylised inscription of the Arabic word for health and happiness. While the albarello was originally used for medicines, glazed jars like this one were used for storing and transporting items like wine, water, butter, honey and olives.","type":"Pottery","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art","owner":"Qatar Museums","dates":"Hegira second half of 8th century /AD second half of 14th century","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Height: 36cm","place_of_production":"Spain, Valenciana, Manises","provenance":"Spain, Valenciana, Manises","author":"Teslim Sanni","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Tin-glazed earthenware with lustre and cobalt blue decoration"]},"69a91c1d-a3b0-5106-9135-ad44679f9576":{"name":"Nilüfer Hatun Imaret.","alternate_name":"Iznik Museum.","description":"The monument was built in the style of a mosque with *tabhane* (guest-rooms) (also known as mosques with *zawiya*, or multifunctional mosques), many of which were built in Anatolia in the AH 8th–9th / AD 14th–15th centuries. It consists of a rectangular area with two rooms (the prayer hall and the central courtyard) flanked by a room on the north and south sides; there is also a portico for latecomers extending along the eastern side. The eastern façade is 40.50 m wide; the portico for latecomers 25.35 m wide. Inclusive of the portico for latecomers the building is 33.60 m in length.  \nThe portico for latecomers has five bays supported with four piers. Four columns join two pointed arches on each of the sides, and five pointed arches on the front. Contrary to custom, the portico for latecomers does not extend the length of the entrance façade. It has a dome over its central bay and vaults over the others. In the centre of the west wall is an entranceway to the central hall; above which is the building's foundation inscription on marble.  \nThe central hall is square and covered by a dome with a round lantern. The prayer hall to its west is divided in two by an arch. The eastern half has an eight-section dome, while the dome in the western half has been placed between cross- and star-vaults. The *mihrab* niche is in the south wall. The rectangular rooms to the north and south of the central hall have been transformed into squares using flat-top (Bursa-type) arches, and they are each covered with a dome supported on a transition zone of broken triangles. The east wall of each room has a hearth-niche.  \nThe building is covered with red roof tiles. Its walls are made of single rows of cut stone alternating with triple rows of brick. The upper parts of the walls feature four rows of brick dog-tooth eaves, while the domes have two rows of dog-tooth eaves.  \nIn the portico for latecomers the capitals of the columns are of marble, so also are the frame and lintel of the entrance door, the tympanum and the side piers. The walls have some decorative brick- and stonework. The piers with torus-mouldings on the entrance axis are noteworthy for their different decoration. Decorative plasterwork with friezes of palmette motifs in relief, embellish the dome in the centre of the portico for latecomers and the upper part of the walls of the entrance area.  \nSeveral functions have been proposed for the Nilüfer Hatun Imaret. Some researchers claim that the building was a soup-kitchen, since the name *imaret* means an institution for distributing food to the poor. Others hold that the term *imaret* did not come to have this meaning until later and that, initially, the term was used for any building used for charitable deeds, and that in the AH 8th–9th / AD 14th–15th centuries buildings like this, of which many examples called *imaret* exist in Anatolia, were constructed to shelter itinerant dervishes.  \nThe building was badly damaged during the Turkish War of Independence (1919–1922) and was later used as a storage depot. After 1955 it was restored and opened as a museum. The museum displays ceramic finds from the excavations in Iznik as well as various antique and ethnographic objects recovered in archaeological excavations in and around Iznik.","short_description":"Built of bricks, stones and marble this relatively plain monument is noteworthy for the variety of its superstructure, especially inside. It was built by Sultan Murad I in the name of his mother after her death. Daughter of the Byzantine *tekfur* of Harmankaya, Holofira married Orhan Gazi and converted to Islam, taking the name Nilüfer Hatun. She was renowned for her charitable work. The structure was built in the style of a mosque with *tabhane* (guesthouse), which housed the missionary dervishes who played a great role in the Islamisation of Anatolia during the AH 8th-9th / AD 14th-15th centuries.","dates":"Hegira 790 / AD 1388.","location":"İznik, Bursa","method_for_datation":"There is an inscription of three lines carved on a marble plaque above the entrance portal. The monument was built for Nilüfer Hatun, mother of Sultan Murad I and was completed on 30 Rabi' al-Awwal 789 / 8 April 1388.","bibliography":"Aslanapa, O., *Osmanlı Devri Mimarisi \\[Architecture of the Ottoman Period\\]*, Istanbul, 1986.  \nAyverdi, E. H., *İstanbul Mi'mâri çağının Menşei. Osmanlı Mi'mârisinin ilk Devri 630–805 (1230–1402) \\[The Origins of Istanbul Architecture, The First Period of Ottoman Architecture, The Reigns of Ertuğrul, Osman and Orhan Gazis, Hüdavendigar and Yıldırım Bayezid 630–805 (1230–1402)\\]*, Istanbul, 1962, pp.320–8  \nEyice, S., “İki Türk Abidesinin Mahiyetleri Hakkında Notlar. İznik'te Nilüfer Hatun İmareti ve Kayseri'deki Köşk Medrese \\[Notes on the Content of Two Turkish Monuments. The Nilüfer Hatun İmaret in İznik and the Köşk Madrasa in Kayseri\\]”, *İFYAD* 2 (1957), pp.107–10  \nEyice, S., “İlk Osmanlı Devrinin Dini-İçtimai Bir Müessesesi: Zaviyeler ve Zaviyeli Camiler \\[A Religious-Social Institution of the Early Ottoman Period: Zawiyas and Mosques with Zawiyas\\]”, *İktisat Fakültesi Mecmuası \\[Journal of the Faculty of Economics\\]*, *XXIII* (1962/63), pp.1–80.  \nGoodwin, G., *A History of Ottoman Architecture*, London, 1992, p.22; pp.44–5","patrons":"Sultan Murad I (r. AH 761–91 / AD 1360–89).","linkcatalogs":"IAM_TR_EN_001","author":"Mehmet Kahyaoğlu","translator":"Barry Wood","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["imaret (soup-kitchen)","itinerant dervish.","tabhane (guest-room)","zawiya (dervishes’ lodge)"]},"6a082742-d8cb-5964-8ea7-e722c9a23660":{"name":"Ceramic jar","description":"A tall pottery jar with a flat base used for storage and short-distance transport, as indicated by its shape and four short handles. The handles are placed at the shoulder below a rimmed mouth. Under its yellow and pistachio-coloured glaze it is decorated with brown and green glazes in three horizontal registers. The band below the lip is delineated by a thin brown line at the top and a green stripe between two thin brown lines at the bottom, a motif that is repeated below the second and the third bands. It depicts a row of six-petalled flowers, outlined in brown, with a leaf on each side of the stem. The petals are decorated with a spot of green. In the second band, a brown-edged diamond pattern circles the body. The third band is decorated with a row of brown-edged leaves filled in with green. The pot is glazed inside in dark green. From historical documents (cookbooks or single recipes) we know some methods of traditional preservation; many of them remained in use in traditional communities in the 20th century, and even today. Meat or butter was preserved in relatively big pots, or salted in stoneware or earthenware jars. Curing with liquid and dry-curing were also used, the latter using salt mixed with other ingredients, such as spices, before smoking.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani Museum","owner":"His Excellency Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"Hegira 12th century / AD 18th century","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Height: 48cm, length: 23cm","place_of_production":"Iran, Khorasan province","method_for_datation":"Analysis of techniques, style and motifs","method_for_provenance":"Analysis of techniques, styles and motifs; analogies","provenance":"Iran, Khorasan province","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Terézia Bardi","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Clay","Glaze","underglaze painting"]},"6a2ad1b6-4e61-5b64-aa4c-e23e31a8188c":{"name":"*Sübhatü'l Ebrar* by Molla Camii","description":"Molla Camii was a poet and scientist of the Naqshbandi order who was born and raised in Samarkand during the Timuri period (1414–1492). He was a highly renowned figure during his lifetime, and was frequently invited by the Ottoman sultans.  \nIn this miniature Prophet Abraham and a fire-worshipping priest are depicted. Prophet Abraham informs the pagan priest that he can invite him to his table only if the priest accepts Islam. The elderly priest, declaring that he would not alter his beliefs for a mere morsel of bread, rises from the table and departs. At this point, a voice from the heavens is heard saying it is unjust to compel an elderly man to leave the table hungry, regardless of his beliefs. Prophet Abraham then realises his error and invites the priest back to the table. The priest, after being invited a subsequent time, becomes a believer upon being told what had happened.  \nIn the miniature, Prophet Abraham's head is haloed and his face is veiled. He points to the food, indicating that the priest should join him.","type":"Book","holder":"Konya Mevlana Museum","dates":"AH 943/AD 1537","location":"Konya","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["finished (aharlı) paper","Ink","leather binding"]},"6a3340c0-c680-5459-91d6-e838dcb5662c":{"name":"Mortar (*havan*)","description":"Mortars exist in varying sizes, some more easily suited to being handheld while others, such as this larger (and heavier) example, most likely was placed on a flat surface. This bronze mortar (*havan*) is octagonal – its edges considerably worn – around a cylindrical container with an everted rim and widening base. Moulded bull’s heads on two sides are fitted with looping ring-handles to facilitate transport of this heavy vessel. Its body is divided into three horizontal registers incised with a combination of running animals, calligraphic inscriptions and foliate scrolls. The middle panel features a series of single or triple beads in high relief, framed by polylobed arches – probably designed to hold the vessel more securely in place when grinding with a pestle. A band of eight panels of Kufic calligraphy alternating with foliate roundels runs around the top rim, forming a continuous blessing to an unknown patron. Two panels read: “*al yamoon wa … albta lmaa hbaa*” (continuous prosperity … eternal glory), with “*al-barakat*” (blessing) also legible. The upper band features the same decorative motif, yet the calligraphy is written in naskh script, with the word *al-izz* faintly visible. The lower band is engraved with running animals (a dog or feline) chasing its prey, a motif commonly seen across metalwork and lustre-painted ceramics from the period. The combination of both scripts (Kufic and naskh), appears less frequently, however, and suggests that this mortar is a transitionary one between the late Seljuk and Ilkhanid periods.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art","owner":"Qatar Museums","dates":"Hegira late 6th, early 7th century / AD 12th, early 13th century","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Diameter: 20.2cm, height: 14.9cm","place_of_production":"Western Iran","provenance":"Western Iran","bibliography":"Fraser, Marcus, *The Honar Collection of Islamic Art*, 2008.","author":"Tara Desjardins","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Cast copper","tin","zinc and lead alloy"]},"6a900d8a-d3e6-5851-b145-8c3ebfc27556":{"name":"*Sabil* (Water Dispensary) and *Kuttab* (Qur’anic School) of ‘Abd al-Rahman Katkhuda.","description":"This monument has a special artistic importance, for it is a free-standing complex that consists of a *sabil* (water dispensary) and a *kuttab* (Qur'an school) both of which display many of the glories of Islamic art specific to the Ottoman period. The building represents the style of *sabil* that has three windows and which is a blend of the Mamluk and Ottoman styles.  \nThe *sabil* has three facades (south, north and west) that are identical and equal in length. Each façade contains a semi-circular arch, which is supported by two spiral marble pillars. In the middle of the arch is a large opening from which cups of water may be obtained for passers-by (windows for the procurement of water or *tasbil*).  \nThe opening seen here sits within a semi-circular arch supported by two marble spiral pillars. The *tasbil* are covered with copper grills in the form of intersecting tri-lobed arches; these allow drinking-cups to be passed through them. The spandrels of the arches are decorated with splendid geometric designs executed in fine polychrome marble. The walls of the outer façade contain interlocked stone courses in the form of whirling vegetal leaves. The façade of the *sabil* is crowned with nine tiers of *muqarnas*, which bear the floor of the first storey containing the *kuttab*. The entrance to the *sabil* is located on Tambakshiyya Street, to the left of the southern façade, and resembles the Mamluk portal. The entrance is composed of a recessed wall crowned with a tri-lobed arch and a semi-dome decorated with tiers of *muqarnas*. In the middle of the recessed wall is the door to the *sabil* the straight, top lintel of which is adorned with carved verses of poetry. Above the lintel there is a marble decorative unit comprising a central circle. It contains the foundation text surrounded by four tiny circles.  \nThe entrance to the *sabil* leads to a small vestibule, which contains three doors: the first is located to the right of the entrance and leads to the cistern chamber; the second is to the left of the entrance and leads to the room from which the water is distributed *hograt al-tasbil* (water dispensing room), and the third is at the rear of the vestibule leading to the stairs and up to the *kuttab*. The floor-plan of the water-dispensing room is rectangular (3.50 m x 4.50 m). Three windows are located within the recessed areas of the room's three walls, which overlook the street. The walls of the room are panelled with blue-glazed ceramic tiles and decorated with a multiplicity of vegetal decoration. The southern wall contains a panel of glazed tiles depicting a view of the Holy Ka'aba and the buildings surrounding it.  \nThe *kuttab*, or school room, has a rectangular floor-plan of the same dimensions as the *hograt al-tasbil*. The *kuttab* overlooks the street from three directions by means of three *mashrabiyya*, and it has seven marble pillars, which resemble the pillars on the façade. The pillars are topped by six stone pointed arches, crowned with an inclined wooden awning. A balcony projects from the *kuttab,* characterised by 14 exquisite slim wooden pillars which bear 15 arches supported by balustrades, made from beautiful turned wood. The balcony is roofed with a wooden awning that is lower than the first.","short_description":"This building has special artistic importance as a freestanding establishment in the heart of al-Muizz Street. It consists of a *sabil* (water dispensary) with three façades and three windows covered with iron grills for distributing free drinking water to the local population, passers-by and travellers. The second floor is occupied by a *kuttab* (Qur'anic school for children) with a balcony overlooking three sides through *mashrabiyya* screens. The Mamluk and Ottoman styles blend harmoniously in the construction of this monument.","dates":"Hegira 1157 / AD 1744.","location":"Cairo","method_for_datation":"The building was dated based on an inscription above the entrance that includes the name of the sponsor and the date of construction. Furthermore, a *waqf* deed is preserved in the archives of the Ministry of Awqaf or Endowments (file no. 941, dated 1158 \\[1745\\]), it also gives the name of the builder.","bibliography":"Briggs, M. S., *Muhammaden Architecture in Egypt and Palestine,* Oxford, 1924.  \nAl-Hussaini, Mahmoud H., *Al-Asbila al-Othmaniya bi madinat al-Qahira \\[The Ottoman Sabils in the City of Cairo\\],* Cairo, 1999.  \nKhalifa, R., *Al-Balatat al-Khazafiya ala al-'Ama'ir bil Qahira \\[Glazed Tiles on Architecture in Cairo\\],* MA thesis, University of Cairo, 1977.  \nRaymond, A., *Le Caire *des Janissaires: L'Apogée* de la Ville Ottomane sous Abd al-Rahman Katkhuda,* Paris, 1995.  \nSameh, Kamal al-Din, *Athar al-Amir Abd al-Rahman Katkhuda al-Mi'mariya bil Qahira \\[Architectural Monuments of the Amir Abd al-Rahman Katkhuda in Cairo\\],* PhD thesis, University of Cairo, 1947.","patrons":"The Commander 'Abd al-Rahman Katkhuda ibn Husayn Jawish al-Qardughli, who occupied the post of Overseer of *Awqaf* (Endowments) in AH 1161 / AD 1748. Many buildings in Cairo are associated with him.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_TR_EN_001","author":"Tarek Torky","copy_editor":"Majd Musa","translator":"Amal Sachedina (from the Arabic).","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["civil architecture","geometric marble decoration","Glazed-ceramic tiles","interlocking stone decoration","Mashrabiyya"]},"6b6b4b3d-5bf3-5fad-ab1e-65d67c460f9d":{"name":"Dining room set with bench","description":"Displayed in the reception room of Yusuf Al-Sabai's former residence, now part of the FBQ Museum, is a striking dining set comprising a table, chairs, and a bench crafted in the Islamic arabesque style. Renowned for its intricate inlay craftsmanship, this set incorporates mother-of-pearl, ivory, and wood, utilising even the smallest wood chips and other available materials. This approach not only enhances aesthetic appeal but also minimises waste and encourages sustainable practices.  \nThe set features intricate geometric patterns and architectural elements such as arches and squinches influenced by the Coptic art of Egypt. This piece embodies the essence of Islamic decoration, characterised by unity and meticulous craftsmanship. Its rich ornamentation reflects the concept of *horror vacui* (fear of emptiness), and is evidence of the artist’s desire to fill any available space with intricate details.","type":"Furniture","holder":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani Museum","owner":"His Excellency Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"Hegira first hald of 13th century / AD early 20th century  (Yusuf Al-Sabai's former residence: AH c. 1232/1398 / AD 1917–1978)","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Height: 157cm, length: 183cm, width: 60cm","place_of_production":"Egypt","method_for_datation":"The date and origin were established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, techniques, style, inscription, analogies and the provenance or historical background of the items.","method_for_provenance":"The date and origin were established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, techniques, style, inscription, analogies and the historical background of the items.","provenance":"Egypt","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Mahmoud Saber","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["Egypt","furniture","Mother-of-pearl","wood","Yusuf Al-Sabai"],"materials":["carving","inlay","ivory","mother-of-pearl","Wood"]},"6bc80197-f494-512f-83bf-359f1180b074":{"name":"Baking flatbread on a metal griddle in the Syrian Dead Cities","description":"Flatbread is the staple food of the Syrian population to this day. It is mostly baked in state-licensed bakeries, where only thin flatbreads from superfine wheat flour are made. Rarely do women have to bake their own flatbread every day, as bakery flatbread is available in nearly all parts of the country. For special occasions and huge feasts the traditional flatbread is preferred. In a spirit of mutual help, often a neighbour’s wife bakes bread for the feast. In the photo, the wafer-thin flatbread is baked on a convex metal griddle (*saj*), which is heated on an open fireplace. This griddle bread (*khubz saj*) consists of wheat flour – preferably from coarse local wheat – and water and salt.  \nThe dough must be kneaded intensely to retain its stickiness and not tear. The wafer-thin flatbread consists of only one layer. In some regions – as visible in the photo – the dough is rolled with the help of a rolling pin, and in other regions it is beaten back and forth with the palms of the hands to obtain a large thin bread.  \nThe flatbread, when torn into pieces, serves as spoon and is eaten along with the food.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Peter Heiske","initial_owner":"Peter Heiske","dates":"Hegira 1423 / AD 2002","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Burj Haydar/Syria","method_for_provenance":"Direct contact","provenance":"Burj Haydar/Idlib Province","bibliography":"Pasqualone, A., “Traditional flat breads spread from the Fertile Crescent: Production process and history of baking systems”, Journal of Ethnic Foods, vol. 5, issue 1, March 2018, 15.","author":"Karin Pütt","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Digital photo"]},"6c5c8e73-e448-5d73-a3ad-4f85d6d02cff":{"name":"Cup","description":"The production of raw glass in Cordoban workshops is documented at least since the 10th century. By using vegetable fluxes to replace natron, it was possible to implement local production and multiply its presence in luxury crockery.  \nAs glass crockery was understood as a sign of refinement, Abbasid caliphs such as Harun al-Rashid might have sponsored their industry in Baghdad. Similarly, it is thought that some of the great workshops found in the Iberian Peninsula may have been sponsored by rulers of al-Andalus, both in the Caliphate period and later.","type":"Cup","holder":"National Archaeological Museum","owner":"State-owned","initial_owner":"Unknown","dates":"Hegira 6th century / AD 10th century","location":"Madrid","dimensions":"Height: 9cm, Mouth diameter: 12cm, Base diameter: 5.5cm","place_of_production":"Madinat al-Zahra","method_for_datation":"Archaeological excavation directed by Félix Hernández","method_for_provenance":"Archaeological excavation directed by Félix Hernández","provenance":"Córdoba","obtention":"The object was deposited to the National Archaeological Museum by Félix Hernández, in representation of the *Comisión Directora de las Excavaciones Oficiales*, on 14 January 1943.","bibliography":"Castejon y Martinez de Arizala, R. (1945), “Excavaciones del plan nacional en Medina Azahara (Córdoba). Campaña de 1943.  \nMinisterio de Educacion Nacional. Comisaria general de excavaciones arqueologicas”, *Informes y Memorias*, No. 8.  \n  \nCamps Cazorla, E., \"Cerámica y vidrios califales de Medina Azzahra (Córdoba)\", *VVAA, Adquisiciones del Museo Arqueologico Nacional (1940-1945)*, 1947: 154.  \n  \nCressier, P. (ed), *El vidrio en al-Andalus*, Madrid: Casa de Velázquez, 2000.  \n  \nRontomé Notario, E. (ed), *Vidrio Islámico en al-Andalus*, Cuenca: Real Fábrica de Cristales de la Granja, 2006.  \n  \nGovantes-Edwards, D., C. Duckworth and R. Córdoba de la Llave, “Recipes and experimentation: the transmission of glassmaking techniques in Medieval Iberia”, *Journal of Medieval Iberian Studies*, 8 (2016): 176-95.","workshop":"Madinat al-Zahra workshops","author":"Helena Lahoz Kopiske","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","keywords":["glass","Refinement","Tableware"],"materials":["blowing","glass","printing"]},"6cac4f71-4c6d-5af5-91b7-33d7f396babe":{"name":"*Iyar-i Danish* (‘Touchstone of Wisdom’)","short_description":"The text of *Iyar-i danish* (‘Touchstone of Wisdom’) derives from the collection of Sanskrit animal fables known as Panchatantra and thought to have been compiled sometime before AD 500. Since then, several versions of the fables have appeared, in ancient Pahlavi, Persian and Arabic. The version known as *Iyar-i danish* was compiled at the Mughal court for the emperor Akbar (r. 1556–1605). The fables are part of the genre of literature known as ‘mirrors for princes’, consisting of stories intended to instruct rulers in the art of statecraft. Each chapter of the text consists of a frame story dealing with a specific moral. The characters of the frame story then each tell their own stories of behaviour exemplifying the moral in question.","type":"Manuscript","holder":"The Chester Beatty Library","dates":"Hegira c. 1003–04 / AD 1595","location":"Dublin","dimensions":"19.6 x 12.8 cm","provenance":"India","keywords":["animal","education","fables","fox","Illustration","Kalila wa dimna","lion","literature","manuscript","miniature painting","stories"],"materials":["coloured pigments and gold on paper"]},"6cd11199-5a66-5c15-872a-057190826a48":{"name":"Rosewater sprinkler","description":"This *mirash* vessel is designed to hold and sprinkle rosewater onto the hands of guests as a sign of hospitality. These vessels come in a variety of shapes and decorations; the people of the Green Mountain in eastern Oman have traditionally pursued this craft for thousands of years, and their goods are known today for their quality and precision in manufacturing.","type":"Metalwork, brass","holder":"The National Museum - Sultanate of Oman","dates":"Hegira 12th–13th/AD 18th–19th century","location":"Muscat, Sultanate of Oman","dimensions":"Height: 30.5cm, diameter: 10.5cm","provenance":"Northern Oman","author":"Noora Al Balushi","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda"},"6cd1576c-84dc-565e-8f5b-d3d3ed636ea8":{"name":"Al-Hariri, *Maqamat* ('Assemblies')","short_description":"The Arab poet Al-Hariri of Basra, or Abu Muhammad al-Qasim ibn Ali ibn Muhammad ibn Uthman al-Hariri (d. 516 AH / 1122 AD), wrote the *Maqamat al-Hariri* (‘Assemblies of Hariri), which is a collection of fifty stories written in the *Maqama* style of rhymed prose with intervals of poetry. Al-Hariri also extensively utilises Arabic idioms and proverbs. While this style of writing was developed a century earlier, Al-Hariri elevated this genre into a major literary form through this work. In his *Maqamat*, the anecdotes are told by the roguish wanderer and eloquent trickster Abu Zayd to the narrator, al-Harith b. Hammam al-Basri. This copy was written in calligraphic large Mamluk *naskh* script by Abu'l-Fada'il b. Abi Ishaq in 734 AH / 1334 AD. The quality of the manuscript, its courtly title page, and large format suggest that it was created in Cairo, then capital of the Mamluk Sultanate and Caliphate. The sultan who possibly commissioned the manuscript and who may be the one depicted on the dedicatory title page is An-Nasir Muhammad b. Qala'un, who was in power for the third time from 709 AH / 1309-10 AD to 741 AH / 1340-41 AD. The manuscript includes seventy paintings, which must have been completed by a group of artists or a workshop. It is likely that multiple pages are no longer extant. The images that are preserved reflect a Mamluk style of painting, including bright colours on a golden background, more monumentalised scenes, and a reduction to essential elements in expression and composition, especially when compared to the Persian-Seljuk style of Baghdad and Mosul book-painting. The figures’ facial features follow the Turkish-Mongolian ideal of beauty that emerged under the Seljuks in Persia. The essential principle of composition throughout the manuscript is the juxtaposition of individual figures with figural groups, whereby means of deliberate contrast or symmetry are employed. These compositions underline the textual structure of the stories. The manuscript probably entered the Austrian National Library between 1820 and 1840.","type":"Manuscript","holder":"Austrian National Library (ANL)","dates":"734 AH / 1334 AD","location":"Vienna","dimensions":"373 x 260 mm (c. 260 x 160mm), ff. II, II*, 195 folios.","method_for_provenance":"On fol. 1a, a note in the margin with incomplete names.","provenance":"Possibly Cairo","obtention":"Unknown but came into the Austrian National Library between 1820 and 1840.","bibliography":"Duda, Dorothea, *Islamische Handschriften II. Persische Handschriften, Die illuminierten Handschriften und Inkunabeln der Österreichischen Nationalbibliothek*, vol. 5, Vienna: Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, 1992: 20-46.  \nGrabar, Oleg, *The Illustrations of the Maqamat*, Chicago and London: University of Chicago Press, 1984.","scriber":"Abu'l-Fada'il b. Abi Ishaq","binding_desc":"The classicist brown leather binding has a double-eagle supralibros printed in gold. On fol. 195b, brownish traces reveal the imprint of the original Mamluk leather binding. The binding dates to the first half of the 19th century and was likely produced in Vienna, Austria.","catalogue_holding_link":"http://data.onb.ac.at/rec/AC14421947","author":"Theresa Zischkin","copy_editor":"Sophie-Anne Mullen","keywords":["Assembly","Mamluk","Maqamat","painting"],"materials":["Ink","opaque watercolour and gold on paper. Calligraphic Mamluk naskh script of 13 lines."]},"6d4e1728-d908-5cfd-8404-e26c1049c233":{"name":"Mortar and pestle","description":"Bronze mortar and a pestle ornamented with protruding lozenges, lotus-shaped knobs and inscriptions.","type":"Mortar and pestle","holder":"Benaki Museum","dates":"AH 545-647/late 12th-early 13th century","location":"Athens","dimensions":"Height: 13cm, diameter: 18cm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Iran","obtention":"Acquired in Cairo","bibliography":"Ballian, A. (ed.), *Benaki Museum: a Guide to the Museum of Islamic Art*, Athens: Benaki, 2006: fig. 57, p. 70.","author":"Mina Moraitou","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Bronze"]},"6f45b4c6-e6d0-562e-aa92-b2efaf2a5915":{"name":"Bowl.","description":"A thrown, earthenware bowl with a wide and flaring shape that sits on a small, round pedestal base; it has been moulded by hand around the rim to produce a ring of indentations. The bowl has been coated with a slip of liquefied clay and decorated with a simple flowing design on the inside with black and blue underglaze. It is glazed overall with a thickly applied glaze that is a transparent, intense yellow.","short_description":"This North African bowl would have been used for serving a vegetable stew with meat and couscous, a wheat product. Thrown on a wheel, it has a lid that matches it in shape but has a slightly smaller diameter. Vessels like this are still made today.","type":"Earthenware","holder":"Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, Glasgow Museums.","dates":"Hegira 13th century / AD 19th century.","location":"Glasgow, Scotland","dimensions":"Height 13 cm, diameter 34 cm.","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis: the object was collected by the donor from Algeria along with other similar Ottoman ceramics.","method_for_provenance":"The object was collected by the donor from Algeria along with other similar Ottoman ceramics.","provenance":"Algeria.","obtention":"Donated to the Museum in 1877.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_TR_EN_001","author":"Noorah Al-Gailani","copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["abstract decoration","domestic pottery"],"materials":["Earthenware decorated with black and blue underglaze","over which a transparent yellow glaze."]},"711fba2c-8e7a-5558-8785-0e3951b191e0":{"name":"Table","description":"In Arab households symbols of hospitality and the embrace of visitors were deeply ingrained in the cultural fabric, taking on multiple forms. Chairs and tables in spaces like reception halls often bore inscriptions extending warm greetings to guests, occasionally integrating profound aphorisms and verses of poetry. These inscriptions served as decorative elements and cultural expression, and reflected philosophical ideals central to the household’s ethos.  \nThe FBQ museum holds a remarkable 19th-century Syrian wooden table adorned with meticulously carved inscriptions in *thuluth* script featuring mystical verses attributed to Ibn al-Farid. These poetic excerpts, drawn from his renowned poetry “If my position in love with you\", epitomise the fusion of artistic refinement and intellectual depth, enhancing the ambiance of hospitality within the domestic sphere. It says:  \nأُمْنِيّة ظفِرَتْ روحي بها زَمَناً واليومَ أحسَبُها أضغاثَ أحلام  \nولو علِمْتُ بأَنّ الحُبّ آخِرُهُ هذا الحِمَامُ (الموت ) لَمَا خالَفتُ لُوّامي.  \nA wish my soul held onto for a while,  \nToday I deem it mere illusions that beguile.  \nHad I known love’s end is but a final breath,  \nI'd not have shunned the counsel, evading death.  \nIbn al-Farid (1181–1234) was an acclaimed Arab poet born in Cairo to parents originating from Hama, Syria. Revered as the greatest mystic poet among Arabs, his literary compositions are reputed to have been penned during states of spiritual inspiration.  \nThe table is crafted from wood with intricately-carved inscriptions inlaid with mother-of-pearl. The carving process involves meticulous engraving with overlapping work. This fusion of techniques reflects the cultural sophistication and skilled craftsmanship of 19th-century Syrian artisans.","type":"Woodwork","holder":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani Museum","owner":"His Excellency Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"Hegira 13th century / AD 19th century","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Height: 75cm, length: 80cm, width: 55cm","place_of_production":"Syria","method_for_datation":"The date and origin were established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, techniques, style, inscription and analogies.","method_for_provenance":"The date and origin were established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, techniques, style, inscription and analogies.","provenance":"Syria","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Mahmoud Saber","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["Cairo","Egypt","hama","Ibn al-Farid","Mother-of-pearl","Syria","Thuluth","wood"],"materials":["carving","inlay","mother-of-pearl","Wood"]},"71d208fd-0631-5cc6-ad2e-caf974f2e875":{"name":"Coffee-making utensils","description":"Traditional preparation involves roasting the green coffee beans over a fire in a pan with a long handle (*mahmas*). A pusher (*yad al-mahmas*) is used to move the beans back and forth in the pan. Once roasted on all sides, the black coffee beans are poured onto the cooling tray (*mubarrad*, at left in the photo). In the large, typically wooden or metal mortar (*mahbash, hawun*) the cooled coffee beans are crushed by using a pestle (*nijr, mudgag*). The physical effort required to do this produces a loud, sonorous noise. It is said that some coffee cooks employed unique beating rhythms.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Karin Pütt","initial_owner":"Karin Pütt","dates":"Hegira 1409 / AD 1989","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Nahiyat Maskana/Syria","method_for_provenance":"Direct contact","provenance":"Nahiyat Maskana/Syria","bibliography":"Euting, J., “Tagebuch einer Reise in Inner-Arabien” (First Edition Leiden 1896), Hamburg, 1993, 84.","author":"Karin Pütt","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Slide"]},"71e530f4-815b-573d-aae7-8e626e13cbde":{"name":"Khassaki Sultan Complex","description":"It took four years to complete the complex (959/1552–963/1556), making it the largest charitable institution in the whole city.  \nThe complex is vast and has two entrances. The northern one lies on Aqabat al-Takiyya, while the southern one lies on Aqabat al-Saraya. In the local language, *al-Takiyya* means “*the place where food is served free of charge*”. *Al-Saraya*, on the other hand, means the seat of the governor or the *wali* and is named after the Ottoman mayor’s residence prior to the British Mandate.  \nThe complex is attributed to Roxelane, the wife of the Ottoman Sultan Sulayman the Magnificent (926/1520–974/1566), known as Haseki Hürrem (the cheerful, good-humoured one). Ottoman sources refer to her as Khassaki Sultan, in other words the Sultan’s favourite and beloved. Khassaki Sultan endowed generous *waqf*s on her social and charitable project to guarantee the perpetuation of its activities. The revenues of 30 towns and villages in Palestine and other places went into its budget. She added to them a *waqf* of four more villages donated by Sultan Sulayman to support her *waqf* after her death. These villages were located in different regions in Gaza, Nablus, Jerusalem, Sidon and Tripoli.  \nThe complex consisted of four different sections, some of which have survived: A large *caravanserai* to accommodate travellers and traders. It consists of a large entrance that leads to a corridor with rooms on both sides. The corridor ends in an open courtyard, which is surrounded by more corridors that form the *caravanserai*s. These parts can be seen today from the southern entrance, though some of their functions have changed.  \nA mosque for prayer, reciting the Qur’an and praying for the benefactor. It has many domes and arches. However, its exact location is unknown and it is presumed that part of it was demolished and that the current student refectory was built over it.  \nA *ribat*55 rooms to house *sufis*, the poor and visitors. Like the mosque, its location is also unknown today. It seems that most of the rooms have been demolished and changed into other utilities, although it was probably east of the southern entrance where the printing shop currently stands.  \nA large kitchen, a bakery, a mill, many storage rooms and a fountain to provide water to the residence have all survived and can be seen after entering the courtyard from the northern gate and turning east via some stairs. The kitchen continues to provide delicious soups every morning plus meat and rice during Ramadan and every Tuesday, even though the *ribat*’s *waqf* ceased long ago.  \nThis active institution was administered by a number of senior Ottoman employees. The Inspector was posted from Istanbul and was helped by approximately 50 members of staff, each having a detailed job description allocated to him in the *waqf*. Among the employees were a person who washed the cups, another who picked the rice, two chefs and their three assistants, a renovator, and a maintenance person who would look after the building. In addition to the running costs, the total annual wage bill was approximately 795.5 silver dirhams.","type":"","dates":"","bibliography":"","author":"Yusuf Natsheh"},"72293d68-7e1a-5946-bc56-664b0db6be36":{"name":"*Kama’ Al Sahra* (Desert truffles)","description":"*Kama’ Al Sahra* (desert truffle, *Tirmania nivea*) are subterranean fungi rather than true truffles. They are a delicacy eaten on their own or prepared in traditional dishes. People collect the fungi soon after rainfall in spring. *Kama' Al Sahra* grows close to *Ragroog* (rock rose, *Hellanthemum lippil*) bushes, which is perhaps how people locate the hidden truffles.","type":"Truffles","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","initial_owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century / AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Varies and depends on the piece. Length: 45mm, Wwidth: 45mm","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Model","author":"Amanda Snyder","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["desert","desert truffles","truffleas"]},"7262d726-e0b4-585c-b021-af6abc741b84":{"name":"Covered al-Buzuriyya Market","description":"Apricot paste can be consumed in two ways. It can be eaten raw after cutting it into small pieces, or – especially during Ramadan – a syrup can be made from *Qamr ad-Din* after soaking it in water for several hours, straining, then cooling it. Sometimes orange blossom or rose water is added to the syrup. *Qamr ad-Din* is traditionally served thick and cold, and is thought to be particularly fortifying and a good energy source after a day of fasting. Some Damascenes add pine and ice cubes.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Anne-Marie Bianquis","initial_owner":"Anne-Marie Bianquis","dates":"Hegira 1426 / AD 2005","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Damascus/Syria","method_for_provenance":"Direct contact","provenance":"Damascus/Syria","author":"Hiba Bizreh","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Colour photography"]},"7269ff1c-7668-58a5-a38d-e8ec83dace0c":{"name":"*Zafarnāmah by Sharaf al-Din ʿAli Yazdi* (Timur's Return to Samarkand and the Festive Celebrations in the Garden of Bagh-ı Behesht)","description":"*Zafarnāmah* is a significant historical text from the 15th century that describes Timur's leadership and achievements. Written by Şerafeddin Ali Yezdî (Hegira 858 / AD 1454), the work was commissioned by Timur's grandson, Ibrahim Sultan. As a historical source, *Zafarnāmah* is invaluable for its comprehensive information about Timur's life. The book was compiled using notes taken by Timur's royal scribes and secretaries, indicating that its contents were meticulously selected. Its most significant source is the biography of Timur, *Zafarnāmah*, written by Nizāmeddīn-i Sāmī in 1404. The primary distinction between Şerafeddin's *Zafarnāmah* and Sāmī’s earlier *Zafarnāmah* lies in the novel information presented in Şerafeddin's later version, and the more elaborate embellishments, including miniatures, in Sāmī’s earlier one. 
The later work was inscribed by Hamdullah ibn al-Sheikh Murshid al-Kātib in Hegira 891 / AD 1486–1487, and is written in Persian with black ink in *taliq* calligraphy on fine paper. The work contains ten miniature scenes of rich workmanship, most of which depict Timur. The miniatures generally portray battles, council meetings and festivities that took place during the Timurid period. The first page contains the foundation seal of Hacı Mehmed Aga, the trustee of Teke Sancağı (Antalya region). The following page displays an illumination comprising geometric and floral motifs on blue and gilt backgrounds. The titles of the chapters and some of the prayers are written in gilt, red and blue ink.","type":"Manuscript","holder":"Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts","dates":"Hegira 891 / AD 1486–1487","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"34.5cm x 23cm","place_of_production":"Herat/Afghanistan","obtention":"The object was brought to the Museum from Antalya Müsellim Mosque on 31 March 1916.","materials":["Finished (aharli) paper","gilding","Ink","leather binding"]},"72c0e86c-b1ae-5017-a60e-32986c29c774":{"name":"*Surname-i Hümayun* (‘Book of the Imperial Circumcision Festival’).","description":"The *Surname-i Hümayun* ('Book of the Imperial Circumcision Festival') is a work dealing with the celebrations held for the circumcision festival of Prince Mehmed, son of Sultan Murad III, which lasted for 52 days and 52 nights in AH 990 / AD 1582. It documents, in both word and image, how during the festivities the craft guilds paraded their various products, how a variety of entertainments were organised, how banquets were held and food distributed to the public every day, how the sultan would scatter gold and silver among the people from time to time, how poor children were circumcised and given new clothes, how beggars were made happy, and how people who had been imprisoned for debt were granted their freedom by having their debts paid. For this reason the *Surname* is an important historical source providing for us a record of the AH 10th- / AD 16th-century Ottoman lifestyle; its economy, social life, culture, art and entertainment.  \n  \nThe celebration was held in the Hippodrome, i.e. the 'Horse Square'. The Ibrahim Pasha Palace is depicted here, and the three-storey wooden spectators' gallery erected at one of its corners for the use of palace officials and representatives of foreign governments, is an indispensable element of the scenes in the *Surname*.  \n  \nOne of these scenes represents the parade of the glassmakers' guild. Here the sultan, seated on the enclosed balcony of the audience hall in the Ibrahim Pasha Palace, watches the glassmakers' guild along with the assembled people and the guests sitting in the spectators' gallery. The glassmakers present the glass objects they have made, even showing the stages of glass production and the tools they use with the help of a furnace mounted on a wheeled wagon.  \n  \nAnother painting in the *Surname* shows the procession of architects and engineers with a faithful replica of the Süleymaniye Mosque made of wood and ivory. This picture is noteworthy because it represents Ottoman art in all its splendour, celebrated in both the depiction of the architect Sinan, who was still alive in this period and probably participated in this parade, and, through his most monumental building: the Süleymaniye Mosque.  \n  \nThe celebrations of the circumcision festival are transformed into a painted story through 250 double-page miniatures with compositions generally similar to the two seen here.","short_description":"*Surname* is a magnificent manuscript telling the story of the circumcision festival of Prince Mehmed, son of Sultan Murad III, held at the Hippodrome in front of the Ibrahim Pasha Palace in AH 990 / AD 1582. The setting, processions and events are depicted both in writing and in miniatures.","type":"Manuscript, paper, ink, watercolor, miniature painting","holder":"Topkapı Palace Museum.","initial_owner":"Sultan Murad III (r. AH 982-1003 / AD 1574-95).","dates":"Hegira 991–7 / AD 1583–8.","location":"Sultanahmet, Istanbul.","dimensions":"Height 33.5 cm, width 23.5 cm.","method_for_datation":"Since some pages of the manuscript are missing, including the colophon, it has been ascertained from the Kepeci Ruus register in the archives (3 Safar 997/1583 no. 250, 37) that it was completed in 997 / 1588.","method_for_provenance":"It is known that this manuscript was prepared by the team of artists in the Topkapi Palace atelier, and that it was therefore produced in Istanbul.","provenance":"Istanbul, Turkey.","obtention":"The *Surname* was made for Sultan Murad III in the Topkapi Palace atelier and is still in the palace library.","bibliography":"And, M., *Kırk Gün Kırk Gece*, Istanbul, 1959.  \nAtasoy, N., *Surname-i Hümayun*, Istanbul, 1998.  \nAtasoy, N., “Tarih Konulu Minyatürlerin Usta Nakkaşı Osman”, *Sanat Dünyamız*, 73 (1999), pp.213–21.  \nİpşiroğlu, M.Ş. “Das Hochzeitbuch Murats III”, *Deutsch-Türkische Gesellschaft*, Bonn, 1960.  \nTansuğ, S. *Şenlikname Düzeni*, Istanbul, 1961.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_TR_EN_001","author":"Şebnem Tamcan","translator":"Barry Wood","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["calligraphy","glass","Ibrahim Pasha Palace","miniature painting","Sinan.","Süleymaniye Mosque"],"materials":["finished (aharlı) paper","gilding","Ink","leather (binding).","watercolour"]},"749834b9-5f86-513c-a750-311aca2067e7":{"name":"Deer-Figured Water Container","description":"The ceramic, off-white paste and one-colour turquoise glazed figurine has a navy blue glazed relief decoration with lines and dots on the back. The deer on a rectangular base has a hole in the back and on the head, and the three antlers are curved and joined at the top.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Ankara Ethnography Museum","location":"Ankara","dimensions":"Length: 43cm, width: 36.5cm","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["Glazed ceramic"]},"74a9ac30-d924-5b63-8349-21d424570c93":{"name":"Covered al-Buzuriyya Market","description":"During the Prophet’s birthday, the historic Buzuriyya Market in Damascus is crowded with people buying the necessities for the occasion, such as sweets and chocolate. The celebration usually takes place in the evening after Maghrib prayers in many mosques. The Mawlid opens with a short recitation of the Holy Qur’an, then comes the “Mawlid Recitation”, which is a narration of the Prophet’s biography recited in a special style. After that, specialised chanting groups perform religious songs and praise of the Prophet, and the Mawlawiyya dance to their music. The ceremony concludes with the Isha prayer and the distribution of sweets.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Rania Kataf","initial_owner":"Rania Kataf","dates":"Hegira 1438 / AD 2017","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Damascus/Syria","method_for_provenance":"Direct contact","provenance":"Damascus/Syria","bibliography":"al-Maliki, M. A., “On Celebrating the Birth of the Prophet”, Imam Ghazali Institute, 2016.  \n  \nRabbat, N., “Ideal-type and Urban History: The Development of the Suq in Damascus”, Gharipour, Mohammad, ed. *The Bazaar in the Islamic City: Design, Culture, and History*. American University in Cairo Press, 2012.  \n  \nZarcone, T., Mevlid Kandili, “La fête de la naissance du Prophète en Turquie”, Nathalie CLAYER et Erdal KAYNAR, “Penser, agir et vivre dans l'Empire ottoman et en Turquie”, Paris, Louvain, Walpole, MA, 2013: 308-320.","author":"Hiba Bizreh","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Digital photo"]},"78a0a931-9669-5643-bd59-4f57da550407":{"name":"Relief","description":"Cereals and olive oil were the bases of the local diet, wealth and trade. Their production expanded in al-Andalus thanks to technical innovations such as hydraulic and irrigation systems. Their implementation facilitated the control of agricultural cycles and changed working methods. Farming expanded into arid lands, increasing and diversifying harvests. The diversity of cultivated grains –wheat, rye, etc.– made it possible to develop multiple recipes for bread, an essential food shared by the whole of society.","type":"Relief","holder":"National Archaeological Museum","initial_owner":"Unknown","dates":"Hegira 4th century / AD 10th century","location":"Madrid","dimensions":"Height: 30cm, Width: 22.2cm, Thickness: 7.5cm","place_of_production":"Madinat al-Zahra","method_for_datation":"The piece came from archaeological excavations at Madinat al-Zahra.","method_for_provenance":"The piece came from archaeological excavations at Madinat al-Zahra.","provenance":"Córdoba, Spain","obtention":"The fragment was given to the National Archaeological Museum by the Comisión Provincial de Monumentos of Córdoba on 18 April 1901.","bibliography":"Hidalgo López, R. et al., “Elaboración de pan según indicaciones documentales hispanas de fines de la Edad Media”, *Meridies. Estudios de Historia y Patrimonio de la Edad Media*, 14, 2023: 7-33.  \n  \nRevilla Vielva, R., *El Patio arabe del Museo Arqueológico Nacional*. Descriptive catalogue, Madrid: Imprenta de Estanislao Maestre, 1932: 19, fig. 17.","workshop":"Madinat al-Zahra workshops","author":"Helena Lahoz Kopiske","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","keywords":["agriculture","diet","Technical innovation","trade"],"materials":["bevelled","carved","Limestone"]},"78f02594-a873-58a6-aa68-7ebabf8da732":{"name":"*Oud* (Incense)","description":"Incense is traditionally used — and particularly on special occasions — to perfume one’s clothing, hair and body, and scent the home to welcome and honour guests. Three popular types of incense in the UAE and the Gulf region are *liban* (frankincense) a resin from the *Boswellia* tree species; *Bukhoor*, a mixture of aromatic woods, spices and oils; and the rare and expensive *Oud*, made from shavings of agarwood (*Aquilaria* species) infected by a fungi (*Phialophora parasitica*). The infected wood produces a dense and fragrant protective resin, which releases a unique scent when heated.","type":"Incense","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century / AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Varies and depends on the fragment of wood. Length: 40mm, width: 15mm","method_for_datation":"Purchase date","method_for_provenance":"Current traditional practice","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Amanda Snyder","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["Incense","Oud"],"materials":["Wood"]},"78fd5c1b-903d-5e4d-a4fa-83c8d3da2f2e":{"name":"Bowl with two dancing girls, a flowering tree and bands of script","short_description":"This bowl was made in the *mina’i* technique, which was developed by potters in Kashan and was very popular in the late 12th century. *Mina’i* ware is identified by the use of coloured pigments under the glaze. Like many vessels made during this period, the bowl is coloured with muted colours and gold overglaze and was fired several times.  \nThe Inside of the bowl is decorated with two figures dancing around a small flowering tree, their headdresses flying. The edge of the bowl is inscribed in *kufic* script, wishing the owner happiness. The colourful picture resembles miniature paintings of the era and it is reminiscent of the rural life and cultural ceremonies of the region, possibly referring to Norouz, the Iranian New Year ceremony.","type":"Bowl","holder":"MKG Museum for Applied Arts","dates":"Hegira late 6th century-early 7th century / AD late 12th-early 13th century","location":"Hamburg","dimensions":"Height: 6.5cm, Diameter: 15cm","method_for_datation":"By stylistic analysis and by comparison with pieces from the Seljuq period.","method_for_provenance":"Gift of French Comp. Inc., New York.","provenance":"Iran, Kashan","obtention":"Endowment.","bibliography":"Haase, C.-P., Kröger, J. and Lienert, U., *Oriental Splendour: Islamic Art from German Collections*, Hamburg: Museums für Kunst und Gewerbe Hamburg, 1993.  \nHagedorn, A. and Wolf, N., *Islamische Kunst*, Köln: Taschen, 2009.  \nHohl, H. and Eckhardt, W. (eds), *Jahrbuch der Hamburger Kunstsammlungen*, vol. 20, Hamburg: Dr. Ernst Hauswedell und Co. Verlag, 1975.  \nJakobsen, K., *Islamische Keramik*, Hamburg: Bilderhefte des Museums für Kunst und Gewerbe Hamburg, 1959. Pope, A. U., *Masterpieces of Persian Art*, New York: Asia House, 1954.  \nSchimmel, A., *Islamic Calligraphy*, New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1992.  \nWilkinson, C. K., *Iranian Ceramics*, New York: Asia House, 1963.  \nWilkinson, C. K., *Nishapur: Pottery of the Early Islamic Period*, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1973.","copy_editor":"Caitlin Link","keywords":["ceramics","Minai"],"materials":["Fritware","Mina'i ware","paint (gold and other pigments)"]},"79968466-a94b-5053-a5e9-1155df32e285":{"name":"Wash basin and jug.","description":"The jug and basin were used at court on dining tables for the washing of hands. Medieval Arabic sources include descriptions of this sort of utensil. The daughters of amirs, viziers, high-ranking noblemen, officials and merchants all had this hand-washing equipment as part of their trousseau. Judging by the iconographic motifs of its decoration, the Berlin jug and basin look as if they were made for a lawyer. The inscriptions include blessings of a general nature (well-being, wealth, health, knowledge and leniency) for the unknown owner. Its original magnificence is clearly visible, as it has been excellently preserved.  \nJudging by its shape, with its flap lid and straight spout, the jug has been made as a sculpted three-dimensional form. Its body, shoulder and neck are decorated with three friezes featuring figurative motifs within medallions of different sizes. The medallions are filled with depictions of thrones and riders and images of planets. The base of the neck shows 11 arched fields with standing figures in the style of Christian representations. A unicorn is being hunted in the animal frieze on the jug’s shoulder. There are additional Arabic well-wishing inscriptions within the friezes or spread over the jug.  \nIn the bottom of the basin, six planets are drawn encircling the sun, and in a second frieze, the signs of the Zodiac are depicted in relationship to particular planets. As on the jug, the outer surface of the basin is decorated with six large medallions that depict a prince flanked by two bodyguards, scenes of hunting and revelry. They are linked together by an inscription wishing for strength and victory, knowledge and leniency, qualities belonging to Allah.  \nThe complexity of the design and the highest quality of craftsmanship substantiate the high status of the person who commissioned its making. The jug and the basin are even signed with the name of the craftsman, which demonstrates that the artist was also held in very high regard.","short_description":"The extremely fine design and workmanship of this basin and jug demonstrate the skill of the metal craftsmen working in Mosul around 1270. Commissioned by someone of high rank and depicting the planets and scenes of courtly life, the set may have been used for washing hands on special occasions.","type":"Wash basin, jug, metalwork","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art at the Pergamon Museum","dates":"Hegira second half of 7th century / AD second half of 13th century.","location":"Berlin","dimensions":"Jug: height 37 cm, diameter 20.6 cm; basin: height 17 cm, diameter 43 cm.","method_for_datation":"The artist, ‘Ali ibn ‘Abdallah al-‘Alawi, who signed both the jug and the basin, lived during the mid-7th / mid-13th century.","method_for_provenance":"The artist, who signed both the jug and the basin, includes in the inscription of his name an indication of his town of origin: al-Mawsili, ‘from Mosul’, signifying where he was born or where he worked. The signature and the motif of the figure with a crescent in front of its body suggest that it is very probable that this piece originates from Mosul.","provenance":"Mosul, northern Iraq.","obtention":"From a private art gallery in 1938.","bibliography":"Baer, E., *Ayyubid Metalwork with Christian Images*, Leiden, 1989, pp.15-17, plates 50–1.  \nHagedorn, A., *Die Blacas-Kanne: Zu Ikonographie und Bedeutung Islamischer Metallarbeiten des Vorderen Orients im 13. und 14. Jahrhundert*, Münster, 1992, no. 28.  \nKühnel, E., “Zwei Mosulbronzen und ihr Meister”, *Jahrbuch der Preußischen Kunstsammlungen* 60, 1939, pp.1–20.  \n*Museum für Islamische Kunst*, Mainz, 2001, pp.72–3.  \nRice, D. S. “Inlaid Brasses of the Workshop of Ahmad Al-Dhaki al-Mawsili”, *Ars Orientalis* 2, 1957, pp.225–53.","author":"Annette Hagedorn","translator":"Maria Vlotides","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["brass","inlay","Mosul","Zangid"],"materials":["brass","gold and silver inlay."]},"7a68823e-191b-5fd3-bb5a-c45c2eb03deb":{"name":"*Qolla* jar for provisions","description":"Directly inspired by the *khabiya*, a large jar for food preservation, this pot was used to store and preserve liquids such as oil or water, and various foods. The decoration includes a stylised branch motif with alternating leaves called *babbouch* (snail).","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","dates":"Hegira 13th-14th / AD 19th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 30.5cm, Diameter: 24cm, Base diameter: 10.5cm, Opening diameter: 13.5cm","provenance":"Tunis, Tunisia","obtention":"Purchased at auction on advice from Ader-Picard-Tajan, 1994.","bibliography":"Biro, A., *Couleurs de Tunisie: vingt-cinq siècles de céramique* . Paris: Institut du monde arabe, 1994: Fig. 167-168.  \n  \nDelpont, E., et al., *Album du musée*, Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, 2012: 291.  \n  \nLoviconi, A. and N., *Faïences de Tunisie: Qallaline et Nabeul*, Aix-en-Provence: Edisud, 1994: 72-73.  \n  \nMoulierac, J., et al., *Céramiques du monde musulman: collections de l'Institut du monde arabe et de J.P. et F. Croisier* , Paris: Institut du monde arabe, Paris, 1999: 151.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["Clay","design painted on opaque glaze"]},"7a94e504-793e-5d4f-8a12-0fe92e32a0e7":{"name":"Jug with depiction of animals","short_description":"The shape of this jug with handles ending in dragon heads comes from Timurid Iran. On the body of the jug and amidst Ottoman decoration hunting scenes are depicted with fantastic and real animals. On the neck paradisiac scenes: two naked figures under a tree, a bear holding a musical instrument and peaceful animals. This animal style originates in German Renaissance silver and was adapted into the repertory of the Balkan Christian workshops before passing into the Iznik ceramics.","type":"Silver jug","holder":"Benaki Museum","dates":"Hegira 10th century / AD second half 16th century","location":"Athens","dimensions":"Height 16 cm","provenance":"Balkans","keywords":["animal decoration","figurative decoration","garden","hunting","imaginary animal","Ottoman Balkans"],"materials":["Parcel-gilt silver"]},"7aacbb88-ad52-5968-8bde-ffaeaaf35c53":{"name":"Tray (*sinija*)","description":"Copper tray – *sinija* (Tr. *sini*) – of circular form with raised omphalos in the middle, which is the center of the rosette with pointed petals and flower motifs within. The broad band that frames the central design is decorated with zoomorphic ornaments, composed of twisted vines and heads of different animals like leopards, lions, elephants, etc. Islamic brass or copper trays were used as serving trays for food and beverages, as well as decorative items in homes or public places.","type":"Tableware","holder":"Museum of Applied Art","dates":"Hegira 12th century / AD 18th century","location":"Belgrade","dimensions":"Diameter: 617mm, weight: 4370g","place_of_production":"Persia","method_for_datation":"By stylistic and comparative analysis with related material.","obtention":"Purchased in 1951.","bibliography":"Karamehmedović, M. A., *Umjetnička obrada metala*, Sarajevo: Veselin Masleša, 1980: 160–161, 164.","author":"Mila Gajić","keywords":["Copper","Persia","sinija","Tableware","Tray"],"materials":["copper","Engraving","hammering","tinned"]},"7bf56987-b874-51e5-91e1-bf19f3afba07":{"name":"*Tabica* (small board).","description":"The splendid collar-beam framework of Teruel Cathedral, which has been erroneously described as a coffered ceiling, is one of the examples of Mudéjar carpentry most studied by art critics for several reasons, including its extraordinary iconographic and iconological complexity and its significance in the social context, and the interest generated by its style and dating, which has been helped by analysis of the wood. Among other items, the National Archaeological Museum holds two *tabicas* (small wooden boards) from the gables or planking, one of which shows a male figure and the other, the one examined here, a female figure.  \nThe woman is from the working class, a water bearer dressed in a long-sleeved, corded tunic or dress tied at the waist. The decorative horizontal lines give her a characteristic air. Her hair is short and her head appears to be uncovered, uncommon in figures on ceilings. She is carrying a two-handled jar. The flat colours are dominated by reds, whites and black outlines.  \nIt is possible to determine the *tabica*'s original position in the eighth section on the left, in the very place where a bomb fell during the war in 1936","short_description":"This *tabica* (small wooden board) decorated the planks in the roof of Teruel Cathedral, showing the different classes of Mediaeval society. The figure is a water bearer dressed in contemporary costume: a long-sleeved dress tied around the waist.","type":"Woodwork, board, tabica, wood","holder":"National Archaeological Museum.","dates":"Late 13th century.","location":"Madrid","dimensions":"Height 36 cm, width 23.8 cm, depth 1.7 cm.","method_for_datation":"From its style and from dendrochronological analysis of the wood.","method_for_provenance":"When giving this and three other pieces to the National Archaeological Museum, the donor, Pablo Gil y Gil, a professor at the University of Saragossa in 1869, reported that they came from the roof.","provenance":"Cathedral of Santa Maria de Mediavilla, Teruel, Spain.","obtention":"The piece was donated to the National Archaeological Museum on 19 August 1869.","bibliography":"Alquézar Yáñez, E., Arias Sánchez, I. and Franco Mata, A., “Carpintería y Elementos Arquitectónicos Mudéjares en el Museo Arqueológico Nacional Procedentes de Aragón”, in *Actas del VI Simposio Internacional de Mudejarismo, Teruel, 16–18 September 1993*, Teruel, 1996, p.874.  \nRabanaque, E., Novella, A., Sebastián, S. and Yarza, J*., El Artesonado de la Catedral de Teruel*, Saragossa, 1981.  \n*Mudéjar Art: Islamic Aesthetics in Christian Art*, pp.82 and 107–10.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_ES_EN_001","author":"Ángela Franco","copy_editor":"Rosalía Aller","translator":"Laurence Nunny","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["collar-beam roof","Mudéjar","polichromy","Tabica","Teruel","wood"],"materials":["polychromy.","Wood"]},"7e379f31-6dae-5207-977d-3021cf599c7d":{"name":"Coffee Cup Holder","description":"The base and body rim are segmented, and the inside of the segment is filled in with filigree. One hollow flower is attached to the inside of the slices on the body and to the borders where the segments meet.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Ankara Ethnography Museum","owner":"The Republic of Türkiye Ministry of Culture and Tourism","location":"Ankara","dimensions":"Height: 5.5cm, diameter 4cm","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["Silver","telkari (filigree) technique"]},"7e9c43e1-9c01-5ae6-aa4e-69ea000166c4":{"name":"*Shahnameh by Firdowsi* (Social Gathering for Entertainment)","description":"The text is written in verse and prose in six columns in black ink and *taliq* calligraphy on Harar paper. The outer edges of some pages are decorated with the *halkâr* technique, while the chapter titles are illuminated in a style typical of the period. Pages 1b and 2a are entirely covered with miniatures, with the scenes surrounded by illuminated edging. The book contains 32 miniature scenes, each depicting a story from the *Shahnameh* painted in the Timur-school style.  \nThe volume is bound in black leather over cardboard and is of a similar period. Four *salbek*s are at the corners, and in the centre of the white umbrella on the covers. The outer border panels are decorated with a variety of colours in the *kat’ı* technique.","type":"Manuscript","holder":"Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts","dates":"AH 10th century /AD 16th century","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"42cm x 18cm","obtention":"The item was brought to the Museum from Hekimoğlu Ali Paşa Library on 1 March 1914.","materials":["Finished (aharli) paper","gilding","Ink","leather binding"]},"8153536b-21de-5451-826b-5c0aed191888":{"name":"Bowl","short_description":"Some *mina’i* ceramics enjoy a particularly close relationship to poetry. Many examples are inscribed with verses, and others are decorated with figures referring to well-known poetic themes and tales. Several of these colorful wares, including this bowl, appear to depict the act of poetic recitation itself: taking place at a *majlis* (an assembly of courtiers and literati for the purpose of poetic recital), it can be imagined that the performer here, seated at the left before a courtly audience, is delivering the verses inscribed along the exterior rim of the bowl, which begin: \"If the beloved leaves me, what am I to do? If s/he does not see the wisdom of our union, what am I to do?\"","type":"Furnishings","holder":"Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA)","dates":"Hegira Muharram 583 / AD March 1187","location":"Los Angeles","dimensions":"9.2 x 21.27cm","method_for_datation":"The bowl is dated Hegira Muharram 583 / AD March 1187. It is one of five *mina’i* bowls dated to the month of Muharram in its inscriptions. Among these, three have very similar scenes of a literary *majlis*. Two of them, the LACMA bowl and another in the British Museum (1945,1017.261) are dated Muharram 583, the third, in the Metropolitan Museum of Art (64.178.1), dated 4th Muharram 582 / AD 27th March 1186, is signed by Abu Zayd. Both the Metropolitan Museum and LACMA bowls share the same curious figure at far left, a young man standing with his right leg bent and foot pointing downward; in the former, the figure is clearly holding his leg as though tired from standing. The LACMA bowl can be attributed to Abu Zayd, who not only created works in both *mina’i* and luster but was a talented poet. He is known to have included some of his own verses among the poetic inscriptions on his luxury ceramic wares.","method_for_provenance":"The bowl is decorated in the *mina’i* technique. A modern designation from the Persian word for \"enamel\", *mina’i* is almost entirely restricted to Seljuq Iran. While *mina’i* wares once were variously attributed to several sites on the basis of archaeological finds, the evidence demonstrates at present that the central Iranian city of Kashan was the nucleus for the production of these objects as well as contemporary luster wares; in fact, both types of wares were made by some of the same potters, in the same workshops. The *mina’i* technique involves the application of as many as seven colors, resulting in a well-controlled, polychromatic decorative surface not possible in other contemporary pottery types. The method for producing the polychrome enamel pigments is described in a treatise on pottery making by Abu’l-Qasim of Kashan, completed in Hegira 700/1301 AD, by which time *mina’i* or haft rang (“seven colors”) wares, as they are known in the textual tradition, were no longer being produced.","provenance":"Iran, Kashan","obtention":"Possibly acquired by Mr. and Mrs. Allan C. Balch (1864-1943, and 1863-1943, respectively) from MacDermid Parish-Watson, New York (d. 1948). Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Allan C. Balch, until 1945 (gifted to); LACMA, gift of Mr. and Mrs. Allan C. Balch.","bibliography":"Komaroff, Linda, *Lo Terrenal y lo Divino: Arte Islámico siglos VII al XIX Colección del Museo de Arte del Condado de Los Ángeles*, Santiago: Centro Cultural La Moneda, 2015: 79.  \nKomaroff, Linda, *Beauty and Identity: Islamic Art from the Los Angeles County Museum of Art*, Los Angeles: Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 2016: 152-153, cat. no. 73.  \nPancaroglu, Oya, \"Potter's trail: an Abu Zayd ewer in the Saint Louis Art Museum,\" in Venetia Porter and Mariam Rosser-Owen (eds), *Metalwork and Material Culture in the Islamic World: Art, Craft, Text*, London: I.B. Tauris, 2012: 397-409.  \nPope, Arthur Upham, and Ackerman, Phyllis (eds), *A Survey of Persian Art from Prehistoric Times to the Present*, Vol. 5, London: Oxford University Press, 1938: plate 687; Plates 511-980: Architectural Ornament; Pottery and Faience; The Art of the Book.  \nWatson, Oliver, “Documentary Mina’i and Abu Zaid’s Bowls,” in Robert Hillenbrand (ed), *The Art of the Saljuks in Iran and Anatolia: Proceedings of a Symposium Held in Edinburgh in 1982*, Costa Mesa, CA: Mazda Publishers, 1994: 171.","author":"LACMA Staff","keywords":["bowl","ceramic","figural motifs","Fritware","inscription","Iran","Kashan","Minai","overglaze-painted","poetry","Seljuq"],"materials":["Fritware","inglaze- and overglaze-painted (mina'i)"]},"81885d7a-1511-5ad9-862a-b08626bdae85":{"name":"Pitcher (*dolcha*)","description":"The *dolcha* is used to serve various drinks such as *gulab* (rose water), *ovshara* (a syrup served cold), *iskanjabi* (a syrup made from honey and vinegar), which enhance the culinary culture of Azerbaijan. Rich, delicate floral patterns, *butas*, flowers, zoomorphic and geometric figures are depicted on the copper jugs of various shapes and capacities. Additionally, some inscriptions include the date of make and the names of the master, customer and owner are reflected: in this case, the date Hegira 1281 (AD 1864–1865) and the work order of merchant Abdul Ali are written on the lower right.","type":"Tableware","holder":"Azerbaijan National Carpet Museum","dates":"Hegira 1281 / AD 1864–1865","location":"Baku","dimensions":"Height: 25cm, width: 18cm","place_of_production":"Karabakh, Azerbaijan","method_for_datation":"By stylistic and comparative analyses with related material","obtention":"Purchased in 1971","author":"Rustam Afandiyev","keywords":["Azerbaijan","Copper","dolcha","drinks","pitcher"],"materials":["copper","engraved","hammered"]},"8224937d-eb35-5a76-923e-7d2bb6181a08":{"name":"Coffee-roasting spoon","description":"In Oman, copper is a traditional material for making equipment related to the kitchen and dining room. Smiths still practice the trade along the coasts of al-Batinah and the interior; this spoon hails from the al-Dakhiliyah Governorate. Coffee-roasting spoons are one of the most important tools used in the preparation of Omani coffee in the *dallah* pot, where coffee beans are stirred until roasted and ready for grinding and boiling.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"The National Museum - Sultanate of Oman","dates":"Hegira early 15th/AD early 21st century","location":"Muscat, Sultanate of Oman","dimensions":"Length: 44cm, diameter (spoon bowl): 3.5cm","provenance":"Bahla, Al Dakhiliyah Governorate, Northern Oman","author":"Noora Al Balushi","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["brass"]},"823fdade-8900-58b3-bcda-59a5e61574cf":{"name":"Ewer and basin set.","description":"A set comprising two pieces: a ewer and a basin that was used for ritual ablution. The basin is large with a flaring rim. The ewer has a pear-shaped body, a curved handle and a lid. The flaring rim of the basin and the body, lid and lower part of the spout of the ewer are decorated with lozenges formed by small grooves. Vertical and horizontal grooves in the lozenges also form square motifs. On top of the lid are a flower-bud and leaf in keeping with the fashion of the time.  \n  \nThe set is decorated in a gilding technique known as *Tombak* and engraved. In Turkish metalwork gilding, especially of pure copper artefacts, appears in the AH 12th / AD 18th century. Technically, this method of gilding involves spreading an amalgam of powdered gold and mercury on the surface of the object, which is then fired in a kiln. The mercury evaporates during the firing, while the gold powder adheres to the surface. Sometimes gold leaf is placed on a mercury-coated metal surface, and when the mercury evaporates during firing, the gold leaf is fixed to the object.  \n  \nThe inscriptions on the ewer and the basin inform us that the objects were dedicated to the Tomb of Pertevniyal Valide Sultan, and they give the date of AH 1286 (AD 1870). Pertevniyal was the second *iqbal* (lit. 'fortunate one') of Sultan Mahmud II (r. AH 1223–55 / AD 1808–39). When she gave birth to Abdülaziz, she ascended to the highest female rank at court and when Abdülaziz ascended the throne in AH 1278 / AD 1861 she became the Valide Sultan (Mother of the Sultan, i.e. the Queen Mother). She had a complex built in her own name in the Aksaray Quarter of Istanbul. It comprised a mosque, a *maktab* (school), a *sabil* and a public fountain, and a tomb which was built for her in the courtyard of the mosque and in which she was buried when she died in AH 1300 / AD 1883. The Museum owns several objects taken from this tomb, some of which are in this exhibition.","short_description":"Gold has been the expression of economic power in all periods of history. *Tombak* is a technique that gives the look of gold to items and is used to decorate this ewer and basin set used by Pertevniyal Valide Sultan, mother of Sultan Abdülaziz, during religious ceremonies.","type":"Gilded copper, tombak technique","holder":"Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts.","initial_owner":"Possibly Pertevniyal Valide Sultan (d. 1300 / 1883; queen mother from 1277–92 / AD 1861–76).","dates":"Hegira 1286 / AD 1870.","location":"Sultanahmet, Istanbul.","dimensions":"Basin: height 12 cm, diameter 60 cm; ewer: height 30.5 cm.","method_for_datation":"Both the ewer and basin bear an inscription stating that they were dedicated to the Tomb of Pertevniyal Valide Sultan and giving the date of 1286 (1870).","method_for_provenance":"Both the ewer and basin were dedicated to the tomb of Sultan Abdülaziz's mother, Pertevniyal Valide Sultan, in Istanbul and, due to the fact that the *tombak* technique was used especially in Istanbul, it is highly likely that this set was produced there.","provenance":"Istanbul, Turkey.","obtention":"The ewer and basin were transferred to the museum in 1926 from the Tomb of Pertevniyal Valide Sultan in Istanbul, to which they were dedicated.","bibliography":"*Anadolu Medeniyetleri III, Selçuklu-Osmanlı (Anatolian Civilizations III, Seljuqs-Ottomans)*, Istanbul, 1983, p.305.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_TR_EN_001","author":"Alev Özay","translator":"Barry Wood","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["Abdülaziz.","Basin","ewer","Mahmud II","Pertevniyal Valide Sultan","tombak"],"materials":["Gilded copper","known as the tombak technique."]},"84aca75b-106a-53be-b6ce-f390d4bbcb97":{"name":"Pilgrim flask","description":"A round bodied pilgrim flask covered with intricate polychrome decoration and painted with floral motifs and circular medallions with checkered designs and red dots. In the centre, there is a stylised flower in yellow and dark blue.","type":"Flask","holder":"Benaki Museum","dates":"AH 1112-1214/18th century","location":"Athens","dimensions":"Height: 17cm, body diameter: 14.5cm","place_of_production":"Kütahya","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Turkey","obtention":"Aquired in Alexandria","author":"Mina Moraitou","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Glazed ceramic"]},"854b0143-ae03-59b2-a467-18c4378eee8e":{"name":"*Kahveci başı*","description":"Sheet from *Costumes Turcs*, a lavish set of volumes produced in Turkey for a European audience. They present the appearance of people from different areas, with different jobs etc. Chief of the coffee-makers whose task it was to make coffee for the Sultan.","type":"Watercolour","holder":"The British Museum","dates":"c. 1790","location":"London","provenance":"Turkey"},"85cf7a4a-6a0b-533a-a23e-b4e6fb959910":{"name":"Offering bitter coffee in a guesthouse","description":"The bitter, unsweetened coffee (*qahwa murra*) is drunk from a small, handleless porcelain cup (*finjan*), into which less than three sips are poured. The guest drinks the coffee immediately and is offered the opportunity to drink another cup. Out of politeness or taste, the guest accepts a second and possibly a third portion. To indicate that he does not want any more coffee, he waves the cup back and forth slightly between his thumb and index finger and adds the phrase *dayman*, meaning “May you always have the means to serve coffee!”  \nThere are various regional sayings about the three cups that are usually drunk. A Palestinian saying goes:  \n“The first cup, take to the generous who would feed his tribe bread and butter in hard times;  \nAnd the second cup, pass to the one who would sacrifice his soul to protect a refuge-seeker;  \nAnd the third, take to the one who would come forward, undeterred by barking dogs.”  \nThe effect of the coffee on the body is immediate: the long boiling process causes the bitter substances contained in the *Coffea arabica* to be released in such a way that the stimulant is felt and the immediate thirst is quenched.  \nCoffee was first introduced to the Muslim world by Sufis, who used it during their religious practises, as reported by the traveler Mustafa Ali, who visited Cairo in Hegira 1007/AD 1599.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Karin Pütt","initial_owner":"Karin Pütt","dates":"Hegira 1412 / AD 1992","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Nahiyat ad-Darbassiya/Syria","method_for_provenance":"Direct contact","provenance":"Nahiyat ad-Darbassiya/Syria","bibliography":"Lange, K., \"Heroic Faces, Disruptive Deeds. Remembering the Tribal Shaykh on the Syrian Euphrates\", Dawn Chatty (ed.),","author":"Karin Pütt","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Slide"]},"86141f73-f2d4-5de6-b66c-a5955dcb470a":{"name":"Public drinking fountain.","description":"This fountain was designed for the Mosque of Mustafa Lala Pasha. It resembles a bench and is made of fine marble decorated with calligraphic carving and geometric mosaics composed of coloured marble and mother-of-pearl. The upper section consists of a marble panel grandly engraved with two lines of Arabic inscriptions written in the busy and rhythmically over-lapping *diwani* script, a calligraphic type popular during the Ottoman era. A thin band of vegetal motifs divides the two lines of inscription. This central panel is flanked by a pair of curvilinear brackets that are also heavily ornamented with vegetal and calligraphic carvings.  \nThe inscription conveys that the fountain, referred to as a *rub*' (a unit of water measurement), was built and made available to the public in honour of Sultan Sulayman by the High Aristocrat Mustafa Pasha in AH 971 / AD 1564. The date seems to have been important as it is written numerically and alphabetically in three different locations within the inscription. This is the date upon which Mustafa Lala Pasha became the governor of Damascus and he would remain in this prominent position for the next five years. Of his *waqf* endowments to Damascus, he built a new mosque and a new *khan* with lavish water supplies. During the reign of Sultan Salim II (AH 973–81 / AD 1566–74) Mustafa Lala Pasha was assigned as the military commander to conquer Cyprus in AH 977 / AD 1570, one of the greatest victories of the Ottoman military.  \nThe inscription on this fountain translates as follows:  \n“The one who built this public *rub'*, may God make it the most useful, during the era of the most God-fearing sultan, the Sultan Sulayman Khan son of the Sultan Salim Khan, may God the Most Exalted raise him to the throne of the sultanate, is the High Aristocrat Mustafa Pasha, may God include him in the intercession of his mediator, the heir of the Ottoman kingdoms of the Sultan Salim Khan, the most God-fearing, may God light up his realm with his brilliant light, the utterance of this text was dictated and inscribed in the year nine hundred and seventy-one, 971 \\[1564\\].”","short_description":"An important marble fountain made in Damascus and dedicated to Sultan Sulayman the Magnificent by the powerful military aristocrat and governor of Damascus, Mustafa Lala Pasha.","type":"Marble, mosaic, public monument","holder":"National Museum of Damascus","initial_owner":"The ruler of Damascus Mustafa Lala Pasha (r. AH 971–6 / AD 1563–9) in honour of Sultan Sulayman the Magnificent (r. AH 926–74 / AD 1520–66).","dates":"Hegira 971 / AD 1564.","location":"Damascus","dimensions":"Height 78.5 cm, width 1.50 m.","method_for_datation":"The inscription on the object includes the date of its completion in 971 (1564).","method_for_provenance":"The fountain is dated by the documentary records at the Museum.","provenance":"Mosque of Mustafa Lala Pasha, Damascus, Syria.","obtention":"The Mosque of Lala Mustafa Pasha in Damascus was demolished between 1928 and 1930 so that the Suq al-Hal could be built. However, this piece along with a number of other archaeologically valuable objects, were relocated to the Museum for preservation. This piece was registered at the Museum in 1931.","bibliography":"Abu al-Faraj al-Ush, M., *A Concise Guide to the National Museum of Damascus,* Damascus, 1969, p.183, p.244.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_TR_EN_001","author":"Mona al-Moadin","translator":"Hilary Kalmbach (from the Arabic)","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["Damascus","marble","mosaics","Mustafa Lala Pasha","public fountain","Selim II","Sultan Sulayman the Magnificent"],"materials":["Carved marble inlaid with marble mosaic and mother-of-pearl mosaic at the base."]},"869766dc-71ca-53a7-b67f-e1ed2b58d4ac":{"name":"La Goulette","description":"The expansion of the city of Tunis necessitated the construction of a large modern port which would be accessible to large-tonnage ships. Thus, in the early years of the French protectorate, the port of Tunis, La Goulette, saw a sharp increase in traffic. As well as a fishing port, the primary function of La Goulette, it also became an industrial centre thanks to the construction of a power plant on the north side of the canal, which served the tramways and the electric railway going to the northern suburbs. Finally, on the eve of the war, La Goulette had also become a residential town, particularly popular in summer for its seaside resorts.","type":"Photograph","holder":"Institut Supérieur d’Histoire Contemporaine de la Tunisie","dates":"1861","location":"La Manouba, Tunis","author":"Saloua Zangar","translator":"Flaminia Baldwin"},"882edb61-7d84-519e-90cd-1e8568e3abc4":{"name":"*Mokhfia* conical dish","description":"This conical plate, or *mokhfia*, is concave on a ring-shaped base. It has an arcade decoration called \"turtle\". In the centre of the dish a five-pointed star with green central point is inscribed in a double circle. Six blue dots are inside and five are outside of this star. From this central motif is a radiating design of five large green rounded forms, or scales, each with two dots on either side of a wide decorative stripe edged in yellow. The inside rim of the cup features a braided pattern enhanced with small blue strokes. This particular decoration and type of ceramic are characteristic of Moroccan work between the 17th and 19th centuries. They are widespread in Morocco and Spain. We note the Andalusian influence in certain motifs, such as the use of geometry.  \nThis piece cannot be attributed with certainty to a single production centre. However, Fes is the most important one of the period. The decoration with concentric arches called \"turtle\" is characteristic of these polychrome Moroccan ceramics. In the 19th century, the colours used were more assertive, the shapes heavier, and the designs less spontaneous than before.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","dates":"Hegira 13th century / AD 19th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 12cm, Diameter: 28cm","provenance":"Morocco","obtention":"Purchased at auction on advice of Piasa, 2002.","bibliography":"Delpont, Eric (et al.), *Album du musée*. Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, 2012: p. 294; p. 386.  \n  \nRoux, Jean-Paul (ed), *Arts de l'Islam: des origines à 1700*, Paris: Musée national de l'Orangerie (Réunion des Musées nationaux), 1971: Fig. 83.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["Ceramic with polychrome decoration enhanced with red lead"]},"891d79a5-c271-5792-99f2-8c563766ed94":{"name":"Dish","description":"Large, white plate adorned with sophisticated floral motifs such as blue tulips, red roses and other flowers, which had both ornamental and symbolic meanings. Rim decorated with black spirals. On the back side of the rim eight green and pale blue spots.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"National Museum in Kraków","initial_owner":"Muzeum Techniczno-Przemysłowe w Krakowie / Industrial Museum in Kraków","dates":"Late 10th century Hegira / Late 16th century AD","location":"Kraków","dimensions":"Diameter: 31cm, height: 5.4cm","method_for_datation":"Dating and origin based on similar pieces from other collections.","method_for_provenance":"Material, technique and design are characteristic for İznik, which was a centre of quality ceramic production in this period.","provenance":"İznik, Turkey","obtention":"Purchased by the Industrial Museum in Kraków from Adam Jaroszyński in 1896.","bibliography":"*Katalog wystawy kobierców mahometańskich, ceramiki azjatyckiej i europejskiej urządzonej w Muzeum Narodowem w Krakowie. Luty - czerwiec 1934*, Kraków, 1934, p. 97, fig. 215.  \n  \n*Wojna i pokój. Skarby sztuki tureckiej ze zbiorów polskich od XV do XIX wieku*, Warszawa 2000, p. 455, fig. 73.","author":"Bożena Kostuch","keywords":["flowers","Islam","Iznik"],"materials":["polychrome painted under transparent glaze","Stone-paste (fritware)"]},"893a0815-f9f4-52c7-8775-ffe7b752a7e5":{"name":"al-Ghuta ash-Sharqiyya","description":"The apricots are pressed using a press installed in the orchard or in the sheltered part of the facility. This press is equipped with two superimposed sieves, one with large holes to remove the stones and another with a much finer mesh to remove the fibres, leaving only the juice to pass through. The juice is collected in a large-capacity basin of more meticulous construction; the interior is tiled and surmounted by a fixed metal structure. The model of press dates from the 1970s. This operation takes place when the heat dies down at the end of the afternoon.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Anne-Marie Bianquis","initial_owner":"Anne-Marie Bianquis","dates":"Hegira 1320 / AD 2002","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Ghutat Dimashq/Syria","method_for_provenance":"Direct contact","provenance":"Ghutat Dimashq/Syria","bibliography":"Al-Dawudi, F., \"L’abricot est ses dérivés dans la région syrienne\", thesis on pharmacy and chemistry, 1960, Damascus (in Arabic).  \n  \nBianquis, A.-M., “Modernisation d'un artisanat traditionnel: la pâte d'abricot dans la ghouta de damas”, *Bulletin d'études orientales*, T. 56 (2004-2005): 301-328.  \n  \nDenker, J., \"'Moon of the Faith:' A History of the Apricot and Its Many Pleasures”, (14 June 2016).","author":"Hiba Bizreh","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Photographic negative"]},"899ab17a-563d-52eb-b76f-6ab3b73e0e14":{"name":"*Fanayeel* or *Fanyaal* (Coffee cups)","description":"*Fanayeel* (Coffee Ccups)  \nCoffee is always served at the beginning of a visit and is repeatedly offered until guests politely signal that they have had enough by rocking their cup from side to side. In order to keep coffee hot and fresh for unexpected guests it goes through many stages. After roasting and grinding the coffee beans the grains are added to boiling water inside a large *dallah* (coffee pot) called a *khamra*. Next, the liquid is poured into a medium-sized coffee pot called a *taljeemah*. At this stage cardamom seeds, saffron and rose water may be added for flavour. From this jug, the coffee is poured into a serving dallah referred to as a mezallah, where the coffee is refined and filtered. The server must hold the mezallah with their left hand and distribute the *fanayeel* (coffee cups) using the right hand. The coffee should fill less than half of the cup.","type":"Coffee cup","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century / AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Height: 55mm, Ddiameter: 75mm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","method_for_provenance":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Amanda Snyder","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["ceramic","coffee","coffee cup","cup"],"materials":["Ceramic","Paint"]},"89f6478a-1ada-5ce1-adfa-ba98750e463f":{"name":"Tray.","description":"A large brass tray with extensive silver inlay, much of it now missing. The layout is a study in circles: the central motif, a geometric pattern itself derived from intersecting circles, is linked to three circles which divide the surrounding inscription into equal parts. Within this arrangement there are further circles within circles. The whole composition serves as a framework for no less than seven inscriptions, whose verticals, arranged like spokes within wheels, provide a striking and satisfying visual contrast. The largest inscription reads, 'Glory to our master the Sultan, the wise, the diligent, the just, the warlike king – may his victory be glorified'! The same sentiments are reflected in all the inscriptions, right down to the tiny roundels which proclaim, 'Glory to our master, the Sultan'! A bold use of inscriptions, in which a laudatory text becomes the main part of the decoration, is a hallmark of Mamluk art. Although the identity of the patron is not clear (see below), a magnificent tray like this would have been a valued adornment of his court.","short_description":"A splendid brass tray extensively inlaid with silver to form geometric and calligraphic decoration. The bold inscriptions are particularly striking, although the identity of the sultan they praise is ambiguous. Such a tray would undoubtedly have been used at court gatherings.","type":"Metalwork, brass, silver, gold","holder":"Victoria and Albert Museum.","initial_owner":"Possibly either of the Mamluk rulers Sultan Abu Bakr (r. AH 742 / AD 1341) or Sultan Muhammad (r. AH 762–4 / AD 1361–3).","dates":"Hegira 742 / AD 1341 or AH 762–4 / 1361–3.","location":"London, England","dimensions":"Diameter 78.7 cm.","method_for_datation":"The style of the tray is that of the mid-8th / 14th century. The specific identity of the patron is ambiguous; the inscriptions make reference to 'al-Malik al-Mansur', a regnal name which was used by two Mamluk sultans in this period: Abu Bakr (r. 742 / 1341) and Muhammad (r. 762–4 /1361–3).","method_for_provenance":"Cairo and Damascus were the two most important centres of art production under the Mamluks.","provenance":"Cairo or Damascus.","obtention":"Purchased by the Museum in 1854.","bibliography":"Stanley, T., with Rosser-Owen, M. and Vernoit, S., Palace and Mosque: Islamic Art from the Middle East, London, 2004, p.97.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_EG_EN_001","author":"Barry Wood","copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["calligraphy","geometric patterns","inlay","inscription"],"materials":["Brass inlaid with silver and gold."]},"8a2ff55d-1f20-5c07-9cc0-adf4d8569dfe":{"name":"Incense burner","description":"Incense burners like this are usually made of clay mixed with water and kneaded until a mixture is formed that can then be shaped. The burner is then adorned with engravings, intricate drawings, and different colors. The incense burners are then fired in a kiln, after which they are ready for use. Note the handle; it makes the burner safe to carry from room to room. Incense occupies a central place in Omani life, as the passing of a fragrant burner at the end of a visit is customary in every region of the country.","type":"Ceramic, earthenware, acrylic colours","dates":"Hegira early 15th/AD early 21st century","dimensions":"Height: 10.5cm, width: 8.4cm, length (with handle): 11cm","provenance":"Dhofar Governorate","author":"Noora Al Balushi","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["acrylic colours","Earthenware"]},"8b04bc89-ef4a-56d1-a8a5-314527494983":{"name":"Stag aquamanile","description":"This aquamanile in the shape of a standing stag illustrates that animal motifs were considered suitable for handwashing vessels in Fatimid Egypt in the 10th and 11th century. The object is characterized by a cup-shaped opening, through which it can be filled with water, and spouts located in the snout and nostrils. The front of the snout is closed, instead water flows out from openings located on either side of the mouth. The handle is shaped like a slender and highly stylized quadruped standing on the stag’s back; it leans its front legs against the neck, where the cup is positioned, and stretches its head upwards, as if trying to reach the water source. Notably, aside from several folds in its skin, the stag’s body is not ornamented. This makes it one of the few Fatimid aquamaniles, and indeed one of the few Islamic animal figures, with an unadorned body surface.  \n  \nThe work is primarily compared with the only other known stag aquamanile, now located in Munich (Museum Five Continents, Inv.-Nr. 26-N-1). The motif of the drinking stag was transmitted into Islamic culture through the translations of the Physiologus, a didactic Christian text written in Greek by an unknown author in Alexandria during the 2nd century AD. It describes animals and fantastic creatures and provides accompanying moral commentary. Thus, both Christian and Islamic stag iconography refer back to the same source. In addition to stags and deer, there are other aquamanilia surviving today that originate from regions under the control of the Sasanian as well as the Umayyad, Abbasid, and Fatimid rule. These can be dated between the 6th/7th century and the early 13th century.  \n  \nThe handle and the spout reveal the function of the object; it allowed for the pouring of two streams of water onto two outstretched hands, so they may be washed. Its material made it unsuitable for holding wine and its large size prevented its use as a drinking vessel. Aquamanilia were most likely used in a courtly context for lavish festivities and private events with wine, singing, riddles, games, and friendly competition between poets. This would also explain the iconography of the aquamanilia, which refers to courtly culture. The imagery of the falcon, for example, was usually intended as a representation of sovereign power and a sign of authority.","type":"Aquamanile","holder":"Museo e Real Bosco di Capodimonte","owner":"Museo e Real Bosco di Capodimonte","initial_owner":"Nicola Santangelo (1785-1851)","dates":"Hegira 4th–5th century / AD 10th–11th century","location":"Naples","dimensions":"Height: 38cm, length: 27.3cm","place_of_production":"Egypt","method_for_datation":"Bibliography","method_for_provenance":"Bibliography","provenance":"Santangelo Collection, until 1967 in the Archaeological Museum, subsequently in the National Museum of Capodimonte","obtention":"Acquired in 1865","bibliography":"Olchawa, Joanna, in Claudia Höhl, Felix Prinz, and Pavla Ralcheva (eds.), Islam in Europa 1000-1250, exhibition catalogue, Regensburg: Schnele & Steiner, 2022, n. 77: 316–319; Scerrato, Umberto (ed.),  Arte islamica a Napoli. Opere delle raccolte pubbliche napoletane, exhibition catalogue, Napoli: L'Arte Tipografica, 1968, n. 1: 1","author":"Mario Epifani","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","keywords":["Aquamanile","Egypt","Fatimid","Museo e Real Bosco di Capodimonte","stag"],"materials":["cast","Copper alloy","engraved"]},"8b6cb8d7-5e2c-57b5-b1ee-487c8180ac0d":{"name":"Khanqah of Baybars al-Gashanqir.","description":"The Khanqah of Baybars al-Gashanqir overlooks Jamaliyya Street, and is characterised by a large façade made of stone which is located on the western side of the building. The façade of the mausoleum, which is situated within the *khanqah* together with its enormous dome, occupies a large part of the building's façade. The entrance is located on the southern end of the facade and is composed of a recessed wall, crowned by an arch, with a semi-dome roof. The area below it is ornamented with corner *muqarnas* with pendentives. The entrance is panelled with marble, and carved with Qur'anic verses in black and white marble. Along the entire length of the building façade there is an engraved epigraphic inscription in *thuluth* script. The inscription consists of the decree to construct the building and grant it as an endowment for the *sufi*s, and also names the sponsor. Above the roof of the portal is a minaret that is composed of three stories, each of which is separated by *muqarnas* tiers. The minaret is crowned by a pinnacle in the form of a small lobed dome. It resembles the summits of Ayyubid minarets which assumed the form of a *mabkhara* (an incense burner) such as the minaret of the Madrasa of al-Salih Najm al-Din Ayyub, also in Cairo. The minaret also has the remains of ceramic tiling reminiscent of that used on the minaret of the Mosque of al-Nasir Muhammad in the Citadel of Salah al-Din al-Ayyubi, also known as Citadel of the Mountain (Qala'a al-Jabal).  \nThe *khanqah* consists of a rectangular, central open courtyard measuring 16.50 m x 20 m; there are two large *iwan*s on its east and west sides, the bigger of which is the *qibla iwan* measuring 10 m x 12 m. In the middle of the *qibla iwan* there is a stone *mihrab*, which is simple and devoid of ornamentation. This might be due to the fact that the building was a *sufi khanqah*. At the north and south sides of the courtyard are the cells or the living quarters designated for the *sufis*. The *waqf* deed for the *khanqah* indicates that the building comprised three stories which included 100 *sufi* cells for permanent residence. Today only 11 of these cells are extant. The floor of the mausoleum is decorated with black and white marble and the walls are adorned with fine marble revetment to a height of 3.6 m. The mausoleum contains the grave of the builder and a lofty *mihrab* panelled with fine marble. Many of the building's annexes, such as the bakery and the kitchen areas, have been destroyed.","short_description":"The *khanqah* (a hostel built to accommodate Sufis) had 100 cells on three floors, and a kitchen that provided each Sufi (mystic) with meat, food, three loaves of bread and dessert daily. For its upkeep the Sultan used craftsmen from Damascus, Aleppo and lands in upper and lower Egypt. When Sultan Ruqn al-Din Baybars al-Gashanqir was dethroned, Sultan al-Nasir Muhammad arrested and killed him. He seized all the establishment's property and deleted the Sultan's name from the epigraphic band on its facade. The *khanqah* remained out of service for 20 years.","dates":"Hegira 709 / AD 1309.","location":"Cairo","method_for_datation":"The building was dated based on an inscription band in the entrance passageway, which includes the date that construction was completed. Furthermore, the *waqf* deed specific to the building mentions that the Sultan Rukn al-Din Baybars ordered construction in 707 (1307) when he was a commander, and before he assumed power. The *waqf* document bears the number 6–22 and is preserved in the Office of National Archives in Cairo.","bibliography":"Abd al-Wahab, H.,*Tarikh al-Masajid al-Athariya bil Qahira \\[History of Historical Mosques in Cairo\\],* Cairo, 1994.  \nCreswell, K. A. C., *Muslim Architecture in Egypt, Vol II*, Oxford, 1960.  \nRizq, A., *Khanaqahwat al-Sufiya fi Masr fi al-'asr al-Ayyubi wa al-Mamluki \\[Sufi Khanqahs in Egypt in the Ayyubid and Mamluk Periods\\],* Cairo, 1997.  \nSalem, al-Sayyed Mahmoud 'Abd al-Aziz, *al-Ma'din al-Masriya – Nazra 'Amma 'an Aslaha wa Tatawuriha mundu al-Fath al-'Arabi hatta al-Fath al-Othmani \\[Egyptian Minarets – A General View of the Origins and Development from the Arab Conquest to the Ottoman Conquest\\],* Cairo, 1959.","patrons":"Sultan Rukn al-Din Baybars al-Gashanqir (r. AH 708–9 / AD 1309–10).","linkcatalogs":"IAM_EG_EN_001","author":"Tarek Torky","copy_editor":"Majd Musa","translator":"Amal Sachedina (from the Arabic).","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["funerary architecture","khanqah","Mausoleum","religious architecture.","Sufi"]},"8b90eb6b-ced6-5988-a13e-7f83f166a462":{"name":"Coffee Container","description":"It is made of Lüleci clay. The base is in the shape of a circle and has a rounded centre. There is a Mevlevi headdress on the cover. It is decorated with flowers and parallel lines.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Ankara Ethnography Museum","owner":"The Republic of Türkiye Ministry of Culture and Tourism","location":"Ankara","dimensions":"Height: 12.cm, diameter: 3.8cm","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["Terracotta"]},"8d436c70-8d15-5b93-b5b5-044a974ad60d":{"name":"Cooking pot.","description":"Pot with vertical straight rim with flattened lip and external flange, circular mouth and cylindrical neck. The body is shaped like a truncated cone with sharp carination close to the base. It has two strap handles with a central ridge and convex base. There are horizontal incisions around the rim, neck and body and fire marks indicate that it was used in cooking. The object has been restored.","short_description":"Kitchen implement with an extremely simple form and very little decoration. This type of pot was found in an Almohad oven excavated in Mértola and appears almost exclusively in this region, which helps to identify it as a local product.","type":"Pot, ceramic","holder":"Mértola Museum.","dates":"Early Hegira 7th century / early AD 13th century.","location":"Mértola., Beja.","dimensions":"Height 21.5 cm, width 35 cm, diameter (of rim) 23.5 cm, diameter (of base) 19 cm.","method_for_datation":"It was dated to the Almohad period on the basis of stratigraphy, since it was found in the abandoned levels of one of the houses of the citadel vacated after the Christian conquest of Mértola in AH 635–6 / AD 1238.","method_for_provenance":"This type of pot has been found in an Almohad kiln excavated in Mértola and is almost exclusive to this region. This indicates that it was produced locally.","provenance":"Mértola.","obtention":"Found in the archaeological excavations carried out by the Campo Arqueológico de Mértola in the citadel of the Castle of Mértola.","bibliography":"Gómez Martínez, S., “Catálogo da Cerâmica”, in *Museu de Mértola. Arte Islâmica*, ed. S. Macias, Mértola, 2001, pp.107–67.  \nTorres, C. and Macias, S. (eds.), *O Portugal Islâmico*, Lisbon, 1998, p.155.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_PT_EN_001","author":"Susana Gómez Martínez","translator":"Gilla Evans","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["cooking","Daily life","food"],"materials":["Common ceramic made from reddish paste","modelled on a potter’s wheel and fired in an oxidising atmosphere."]},"8eee28ae-e98c-58dd-82dd-0212290a8232":{"name":"Strainer.","description":"The greyish earthenware fragment showing openwork at the centre was part of a jug with strainer. The slightly convex strainer was placed at the juncture of neck and shoulder of the vessel and was intended to protect the stored liquid from pollution and insects. Its design is inscribed in a circle and shows a quadruped passing to the left. The motif is set against a filigree background of rhombs. The major outlines of the animal, usually called a gazelle, are incised into the material. The remaining surface of the body is left plain. A striated zigzag line between two circles surrounds the quadruped.  \nDecorated strainers are known from excavations of sites dated to the AH 2nd–9th / AD 8th–15th century. Strainers of the Fatimid period, which was the high point of their development, show not only the most varied patterns, but also the most elaborated compositions and the finest execution. As well as gazelle-like quadrupeds, other zoomorphic motifs such as elephants, lions, hares, birds or fish are depicted on the strainers.  \nThe strainers are only small fragments of vessels, but they call attention to themselves. One reason might be the unexpected combination of simple earthenware, mostly undecorated on the outside, with costly designs inside the neck of the jugs. Another might be that the potters created a highly aesthetic form for a simple utilitarian object. The complex patterns of the openwork carried out within small areas reveal the skills of the craftsmen.","short_description":"Earthenware fragment which was integrated in a vessel as a strainer. The latticework displays a quadruped, possibly a gazelle, passing to the left. The strainer was placed at the juncture of neck and shoulder of the earthenware vessel to protect the stored liquid from insects and pollution.","type":"Strainer, earthenware","holder":"Museum of Mediterranean and Near Eastern Antiquities (Medelhavsmuseet).","owner":"National Museum of Fine Arts, Stockholm. In order to reorganise the expanding collections, the main part of the Islamic collection has been on permanent loan to the Museum of Mediterranean and Near Eastern Antiquities since 1982.","dates":"Hegira 5th century / AD 11th century.","location":"Stockholm","dimensions":"Diameter 6.5 cm.","method_for_datation":"A strainer also showing a gazelle was excavated at al-Fustat and dated according to numismatic evidence of undisturbed loci to the 5th / 11th century.","method_for_provenance":"Similar strainers were excavated at al-Fustat and their place of manufacture ascribed to the city. According to F. R. Martin, this strainer comes from excavations at al-Fustat.","provenance":"Al-Fustat, Egypt.","obtention":"Purchased from the collection of the Swedish art dealer and art historian F. R. Martin in 1921.","bibliography":"Olmer, P., *Catalogue Général du Musée Arabe du Caire: Les Filtres de Gargoulettes*, Cairo, 1932.  \nScanlon, G. T., *Fustat Expedition Final Report. Vol. 1: Catalogue of Filters*, Winona Lake, 1986.  \nWittkowski, G., “Arabic Filters from the Collection of the Cracow Archaeological Museum”, *Materialy Archeologiczne* XXX, 1997, 41–55.","author":"Friederike Voigt","copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["animal decoration","earthenware","purity of water","water","zoomorphic imagery"],"materials":["Earthenware","incised.","unglazed"]},"8ef1e4eb-e7ca-506a-8117-7e5c9d0e9a18":{"name":"Small Octagonal Pavilion Tent","short_description":"A tent comprising eight contiguous panels, each measuring 211cm x 135cm, and an octagonal canopy of eight triangular pieces. The plain-weave cotton exterior is embroidered with silk and metallic yarns, and the interior is lined with woven silk panels.  \nThe exterior of the tent is a plain-weave cotton, which is resistant to sunlight and less likely to be damaged by rain, while the interior is lined with more fragile and luxurious silk fabric. The form of this small pavilion tent inevitably recalls the shape of medieval Iranian octagonal tomb structures or gunbad, whose decorative brickwork frequently includes corner columns or \"tent poles.\"  \nOne of the eight wall panels is designed to open as an entrance, and the central part of each wall panel is embellished by a fabric \"grille\" that clearly imitates Persian wooden or metal grille-work. The design provides plenty of shade and privacy coupled with maximum air circulation, and the door panel could be closed for additional privacy.","type":"Textiles","holder":"Saint Louis Art Museum","dates":"Hegira Mid 12th to early 13th century / AD late 19th century","location":"Saint Louis","dimensions":"Length: 345.4cm x Width: 406.4cm x Diamter: 406.4cm","method_for_datation":"Scholarly review and/or comparison to similar objects from the period.","method_for_provenance":"Scholarly review and/or comparison to similar objects from the period.","provenance":"Rasht, Persia (Iran), Asia","obtention":"Gift of James F. Ballard, 1929","bibliography":"Denny, Walter and Farnham, Thomas, *The Carpet and the Connoisseur: The James F. Ballard Collection of Oriental Rugs*, Saint Louis: The Saint Louis Art Museum, 2016.","keywords":["Asia","cotton","Iran","Metallic","Octagonal","Pavillion","Persia","Persian","Rasht","silk","tent","textile","Yarn"],"materials":["cotton","metallic yarns","silk"]},"90313d34-f14e-568c-b0bd-898e9a4aef37":{"name":"Bowl","description":"This bowl was made using the *mina'i* enamel technique. Patterns and figures are depicted in cobalt blue, brown, green, red and black on a white primed surface. The centre of the bowl depicts a round-faced, almond-eyed, human figure with arched brows holding a goblet while seated cross-legged on a throne. On each side of this figure is a person standing with folded arms.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"The Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts","dates":"The Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"20.6cm, 8.6cm","place_of_production":"Iran","materials":["Ceramic","Mina’i technique"]},"90e3e9c4-c63a-5a36-8816-be80a1947fe7":{"name":"Tray *majmayi*","description":"This large, round tray (*majmayi*) for serving pilaf appeared at large feasts, such as weddings, engagements and funerals. They are usually made of copper and richly engraved with floral motifs and inscriptions in Arabic, usually the name of the owner and/or master, year of production, *ayahs* from the Quran, as well as wishes for owner's well-being. Such inscriptions were normally depicted inside cartouches. In 2015, the copper craftsmanship of Azerbaijani Lahij was inscribed on the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. According to the calligraphic inscription on the item, it dates to 1869–1870. It has a wavy edge and an inscription of a couplet from Hafez’s poetry engraved in the cartouch:  \n\"Saqi, brighten our cups with the light of wine.  \nSing, Minstrel. The world is now as we wished it.\"","type":"Tableware","holder":"Azerbaijan National Carpet Museum","dates":"Hegira 1285–1287 / AD 1859–1870","location":"Baku","dimensions":"Height: 35mm, diametre: 600mm","place_of_production":"Karabakh, Azerbaijan","method_for_datation":"By stylistic and comparative analyses with related material","obtention":"Purchased in 1971","author":"Rustam Afandiyev","keywords":["Azerbaijan","Copper","Karabakh","majmayi","Tableware","Tray"],"materials":["copper","engraved","hammered."]},"9107cee6-86c6-50d5-afa3-39c67845bd31":{"name":"Cup stand (*zarf*)","alternate_name":"Zarf","description":"These delicate silver pieces known as *zarf* are an important part of the coffee ritual in Turkey, as they work as a protection and stand for the hot cups. We can admire those pieces as a part of the scenography in the portrait of the marquise of the Cerralbo and his daughter in Turkish costume made by Abdullah Fréres.","type":"Silverwork","holder":"Cerralbo Museum","dates":"Late 19th century","location":"Madrid","provenance":"Turkey, Istanbul","author":"Cecilia Casas Desantes","copy_editor":"Anne Dowell"},"92830f7a-b5c3-5e7e-9a7f-a0686de50300":{"name":"*Peškun*","description":"This *Peškun* (Tr. *peşkun*) has a base of ten vertical sides that carry a protruding decagonal plate at the top. The sides are also divided horizontally into three zones, the highest of which has a central flower motif, the middle a honeycomb-like openwork ellipse, and the lowest an opening in the form of a pointed five-leafed arch, below which is a flower with leaves and a rounded three-leafed arch. On the upper panel, there is a star-shaped field with a flower in the center of it, while other floral motifs are in the spaces between the decagon and the arms of the star. All floral and geometric ornaments are made of mother-of-pearl and brass wire using the incrustation technique, while the edge of the decagonal top plate is ornamented with bone.  \n*Peškun* is the name of a traditional piece of Ottoman furniture in the shape of a table or stool. It was originally meant for sitting, although it had different purposes throughout history, especially as a decorative table in Balkan oriental interiors of the 19th and of the first half of the 20th century. Over time, the larger table (in the set of usually three pieces) began to be used as a coffee table, while the smaller ones were used as stools. *Peškun* were ordinarily made of walnut wood, ornamented with incrusted floral and geometric motifs made of mother-of-pearl and bone.","type":"Table","holder":"Museum of Applied Art","dates":"Hegira late 13th–early 14th century / AD late 19th century–early 20th century","location":"Belgrade","dimensions":"Height: 59.5cm, width: 46cm","place_of_production":"Austria-Hungary, possibly Sarajevo","method_for_datation":"By stylistic analysis, material, technique, and analogy with other similar examples.","obtention":"Purchased in 1951.","author":"Ana Samardžić","keywords":["incrustation","Ottoman Balkans","peškun","side table","stool"],"materials":["Bone","brass","incrustation","mother of pearl","Walnut"]},"92b5f36b-5cba-54c2-8f14-3426b9111ac4":{"name":"Palais de la Rose","description":"The Palais de la Rose is an example of \"Moorish\" architecture from Spain and North Africa with Italian influences. Its most notable features are the grand staircase, the great hall surrounded by a marble gallery, and the huge, luxurious courtrooms. It is richly decorated in a variety of styles, with Italian marble in rare colours and an elegant rococo style, as can be seen from the Neapolitan faience pottery, the vaulted ceilings, and the tympanums finely carved from stucco or naqsh hadida in one of the styles popular at the time, such as an eight-point star between two stylised cypress trees. Finally, palace-museum's four great rooms invite its visitors to learn about the history of the Tunisian army from antiquity to the War of Independence.\n\nThe Palais de la Rose was built in the late 18th century, within La Manouba's royal gardens. Although originally used as a recreational palace for the Husainid beys, it soon began to receive many famous guests or persons visiting Tunisia, such as Queen Caroline of Brunswick in 1816. During the reign of Ahmed Pacha Bey (1837–1855) the palace became a residence for foreign teachers at the École Militaire du Bardo, among whom was the famous hero of Italian independence, Giuseppe Garibaldi. From 1881, the beginning of the French protectorate in Tunisia, the palace became the occupying army's headquarters. Following independence, the palace was restored and thus regained its original splendour and the became home to the Musée Militaire National.","type":"Palace and gardens","holder":"Ministère de la Défense nationale, Tunis","dates":"18th–19th centuries","location":"La Manouba, Tunis","author":"Saloua Zangar","translator":"Flaminia Baldwin"},"93ee1091-8763-5b6d-885f-d833bd95f55d":{"name":"Incantation bowl","description":"The bowl is inscribed in Mandean script, in Aramaic Mandean dialect. The text spirals from the bottom of the bowl about fifteen times around. The beginning of the text is unreadable because of a crystal deposits and blackening. The name of the sponsor, the beneficiary of these incantations, which is typically stated at the beginning of the text, remains unknown here. The remaining lines consist essentially of a repetition of names of demons exorcised by linked formulas, including the female demon Lilith, her ancestors (“all her families and lineages”), and her offspring. The Aramaic communities of Mesopotamia are heirs to ancient beliefs dating back to the Akkadian and even Sumerian texts, according to which demons were of an inexhaustible variety. The Mandean, because of his dualistic faith, believes in evil spirits whose harmful actions he dreads. Magic is therefore an essential aspect of his religious life. This practice, consisting in burying the cups thus inscribed at the four corners of the house, was widely diffused among the various religious communities of Mesopotamia until the Muslim conquest and beyond.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","dates":"Before Hegira 2nd-1st century / AD 6th-7th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 6.4cm, Diameter: 19cm, Base diameter: 5.8cm","provenance":"Nippur (?), Iraq","obtention":"Purchased at Art Musulman gallery in 1984.","bibliography":"Delpont, E., et al., *Album du musée*, Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, 2012: 295.  \n  \nMoulierac, J., et al., *Céramiques du monde musulman: collections de l'Institut du monde arabe et de J.P. et F. Croisier* , Paris: Institut du monde arabe, Paris, 1999: 151.  \n  \nSafadi, Y.H., *Calligraphie islamique*, Paris: Chêne, 1978: 6.  \n  \nRéunion des Musées nationaux, *Naissance de l'écriture: cunéiformes et hiéroglyphes*, Paris: Réunion des Musées nationaux, 1982: 113, 183, Fig. 73, 74.  \n  \nSoustiel, J., *La céramique islamique*, Fribourg: Office du Livre, 1985: 34, Fig. 16.  \n  \nTeixidor, J., \"The Syriac Incantation Bowls in the Iraq Museum\", Sumer,18 (1962): 51–62.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["inscription traced in black ink.","Unglazed ceramic"]},"9759fb2e-169a-5a39-8d80-11289577854b":{"name":"Al-Haswa Dagger (*khanjar*)","short_description":"Attributed to Imam Saif bin Sultan al-Yarubi I (*Qaid al-Ard’*)  \nCollections of Sultan Qaboos bin Said bin Taimur  \n  \nSaif bin Sultan I was the fourth of the al-Ya’aruba dynasty Imams of Oman (ruled Hegira 1104–23 / AD 1692–1711). He made the ar-Rustaq Fort his residence, adding the *Burj al-Riah,* “the wind tower”.  \n  \nThe Omani navy reached a great degree of development during the Imam’s reign, where his foreign policy was based on renewing the struggle against the Portuguese on the Persian, Indian and East African coasts. In Hegira 1110 / AD 1696, the Omani naval fleet attacked Mombasa, besieging the Portuguese who had taken refuge in Fort Jesus. The Siege of Fort Jesus (also known as the Battle of Mombasa), ended after 33 months when the remaining survivors surrendered. Soon after the Omanis took Pemba, Kilwa and Zanzibar, becoming the dominant power on the coast.  \n  \nAt home, Imam Saif bin Sultan invested in agrarian reform, building new *aflaj* water management systems and maintaining old systems; expanding the plantation of crops such as wheat, barley and sugar cane; planting date palm and fruit trees; introducing new varieties of plants such as turmeric, saffron and coffee; and establishing beekeeping.  \n  \nSaif bin Sultan earned the title Qaid al-Ard’ meaning \"the Earth's bond\" or \"the chain of the Earth\" for the benefits he brought to the people of Oman.","holder":"National Museum Oman","dates":"Hegira 1104–23 / AD 1692–1711","location":"Muscat","dimensions":"Dagger width: 17cm, dagger length: 33cm; Belt length: 133cm; Blade length: 31.5cm, blade width: 7.2cm","copy_editor":"Liz Cooper","materials":["leather and silver","Rhinoceros horn","steel","Wood"]},"9844c72d-8d2f-50e5-8d5b-86ef15a82164":{"name":"*Egyptian village scene*","description":"Egyptian men and women are seen here in a town or village on the Nile. In the shade of an overhanging tree a market stall displays its wares, including paper lanterns and bread. At the stall behind, sugar cane is for sale. In the background is a mosque with a white minaret, though not distinctive enough to establish the scene's locality. Pilleau had visited Egypt in the winter of 1842-43 with Lieutenant Colonel George Everest (after whom Mount Everest was named) and two other companions, on their way home from India. On his return to England he published a set of twelve coloured lithographs, Sketches in Egypt (1845), which, like the better-known publications of Wilkie, Roberts and Owen Jones in the same decade, fuelled popular interest in Egypt and the Holy Land.","type":"Painting; watercolour","holder":"Victoria and Albert Museum","dates":"1869 (painted)","location":"London","author":"Victoria and Albert Museum"},"9895b895-3959-594b-bd4c-2539f527b755":{"name":"*Segaa* (milk churn)","description":"This *Segaa* (milk churn) was used to process milk into *laban* (buttermilk). Milk was poured into the bag and shaken from side to side to thicken into buttermilk. *Laban* tastes similar to yoghurt.","type":"Milk churn","holder":"Bait Al Naboodah Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century/AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Height: 650mm, length: 300mm, height: 230mm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","method_for_provenance":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Amanda Snyder","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["Churn"],"materials":["date palm leaf mid-rib stick","date-palm fibre","Goat skin"]},"99b86f8f-18fe-561f-b1d1-b10181beb328":{"name":"Baking flatbread in a *tannur* in an Assyrian village in northeast Syria","description":"Inhabitants of the western mountain areas and parts of northeast Syria bake the thicker (1–2 cm) flatbread that is baked on the wall of a bulbous vertical clay oven (*tannur*). To achieve the required temperature of the oven wall the firewood must be burnt down to embers.  \nThese ovens consist of an interior part made from clay mixed with goat hair and chaff, which is fired to become the inner wall. If the *tannur* should be placed above the ground, it will be given a thick coating of at least 30 cm from pieces of sun-dried mud brick and mortar, with a worktop to the side. These huge ovens are often placed in the corner of the courtyard or sometimes outside the compound as a common oven. In Syria rarely is a *tannur* dug into the ground, like the one in the photo taken in an Assyrian village in the Upper Khabur valley.  \nThe *tannur* bread (*hubz tannur*) requires more time to prepare, as yeast is added, and the dough is kneaded intensively. Preferably local wheat is used.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Karin Pütt","initial_owner":"Karin Pütt","dates":"Hegira 1410 / AD 1990","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Nahiyat Tall Tamr/Syria","method_for_provenance":"Direct contact","provenance":"Nahiyat Tall Tamr/Hasaka Province","bibliography":"Mulder-Heymans, N., \"Archaeology, experimental archaeology and ethnoarchaeology on bread ovens in Syria\", “Civilisations\". “Revue international d’anthropologie et de sciences humaines”, 49 (2002), 197-221. https://doi.org/10.4000/civilisations.1470  \n  \nPasqualone, A., \"Traditional flat breads spread from the Fertile Crescent: Production process and history of baking systems\", “Journal of Ethnic Foods”, vol. 5, issue 1, March 2018, 10-19.  \n  \nPütt, K., Zelte, \"Kuppeln und Hallenhäuser – Wohnen und Bauen im ländlichen Syrien\", Petersberg, 2005, 240.","author":"Karin Pütt","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Slide"]},"9a80618f-fbfd-5d5e-b4ee-f9684139776e":{"name":"Kirman carpet","description":"The name of Persia (modern Iran) is so intimately associated with oriental rugs that they are often referred to generically as “Persian”. The golden age of carpet weaving had been during the Safavid rule of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. The dynasty collapsed in 1722/3 and the country remained in turmoil for decades. It is likely that with the fall of Safavids most urban based weaving diminished greatly or ceased. All that remained was local production on a much reduced scale. The revival of the Persian carpet trade dates from the 1860s and was mainly due to enterprising merchants of the north-western city of Tabriz.  \nKirman has long been one of the major carpet-producing areas of Persia. Development of the carpet industry is poorly documented in Kirman, although there is clear evidence that weaving occurred during the Safavid times. Some of the best wool in the country is grown around Kirman. Weaving was well-developed during much of the 19th century. The rugs of Kirman always display a brilliant variety of colours and the number of shades is enormous. The dyes are varied and imaginative. Insect dyes have traditionally been used for reds and indigo was used for blues, providing a variety of shades. Colours can range from ivory, blue magenta to more golden and saffron cast.  \nPersian workshops in the towns of Kirman, Tabriz and Kashan were the main producers of pictorial carpets. They portray humans and/or animals and illustrate historical and mythological stories. Sometimes the composition makes one or more characters that show famous people or events from the past.  \nThis pictorial carpet was a gift to the Museum of Arts and Crafts from Kemal Nanić and his family. The figural compositions depict the scenes from the famous Persian tragic romance *Khusraw and Shirin* written by the poet and writer Nizami Ganjavi (1141–1209). The poem describes the romance of the Persian king Khusraw II Perviz (590–628) and his wife Shirin, an Armenian Christian. The novel includes Khusraw's courtship of Shirin, their marriage and her romance with the architect Farhad. After a series of heroic romantic episodes, Shirin agrees to marry Khusraw who later built her a palace called Qasr-e-Shirin (the remains are visible even today). For the construction of palace architect Farhad was hired. Shirin then fell in love with Farhad, but their romance ended tragically.  \nThe central field of the carpet is divided into four horizontal rows. Each row has a mirror image of a group of human figures. They illustrate scenes from the poem *Khusraw and Shirin*, including a famous scene when Khusraw glimpses Shirin bathing. The central field is framed with four equally wide borders. The inner border is the *laleh abbasi* (abbasi tulip) border. The other three borders are a variation of the floral meander border.","type":"Carpet","holder":"Museum of Arts and Crafts","dates":"Second half 19th century / beginning of the 20th century","location":"Zagreb","dimensions":"H: 303cm, W: 270cm","method_for_datation":"By stylistic analysis","method_for_provenance":"By stylistic analysis","provenance":"Iran","obtention":"Donated by Kemal Nanić","bibliography":"Klobučar, Andrea, “Zbirka tekstila i mode”, in M. Bagarić *et al*. (ed.), *Akvizicije MUO 2003. - 2013*, Zagreb: Muzej za umjetnost i obrt, Zagreb, 2013: 146-161; 225-226.","author":"Andrea Klobučar","translator":"Petra Milovac","translation_copy_editor":"Daniel de la Vega","keywords":["Kerman","medahil","Persia","pictorial carpet","pictorial rug"],"materials":["asymmetrical knots","cotton","knotted carpet","wool"]},"9aa3edb0-723c-5c98-a50f-327c1df9829a":{"name":"*Maghsal Al Yad* (bowl and pitcher)","description":"*Maghsal Al Yad*; Aluminium bowl and pitcher  \nWater from the pitcher is poured over the hands often by the host helping the guest.","type":"Pitcher; bowl","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century / AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Height: 190mm, diameter: 365mm, height: 285mm, width: 220mm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","method_for_provenance":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Amanda Snyder","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["Basin","bowl","copper alloy","Handwash"],"materials":["Aluminium"]},"9ae96ed6-bd10-5baf-ba3d-16ece349d35e":{"name":"Bowl (*kasa*)","description":"The bowl's decoration includes a calligraphic inscription invoking Allah's blessing to the Fourteen Infallibles, the owner’s name (Mehdi) and the production date (AH 1221), in addition to floral motifs.","type":"Tableware","holder":"Azerbaijan National Carpet Museum","dates":"Hegira 1221 / AD 1806","location":"Baku","dimensions":"Height: 12cm, diametre: 24.5cm","place_of_production":"Azerbaijan","method_for_datation":"By stylistic and comparative analyses with related material","obtention":"Purchased in 1971","author":"Rustam Afandiyev","keywords":["Azerbaijan","bowl","Copper","kasa","Tableware"],"materials":["copper","engraved","hammered."]},"9b34f332-f8dc-57eb-8c05-7765d9622dbd":{"name":"Coffee Cooler","description":"This carved wooden coffee cooler is mostly circular and has short zigzagging linear patterns on top. The date AH 1303 (AD 1885) is visible on a side.","type":"Woodwork","holder":"Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts","dates":"13th-14th century/AD 19th century","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"23cm x 15cm","materials":["Wood"]},"9b938f78-dd1b-5b00-a709-62c11978cdc8":{"name":"Basin","description":"This basin was discovered in pieces at the end of the 19th century in the centre of Seville. Restoration work has reconstructed the bands of inscriptions, as well as the decoration on three of its sides.  \nThe front is decorated with three tri-lobed arches, framed by alfiz (frame) panels supported on columns. Each arch contains a plant sprouting leaves, palmettes, pinecones and intertwining stems. The space between the arch and the alfiz panel shows the same type of decoration, and the whole thing is framed by an inscribed strip.  \nThe right-hand side shows a space divided vertically into three parts. The central area is undecorated, probably to allow space for the water to come out, and the other two sides show similar scenes: eagles, seizing deer with their talons, bear two lions face to face on their outspread wings, while beneath them two griffins facing each other complete the scene. This iconography, of Sassanid origin, refers to power, abundance and eternity.  \nOnly the inscribed band is preserved from the third side, a strip with ducks and fishes, and, underneath it, the remains of a lion attacking a deer.  \nWe know from the inscription that this basin was commissioned for the royal palace of al-Zahira on the orders of al-Mansur, prime minister and favourite of Hisham II, who was still a child when he became Caliph in AH 366 / AD 976, following the death of his father al-Hakam II. The unstoppable rise to power of al-Mansur started shortly after the accession of Hisham II. With the intention of establishing a parallel dynasty to the legal Umayyad one, al-Mansur built a palatine city called Madinat al-Zahira. This new city, rival to Madinat al-Zahra, was in the eastern part of Córdoba, but limited material remains have survived to the present day. The city was burnt to the ground in AH 399 / AD 1009.","short_description":"Emulating the Umayyad caliphs who built Madinat al-Zahra, the hajib of Córdoba al-Mansur built the palatine city of Madinat al-Zahira, and he commissioned this ablutions basin for it, as stated on the inscription. Animal-shaped spouts would have emerged from the attached side pillars, of which only traces have survived.","type":"Basin, marble","holder":"National Archaeological Museum.","dates":"Hegira 377 / AD 988.","location":"Madrid","dimensions":"Height 68 cm, width 150 cm, depth 77 cm.","method_for_datation":"The inscription in *kufic* lettering says: '…Almanzor Abi Amir Muhammad ben Abi Amir and glory to God. \\[This was\\] ordered to be made for the royal palace of al-Zahira and was finished with the help and assistance of God under the direction of the great Amiri Fata in the year seven seventy and three hundred'. Consequently, the basin has been dated to 377 / 988.","method_for_provenance":"There are two other basins attributable to the same period and place, one of which can be found in the Alhambra Museum, Grenada, and the other in Marrakesh (Morocco). This latter was made for ‘Abd al-Malik, son of Al-Mansur. The three pieces have similar decorations of eastern origin on one of their sides.","provenance":"The missing royal palace of Madinat al-Zahira (Córdoba), Spain.","obtention":"The basin arrived at the National Archaeological Museum in stages. The two most important parts, the front and part of one of the sides, were bought on 22 November 1882. Another fragment arrived in 1923. Finally, on 30 July 1930, the last piece arrived from the Provincial Archaeological Museum of Seville.","bibliography":"Bernus-Taylor, M., ‘Les cuves’, in *Les Andalousies de Damas à Cordoue. Exposition presentée á l’Institut du monde arabe du 28 novembre 2000 à 15 avril 2001*. Paris : Hazan, 2000 : p. 133.  \n  \nEwert, C., *et al.*, “Denkmaler des Islam”, *Hispania Antiqua*, 21 (1997): 176.  \n  \nLévi-Provençal, E., *Inscriptions Arabes d'Espagne*, Paris : Larose, 1931: p.194.  \n  \nRevilla Vielva, R., *Catálogo de las Antigüedades que se Conservan en el Patio árabe del Museo Arqueológico Nacional*, Madrid: Imp. De Estanislao Maestre, 1932: p.77.  \n  \nRosser Owen, M., *Articulating the Hijjaba: Cultural Patronage and Political Legitimacy in al-Andalus. The ‘Amirid Regency c. 970-1010*, Leiden: Brill, 2021: pp. 274-282.  \n  \nTorres Balbás, L., ‘España Musulmana Hasta la Caída del Califato de Córdoba (711–1031)’, in *Historia de España, vol. 5*, Madrid: Espasa Calpe España, 1957: p.718.  \n  \nZozaya, J., ‘Antigüedades Andalusíes de los Siglos VIII al XV’, in *Guía General del Museo Arqueológico Nacional, vol. II*, Madrid: Ministerio de cultura y deporte, 1991: p.66.","author":"Margarita Sánchez Llorente","copy_editor":"Rosalía Aller","translator":"Laurence Nunny","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["Basin","palace","water"],"materials":["Carved marble."]},"9c2ac3c9-ddf9-5578-9e26-fad8ec3a615c":{"name":"Dhow collection","description":"The National Museum of Qatar holds, in its collection, a fleet comprising of 14 dhows. The growing collection includes a variety of traditional dhows, with several models dating to the early 20th century, as well as more recent replicas of traditional vessels. Originating from Oman, Bahrayn, India and Qatar, among other places traditional dhows represented include *jalbut* (small to medium sized), *shuw\\`i* (medium sized, once used for fishing and coastal trade), *sanbuq* (largest type in the Arabian Gulf today) and *baglah* (traditional, deep-sea dhows once used for the long – haul transport of goods.)","type":"Transport","holder":"National Museum of Qatar","dates":"19th century","location":"Doha"},"9dd54e6a-3ac7-5825-b7ce-cc73c549cb45":{"name":"Jar with lid.","description":"The spherical jar stands on a high foot and has a cylindrical rimless neck with a flat lid with a knob. The body is covered inside and outside with an opaque, pale turquoise-coloured tin glaze. In the lower part the glaze is not thick enough so that the reddish colouring of the body shines through the glaze. The abstract decoration of the jar is mainly composed of a series of vertical stripes alternating with dotted lines, called 'millipedes', around the neck and a scale pattern filled with stylised half-carnations on the spherical section of the jar. The foot-ring is undecorated. The colours used are a deep limonite yellow, two gradations of brown, a light one of iron oxide and a dark one of manganese, and cobalt-blue and copper green. The use of brown, yellow, blue and green as full, unmixed tones is the characteristic colour scheme of Moroccan polychrome faience. Faience is the type of decoration: after a first firing the potters put on the opaque tin glaze on the earthenware vessel; the mineral pigments used for the polychrome decoration were applied over the dried glaze; in a second firing glaze and pigments melted together.  \nThe small and large red dots irregularly spread over the whole outside surface of jar and lid are a striking feature. It is a paste with a base of red lead applied over the glaze by fingertip. After drying, the paste appears like red wax. However, this kind of decoration was not executed by the potters themselves. It was done by the faience traders, at first to cover the traces of the firing tripods on plates and later on all kinds of pottery vessels.  \nFaience was an urban ceramic in Morocco whose most important centre of production was Fez. The objects made by the faience potters were mostly functional and for everyday use. This pot was possibly used for storing fat or yeast. Unlike other examples of this kind of stock pot, however, this one does not have the usual two handles.","short_description":"Jar on a high foot and with a flat lid with knob. The decoration is composed of vertical stripes alternating with dotted lines and stylised half-carnations. The colour scheme is characteristic of Moroccan polychrome faience. This pot might have been used for storing fat or yeast.","type":"Jar, ceramic","holder":"Museum of Mediterranean and Near Eastern Antiquities (Medelhavsmuseet).","dates":"Possibly Hegira 13th century / AD 19th century.","location":"Stockholm","dimensions":"Height approx. 21.3 cm, diameter of rim 10.5 cm.","method_for_datation":"Dating is difficult. There are only a few dated faiences and the same forms and patterns were used throughout various periods. The red dots were probably common from the end of the 12th / 18th century.","method_for_provenance":"On the basis of the pattern, the technique and the colour scheme.","provenance":"Morocco, possibly Fez.","obtention":"Bequest from the Bielke collection.","bibliography":"Bel, A., *Les Industries de la Céramique à Fès*, Alger, Paris, 1918.  \nBoukobza, A., *Poteries et Céramiques Marocaines*, Casablanca, 1974.  \nHakenjos, B., *Marokkanische Keramik*, Stuttgart, 1988.  \nHasson, R., *Pottery from Morocco: 19th–20th century C. E.*, Jerusalem, 1982.  \nHedgecoe, J. and Damluji, S. S., *Zillij: The Art of Moroccan Ceramics*, Reading, 1992.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_MA_EN_001","author":"Friederike Voigt","copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["Faience","geometric ornament"],"materials":["Ceramic","faience."]},"9e9bdaad-fced-506e-b618-ed3c5b61255c":{"name":"Base for a tray (*sinija*)","description":"The wooden base for the food tray – *sinija* (Tr. sini) – that was once placed on top, consists of three elements joined together in the middle by a turned vertical piece. Each element is in the shape of a letter H with two horizontal parts in the middle and two turned muxrabija-like ornaments in every corner. The elements can be folded as needed. The vertical side of each element is carved with floral and geometric motifs.","type":"Table","holder":"Museum of Applied Art","dates":"Hegira late 13th–early 14th century / AD late 19th–early 20th century","location":"Belgrade","dimensions":"Height: 35cm, width: 33.5cm","place_of_production":"Ottoman Empire","method_for_datation":"By stylistic analysis, material, technique, and analogy with other similar examples.","obtention":"Purchased in 1954.","author":"Ana Samardžić","keywords":["carving","floor dining table","Ottoman Balkans"],"materials":["carving","mother of pearl","turning","Walnut"]},"9faeadc1-e075-5681-bdc1-072dabd412c6":{"name":"Miniature 'Wine-Server' ('Portrait of a Young Man')","short_description":"According to the inscription in the lower left corner of the composition, the author of the painting is Reza Abbasi, the most prominent Iranian artist of the AD 17th century. The founder of the new style of painting and the head of the famous Isfahan school, Reza Abbasi has departed from the bright decorative colours of the classic Persian miniature and turned to a more restrained and unusual palette. He chose a thin and sensitive calligraphic line as his main means of expression. Wine-server (Persian: *saqi*) - a young man who served at banquets, pouring wine to guests. A flask in a form of a gourd in his right hand testifies to his role. The man is dressed in a malachite green robe. An orange silk scarf is untied and carelessly thrown over his shoulders. His full face, dreamy staring eyes, curls falling down on cheeks, small gentle hands and graceful posture, the smooth curves of which seem to echo the flexible lines of plants - all correspond to the traditional type of an effeminate youth-*saqi*.","type":"Miniature","holder":"The Khanenko Museum","dates":"AD 1627–1628","location":"Kyiv","dimensions":"Length: 22.3cm, Width: 13.5cm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis and inscription reading by V. Krachkovskaya (publication, 1926, origin and date).","method_for_provenance":"Publication of Vera Krachkovskaya (1927): the Khanenkos' collection.","provenance":"Isfahan, Iran","obtention":"Purchased by Bohdan and Varvara Khanenko in Paris, 1914, presumably from Fredrik Robert Martin's collection. Donated by Varvara Khanenko in 1918, nationalised by Bolshevik regime in 1919.","bibliography":"Bilenko, H. and Rudyck (Rudyk), H., *Oriental Collection*, guidebook, Kyiv: The Khanenko Museum, 2005.  \nCanby, Sheila R. *The Rebeeious Reformer: The Drawings and Paintings of Riza-Yi Abbasi of Isfahan*, London: Azimuth Editions, 1996.  \nKrachkovskaya, V., \"Musulmsnskoye iskusstvo v sobranii Khanenko (Muslim Art from the Khanenkos' Collection)\", in Bartold V.V. (ed), *Zapyski Kollegii Vostokovedov (Notes of the College of Orientalists)* at Asian Museum of USSR Academy of Sciences, Vol II, Leningrad: USSR Academy of Sciences, 1927.  \nNewman, Andrew (ed), *Society and Culture in the Early Modern Middle East: Studies on Iran in the Safavid Period*, Leiden: Brill, 2003.  \nRudyk, H. (ed), *Charisma of Iran. Persian art of 12th–19th centuries from museum collections of Ukraine*, Kyiv: The Khanenko Museum, 2017.","workshop":"Reza Abbasi workshop","author":"Antonina Makarevych","copy_editor":"Janice Medina","keywords":["Iran","miniature","Reza Abbasi","Safavid"],"materials":["gold and ink on paper","Opaque watercolour"]},"9fe1e828-67e2-5249-a654-e86e4a5b6c0c":{"name":"Irrigation bucket","description":"The cylindrical object features a straight mouth and pointed base, with retaining recesses located at the start of the mouth and base. The surface shows traces of hand modelling, leaving indentations on the body in the form of perimeter circumferences and on the base in parallel lines following the conical shape.  \n  \nMade of whitish porous, unglazed clay, it retains traces of *almagra* (reddish pigment) drips on both the exterior and interior. Functionally, such objects can be understood within the context of irrigation and hydraulic systems in al-Andalus. Their development enabled the introduction of new plant species, the expansion of arable land, and the diversification of the diet. These innovations changed working methods, the agricultural cycle, and the landscape.  \n  \nWaterwheels spread throughout the Iberian Peninsula. The waterwheel buckets, which were secured with ropes at the top and halfway down their cylindrical body, underwent technical improvements. These elements reflect a series of small but significant technical advances. The earliest ones, with an annular or pointed bottom, gradually were replaced by others with a perforated bottom that prevented their tilting and breakage in addition to the backward movement of the wheel.","type":"Irrigation bucket","holder":"National Archaeological Museum","initial_owner":"Unknown","dates":"Hegira 4th–5th century / AD 10th–11th century","location":"Madrid","dimensions":"Length: 28.7cm, diameter: 12.2cm","method_for_datation":"Comparative study of typologies; references provided by previous owner.","method_for_provenance":"References provided by previous owner on file.","provenance":"Arcos de la Frontera, Cádiz","obtention":"The bucket was donated to the National Archaeological Museum on 1 January 1987.","bibliography":"Cara Barrionuevo, L. and Malpica Cuello, A. (coord), *II Coloquio Historia y medio Físico. Agricultura y regadío en al-Andalus*. Conference proceedings. Almería, 9–10 June 1995, Almería: Instituto de Estudios Almerienses, 1995.  \n  \nGómez Espín, J.M. and Hervás Avilés, R. M. (coord), *Patrimonio hidráulico y cultura del agua en el Mediterráneo*, Murcia: Fundación Séneca, AECID, 2012.  \n  \nPoveda Sánchez, Á., “Un estudio sobre las norias de sangre de origen andalusí: el caso de la alquiería de Benassal (Castellón)”, *Historia Agraria*, 32 (April 2004): 37-58.","author":"Helena Lahoz Kopiske","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["Ceramic","pigment"]},"9ffa2249-250d-57c6-aa02-12cdbaa08791":{"name":"Covered al-Buzuriyya Market","description":"The historic Buzuriyya Market is located south of the Great Umayyad Mosque in Damascus. This photo shows the very crowded market during Mawlid an-Nabawi (Prophet Muhammad’s Birthday). The Buzuriyya Market dates back to the Ayyubid era (AD 12th century). In the 18th century, the Ottoman government and several khans developed it together. In 1893, the Ottoman governor of Damascus, Hussein Nazim Pasha, replaced the Buzuriyya Market’s wooden roof with a metal roof. During Mawlid the market is decorated with colourful flags, especially green ones, and banners bearing the name of the Prophet Muhammad. Shops are filled with sweets, especially *Mulabbas*, which is associated with Mawlid and distributed in mosques and homes to all.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Rania Kataf","initial_owner":"Rania Kataf","dates":"Hegira 1439 / AD 2017","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Damascus/Syria","provenance":"Damascus/Syria","bibliography":"al-Maliki, M. A., “On Celebrating the Birth of the Prophet”, Imam Ghazali Institute, 2016.  \n  \nRabbat, N., “Ideal-type and Urban History: The Development of the Suq in Damascus” in Gharipour, Mohammad, ed. *The Bazaar in the Islamic City: Design, Culture, and History*. American University in Cairo Press, 2012.  \n  \nZarcone, T., “Mevlid Kandili. La fête de la naissance du Prophète en Turquie”, Nathalie CLAYER et Erdal KAYNAR, “Penser, agir et vivre dans l'Empire ottoman et en Turquie”, Paris, Louvain, Walpole, MA, 2013: 308-320.","author":"Hiba Bizreh","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["photography"]},"a0252068-e151-5eac-8d48-3f1ff00fc162":{"name":"Jug","description":"This exquisite jug, a prime example of Ottoman silverware, stands at just under 10cm tall. Adorned with intricate interlacing floral reliefs against a finely stippled background, it features a bulbous body, cylindrical neck, and a dragon-headed handle. Reflecting Timurid influences of the 15th century AD, and crafted in the early 16th century, it bears the faint tughra (monogram) of Sultan Selim (ruled AD 1512–1520) inside the neck. Renowned centres in the Balkans produced similar high-quality metalwork during this period. The jug, likely used as a drinking vessel, was probably commissioned for an elite or royal member of the Ottoman court, as evidenced by its delicate floral designs and partial gilding.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art","dates":"Hegira first half of 10th century / AD 16th century","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Height: 12.2cm","place_of_production":"Türkiye or the Balkans","provenance":"Türkiye or the Balkans","bibliography":"Allan, James W. & Maddison, Francis, *Metalwork Treasures from the Islamic Courts*, 2002.  \n  \nAl Khemir, Sabiha, *From Cordoba to Samarqand, Masterpieces from the Museum of Islamic Art in Doha*, 2006.  \n  \nQatar Museums, et al, *MIA Collection Online*, 2013.","author":"Teslim Sanni","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["embossed","Gilded sheet silver","with a cast handle"]},"a0806d9b-0bf1-52cf-8538-62ee4530485b":{"name":"Bowl with floral arabesque","short_description":"This shallow bowl has a separate disc riveted to the centre. The ornamentation represents almost the entire repertory of mid-16th century Ottoman decoration. A split-leaf arabesque is engraved on the disc; the cavetto has interlaced quatrefoil medallions and cloud scrolls; on the outer walls the half medallions are engraved with saz and rosette design. Broken stems around the base recall the mannerism of the Sünnet Odası panels, the Rüstem Pasha tiles and ceramic dishes from circa 1545-50.","type":"Silver bowl","holder":"Benaki Museum","dates":"Hegira c.956 / AD c.1550","location":"Athens","dimensions":"Diameter 15.5 cm","provenance":"Probably Istanbul","keywords":["arabesque","Ottoman metalwork","Saz design"],"materials":["Silver-gilt"]},"a0a31a62-7361-5268-8ad7-1a7b0126f09d":{"name":"Alhambra vase.","description":"This piece is one of the so-called 'Alhambra vases'. Formally, all of these are similar: a large egg-shaped body and a narrow, unglazed base from which two large, flat handles emerge, and an octagonal neck reinforced with vertical mouldings.  \nThe decoration of pale gold on a white base is arranged horizontally in broad bands of different widths that are separated from one another by other smooth, narrower bands. The central, and widest, band contains vegetal motifs and an inscription in *kufic* characters in white on a golden background, in which the word 'forgiveness' is repeated several times. Both above and below the central band there are other similar bands decorated with plant arabesques and gold circles, all joined by a thread. The decoration of the main body is completed by another two bands, one on the lower part with small arches and another nearer the neck with a *kufic* inscription, now almost completely disappeared.  \nThe neck, which has eight sides separated by mouldings, is decorated with stylised vegetal motifs. The handles, attached close to the body, are decorated with the hand of Fatima (*hamsa*) on each side.  \nThe Alhambra vases constitute the most important examples of Nasrid ceramic production. These pieces became extremely well known for their delicate decoration and large size, and were exported to other places. The best-preserved examples are to be found in Palermo (Regional Museum of Sicily), St Petersburg (Hermitage), Stockholm (National Museum of Fine Arts) and Madrid (Institute of Valencia de D. Juan and the National Archaeological Museum). Some are decorated exclusively in gold and others in gold and cobalt-blue, always on a tin-glaze background.  \nAlthough its form derives from large storage vessels, its cumbersome size and the absence of any strengthening elements in the handles suggest a purely ornamental function.","short_description":"The so-called ‘Alhambra vases’ were luxury items because of the technical complexity of their manufacture and the beauty of their decoration and lustrework. The intended use is not known, but their renown led them to be exported to Sicily and Mamluk Egypt.","type":"Vase, ceramic","holder":"National Archaeological Museum.","initial_owner":"Unknown, Cristóbal Bermúdez Plata","dates":"Hegira 8th century / AD 14th century.","location":"Madrid","dimensions":"Height 126 cm, max. diameter 63 cm.","method_for_datation":"It is difficult to determine the date of manufacture of these vases. Nonetheless, all writers agree that, on the basis of the inscription, the oldest examples are those decorated solely with gold on white, which were produced from the last third of the 7th / 13th century and, in particular, during the 8th / 14th century.","method_for_provenance":"Although all of these pieces are known generically as the Alhambra vases, they were produced in Malaga and exported. From the 7th / 13th century, Arab writers begin to mention Malaga as a large centre for the production and export of ceramics with gold or metallic highlights.","provenance":"Malaga, Spain.","obtention":"The piece was found by chance at the beginning of the 20th century during work to shore up vaults in the monastery of Santa María de la Defensión in Jerez de la Frontera (Cadiz). It was donated to the National Archaeological Museum on 29 July 1930.","bibliography":"Llubía, L. M., *Cerámica medieval española*, Barcelona: Nueva Colección Labor (2nd edition), 1973: 82–110.  \nMartínez Caviró, B., *Cerámica hispanomusulmana: andalusí y mudéjar*, Madrid: El Viso, 1991: 76–7.  \nSerrano García, C., “Los Jarrones de la Alhambra”, in *Estudios dedicados a D. Jesús Bermúdez Pareja*, Granada: Asociación Cultural de Amigos del Museo Hispanomusulmán, 1988: 127–62.  \nTorres Balbás, L., \"Arte Almohade, Arte Nazarí, Arte Mudéjar\", *Ars Hispaniae*, Vol. IV, Madrid: Plus Ultra, 1949: 217.  \nPatronato de la Alhambra y Generalife (sel.), *Los Jarrones de la Alhambra. Simbología y poder*, Madrid: Junta de Andalucía, Patronato de La Alhambra y Generalife, 2006.","author":"Margarita Sánchez Llorente","copy_editor":"Rosalía Aller","translator":"Laurence Nunny","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["Alhambra","Alhambra vase","ceramic","Malaga","Nasrids"],"materials":["Ceramic","glazure","lustreware"]},"a0b18c27-d268-5654-bb42-5550a1992777":{"name":"*Tamr* (Dates)","description":"*Tamr* (dates), the nutritious fruit of the palm tree, a staple part of the diet in the region.","type":"Dates","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century/AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Varies depending on type. Length: 40mm, width: 20mm, thickness: 15mm","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Amanda Snyder","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["Dates"]},"a0be739f-bf67-5116-9ebd-ce73ca66626f":{"name":"Magharif (Spoon)","short_description":"The date palm tree (Phoenix dactylifera), an enduring symbol of Oman, is identified with the early oasis Civilisation of Magan in the 3rd millennium BC and the taming of the desert. It is one of the few tree species specifically mentioned in the Holy Qur’an, and according to Islamic tradition Maryam (Mary) gave birth to 'Iesa (Jesus) in the shade of a palm.  \n  \nHighly simplified palm motifs such as those adorning this *magharif* (spoon), reminders of the teachings of the Holy Qur'an, appear as principle design elements often combined with geometric or floral elements to create circular or linear patterns as a repetitive motif.","type":"Silver Work","holder":"National Museum Oman","dates":"13th–14th century AH / 19th–20th century AD","location":"Muscat","dimensions":"Length: 27.3cm","provenance":"Northern Oman","obtention":"The Museum of Omani Heritage","copy_editor":"Valerie Pulsifer","keywords":["Date Palm","floral","Holy Qur'an","Magharif","spoon"],"materials":["copper"]},"a0dd981d-e256-57f4-ba5c-7f37591cb8b5":{"name":"Coin (*dirham*)","description":"This Umayyad coin, minted during the reign of al-Walid I (AH 86–96 / AD 705–15), bears an inscription in its centre that reads ‘*â ila illâ Allâh wahda-hu lâ sharîk la-hu*’ (‘There is no God but Allah, the One, there is none like unto him’) and the edge reads ‘*bismi-llâh duriba hadâ-l-dirhâm bi fî sanat ihda wa tis in*’ (‘In God’s name this *dirham* was minted in Sijistan in the year one and ninety \\[91\\]’).  \nThe front face bears two inscriptions, one in the centre and one on the edge. The central inscription reads ‘*Allâh ahad Allâh al-samad lam yalid wa lam yûlad wa lam yakun la-hu kufû’ an ahad*’ (‘God is one, God is eternal. He does not beget, nor is he begotten and there is none like unto him’) and the edge inscription reads ‘*Muhammad rasûl Allâh arsala-hu bi-l-hudâ wa al-haqq li-yuzhira-hu alâ al-dîn kulli-hi wa la-hu kariha al-mushrikûn*’ (‘Muhammad is the messenger of God. He has sent His messenger with the guidance and the true religion, and will make it dominate all religions, in spite of the idol worshipers’).","short_description":"*Dirham* minted during the reign of al-Walid I. The basic coin in the Arab world until the arrival of the Mongols, the *dirham* takes its name from the Greek *drachma*. Coins usually weighed 2.97 grams.","type":"Coin, dirham, silver","holder":"Museum of Civilisations | Museum of Oriental Art “Giuseppe Tucci”","dates":"Hegira 91 / AD 709.","location":"Rome","dimensions":"Diameter 2.6 cm, weight 2.88 g.","method_for_datation":"From the inscription on the edge of the obverse.","method_for_provenance":"From the inscription on the edge of the obverse.","provenance":"Iran, Sijistan.","obtention":"Donation.","bibliography":"Walker, J., *A Catalogue of the Arab-Byzantine and Post Reform Umayyad Coins*, London, 1956, p.159.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_JO_EN_001","author":"Paola Torre","copy_editor":"Pier Paolo Racioppi","translator":"Laurence Nunny","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["al-Walid I","Coin","Coinage","numismatics","Umayyad"],"materials":["Silver / minting."]},"a248d8b4-e492-5f6d-bdb7-ab94d668d922":{"name":"Aleppo Room.","description":"A prosperous broker and a Christian citizen of the town of Aleppo commissioned the painted panels of the walls of the entrance room in his house at the beginning of the 17th century. The paintings within the Aleppo room thus make up the oldest collection from a Syrian dwelling house from the Ottoman period. The Christian patron engaged craftsmen from the best workshops of the time in his desire for the entrance room, into which his guests would first arrive, to be painted in a variety of themes. These themes were based on contemporary Islamic book illustration, consisting of floral and geometric compositions, rendered in the best traditional Ottoman style. Christian themes from the Old and New Testaments, and the depiction of Mary with Child, sit alongside courtly scenes like those portrayed in Persian book illustration. The selection of encircling Psalms, Arabic proverbs and Persian principles further add to the impression of a peaceful community of different religious beliefs living together.  \nThe central panels are found in the back part of the main niche, to the left and right of a wall cupboard. Courtly themes are repeated on the left-side panel, including a ruler sitting on a throne, a hunt and a hunting party with a prince holding a falcon. In contrast, Christian themes are portrayed on the right-side panel, and include the Last Supper, Salome’s dance in front of King Herod and the sacrifice of Isaac. Other panels around the room have individual depictions from either courtly or Christian subject matters, such as the love story of Leila and Majnun of Nizami (1141–1202) from the Haft Paykar, or the Virgin Mary and Child or Saint George. Real and imaginary animals are depicted alongside. It is the variety of the themes of these paintings that make these earliest surviving wall panels such a comprehensive collection, a variety that could perhaps only have arisen in the Syrian trading town Aleppo.  \nThe name Halab Shah ibn Isa, one of the craftsmen, appears on the cornice.  \n  \nClick [here](https://youtu.be/4toX47mtAIE) to **watch a video presentation** of this artefact.","short_description":"The painted wooden panels belong to the audience room in a house of a Christian merchant in Aleppo, Syria, which is the only surviving example of a painted and dated room from the 17th century. Its ornamental and figural repertoire includes Christian themes as well as Arabic verses.","type":"Woodwork, painting, architectural decoration","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art at the Pergamon Museum","initial_owner":"Isa ibn Butrus (Jesus, son of Peter).","dates":"Hegira 1009 or 1012 / AD 1600–01 or 1603.","location":"Berlin","dimensions":"Height 260 cm, total length 35 metres.","method_for_datation":"Two dates are inscribed in different places in the Aleppo Room: 1009 (1600–01) and 1012 (1603).","method_for_provenance":"The Aleppo Room was obtained in 1912 by Friedrich Sarre in Aleppo. The deeds certify that the room was originally in House Wakil in Aleppo, where it was also photographed *in situ* prior to 1912.","provenance":"Aleppo, Syria.","obtention":"Acquired in Aleppo by Friedrich Sarre for the Museum of Islamic Art in 1912.","bibliography":"Duda, D., *Innenarchitektur Syrischer Stadthäuser des 16. bis 18. Jahrhunderts: Die Sammlung Henri Pharaon in Beiru*t, Beiruter Texte und Studien, 12, Wiesbaden, 1971.  \nGangler, A., *Ein Traditionelles Wohnviertel im Nordosten der Altstadt von Aleppo in Nordsyrien*, Tübingen, 1993.  \nGonella, J., *Ein Christlich-Orientalisches Wohnhaus des 17. Jahrhunderts aus Aleppo (Syrien)*,Mainz, 1996.  \nOtt, C., “Die Inschriften des Aleppozimmers im Berliner Pergamonmuseum”, *Le Muséon* 109(1–2), 1996, pp.185–226.  \nSarre, F., “Bemalte Wandverkleidung aus Aleppo”, *Berliner Museen, Berichte aus den Preußischen Kunstsammlungen* 41(4), 1919–20, pp.143–58.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_TR_EN_001","author":"Annette Hagedorn","translator":"Maria Vlotides","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["Ajami","Ajami room","Aleppo room","architectural decoration","ceiling","Damascus room","interior ornament","late Ottoman","painted wooden wall paneling","Syria","Syrian craft","wood","wood paneling"],"materials":["multi-layered painting using a variety of pigments and metal coatings.","Wood"]},"a3a07cf1-1507-5919-b64e-f5d8ebae73c5":{"name":"Bottle","description":"Glass flask ornamented with gilded floral design. The shape derives from the square European flasks intended for the separate compartments of wooden chests.","type":"Glass","holder":"Benaki Museum","dates":"18th century","location":"Athens","dimensions":"Height: 14.3cm, Width: 6.5cm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","method_for_provenance":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Gujurat","obtention":"Donated by Alexandros Pallis","author":"Mina Moraitou","keywords":["Benaki Museum","gilded","glass","India","Mughal"],"materials":["gilded","glass","moulded"]},"a4a2465e-0ea9-5fe8-9719-b7e20f0986e6":{"name":"Dish.","description":"'Brazier' dish with a large, flat circular base and straight, shallow sides finished with a narrow brim. The piece is made of red clay and covered with a tin glaze. It is decorated with gold and cobalt-blue lustre on a creamy white background. The base of the dish, decorated with interlaced, small and stylized vegetal patterns, is divided into quadrants with alternating blue and golden motifs. The brim is decorated with the traditional ‘fish-like border’ pattern. Golden spirals fill and break up the white background throughout the piece.  \nTechnically, ceramics from the AH 8th and 9th / AD 14th and 15th century are no more than a continuation of the Almohad tradition. However, the incorporation of cobalt oxide into the glaze in the Nasrid era gave rise to a wide range of blues, and the application of copper sulphate, silver and red ochre to achieve metallic highlights resulted in some exceptional pieces. Centuries-old gilded Andalusian ceramics had their heyday during the Nasrid reign in Granada.  \nThe manufacture of this type of ceramic required three firings. The final firing, in a reduction kiln, was the most delicate as it required perfect control of the kiln and its temperature. The mix of metal sulphides had to adhere to the piece without the glaze from the previous firing melting again.  \nThe importance of the pottery workshops of the kingdom of Granada, and specifically of Malaga as the main centre of production, caused the expression *obra de maliqa* (made in Maliqa) to be used, with some variations, to refer to gilded ceramics regardless of where they were produced. This term was also used in the Christian world for pottery workshops of Nasrid origin that, from the late AH 8th / AD 14th century, began to move to various places on the east coast of Spain, of which Manises was the most important centre for highlighted ceramics produced in the Malaga style for Christian customers.","short_description":"This enormous dish represents a continuation of the technique and decorative style of Nasrid ceramicists in Mudéjar workshops to meet the needs of their Christian clientele, who wanted new shapes like this shallow dish with its flat base, straight sides and horizontal rim.","type":"Dish, ceramic","holder":"National Archaeological Museum.","dates":"Hegira 802–38 / AD 1400–35.","location":"Madrid","dimensions":"Height 4.5 cm, maximum diameter 41.5 cm, base diameter 34.8 cm.","method_for_datation":"The perfect development of the technique, the type of decoration and the style of the plant arabesques are characteristic of ceramics with golden highlights from the first third of the 9th / 15th century.","method_for_provenance":"The growing decadence of the Nasrid kingdom, along with the development of the maritime power of the kingdom of Aragon and its control over the trade routes of the Mediterranean resulted in Mudéjar centres, contemporaries of the Nasrid producers that used the same traditional procedures and decorative styles, springing up around the east coast. The intense colour of the cobalt and its shape are more characteristic of Valencian pieces, but only an analysis of the clays could determine the precise origin of the piece.","provenance":"Nasrid kingdom of Granada or Christian kingdom of Valencia, Spain.","obtention":"The piece was purchased for the National Archaeological Museum by the State on 6 June 1875.","bibliography":"Camps Cazorla, E., *Catálogo Sumario del Museo Arqueológico Nacional. Cerámica Española (Nuevas Instalaciones)*, Madrid, 1936, pp.28–30.  \nCamps Cazorla, E., *La Cerámica Medieval Española*, Madrid, 1943, p.29.  \nMartínez Caviró, B., *Cerámica Hispanomusulmana Andalusí y Mudéjar*, Madrid, 1991, pp.76–82.  \nPérez Higuera, T., *Objetos e Imágenes de al-Andalus*, Barcelona, 1994, pp.24–5.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_ES_EN_001","author":"Margarita Sánchez Llorente","copy_editor":"Rosalía Aller","translator":"Laurence Nunny","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["ceramic","gilding","Granada","highlight","Manises","Mudéjar","Nasrids","Valencia"],"materials":["Ceramic","Glazing","metallic highlights."]},"a4ee987f-15bb-56a1-b262-8f402df53ad9":{"name":"*Inside a Jewish household*","description":"This copy of a beautiful watercolour by Charles Lallemand shows the inside of a bourgeois Jewish household. This snapshot of daily life reveals a great deal of similarity between Jewish and Muslim traditional dress and interiors.","type":"Watercolour","holder":"Institut Supérieur d’Histoire Contemporaine de la Tunisie","dates":"19th century","location":"La Manouba, Tunis","author":"Saloua Zangar","translator":"Flaminia Baldwin"},"a52ea6dc-cf4f-5836-a534-c806ce30745b":{"name":"Tile Bowl","description":"The bowl’s surface is coated in white clay and slip and decorated in blue and white under a transparent colourless glaze. On the exterior a dark grey-blue ivy branch, reminiscent of a Chinese cloud, is adorned with large stylised flowers and shoots in cobalt blue. The contours are grey-blue. The exterior of the rim is encircled by a band of short angled lines, and the interior by a band of half rosettes. Inside the bowl is a medallion featuring a large stylised flower with six petals in the centre. This is a unique example of the influence of Chinese porcelain.","type":"Utensil","holder":"Istanbul Archaeological Museums (The Tiled Kiosk)","dates":"Hegira second quarter of the 10th century / AD second quarter of the 16th century","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"Diameter: 26cm; height: 11.4cm","place_of_production":"İznik/Bursa","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Glazed terracotta/Tile"]},"a5415d97-5be6-5b62-af8d-da90cb25b7f5":{"name":"Sufi assembly","short_description":"The miniature features a nocturnal landscape with a dervish surrounded by six male characters wearing costumes typical of the age of Shah Abbas I (1588-1629). The exquisite finesse of the drawing is enhanced by the subdued colour range, the gold highlights and the beautiful *nasta'liq* calligraphy of the Persian verses: ‘Don’t drink the wine-cup, for every drop is a king’s blood,/Don’t listen to the music, for every tune is just a tale of sorrow./The night has fallen; the drunken feast has neither lamp nor candle; /Join us, for the gathering of maids most fair is pleasant.’ (Translated into English from the Romanian version by Viorel Bageacu, 1987). The verses, as well as the image, are replete with Sufi symbolism.","type":"Miniature","holder":"The National Museum of Art of Romania","dates":"Hegira early 11th century / AD early 17th century","location":"Bucharest","dimensions":"Height: 12.7cm, Width: 6cm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","method_for_provenance":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Isfahan, Iran","obtention":"Donated by Prof. George Oprescu in 1960.","bibliography":"Beldescu, A., *Manuscrise persane în colecţii din România*, Bucharest: Editura Meridiane, 1987: 49 no. 13.","author":"Mircea Dunca","keywords":["Sufi"],"materials":["Ink","wash and gold on paper"]},"a5c93080-d37b-5926-ad79-2d9bb61932f2":{"name":"*The Grand Bazaar*","description":"Amadeo Preziosi often presented genre scenes from Istanbul in his unique style. Specifically, he incorporated diverse scenes from the Bazaar in a number of his paintings. This venue, particular to Istanbul, has been of great interest to western artists, and in Edmondo De Amicis’s words “is not just a building but a town”. The Grand Bazaar, which housed shops for a wide range of commercial goods and catered to almost all of the needs of customers, offered an incredible visual richness and diversity to the western artist. A reflection of this opulence is also evident in Preziosi’s painting, which includes numerous details from daily life.","type":"Painting","holder":"Pera Museum","dates":"Second half of the 19th century","location":"Istanbul","copy_editor":"Daniel de la Vega"},"a5defb3f-7271-5a06-9b25-33267fdf495e":{"name":"Vessel","description":"The vessel is cream-coloured, with a ring base, convex body, long thin neck and scalloped rim. The figural, stylised geometric and floral decorations in a lustre technique cover the entire surface.","type":"Sürahi (*Sırlı Seramik*)","holder":"Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts","dates":"AH 6th century/AD 12th century","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"Height: 21.8cm","place_of_production":"Iran","materials":["Ceramic"]},"a5f7ac5a-c7e3-5149-8a1c-17cd76006305":{"name":"Two Chinese blue-and-white porcelain sealed ‘Zamzam’ water bottles","short_description":"Prophet was known to drink from the well and use the water for significant purposes. The most famous *hadith* (Prophetic saying) regarding Zamzam states that the water is good for whatever purpose it is intended. Thus, over time, the water has been used for many purposes: in graves, to prevent harm, to cure and in ceremonies to obtain blessings.  \nSimilar examples to these bottles are in the Topkapi Palace in Istanbul and were used during ceremonies involving the mantle of the Prophet. During these ceremonies the mantle was dipped in Zamzam water and what dripped from the cloth was then collected in bottles similar to these. Other comparable types were simply sent from Mecca to Istanbul containing Zamzam water and closed with leather, string and sealed with wax.  \nThe well is believed to have been discovered by Hagar and Ismael, after being abandoned by Abraham in Mecca. It was later rediscovered by ‘Abd al-Muttalib, Prophet Muhammad’s grandfather, who is credited with having dug several wells, most importantly that of Zamzam. From then on the responsibility of giving water to pilgrims was to remain in the lineage of one of his sons.  \nWater from the well of Zamzam was previously collected in buckets by a rope pulley mechanism and then transferred to earthenware vessels. Now the well is entirely managed subterraneously by electric pumps and the King Abdullah Zamzam Water Factory produces approximately 200,000 bottles of water a day.","type":"Bottle; Porcelain; Containter; Flask","holder":"Khalili Family Trust – Hajj and the Arts of Pilgrimage Collection","dates":"19th century","location":"London","dimensions":"21.4x11.5cm","method_for_datation":"Date and provenance based stylistic grounds and by comparison with similar items in the Topkapi Palace Museum.","provenance":"China","bibliography":"Aydin, H., *Sacred Trusts: Pavilion of the Sacred Relics (Topkapi Palace Museum, Istanbul), The Fountain*, 2005.  \n*Zamzam*, in Saudi Geological Survey ([https://sgs.org.sa/English/Topics/Pages/Zamzam.aspx](https://sgs.org.sa/English/Topics/Pages/Zamzam.aspx) last accessed 08-07-2019)","author":"Qaisra Khan","keywords":["blue-and-white","China","Hijaz","Holy place","Ka'ba","Mecca","Medina","Mosque","pilgrim flask","pilgrimage","prayer","Prophet Muhammad","Religion","water"],"materials":["leather","Porcelain","string","wax"]},"a7ce0231-54e8-5757-928a-48c3c0b66585":{"name":"Süleymaniye waterway map.","description":"The Süleymaniye waterway map is handmade on unfinished paper. The waterway was designed to supply water to the entire complex of the mosque, including its *imaret* (soup-kitchen), *maristan* (hospital), *maktab* (school) and public fountains. Fed by the Aypah (Kirazlı) and çınar springs, the highest-capacity branches of the Halkalı water supply system, this waterway supplied the Süleymaniye Complex as well as 80 other points in Istanbul. The map shows the waterway in detail from its source all the way to its end, including the places where it is joined by other waterways, the points where it enters the city through the walls, and especially the water-distribution centres and aqueducts.  \n  \nThe map was prepared without a scale and has a schematic style. Therefore, many structures and neighbourhoods cannot be precisely placed. At the far end of the map there is the drawing of the Süleymaniye Complex.  \n  \nSuch waterway maps tell the story of water from springs being conveyed via pipes, crossing valleys in aqueducts, its pressure adjusted at certain points, being sent off in various directions at distribution centres and reaching public fountains. These maps also provide information about the urban structure; how people lived, and the infrastructure and buildings in a given quarter. For example, the Roman Aqueduct of Valens (AD 375), known as Bozdoğan Aqueduct in Turkish is introduced as 'the big aqueduct in the Horse Market'. The names of the people and the structures receiving water from this aqueduct are also given. The water of the Halkalı network could be distributed to private estates only on the written permission of the sultan. For instance, we find the house of Süleyman the Magnificent's dentist, Moshe Hamon, (AH 899–962 / AD 1490–1554) listed as 'House of Hamudoğlu'.  \n  \nFrom the Süleymaniye Complex waterway map, we learn not only how the water was brought to the city but also about the quarters where the courtiers and dignitaries resided. Therefore, the waterway maps are important for describing the social topography of the city.","short_description":"Istanbul has always suffered from water shortage due to a lack of sufficient springs nearby and its demand was met by conveying water via aqueducts from afar. Waterway maps provide information about the routes from the springs to the city, monuments on the way and the social structure of the city.","type":"Paper, ink","holder":"Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts.","dates":"Hegira second half of the 12th century / AD 18th century.","location":"Sultanahmet, Istanbul.","dimensions":"Length 2572 cm, width 30 cm.","method_for_datation":"Although the map does not have a date it is clear from the names of people and structures therein that this is an 18th-century document. For example, it is known that water was supplied to Taygun Palace in 1161 / 1748, a building shown on this map; therefore, this map must have been prepared after 1161 / 1748.","method_for_provenance":"The map does not bear any date. However, that our copy is an 18th copy is clear from the names of people and structures given therein. For example, it is known that water was supplied to Taygun Palace in 1161 / 1748, a building shown on our map; therefore, this map must have been prepared after 1161 / 1748. Public services such as the water supply were under the supervision of the state and due to this fact the waterway would have been designed and constructed by the official architects of the Topkapı Palace.","provenance":"Istanbul, Turkey.","obtention":"The map was transferred to the museum in 1923 from the Directorate of Supplies for Pious Foundations.","bibliography":"Aksoy, Ş., “İstanbul'un Suyolları (Waterways of Istanbul)”, *P Dergisi (P Magazine)*, 22 (Summer 2001), pp.17–29.  \n  \nçeçen, K., *Süleymaniye Suyolları (Süleymaniye Waterways)*, Istanbul, 1986.  \n  \nçeçen, K., *Halkalı Suları (Halkalı Water Supply System)*, Istanbul, 1991.  \n  \nYerasimos, S., *Soliman le Magnifique*, Paris, 1999, cat. no. 323.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_TR_EN_001","author":"Şule Aksoy","translator":"Barry Wood","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["water"],"materials":["coloured paints.","Ink","Paper"]},"a87439ea-aee1-50f5-a0b5-501d95e7044f":{"name":"*Divan-i Shahi* (Collection of Poems by Shahi)","short_description":"This manuscript is a *divan*, a collection of poems, by Amir Shahi Sabzavari. Amir Shahi Sabzavari, also called Shahi, was a poet and calligrapher at the court of Prince Baysunghur in Herat. Shahi died in 857 AH / 1453 AD.  \nThe manuscript contains 60 folios in total, of which five are illustrated. According to the colophon the scribe of this manuscript was Abd al-Wahid. Some of the folios are signed by their painter Abd al-Gani, who is also responsible for the astonishing lacquer binding.  \nJudging by a portrait on the frontispiece that looks like Sultan Suleiman I. , the manuscript must have been finished during his reign between 926-936 AH /1520-30 AD. The manuscript was part of the collection of Polish orientalist Waclaw Rzewuski until his death in 1831 AD, when the manuscript was bought for the Imperial Court Library in Vienna.","type":"Manuscript","holder":"Austrian National Library (ANL)","dates":"Around 926-936 AH / 1520-30 AD","location":"Vienna","dimensions":"204 x 128mm (120 x 60mm), 60 folios","method_for_datation":"Dorothea Duda recognizes portraits of Sultan Selim I. on the binding of the manuscript. She suggests that the manuscript might have been started during the reign of Sultan Selim I. but finished during the reign of Sultan Suleiman I., who succeeded his father in 1520. This is supported by the presence of an additional portrait of a man on the frontispice that looks like Sultan Suleiman I. The inclusion of both rulers therefore indicates a probable date of production somewhere between 926-936 AH /1520-30 AD.","method_for_provenance":"The provenance was established through documentation in the inventory book of the Imperial Court Library by Joseph Freiherr von Hammer-Purgstall.","provenance":"Istanbul","obtention":"Following the death of  the explorer and orientalist Waclaw Seweryn Rzewuski in 1831 AD, the manuscript was bought directly from his collection for the Imperial Court Library in the same year.","bibliography":"Duda, Dorothea, *Islamische Handschriften I. Persische Handschriften, Die illuminierten Handschriften und Inkunabeln der Österreichischen Nationalbibliothek*, vol. 4, Vienna: Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, 1983: 185-187.  \nDuda, Dorothea, \"Islamische Lackeinbände - ihre künstlerische Entwicklung und ihr Verhältnis zum Buch als Gesamtkunstwerk\", *Journal of Turkish Studies* , 26 : I (2002), 163-203.","scriber":"'Abd al-Wahid","binding_desc":"The richly decorated lacquer binding on this manuscript is an artwork in itself. Executed in the Shirazi style, this binding has courtly scenes painted on its front and back cover. The doublures of the manuscript are decorated with a medallion surrounded by floral ornaments, painted in two kinds of gold on a black background.  \nThe front cover depicts a group of men set in an outdoor scene. The men in the upper half of the painting are wearing Ottoman turbans, while some men on the lower half are wearing head gear that look like a mixture of the hats the *Janissaries* wore and those the *silahdars* wore. As the *Janissaries* were part of the elite infantry of the Ottoman army and *silahdars* were close aides of the Ottoman sultans it can be assumed that the binding was in fact manufactured within the realms of the Ottoman Empire.  \nAdditionally, Duda notes that the man in the middle of the front cover and the man sitting on a throne on the back cover have similarities with formal portraits of Sultan Selim I. She consequently advocates that at least the binding must have been commissioned during the reign of Selim I.","catalogue_holding_link":"http://data.onb.ac.at/rec/AC14410969","author":"Leonie Fernsebner","copy_editor":"Jonathan Turnbull","keywords":["Divan","Shahi"],"materials":["5 miniature paintings.","Blue","green and gold ink on thin","white paper. Calligraphic Nasta'liq script of 11 lines per page. 2 decorative pages"]},"a8c2cd08-42f5-5b60-8ef5-5d255e20c9a4":{"name":"Decanter (one of a set of three)","description":"During the nineteenth century, European centres of glass production, particularly those in France and Bohemia, created Islamic-style works of art to be exported to countries like Egypt, Syria, Iran, and India. The DDFIA collection includes several examples of such European glass. This bottle – one in a set of three – was certainly produced for an Iranian recipient, for it features portraits of the Qajar shah Nasr al-Din (r. 1848–96). Purchased in 1959.","type":"Furniture and decorative objects; vessel; glasswork","holder":"Shangri La, Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Art","dates":"Hegira 13th century / AD 19th century","location":"Honolulu, Hawai'i","provenance":"Europe, made for export to Iran"},"aab30960-8950-5111-bdd0-0a590079ba20":{"name":"Spontaneous feast for a *shaykh* at Tall Tishrin in northeast Syria","description":"Unexpected important guests are also lavishly served, such as the tribal *shaykh* in the photo; his visit is considered an honour for the host family. Although the women, assisted by the elder children, immediately start to prepare, it might take at least two hours until the feast is ready. The family might own the chicken to be slaughtered, or its meat can be bought from a nearby butcher. In the meantime, the host chats with the guests, drinking tea or coffee with them. When the meal is ready, the bigger boys will carry in the food, taking meticulous care to place the big plate in the middle and the small bowls in such a way that everyone will help themselves, and therefore is on an equal level. Only then does the host invite the guests to eat.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Karin Pütt","initial_owner":"Karin Pütt","dates":"Hegira 1409 / AD 1989","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Tall Tishrin/Syria","method_for_provenance":"Direct contact","provenance":"Tall Tishrin/Hasaka Province","bibliography":"Euting, J., \"Tagebuch einer Reise in Inner-Arabien\", (First Edition, Leiden 1896), Hamburg, 1993, 177.  \n  \nLange, K., \"Heroic Faces, Disruptive Deeds: Remembering the Tribal Shaykh on the Syrian Euphates\", Dawn Chatty (ed),  \n*Nomadic Societies in the Middle East and North Africa: Entering the 21st Century*. Leiden, 940–965, 947.  \n  \nNippa, A., (Ed.) \"Kleines abc des Nomadismus\". Museum für Völkerkunde, AK33Hamburg, 2011.  \n  \nPütt, K., \"Ländliche Hausformen in Nordostsyrien – Bauen und Wohnen in einer ländlich geprägten Gesellschaft\", Petersberg 2005, 48.","author":"Karin Pütt","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Slide"]},"ab2b67d7-838e-59c7-9a3d-24e8458ff5d8":{"name":"Tankard","description":"Iznik pottery, originating from the town of Iznik in western Anatolia, emerged during the reign of Ottoman Sultan Mehmed II (AD 1451–1481). Initially influenced by blue and white Chinese Ming porcelains, Iznik ceramics evolved to incorporate vibrant hues. This cylindrical tankard, adorned with intricate carnations and tulips in blue, green and red, likely hails from the mid- to late 16th century, a pinnacle era for Iznik pottery. The distinctive red pigment, introduced circa 1570, possibly originated from iron-rich Armenian clay. Notably, cross-hatched black lines on the tankard suggest it was crafted based on a leather prototype.","type":"Pottery","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art","owner":"Qatar Museums","dates":"c. Hegira 970 / AD 1570","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Height: 18.5cm","place_of_production":"Türkiye, Iznik","provenance":"Türkiye, Iznik","bibliography":"Carswell, J., *Iznik, Pottery for the Ottoman Empire*, 2003.  \n  \n*Art from the World of Islam 8th–18th Century*”, Humlebaek : Louisiana Revy, 1987.","author":"Teslim Sanni","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["green and red under a transparent glaze","Stonepaste painted in blue"]},"abac828d-5728-5fdb-8767-366c5beb8fa5":{"name":"Café du Marabout in the Souk Ettrouk","description":"This copy of a beautiful watercolour from Charles Lallemand's book Tunis et ses Environs shows the Café el-Mourabit in the Turkish souk, also known as the tailors' souk, in the Tunis medina near the Zaytuna Mosque. The café was especially known for its Andalusian architecture. The customers sit on mats sipping coffee, leaning on archways and pillars.","type":"Watercolour","holder":"Institut Supérieur d’Histoire Contemporaine de la Tunisie","dates":"Early 19th century","location":"La Manouba, Tunis","author":"Saloua Zangar","translator":"Flaminia Baldwin"},"ac145afe-b9b0-58dd-85c6-6ba8e3edd580":{"name":"Coffee pot with matching zarfs","description":"A coffee pot with a globular body decorated with an arabesque design. The six zarfs are decoraed with a series of panels with floral motifs.","type":"Pot and zarfs","holder":"Benaki Museum","dates":"AH 1163-1214/Second half of the 18th century","location":"Athens","dimensions":"Pot height:21cm, zarfs height:5cm, rim diameter: 6.5cm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Turkey","obtention":"Acquired in Greece","author":"Mina Moraitou","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["copper","sliver gilt decoration"]},"acffa1ff-e78f-59cd-a3d3-aa606fa1ebc7":{"name":"*Burma* (Camel milking bowl)","description":"The camel is the symbol of Bedu life. Offering both essential transport and milk, without camels, the Bedu would not have been able to survive in the desert. Camel milk is said to test saltier and more acidic than cow’s milk. Camels need milking two to four times per day. Milking bowls were traditionally made from clay.","type":"Bowl","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century / AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Diameter: 183mm, height: 160mm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","method_for_provenance":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Amanda Snyder","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["bowl","camel milk","milking bowl"],"materials":["Ceramic"]},"ad125621-18c6-5924-8844-db8d2b7fae55":{"name":"Coffee set","description":"Set contains tray, coffee pot (*cezve*), coffee jug with lid, sugar bowl and small bowl.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Kational Museum in Kraków","initial_owner":"Muzeum Techniczno-Przemysłowe w Krakowie / Industrial Museum in Kraków","dates":"13th century Hegira / 19th century AD","location":"Kraków","dimensions":"Tray diameter: 26cm","method_for_datation":"Dating and origin based on stylistic grounds and similar pieces from other collections.","method_for_provenance":"Material and technique are characteristic for Turkish metalwork production in this period","provenance":"Turkey","obtention":"Gifted to the Industrial Museum in Kraków by Zdzisław Hordyński in 1920; collection taken over by NMK in 1950.","author":"Monika Paś","keywords":["coffee","Islam"],"materials":["engraved","forged","partially tinned copper"]},"ad8d142b-0f91-580b-88d2-b78b4b99e310":{"name":"Sherbet *gabi* and *pialas* set","description":"A set consisting of the vessel, a large tray and a number of *pialas* (a type of local bowl for drinking). The liquid (usually sherbet) from the vessel was poured into the *pialas* by a ladle and served to guests during feasts. The surface of the whole set is generally richly decorated with images of people, inscriptions in Arabic, and more. This particular set is decorated with human images and inscriptions that read as follows:  \n\"Husayn, the apple of Ahmad's eye,  \nMemory of Heydar!  \nAgain, what is this rebellion that has covered the people of the whole world  \nAgain, what is this song of mourning, what is grief, what is lament?  \nWhat a great resurrection this is again,  \nOn the day of resurrection, your trumpet will rise from the earth to the majestic throne.  \nThat’s why this sad morning has come,  \nThe people of the world turned upside down  \nAs if the Sun has risen from the west, so that the excitement would cover all parts of the world.  \nThere is so much sorrow in the palace of Jerusalem,  \nPeople in Jerusalem are very sad.  \nIt is the mourning of remarkable person, the most honourable of the children of Adam.  \nHusayn fluttered in blood in the soil in Karbala. Husayn is the light of the Land, West and the East, the Sun and the Sky. He grew up in the arms of the Prophet Muhammad.  \nHe (his soul) cries of the thirsty now from Karbala, reaching the highest Star.  \nWhile the eye of the wind cries at him  \nBlood began to flow on the porch of Karbala.  \nPeople didn't see *gulab* \\[rose water\\] but tears.  \nOn that day, the people of Kufa didn't even give him water.  \nThey had deep respect for the Karbala guest.  \nThey all drank and turned to the beast, and to the devil.  \nIn Karbala, Suleyman's water was drained.  \nThe enemy neighbours shamelessly  \nWent towards the tent of the Sultan of Karbala.  \nFate became a *Sahand* \\[obstacle, mountain\\] to zeal.  \nOut of fear of the enemy, a cry rose in the holy place.","type":"Tableware","holder":"Azerbaijan National Carpet Museum","dates":"Hegira 13th / AD 19th century","location":"Baku","dimensions":"Sherbet *gabi*: height: 59cm, diametre: 50cm; first *piala*: height: 6.5cm, diametre: 12.5cm; second *piala*: height: 6.5cm, diametre: 12cm; third *piala*: height: 7.5cm, diametre: 12cm; *majmayi*: height: 2cm, diametre: 61cm","place_of_production":"Azerbaijan","method_for_datation":"By stylistic and comparative analyses with related material","obtention":"Purchased in 1970; 1970; 1992; 1980; 1980","author":"Rustam Afandiyev","keywords":["piala","sherbet gabi","sini","Tableware","vessel"],"materials":["copper","engraved","hammered"]},"ada2243f-108b-5eed-b2bf-2399e60e1491":{"name":"Cauldron.","description":"A cauldron (a huge cooking pot) from the Complex of Khassaki Sultan, also known as a charitable institution or *takiyya* (asylum) for the needy. The building, completed in AH 964 / AD 1557, is located in Jerusalem. As a patroness of charitable institutions, Khassaki Sultan undertook the construction of this complex, and endowed it with a *waqf*. This establishment is considered to be one of the largest social institutions to survive from Ottoman Jerusalem. In its day, it offered meals, daily, to the poor of the city, students, scholars and others who were among those who were entitled to food in accordance with the requirements of the *waqf*. The number of people who benefited from this institution on a daily basis exceeded 1000, thus requiring the availability of large spaces to prepare huge quantities of food in enormous cooking utensils. Despite the changing administrative and political circumstances in Palestine during the past few centuries, this institution still occupies a minor social role today.  \nThe Islamic Museum acquired three cauldrons from the complex of Khassaki Sultan. The cauldron exhibited here was produced using tin-plated copper, constructed by means of coiled copper which forms part of the body of the cauldron. The coil is then fixed together with solid copper nails, as hammering was not used on these large pots as it was with smaller cooking vessels. The cavity of the cauldron has been fixed to the base by a series of nails that surround the junction of the base with the body. The vessel has four large carrying handles. The body is supported by a group of copper stays that sometimes form extensions to the handles and are fastened to the cauldron with nails, or that are simply located between two of the handles. It seems that the cauldron was coiled only in the middle of its cavity, for its hollow has been tin-plated and secured with copper nails in the same manner as was used to fix the base. The cauldron contains an inscription that appears to have been added at a later period, it reads: “The *waqf* of the late mother of the sultan who had built edifices in Jerusalem under the charge of Hajji Khalil Aga … designated formerly 1235 \\[AD 1819\\]”. There is another date next to this that reads, “1161 \\[AD 1748\\]”.","short_description":"This is a large cooking utensil made of copper that was used to prepare meals in the Khassaki Sultan charitable institution established in Jerusalem by the wife of Sultan Sulayman the Magnificent. The great size of this cauldron reflects the amount of food that was prepared on a daily basis.","type":"Tin plated, hammered Copper","holder":"Islamic Museum, al-Aqsa Mosque / al-Haram al-Sharif.","initial_owner":"Khassaki Sultan (also known as Haseki Hürrem Sultan or Roxelana; d. AH 965 / AD 1558), wife of Sultan Sulayman, the Magnificent (r. AH 926–73 / AD 1520–66).","dates":"Hegira 10th century / AD 16th century.","location":"Jerusalem","dimensions":"Height 80 cm, diameter 131 cm.","method_for_datation":"The piece has been dated in accordance with the date of construction of the Complex of Khassaki Sultan, since it was probably made to be used there.","method_for_provenance":"The cauldron does not contain any distinguishing marks that enable us to narrow down the place of its manufacture. However, the manufacture of vessels such as this was, and still is, undertaken in Palestine and Syria so it is possible that this piece was made in one of these two places.","provenance":"Palestine or Syria.","obtention":"The piece was transferred from the Complex of Khassaki Sultan to the Islamic Museum in 1928.","bibliography":"Al-'Arif, 'A., *Al-Mafssal fi Tarikh al-Quds \\[An Articulation of the History of Jerusalem\\],* Jerusalem, 1999.  \nAl-Hanbali, Mujir al-Din (d. 927 / 1520), *Al-Uns al-Jalil fi Tarikh al-Quds wa al-Khalil. \\[The Significant Ambiance in the History of Jerusalem and Hebron\\],* Amman, 1973.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_TR_EN_001","author":"Nazmi Al-Ju'beh","copy_editor":"Majd Musa","translator":"Amal Sachedina (from the Arabic).","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["charitable institution","Copper","hammering","Khassaki Sultan","takiyya","Tin","Tin-plate"],"materials":["Tin-plated and hammered copper."]},"ada30dbf-d7f6-59db-9686-df60e9f94fc9":{"name":"Blossoming almond trees.","description":"One of Portugal's most well-known legends tells of how it was that almond trees came to be part of the landscape of the southern region of the country. An Arab prince, married to a Christian from the north, noticed that his wife lived in a permanent state of melancholy, and so one day he asked her for the reason for this enduring mood. She told him that she missed the snow, frequent in the north of the Peninsula, but which rarely fell in the more southerly regions. The prince then ordered the planting of almond trees, whose blossoming at the end of the winter would create the illusion of fields covered with snow.  \nThis romantic and highly lyrical legend does nevertheless contain some basis of truth and demonstrates deep links with the Portuguese land.  \nAl-Mu'tamid, a poet and lord of the Abbadid dynasty (AH 461–84 / AD 1069–91), one day set a challenge to Ibn Amar, as they were travelling along the Guadalquivir: 'The breeze turns the river / into a coat of mail'. The response came from Itimad, a slave woman of Romaik: 'A better coat of mail cannot be found / since the river freezes it'. Impressed by the slave's beauty and by her poetic inspiration, al-Mu'tamid took her as his wife and made her queen. The family and geographical origins of Itimad were confined to helping construct the legend. Although the story told relates to the region of Seville, al-Mu'tamid was born in Beja and was a lord of Silves, having later governed a large part of the south of the Iberian Peninsula.  \nDeposed from power, al-Mu'tamid ended up living in exile in Morocco, where he died on 30 Dhu'l-Hijja 487 / 10 January 1095. Itimad lies at his side in a mausoleum in Agmat.","short_description":"Towards the end of the winter, the landscape of the Algarve is marked by blossoming almond trees. Legend has it that they were planted by an Arab prince in homage to his beloved, who came from the north, in order to create the illusion of snow, which is rare in the south. The legend is based on the romance between the Abbadid prince Al-Mu‘tamid and the slave girl Itimad. Impressed by her beauty and poetic inspiration, Al-Mu‘tamid married her and made her queen. Itimad’s geographical and family background helped to create the legend.","dates":"From the earliest Muslim presence in the region.","location":"Southern Portugal","method_for_datation":"Through oral tradition.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_PT_EN_001","author":"Isabel Cristina Ferreira Fernandes","translator":"Gilla Evans","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["al-Mu'tamid","almond trees","landscape","Legend","Southern Portugal","traditions"]},"ae5a92a8-98ae-588a-a771-9a2c3a38eb09":{"name":"*Al Rahaa* (Millstone)","description":"*Al Rahaa* (millstone) is used to grind grains, such as wheat and barley to make flour. Grain is fed between the two stones through the central hole. The top stone is turned using the handle and this action crushes the grain.","type":"Millstone","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century / AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Height: 425mm, Ddiameter: 345mm, Tthickness: 140mm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","method_for_provenance":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Amanda Snyder","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["barley","flour","grains","grind","millstone","wheat"],"materials":["Stone","Wood"]},"ae99c07a-63eb-5689-9082-49c9d484164e":{"name":"*Suq al-Hamidiyya, Damascus*","alternate_name":"Covered market constructed in the shape of an arcade turning it to the worldwide longest arcade of the fin de siecle","description":"The Suq al-Hamidiyya, built in 1886 and 1894, is by far the biggest and most famous suq in Damascus. This bazaar street also links the two most important historic buildings, the Umayyad Mosque and the Citadel. It was built along its western section by incorporating earlier structures, whereas the eastern part of the street was a completely new construction cutting through the existing buildings. The commercial thoroughfare is 450 metres long and 8.70 to 9.90 metres wide, its enormous size and the high standard of its execution accentuate new design principles. So in various respects, this suq is a very interesting example of structural change in a traditional commercial centre.","type":"Photograph; postcard","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art at the Pergamon Museum, State Museums","dates":"1910","location":"Berlin","author":"Stefan Weber"},"aed162cf-cef3-52e5-aa78-567138f64d2a":{"name":"Bowl with stand","description":"This bowl with a bulging rim sits on a stand. The decoration is made of two layers of concentric patterns around a central circle, filled with winged motifs. These green and brown patterns are painted on a yellow background. Although this kind of bowl is usually used to serve couscous, in the town Nabeul, and particularly for the occasion of Islamic New Year, each child is presented with a *methred* bowl, filled with golden couscous, dried fruit, dates, a hard-boiled egg and sweets. This all surrounds a statuette made of sugar, moulded and coloured to resemble an animal (such as a rooster or a gazelle) or a figure, like a doll or cavalier.","type":"Ceramics","holder":"Musée de la Céramique Sidi Kacem Jelizi","dates":"19th century","location":"Tunis","provenance":"Unknown","author":"Saloua Zangar","translator":"Flaminia Baldwin"},"aee0d03f-b711-5643-8552-3ef51656eff4":{"name":"*Jarrita* vase with two handles","description":"This drinking vase has a pear-shaped body and two rounded handles that join a short neck that widens toward the top; it rests on a low base. The decoration, painted in dark blue and a beautiful shade of bronze-gold on the ivory opaque glaze, is placed symmetrically on both sides of the handles. A frieze of pseudo-epigraphy whose drawing seems to recall the word *al-'afiya* (good health)... is drawn in blue on the neck over a glossy background of a wormlike pattern. On the body, eight-lobed medallions in bronze-gold have a blue pseudo-epigraphic pattern in the centre. On each side of the handles is a scalloped almond composition. Directly below each handle is another pseudo-epigraphic motif against a glossy background. A series of horizontal lines rings the lower part of the body. The lustre decoration with metallic reflections is a process peculiar to the arts of Islam. The technique is seen as early as the eighth century on fragments of Egyptian glasses; it was later applied to ceramics, beginning in the ninth century in Mesopotamia under the reign of the Abbasids. It is a decoration painted on a glazed piece that has undergone a first firing. The lustre consists of a mixture of copper and silver oxides to which are added sulphur and red ochre, and a binder to permit a brushed application. A second firing in an oxygen-poor atmosphere results in the incorporation of the oxide particles, now reduced to a metallic state in the softened glaze. Quite characteristic effects are produced when the pieces are observed in light. The secrets of this complex and sometimes unpredictable technique were jealously guarded in pottery workshops. Nevertheless, the process spread to both the East and the Muslim West, and in Spain its development was encouraged by the Nasrid rulers, especially in Malaga. Since the Reconquest, the craze for Hispano-Moorish ceramics (*loza dorada*), continues, since production is exported to Muslim countries and Christian Europe. Cobalt blue and brown lustre, combined in bold compositions, as here, give a characteristic identity to a process that is still used, for example in Manises (in Valencia).","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","dates":"Hegira last quarter of 8th century or beginning 9th century / AD end of 14th or beginning of 15th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 16.2cm, Diameter: 13.4cm, Length: 18cm, Base diameter: 9.8cm, Opening diameter: 9.5cm","provenance":"Malaga (Spain)","obtention":"Purchased at 'Art Musulman' gallery in 1987.","bibliography":"Delpont, E., et al., *Album du musée*, Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, 2012: 386.  \n  \nMoulierac, J., et al., *Céramiques du monde musulman: collections de l'Institut du monde arabe et de J.P. et F. Croisier* , Paris: Institut du monde arabe, 1999: 146.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["Ceramic with lustre paint decoration"]},"b01b60d5-e457-5cea-b280-e145d44183d1":{"name":"*Haal* (Cardamom)","description":"*Haal* (Cardamom) used to flavour the coffee.  \nCoffee is always served at the beginning of a visit and is repeatedly offered until guests politely signal that they have had enough by rocking their cup from side to side. In order to keep coffee hot and fresh for unexpected guests it goes through many stages. After roasting and grinding the coffee beans the grains are added to boiling water inside a large *dallah* (coffee pot) called a *khamra*. Next, the liquid is poured into a medium-sized coffee pot called a *taljeemah*. At this stage cardamom seeds, saffron and rose water may be added for flavour. From this jug, the coffee is poured into a serving *dallah* referred to as a mezallah, where the coffee is refined and filtered. The server must hold the mezallah with their left hand and distribute the *fanayeel* (coffee cups) using the right hand. The coffee should fill less than half of the cup.**","type":"Cardamom","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century / AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Varies and depends on the piece. Length: 15mm, width: 5mm","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Amanda Snyder","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["cardamom","coffee"]},"b01b920c-bd76-5e6a-b3c9-4e331c550bdd":{"name":"Karagöz and Hacivat Shadow Play","description":"Shadow play consists of solid figures being shown and moved behind a semi-transparent screen. The characters of Hacivat and Karagöz plays reflect the multi-ethnic makeup of the Ottoman Empire. They are represented with a high level of detail through their figures, attitudes, dances, etc. Shadow play received its basic character in the 17th century and developed further in the following centuries, eventually becoming one of the most popular traditional forms of entertainment among Turks. It was performed by a single artist that is called a *hayali* (imaginary person) or *hayalbaz*. One of the main characteristics of shadow play is that the *hayali* changes his voice and manner of speaking depending on the character he was animating.","type":"Puppet","holder":"Bursa Karagöz Museum","location":"Bursa","copy_editor":"Daniel de la Vega"},"b1c9d73d-7178-5324-9b0c-d946356b48ab":{"name":"Plate","description":"Red clay, cream slip, decorated in purple-brown and mustard tones under a transparent colourless glaze.  It is one of the few surviving examples of a plate used on a daily basis. In a naive manner the giraffe is depicted tied to two trees. The rim is decorated with an intermittent lattice pattern. The model for the giraffe was sent as a gift to Sultan Mahmut II in 1823 by the governor of Egypt, Kavalalı Mehmet Ali Pasha. It was kept on a ship anchored in Çanakkale harbour that was being resupplied on its way to Istanbul. Upon seeing the giraffe in the harbour, ceramic masters were inspired to produce a new motif in their workshops by reproducing the giraffe on plates.","type":"Utensil","holder":"Istanbul Archaeological Museums (The Tiled Kiosk)","dates":"Hegira 1st half of 13th century / AD early 19th century","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"Diameter: 31cm, height: 5.5cm","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Glazed terracotta"]},"b1fe1635-a0ea-5d86-871f-4148f5ba34cc":{"name":"Plate","short_description":"The genuine enthusiasm that Chinese blue-and-white porcelain aroused in Iran since AD 14th century led to various attempts of Persian potters to unravel the main Chinese secret and to devise ways to simulate the unparalleled effects of porcelain.  \nAlong with plates and bottles that more or less closely imitated Chinese porcelain in the motifs and style, an authentic Iranian style of cobalt-blue décor developed in the 17th–18th century. This plate depicting tigers and birds in dense thickets of forest or garden, freely arranged in a decentralized composition, was possibly made in Kerman of the early 18th century.","type":"Ceramics","holder":"The Khanenko Museum","dates":"AD early 18th century","location":"Kyiv","dimensions":"Diameter: 21.7cm, Height: 4.7cm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis by I. Rapoport (examination, 1963, date, origin).","method_for_provenance":"According to the entry in the old Museum Inventory Register (1925-1946).","provenance":"Iran, probably Kerman","obtention":"Purchased by Bohdan and Varvara Khanenkos. Donated by Varvara Khanenko in 1918, nationalized by Bolshevik regime in 1919.","bibliography":"Bilenko, H. and Rudyck (Rudyk), H., *Oriental Collection*, guidebook, Kyiv: The Khanenko Museum, 2005.  \nBilenko, Halyna and Vyshnevetska, Mariya, et al., *State Collections of Ukraine*, album, The Bohdan and Varvara Khanenko National Museum of Arts, 2009.  \nCrowe, Y., *Persia and China: Safavid Blue and White Ceramics in the Victoria and Albert Museum 1501-1738*, London: La Borie, 2002.  \nLane, A., *Later Islamic pottery: Persia, Syria, Egypt, Turkey*, London: Faber and Faber, 1957.  \nRudyk, H. (ed), *Charisma of Iran. Persian art of 12th–19th centuries from museum collections of Ukraine*, Kyiv: The Khanenko Museum, 2017.","author":"Antonina Makarevych","copy_editor":"Janice Medina","keywords":["ceramics","cobalt","Iran","Safavid","stonepaste"],"materials":["Stonepaste","underglaze painted with cobalt"]},"b2a64729-0616-53e6-bc8d-4d7583ceac8c":{"name":"Plate","description":"Sultan Abdülhamid II founded in 1891 the *Yıldız Çini Fabrika-i Hümâyûnu* (Yıldız Royal Tile Factory) in the garden of Yıldız Palace in order to revive Turkish tile art and give it a new direction and momentum. Vases, hanging wall plates and many sorts of daily-use wares were produced in the factory, including writing and dinner table utensils, card plates, lidded bowls, pans, *aşure* (a kind of dessert) trays, sugar bowls, tea and coffee cups. This plate features a dark green background on which there is a *tuğra* (monogram) made of gilding and a border around the edge.","type":"Ceramic plate","holder":"Yıldız Palace Museum","location":"Istanbul","provenance":"Istanbul","copy_editor":"Daniel de la Vega"},"b35798dc-77ea-5958-913f-2fb174b5a6c6":{"name":"Raqqa lustre bowl.","description":"The thin wall of the bowl is decorated symmetrically on the inside with a quatrefoil motif that covers its entire surface. A stylised trefoil leaf is painted within each of the four petals. Corkscrew tendrils, each with a bifid leaf, occupy the spaces between the outer contours of the petals. The outer edge is emphasised with a lustre stripe.  \nA collection of about 100 pieces of pottery, to which this piece belongs, was found at Tell Minis in Syria. At first it was thought that such pieces were imported into Syria from Egypt, but the discovery at Tell Minis confirmed that they were made in Syria. Meanwhile, the findings gained from excavating in the urban area of Raqqa have confirmed that a large number of these ceramics were produced in Raqqa. Some of these feature inscriptions. The decoration is very reminiscent of Fatimid ceramics, modified by the introduction of lustre painting and the use of quartz fritware. It can be assumed that, following the end of the Fatimid dynasty (AH 564 / AD 1169), Egyptian manufacturers of ceramics moved to Syria, where they introduced the new techniques. The existence of identical ceramic pieces strongly suggests that pattern drawings were used in the workshops.","short_description":"Small thin-walled bowls with figurative or vegetal patterns in a reddish colour are typical of Syrian lustre-ware pottery of the Ayyubid period. The design of this bowl with four petals in ovals and arabesque leaves in the spandrels is very clear and perfectly fits the round shape of the bowl.","type":"Bowl, ceramic","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art at the Pergamon Museum","initial_owner":"Henri Pharaon Collection, Beirut.","dates":"Hegira late 6th–early 7th century / AD late 12th–early 13th century.","location":"Berlin","dimensions":"Height 6.5 cm, diameter 21 cm.","method_for_datation":"The excavations in Raqqa confirm that lustre ceramics glazed with reddish-brown lustre were made in Syria during the Ayyubid period. The technique was brought over by potters from Egypt following the downfall of the Fatimids.","method_for_provenance":"Findings made in Tell Minis and in Raqqa have led to the conclusion that this type of ceramic originated in Syria.","provenance":"Raqqa, Syria.","obtention":"From a private gallery in London, 1992.","bibliography":"Allan, J. W., *Islamic Ceramics*,Oxford, 1991, pp.40–1.  \nCaiger-Smith, A. *Lustre Pottery*, London, 1985, pp.51–5.  \nPorter, V., *Medieval Syrian Pottery*, Oxford, 1981, pp.3–8.  \nPorter, V. and Watson, O., “Tell Minis Wares”, in *Syria and Iran: Three Studies in Medieval Ceramics* (eds. J. W. Allan and C. Roberts), Oxford Studies in Islamic Art, IV, Oxford, 1987, pp.175–248.  \nWatson, O., *Ceramics from Islamic Lands*, London, 2004, pp.14–5, 289–94.","author":"Annette Hagedorn.","translator":"Maria Vlotides.","translation_copy_editor":"DRAFT VERSION.","keywords":["Fatimid","lustre-ware","quartz fritware","Raqqa","Syria","Tell Minis"],"materials":["Quartz fritware ceramic. Lustre decoration painted over the greenish-white glaze."]},"b381524f-09dd-5a75-8920-d87af44e1cd5":{"name":"Public fountains.","description":"Al-Djazaïr and its *fahs* (rural surroundings) possessed a large number of fountains. Their number, for the walled town, varied from seven according to Haëdo in the AH 10th / AD 16th century, to 125 according to the knight of Arvieux in 1674–5, and to 'seventy-three as recorded in 1840' (S. Missoum, *Alger à l'époque ottomane* – see Bibliography). A large number of these fountains were built during the AH 12th / AD 18th century by *deys*.  \nBenefactors were responsible for the creation of these fountains. Attached to each one, on a plaque of marble or shale, in Arabic or Ottoman Turkish, is an inscription extolling the merits of the benefactor. Under the auspices of a *k**hudjat al-'uyun* – a sort of 'fountains secretary' – an administrative body was responsible for managing the *habus* (estate donations) that were collected on behalf of these fountains.  \nOne of these fountains, known as the fountain 'de la Calle aux Vins', has ended up on an exterior wall of the present National Museum of Antiquities and Islamic Art. Built by the *dey* Husayn in AH 1235 / AD 1820 outside Bab al-Djazira (Gate of the Island', also referred to as Gate of the Holy War) and below the battery of al-Andalus, it was moved for the first time in 1867 to 'underneath the stairway of the present bastion of the Gate of France' (undated report on the proposition of making an endowment to the state; but the agreement on the endowment is dated 13 May 1905). Then it was moved a second time to the Park of Liberty (formerly Gallant Park), to be placed against the wall of the Department of Antiquities, where, in correspondence dated 27 May 1968, it is the subject of an account of the maintenance work carried out by the chief architect of historic monuments.","short_description":"The town of Al-Djazaïr had a number of public fountains, most of which were built during the AH 12th / AD 18th century by the Ottoman *deys*. These fountains bore, on a marble or slate plaque, the names of the benefactors who commissioned them and were managed by an body under the aegis of the 'fountains secretary'. In AH 1235 / AD 1820, *dey* Husayn had a fountain built outside Bab al-Djazira, the gateway that bears an inscription in his honour.","dates":"Hegira 1235 / AD 1820.","location":"Algiers","method_for_datation":"Through an inscription in Arabic and Osmanli: 'Everything lives through water. The governor of Algiers along with his sultan, who is Husayn Pasha, incessantly strives, with virtuous intentions, to accomplish good deeds. His bounty attempts above all to bring running water in sufficient quantities to all places. It is he who commissioned the building of this fountain. He gives life to him that is thirsty and deprived, in this place that lacks water. Drink fresh water thanks to the generosity of Husayn and his love. Year 1235 [1820].'","bibliography":"Belhamissi M., *Alger par les eaux XVIe–XIXe*, Algiers, 2004.  \nMissoum, S., *Alger à l'époque ottomane*, Aix-en-Provence; Algiers, 2003.  \nNational Archaeological and Historic Monuments Agency, Archives, notably the report on endowments to the state, undated.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_TR_EN_001","author":"Ali Lafer","copy_editor":"Margot Cortez","translator":"Maria Vlotides","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["fountain","water"]},"b4d34b89-c6b2-5e46-8e41-4f74dec4c93d":{"name":"Spice box.","description":"A circular spice box made from brass that is incised and inlayed with silver. The container is original but the lid is a replacement, a fact verified by the decoration on the lid being distinctly different to that on the container. The lid is decorated with concentric bands surrounding a roundel in the centre. The roundel contains an arabesque quatrefoil with secondary leaf motifs surrounded by a band of leafy scrolling. The pattern is interrupted by three roundels with motifs of eight-pointed stars, created from trefoils and leaf motifs, and issuing from a central lozenge motif. A broader band occupies the main part of the lid; it contains 12 complex interconnected knot motifs that are separated from each other by vertically disposed, twisted-rope designs. The composition issues from pseudo-*kufic* elements above and below. The outermost band repeats the decorative scheme of the border around the central roundel, but on this occasion it is interrupted by six roundels rather than three. The container displays a guilloche around the upper body. Below, separated from the guilloche by a ridge, the main part of the body has four large roundels with scrolling borders, filled with alternating arabesque scrolls and a coat of arms. The areas in between the roundels are filled alternately with a three-knot design, issuing from pseudo-*kufic* elements top and bottom, or a geometric interlace pattern, rising from a pseudo-*kufic* base and terminating in trilobal motifs. The lower body is enhanced by a band of leafy scrolling, interrupted by four roundels with quatrefoils.","short_description":"During the AH late 8th–9th / AD late 14th–15th centuries Mamluk metalworkers developed a range of wares specifically for the European market and decorated to European taste, a fact borne out by the appearance of European coats of arms and blazons on many examples. This box conveyed expensive spices to the West.","type":"Metalwork, brass, silver","holder":"National Museums of Scotland (NMS).","dates":"Hegira 9th century/ AD 15th century.","location":"Edinburgh, Scotland","dimensions":"Height (with cover) 7.62 cm, diameter 13.97 cm.","method_for_datation":"Containers such as this one were made specifically for the European market during the late 8th– 9th/ late 14th–15th centuries, a fact borne out by the appearance of European coats of arms and blazons on other examples of the period.","method_for_provenance":"Pieces like this are known to have been made in the Mamluk realm, probably Damascus, during the Mamluk period.","provenance":"Egypt.","obtention":"Purchased from W. Wareham, London, in 1870.","bibliography":"Atil, E., *Art of the Arab World*, Washington D.C., 1975, p.148, cat. no. 80.  \nCuratola, G., (ed.) *Eredita dell’ Islam: Arte Islamica in Italia*, Venice, 1993, p.486, cat. no. 303; p.487, cat. no. 304.  \nWard, R., *Islamic Metalwork*, London, 1993, p.115, fig. 92.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_EG_EN_001","author":"Ulrike Al-Khamis","copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["arabesque","pseudo inscriptions","Veneto-Saracenic"],"materials":["Incised brass with silver inlay."]},"b4e72974-c00c-5720-9454-206dc84e1405":{"name":"Pashmina Niche Rug","description":"The new carpet style in the time of Mughal ruler Shah Jahan (1628-1647) was the flower style, featuring the naturalistic depiction of flowering plants. The refined elegance of the decorations, the use of expensive silk and pashmina and the high knot count are characteristic of the luxury carpets of this period. The silk warp was frequently dyed in bands. The flower style lived on in the works of the post-Shah Jahan workshops.  \n  \nIn the field, the ivory-coloured *mihrab* (prayer niche) with lobed arch is adorned on both sides by a crimson half cypress growing from a finely delineated column base. From the apex of the *mihrab* hangs a trapezoidal lamp; in the centre below, a three-branched floral bush grows from the bottom of the *mihrab*. Faint glimmers of the colourful bands (ivory, yellow, crimson, blue and green) can be seen in the plain ivory surface. The crimson spandrel is adorned on both sides with symmetrical floral patterns – vines, leaves and poppy blossoms. As is typical of flower style rugs, the major border of the rug contains lotus flowers against a dark blue ground and is enclosed in ivory field minor borders.","type":"Carpet","holder":"Museum of Applied Arts","dates":"Third quarter of 17th century","location":"Budapest","dimensions":"Height: 151cm, Width: 104.5cm, Knot density: 5,893/dm2","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","method_for_provenance":"Manufacturing techniques and stylistic analysis","provenance":"Kashmir or Lahore, North India or Pakistan","obtention":"Purchased from Adolf Roger, an art dealer of Budapest, 1895","bibliography":"Batári, Ferenc, *Csomózott indiai, kelet turkesztáni, kínai, tibeti és európai szőnyegek: Kiállítás a Miskolci Galériában a Budapesti Iparművészeti Múzeum gyűjteményéből / Knotted Rugs from India, Eastern-Turkestan, China, Tibet and Europe: Exhibition in the Miskolc Gallery from the Collection of the Budapest Museum of Applied Arts*, Miskolc: Miskolci Galéria, 1980: no. 1 and figure.  \nCsányi, Károly (ed), *Magyar szőnyegkedvelők egyesületének régi keleti szőnyegkiállítása az Orsz. Magyar Iparművészeti Múzeumban \\[Early Oriental Carpet Exhibition of the Hungarian Carpet Collectors' Association in the National Hungarian Museum of Applied Arts\\]*, Budapest: Iparművészeti Múzeum, 1924: 33, no. 151.  \nGombos, Károly, *Régi keleti imaszőnyegek*, Szolnok: Damjanich János Múzeum, 1979: no. 96.  \nLayer, Károly (ed), *Régi perzsa szőnyegek kiállítása: leíró-lajstrom \\[Early Persian Carpets Exhibition. Descriptive List\\]*, Budapest: Iparművészeti Múzeum, 1936: no. 42 and figure.","workshop":"Imperial workshop","author":"Emese Pásztor","copy_editor":"Valerie Pulsifer","translator":"Lara Strong","keywords":["cotton","mihrab","Mughal rug","Pashmina"],"materials":["3 shoots","alternates moderately depressed","asymmetrical (Persian or Senneh) knot","Open to the left","Pile: Pashmina wool","red","Warp: Ivory","Weft: Beige cotton","yellow and green silk in stripes"]},"b5a220ba-715c-5b3c-87dd-4d32b38cbcb1":{"name":"*Kwar* (Brazier)","description":"*Kwar*; a low, circular wooden brazier that stands on four legs. The *kwar* is filled with sand to protect it from the hot charcoal that is used to roast coffee beans, prepare bread, heat milk, or to add the smell of incense or *oud* to the room.","type":"Brazier","holder":"Bait Shaikh Saeed bin Hamad Al Qasimi Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","initial_owner":"Arabian Peninsula","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century/AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Height: 280mm, diameter: 780mm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","method_for_provenance":"Stylistic analysis","obtention":"Purchased","catalogue_holding_link":"brazier; kwar","author":"Hazelle Page","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Iron","Wood"]},"b5eeb317-b1a2-5710-8891-111d70b464e6":{"name":"Ewer for Zamzam water","description":"Pear-shaped ewer with strap handle and serpentine spout. Brass lid and stopper for the spout are both screw-threaded, which allows them to be securely sealed in place. The body and neck engraved with floral pattern, with applied palmette bosses to each side with trefoil suspension loops (one is missing).","type":"Metalwork","holder":"National Museum in Kraków","initial_owner":"Muzeum Techniczno-Przemysłowe w Krakowie / Industrial Museum in Kraków","dates":"12th century Hegira / 18th century AD","location":"Kraków","dimensions":"Height:  32cm","method_for_datation":"Dating and origin based on stylistic grounds and similar pieces from other collections","method_for_provenance":"Material and technique are characteristic for Turkish metalwork production in this period","provenance":"Turkey","obtention":"Purchased by the Industrial Museum in Kraków from Markus Schwarz in 1900; collection taken over by NMK in 1950","author":"Monika Paś","keywords":["Islam","tombak","Zamzam"],"materials":["decoration cast and engraved","Gilded copper (tombak)","piece cast"]},"b6518af0-5029-5a94-8521-524613b875bb":{"name":"Citadel of Aleppo.","description":"The Citadel of Aleppo is a masterpiece of medieval Islamic fortress architecture. Its massive ovoid shape and extensive defences enclose an area of approximately seven hectares. The natural hill upon which the Citadel was built has long been used as a stronghold (including evidence of a Hittite temple from the first millennium BC). During the Hamdanid reign of Aleppo under Sayf al-Dawla in the AH 4th / AD 10th century, early constructions of a citadel took place. The Citadel's strategic importance was reactivated by the time the Crusades began.  \nWhen Nur al-Din ruled Aleppo in the early AH 6th / AD 12th century, he rebuilt its fragmented interior and fortified the remnants of the earlier fortress. His expansion included the construction of Maqam Ibrahim, an important shrine with legendary associations to the Prophet Abraham. However, the majority of the citadel's surviving features date to the period of Saladin's son, al-Malik al-Zahir Ghazi, who ruled between AH 582–613 / AD 1186–1216. He ordered the deeper, 22-m moat, the magnificent bridge, the glacis of smooth impregnable stone, the enlarged towers (or *burgs*), and the outstanding gateway designed to ambush any enemy who managed to approach. Unlike Damascus, Aleppo was more exposed to Frankish attacks from nearby Edessa and the western coastlands. There was also the threat of the powerful and stealthy \"Assassins\", followers of the esoteric Isma'ili sect of Shi'i Islam.  \nAl-Zahir rebuilt many of the civil and religious constructs initiated by Nur al-Din, including the Citadel's beautifully proportioned Great Mosque and the administrative Dar al-'Adl (House of Justice) facing the Citadel. Some scholars speculate the existence of a tunnel between the two.  \nMost importantly, al-Zahir Ghazi constructed the royal palace complex and baths within the Citadel walls. This represents a new development in the history of Islamic architecture. Palatial residences were not usually constructed behind military fortresses but due to high- level security during this period, a new model emerged. The palace was renovated by al-Aziz Muhammad in AH 627 / AD 1230, but most of it was destroyed by the Mongols.  \nAltogether, Al-Malik al-Zahir's project radically changed both the scale and scope of the Citadel and its surrounding area, making it the impressive sight it is today. Decorative elements appear particularly around the gates. Two well-known examples are the Lion Gate and the Serpent Gate, each decorated in high-relief figurative stone carving. Lions had long been used as signs of power and royalty; here symbolising throne guardians. The serpents and dragons on the other hand curl backwards to bite themselves; they mark the limits of a protected and controlled area.  \nParts of the Citadel, especially the entrance block and bridge, underwent renovation during the Mamluk period, some time in the AH 7th / AD 14th century. Stylistically this is evidenced by the more flamboyant decorative features.","short_description":"This masterpiece of medieval fortification is the hallmark of Aleppo since the AH 6th / AD 12th century. Its entrance block alone is an impressive work. Linking the citadel to the city by a stately ramp, it also includes two massively constructed towers which conceal a U-shaped corridor that would force an attacking army to change direction six times, while exposing them to projectiles and burning liquid from gaps in the vaults above. Most of the citadel's construction, both military as well as the palatial and religious buildings within, date to the Ayyubid al-Malik al-Zahir Ghazi (d. 613 / 1216).","dates":"Hegira 6th–7th century / AD 12th–13th century.","location":"Aleppo","method_for_datation":"Various inscriptions and historical records have preserved an accurate account of the various stages of the Citadel's construction and evolution.","bibliography":"Allen, T., “Ayyubid Architecture”, *Occidental* (electronic publication 7th edition), 2003.  \nEttinghausen, R., Grabar, O., and Jenkins-Madina, M., *Islamic Art and Architecture 650–1250*, New Haven, 2001, p.230.  \nHerzfeld, E., “Matériaux pour un Corpus Inscriptionum Arabicarum: Syrie du Nord”, Part 2: *Inscriptions et monuments d'Alep*, 3 Vols, Cairo, 1954–6, p.12.  \nBurns, R., *Monuments of Syria: An Historical Guide,* London-New York, 1999, p.33; fig. 3.  \nTabbaa, Y., Constructions of Piety and Power in Medieval Aleppo, Pennsylvania, 1997, pp.17–26, pp.53–6, pp.59–69, pp.71–96; figs 9–37.  \nQujjeh, M., \"Al-'amara fi 'ahd Sayf al-Daula al-Hamadani \\[Architecture in the Era of Sayf al-Din al-Hamadani\\]\", *al-Ma'rifa* 2006, no. 508; pp.280–4.  \nIbn Shaddad, Izz al-Din (d. 1285), *Al-A'laq al-Khateera fi dhikr Umara al-Sham w al-Jazira \\[The Crucial Core in the Mention of the Rulers of Greater Syria and the Jazira\\]*, Damascus, 1953.","patrons":"Nur al-Din Mahmud bin Zangi (d. AH 569 / AD 1174); al-Malik al-Zahir Ghazi (d. AH 613 / AD 1216); al-Malik al-‘Aziz Muhammad (d. AH 634 / AD 1236).","architects":"Many architects, builders and craftsmen took part in the construction, the involvement of master architect Thabit b. Shaqwayq during the reign of Nur al-Din is recorded in the historical literature. He was the supervising engineer who died when the upper entry block collapsed in AH 600 / AD 1203–4.","author":"Zena Takieddine","copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["al-Malik al-Zahir Ghazi bin Salah al-Din","Aleppo","Citadel","defences","dragons","figurative stone carving","Fortress","lions","military architecture","moat","Nur al-Din Mahmud bin al-Zangi","palace","Sayf al-Dawla al-Hamadani","serpents","zoomorphic stone carving"]},"b666eda8-3aa4-5e7c-a57e-1511705d233d":{"name":"Brass *Badiye* Bowl","description":"This is a broad-bodied, wide-mouthed bowl shaped by the hammering technique and decorated all over with inlaid gold and silver leaf. The rim is bordered with lotus, flowers and leaves. This type of ornamentation can also be seen in the book decorations of the Qaitbay Period. Immediately below this border are round medallions and rectangular cartouches with inscriptions adorned with knotted weave motifs. The lower part of the body is encircled by scalloped niches with floral decorations and a pattern of intertwined Ys and Ts (truncated meander). The composition adorning the bottom of the bowl, decorated with geometric interlaces formed by the arms of a multi-pointed star on a background of curved branches and *rumili* (stylised designs), is one of the most beautiful examples of its period. In Mamluk art similar compositions were used with the same skill in woodcarving, bookbinding and stonemasonry.  \n  \nThe composition, carving of the surface and placement of silver and gold leaf are typical of the Mosul school. Some of the craftsmen of Mosul origin, fleeing the Mongol invasion, migrated to other regions and worked under the Artuqids, the Ayubids of Syria and Egypt, and later the Mamluks. The Kaygbay bowl was probably made by a Mosul craftsman.  \n  \nThe inscriptions read: \"Our glorious Sultan al-Malik al-Ashraf, the victorious Kaidbay, may his victory be blessed\".","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts","dates":"AH 874-895 / AD 1470–1490","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"Height: 16.5cm, width: 36cm","provenance":"Mosul","materials":["brass"]},"b71ad5bf-0537-5bae-a28c-3289c9d237b7":{"name":"Beylerbeyi Palace.","description":"Beylerbeyi Palace is a seaside residence in the Beylerbeyi district (formerly known as İstavroz Bahçeleri or 'Cross Gardens') on the Anatolian side of the Bosphorus Strait. The various parts of the palace complex have been put together independently, regardless of symmetry. The main structure, the palace building, is a two-storey brick construction rising on a high basement. It occupies a rectangular area oriented north to south and measures approximately 65 m x 40 m. The southern section is designed as state apartments (*mabeyn*), the northern section as the family's living quarters (*harem*). The main building has a symmetrical and axial layout; in contrast to the Western influence apparent from the outside, its plan resembles that of a traditional Turkish house, arranged around a central courtyard with *iwan*s. The wall which runs along the quay, enlivened with repeating triple pilasters, includes two gates opening onto the water and two small seaside pavilions, one for men and the other for women. These splendid gates, called waterside or sea gates, were used to secure the entrance to the palace from the water. The sea gates, one of which was designed to belong to the men's quarters and the other to the women's, show Eastern influence; their design is interesting, enlivening as they do the two ends of the straight line created by the shore-side wall.  \nThe other buildings in the complex, dispersed throughout the complex within walled gardens and connected to one another by stairs and ramps, are the Marble Pavilion, the Yellow Pavilion and the private stables. The Deer House, Bird House, Lion House, the Pavilion of the Pashas and Music Pavilion are no longer standing.  \nThe façades of the Beylerbeyi Palace, like the organisation of the inner spaces, take eclectic forms. It is clear that Sultan Abdülaziz was inspired by his new palace and interested in its decoration. The façades include arches and windows in the Greek and Roman styles, a balanced Classical scheme is achieved also by the use of round arches and limited architectural forms; the plastic effect of Baroque designs is also apparent. In contrast to the evident Western influence seen in the external decoration, the interior spaces are heavy with traditional Ottoman and Eastern motifs. Many rooms and salons feature paintings of seascapes as well as military motifs like swords and flags. Since no provision was made for a heating system in the palace, it is inferred that the whole complex was designed as a summer palace.  \nThe first Beylerbeyi Palace was wooden and built for Sultan Mahmud II (r. AH 1223–55 / AD 1808–39 by the architect Krikor Amira Balyan. The present Beylerbeyi Palace was designed and built under the auspices of the architects Sarkis Balyan and Agop Balyan, and on the orders of Sultan Abdülaziz between 1276 and 1281 / 1861 and 1865, after the original palace was abandoned following a fire during the reign of Sultan Abdülmecid (r. AH 1255–77 / AD 1839–61). Over the years the Beylerbeyi Palace hosted many foreign guests; its last resident under the Ottoman Empire was Sultan Abdülhamid II (r. AH 1293–1327 / AD 1876–1909), who was dethroned. During the Republic period (after 1923) some sections of the palace were used to host state guests; these were opened to visitors in 1985 and renovated for various artistic activities. The Beylerbeyi Palace serves today as a palace museum linked to the National Palaces.","short_description":"One of the most magnificent Ottoman coastal palaces, Beylerbeyi Palace is located on the Asian coast of the Bosphorus. It was commissioned by Sultan Abdülaziz and consists of the main palace structure and its auxiliaries. Its façade and interior decorations blend various Western influences with Eastern motifs. This summer residence is remarkable for its rich decoration and its two sea-pavilions on the water are the most striking and typical examples of Orientalism in Istanbul. It was opened to the public as a museum in 1984.","dates":"Hegira 1281 / AD 1865.","location":"Beylerbeyi, Istanbul","method_for_datation":"Archival documents, inscriptions found on the monument, newspapers of the period, travel journals and the works of historians of the time are all useful in dating the monument. In addition, stylistic details of the palace complex provide important clues as to the period in which it was constructed.","bibliography":"Batur, A., “Beylerbeyi Sarayı \\[The Beylerbeyi Palace\\]”, *İstanbul Ansiklopedisi \\[Encyclopaedia of Istanbul\\]*, Vol. II, Istanbul, 1994, pp.206–10.  \nEldem, S. H., *Boğaziçi Anıları \\[Memoirs of Bosphorus\\]*, Istanbul, 1979.  \nGülsün, H., *Beylerbeyi Sarayı \\[The Beylerbeyi Palace\\]*, Istanbul, 1993.  \nKarahüseyin, G., “Beylerbeyi Sarayı ve ünlü Konukları \\[The Beylerbeyi Palace and its Famous Guests\\]”, *Milli Saraylar Dergisi \\[Journal of the National Palaces\\]*, II (1992), pp.126–41.  \nSözen, M., *Devletin Evi Saray \\[The Palace, the House of the State\\]*, Istanbul, 1990.","patrons":"Sultan Abdülaziz (r. AH 1277–93 / AD 1861–76).","architects":"Sarkis Balyan and Agop Balyan.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_TR_EN_001","author":"Semra Daşçı","translator":"Barry Wood","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["Bosphorus Strait","Ottoman architecture","pavilion","Seaside palace","Sultan Abdülaziz"]},"b86322b9-31bb-52dc-86d7-821809e043fd":{"name":"Pottery bowl","description":"A glazed small pottery bowl decorated under a blue, light green, and brown radial design under a greyish glaze. The rhythm of the five colours evokes the five pillars of Islam, elevating the object from an ordinary houseware to a spiritual level. The radials point to a blueish spot in the middle of the bowl. The rim is lined with the same blue as one of the radials inside the bowl. We see the radial underglaze or lustre design in some beautiful AH 6th / AD 12th-century Kashan Iranian pottery bowls.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani Museum","owner":"His Excellency Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Height: 6cm, Diameter: 18cm, Base Diameter: 7cm","place_of_production":"Morocco","method_for_datation":"Analysis of techniques, style and motifs","method_for_provenance":"The origin of acqusitions","provenance":"Morocco","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Terézia Bardi","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Ceramic","Glazed","underglaze painting"]},"b94cb9f7-6fcd-59f6-9089-a055c78e4311":{"name":"Hunting Picnic Trunk","description":"In the three compartments of the picnic trunk are plates, flasks, glasses, candlesticks, figurines, forks, knives, penknives, and pipes made of metal, glass and porcelain.","holder":"Museum of the Turkish and Islamic Arts","dates":"AH 12th-13th century/AD 18th century","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"Width: 1m, height: 51 cm","method_for_provenance":"It is believed that the hunting picnic chest was sent as a gift to Sultan Abdülhamid II by Emperor Franz Joseph of Austria (1830–1916).","obtention":"The item was brought from the Istanbul University Library to the Museum of Turkish and Islamic Art in 1935.","materials":["glass","metal","Porcelain","Velvet","Wood"]},"b95967f4-71c0-5313-9654-d9eb492b2fb1":{"name":"Candlestick (*Mash ‘al*)","description":"This Safavid cylindrical candlestick is crafted from brass and adorned with intricate decorations. It features a blend of floral and geometric motifs alongside bands of *nasta’liq* script inscriptions. These are verses from Persian mystical poetry, particularly those by the renowned 14th-century poet Hafez Shirazi, including the famous line:  \nالا یا ایها الساقی ادر کأسا و ناولها","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani Museum","owner":"His Excellency Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"Hegira 12th century / AD 18th century","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Height: 28cm, diameter: 9cm, base diameter: 16cm","place_of_production":"Iran","method_for_datation":"The date and origin were established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, techniques, style and analogies.","method_for_provenance":"Provenance was established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, techniques, style, iconography, inscription and analogies.","provenance":"Iran","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Mahmoud Saber","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["brass","embossing","Engraving","metal"]},"ba61949f-4fe6-55e5-a72f-065204514600":{"name":"Long-necked bottle","description":"This monochrome bottle with a long neck has a facetted design, imitating metal bottles. This type of object appears in painted miniatures in which the cupbearer pours wine from an identical bottle. Prohibited by the Qur’an, wine nevertheless could have medicinal and digestive virtues, according to Al-Râzî: “the usefulness of wine for the preservation of health, and the improvement of digestion, is certain if it is given its rightful place, and if its quantity, quality, and timing are in accordance with the rules of the art\".","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","initial_owner":"Jean Soustiel","dates":"Hegira 5th - 7th century / AD 12th or 13th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 24cm, Diameter: 14cm, Diameter base: 7cm","provenance":"Iran","obtention":"Purchased from the Art Musulman gallery in 1992.","bibliography":"Delpont, Eric, et al., *Album du musée*, Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, 2012: p. 293.  \n  \nMocelin, G. and Brohard, Y., *Sur les chemins d'Ispahan, savoir et médecine entre Orient et Occident*, Grenoble: Edition Cent Pages, Grenoble, 2006, p. 62.  \n  \nMoulierac, J. and Vaudour, C., *La médecine au temps des califes: à l'ombre d'Avicenne*, Paris: Institut du monde arabe, 1996: Fig. 130, p. 205.  \n  \nMoulierac, Jeanne, et al., Céramiques du monde musulman: collections de l'Institut du monde arabe et de J.P. et F. Croisier, Paris: Institut du monde arabe, Paris, 1999: p. 114.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["moulded design under transparent turquoise glaze","Siliceous clay"]},"baf45ab7-f9b5-5700-a897-9353a2be95f3":{"name":"Incense container","description":"Copper container adorned with embossed decoration. Vessels like this are usually used to store incense or jewelry.","type":"Metalwork, brass","holder":"The National Museum - Sultanate of Oman","dates":"Hegira 13th–14th/AD 19th–20th century","location":"Muscat, Sultanate of Oman","dimensions":"Height: 11cm, diameter: 9.5cm","provenance":"Northern Oman","author":"Noora Al Balushi","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["brass"]},"bb6ff3f2-34bc-53a8-ab51-b32bd5e8a3c1":{"name":"*Al Loz* (Indian Almond tree, *Terminalia catappa*)","description":"These colourful trees produce edible fruit and nuts. Extracts from the tree have been used for dying clothes and for medicinal purposes.","type":"Almond","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"early 21st century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Varies and depends on the leaf. Length: 90mm, width: 35mm","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Field collection","author":"Amanda Snyder","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["almond","almond tree"],"materials":["Leaves"]},"bc31e6e4-7f37-5725-b63d-89472dbadb64":{"name":"Fragment of a pottery bowl.","description":"The Raqqa region contains a group of Abbasid palaces that have been labelled with the letters A, B, C and D. This ceramic fragment was found during archaeological excavations carried out in Palace A. The fragment is part of a delicate bowl that was made in a mould and decorated around its girth with Arabic *kufic* script that reads: “from the work of Ibrahim al-Nasrani that has been made in Hira for the Amir Sulayman, son of the Commander of the Faithful.\" The Commander of the Faithful, or Caliph, in question is the Abbasid Abu Ja'far al-Mansur (r. AH 136–58 / AD 754–75). The text indicates that this piece was made in Hira by Ibrahim al-Nasrani and transported to Raqqa. The name of the craftsperson (al-Nasrani, i.e. the Christian) indicates that he was probably a master craftsman in the Christian ceramic-producing quarter of al-Hira.  \nThe base of the bowl was stamped with geometric and stylised vegetal motifs including palm trees.","short_description":"Although this bowl is delicate and fragmented, its moulded band of early *kufic* inscription has mostly survived. It includes the name of the craftsman, Ibrahim al-Nasrani, evidently a Christian, the place of production in Hira and the dedication to Sulayman, '\\[son\\] of the commander of the faithful'.","type":"Bowl, earthenware","holder":"National Museum of Damascus","initial_owner":"Prince Sulayman (son of the Abbasid Caliph Abu Ja'far al-Mansur (r. AH 136–58 / AD 754–75).","dates":"Hegira 136–58 / AD 754–75.","location":"Damascus","dimensions":"Height 7.5 cm, diameter 12.2 cm.","method_for_datation":"The inscription on the fragment associates it with the rule of the Abbasid Caliph Abu Ja'far al-Mansur (136–58 / 754–75).","method_for_provenance":"The text inscribed on the vessel fragment specifies Hira, in Mesopotamia (Iraq) as the place of production.","provenance":"Produced in Hira in southern Mesopotamia (Iraq).","obtention":"The fragment was found during an archaeological excavation carried out in 1948 in Palace A by the Syrian General Directorate of Antiquities under the direction of archaeologist Nasib Salibi.","bibliography":"Abu al-Faraj al-Ush, M., *A Concise Guide to the National Museum of Damascus,*  \nDamascus, 1969, p.160.  \nKohlmeyer, K. (ed), *Land des Baal,* Mainz, 1982.  \nSoustiel, J., and Kiefer C., *La céramique islamique*, Fribourg, 1985.  \nWeiss, H. (ed), *Ebla to Damascus*, Washington DC, 1985, p.518.","author":"Mona al-Moadin","translator":"Hilary Kalmbach (from the Arabic)","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["Caliph Abu Ja'far al-Mansur","ceramic","Christian","earthenware","Hira","Ibrahim al-Nasrani","Iraq","kufic script","moulded","Nasib Salibi","pottery","Prince Sulayman","Raqqa","stamped"],"materials":["Earthenware","moulded and stamped."]},"bd8ff36e-5588-5aad-949e-bfd038a77ce8":{"name":"Coffee Cup","description":"The piece has a round, wide mouth, single handle, round, wide body and thin ring bottom.  \nThe exterior is decorated with yellow gilding and dark red, white and blue encaustic floral decoration on a white ground. The inner surface is white. The handle and base are brass and were added later. There is a flying bird figure on the upper part of the handle.  \nThe saucer is made of silver and has a rounded form and wavy rim. The entire circumferenceis decorated with vine leaves and grape clusters in relief. The centre is curved upwards and stamped","holder":"Ankara Ethnography Museum","owner":"The Republic of Türkiye Ministry of Culture and Tourism","location":"Ankara","dimensions":"Height: 3cm, diameter: 6.2 cm","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["Porcelain and silver"]},"bdeda37e-0f4a-5fd6-ad87-d9dacdb11131":{"name":"‘Imara al-‘Amira (Flourishing Edifice).","description":"The 'Imara al-'Amira contains four architectural components: a large kitchen, with its subsidiary additions which includes two ovens, a bakery and a fountain; a large *caravanserai* and a mosque as well as a *ribat,* composed of 55 rooms, for Sufis and the poor. This large building has two entrances, the northern entrance on Aqabat Takiyya Street and the southern entrance on Aqabat al-Saraya Street. The northern entrance has a transition zone, known as a *derka*, which leads into an open courtyard. In the northern section of the complex are the remains of an adjoining entrance and the kitchen, storage areas and a fountain, in addition to a two-storey building. The southern entrance leads into a corridor with walls that are rich in decorative stonework, which finally leads into the open courtyard surrounded by arcades that form the *caravanserai* (*khan*) of the 'Imara al-'Amira. To the east of the *caravanserai* with itsopen courtyard, there is a building that was constructed in the AH 13th / AD 19th century, known as Adaliyya. Perhaps it was built on the site of the *ribat* that vanished over the course of time. The Adaliyya building faces a hall of which little remains but for four cross vaults it may, however, have been part of the mosque of the 'Imara al-'Amira. To the east of the hall there is a dome-covered shrine that is believed to be the final resting place of Sa'ad al-Din al-Rasafi, author of the work, *al-Manhal al-Safi wa al-Mashrab al-Wafi \\[The Pure Spring and the Inundated Fountain\\]*.  \nThe multiplicity of elements that make up the complex indicate that it served several purposes: as a place for religious worship; for charitable purposes, as may be noted by the kitchen which was and still is used for the preparation of food for the poor and the needy and for trade and economic purposes, represented by the *caravanserai* that accommodated merchants and consummated mercantile trading.","short_description":"This grandiose social complex was also known as 'Khassaki Sultan' after its patron, the wife of Sultan Sulayman the Magnificent. The complex was built as a result of incorporating a number of buildings and other additions. It includes a large kitchen, two ovens, two bakeries, a *sabil* (public fountain), a large *khan* (inn), a mosque and a Sufi ribat. It has two entrances and a number of open plazas. The complex provided food daily to the needy as well as to visitors, regardless of their identity or religion, as did the *zawiya* and the *arbita* (Sufi hospice and teaching establishment). Over 1000 meals were offered daily.","dates":"Built in around hegira 964 / AD 1557.","location":"Jerusalem","method_for_datation":"The building is dated by *waqf* documents associated with it, among which is record number 270 in the Shari'a Court of Jerusalem (Folio No. 18–49). This document is further supported by the archives of the Palestinian Museum (Rockefeller Museum). Through these documents it is possible to deduce that the construction of the 'Imara al-'Amira began in 959 / 1552 and was completed in around 964/ 1557.","bibliography":"Myers, D., “Al-Imara al-Amira: The Charitable Foundation of Khassaki Sultan (959/1552)”, in S. Auld and R. Hillenbrand (eds), *Ottoman Jerusalem: The Living City 1517–1917* (Part I), London, 2000.  \nNatsheh, Y., “My Memories of Khassaki Sultan or the 'Flourishing Edifice'”, *Jerusalem Quarterly* File No. 7, winter 1999, pp.29–35.  \nPierce, L., *The Imperial Harem: Women and Sovereignty in the Ottoman Empire.* London, 1992.  \n*Pilgrimage, Sciences and Sufism: Islamic Art in the West Bank and Gaza,* pp.105–7.","patrons":"Khassaki Sultan (also known as Haseki Hürrem Sultan, d. AH 965 / AD 1558), wife of Sultan Sulayman the Magnificent (r. AH 926–73 / AD 1520–66); she was known in European literature by the name of Roxelana.","architects":"None of the names of those who designed and implemented the building can be clearly identified but they are likely to have included local architects and others from the city of Aleppo in Syria.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_PA_EN_001; IAM_TR_EN_001","author":"Yusuf al-Natsheh","copy_editor":"Majd Musa","translator":"Amal Sachedina (from the Arabic).","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["'Imara al-Amira","kitchen","roxelana","takiyya"]},"be60fc30-4879-59b7-9f1b-3a7a358298d0":{"name":"Jug and basin set (*aftafa-layan*)","description":"The *aftafa-layan* is a jug and basin set with a separating lid used for washing, usually made of copper and richly decorated. It was widely distributed in the Near and Middle East and used during large feasts. The lid was used as an esthetic cover for the basin. It is decorated with inscriptions and floral elements. One or two lines from Hafez’s ghazal poem were written on the upper border of *aftafa*. The edge borders of the *layan* are decorated with inscriptions. The inscription in the cartouches on the border read as follows:  \n\"It's time to enjoy the flowers and life.  \nSagi! Give the water of life.  \nIn the meadow, wine and jam \\[bowl\\] are pleasant.  \nAlong with crimson tulips.  \nWasted youth is a pity, it can't be considered a life.\"","type":"Tableware","holder":"Azerbaijan National Carpet Museum","dates":"Hegira 13th / AD 19th century","location":"Baku","dimensions":"Height: 27cm, diametre: 18cm","place_of_production":"Azerbaijan","method_for_datation":"By stylistic and comparative analyses with related material.","obtention":"Purchased in 1973","author":"Rustam Afandiyev","keywords":["aftafa-layan","Azerbaijan","Basin","Copper","Jug","Tableware"],"materials":["copper","engraved.","hammered"]},"bf8c236d-a3f0-57db-aaff-72a234666a2c":{"name":"Portrait of Sultan Selim II","short_description":"This large album portrait of Sultan Selim II (reigned 1566–74) reveals much about his reign. It was Selim’s father, Sultan Süleyman the Magnificent (reigned 1520–66), who solidified the geographical borders of the Ottoman Empire and refined the central administration of his government, allowing his son and successor to pursue more sedentary pleasures such as literature, art and wine-drinking. Nicknamed “Selim the Sot” for his affection for wine, the sultan was nonetheless a great bibliophile and patron of architecture, music and the arts of the book. The painter, poet and naval commander Haydar Reis depicted Selim II as larger than life; the robust sultan in his luxurious fur-lined and brocaded gold garment dwarfs both the page boy and the interior in which he sits in a cross-legged position on a carpet. This composition was one of a number of conventions for Ottoman royal portraiture developed in the 1570s and is similar to portraits in Loqman’s *Kiyafetu’l Insaniye fi Semailu’l-Osmaniye*, a study to record the physiognomy of the Ottoman sultans.","type":"Folio","holder":"Aga Khan Museum","dates":"1570 or 1590","location":"Toronto, Ontario","dimensions":"44.2 x 31.2cm","provenance":"Istanbul, Turkey","obtention":"Former Prince Saddrudin Aga Khan Collection","keywords":["folio","painting","Portrait","ruler","sultan","work-on-paper","works-on-paper"],"materials":["Gold","Opaque watercolour","Paper"]},"c0f8bfaf-f9ca-5ac0-84ba-67ebfcaf39e4":{"name":"Tablecloth (*dastarkhan*)","description":"A *dastarkhan* is a thin white *palas* (a kind of traditional, flat-woven carpet popular in Azerbaijan) that functioned as a tablecloth for Azerbaijanis and other Turkic peoples. The central field of Azerbaijani *dastarkhans* was rectangular, usually plain, and the borders spotted vivid decoration in contrast with the *dastarkhans* produced in Central Asia that boast elaborate designs. A *dastarkhan* denoted a sacred meaning, as its ornaments protected the food and the breadwinner and brought abundance to the family.  \nIn the central field of this artifact, there are inscriptions in the old epigraphic alphabet, stylized images of birds (symbolizing protection), butas (symbolizing different abilities bestowed on a person) and branches (symbolizing blessings). Images of arrows on the *dastarkhan's* border symbolize honour, prosperity and blessings.","type":"Tableware","holder":"Azerbaijan National Carpet Museum","dates":"Hegira 1305 / AD 1887","location":"Baku","dimensions":"Length: 188cm, width: 90cm","place_of_production":"Karabakh, Azerbaijan","method_for_datation":"By stylistic and comparative analyses with related material","obtention":"Purchased in 1984","author":"Rustam Afandiyev","keywords":["Azerbaijan","dastarkhan","flat-woven","tablecloth","wool"],"materials":["cotton yarn for the weft","interweaved","Wool pattern yarn for the warp","wrapped."]},"c11ef512-f9e7-5a23-bafe-934bc32549ba":{"name":"Hearth of Ateşbaz-ı Veli (*Makam-ı Ateşbaz-ı Veli*)","description":"Ateşbaz was a Mevlevi *dede* (elder) who lived during the lifetime of Mevlana. It is said that one day an elder was preparing a meal in the kitchen when he discovered that he had exhausted his supply of fuel. He informed Kazancı Dede of the situation. Upon receiving the reply, \"If there is no wood, you should have put your foot,\" he did not hesitate, and placed his foot into the fire, cooking the food in its flame. This earned him the name Ateşbaz, or \"playing with fire”. A sign reading *Ya Hazret-i Ateşbaz-ı Veli* (O His Holiness Ateşbaz-ı Veli) used to be hung over the hearth in Mevlevi kitchens.  \nAccording to sources associated with the Mevlevi Order, Sultan Veled, the son of Mevlana, engaged in a period of asceticism lasting forty days. This involved seclusion and reduced food, sleep and speech. Once the forty days of asceticism had been completed, Ateşbaz would prepare a meal. The first mausoleum for a cook was constructed for Ateşbaz in Meram, Konya.","type":"Room Restoration","holder":"Konya Mevlana Museum","location":"Konya","bibliography":"Bakırcı, Naci, *Konya Mevlana Müzesi*, Istanbul: BKG Yayinlari, 2010.","copy_editor":"Judy Harter"},"c13e07a9-25e9-500c-a2eb-4f7568251a1e":{"name":"Qajar Carpet -Hunting Scene","short_description":"The pictorial carpets of Qajar Iran illustrate royals and famous people in various scenarios. This Persian Kashan wool rug displays a hunting scene with a portrait of a king or a nobleman sitting on a chair embellished with crowns, drinking and holding a copper ewer in his other hand, and a wide variety of animals and plants. The phoenix above the nobleman, a popular creature in Persian mythology, represents immortality. Hunting dogs symbolize honour and glory, while the gazelle symbolizes innocence. The imagery of water is significant, denoting purity and the source of life, and in which the fish embody undying love. The cypress tree signifies Persian perseverance and pride.","type":"Carpet; rug","holder":"FBQ Museum","owner":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"19th century","location":"Shahaniya","dimensions":"Length: 245cm, Height: 150cm","method_for_datation":"Date and origin were derived from material, colour, pattern and knot examination.","method_for_provenance":"Date and origin were derived from material, colour, pattern and knot examination.","provenance":"Iran, Kashan","obtention":"Auction","bibliography":"Ahmadi, R.,\"Symbolism in Persian Rugs\",*Manuscripta Orientalia*, 3 : 1 (1997): 62-64.  \nNikandish, B., Askari, S., and Chitsazian, A., \"Symbology of Bird Motifs in Persian and Indian Carpets\", *Peykareh*, 7 : 14 (2019): 33-51.  \nRouhina, M., and Ahmad Panah, S. A., \"The Motif of Cedar Tree in Qajar and Safavid Rugs\", *Peykareh*, 7 : 13 (2018): 17-35.  \nSharbatian, Y., and Bagheri, R., \"Anthropological Study of Kerman Carpet Symbols, Shapes, and Designs\", *American International Journal of Social Science Research*, 7 : 1 (2021): 15-29.  \nVandshoari, A., and Ebrahimi, A. N., \"Epic and Myth in Pictorial Carpets of Qajar Era in Iran\", *Art-Sanat*, 5 (2016): 103-118.","author":"Sarah Schroeder","copy_editor":"Valerie Pulsifer","keywords":["carpet","hunting","Iran","Kashan","Portrait","Qajar","rug"],"materials":["Senneh knot","wool"]},"c166cd2d-8939-540b-a898-6cea4e8dc0ae":{"name":"Brocaded velvet","short_description":"Figurative design flowered in Safavid textiles in the AH 10th century / AD mid-16th century. These figures often share the same features as book paintings from the period. This velvet is unique due to the large size of its figures, unknown on other velvets of the AH 10th century / AD 16th century, and the richness of surface textures. Uncut loops of metal-wrapped silk thread have been added in some areas to the traditional silk pile, contrasting with the glittering metal thread background.","type":"Textile","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art","dates":"Hegira 977-987 / AD 1570s","location":"Doha","dimensions":"Height: 164 cm, width: 70 cm","provenance":"Iran, Qazvin","obtention":"Sotheby's London,  Fine Oriental and European Rugs and Carpets, 14 Oct 1998, lot 37 to Qatar Museums","bibliography":"Al Khemir, Sabiha, *From Cordoba To Samarqand, Masterpieces from the Museum of Islamic Art in Doha*, Milan: Musée du Louvre Editions, 2006.  \n  \nThompson, Jon, *Silk. 13th to 18th centuries. Treasures from the Museum of Islamic Art, Qatar*, Doha: National Council for Culture, Arts and Heritage, 2004.","author":"Tara Desjardins","keywords":["Brocaded","Iran","Safawid","textile","Velvet"],"materials":["metal thread","silk","weaving"]},"c1dc368c-d1ca-53c8-a0da-a63bd4ed9f6b":{"name":"*Jobbana* covered pot","description":"The word *jobbana* comes from the Arabic word *jben*, which refers to cheese. This lidded jar was originally used in Morocco to curdle milk, but was used also to preserve butter or serve *harira*, a soup with which the Ramadan fast is broken in the evening. The delicacy of the decoration of this pot is characteristic of the workshops of the city of Safi, a city on the west coast, whose name is inscribed under the base. The tone of blue reflects the use of a handmade nickel-based pigment. Ceramic production development in Safi would result from the arrival of potters from Fes who appreciated the quality of clay in banks near the city.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","initial_owner":"Bernard Aubert","dates":"Hegira 2nd–3rd quarter of 13th century / AD first half of 19th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Maximum height: 25cm, Opening dimension: 18cm, Base dimension: 11.4cm","provenance":"Safi, Morocco","obtention":"Purchased from Bernard Aubert, 1989.","bibliography":"Bel, A., *Les industries de la céramique à Fès*, Algiers: Bastide-Jourdan, 1918: 292.  \n  \nBoukobza, A., *La poterie marocaine*, Casablanca: Alpha, 1974: 24, 27, 114; Fig. 17, 21.  \n  \nDelpont, E., et al., *Album du musée*, Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, 2012: 386.  \n  \nEbert, C. and Kalter, J., *Marokkanische Keramik*, Stuttgart: Hansjörg Mayer, 1988: 105, 117, 120, 134.  \n  \nMoulierac, J., et al., *Céramiques du monde musulman: collections de l'Institut du monde arabe et de J.P. et F. Croisier* , Paris: Institut du monde arabe, 1999: 149.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["Clay","painted decoration on opaque glaze"]},"c2c6489a-b997-5d3e-a98c-d31891a7ba03":{"name":"Large *khabiya* jar","description":"This large jar, *khabiya*, is intended for the storage of grain, semolina, oil, or water. Its motifs are typical of Tunisian craftsmanship, whose main production centre was in the pottery district (Qallaline) of Tunis. These motifs, the *taouq* (rim decoration), the strip of vertical hatching, and the band of ovoid kernels (*qloub*) are linked by similar designs. The composition is arranged in parallel bands, with the repeated use of yellow, green and brown.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","initial_owner":"Alain and Dalila Loviconi","dates":"Hegira 4th-5th century / AD 11th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 57cm, Diameter base: 20cm, Diameter opening: 25cm, Diameter maximum: 39 cm","place_of_production":"Qallaline, Tunisia","provenance":"Qallaline, Tunisia","bibliography":"Curatola, G., *Eredita' dell' Islam. Arte islamica in Italia*, Milan: Silvana Editoriale SpA, 1993: Fig. 84  \n  \nDaoulatli, A., *Poteries et Ceramics tunisiennes*, Tunis: Institut National d'Archéologie et d'Art, 1979: 71  \n  \nDelpont, E., et al., *Album du musée*. Eric DELPONT (et al.), Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, 2012: 291  \n  \nHarbi-Riahi, M., *30 ans au service du patrimoine: XXVIII centenaire de Carthage, 814 av. J. C. - 1986: de la Carthage des Phéniciens à la Carthage de Bourguiba*, Tunis: Institut National d'Archéologie et d'Art, 1986: 306  \n  \nMarcais, G., *Le Musée Stéphane Gsell. Musée des Antiquités et d'Arts musulman d'Alger*, Algiers: Gouvernement général de l'Algérie, Direction de l'intérieur et des beaux-arts, 1950: Pl. XXXIX","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["Clay","design painted on opaque glaze"]},"c2e80ac9-c3fb-51a3-8cd2-d3cc5c1a3b20":{"name":"Tray stand","description":"This Mamluk bronze tray stand exemplifies the iconic shape, size and ornamentation characteristic of Mamluk metalwork, with a notable influence from China in the shape of the tray. Originally serving as a portable support for a food tray, it would have been accompanied by multiple table stands.  \nAdorned with intricate *thuluth* inscriptions, geometric and floral motifs, and interrupted by cartouches, this stand is a testament to the exquisite craftsmanship of the Mamluk artisans. Distinctive Arabic inscriptions grace the upper and lower parts and the exposed section of the lower rim. Epigraphic analysis reveals that these inscriptions identity of the owner – a high-ranking official (Amir) in the Mamluk court hierarchy who belonged to the second-highest rank. The display of titles underscores the owner’s esteemed position and societal status. One of the inscriptions, “*Al-maqarr al-‘ali al-mawlawi al-amiri al-kabiri al-‘alimi al-‘adili al-ghazi al-mujahidi al-maliki al-nasiri*”, suggests that the owner is a follower of Al Sultan Al-Nasir. While many Mamluk sultans held the title Al-Nasir, it is unclear which one is referred to here. However, the decoration style indicates that it likely belongs to the period of Al-Nasir Muhammad bin Qalawun (1258–1341). Crafted from bronze, this tray stand displays intricate detail achieved through engraving and embossing. The *thuluth* inscriptions, geometric and floral motifs, and cartouches are meticulously executed, reflecting the skill and artistry of Mamluk metalworkers in Egypt during the 14th century.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani Museum","owner":"His Excellency Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"Hegira 8th century / AD 14th century","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Height: 25.5cm, diameter 25cm, base diameter: 25cm","place_of_production":"Egypt","method_for_datation":"The date and origin were established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, techniques, style, inscription and analogies.","method_for_provenance":"Provenance was established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, techniques, style and analogies.","provenance":"Egypt","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Mahmoud Saber","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["Al Sultan Al-Nasir","Al-Nasir Muhammad bin Qalawun","bronze","China","chinese","Egypt","Mamaluk"],"materials":["Bronze","embossing","Engraving"]},"c3101633-812c-5595-969c-ee2b57886090":{"name":"Mosque lamp.","description":"An enamelled glass and gilt mosque lamp with a wide funnel-shaped neck and a rounded rim. The lamp has a squat body, steeply sloping shoulder and a flattened base, and a tall pedestal foot with a pronounced pontil mark on the underside. Six trailed suspension loops are placed around the body at regular intervals. The lamp is decorated comprehensively with enamel decoration executed in red, blue and light-green, embellished with gilding. Around the neck is a wide band of *thuluth* script executed in blue enamel, surrounded by a floral border. An excerpt from the Qur’an (*Sura* 2; verse 256), the inscription is interrupted by decorative roundels rendered in gold, red and green, each of which contain a little cup in the centre. The lower neck and upper body are decorated with floral bands interrupted by roundels with individual floral motifs. On the main body, another inscription in *thuluth* script gives the titles of the official who commissioned the lamp: Zain al-Din Mubarak who, according to the blazon above, was cupbearer to the sultan, al-Malik al-Salih, who is also named in the inscription. There were two rulers with the same titulature, both of whom were the sons of Nasir Nasir al-Din Muhammad ibn Qalawun: the first, al-Malik al-Salih Isma’il (r. AH 742–5 / AD 1342–5); the second, al-Malik al-Salih Salih (r. AH 751–4 / AD 1351–4).","short_description":"Glass mosque lamps with enamelled decoration were commissioned in large numbers by the Mamluk elite in Egypt and Syria. Decorated with Qur’anic inscriptions and the titles of the patron, they were destined for the numerous mosques and *madrasas* endowed by the Mamluks throughout Cairo and the empire.","type":"Glasswork, enameled","holder":"National Museums of Scotland (NMS).","dates":"Hegira 742–54 / AD 1342–54.","location":"Edinburgh, Scotland","dimensions":"Height 38.10 cm, diameter 26.67 cm.","method_for_datation":"The appearance of the name of al-Malik al-Salih on this mosque lamp assigns the piece to the reign of either al-Malik al-Salih Isma’il (r. 742–5 / 1342–5) or to al-Malik al-Salih Salih (r. 751–4 / 1351–4).","method_for_provenance":"Mosque lamps of this type were made in large numbers in both Egypt and Syria during the 8th / 14th century.","provenance":"Syria.","obtention":"Purchased by NMS from the Major W. J. Myers Collection in 1900.","bibliography":"Carboni, S., and Whitehouse, D., *Glass of the Sultans*, New York, 2002 (for discussion on related mosques lamps and Mamluk glass).  \nEremin, K., and Al-Khamis, U., ‘Mamluk and Pseudo-Mamluk Glass in the National Museums of Scotland’, in *Annales du 15e Congrès de l’Association Internationale pour l’Histoire du Verre, New York, 2003.*","linkcatalogs":"IAM_EG_EN_001","author":"Ulrike Al-Khamis","copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["al-Malik al-Salih Isma’il","al-Malik al-Salih Salih","blazons","calligraphy","coat of arms","Emblems","enamelled glass","Mosque interior decoration","Mosque Lamp","Thuluth","Zayn al-din Mubarak"],"materials":["enamelled and gilded glass."]},"c343e522-683c-5e4b-8f73-edba72f1ed53":{"name":"Aş Evi (Bektashi Kitchen)","description":"The most significant part of the Hacı Bektaş Velî Dervish lodge is the Aş Evi (kitchen), which is accessed via a large door with two wings. After traversing two corridors, one reaches the location of the main Aş Evi. On the right side of the first corridor is the grave of the father of the Ash House, which is marked by an inscription dated 1560 on the door of the second corridor. To the right of this corridor is a window that opens to the room of the Father of the House, while to the left is the Pantry Room, where meat is cooled.  \nThe main hall of the house is entered through an arched doorway and is divided into two parts by a large arch based on the north and south walls. In the centre of the hall is the stone where meat was chopped and fat was drained. On the south, north and east walls there are six large and small hearths where food was cooked.","holder":"Nevşehir Hacıbektaş Museum","location":"Konya, Nevşehir","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda"},"c466c19a-6e61-556b-a637-4712a73de575":{"name":"Three fragments of woven fabric decorated with female figures carrying rose water bottles","description":"These silk weavings once framed a large blanket with an embroidered middle section and have been remounted to the original fabric sheet. Depicted on the background, which used to be gold, are young women in elegantly curved stance holding rosewater bottles in their arms. Curved blossoming plants emerging from a rise in the ground are visible in the spaces between the figures. The décor is arranged in offset horizontal rows: the direction of the women’s gaze switches in each row and the colouring of the garments is repeated after every fourth row. Miniature paintings were often used as templates for silk weaves during this era. An especially delightful detail is the circlet-shaped feathered headdress with a long scarf that falls behind the back and is elegantly ruffled. This type of headdress was common until c. 1620 and is defining for the time in which this silk weaving was created.","type":"Woven fabric (wall hanging?)","holder":"GRASSI Museum of Applied Art","owner":"GRASSI Museum of Applied Art, Leipzig","dates":"First third of seventeenth century","location":"Leipzig","dimensions":"H: 245cm, W: 71cm","method_for_datation":"By comparison, typical stylistic and technical elements","method_for_provenance":"Documented by acquisition","provenance":"Iran","obtention":"Formerly in the Collection Saposchnikoff, Moscow; acquired 1927","bibliography":"Küster, Babette, “Drei Gewebefragmente mit einem Dekor aus Rosenwasserflaschen tragenden Frauen”, in GRASSI Museum für Angewandte Kunst Leipzig, *Ständige Ausstellung, Asiatische Kunst Impulse für Europa*, Leipzig: Passage-Verlag, 2009: 178.","author":"Stefanie Seeberg","translator":"Aminata Estelle Diouf","translation_copy_editor":"Daniel de la Vega","keywords":["blue","collection","craftmanship","crafts","dark-blue","decorative atrs","floral decoration","floral motifs","Fragment","garden","gold","human figure","human representation","Iranian","miniature painting","Mongol influence","Persia","silk","vegetal decoration","vegetal motifs"],"materials":["gilded","ground warp: silk","ground weft: silk","pattern weft thread: silk","pile warp: silk","silver thread","Woven fabric"]},"c4a199cd-9f33-5a29-aa87-3eb7131bf868":{"name":"Dish.","description":"A dish with the shield belonging to the Tondi family of Siena, Italy, in the centre surrounded by radiating chains of 'bryony' flowers (those with blue petals and lustre-painted centres) alternating with chains of blue 'parsley'-shaped leafs (those that are made up of ragged trefoil shapes), and both interwoven with lustre-coloured spindly 'fern' leaves. This style of dish belongs to a distinctive range that was much sought after in Spain and in other parts of Europe where it was exported in large quantities. This explains the presence of the Italian family's shield, for this type of lustre-ware was extremely popular in Italy.  \n  \nManises was one of the main pottery-making towns in Valencia, and played a leading role in the manufacture of lustre-wares for export to Europe, principally to France and Italy. Manises's pottery left for export from the Valencian port of Grao where many Manises potters owned pottery warehouses and shops. These potters were a mixture of Christians and Moors (Muslims), the latter of which were not permitted to take their skills to work outside the town, testifying to the value of their special skills to the economy of Manises. By the mid-16th century (AH 956), Manises had a major monopoly on the production of lustre-wares in Valencia.","short_description":"The old name for this type of Mudéjar-style Spanish lustre ceramics is ‘Hispano-Moresque’, a term indicating that the potters who made it were a mixture of Christians and Moors (Muslims), the latter of which were restricted to practising their much-praised skill outside the town of Manises in Valencia.","type":"Glazed earthenware","holder":"Burrell Collection, Glasgow Museums.","dates":"Hegira 864–84 / AD 1460–80.","location":"Glasgow, Scotland","dimensions":"Diameter 45 cm.","method_for_datation":"Artistic analysis and identification of the shield belonging to the Tondi family of Siena, Italy.","provenance":"Manises, Valencia, Spain.","obtention":"Part of the collection given to the City of Glasgow by Sir William and Lady Burrell in 1944.","bibliography":"Ray, A., *Spanish Pottery 1248–1898*, the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, 2000.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_ES_EN_001","author":"Noorah Al-Gailani","copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["coat of arms","Commerce","floral decoration","Hispano-Moresque"],"materials":["Glazed and lustre-painted earthenware."]},"c4af05d4-9269-5543-8456-f8734f0e243b":{"name":"Conical cup","description":"Stoneware, celadons, and porcelain from China fascinated the Arab, Iranian, and Turkish worlds. The chronicles of the reigns of the Abbasid caliphs bear witness to this, as do the collections of the Ottoman sultans.  \nIn the absence of kaolin, and to replace porcelain, ceramists opt for a new clay mixture, obtained from pulverised quartz pebbles, white clay, and frit (pulverised mixture of quartz pebbles and soda from vegetable ash). These are the available materials. The mixture is soft; this piece mimics the translucency of porcelain. This technique was not known in the West until the 18th century, evidence of the technical progress made by Eastern ceramists.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","initial_owner":"Jean Soustiel","dates":"Hegira 4th-5th century / AD 11th century","dimensions":"Height: 9.6cm, Diameter: 7.5cm","provenance":"Rayy, Iran","obtention":"Purchased at the Art Musulman gallery in 1993.","bibliography":"Delpont, E., et al., *Album du musée*.  \n  \nMoulierac, J., et al., *Céramiques du monde musulman: collections de l'institut du monde arabe et de J.P. et F. Croisier* , Paris: Institut du monde arabe, Paris, 1999: 39.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["champlevé design","colourless transparent glaze","Siliceous material (pulverised quartz pebbles","white sintered clay)"]},"c4fe88f8-b165-52e3-b23f-fce061f8c81f":{"name":"A Prince Meeting a Muslim Holy Man","description":"The young man in princely attire seated in the presence of a mullah, a Muslim holy man, is thought to be one of the sons of Emperor Jahangir (1569–1627, reign 1605–1627). The facial features of the prince conform to portraits of Sultan Khurram (1592–1666) who became the emperor Shah Jahan (reign 1627–1658).  \nThe young prince appears to be around 18 years of age. Khurram had an early interest in art and even commissioned court paintings at the age of 14. This miniature may be seen as an illustration of the prince's interest in Islam. Unlike his forefathers, Shah Jahan was a practicing Sunni Muslim. He is best remembered for building the Taj Mahal, the stunning white marble memorial to his beloved wife, Mumtaz Mahal.  \n  \nThe painting is unsigned, making the identity of the artist unclear, but a tentative attribution can be made on stylistic grounds to the gifted court painter Manôhar (active c.1580–1620) and his atelier. The artist worked at court for at least forty years during the successive reigns of Akbar (1542–1605), Jahangir, and Shah Jahan.","type":"Drawings and watercolors, paintings","holder":"Saint Louis Art Museum","dates":"Hegira c. 1019 / AD c. 1610","location":"Saint Louis, United States of America","dimensions":"Image: 16.4cm, 11.2cm; sheet: 43.6cm, 30.4cm","method_for_datation":"Scholarly review and/or comparison to similar objects from the period.","method_for_provenance":"Scholarly review and/or comparison to similar objects from the period.","obtention":"Gift of J. Lionberger Davis, 1952","bibliography":"Owyoung, Steven, *Thinking of God: Indian Miniature Paintings at The Saint Louis Art Museum*, Saint Louis: Saint Louis Art Museum, 2001.","workshop":"Attributed to Manôhar and his studio","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["Ink","opaque watercolor and gold on paper"]},"c5b5daa1-000f-54c3-95f9-2872725c902d":{"name":"Tile Bowl","description":"The bowl has a round and flaring rim. Its round body narrows towards the ring base. It is decorated with dark blue, green, red and yellow gilding on a white glazed ground. On the external part of the bowl, there are Surahs of al-Falaq and al-Ikhlas in medallions.  \nProduced in China for the Ottoman market.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Ankara Ethnography Museum","owner":"The Republic of Türkiye Ministry of Culture and Tourism","dates":"Hegira 12th century / AD 18th century","location":"Ankara","dimensions":"Diameter: 15cm","place_of_production":"China","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["Terracotta tile"]},"c7f58b8f-d101-5a99-a3cc-dcb898bbfeeb":{"name":"An Algerian woman grinds her meal in an old wooden mill","description":"Many Western photographers took great interest in women's daily lives, or in daily rural tasks. In this photograph from 1920 an Algerian woman is pictured as she grinds wheat with a wooden pestle and mortar.","type":"Photograph","holder":"National Library of France","dates":"1920","location":"Paris","translator":"Flaminia Baldwin"},"c8452185-b564-5d73-9086-7f2303088f36":{"name":"Coffee Pot","description":"A coffee pot decorated with an image of a mosque and an Istanbul scene. Decorated in *savat*, or niello, an engraving technique using a black sulphide alloy.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts","dates":"13th-14th century/AD 19th century","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"42cm x 18cm","materials":["metal"]},"c87b0cb3-05b6-5a2d-aa6c-454893216166":{"name":"*Sema* Practice in *Matbah-ı Şerif* (whirling practice in the kitchen)","description":"The *Matbah-ı Şerif* (kitchen) was constructed at the same time as the dervish cells by Murad III in 1584. Some sections of the building have two floors. The building's present form dates from repairs made in 1867. The kitchen's upper section, separated by a marble wall, can be accessed via marble steps. The space is characterised by two barrel-vaulted domes and is illuminated by eight wooden windows. The portals, decorated with plant motifs, harmonise with the simplicity of the surrounding environment.  \nThe floor is covered with wood, as *Sema* (whirling) practice was done in this section. The nail visible in the corner of the marble wall on the right side of the room has been identified as a *Sema* training nail (note the nail in the centre of a practice board in photo).","type":"Room Restoration","holder":"Konya Mevlana Museum","location":"Konya","copy_editor":"Judy Harter"},"c9b1b21a-3afb-57cb-86e1-8e151adf4e75":{"name":"Haftvad and the Worm  \nFolio from the *Shahnameh* (Book of Kings) of Shah Tahmasp","short_description":"The vast historical scope, imaginative power, and national importance of the *Shahnameh* (Book of Kings), an epic poem completed by Firdausi in 1010, have inspired countless works of art in all media. This folio AKM164 (folio 521 verso) from the *Shahnameh* produced for Safavid ruler Shah Tahmasp (r. 1524–76) centres around Haftvad, a modest man with seven sons and one daughter whose fate is entwined with the rise of the Sasanian dynasty (224–651).","type":"Folio","holder":"Aga Khan Museum","dates":"ca. 1540","location":"Toronto, Ontario","dimensions":"45 x 30cm","provenance":"Iran, Tabriz","obtention":"Former Prince Saddrudin Aga Khan Collection","keywords":["book-of-kings","folio","kings","painting","Shahnameh","Shanama","work-on-paper","works-on-paper","Zahhak"],"materials":["and gold on paper","Ink","Opaque watercolour"]},"c9e2a362-f0a6-5922-bdbb-3b8f58f34d64":{"name":"*Mechabeh (food cover)*","description":"*Mechabeh* (palm food cover) used to protect food from dirt and insects.  \nThe cover is formed by braiding nine to 11 palm leaves together to form a flat strip. The strips are sewn together to form a cone shaped cover.","type":"Food cover","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century / AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Height: 390mm, diameter: 387mm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis  \nCurrent traditional practice","method_for_provenance":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Amanda Snyder","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["Food cover"],"materials":["dye","Palm"]},"ca7280db-3428-5b5d-8d37-2c4fe8ed2c6b":{"name":"Ewer","short_description":"For centuries, romantic myths have surrounded the ewer. The name Ashkdan translates to “tear-container”, alluding to use of the vessel. According to Persian folklore, women would bottle-up tears shed for their husbands during long separations. Upon their return, husbands could measure their love. Shia mourning rituals also emphasized tear-preservation in commemoration of martyrs that were believed to have curable powers.  \nThis ewer with a striking swan-neck and tear-shaped opening depicts humans, birds, and scrolls of ellipses typical for the Safavid dynasty (16th – 18th century). Although the tear-legends have endured over time, scents rather than tears might flow within the vials. Persians to this day pour perfume or rose water from vessels with long necks onto hands and clothing.","type":"Domestic tool","holder":"FBQ Museum","owner":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"17th century","location":"Shahaniya","dimensions":"Length: 43cm, Width: 30cm","method_for_datation":"The date and origin were established in a research-based comparison of metal work, examining the engraved patterns including human figures and birds.","method_for_provenance":"The date and origin were established in a research-based comparison of metal work, examining the engraved patterns including human figures and birds.","provenance":"Iran","obtention":"Purchase","bibliography":"Melikian‐Shirvani, A. S., \"Safavid Metalwork: A Study in Continuity\", *Iranian Studies*, 7 : 3-4 (1974): 543-585.  \nYamanaka, Y., \"The Tear-Bottle Quest: European Perception of the Biblical Orient and Iranian Shiite Ritual\", in Regina F. Bendix and Dorothy Noyes (eds), *Terra Ridens - Terra Narrans*, Dortmund: Verlag für Orientkunde, 2018.","author":"Sarah Schroeder","copy_editor":"Valerie Pulsifer","keywords":["ewer","Iran","metalwork","mythology","Ritual","Tear"],"materials":["copper","Engraving"]},"ca7afc73-93f0-57b7-bf5b-affec7602629":{"name":"al-Ghuta ash-Sharqiyya","description":"Sugar, or glucose today, can be added and mixed with the juice in the basin. The introduction of glucose into the dough is another innovation that transforms the final product. Traditionally, only a small amount of sugar was added to the dough. Beginning in the 1960s and 1970s, glucose syrup was gradually introduced. In addition to treating the fruit with sulphur, mixing glucose into the dough meant that the product could be preserved more safely and for longer. What's more, the resulting paste was softer and more attractive. The glucose syrup is poured into the basin from which the pressed juice flows. Manufacturers have gradually increased the percentage of this inexpensive ingredient to the detriment of the quality of the dough.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Anne-Marie Bianquis","initial_owner":"Anne-Marie Bianquis","dates":"Hegira 1320 / AD 2002","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Ghutat Dimashq/Syria","method_for_provenance":"Direct contact","provenance":"Ghutat Dimashq/Syria","bibliography":"Al-Dawudi, F., \"L’abricot est ses dérivés dans la région syrienne\", thesis on pharmacy and chemistry, 1960, Damascus (in Arabic).  \n  \nBianquis, A.-M., “Modernisation d'un artisanat traditionnel: la pâte d'abricot dans la ghouta de damas”, *Bulletin d'études orientales*, T. 56 (2004-2005): 301-328.  \n  \nDenker, J., \"'Moon of the Faith:' A History of the Apricot and Its Many Pleasures\", (14 June 2016).","author":"Hiba Bizreh","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Photographic negative"]},"ca84a358-0e08-5345-bc08-43570cf84e04":{"name":"*Women grinding corn in Sinai*","description":"Many of the most popular subjects of stereographs were of topographical views or of scenes unfamiliar to the western audience for whom they were generally produced. This group of Islamic women from Egypt's Sinai Peninsula is shown grinding corn. Their faces are hidden by veils. The veil turns away the gaze while at the same time attracting it. The secrecy of the veil prompted fascination for what was often seen as the mysterious and exotic world of the East or the 'Orient' to 19th-century western viewers. In contrast, the men in the background confront the camera.","type":"Stereograph; photograph","holder":"Victoria and Albert Museum","dates":"1869","location":"London","provenance":"Egypt, Sinai","author":"Victoria and Albert Museum"},"ca90aa20-6045-5b3e-a90f-eb2fa90c0be6":{"name":"Pitcher","description":"The rim is shaped like a rooster's head. In form, it has a thin long neck, vertical round handle, bulging wide body and ring bottom. The white paste is covered with blue glaze. The entire exterior surface is decorated with curly and wave motifs in dark brown paint on blue glaze.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Ankara Ethnography Museum","owner":"The Republic of Türkiye Ministry of Culture and Tourism","location":"Ankara","dimensions":"Height: 29cm, width: 22cm, depth: 15cm, Q: 8cm","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["Terracotta"]},"cbadcbe0-3272-59a1-a3b3-967703ee5993":{"name":"Alms Vessel","short_description":"Known as the Prophet’s *mudd* vessel, this bronze pot would collect and measure the alms given as charity by the people of Medina in Saudi Arabia. The cylindrical jar features the *basmala* or Muslim invocation and Qur’anic verses in *thuluth* and *naskh* script.  \n  \nCommissioned by the Naqib al-Ashraf, Mohamed Jamal Allah, the pot represents a replica of the original *mudd* vessel employed by Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) to gather and distribute charity money. Inhabitants of Saudi Arabia would quantify money using the Abbasid Islamic economic measure called *mudd*.  \n  \nWith *zakat* (charity) as one of the pillars of Islam, wealthy Muslims are obligated to donate alms. Muslims base the amount of *zakat* on a surplus of wealth, rather than one’s income, while a minimum amount prevents the application of this tax. This minimum amount called *nisab* akin to the modern-day minimum wage determines who should give and receive charity. *Zakat* meaning \"purity\" or \"purification\" enacts a reciprocal gift-giving exchange, where the recipient and charity-giver accept blessings from God.","type":"Religious relics","holder":"FBQ Museum","owner":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"19th century","location":"Shahaniya","dimensions":"Diameter: 12cm, Height: 11cm","method_for_datation":"The date and origin were established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, engraving, shape and calligraphy.","method_for_provenance":"The date and origin were established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, engraving, shape and calligraphy.","provenance":"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Medina","obtention":"Purchase","bibliography":"Aljabr, H., \"Weights and measures in the Hijaz during the Abbasid period 132-334H/749-945 A.D: An overview\", *Journal of Islamic Accounting and Business Research*, 11 : 7 (2020): 1417–1425.  \nKochuyt, T., \"God, Gifts and Poor People: On Charity in Islam\", *Social Compass*, 56 : 1 (2009): 98–116.","author":"Sarah Schroeder","copy_editor":"Janice Medina","keywords":["Alms","Medina","metalwork","Prophet Muhammed","Saudi Arabia"],"materials":["Bronze","Engraving"]},"cc2e6597-5498-5c64-94ac-0ecb6099dcdd":{"name":"Lustre bowl.","description":"The inner surface of the bowl is decorated with two patterns: symmetrical arabesques and bands of intertwining *kufic* calligraphy. Both motifs are framed within eight separate boxes, and the two patterns alternate with each other. Both are painted in golden brown lustre over a white glaze. The surrounding space is covered in dots or small entwining scrolls. The outer surface is decorated with hastily painted flutings and a braided band, over a light blue glaze. The bowl is one of the most important examples of Nasrid ceramics given its display of painstaking paintwork and the fact that the place where it was made is noted on its ring-base.","short_description":"The technique of lustre-ware pottery was introduced to al-Andalus from Egypt and outstanding quality was soon attained. This bowl with a design of geometrical and vegetal panels has an inscription on the foot stating that it was made in the Spanish city of Malaga.","type":"Bowl, ceramic","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art at the Pergamon Museum","initial_owner":"W. von Bode, F. Sarre.","dates":"Hegira mid-8th century / AD mid-14th century.","location":"Berlin","dimensions":"Height 8.5 cm, diameter 23 cm.","method_for_datation":"The production of lustre-ware in Andalusia began in the 6th / 12th century. In 750 / 1350, the Arab chronicler Ibn Battuta noted the production of ceramics in his writings on Malaga. This bowl is the only intact item by which the source may be verified. Overall the decoration also corresponds to other branches of the arts and crafts of that period, an example being the decorative patterns used in textiles.","method_for_provenance":"There is an inscription in cursive Arabic script on the bowl’s base stating that it was made in Malaqa (Málaga). Thus the bowl acts as an important marker for the identification and dating of the entire collection of Spanish lustre-ware from the same period.","provenance":"Malaga, Spain.","obtention":"A gift donated by Friedrich Sarre. The bowl was bought in 1901 in Italy by W. v. Bode and was given to Sarre as a gift, which he later donated to the museum.","bibliography":"*Islamische Keramik*, Catalogue, Düsseldorf, 1973, no. 470.  \nMartin, F. R. and Sarre, F. (eds.), *Die Ausstellung von Meisterwerken Muhammedanischer Kunst München 1910*, Munich, 1912, Vol. 2, no. 1610, pl. 117.  \n*Museum für Islamische Kunst Berlin*, Catalogue, Berlin, 1973–9, no. 342.  \nSarre, F., “Die Spanisch-Maurischen Lüsterfayencen und ihre Herstellung in Malaga”, *Jahrbuch der Preußischen Kunstsammlungen* 24, 1903, 103–30.  \n*Schätze der Alhambra: Islamische Kunst aus Andalusien*, Catalogue, Berlin, 1995, no. 122.","author":"Annette Hagedorn","translator":"Maria Vlotides","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["Andalusia","Luster","Malaga","Nasrid"],"materials":["Ceramic with lustre painting."]},"cd089341-0bb9-55f0-b578-8f53eb67a553":{"name":"*Woman with a Cat*","short_description":"During the rule of the Zand and Qajar dynasties in Iran (1750–1925), artists created paintings that combined both Persian and Western sensibilities. From Europe came the tradition of large-scale oil painting, while the subject matter of youthful beauty, patterned textiles, and court life was quintessentially Persian. Many of these works were arched at the top because they were originally intended for display in arched niches of buildings.","type":"Islamic, Indian & Southeast Asian works of art; painting","holder":"Shangri La, Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Art","dates":"Hegira late 12th century / AD late 18th century","location":"Honolulu, Hawai'i","dimensions":"Overall: 163.8 x 88.3 cm","provenance":"Iran","keywords":["Iran","painting","women","Zand dynasty"],"materials":["Oil on canvas"]},"ce05bc9c-4579-5b05-b81e-5aae5c270b67":{"name":"Pottery jar","description":"Although blue and white porcelains were described as vulgar by Chao Zaho (Chao Mingzhong) in his 1388 book about art and antiquities (the first book for connoisseurs) entitled *Gego yaolun* (The Essential Criteria of Antiques), these porcelains became more beloved and fashionable from their earliest appearance in Chinese and European markets. The first use of these two colours: blue (evoking the infinity of sea and sky) and white can be traced back to the Near and Middle East. They had a large impact on Chinese ceramics. Blue is also said to be effective against bad intentions. The pigments used for underglaze blue in Persia were lapis lazuli (*lajavard*) and cobalt, which was cheaper. The inside of the bowl is decorated with dynamic, loose floral motifs applied with sparse brushstrokes under the greyish-white glaze of the bowl on a small base. The rim is lined with blue.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani Museum","owner":"His Excellency Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","initial_owner":"Unknown","dates":"Hegira 13th century / AD 19th century","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Height: 4.5cm, diameter: 15cm, base diameter: 7cm","place_of_production":"Algeria","method_for_datation":"Analysis of techniques, style and motifs","method_for_provenance":"The origin of acqusitions","provenance":"Algeria","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Terézia Bardi","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Clay","Earthenware","Glaze","underglaze painting"]},"cf314a7e-b71e-5876-a94f-3e498400a91f":{"name":"Persian flask","short_description":"This elaborate flask dates from the late 16th century. Its wooden body is covered with a linen and chalk ground that was gilded and painted where we see lovers and musicians in a garden filled with flowers.","type":"Flask","holder":"Kunsthistorisches Museum","dates":"Hegira 10th century / AD 16th century","location":"Vienna","dimensions":"Height: 25.5cm, Width: 23.5cm, Depth: 12cm, Diameter at the neck: 2.3cm","method_for_datation":"Collection Ambras Castle","method_for_provenance":"Collection Ambras Castle","provenance":"Iran?","obtention":"Collection Ambras Castle, obtained in AD 1869","bibliography":"Gamber, Ortwin and Beaufort-Spontin, Christian, *Katalog der Leibrüstkammer II. Teil. Der Zeitraum von 1530-1560*, Busto Arsizio: Bramante, 1990.  \nThomas, Bruno, \"Aus der Waffensammlung in der Neuen Burg zu Wien: Orientalische Kostbarkeiten\", *Bustan*, 4 : 5 (1963/64).","author":"Matthias Pfaffenbichler","copy_editor":"Liz Cooper","keywords":["court life","Drinking flask","figurative decoration","flask","floral decoration","garden","music","poetry","receptacles","vessels"],"materials":["handle: silk and silver thread","Leather with chalk ground and gold leaf paint","wood painted to imitate leather"]},"cfa923e7-7677-5dde-b481-034397401b10":{"name":"Coffee Cup Set in Box","description":"A set of 12 blue-rimmed white porcelain coffee cups with silver holders in their original box, which is red outside and lined with blue fabric.","holder":"Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts","dates":"13th-14th century/AD 19th century","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"42cm x 18cm","materials":["fabric","metal","Porcelain","Silver","Wood"]},"d06f4d6a-a257-5324-a2d7-ce12318aa95d":{"name":"Dish.","description":"The deep pottery dish has a flat foliated rim and is decorated in underglaze cobalt-blue, bright turquoise, green, relief opaque red and black for the outlines. The centre of the dish shows a symmetrical design of two curving red dotted tulips and two smaller red flowers on stalks clasped together with a pointed, scalloped medallion between them. Small roses and other flowers springing from a leafy tuft fill the area underneath. The shape of the dish, with a foliated rim, and the stylised pattern of waves breaking on rocks on the rim are of Chinese origin. The latter developed into a popular Iznik design with a tendency to stylisation during the AH 10th / AD 16th century. The rocks and waves, originally painted in different colours, are both blue on this dish, a characteristic feature of later Iznik ware. The pointed, scalloped medallion developed in the courtly ateliers, used to decorate textiles or tiles, occurred on pottery from the AH 980s / AD 1580s. Vessels from the second half of the AH 10th / AD 16th century are mostly not imperial commissions, even if they show designs of the courtly ateliers. The potters, producing for the local market, created their own compositions by combining single elements of various styles and sources. On the back the dish is painted with four blue coloured tulips alternating with four rosettes on a white background. The transparent glaze on the back is slightly yellow coloured.","short_description":"Polychrome underglaze painted dish with a foliated rim. In the centre is a symmetrical design of flowers and a medallion. The single elements, originally designed in the courtly workshops, were combined in a pattern by the potters themselves. The wave and rock motif on the rim is of Chinese origin.","type":"Ottoman ceramics, glazed","holder":"Museum of Mediterranean and Near Eastern Antiquities (Medelhavsmuseet).","owner":"National Museum of Fine Arts, Stockholm. In order to reorganise the expanding collections, the main part of the Islamic collection has been on permanent loan to the Museum of Mediterranean and Near Eastern Antiquities since 1982.","dates":"Hegira late 10th–early 11th centuries / AD late 16th–early 17th centuries.","location":"Stockholm","dimensions":"Height 6 cm, diameter 30.5 cm.","method_for_datation":"The scalloped medallion as an element of decoration occurred on pottery from the 980s / 1580s.","method_for_provenance":"The floral decoration and the shape are both specific to Iznik ceramics.","provenance":"Iznik, Turkey.","obtention":"Purchased with government funds from the collection of F. R. Martin.","bibliography":"Atasoy, N. and Raby, J., *Iznik*: *The Pottery of Ottoman Turkey*, London, 1989.  \nCarswell, J., *Iznik Pottery*. London, 1998.  \nMüller-Wiener, M., *Türkisch-Osmanische Keramik*, Traunstein, 2004.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_TR_EN_001","author":"Friederike Voigt","copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["Dish","floral decoration","Ottoman ceramic","Plate","pottery"],"materials":["Ceramic","painted and glazed."]},"d1fc6e82-6e79-5203-89e4-cd774dcda7fd":{"name":"Pertevniyal Valide Sultan Mosque Complex.","description":"The complex, which comprises several buildings around a central mosque (*külliye*), was commissioned by Pertevniyal Valide Sultan and consists of a mosque, a tomb, a *sabil*, a public fountain, a clock-room where timepieces for calculating prayer times accurately on a daily basis were kept, a library, and a theological school (*madrasa*). The mosque is a single-domed, square prayer hall, following the traditional plan. In front of its strongly vertical mass is an additional two-storey building that comprises the portico for latecomers, men's and women's areas, the sultan's loge and various rooms. Attached to this additional building, separate from the main body of the mosque, are two minarets, each with a single balcony. The square prayer hall measures 10 m x 10 m and is extended with arches on four sides. The mosque's east, west and south façades are all emphasised with turrets and the outward projections of their central sections are each crowned with a triangular pediment. Each section has two rows of three windows. The dome, separated from the walls and brought inward, is supported on a high, 12-sided drum.  \nThe Pertevniyal Valide Sultan Mosque is noteworthy for the density and variety of its decoration. The projecting central sections of the façades and the windows on the drum of the dome are executed in the Gothic style. The design of triple blind niches above the windows, for instance, borrow elements from Ottoman decorative art, while their location recalls examples from North African and Andalusian architecture. The blind niches, as well as the decorative compositions of arabesques and palmettes on the façades, are, like the *muqarnas*, elements borrowed from Classical Ottoman art. The corner turrets, each of which terminates in a lobed onion-dome reminiscent of Indian architecture, are decorated with niches containing *muqarnas,* again borrowed from Classical Ottoman architecture, as well as the simple blind niches and various geometric motifs.  \nThe interior space, like the façades, is densely decorated. Ottoman motifs are used in painted decoration (*kalemişi*) in which blue dominates. A cornice with *muqarnas* surrounds the upper section of the lower row of windows. On the surfaces of the walls, as on the façades, classical Ottoman elements are found including blind niches, *muqarnas*, arch motifs, arabesques, and Chinese-inspired floral ornament. The marble *mihrab* and *minbar* are plain.  \nThe building, which reflects the stylistic characteristics and innovations of the period of its construction, was built in an eclectic style with a strongly Oriental inclination.  \nThe simultaneous use in the Pertevniyal Valide Sultan Mosque of different elements from several styles and disciplines, such as Gothic, Ottoman, and Indian architecture and decorative arts, illustrates the influence of this eclectic viewpoint, which was widespread throughout Europe in this period.  \nThe *madrasa* built by order of Pertevniyal Valide Sultan burned down in AH 1328 / AD 1911, while the tomb, *sabil* and clock room were removed during the renovation of Aksaray Square and surroundings in 1956–9. Following various works to the roads in the area the mosque remained below the level of the street, while parts of the tomb were taken to the graveyard (*hazire*) adjoining the tomb of Sultan Selim III. Later, the tomb of Pertevniyal Valide Sultan was rebuilt in the complex courtyard using original parts of her tomb that had been dismantled, taken to the *hazire,* brought back to the courtyard and remounted. Her body was removed first to the Topkapı Palace, then to the tomb of Sultan Mahmud II, and then returned to her own tomb, where it remains today.","short_description":"The complex was built by Pertevniyal Valide Sultan, wife of Sultan Mahmud II and mother of Sultan Abdülaziz, who was known for her charitable works. It comprises a mosque, a mausoleum, a *sabil* (water dispensary), a fountain, a clock-room and a school. The mosque reflects the characteristics of its period. The square prayer hall covered with a dome is extended with a wide arch to four sides. Mainly Oriental in style, the mosque is lavishly decorated. It was built with an eclectic taste bringing together elements from Gothic, Ottoman, Islamic and Indian arts.","dates":"Hegira 1288 / AD 1871.","location":"Aksaray, Istanbul","method_for_datation":"According to the inscription above the gate to the courtyard, construction was completed in 1288 / 1871. Some documents indicate that the foundations were laid in ceremonies in Sha'ban 1285 / November 1869 and that construction took three years.","bibliography":"Batur, A., “Valide Camii \\[The Valide Mosque\\]”, *İstanbul Ansiklopedisi \\[Encyclopaedia of Istanbul\\]*, Vol. 7, 1994, pp.360–2.  \nEyice, S., “İstanbul'un Tarihi Eserleri \\[Historical Monuments of Istanbul\\]”, *İslam Ansiklopedisi \\[Encyclopaedia of Islam\\]*, Vol. 5/2, pp.1214–63.  \nOkçuoğlu, T., “Pertevniyal Valide Sultan Türbesi \\[The Tomb of Pertevniyal Valide Sultan\\]”, *İstanbul Ansiklopedisi \\[Encyclopaedia of Istanbul\\]*, Vol. 6, 1994, p.246.  \nöz, T., *İstanbul Camileri \\[The Mosques of Istanbul\\]*, Vol. I, Ankara, 1962.  \nSaner, T., *19\\. Yüzyıl Osmanlı Mimarlığında “Oryantalizm” \\[“Orientalism” in 19th-Century Ottoman Architecture\\]*, Istanbul, 1988.","patrons":"Pertevniyal Valide Sultan (the mother of Sultan Abdülaziz, d. AH 1301 / AD 1883).","architects":"There are different opinions regarding the identity of the architect. Some researchers think it was the Italian architect Montani Effendi, while others believe the architect was Sarkis Balyan. It has also been suggested that Agop Balyan participated in the design, and that the designer Osep assisted with construction.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_TR_EN_001","author":"İnci Kuyulu Ersoy","translator":"Barry Wood","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["Gothic","Mosque","orientalism","religious architecture","Women patrons"]},"d23ab450-22c3-5cba-b10f-0719d1398789":{"name":"Mirror box","short_description":"The mirror box is signed with the characteristic formula \"*kamtarin muḥammad baqir*\" (the most humble Muhammad Baqir) and dated Hegira 1174 (AD 1760/61). Muhammad Baqir is one of the most famous Persian artists in the 18th century. He was the pupil of Muhammad ʿAli Ashraf (active Hegira 1134-1190 / AD 1722-1777) and worked in the 1750s on the borders of the so-called St. Petersburg album. Without doubt, this mirror box is one of his early independent lacquer works.  \n  \nMuhammad Baqir's oeuvre comprises border paintings for albums, single-leaf drawings and lacquer works. A striking feature of his art is his fascination in works by such renowned late Safavid artists as Muhammad Zaman (active Hegira ca, 1072-1105 / AD ca. 1662-1694) and ʿAliquli Jabadar (active Hegira 1059-1086 / AD 1649-1675) whose work he either copied or used as inspiration for his own creations. This is also the case with the three figurative panels of this mirror box. Thus, the half-naked bathing woman with a red towel sitting on a small rock can be compared to Muhammad Zaman's illustration of the bathing Shirin in a *Khamsa* from 1674/75.","type":"Pencase","holder":"Museum Rietberg","initial_owner":"Elsa Mäder","dates":"Hegira 1174 / AD 1760/61","location":"Zurich","dimensions":"Length: 17.1cm, Width: 11.6cm, Height: 1.5cm","method_for_datation":"The artist signed and dated his work.","method_for_provenance":"Old museum inventory","provenance":"Iran","obtention":"Gift of Elsa Mäder","bibliography":"Ivanov, Anatoly, “The Compiling and Decoration of the Album”, in Francesca von Habsburg and Elena Kostioukovitch (eds), *The St. Petersburg Muraqqaʿ: Album of Indian and Persian Miniatures from the 16th through the 18th Century and Specimens of Persian Calligraphy by ʿImad al-Hasani*, Lugano/Milan: ARCH Foundation and Leonardo Arte, 1996: 19-32.  \nMaury, Charlotte, and Guillaume, Carol, with a contribution by Alavi, Aida “A First Overview of Golestan 1644: Album Making, Connoisseurship and the Painter Muhammad Baqir”, in Melanie Gibson and Gwenaëlle Fellinger (eds), *Revealing the Unseen: New Perspectives on Qajar Art*, Berkeley: Gingko Press, 2022: 16-41.","author":"Axel Langer","copy_editor":"Jonathan Turnbull","materials":["lacquer","metal","Opaque watercolour","Papier maché"]},"d364400e-08ec-5cf3-9810-eaa259a97ddd":{"name":"Pitcher","description":"This ceramic pitcher has a handle, a straight cylindrical neck and a ring base. It is dark blue and turquoise under a transparent glaze. There is an inscription border around the rim. The neck is decorated with vertical lines, and the shoulder has dark blue motifs on a turquoise ground. The body is covered with a geometric design of hexagons.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts","dates":"AH end of 5th–end 7th century/ AD 12th–13th centuries","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"Height 27.5, base diameter: 8.5cm","materials":["Ceramic"]},"d3c49832-be80-5864-92b1-0536f5ce79f7":{"name":"*Tawa* (Roasting pan)","description":"*Tawa* (roasting pan) used to roast coffee beans.  \nCoffee is always served at the beginning of a visit and is repeatedly offered until guests politely signal that they have had enough by rocking their cup from side to side. In order to keep coffee hot and fresh for unexpected guests it goes through many stages. After roasting and grinding the coffee beans the grains are added to boiling water inside a large *dallah* (coffee pot) called a *khamra*. Next, the liquid is poured into a medium-sized coffee pot called a *taljeemah*. At this stage cardamom seeds, saffron and rose water may be added for flavour. From this jug, the coffee is poured into a serving dallah referred to as a mezallah, where the coffee is refined and filtered. The server must hold the *mezallah* with their left hand and distribute the fanayeel (coffee cups) using the right hand. The coffee should fill less than half of the cup.","type":"Pan","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century / AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Length: 450mm, diameter: 200mm, depth: 45mm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","method_for_provenance":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Amanda Snyder","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["coffee","coffee beans","pan","roasting pan"],"materials":["Iron"]},"d5d23f2f-61a6-5999-8a66-d5d4b3d9da12":{"name":"*Saroud (palm mat)*","description":"*Saroud* (palm mat)  \nThe mat is formed by braiding nine to 11 palm leaves together to form a flat strip. The strips are sewn together to form a circular flat mat.","type":"Mat","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century/AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Diameter: 510mm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis.  \nCurrent traditional practice","method_for_provenance":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Amanda Snyder","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["Food mat"],"materials":["dye","Palm"]},"d6aabbc5-689a-572b-bc5c-97c69c34d4f6":{"name":"Mina'I bowl","short_description":"A typically round bowl sitting on a short circular foot. The interior is decorated with pairs of seated figures dressed in brightly coloured clothes separated by small pointed cypress trees with a man on horseback in the centre. Below the rim on the inside is a calligraphic band whilst on the exterior is a red and blue decoration.","type":"Bowl","holder":"Sharjah Museum of Islamic Civilization","dates":"Late 6th-early 7th century AH / Late 12th-early 13th century AD","location":"Sharjah","dimensions":"Height: 7.5cm, Diameter: 17.1cm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","method_for_provenance":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Kashan, Iran","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Hazelle Page","materials":["Ceramic","enamelled paint","Mina'i ware"]},"d8e1d81f-2112-5652-987b-f417b3f15ad1":{"name":"Scalloped ewer","description":"This pitcher with gadrooned (scalloped) body is used to rinse the hands and face of a guest who has arrived at a host’s residence. The shape of the object is well known in Türkiye and India; it was also reproduced in ceramics.  \nThe mark of the owner is visible in two places: under the spout, in an almond cartouche, and again in a hexagon whose sides are extended by a three-lobed floret.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","owner":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","dates":"Hegira 11th century / AD 17th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 31.5cm, l. 28cm, Diameter: 17.5cm, Minimum diameter: 12cm","provenance":"Iran or India","obtention":"Purchased at auction on advice of Ader-Picard-Tajan, 1990.","bibliography":"Delpont, E., et al., *Album du musée*, Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, 2012: 387.  \n  \nLane, A., *Later Islamic Pottery: Persia, Syria, Egypt, Turkey*, London: Faber and Faber, 1971: Fig. 94.  \n  \nMelikian-Chirvani, A.S., *Le bronze iranien*, Paris: Musée des Arts Décoratifs, 1973: 105.  \n  \nSkelton, R., et al., *Facets of Indian Art. A symposium Held at the Victoria and Albert Museum on 26, 27, 28 April and I May 1986*, London: Victoria and Albert Museum, 1986: 253-259.  \n  \nZebrowski, M., \"The Indian Ewer\", in *Facets of Indian Art*, London: Victoria and Albert Museum, 1986: 256, Fig. 8.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["Bronze","cast","chiseled","engraved"]},"d9cffa1d-0e9d-59ee-a8f9-0f2a12a3c7dd":{"name":"Dish serving for dried fruits or nuts","description":"Sultan Abdülhamid II founded in 1891 the *Yıldız Çini Fabrika-i Hümâyûnu* (Yıldız Royal Tile Factory) in the garden of Yıldız Palace in order to revive Turkish tile art and give it a new direction and momentum. Vases, hanging wall plates and many sorts of daily-use wares were produced in the factory, including writing and dinner table utensils, card plates, lidded bowls, pans, *aşure* (a kind of dessert) trays, sugar bowls, tea and coffee cups. Many native and foreign artists have worked in the tile factory of Yıldız. One of them, Halid Naci received training in tile painting in Sevres, France after his education at the *Sanayi-i Nefise Mektebi* (School of Fine Arts) and he was assigned to be head painter of the tile factories after his return.","type":"Ceramic plate","holder":"Yıldız Palace Museum","location":"Istanbul","provenance":"Istanbul","copy_editor":"Daniel de la Vega"},"da76c25e-e703-5257-a4cf-5bf924f5d270":{"name":"Ewer and dish","short_description":"Veneto Saracenic refers to a large group of 15th and 16th century metal ware, primarily in European collections. It is attributed to Muslims artists working in Venice. Such ware is domestic in nature and includes bowls, spherical incense burner and candlesticks. They are made of bronze or brass and are usually inlaid with geometric or arabesque motifs in silver, with occasional traces of gold and frequent additions of a black compound.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Islamic Arts Museum Malaysia","dates":"c. Hegira 900-1000 / c. AD 1500-1600","location":"Kuala Lumpur","dimensions":"Height: Dish: 5.5cm, Ewer: 30.5cm; Diameter: Dish: 45.3cm, Ewer: 19.5cm","provenance":"Veneto Saracenic","bibliography":"Islamic Arts Museum Malaysia, *IAMM Guide Book*, Kuala Lumpur: IAMM Publications, 2014: 17.  \nIslamic Arts Museum Malaysia, *Beyond Orientalism: How The West Was Won Over By Islamic Art*, Kuala Lumpur: IAMM Publications, 2014: 180.  \n*Islamic Arts Museum Malaysia*, Volume 2, Kuala Lumpur: IAMM Publications, 2015: 182-183.","materials":["Hammered and engraved gilt brass"]},"dba5d352-7562-5547-8859-795834833d9c":{"name":"Wikala (*caravanserai*) of al-Ghuri.","description":"There are a number of *wikala*s or *caravanserai*s in Cairo that date back to the Mamluk and Ottoman periods. *Wikala*s were international centres of commerce between countries and regions, and this fact necessitated the presence of sleeping accommodation for merchants and their clients from all over the world who might stay in Cairo for a period of time. The Wikala of al-Ghuri is distinguished from others of its kind in Cairo by the fact that most of its architectural constituents are preserved. Today this *wikala* is considered to be an on-site museum for the art of *mashrabiyya*, as it boasts 29 of the finest examples of these turned-wood lattice window-screens, which form a basic component, beside stone, in the architectural design of the building. The *wikala*, in fact, offers a rare example of Mamluk *mashrabiyya* within the context of the building for which they were made.  \nThe principal façade of the building is on the north overlooking the street, and contains nine *mashrabiyya*s. The entrance, crowned by a tri-lobed arch, leads to a straight passageway which opens directly onto the rectangular open courtyard of the *wikala*, in the midst of which is a marble fountain. This arrangement was aimed at attracting customers, as much as it was to facilitate the easy transportation of goods to and from the storage areas of the *caravanserai*.  \nThere are four stories that overlook the courtyard of the *caravanserai*. Each of the two lower floors hold more than 20 rooms covered with stone vaulted ceilings; these were used as storage areas for the traders who resided at the *caravanserai*. These rooms overlook the courtyard by way of colonnades, characterised by pointed arches supported by stone piers. The upper two stories were designed as residential units, each consisting of two floors. In between the two floors there is a hidden level containing the kitchens and storage areas. The facades of these units overlook the courtyard by means of a splendid group of *mashrabiyya* that project from the walls and which are supported by wooden brackets. In the lower part of the *mashrabiyya* are two rows of windows, furnished with wooden screens that have movable covers (or flaps) opening upwards, thus allowing those who are within the rooms to see the courtyard without anyone seeing them in the upper stories. By this means, the design of the *caravanserai* accomplished friendly contact and closer intimacy between its residents from different countries and regions, while also ensuring their privacy, as each apartment was separated both vertically and horizontally from the next.  \nThe Ministry of Culture has recently transformed the building into a centre for the conservation of traditional handicrafts, especially the art of wood-turning and stucco coloured glass. The centre also houses the ateliers of modern artists, whose presence together with the other craftsmen, assists in the efforts of continuity and preservation at the site, and of the artistic and cultural welding between the traditional and modern.","short_description":"This *wikala* is an intact example of the caravanserais that spread through Cairo in the Mamluk period, when trade with the outside world reached its peak. It comprises residential quarters for travellers and merchants, storerooms and an open courtyard, where transactions took place. Its most outstanding feature is a wonderful group of windows covered with turned wood *mashrabiyya* (screens) overlooking the courtyard and the façade.","dates":"Hegira 909–10 / AD 1503–5.","location":"Cairo","method_for_datation":"Dating of the building is supported by historical sources such as *Kitab al-Nujum al-Zahira*, by Ibn Taghri Bardi. A study of its architectural constituents and decoration such as the *mashrabiyya* also helped in dating it.","bibliography":"Al-Pasha, H., *Madkhal ila al-Athar al-Islamiya \\[An Introduction to Islamic Monuments\\],* Cairo, 1979.  \nAbu al-Mahasin, *Jamal al-Din Yusuf ibn Taghri Bardi al-Atabki* (d. 874 / 1469), *al-Nujum al-Zahira fi Muluk Misr wa al-Qahira \\[Shining Stars in the Rulers of Egypt and Cairo\\],* Cairo, 1939; reprinted 1956.  \nWilliams, C., *Islamic Monuments in Cairo: The Practical Guide,* Cairo, 2002.  \nZaki, Abd al-Rahman, *Al-Azhar wa ma hawlahu min al-Athar \\[Al-Azhar and the Surrounding Monuments\\],* Cairo, 1970.","patrons":"Sultan Qansuh al-Ghuri (r. AH 906–22 / AD 1501–16).","linkcatalogs":"IAM_EG_EN_001","author":"Tarek Torky","copy_editor":"Majd Musa","translator":"Amal Sachedina (from the Arabic).","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["caravanserai","civil architecture","Mashrabiyya","trade","turned woodwork","wikala."]},"dbe5d877-10e6-5723-8ea6-cd192909e5b0":{"name":"Tile panel in the form of a fireplace surround","short_description":"Islamic art may often operate on two visual levels: surface impressions and detailed study. A quick peruser may find pleasure from a work of art's bold colors and designs, but those who take the time to look more closely will be amply rewarded. In this tile, shaped to surround a small fireplace, dancing and acrobatic female entertainers, kings in repose who drink wine from small glasses, quietly seated aged advisors, thoughtful soldiers, and busy musicians fill the composition.","type":"Islamic, Indian & Southeast Asian works of art; Tilework; ceramic","holder":"Shangri La, Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Art","dates":"Hegira 13th century / AD 19th century","location":"Honolulu, Hawai'i","dimensions":"Overall: 208.3 x 329.6 cm","provenance":"Iran","keywords":["architectural decoration","court life","fireplace surround","Iran","music","musician","Qajar","stonepaste","Tile panel","tilework","underglaze-painted"],"materials":["Stonepaste","underglaze-painted"]},"dc123c01-a94a-53ca-b79e-5fb7aeb83571":{"name":"Vat","description":"Globular vat with a conical base, a flaring neck, a flanged rim and winged handles. The paste is whitish and unglazed. Its decoration consists of a stamped, alternating series of lozenges and eulogetic epigraphy arranged in perimeter friezes.  \n  \nA common feature of Andalusian homes, these large earthenware vats were strategically placed in the courtyards or in interior rooms to preserve goods such as oil, cereals, or water, as well as to store domestic objects. In this case, the porous nature of the unglazed clay suggests that this example functioned specifically as a water vat, as it would have filtered and cooled the water, keeping it clean and fresh.  \n  \nBeyond their practical function, some vats had also an aesthetic value, as can be seen in the stamped decoration or glazing. Decorations included epigraphic motifs invoked to protect the vats' contents. The production and use of these vats continued after the Castilian conquest.","type":"Vat","holder":"National Archaeological Museum","initial_owner":"Unknown","dates":"Hegira 7th century / AD 13th century","location":"Madrid","dimensions":"Height: 68cm, maximum diameter: 203cm, mouth diameter: 34cm, base diameter: 18cm","place_of_production":"Al-Andalus","method_for_datation":"Archaeological and art-historical studies have established certain formal features that allow us to date the piece to the 7th–8th century Hegira / 13th–14th century AD. The globular body and stamped decoration are particularly present in the Almohad world, evolving towards more stylised forms, with more pronounced winged handles.","provenance":"Seville","obtention":"In the Museum's collection before 1980.","bibliography":"Aguado Villalba, J., *Tinajas medievales españolas: islámicas y mudéjares*, Toledo: Instituto Provincial de Investigaciones y Estudios Toledanos. Provincial council, 1991: 48, fig. 23.  \n  \nFernández López, M. Á., “El ajuar cerámico andalusí de almacenamiento de agua en la región de Murcia”, in L. Cara Barrionuevo (ed), *El agua en zonas áridas. Arqueología e historia. Hidráulica tradicional de la provincia de Almería*, Instituto de Estudios Almerienses, 1989: 199-225.  \n  \nFranco Mata, M. Á., “Antigüedades cristianas de los siglos VIII al XV», in L. Balmaseda et al. (eds), *Edad Media: salas XXIV-XXXV*, general guide. Museo Arqueológico Nacional, Madrid: Ministerio de Cultura, 1992: 75-111.  \n  \nNavarro Palazón, J. (ed.), *Casas y palacios en Al-Andalus: siglos XII-XIII*, Madrid: Lunweg, 1995.","author":"Helena Lahoz Kopiske","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","keywords":["Conservation","Household goods","Prophylactic practices","Technology","water"],"materials":["Ceramic","firing","modelling","stamping"]},"ddfbe2bf-75cf-508a-af85-5d9ab86020a7":{"name":"Enamelled flask","short_description":"The finely decorated flask has a tall neck decorated with a fleur-de-lis band with enamel highlights, a plaited guilloche band and a row of male standing figures wearing church vestments. Two of the figures hold open books, perhaps missals. The body bears a band of seated figures, drinkers and musicians. Between the figures are beakers, a wine flask or footed dishes. On the shoulders of the flask rosettes alternate with large birds, evidently pelicans – in medieval Western Europe a symbol of Christ and the institution of the Eucharist.  \nThe robbed figures and the pelicans may suggest that the flask was ordered for a European, perhaps a pilgrim, as a memento of a visit to the Holy Land or as a gift to a Christian church or monastery.  \nThe flask is a superb specimen of the skills of Ayyubid glassworkers. The application of enamel to the glass indicates that this flask was made at an early stage in the development of enamelling, which would be consistent with an Ayyubid date.","type":"Flask; glass; enamel","holder":"Khalili Family Trust – Nasser D. Khalili Collection of Islamic Art","dates":"AD mid-13th century","location":"London","dimensions":"34.5 x 17.2cm","method_for_datation":"Date and provenance are based on the shape of the bottle and on stylistic comparisons with objects in glass and other media.","provenance":"Syria","bibliography":"Goldstein, S.M., *et al.*, *Glass. From Sasanian Antecedents to European Imitations*, London: The Nasser D Khalili Collection of Islamic Art, volume 15, 2005: cat.308, pp.282–3.  \nRogers, J.M., *The Arts of Islam. Masterpieces from the Khalili Collection*, London: Thames & Hudson, 2010: no.154, pp.128–9.","keywords":["Ayyubid","Christian themes","Enamel","gilding","glass","Syria"],"materials":["blown","Brownish glass","tooled and decorated with polychrome enamels and gilding"]},"ded7dbe8-bac2-5eb8-a10a-58b0b930b749":{"name":"Bektashi Dining Table","description":"The inscription indicates that the Aş Evi section, the most significant of the twelve houses in Bektashism, was constructed in 1560 by relatives of Malkoç Bali Bey, the Governor of Silistre, in his honor.  \nThe Aş Evi section, which is an independent building where the meals of the lodge are prepared, contains a room that is used by the Aş Evi Babası as a daily sitting room. In this room, he watches the kitchen work and decides on the meals to be prepared that day. It contains karakazan and halife boilers and kitchen utensils.  \nThe meals prepared in the Aş Evi were made available to the employees of the Dervish lodge and guests, as well as to the poor and the needy.","holder":"Nevşehir Hacıbektaş Museum","location":"Konya","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda"},"df34e2f3-4b74-586f-9068-15107f458dd8":{"name":"Lidded bowl (*sahan*)","description":"Small rounded lidded bowl – *sahan* (Ar. *sân*) – with lobed rim, for keeping and serving food. The lid is bell-shaped, with a small brass lifting handle on the top. The bowl is decorated with an abstract geometric pattern, while lid's decorations are in the forms of flower petals with leafy branches within.","type":"Tableware","holder":"Museum of Applied Art","initial_owner":"Painter and collector Ljuba Ivanović","dates":"Hegira late 13th century / AD late 19th century","location":"Belgrade","dimensions":"Height: 115mm, length: 147mm, weight: 180g","place_of_production":"Kingdom of Serbia","method_for_datation":"By stylistic and comparative analysis with related material.","obtention":"Purchased in 1951.","author":"Mila Gajić","keywords":["Copper","lidded bowl","Ottoman Balkans","sahan","sân","Tableware"],"materials":["copper","Cutting","hammering","tinned"]},"df4709cd-ab73-5f8f-9d79-ecac52cd3487":{"name":"Damascus Room","short_description":"The Damascus Room is a residential winter reception chamber (*qa‘a*) typical of the late Ottoman period. Among the earliest extant, nearly complete interiors of its kind, the room’s large scale and refined decoration suggest that it was part of the house of an affluent family. Poetry inscribed on the walls indicates that the patron was Muslim and possibly a member of the religious elite who claimed descent from the Prophet Muhammad. Because wealthy homeowners periodically refurbished reception rooms in accordance with shifting trends, Damascene houses and their interiors rarely date to a single building phase. Although an inscription dates most of the woodwork to 1707, alterations were made to the room in subsequent years.","type":"Reproductions","holder":"The Metropolitan Museum of Art","dates":"Dated Hegira 1119 / AD 1707","location":"New York","dimensions":"H: 671.6cm, W: 509.2cm, D: 804.2cm [from inside front entrance to back wall]","provenance":"Damascus, Syria","obtention":"Gift of The Hagop Kevorkian Fund, 1970  \nFormer owner \\[dealer\\]: \\[Asfar and Sarkis, Damascus, Syria, until early 1930s; sold to Kevorkian\\]  \nFormer owner: Hagop Kevorkian, New York (early 1930s–d. 1962)  \nFormer owner: Kevorkian Foundation, New York (1962–70; gifted to MMA)","bibliography":"Burn, Barbara (ed), *Masterpieces of the Metropolitan Museum of Art*, New York/Boston: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1993: 90-91, ill. (colour).  \nCampbell, Thomas P. (ed), *The Metropolitan Museum of Art Guide*, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2012: 142-143, ill. (colour).  \nDaskalakis-Matthews, Annie Christine, \"Pearls from Water Rubies from Stone: Studies in Islamic Art in Honor of Priscilla Soucek,\" in Linda Komaroff and Jaclynne Kerner (eds), *Artibus Asiae, Vol. 66/2. Festschriften*, Zurich: Artibus Asiae Publishers, 2006: 69-96, ill. figs. 19, 20, 24. Mamluk Elements in the Damascene Decorative System of the 18th and 19th centuries by Annie-Christine Daskalakis-Mathews.  \nEkhtiar, Maryam, Canby, Shelia R., Haidar, Navina and Soucek, Priscilla P. (eds), *Masterpieces from the Department of Islamic Art in The Metropolitan Museum of Art*, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2011: no. 238, 7,13, 14, 333-337, ill. 335 (colour).  \nEkhtiar, Maryam and Moore, Claire (ed), *Art of the Islamic World. A Resource for Educators*, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2012: 186-187, ill. pl. 38 (colour).  \nEttinghausen, Richard, \"Islamic Art\", *Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin*, 33/1 (Spring 1975): ill. 40-1 (colour).  \nde Montebello, Philippe and Howard, Kathleen (ed), The Metropolitan Museum of Art Guide, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1992: 327, ill. fig. 37 (colour).  \nPeck, Amelia and Daskalakis-Mathews, Annie-Christine, *Period Rooms in the Metropolitan Museum of Art*, New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1996: 287–95, ill.  \nSwietochowski, Marie and Jenkins-Madina, Marilyn, *Notable Acquisitions 1965–1975*, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1975: 141, ill. (b/w).  \nWelch, Stuart Cary, *The Islamic World. Vol. 11*, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1987: 126-127, ill. fig. 97 (colour).","copyright":"The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Gift of The Hagop Kevorkian Fund, 1970","keywords":["Ajami room","Aleppo room","Arabic inscription","architectural decoration","brass","calligraphy","carpentry","ceramic tiles","Damascus room","domestic furnishing","fountain","geometric decoration","geometric patterns","gold","gold leaf","interior ornament","marble","metalwork","Mother-of-pearl","Ottoman architecture","painted wooden wall paneling","stucco","Syrian tiles","wood paneling"],"materials":["and mulberry)","brass","glazes and paint","gold and tin leaf","Iron","marble and other stones","mother-of-pearl","plaster ceramic tiles","Poplar","stucco with glass","wood (cypress","Wood (poplar) with gesso relief"]},"df86393e-c508-5ae4-9acc-14d37c1a879f":{"name":"Coin (*dinar*).","description":"A gold coin worth a *dinar*. Inscriptions in *kufic* script appear on the obverse and on the reverse. The centre, obverse, holds a five-line inscription that reads: 'To God / Muhammad / Prophet / of God / Sanctioned by God'. The margin, obverse, bears a circular inscription that reads: 'Muhammad, the Prophet of God. It is he who has sent his messenger with guidance and the religion of truth to prevail it over all religion even though it is hated by the pagans'. On the reverse, the coin bears at its centre four lines of inscription that reads: 'There is no God except / the One God / Who has no Partners / Authorised by God'. On the outer margin, reverse, there is a circular Qur'anic inscription (Chapter 30, 'Romans', verses 4 and 5): 'With Allah is the Decision in the Past and in the Future. On that day will the Believers rejoice with the help of God'. Along the interior margin, reverse, a circular inscription states: 'In the name of God this coin was struck in Egypt the year 268 AH' (AD 881).  \nWhen Ahmad ibn Tulun ruled as Governor of Egypt (r. AH 254–70 / AD 868–84), he aimed toward the unity of the Islamic provinces, and in AH 266 / AD 880 was able to establish a large Islamic State. Due to the fact that numismatics was the most important insignia of authority and dominion, he undertook the enterprise of minting coinage in his name in order to affirm his power over the State. The Abbasid coinage, which was struck in the name of the Abbasid caliphs, was in circulation in Egypt at the time of the establishment of the Tulunid state. This type of coinage continued in use in the period of Ibn Tulun where Arabic inscriptions and the name of the contemporary Abbasid caliph appeared on the reverse of the coin. In view of the fact that Ibn Tulun did not contest the legitimacy of the Abbasid caliphate, the name of Ahmad ibn Tulun was included under the name of the Abbasid caliph.  \nIbn Tulun was instrumental in purifying gold and raising the standard measure of the Ahmadi *dinar* to the point where it was accepted as the basis of transactions to the exclusion of all other currencies. Likewise, the Ahmadi *dinar* continued to be the model that other currencies followed. No alterations occurred subsequently in later caliphates to its standard measure or its inscriptions except for the substitution of the names of the contemporary Abbasid caliph and Tulunid ruler.","short_description":"Coin minting as a sign of power and sovereignty was practised under the Muslim caliphs and sultans, who put their names on the coins. This piece bears the name of the Abbasid caliph and under it we find the name of Ahmad ibn Tulun, the ruler of Egypt.","type":"Coin, dinar, gold","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art","dates":"Hegira 3rd century / AD 9th century.","location":"Cairo","dimensions":"Diameter 1.2 cm, weight 3.45 g.","method_for_datation":"The coin has a date engraved on the reverse: 'In the name of God this coin was struck in Egypt the year 268' (881).","method_for_provenance":"Egypt has been narrowed down as the city where the coin was minted in view of the fact that Egypt is named as the place where the coin was struck.","provenance":"Egypt.","obtention":"The coin was bought in 1961 from an antiquities dealer in Alexandria, Bouy Obeer.","bibliography":"Fahmi, Abd al-Rahman, *Al-Nukud al-Arabiya: Madiha wa Hadiruha \\[Arab Currency: Its Past and Present\\],* Cairo, 1964.  \nFahmi, Abd al-Rahman, *Fajr al-Saka al-Arabiya: Mawsua' al-Nukud al-Arabiya wa 'ilm al-Numiyat \\[The Beginnings of Arabic Minting: An Encyclopaedia of Arabic Currency and the Science of Numismatics\\],* Cairo, 1965.  \nAl-Maqrizi, Taqi al-Din Abi al-Abbas Ahmad ibn Ali (d. 845 / 1442), *Al-mawā'iz wa'l-i'tibār bi-dhikr al-khiţaţ wa'l-āthār \\[Exhortations and Contemplation of the Recollection of Plans and Monuments\\],* Vol. 3*,* Cairo, Egypt, 1853.  \nMarzuq, Muhammad Abd al-Aziz, *Al-Funun al-Zukhrufiya al-Islamiya fi Masr qabl 'asr al-Fatimiyyin \\[Islamic Decorative Arts in Egypt before the Fatimids\\],* Cairo, 1974.  \nYasin, Abd al-Nasir, *Al-Funun al-Zukhrufiya al-Islamiya fi Masr mundu al-Fath al-'Arabi hatta nihayat al-'Asr al-Fatimi – Dirasa Athariya lil Ta'thirat al-Faniya al-Wafida \\[Islamic Decorative Arts in Egypt from the Islamic Conquest until the End of the Fatimid Period – An Archaeological Study on Outside Artistic Influences\\],* Alexandria, 2002.","author":"Al-Sayyed Muhammad Khalifa Hammad","copy_editor":"Majd Musa","translator":"Amal Sachedina (from the Arabic).","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["Coin","Coinage","Currency","Dinar","gold","kufic script","numismatics"],"materials":["Gold cast in a mould."]},"e01c5dee-ecbd-5793-a4c3-93b23100ee13":{"name":"Bowl.","description":"A large conical bowl with an upturned rim that is made of tin-glazed earthenware and decorated with lustre. The exterior of the bowl is ornamented with abstract tree-like motifs, while the interior features a spectacular image of a large sailing ship that is complete with multiple masts and riggings, fore and aft decks, flags, and a rudder. Below the ship, four large fish swim back and forth; around it, tightly wound curlicues and other abstract motifs fill the surface of the bowl. The ship’s sail bears a motif which has been interpreted as the arms of Portugal, possibly indicating that the bowl was commissioned by a wealthy Portuguese merchant. This, plus the fact that the most important centre of Spanish lustre production in the 9th / 15th century was Christian Valencia, initially led scholars to believe that this bowl was Valencian ware. However, scientific tests in 1983 showed the presence of mineral deposits in the bowl which come not from Valencia, but from Málaga. This city, one of the most important port cities of the medieval western Mediterranean, had been the premiere centre of lustre production in Spain until it was eclipsed by Valencia in the early 9th / 15th century; production there appears to have ceased a few decades later. This bowl, then, is spectacular proof that the potteries of Málaga continued to create first-class lustre ceramics right up until the end.  \n  \nThe fish beneath the ship, as well as the tree-like motifs on the exterior of the bowl, are strikingly similar to Fatimid work of centuries before, and remind us that the lustre industry in Islamic Spain was born precisely when Fatimid workers brought the technique from Egypt.","short_description":"A large bowl with lustre-painted decoration that includes a representation of a ship at sea. The ship’s sail bears a coat of arms which has been interpreted as that of Portugal; thus this bowl may have been commissioned by a wealthy Portuguese merchant.","type":"Glazed and painted ceramic","holder":"Victoria and Albert Museum.","dates":"Second quarter of the hegira 9th / AD 15th century.","location":"London, England","dimensions":"Height 20.1 cm, diameter 51.2 cm.","method_for_datation":"Stylistic grounds; the large tree-like motifs on the exterior of the bowl, in particular, are characteristically Nasrid.","method_for_provenance":"In 1983 scholars established that the bowl was produced in Málaga, once the centre of lustre production in Spain until it was eclipsed by Valencia in the early 9th / 15th century (see description above).","provenance":"Málaga, Spain.","obtention":"Purchased by the Museum in 1864.","bibliography":"*Al-Andalus: The Art of Islamic Spain* (ed. J. Dodds), New York, 1992, p.361, cat. no. 114.  \nCaiger-Smith, A., *Lustre Pottery: Technique, Tradition and Innovation in Islam and the Western World,* London, 1985, pp.94–6.  \nFrothingham, A., *Lustreware of Spain,* New York, 1951, pp.91–3.  \nSoustiel, J., *La céramique islamique,* Fribourg, 1985, p.187, plate 223.  \nStanley, T., with Rosser-Owen, M. and Vernoit, S., *Palace and Mosque: Islamic Art from the Middle East,* London, 2004, p.120.","author":"Barry Wood","copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["coat of arms","tree"],"materials":["Glazed and painted ceramic."]},"e0b9788f-2138-5261-bd75-1329e810829d":{"name":"*Sabil* (Water Dispensary) and *Kuttab* (Qur’anic School) of Sultan Qaytbay.","description":"The *sabil* (a water dispensary) is constructed out of stone and is distinguished by the opulence of its southern and western facade. The elevated and narrow entrance located on the southern face, is crowned with a tri-lobed arch and decorated with stone and polychrome-marble designs. It is similar to the entrance of Ashrafiyya Madrasa in Jerusalem. To the left of the entrance, just above the grill, there is a large, square decorative panel in polychrome marble and stone. The panel is divided into nine sections and arranged in three rows, consisting of carved vegetal and geometric designs. These decorations are not common in Mamluk buildings and are reminiscent of those seen in illuminated manuscripts. This design brings to mind one on the cover of the manuscript by al-Busairi entitled, *al-Kawakib al-Duriya fi Madh khayr al-Bariya \\[The Shining Stars in Praise of the Most Blessed of Creation\\]*, popularly known by the name of 'al-Burda'. This manuscript, which is preserved in Dublin, Ireland, suggests that decorative designs were transferred with no restriction from one art form or medium to the other. It also indicates that the decorative designs were drawn on paper first of all as a template, and then adapted to various mediums, whether metal, stone, marble or wood.  \nThe *sabil* is made up of three stories. The first level is deep below ground and constitutes the water cistern built out of solid rock. A marble lid covered the mouth of the cistern which was then filled annually after being cleaned and purified. The second level is located at ground level, and consists of a room overlooking the street by way of an iron grill through which water was handed out to passers by, while allowing sufficient ventilation to air-cool the water. The water-dispensing room contains a marble panel, over which the water flows to be gathered in a trough below the window, thus the water is further air-cooled. The third level of the fountain-house consists of the *kuttab*, added in the Ottoman period, which taught orphaned children to memorise the Qur'an.  \nThis building is considered one of the most prominent of Sultan Qaytbay's monuments in Cairo. In addition to its façade, which contains beautifully lavish decoration, this is the first example of a free-standing *sabil-kuttab* in Egypt. Sultan Qaytbay built another *sabil* in Jerusalem which is topped by a dome. In Cairo, *sabil*s became increasingly popular and were prolific during the Ottoman period. Today, there are approximately 100 *sabil*s in the City of Cairo.","short_description":"*Sabils* are spread all over Cairo to provide free drinking water for inhabitants, passers-by and travellers. Such buildings were charitable institutions that sultans, amirs and the wealthy vied to build. They were commonly situated in the corner of a mosque or an architectural complex. This *sabil* built by Qaytbay is considered to be the first freestanding construction of this type. Above the *sabil* is a *kuttab* to teach orphans the rudiments of Islam, the Arabic language and memorising the Qur'an.","dates":"Hegira 884 / AD 1479.","location":"Cairo","method_for_datation":"The building was dated based on an inscription flanking the entrance, which bears the name of the patron, Sultan al-Ashraf Abu al-Nasr Qaytbay, and his titles as well as the date of construction.","bibliography":"Behrens-Abouseif, D., *Islamic Architecture in Cairo,* Leiden, 1989.  \nMostafa, Saleh Lamei, “The Cairene Sabils: Form and Meaning”, *Muqarnas,* 6, pp.33–42.  \nPasha, H., *Mawsu'at al-'Emara wa al-Athar wa al-Funun al-Islamiya \\[Encyclopedia of Architecture, Archaeology and Islamic Arts\\].* Cairo, 1999.","patrons":"Sultan al-Ashraf Abu al-Nasr Qaytbay (r. AH 872–901 / AD 1468–96).","linkcatalogs":"IAM_EG_EN_001","author":"Tarek Torky","copy_editor":"Majd Musa","translator":"Amal Sachedina (from the Arabic).","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["civil architecture","geometric decoration","kuttab (Qur’an School)","Sabil (water dispensary)","vegetal decoration"]},"e0dd9b89-fd8e-5b2e-a57e-fda48b2a6792":{"name":"*Peškun*","description":"Оctagonal *peškun* (Tr. *peşkun*) decorated with floral and geometric motifs, each side having a blossom branch ornament that rests on a pointed draped arch at the bottom spreading to the top of a side. A heart-shaped branch has a flower at the top, while its bottom makes a central part of an opening in the shape of braces. The leaves surround the branch and are placed in a horizontal rectangular field at the top of the side as well. Eight sides carry an octagonal plate at the top with a central flower and floral motifs that surround it. The inner octagonal of the plate’s edge is decorated with leaves. All ornaments are made of mother-of-pearl and brass wire using the incrustation technique, while the edge of the octagonal top plate is ornamented with bone. Peškun is the name of a traditional piece of Ottoman furniture in the shape of a table or stool, originally meant for sitting, although it had different purposes throughout history, especially as a decorative table in Balkan oriental interiors of the 19th and of the first half of the 20th century. Over time, the larger table in the set (of usually three pieces) began to be used as a coffee table, while the smaller ones were used as stools. The *Peškun* was ordinarily made of walnut wood, ornamented with incrusted floral and geometric motifs made of mother of pearl and bone.","type":"Table","holder":"Museum of Applied Art","dates":"Hegira late 13th–early 14th century / AD late 19th century–early 20th century","location":"Belgrade","dimensions":"Height: 49.5cm, width: 43cm","place_of_production":"Austria-Hungary, possibly Sarajevo","method_for_datation":"By stylistic analysis, material, technique, and analogy with other similar examples.","obtention":"Purchased in 1951.","author":"Ana Samardžić","keywords":["incrustation","Ottoman Balkans","peškun","side table","stool"],"materials":["Bone","brass","incrustation","mother-of-pearl","Walnut"]},"e249d142-ee34-5f84-8b9c-0144ff7e19d8":{"name":"*Shahnameh by Firdowsi* (Social Gathering for Entertainment)","description":"The Persian text was composed in verse and prose, divided into four columns, and written in black ink and *taliq* calligraphy on pale paper. The work comprises a total of 202 miniature scenes, which collectively represent the pinnacle of miniature art. The vast majority of these miniatures depict scenes from the *Shahnameh*, making this a work of great importance.  \nThe circular medallion on the *Zahriye* (titular inscription) page of the work is decorated with a profusion of richly coloured floral, leaf and branch motifs, and Chinese clouds. The medallion is inscribed at its centre in black ink script on a gilt background. The inscription states that it was prepared for Sultan Ali Mirza, (ruled 1478–1505) of the Karkiya Dynasty, one of the most important dynasties of the Timurid Period.  \nThe binding is leather affixed to cardboard, typical of this period. The exterior covers are crafted from black leather embellished with a variety of animal figures, including birds, sheep, foxes, gazelles, deer, and floral motifs. The inner covers are burgundy leather featuring intricate floral and animal motifs on a green, blue, and gilt background.","type":"Manuscript","holder":"Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts","dates":"AH 9th century/AD 15th century","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"35cm x 24cm","place_of_production":"Gilan/Iran","obtention":"The item was brought to the Museum from the Hâlet Efendi Library on 28 May 1917.","materials":["Finished (aharli) paper","gilding","Ink","leather binding"]},"e27cfedb-4426-5918-bebf-2002418ec65c":{"name":"Storage vessels and two-part cooking pot","short_description":"The contrast between the public and private, male and female spheres offer the Berber women \"free space\" which allows them to express their own view of life. In the seclusion of the home they make the space of everyday life viable, and visibly materialise a particular life design, in that they symbolically reproduce their bodies: in the hand-built up pottery, repeating the image of \"body as vessel.\" In a world controlled by men, the women have developed a cultural model which is based on their corporeal experience.  \nIn art, the French philosopher Gilles Deleuze maintained, it is never to do with the reproduction of forms, but with the capturing of powers. Therefore, no art is ever just figurative: \"Art is the language of emotions (…). Art has no opinion.\" The women produced their pottery exclusively for personal use. Limits were only placed on their completely free artistic development by the social norms which applied in their environment and which govern the relationships between people.","type":"Ceramic; household item","holder":"Weltmuseum Wien","dates":"Before resp. ca. 1900","location":"Vienna","dimensions":"H: max. 42cm, Diameter: 52cm","method_for_datation":"Entry in the TMS digital collection database and archival documents, personal information from the collector.","method_for_provenance":"Entry in the general inventory book, personal information from the collector.","provenance":"Southern and central Tunisia; Berber people","obtention":"Purchased from the collector, Renate Anna Menzel, Vienna, 2005.","bibliography":"Steinmann, Axel, \"Psychological Profiles\", in Christian Schicklgruber (ed), *Weltmuseum Wien, exhibition catalogue*, Vienna: Weltmuseum Wien, 2017: 230-231.","materials":["bitumen","Clay","pigment","slip"]},"e388c5d6-a7bc-53e2-8fe9-b004758a5838":{"name":"Bowl with *tuğra* of Bayezid II","short_description":"This hemispherical bowl has a facetted honeycomb cavetto and a rivet in the centre showing where a disc was once attached. The underside is engraved with elongated split leaves found on late 15th century illuminations and Iznik ware. One of the cells is stamped with the *tuğra* of Bayezid II, the earliest known monogram of a sultan which serves as a control stamp guaranteeing the purity of the silver.","type":"Ottoman metalwork, silver","holder":"Benaki Museum","dates":"Hegira 885-917 / AD 1481-1512","location":"Athens","dimensions":"Diameter 12.5 cm","provenance":"Balkans","keywords":["geometric decoration","Geometric pattern","Ottoman Balkans","Ottoman Imperial symbols","Ottoman monograms","silver"],"materials":["Parcel-gilt silver"]},"e39d2fbb-2774-52a9-868e-e26f46c215f7":{"name":"*Preparing Medicine from Honey*, folio from a dispersed manuscript of an Arabic translation of the *Materia Medica* of Dioscorides","short_description":"This scene from a translation of *De Materia Medica* by Dioscorides is typical of the Baghdad School of illustration, which employed bold colors and symmetrical compositions to depict urban life. The use of an architectural structure to divide the painting into six sections is typical of the period, as is the fact that the oatmeal-coloured paper remains visible. This folio, which comes from volume 5, chapter 9 of the work, depicts a pharmacist preparing a honey‑based medicine in a cauldron while an assistant upstairs distributes it into jars.","type":"Codex","holder":"The Metropolitan Museum of Art","dates":"Dated Hegira 621 / AD 1224","location":"New York","dimensions":"H: 31.4cm, W: 22.9cm","provenance":"Possibly Baghdad, Iraq or Northern Jazira","obtention":"Bequest of Cora Timken Burnett, 1956  \nCalligrapher: 'Abdullah ibn al-Fadl  \nFormer owner: F. R. Martin, Stockholm (by 1910–at least 1912)  \nFormer owner: V. Everit Macy, New York (by 1922–at least 1927)  \nFormer owner: Cora Timken Burnett, Alpine, NJ (until d. 1956; bequeathed to MMA)","bibliography":"Ackerman, Phyllis, *Guide to the Exhibition of Persian Art. The Iranian Institute, New York*, New York: The Iranian Institute, 1940: 189, no. case 72F.  \nAnet, Claude, \"Exhibition of Persian Miniatures at the Musee des Arts Decoratifs, Paris\", *Burlington Magazine*, 22 (1912): 15–16, ill. pl. I, A (b/w).  \nBuchthal, Hugo, Kurz, Otto and Ettinghausen, Richard, \"Supplementary Notes to K. Holter's checklist of Islamic Ill. Mss. before 1350.\" Ars Islamica vol. 7 (1940): 151–52, no. 27.  \nBuchthal, Hugo, \"Early Islamic Miniatures from Baghdad\", *Journal of the Walters Art Gallery*, V. (1942): 10, 15, 19–39, 20, no. 9, ill. fig. 12, 13, 17. Leaves from MS now in Top Kapu Saray, Istanbul, which has colophon giving name of copyist and date Rajab AH 621. No. 9, fig. 12 illustrates 56.20; no. 10, fig. 13 illustrates 57.51.21; no. 15, fig. 17 illustrates 13.152.6.  \nCanby, Sheila R., *Shah 'Abbas: The Remaking of Iran*, London: British Museum Press, 2009.  \nCanby, Sheila R., Beyazit, Deniz and Rugiadi, Martina, *Court and Cosmos. The Great Age of the Seljuqs*, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2016: 178–79, no. 107a, ill. 178 (colour).  \nDimand, Maurice S., \"A loan of Near Eastern Miniature Paintings\", *Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin*, 22 (1927): 127.  \nDimand, Maurice S. (ed), \"Dated Specimens of Mohammedan Art in the Metropolitan Museum of Art\", *MMA Studies 1* 2 (1929): 208.  \nDimand, Maurice S., \"New Accessions of Islamic Art\", *Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin*, 16 (April 1958): 229, ill. 229 (b/w).  \nEkhtiar, Maryam, Canby, Shelia R., Haidar, Navina, and Soucek, Priscilla P. (eds), *Masterpieces from the Department of Islamic Art in The Metropolitan Museum of Art*, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2011: 6, 87, 94, no. 55, ill. 94 (colour).  \nEkhtiar, Maryam and Moore, Claire (ed), *Art of the Islamic World. A Resource for Educators*, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2012: 100–01, ill. pl. 18 (colour).  \nGluck, Heinrich and Diez, Ernst, *Die Kunst des Islam. Propylaen Kunstgeschichte, Vol. 5*, Berlin: Propylaen-Verlag, 1925: 95, 502, ill. (b/w).  \nKirketerp-Moller, Hertha, *Det Islamiske Bogmaleri*, Copenhagen: Nyt Nordisk Forlag, 1974: 5, ill. fig. 6.  \nKühnel, Ernst, *Miniaturmalerei im Islamischen Orient*, Berlin: Bruno Cassirer Verlag, 1922: ill. pl. 5.  \nKurz, Otto, \"Folding chairs and Koran stands\", in Richard Ettinghausen (ed), *Islamic Art in The Metropolitan Museum of Art*, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1972: 302, ill. fig. 5  \nMartin, F. R., *The Miniature Painting and Painters of Persia, India and Turkey from the 8th to the 18th century. Vol. 1*, London: Bernard Quaritch, 1912: no. volume 2, 7, ill. pl. 5b.  \nRicci, Seymour, *Catalogue d'une Collection de Miniatures Gothiques et Persanes appartenant à Léonce Rosenberg*, Paris: Montassier et Odend'hal, 1913: 36–37, ill. pl. XVIII.  \nSaliba, George and Komaroff, Linda, \"Illustrated Books May be Hazardous to your Health\", *Ars Orientalis*, 35 (2005): 30–31, ill. fig. 10 (b/w).  \nSarre, Friedrich and Martin, F. R., *Die Ausstellung von Meisterwerken Muhammedanischer Kunst in Munchen 1910. Die Stoffe, die Waffen, Holz und Elfenbein*, Munich: F. Bruckmann A.-G., 1912: no. 583, vol. 1, ill. pl. 5b.  \nStchoukine, Ivan, *La Peinture Iranienne sous les derniers 'Abbasides et les Il-Khans*, Bruges: Imprimerie Sainte Catharine, 1936 : no. II.  \nVever, Marteau, *Miniatures Persanes. Volumes 1-2*, Paris: Musée des Arts Décoratifs, 1913: ill. pl. 1 XXXVIII. Illustrated another leaf from this manuscript, dated here 1222, entitled \"Le chien enrage\", in Mutiaux collection (same leaf illustration in Anet reference), pl. XXXVIII (ill. another leaf, in Sambon collection (same leaf illustrated in Rosenberg collecti.  \nWelch, Stuart Cary, *The Islamic World. Vol. 11*, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1987: 34–35, ill. fig. 22 (colour).  \nKunsthaus Zürich (ed), *Kunstschätze aus Iran von der prähistorischen bis zur islamischen Zeit. 27. Mai bis 5. August 1962*, Zürich: Kunsthaus Zürich, 1962: no. 556, ill. pl. 82.","copyright":"The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Bequest of Cora Timken Burnett, 1956","keywords":["Abbasid","Arab literature","Arabic inscription","Baghdad","gold","ink","Iraq","medical plant","medicine","nashki","opaque watercolour","Paper","science","scientific manuscript","treatise"],"materials":["and gold on paper","Ink","Opaque watercolour"]},"e3f36ab1-bb2a-5793-ac55-177827b3e390":{"name":"Plate","description":"This enamelled bronze plate in the FBQ Museum shows the Cuerda Seca (dry cord) technique, a method of enamelling that emerged during the Seljuk period in Persia.  \nRenowned for its beauty and utility, enamelling serves both aesthetic and practical purposes, offering protection against corrosion while providing stunning decorative elements.  \nWhile both Cuerda Seca and the Persian Minakari technique are used in enamelling, they differ in their execution. In Minakari, the coloured enamel powders are applied directly onto the metal surface, resulting in smooth and continuous colour blending. In contrast, Cuerda Seca uses a greasy material to create boundaries between different enamel colours to prevent them from blending during firing, producing sharp motifs with clearly defined edges in various hues. Both techniques yield vibrant and decorative surfaces, showcasing the artistry and craftsmanship of enamelling traditions in the Islamic world.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani Museum","owner":"His Excellency Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"Hegira 12th century / AD 18th century","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Diameter: 32cm, height: 1.5cm","place_of_production":"Syria","method_for_datation":"The date and origin were established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, techniques, style, inscription, analogies and the provenance or historical background of the items.","method_for_provenance":"The date and origin were established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, techniques, style, inscription, analogies and the historical background of the items.","provenance":"Syria","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Mahmoud Saber","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Bronze","cuerda seca technique","enamel"]},"e58c69db-bd74-5185-a678-96228b8d0ba3":{"name":"Water seller's jar","alternate_name":"Water jar","short_description":"The egg-shaped jar has a narrow neck the top of which is covered by a dome-shaped lid. There is a curved handle on each side of the neck base and a long, straight spout. The lower part of the jar is made of unglazed and undecorated earthenware, a common material for water vessels that enables water evaporation thus keeping the water inside cool. The upper part is made of copper alloy, engraved with decorative bands of intertwined floral motifs; knot work patterns; stylised four-legged animals amongst a vegetal design; and two calligraphic bands. The jar sits in a knotted rope net with handle for carriage on the water seller’s back.","type":"Jar","holder":"Sharjah Museum of Islamic Civilization","dates":"13th century AH / 19th century AD","location":"Sharjah","dimensions":"Height: 87.4cm, Diameter: 29cm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","method_for_provenance":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Egypt","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Hazelle Page","keywords":["Egypt","Everyday life","Water jar","Water seller"],"materials":["Ceramic","Copper alloy","rope"]},"e69c15fd-110a-59c2-9a6e-7ae708a7ea8e":{"name":"Ewer.","description":"A ewer carved from a single piece of rock-crystal. It has a pear-shaped body, beaked rim, and slightly splayed foot; a handle, which originally had a vertical thumb-piece at its apex, joins the rim to the lower part of the body. The body of the ewer is decorated on either side with identical scenes of a bird of prey attacking a four-legged animal with horns (a gazelle?). These vignettes are framed by large, leafy arabesque motifs. The whole design is contained within a delicate raised band which goes around the neck and down the body of the ewer on either side of the handle. This band acts as a frame and gives the design the feel of a textile wrapped around the ewer’s body. All of the details are drilled and cut with great skill, including the texturing in the form of lines and dots covering the bird and animal and the leaves of the arabesque patterns. Objects like this ewer were among the thousands of precious items looted from the Fatimid treasury during the unrest of 450 AH / AD 1060. A number of these made their way to Europe, where they were used as reliquaries in church treasuries.","short_description":"A pear-shaped ewer carved from a single block of the clear, colourless quartz known as rock-crystal. It is one of a number of luxury wares carved from rock-crystal for the Fatimid court in Cairo. Many such objects made their way into European church treasuries, where they were used as reliquaries.","type":"Glasswork","holder":"Victoria and Albert Museum.","dates":"About hegira 391–452 / AD 1000–1060.","location":"London, England","dimensions":"Height 19.4 cm, diameter (of base) 9 cm.","method_for_datation":"There is a clear relationship between this ewer and a group of others in European collections, one of which has an inscription naming the Fatimid Caliph al-‘Aziz (r. AH 365–86 / AD 975–96). The decoration on the V&A ewer, including the arabesque pattern, is more complex and mature than is that on the others, suggesting a later date. Finally, Fatimid rock-crystal production was severely disrupted when violent social upheavals began in AH 452 / AD 1061.","method_for_provenance":"Cairo was the Fatimid capital and thus the likeliest place that an object of such quality would have been made.","provenance":"Probably Cairo, Egypt.","obtention":"Purchased by the Museum in 1862.","bibliography":"Contadini, A., Fatimid Art at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, 1998, pp.16–38.  \n  \nStanley, T., with Rosser-Owen, M. and Vernoit, S., Palace and Mosque: Islamic Art from the Middle East, London, 2004, pp.94–5.","author":"Barry Wood","copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["animal decoration","arabesque","bird","carving","figurative decoration","floral decoration","incision","reliquary","rock-crystal","sumptuary art"],"materials":["Carved rock-crystal."]},"e71fe850-fa1a-5797-b0c5-b50e5f9a25ed":{"name":"Dish.","description":"Ceramics with metallic highlights were exceptionally successful in the late Middle Ages, and were sought after by the finest European courts. The coats of arms of royalty and nobility, in particular Italians such as the Tedaldi or Nasi families, are commonly depicted. These ceramics, so colourful and elegant, are reminiscent of Gothic painting. The manufacturing and decorating processes were complex, as the pieces required several firings to obtain the different colours. This dish was turned on a potter's wheel. Its surface is covered with a white or cream tin glaze. The sides are concave and the brim slightly inclined. The topside is decorated in gold and deep blue. The central, golden coat of arms, inscribed in a toothed blue border, shows an eagle with outstretched wings. It is possible that it belonged to the Despujols family, and it is repeated in other pieces. The coat of arms is surrounded by a thin strip of fringes and spirals and tiny fern leaves. Near the edge, there is a wide band with large gilt pinecones in reserve, alternating with large deep-blue flowers. The remaining spaces are filled with arabesque leaves. On the underside there is another eagle in the same position as the first, covering the entire area, and fern leaves in the empty spaces. The heraldic coats of arms, as well as telling us about the tastes of high society, are useful for determining when the pieces were manufactured, as they include data on family history.","short_description":"Dish decorated in a manner typical of AH 9th-/ AD 15th-century Mudéjar ceramics, with Nasrid-style motifs such as the gold and blue motifs on the front combined with the coat-of-arms of the family that commissioned the piece. In this case, an eagle appears on both sides of the dish.","type":"Dish, clay, ceramic","holder":"National Archaeological Museum.","dates":"Second half of the 15th century.","location":"Madrid","dimensions":"Height 9 cm, diameter 45 cm, diameter of base 14.5 cm.","method_for_datation":"From its style and from comparison with other similar dishes. In this case, the coat of arms that decorates it serves as a historical reference.","method_for_provenance":"From its formal and stylistic characteristics, from the archaeological digs that have been carried out and from the extensive documentation that is available.","provenance":"Manises or Paterna, Valencia, Spain.","obtention":"The piece was purchased for the National Archaeological Museum from Vicente Juan y Amat on 27 June 1872.","bibliography":"Camps Cazorla, E., *Catálogo Sumario del Museo Arqueológico Nacional. Cerámica Española (Nuevas Instalaciones)*, Madrid, 1936, p.31, plate III.  \nFranco Mata, á., Balmaseda Muncharaz, L., Arias Sánchez, I. and Papí Rodes, C., “La Documentación de las Cerámicas Valencianas Medievales en el Museo Arqueológico Nacional”, in *La Cerámica de Paterna. Reflejos del Mediterráneo*, Exhibition catalogue, Valencia, 2002, pp.106–18.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_ES_EN_001","author":"Ángela Franco","copy_editor":"Rosalía Aller","translator":"Laurence Nunny","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["clay","coat of arms","Dish","firing","Glazed","gold highlight","kaolin","Manises","Mudéjar","Paterna","Valencia"],"materials":["Clay","firing","Glazing","gold highlights.","kaolin"]},"e74099f6-1c27-5325-b008-aca137d56990":{"name":"*Saka Postu* (small alcove where a new apprentice observed elders)","description":"Upon entering the printing house through the large wooden door, one passes through the vaulted corridor and reaches the barrel-vaulted chamber. In the left-hand corner there is a raised platform covered by a hide over a carpet. Here *Nevniyaz* (a newly accepted apprentice) would sit and observe for a period of three days, at the conclusion of which he would decide whether to stay or leave.","type":"Room Restoration","holder":"Konya Mevlana Museum","location":"Konya","copy_editor":"Judy Harter"},"e9446de8-0118-5c68-aa90-cc7965c9040a":{"name":"Nilometer.","alternate_name":"Al-Miqyas.","description":"The Nilometer (Kiosk of the Nile; known in Arabic as *al-Miqyas*) is considered among the enduring architectural foundations tied to the Egyptian culture and way of life. It is in fact unique in the Islamic world. Its importance goes back to a time when measuring the rise of the waters of the Nile was closely related to the levying of taxes on agricultural lands. Taxes were levied only when the waters of the Nile had risen to a certain designated level, which would irrigate the land during flood season.  \nThe Nilometer itself is the equivalent of a well whose walls are built from skilfully hewn stone blocks. The thickness of the walls increases the greater the depth. The well consists of three levels: the lowest level is a circular base, while the middle level is a square whose sides measure more than the diameter of the level below. The highest level is also square in shape, and bigger than the middle level. It is due to this design that the walls can bear the horizontal pressure of the earth that increases the greater the depth.  \nThe waters of the Nile would flow into the well by means of three tunnels, which discharged their waters into the well by means of three 'mouths' on the eastern side that are in the form of subterranean entrances in the wall. These openings are oriented towards pointed arches supported by compact decorated columns with globular bases. These arches are considered to be not only the oldest known examples in Islamic Egypt, but precede the European Gothic type by three centuries. We may also view similar examples on the arches of the Ibn Tulun Mosque in Cairo (AH 265 / AD 879).  \nA staircase curves around the inside walls of the well and extends all the way to the bottom. Adorning the upper reaches of the well on two sides, the northern and the eastern internal walls, are inscriptions in *kufic* script, which represent the oldest (dated) Arabic inscription in Egypt ever recorded. In the centre of the well stands the principal component of the monument, an octagonal marble pillar whose length extends to 16 cubits (10.50 m). It is engraved with measurements in cubits *(kirat)* and inches *(zira')*, which demarcate the water inundation levels.  \nAhmad ibn Tulun (r. AH 254–70 / AD 868–84) carried out restoration of al-Miqyas in AH 259 / AD 873 and replaced the two bands of ancient inscriptions with more contemporary ones on the south and west sides. He placed his name within the new inscription, but kept the original date of construction untouched. Throughout the ages the building has been subject to many restorations and renovations (Fatimid, Mamluk and Ottoman). It was renovated in the modern age in 1925 when the Mamluk dome crowning the outside of the building was replaced by a conical-shaped roof covered by lead panels.","short_description":"Set on Roda island in the Nile, the Nilometer is a unique structure in Islamic architecture. It gained its importance from being the means for calculating tax levies on agricultural lands according to the size of the Nile flood every year. Its design and the building materials used in its construction helped it to resist corrosion by water for over one thousand years.","dates":"Hegira 247 / AD 861.","location":"Cairo","method_for_datation":"Historians concur that al-Miqyas was built in the year 247 / 861 by order of the Abbassid Caliph al-Mutawakkil, although some scholars trace its foundation back to the Caliph al–Ma'mun (r. 169–217 / 786–833). However, the historian Ibn Khalkan (d. 681 / 1282) mentions that the name of the al-Mutawakkil and the year the Nilometer was constructed (247 / 861) was engraved within an inscription on the walls of the well, and that this inscription dated to the foundation of the monument. This inscription has now been lost and may have been removed when Ibn Tulun carried out his restoration of the building in the year 259 / 873.","bibliography":"Allen, T., *A Classical Revival in Islamic Architecture*, Weisbaden, 1986.  \nBehrens-Abouseif, D., *Islamic Architecture in Cairo: An Introduction,* London and New York, 1992.  \nCreswell, K. A. C., *Muslim Architecture of Egypt,* Vol. II, Oxford, 1940.  \nGhaleb Pasha, K.*, Le Mikyâs ou Nilomètre de l'Ile de Rodah*, Cairo, 1951.  \nHillenbrand, R., *Islamic Art and Architecture*, London, 1989.  \nIbn Khalkan, Abu al-Qasim Shams al-Din Ahmad (d. 681 / 1282), *Anba' al-Zaman \\[News of the Times\\],* Beirut, 1968.  \nPopper, W., *The Cairo Nilometer: Studies in Ibn Taghri Bardi's Chronicles of Egypt: I*, California, 1951.  \nShafi'i, F., *Al-Emara al-Arabia fi Misr al-Islamiya \\[Arab Architecture in Islamic Egypt\\],* Vol. I, Cairo, 1994.  \nWilliams, C., *Islamic Monuments in Cairo: A Practical Guide*, Cairo, 2002.","patrons":"Caliph Al-Mutawakkil Ala Allah, (r. AH 232–47 / AD 847–61).","architects":"Ahmad ibn Muhammad al-Hasib supervised construction.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_EG_EN_001","author":"Tarek Torky","copy_editor":"Majd Musa","translator":"Amal Sachedina (from the Arabic).","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["civil architecture","conical surface","corbel","hydrology","kufic script","Nilometer","pointed arch","Well"]},"ea3d8d8e-c04b-5794-9b49-13d8075523c6":{"name":"Spouted bowl (*sahlah bu mirzab*)","description":"Bowls are among the most important copper artifacts in Omani hospitality. They are usually either wholly circular or circular with a channel and include various decorative designs. They may serve to either hold the cups in which Omani coffee is served, or as basins for guests to wash their hands.","type":"Metalwork, copper","holder":"The national Museum - Sultanate of Oman","dates":"Hegira 14th/AD 20th century","location":"Muscat, Sultanate of Oman","dimensions":"Length (with spout): 31.5cm, height: 11cm, diameter: 19cm","provenance":"Northern Oman","author":"Noora Al Balushi","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["copper"]},"eb9313ce-3a64-5d73-bea2-13a7a7012be8":{"name":"Magic cup","description":"The bowl is lined with inscriptions inside and out – verses from the Koran, the most beautiful names of God, religious and talismanic expressions – alternating with magic squares. On the outer perimeter, images of the zodiac and planets engraved inside medallions were scrupulously obscured at a later date with floral motifs, no doubt in order to avoid the association of the Koranic text with representations of living creatures.  \nConsuming drinks or food in such cups, thus closely connecting religion, medicine, and astrology, permitted one to resist the effects of poisons, fevers, and other physical ailments. *The Thousand and One Nights* invoked a divinatory purpose too.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","initial_owner":"Marcel Destombes","dates":"Hegira 11th - 1st quarter of 14th century / AD 17th and 19th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 8.5cm, Diameter: 22.7cm","provenance":"India","obtention":"Bequest of Marcel Destombes.","bibliography":"Delpont, E., et al., *Album du musée*, Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, 2012: 295.  \n  \nRoux, J-P., *Arts de l'Islam: des origines à 1700*, Paris: Musée national de l'Orangerie, 1971: 112.  \n  \nWelch, A., *Calligraphy in the arts of the Muslim world*, Austin: University of Texas Press, 1979: 186-187, Fig. 80.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["Cast and chiseled brass"]},"ecf2b49c-b70f-51b8-8c61-216edf4189e1":{"name":"Plate","short_description":"This elegant plate was crafted in Guangzhou (formerly Canton) in AH 1309 / AD 1891-1892, exemplifying the refined artistry of Chinese export porcelain during the late Qing Dynasty. The intricate design showcases scenes of daily life, featuring pagoda-style architecture and traditional Chinese elements, capturing the cultural essence of the period.  \n  \nA particularly intriguing feature of this piece is its inscription. Written in Arabic-Persian script, it bears the phrase هو الباقي (He \\[Allah\\] is the Everlasting), emphasising divine permanence. Additionally, the inscription includes the word فرمايش (ordered), indicating that the plate was specially commissioned for Mohamed Sadiq Khan, who is most likely Sarwar al-Malak, a renowned musician from the courts of Shah Naser al-Din and Shah Muzaffar al-Din. This suggests that the plate may have been part of the Persian royal court’s cultural or artistic exchanges.  \n  \nAt the lower part of the plate, we can also notice the marking \"ص 92\". While its exact meaning remains uncertain, it may indicate the production year (1892) or serve as a workshop code or inventory mark.  \n  \nThis plate stands as a remarkable testament to the artistic and cultural exchanges between China and the Persian-speaking world, seamlessly blending Chinese craftsmanship with Persian artistic and literary influences.","type":"Domestic tools","holder":"FBQ Museum","owner":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"1891","location":"Shahaniya","dimensions":"Diameter: 41cm, Height: 7cm","method_for_datation":"The date and origin were established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, painting, and style.","method_for_provenance":"The date and origin were established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, painting, and style.","provenance":"China","obtention":"Purchase","bibliography":"Bosworth, C. E., *The New Islamic Dynasties*, Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 1996.  \nMedley, M., \"Islam, Chinese Porcelain and Ardabīl,\" *Iran*, 13 : 1 (1975): 31–37.  \nOtte, J., & Floor, W., \"English Ceramics in Iran 1810–1910\", *NCS Journal*, 20 (2020): 117–143.","author":"Mahmoud Saber","keywords":["China","Farsi","Iran","Persian","Plate","Porcelain"],"materials":["Porcelain"]},"ed2b34d8-0b3b-5e62-9f3b-c352b83a9b49":{"name":"Tile Cup","description":"The drinking vessel is composed of a white clay and slip with polychrome decoration beneath a transparent colourless glaze. The composition features a series of tulips and stylised carnation branches of varying sizes rising vertically from separate roots on a white ground. The red, green and blue motifs are outlined in black. Beginning in the second half of the 16th century, it appears that the emerald green glaze, which was used extensively, would run during the firing process. It is posited that the quality of ceramics began to decline in tandem with the deterioration of the economy. Examples from the 16th century demonstrate that the naturalistic floral motifs, which were widely employed in Classical Ottoman style, were still being used during this period.","type":"Utensil","holder":"Istanbul Archaeological Museums (The Tiled Kiosk)","dates":"Hegira late 10th century / AD late 16th century","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"Diameter: 9.4cm, height: 17cm","place_of_production":"İznik/Bursa","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Glazed terracotta/Tile"]},"edd94d46-2a69-592f-80d7-0c535b109eff":{"name":"Coffee","description":"Coffee is always served at the beginning of a visit and is repeatedly offered until guests politely signal that they have had enough by rocking their cup from side to side. In order to keep coffee hot and fresh for unexpected guests it goes through many stages. After roasting and grinding the coffee beans the grains are added to boiling water inside a large *dallah* (coffee pot) called a *khamra*. Next, the liquid is poured into a medium-sized coffee pot called a *taljeemah*. At this stage cardamom seeds, saffron and rose water may be added for flavour. From this jug, the coffee is poured into a serving *dallah* referred to as a *mezallah*, where the coffee is refined and filtered. The server must hold the *mezallah* with their left hand and distribute the *fanayeel* (coffee cups) using the right hand. The coffee should fill less than half of the cup.","type":"Coffee","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Varies and depends on the coffee bean. Length: 10mm, width: 7mm","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Amanda Snyder","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["beans","coffee","coffee beans"]},"ede6db87-1998-5d51-a8e0-97a1ffe99c48":{"name":"Jug","description":"A ceramic jug with one handle, the body is decorated with diamond-shaped panels, in white and turquoise with a single white flower, superimposed on a blue ground.","type":"Jug","holder":"Benaki Museum","dates":"AH 957 / c. AD 1550","location":"Athens","dimensions":"Diameter of body 13.6 cm, height 18.6 cm","place_of_production":"Iznik","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Turkey","obtention":"Donation","bibliography":"Carswell, J., Gibson, M. (ed.), and Moraitou , M., *Iznik Ceramics at the Benaki Museum*, London: Gingko, and Athens: Benaki Museum, 2023: cat. no. 5, p. 58.","author":"Mina Moraitou","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Glazed ceramic"]},"ee84f4a0-84fc-5ae3-9c0f-88b366037681":{"name":"Qasr al-Azm.","description":"Qasr al-Azm, the largest and oldest completely preserved private residence in Damascus, covers a space of about 5,500 sq m. It is a typical example of Damascene domestic architecture, with its simple outer appearance and its splendid interior furnishings. The division of the apartments according to official space and private space is also typical of Muslim domestic architecture in general, a feature not seen in their Christian or Jewish counterparts.  \nFrom the entrance with a guard's room to its left, a long, winding cross-vaulted corridor leads into the *madafa* (“chamber of the coffee-server”), before entering the official apartments (*salamlik*). The *Salamlik* is arranged around a small courtyard with an *iwan* on the south wall, flanked by two reception rooms. There are also guest rooms and a small kitchen for catering. From this area there is access to the most splendid area of the building, the *haramlik,* where the family functioned and the women and children stayed. The rooms in this area are arranged around a spacious courtyard measuring 56 m x 24 m, with two fountains and a garden at the centre. The chambers on the north side of the courtyard served as living rooms in the winter. They are provided with a portico (*riwaq*) supported by antique-basalt columns brought in from Dar'a and Bosra. Opposite the *riwaq* there is the magnificent tripartite reception hall (*qa'a)* with splendid stone-paste decoration, and small gardens to the north and east sides. At the southeast side the *iwan* faces the large rectangular fountain. The bathhouse or *hamam*, an unusual feature in private houses, is adjoined. There is also a kitchen section, similarly arranged around a courtyard, and remises for the vehicles and horses.  \nThe use of high-quality materials for the palace interior can be seen by the basalt from Hauran, limestone from Mezze, Zabadani and Aleppo, and marble that was probably imported from Italy. Elaborately painted wooden panels decorated the walls and ceilings of the reception rooms. In 1830 the building was renovated and furnished with *trompe l'oeil* paintings according to the fashion of the time.  \nThe construction of As'ad Pasha al-Azm's residence required two years and over 800 workmen for completion. The 18th-century chronicler, al-Budairi, reports the consequent scarcity of workmen and construction materials at the time, and that the city's water supply was interrupted in order to be divert it to the palace.  \nExcavations in the 1920s revealed the probability that the palace was built on a site of former importance, such as the residence of the Mamluk Governor Tankiz (AH 712–29 / AD 1312–27). The spiritual and socio-political prestige of the location comes from its proximity to the Umayyad Mosque. With new Ottoman *caravanserai*s constructed to the south, the political and commercial power of the Azm family is further attested as As'ad Pasha built the largest and most splendid *caravanserai* in the city in AH 1171 / AD 1757, still known as Khan As'ad Pasha.","short_description":"This is the largest completely preserved private house in Damascus. It occupies more than 5,500 sq m. In typical Damascene domestic architectural style, the outer appearance is simple but the interior is splendid. It includes an official or formal 'male' space and a private or familial 'female' space, each provided with a courtyard of flower gardens, fountains and reception rooms decorated with *ablaq* masonry, stone paste patterns and painted wooden panels. This palace, prestigiously located in the religious and commercial heart of the city, was the residence of the Damascene Governor Asad Pasha al-Azm.","dates":"Hegira 1163 / AD 1749–50.","location":"Damascus","method_for_datation":"The 18th-century Damascene chronicler, Ahmad Budairi al-Hallaq reports for the year 1163 (1750) that construction work on the palace commences.","bibliography":"Budairi al-Hallaq, A., *Hawadith Dimashq al-*yawmiyya *\\[The Daily Events in Damascus\\],* (Ahmad Izzat Abd al-Karim, ed), Cairo, 1959.  \nEcochard, M., “Le Palais Azem de Damas”, *Gazette des Beaux-Arts*, April, 1935.  \nSack, D., *Damaskus, Entwicklung und Struktur einer orientalisch-islamischen Stadt*, Mainz, 1989.  \nSauvaget, J., *Les monuments historiques de Damas*, Beyrouth, 1932.  \nSinjab, K., *Das Arabische Wohnhaus des 17. bis 19. Jahrhunderts in Syrien*, Aachen, 1965.","patrons":"Asad Pasha al-Azm (r. AH 1156–71 / AD 1743–57).","linkcatalogs":"IAM_TR_EN_001","author":"Verena Daiber","copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["palatial architecture","Residential architecture"]},"ef6f3f6c-f567-5300-9a2c-887d4b9a516c":{"name":"Anonymous, *Ruznamce-i shemsiyye ve qamariyye* ('Small calendar of solar and lunar years')","short_description":"The anonymous Arabic treatise titled *Ruznamce-i shemsiyye ve qamariyye* (‘Small Calendar of Solar and Lunar Years’) was compiled for the years 905 AH / 1499 to 1000 AH / 1592. It was possibly written in the 16th-17th centuries in Ottoman Syria. The Latin marginalia *Deo Trino et Uno honor Lausq infinita* on fol. 8a were probably written by a later Christian owner, while the owner’s stamp on fol. 8b is by Joseph von Hammer-Purgstall, from whom the manuscript was purchased by the Austrian National Library in 1842. The extant European half-leather binding corresponds to a possibly Viennese production date in the 19th-century. The calendar itself is composed in a format similar to Ottoman prayer calendar scrolls and their tabular arrangement. Particularly fascinating, however, is the fact that small paintings are pasted in the margins of the manuscript, which is atypical for this manuscript format. These paintings include both zodiac images as well as monthly allegories. The zodiac miniatures are stylistically relatable to Timurid Shiraz of the early 15th century when patrons had great interest in astrology and the natural sciences. It can be hypothesised that these paintings were cut out from an older calendar or astrological treatise and reused in a new context. They are visually integrated into the page layout, as the border is drawn around the images. The monthly allegories, in contrast, are pasted over these borders and hence must have been added later. They display themes from a Christian context mixed with Islamic artistic conventions, the scenes reminiscent of Islamic metalwork. As such, it is possible that the calendar was later owned by a Christian who pasted this second group of illustrations onto the pages.","type":"Manuscript","holder":"Austrian National Library (ANL)","dates":"Possibly 16th-17th centuries","location":"Vienna","dimensions":"251x145mm (190x80mm), ff. II, II*, 8 folios.","place_of_production":"Possibly Syria","method_for_provenance":"On fol. 8a, an owner's stamp by Joseph von Hammer-Purgstall dated to 1223 AH / 1808 AD is visible.","obtention":"Acquired  in 1842 from Joseph von Hammer-Purgstall.","bibliography":"Duda, Dorothea, *Islamische Handschriften II/2. Persische Handschriften, Die illuminierten Handschriften und Inkunabeln der Österreichischen Nationalbibliothek*, vol. 5/2, Vienna: Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, 2008: 66-70.","binding_desc":"The European half-leather binding has the following written in gold print on the spine: ‘Almanac from 905-1000’. It was likely made in 19th century Vienna.","catalogue_holding_link":"https://data.onb.ac.at/rec/AC14387499","author":"Theresa Zischkin","copy_editor":"Sophie-Anne Mullen","keywords":["Calendar","lunar","month","solar","Thuluth","year","zodiac"],"materials":["Ink","opaque watercolour and gold on paper. Calligraphic thuluth script."]},"f02545d3-2c1e-56ed-999c-fd59a3ff72c3":{"name":"*Shahnama*","short_description":"This is a fragmentary copy of the *Shahnama* (‘Book of Kings’), the verse epic that tells the story of the pre-Islamic kings and heroes of Iran. The manuscript was probably produced for the Iranian ruler Shah Abbas the Great, sometime after his accession in 1587, and contains sixteen paintings, two of which were added later, in about 1676. The paintings are amongst the finest examples of Persian painting ever produced, each one finely rendered and filled with abundant detail.","type":"Manuscript","holder":"The Chester Beatty Library","dates":"Hegira 10th century / AD late 16th century","location":"Dublin","dimensions":"40.7 x 26.1 cm","provenance":"Iran","catalogue_holding_link":"https://viewer.cbl.ie/viewer/image/Per_277/6/LOG_0000/","keywords":["border decoration","calligraphy","court","Elephant","illumination","Illustration","imaginary animal","miniature painting","script","Simurgh","warfare","women","zoomorphic imagery"],"materials":["coloured pigments and gold on paper"]},"f02afe0c-f6ec-51aa-8c81-d0230b93ff9f":{"name":"Animal-head ewer","description":"The Kashan turquoise ceramic animal-head ewer is a stunning example of Persian ceramics from the 12th century. This vessel showcases a vibrant turquoise blue glaze with a top in the likeness of a horned animal head, complete with a spout resembling a long open beak. It stands on a short foot, with a globular body transitioning into a slender neck. A partly curved handle, like a rope, extends from the head to the body. At the top, two curved horns and an upward-pointing finial enhance its overall elegance.  \nThe exquisite craftsmanship of this ewer highlights the skill and creativity of Persian artisans. This ewer originated in Kashan, renowned for its pottery tradition. The turquoise glaze adds to its allure and symbolises prosperity and protection. The animal motif holds various symbolic meanings, representing virtues and beliefs deeply ingrained in Persian customs and rituals. Used in ceremonial contexts, such as feasts or religious rituals, the ewer reflects ancient Persian traditions and cultural practices.  \nHighly prized by collectors and enthusiasts alike, this Persian Kashan turquoise ceramic animal-head ewer serves as a timeless reminder of the beauty and sophistication of Persian craftsmanship. Its rich cultural heritage and artistic significance make it a cherished artefact, showcasing the legacy of Persian artisans.  \nThe ewer is crafted using traditional ceramic techniques prevalent in Kashan during the 12th century. Skilled artisans shaped the vessel by hand. The firing process ensured the durability of the vessel while bringing out the brilliance of the turquoise glaze, resulting in a masterpiece of Persian ceramics.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani Museum","owner":"His Excellency Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"Hegira 6th century / AD 12th century","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Height: 31cm, length:14 cm","place_of_production":"Iran, Kashan","method_for_datation":"The date and origin were established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, techniques, style and analogies.","method_for_provenance":"Provenance was established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, techniques, style and analogies.","provenance":"Iran, Kashan","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Mahmoud Saber","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["animal","ceramic","drinking","ewer","Glaze","Iran","Kashan","Persian","pottery","turquoise"],"materials":["Glazed","Pottery"]},"f03adf8f-d5b8-514b-88b4-1fa35cd992e2":{"name":"Plate.","description":"Chinese earthenware ceramics with a dichromatic decorative scheme of white and blue were very popular and widely admired in the Islamic world. Their export to the eastern Mediterranean began as early as the AH 2nd / AD 8th century. This type of vessel with its bright whiteness and extensive blue decoration was the most popular export ware during the Chinese reigns of the Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties. They exported profusely, both by land and sea, especially during the AH 8th / AD 14th century.  \nArtisans in the Islamic world imitated these Chinese ceramics because of its popularity and because they were not always readily available. Thus imitative Chinese ceramics were themselves a valuable commodity.  \nThis plate is decorated with a bouquet of flowers that incorporates gracefully sweeping stems bound with a ribbon. A decorative band of stylised vegetal motifs surround the bouquet, and a band of stylised geometric motifs articulates the rim of the plate. The decoration is executed in various shades of blue on a white base.","short_description":"This ceramic dish was found in the Citadel of Hama and it clearly indicates the intercultural influence of exported Chinese blue-and-white porcelain on Syrian and Egyptian Mamluk pottery.","type":"Plate, earthenware","holder":"National Museum of Damascus","dates":"Hegira 8th century / AD 14th century.","location":"Damascus","dimensions":"Height 5.5 cm, diameter 35 cm.","method_for_datation":"The Danish excavations revealed objects that have been dated to the Ayyubid and Mamluk periods, primarily from the 7th–8th / 13th–14th centuries. However, since this piece is influenced by Chinese ceramics, especially in the use of blue and white, and since such ceramics were exported to the Islamic world beginning in the 8th / 14th century, it is believed that the object belongs to this later period.","method_for_provenance":"This object was found in Hama, known as a production centre for this kind of ware. However, the underglaze painted wares found in Syria (Hama and Damascus) and Egypt (Fustat and Alexandria) are essentially identical, so it is difficult to assign a definitive provenance.","provenance":"Possibly Hama, Syria.","obtention":"The plate was found during archaeological excavations that took place in the Citadel of Hama between 1931 and 1938 by a Danish expedition under the direction of Harold Ing Holt. The piece was registered in the Museum in 1934.","bibliography":"Abu al-Faraj al-Ush, M., *A Concise Guide to the National Museum of Damascus,* Damascus, 1969, p.221.  \nPorter, V., *Medieval Syrian Pottery*, Oxford, 1981.  \nSoustiel, J., and Kiefer, C., *La céramique islamique*, Fribourg, 1985.  \nWatson, O., *Ceramics from Islamic Lands*, London, 2004.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_EG_EN_001","author":"Mona al-Moadin","translator":"Hilary Kalmbach (from the Arabic)","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["blue-and-white","ceramics","chinese","Chinese motifs","earthenware","Hama citadel","Harold Ing Holt","Plate"],"materials":["Earthenware with blue-and-white underglaze."]},"f03b716a-a1e0-58f0-b452-2c2a089e34f2":{"name":"Members of Court of Sultan Selim II Mounted as an Album Leaf","short_description":"From the late sixteenth century until the formation of the Republic of Turkey in 1922, the Ottoman sultans maintained a strong tradition of imperial portraiture. Influenced by European oil painting and Persian miniatures, Ottoman portraits provide important information about court ceremonies, changing fashions, and members of the court. The right side of a double-page composition, this painting was created as a pendant to a portrait of Selim II (r. Hegira 974-982/1566-1574) on the left, now in the collection of the Aga Khan Museum, Toronto. The musicians, servants, and courtiers, who are identified by their inscriptions, face left, toward the sultan, in a show of deference to their ruler. Taken together the pair of paintings depict a *majlis* scene reflecting the pleasure-oriented atmosphere of Selim’s court. It is possible that the figure of the court jester at far right is a self-portrait of the artist.","type":"Manuscript","holder":"Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA)","dates":"AH c. 968-969 / AD c. 1561-1562","location":"Los Angeles","dimensions":"44.6 x 31cm","method_for_datation":"Less formal than official Ottoman royal depictions, this painting (and its pendant) was likely made prior to Selim’s ascension to the throne in 1566 and was probably produced during his time as a prince governing Kütahya. Several of the figures depicted with captions can be further identified as boon companions of Selim II, one of whom, Turak Çelabi, died in 1561-62, suggesting a terminus ante quem for the work.","method_for_provenance":"It is signed “Nigari, slave of Sultan Selim Khan.” Nigari was the pseudonym used by the famed Turkish navigator Haydar Reis, who was also well-known as a portrait painting under Sultan Suleyman and his son and successor Selim II.","provenance":"Turkey","obtention":"Collection of Major R. Hawkins (dates unknown), until unknown date (sale, Sotheby’s, London, May 3, 1977, lot 3, sold to); Edwin Binney, 3rd (1866-1934), collection of Edwin Binney, 3rd, Portland, ME, until 1985 (gifted to); LACMA, The Edwin Binney, 3rd, Collection of Turkish Art at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.","bibliography":"Denny, Walter B., *Turkish Treasures from the Collection of Edward Binney, 3rd*, Portland, OR: Portland Art Museum, 1979: 22, cat. 11.  \nFetvaci, Emine, *Picturing History at the Ottoman Court*, Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2013: 42.  \nKangal, Selmin (ed), *The Sultan's Portrait: Picturing the House of Osman*, Istanbul: Türkiye Is Bankasi, 2000: 227.  \nKomaroff, Linda, *Beauty and Identity: Islamic Art from the Los Angeles County Museum of Art*, Los Angeles: Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 2016: 218-219, cat. no. 112.  \nNecipoglu, Gulru, *The Age of Sinan: Architectural Culture in the Ottoman Empire*, London: Reaktion Books, 2005: 56.","author":"LACMA Staff","keywords":["court life","gold","ink","inscription","manuscript","Ottoman","painting","Portrait","watercolour"],"materials":["and gold on paper","Ink","opaque watercolor"]},"f13296ae-615e-5b30-99df-9e194b691b4f":{"name":"Coffee Mortar and Pestle","description":"A carved wooden mortar and stone pestle for pounding coffee beans. Coffee drinkers consider coffee ground by hand to be the most desirable kind.","holder":"Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts","dates":"13th-14th century/AD 19th century","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"Diameter: 14.4cm, height: 27cm, pestle: 30cm","materials":["metal","Wood"]},"f182ff55-9430-5024-a039-37fa558855a8":{"name":"Large dish.","description":"A large dish with a surface edge that bends outward to a rim embellished by a consecutive series of triangles that resemble the jagged teeth of a saw. The interior of the dish is painted with a portrayal of a seated woman playing a stringed instrument that looks like a guitar. She wears a long garment with a V-shaped collar and wide sleeves, which is decorated with thick stripes and cross shapes. She wears a choker-type necklace, the V-shape of which sits inside the neck of her garment. The designs on her garment, in which the folds around the legs are embellished with decorations, are distinctive to Fatimid apparel. The musician's face is portrayed in profile. A toque, which resembles a turban, crowns her head and two locks of her hair appear from under the headdress on either side of her face along with a small tuft of hair behind her neck. The background around the figure is embellished with irregular surfaces demarcated by thin strokes filled with circles, dots and painted branches from which cone-shaped leaves grow. On the left-hand side of the woman is a delicately designed ewer surrounded by stylised vegetal-leaf designs; from the mouth of the ewer two flowering branches emerge. Below the rim of the dish underneath the painted serrated edge are a series of thick lines.","short_description":"Economic prosperity in the Fatimid period led to the flourishing of the lustre-ware ceramic industry. Such lustre-ware vessels, where the metallic lustre resembles gold, incorporate a variety of decorations including splendid scenes of Fatimid daily and social life.","type":"Dish, ceramics","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art","dates":"Hegira 5th century / AD 11th century.","location":"Cairo","dimensions":"Diameter 40 cm.","method_for_datation":"The dish was dated based on the study of its painted female musician, and specifically the design and decoration of the clothing she wears. The figure reflects the distinguishing traits that mark the portrayal of people in Fatimid art, including circular moon-shaped faces and almond-shaped eyes. The turban seen on the heads of men, and the toques on the heads of women, are also indicative of the period. In addition, the decorations that are present on the dish are borrowed from the vegetal and non-vegetal decorative motifs seen most commonly on wood, ivory and metal objects of the Fatimid period. This date is further supported by a comparison between this dish and other similar examples that bear the signatures of potters who are associated with the period.","method_for_provenance":"The place of manufacture was narrowed down to Egypt in view of the fact that ceramic production and metallic lustre-ware products were renowned in Fatimid Egypt. This industry grew and flourished in Fustat where archaeological excavations have uncovered a large number of ceramic pieces similar to this dish.","provenance":"Egypt.","obtention":"The dish was bought in 1944 from a dealer of antiquities, Fuqyan Jaan.","bibliography":"\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_, *Trésors fatimides du Caire*, exhibition catalogue, Paris, 1998.  \nHassan, Z. M., *Funun al-Islam (Arts of Islam),* Cairo, 1948.  \nJenkins, M., “Islamic Pottery: A Brief History”, *Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin,* Vol. 40 (4), spring, 1983.  \nKhadr, M. Y., *Tarikh al-Funun al-Islamiya \\[History of Islamic Art\\],* UAE, 2003.  \nPhilon, H., *Early Islamic Ceramics: Ninth to late Twelfth Centuries*, Athens,Vol. 1, London, 1980.","author":"Al-Sayyed Muhammad Khalifa Hammad","copy_editor":"Majd Musa","translator":"Amal Sachedina (from the Arabic).","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["ceramics","Dish","Female figure","figurative decoration","metallic lustre","music","musician","vegetal decoration"],"materials":["Ceramic with metallic lustre decoration over a glazed surface."]},"f2c92da1-bd97-52aa-b11f-4ac0d34fc18e":{"name":"Khan al-Khalili.","alternate_name":"Bab al-Ghuri or Bab al-Badistan.","description":"Khan al-Khalili is a world-renowned market and tourist landmark to which most visitors flock in order to buy products and gifts of the East. It also contains the largest gold and silver market in Egypt. In AH 786 / AD 1384, during the reign of al-Malik al-Zahir Barquq who ruled twice (AH 784–91 / AD 1382–9 and 792–801 / AD 1389–98), Amir Jaharqas al-Khalili set up an inn (*khan)* on the site of the Za'afran tomb. In AH 917 / AD 1511 Sultan Qansuh al-Ghuri destroyed Khan al-Khalili and constructed *rubu'* (small hotels) in its place, as well as warehouses and shops, which are known today by the name of Wikalat al-Kotn (Cotton Caravanserai). There were three principal entrances to the *khan* but little remains of these today except for one gate: Bab al-Ghuri, also known as Bab al-Badistan (*Badistan* being Turkish for cotton or linen), which is located at the west end of the road leading from al-Husayni Shrine to the interior of Khan al-Khalili.  \nBab Al-Badistan resembles the portals leading into Mamluk mosques and *madrasa*s, especially those that were erected during the period of Sultan al-Ghuri, a good example of which is the entrance to the Mosque of al-Ghuri (built AH 909 / AD 1504). This entrance consists of an arch that contains beautiful geometric decoration carved into the stone. The spandrel of the arch is decorated with geometric designs of white and black marble, in the middle of which is the blazon of the sponsor. The entrance of the portal is surmounted by an epigraphic inscription that includes the name of the sponsor and his titles. A tri-lobed arch decorated with *muqarnas*, which contains beautiful vegetal motifs, crowns the portal. There are three *mashrabiyya* screens in the windows, mid-way between the arched opening of the gate and the tri-lobed arch.  \nThe *khan* region was neglected during the Ottoman period, but began to flourish again in the period of Muhammad Ali Pasha (r. 1220–64 / AD 1805–48).  \nIt is known that many late 19th- and early 20th-century personalities of the Egyptian Revival (*nahda*) were amongst those who frequented the coffee houses in the region of Khan al-Khalili, when they were still students. The prominent Egyptian political leader, Sa'ad Zaghloul (1860–1927), expressed how areas such as that around Khan al-Khalili endeared themselves to him during his student days at al-Azhar. Many other prominent personalities of literature, arts and music also frequented the coffee houses in the region of Khan al-Khalili to discuss and exchange ideas and works in an atmosphere that emanated the essence of Egyptian, indeed world, history.","short_description":"A world-famous name in the heart of Fatimid Cairo, this is one of the oldest markets in Egypt. It is a tourist attraction and a meeting place to buy souvenirs and antiques. This historical area, with its narrow streets, alleys and old buildings, allows the visitor to enjoy the feel and smell the aroma of history, while watching craftsmen at work on their traditional products.","dates":"Hegira 917 / AD 1511.","location":"Cairo","method_for_datation":"The monument was dated with the help of historical sources such as *Bada'i al-Zuhur* by Ibn Iyas; the presence of both the name and titles of the sponsor is seen on the blazon at the entrance.","bibliography":"Prisse d'Avennes, é., *L'Art arabe d'après les monuments du Caire depuis le VIIe siècle jusqu'à la fin du XVIIIe*, Paris, 1877.  \nIbn Ayas, Abu al-Barakat Muhammad ibn Ahmad (d. 930 / 1524), *Bada'i al-Zuhur fi waqi'ia al-Duhur \\[The Wonders of Flowers Throughout the Events of Time\\],* Cairo, 1894.  \nRoberts, D., *Egypt Nubia,* London, 1896.  \nWilliams, C., *Islamic Monuments in Cairo: A Practical Guide,* Cairo, 2002.  \nZaki, Abd al-Rahman, *Al-Azhar wa ma Hawlahu min al-Athar \\[Al-Azhar and the surrounding Monuments\\],* Cairo, 1970.","patrons":"Sultan Qansuh al-Ghuri (r. 906–22 / AD 1501–16).","linkcatalogs":"IAM_EG_EN_001","author":"Tarek Torky","copy_editor":"Majd Musa","translator":"Amal Sachedina (from the Arabic).","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["civil architecture.","geometric decoration","khan","marble decoration","Portal","suq","vegetal decoration"]},"f31ff28f-d559-5abc-880d-148f4aa71f67":{"name":"Table (*khwan*) with scenes of princely leisure and inscribed with Persian poetry","short_description":"This low, rectangular wood table on four legs is extensively ornamented with lacquerwork on the table top. Around the interior rim are painted and gilded floral arabesques surrounding inscriptions in cartouches. On the surface of this table, young men and women repose, feast, and hunt in abundant landscapes, and their style of depiction echoes manuscript illustrations of canonical Persian poetry.","type":"Islamic, Indian & Southeast Asian works of art; painted woodwork; furniture","holder":"Shangri La, Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Art","dates":"Hegira early 14th century / AD late 19th or early 20th century","location":"Honolulu, Hawai'i","dimensions":"Overall: 28.9 x 82.9 x 157.5 cm","provenance":"Iran","keywords":["animal decoration","court life","Figurative representation","floral decoration","fugurative decoration","furnishing","garden","horsemanship","human representation","hunting","poetry"],"materials":["gilded and lacquered","painted","Wood"]},"f4b200cf-1a1b-5c49-9a62-cb9310e74f00":{"name":"Coffee-house","short_description":"Traditionally, social life in the Islamic world revolved around the tea-house or coffee-house, where men would gather to drink tea and coffee, eat sweet pastries or savoury food, and to smoke flavoured tobacco in water pipes (*narghile* or *qalian*). There they would play board games, listen to music and poetry recitations or discuss current events. This scene of a Turkish coffee-house would originally have been part of an album of images.","type":"Single-page painting","holder":"The Chester Beatty Library","dates":"Hegira 11th century / AD 17th century","location":"Dublin","dimensions":"41.5 x 27.2 cm","provenance":"Turkey","catalogue_holding_link":"https://viewer.cbl.ie/viewer/image/T_439_9/1/LOG_0000/","keywords":["border decoration","calligraphy","Illustration","miniature painting","script"],"materials":["coloured pigments and gold on paper"]},"f54ccda0-cd2f-59b9-b97e-ba28a8e6ef05":{"name":"Pedestal bowl or tazza","description":"A deep bowl, decorated in blue and white, with a sloping rim and supported on a pedestal base. The rim has been embellished with a pattern of rocks and waves, whilst the cavetto is decorated with floral sprays with a medallion surrounded by palmettes at the very centre. The base is also decorated with floral sprays.","type":"Bowl","holder":"Benaki Museum","dates":"AH 972 / c. AD 1565","location":"Athens","dimensions":"Diameter 28.2cm, height 15.8cm","place_of_production":"Iznk","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Turkey","obtention":"Acquired in Greece","bibliography":"Carswell, J., Gibson, M. (ed.), and Moraitou , M., *Iznik Ceramics at the Benaki Museum*, London: Gingko, and Athens: Benaki Museum, 2023: cat. no. 49, p. 103.","author":"Mina Moraitou","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Glazed ceramic"]},"f5534c7f-4ba5-5e47-aca4-efc34893cbc5":{"name":"Textile.","description":"The fabric is decorated in the centre with a large motif of a vase of flowers inside a pointed frame that rests on two small columns, at the base of which there are two cypress trees. The lower part of the fabric depicts a gated entrance crowned with a crescent moon beneath an epigraphic motif in Arabic characters. On either side there are large cypress trees beside star motifs. The entire piece is framed with plant volutes with lance-shaped leaves and four- and five-petal flowers. The decoration consists of gold- and silver-plated wire embroidery.","short_description":"This fabric is of Turkish origin produced in the late Ottoman era and is characterised by naturalistic floral motifs, in which the influence of Western decorative trends can be clearly seen.","type":"Silk, satin, metal thread","holder":"Museum of Civilisations | Museum of Oriental Art “Giuseppe Tucci”","dates":"Hegira 13th century / AD 19th century.","location":"Rome","dimensions":"Height 300 cm, width 200 cm.","method_for_provenance":"This fabric was produced in late-Ottoman Turkey in the 13th / late 19th century and is characterised by the use of naturalistic floral motifs that clearly show a strong influence of more Western decorative elements.","provenance":"Turkey.","obtention":"Purchase.","bibliography":"Barışta, H. ö., “Turkish Embroideries: Later Period of The Ottoman Empire”, *Seventh International Congress of Turkish Art*, Warsaw, 1990, pp.37–42.  \nGönül, M., “Some Turkish Embroideries in the Collection of the Topkapisaray Museum in Istanbul”, *Kunst des Orients*, 1969, VI, pp.43–76.  \nTaylor, R., *Ottoman Embroidery*, London, 1993.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_TR_EN_001","author":"Paola Torre","copy_editor":"Pier Paolo Racioppi","translator":"Laurence Nunny","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["embroidery","floral decoration","Ottoman textiles","textile","vegetal decoration"],"materials":["Silk satin embroidered with metal thread."]},"f68354eb-cd48-5520-b352-24d135f08193":{"name":"Covered Box with Design of Figural, Vegetal, and Geometric Motifs","short_description":"A twelve-sided brass box with silver and gold inlay has a cover with a central hemispherical dome on the top. The cover is relief decorated with interlocking geometric and vegetal patterning, separated by plain bands of meander. The main register of the dome has circles containing kneeling figures. The dome is surrounded by a stepped, scalloped area, surrounded again by a broader scalloped step, points of the scallops corresponding in location. This broader step has the same incised decoration. The cover tapers in slightly around a plain bottom lip and joins to the box at a thin band of stylized guilloche.  \nThe box has the same type of background relief decoration, registers separated by bands of meander. The roundels contain seated, cross-legged figures. The box rests on a convex bottom.  \nThere is some wear and abrasion over the entire surface of the box. The very top of the dome has a notable hole; some of the metal has been folded back over the top \\[this was the point of attachment for a handle and a ring that appears in older photographs of the object, but has since been removed\\]. Also, one area on the side of the cover seems to have a small metal \"plug\" type of repair.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Saint Louis Art Museum","dates":"Hegira First half 8th century / AD first half 14th century","location":"Saint Louis","dimensions":"Length: 26.7cm x Width: 27.3cm","method_for_datation":"Scholarly review and/or comparison to similar objects from the period.","method_for_provenance":"Scholarly review and/or comparison to similar objects from the period.","provenance":"Iran, Asia","obtention":"Museum Purchase, 1926","keywords":["Alloy","Asia","Box","Copper","Covered","gold","inlay","Iran","metalwork","Persian","silver"],"materials":["Copper alloy with silver and gold inlay"]},"f71b30b4-5cfa-55d7-a2fa-6790d5d186d8":{"name":"Tray (*sinija*)","description":"The term *sinija* comes from the Turkish word *sini*, which describes a large round brass or copper tray that functioned as a low table on which food was served. These plates were typically decorated with ornaments arranged inside concentric belts, around the central roundel.  \nIn this case, inside the central roundel is the stylized, leaf-like motif. In the widest, central belt, the same motif is alternately composed of cypresses and ibrik motifs. The rim is flattened, and decorated with geometric patterns.","type":"Tableware","holder":"Museum of Applied Art","dates":"Hegira 12th century / AD 18th century","location":"Belgrade","dimensions":"Diameter: 690mm, weight: 4890g","place_of_production":"Sarajevo, Ottoman Empire","method_for_datation":"By stylistic and comparative analysis with related material","obtention":"Purchased in 1959.","bibliography":"Karamehmedović, M. A., *Umjetnička obrada metala*, Sarajevo: Veselin Masleša, 1980: 295, 302–303.","author":"Mila Gajić","keywords":["Copper","Ottoman Balkans","sinija","Tableware","Tray"],"materials":["black compound","copper","Cutting","Engraving","tinned"]},"f795fd67-bd2c-50a0-87cd-f4f308542324":{"name":"Earth and celestial globe, the so-called 'St. Gallen Globe'","description":"For many years, the so-called St. Gallen Globe, one of the prized objects of Swiss cultural history, was a source of contention. The globe featuring Mercator maps of the earth and the celestial sphere was created by Tilemann Stella in northern Germany towards the end of the sixteenth century, as a document discovered in 2016 reveals. Although they were not suitable for navigation, globes were extremely popular in the early modern period. What makes the St. Gallen Globe so special is its combination of world and celestial globes. Entitled as a gift, which, however, was later satisfied, the globe was incorporated in the library of the Abbey of St Gallen where it was kept until 1712. During the Second War of Villmergen the globe was robbed and carted off to Zürich where it was displayed in the Wasserkirche (Water Church). St Gallen demanded the return of the globe, but to no avail. When the Swiss National Museum was established in 1898, the globe passed into the hands of the Swiss Confederation; it has been on display in the museum ever since. The dispute over the treasure, which went down in Swiss history as the cultural heritage conflict between Zürich and St Gallen, was only resolved in 2006 when the St Gallen Abbey library received a true copy of the contested globe.","type":"Globe","holder":"Swiss National Museum","owner":"Zentralbibliothek Zürich","dates":"Around 1570","location":"Zurich","dimensions":"H: 233cm, W: 174cm, Diameter: 121cm (with frame), L: 380cm","method_for_datation":"In 2016 a document was found which revealed the globe’s origin.","provenance":"Northern Germany, Mecklenburg","obtention":"The globe was donated 1595 to the Stiftsbibliothek St. Gallen and robbed 1712 by Zürich troops during the second Villmerger-wars. Since then it is in the property of the Stadtbibliothek Zürich, now called Zentralbibliothek. When the Landesmuseum opened its doors in 1898 it was given into possession of the Landesmuseum as part of the “Morgengabe”.","keywords":["Scientific instruments","St. Gallen Globus","terrestrial and cellestial globe"],"materials":["painted","Papier-mâché","Wood"]},"f7b54067-2ca1-5b6d-bcf0-c61b4f118231":{"name":"Bayezid II Complex (*külliye*).","description":"The Bayezid II Complex is of the *külliye* type comprising a large collection of buildings of which the mosque is central. Located on the north shore of the Tunca River, it occupies an area of some 22,000 sq m and is surrounded by walls. It consists of a mosque, two guest-houses (*tabhane*s) adjoining the mosque, a *madrasa*, a hospital (*darüşşifa*), a soup-kitchen (*imaret*), food-storage areas, and (outside the courtyard walls) a double bathhouse (*hammam*) and a bridge. The double bathhouse at the west of the complex no longer survives. The bridge over the Tunca River, built to connect the *külliye* to the city, has large spans of pointed arches.  \nThe *madrasa* and *darüşşifa* are on the western side of the central courtyard, which is accessed through a gate in the north wall of the outer courtyard. The *imaret* is on the eastern side, while the mosque is on the south side. On the east side of the courtyard gate is the fountain of Sinan Ağa.  \nThe single-domed, cubic mosque is adjoined by *tabhane*s on its east and west sides. Each of these guest-houses has a four-*iwan* plan and contains nine bays. The rectangular courtyard, north of the prayer hall, is accessed through three gates in its north, east and west walls. The courtyard is surrounded on all four sides by domed porticoes and has a marble fountain in the centre. The seven-bay portico for latecomers extends along the façade of the mosque and its central dome, decorated with *muqarnas*, is higher than the others. The building's two minarets rise from the outer corners of the *tabhane*s. Each has one balcony, both are almost 38 m high, and have grooved bodies, 3.25 m in diameter. The dome covering the square prayer hall is approximately 20.55 m in diameter and rises on pendentives.  \nThe *mihrab*, *minbar* and sultan's loge are all made of marble. The geometric decoration on the *minbar* and the gallery are noteworthy. The wooden door wings, cupboards and window shutters are richly decorated. In addition to geometric and floral decoration, the ornament includes various inscriptions.  \nThe single-storied *madrasa* occupies a rectangular area and has an open courtyard with porticoes on all four sides; the fountain in the centre of the courtyard is in a ruined state. The entrance is in the middle of the east side. The north, south and west wings contain a total of 18 students' cells behind the porticoes. Both the portico bays and the students' cells are domed. The classroom is a square space of approximately 7.36 m x 7.37 m located in the centre of the west side. It is covered with a large dome, and the mezzanine built onto its east wall, which looks like a balcony, is the library.  \nThe *darüşşifa* to the west of the mosque is made up of a main building and two courtyards. The main building is hexagonal and consists of a central domed space with six *iwan*s opening onto it, and rooms between the *iwan*s. Both the *iwan*s and the rooms are each covered with a single dome. The south *iwan* is deeper than the others and extends to the outside.  \nThe *imaret* to the east of the mosque comprises a kitchen, oven, dining hall, pantry, storage space, and stables. It was built in two clusters of structures.  \nToday the *darüşşifa* and the *madrasa* have been appropriated by Trakya University and are open to visitors as a Museum of Health and a Fine Arts Museum.","short_description":"One of the monumental Ottoman complexes, it was built on the bank of the River Tunca. Covering an area of 22,000 square m the complex comprises a mosque with two *tabhane*s (guesthouse) adjoining it, a *madrasa*, a hospital, an *imaret* (soup-kitchen), storerooms within the walls, a double-bathhouse outside which has not survived, and a bridge over the river. Its foundations were laid with a ceremony attended by the sultan himself. It is known that musical therapy was applied at its hospital and its *madrasa* is said to have served for medical training.","dates":"Hegira 893 / AD 1488.","location":"Edirne","method_for_datation":"Historical documents tell us that Sultan Bayezid II himself participated in the ceremonies to mark the foundation of this complex in Rabi' al-Akhir 889 / May 1484. The mosque, according to the inscription by Sheikh Hamdullah over the main portal, was completed in AH 893 / AD 1488. It is thought that the other buildings of the complex were also finished on the same date. The fountain lying east of the gate to the outer courtyard was ordered built in AH 1080 / AD 1670 by Sinan Ağa.","bibliography":"Eyice, S., “Beyazıt II Camii ve Külliyesi \\[The Mosque and Complex of Beyazıt II\\]”, *Türkiye Diyanet Vakfı İslam Ansiklopedisi \\[Encyclopaedia of Islam by the Religious Affairs Foundation of Turkey\\]*, Vol. 6, 1992, pp.42–5.  \nKuyulu, İ., “II. Bayezid Külliyesi”, *Erken Osmanlı Sanatı, Beyliklerin Mirası \\[Early Ottoman Art: The Legacy of the Emirates\\]*, Madrid, 1999, pp.189–93.  \nMüderrisoğlu, F., “Edirne II, Bayezid Külliyesi \\[Bayezid II Complex in Edirne\\]”, *Vakıflar Dergisi \\[Journal of the Waqfs\\]*, XXII (1991), pp.151–98.  \nRi'fat O., *Edirne Evkâf-ı İslâmiyye Tarihi Camiler ve Mescitler \\[The History of Islamic Foundations, Mosques and Masjids in Edirne\\]*, (simplified from the Ottoman by ü. (Ayan) özsoy), Ankara, 1999.  \nYüksel, İ. A., *Osmanlı Mimarisinde II. Bâyezid Yavuz Selim Devri (886–926/1481–1520) \\[The Reigns of Bayezid II and Yavuz Selim in Ottoman Architecture (886–926/1481–1520)\\],* Istanbul, 1983.","patrons":"Sultan Bayezid II (r. AH 886–917 / 1481–1512).","architects":"There are several opinions as to the identity of the architect. According to some researchers, the complex was built by the architect Hayreddin [Khayr al-Din], while according to others it was built by the architect Yakub Shah bin Sultan Shah. Calligrapher: Sheikh Hamdullah [Hamd Allah].","linkcatalogs":"IAM_TR_EN_001","author":"İnci Kuyulu Ersoy","translator":"Barry Wood","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["bridge","calligraphy","Edirne","floral decoration","geometric decoration","guest-house (tabhane)","hospital (darüşşifa)","külliye","madrasa","religious architecture","soup-kitchen (imaret)"]},"f982124c-5947-5618-a36f-528cc79bcd18":{"name":"Sugar Bowl","description":"Made of white porcelain. There are two handles on the side starting from the rim and going down to the bottom. The surface is decorated with floral and leaf motifs painted in yellow gilt. The handles are also painted in yellow gilt. The cover is decorated with embossed flowers, roses and leaves painted in yellow, blue, green, pink and red.","holder":"Ankara Ethnography Museum","owner":"The Republic of Türkiye Ministry of Culture and Tourism","location":"Ankara","dimensions":"Height: 7.4cm, diameter: 14cm","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["Porcelain and silver"]},"fa4916ad-b0f5-5f83-898a-6d97cf9229fd":{"name":"Vase with zoomorphic design","description":"This vase with zoomorphic decoration perpetuates the shape of ritual libation vases of Zoroastrianism, a religion originating in Iran in the first millennium BC. The pouring spout is topped by a bull’s head whose snout is hollow. Its decoration, in relief, is divided into separate concentric registers whose motifs are geometric and floral.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","initial_owner":"Annie Kevorkian","dates":"Hegira 4th-6th century / AD 11th-12th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 22.5cm, Base diameter: 6.2cm, Maximum diameter: 16cm","provenance":"Middle East","obtention":"Gift of Annie Kevorkian.","bibliography":"Delpont, E., et al., *Album du musée*, Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, 2012: 291.  \n  \nMoulierac, J, et al., *Céramiques du monde musulman: collections de l'Institut du monde arabe et de J.P. et F. Croisier* , Paris: Institut du monde arabe, 1999: 39.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["and carved decoration.","moulded","patterned","Unglazed clay"]},"fb0a9d2b-8b7a-5bd9-808e-71eac145b020":{"name":"Wedding banquet with German guests","description":"During big events like weddings or funerals, several plates (*siniyyat sufra*) must be placed in a long row, where about six people on each side can eat from one big plate. Following old traditions, mutton meat is placed on a mountain of rice or on many layers of wafer-thin flatbread. A very rich, well-seasoned meat broth is poured over all.  \nWhen the guest has finished eating, he/she will say *dayman*, meaning “May you always have the means to eat like this!” and stand up to give another person the opportunity to take his/her place to eat. A member of the family will bring water, soap and a towel to wash the guest’s hands after eating.  \nThe big feast takes place on the last day of the wedding celebrations, usually after three days of dancing to the sounds of musicians in the courtyard of the groom’s family or in a village plaza.  \nFeasts often are set up according to gender, depending on whether guests are family members, more distant relatives or acquaintances. Women who belong to a mixed-gender group are asked whether they prefer to eat with the men or with the women of the house. In the photo, a German tour group was invited to a wedding party in a village.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Karin Pütt","initial_owner":"Karin Pütt","dates":"Hegira 1430 / AD 2009","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Habuba Kabira/Syria","method_for_provenance":"Direct contact","provenance":"Habuba Kabira/Aleppo Province","bibliography":"- Nippa, A., \"Haus und Familie in arabischen Ländern\", München 1991, 48.","author":"Karin Pütt","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Digital photo"]},"ffe08b8f-98ad-5e02-a0ff-ceaa5ae4d13f":{"name":"Collection of Persian poetry","short_description":"The collection of Persian poetry is a work of Abd al-Wahhab ibn Muhammad ibn al-Sayyid. The manuscript in *nasta\\`liq* script contains two miniatures attributed to Aqa-malik and representing a princess in a garden.","type":"Manuscript","holder":"MAO Museum of Oriental Art","dates":"Hegira 10th century / AD 16th century","location":"Turin","dimensions":"Height 28 cm, width 17 cm","provenance":"Iran","keywords":["manuscript","Nasta`liq","Safawid"],"materials":["gold and pigments","Ink","Paper"]},"ffff8d3d-ab9b-5733-9ca0-900b6b34002e":{"name":"*Ghotar* concave dish","description":"The radiant design is organised around the seal of Solomon, or eight-pointed star, that adorns the centre of the dish. The contour of the star is painted blue, and a flower with eight green petals is inside it. The star is on a white background with small yellow patterns outlined in black. Oval patterns extend from the points of the star. Decorated concentric bands complete the ornamentation of the piece.  \nThe decoration and form are characteristic of Moroccan ceramics between the 17th and 19th centuries. They are widespread in Morocco and Spain, and even in France. An Andalusian influence can be seen in certain features, such as the use of geometry. The piece reflects the polychrome earthenware made in Fes, but also in Safi, a production centre. In the 19th century, colours were more assertive, shapes heavier, and decorations less spontaneous than before. This piece is of high technical and aesthetic quality.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","dates":"Hegira 13th century / AD 19th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 11.5cm, Diameter: 34cm, Diameter base: 4cm","provenance":"Fes, Morocco","obtention":"Purchased at auction on advice from Ader-Picard-Tajan, 2002.","bibliography":"Delpont, E., *Album du musée*, Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, 2012: 294.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["Clay","design painted on opaque glaze under transparent glaze"]}}
+{"008afac0-e38b-550a-a0d2-9a4b088b3083":{"name":"Bowl with inscription","short_description":"A ceramic bowl covered with a white slip and transparent glaze. The sole decoration on a white background is an Arabic inscription in black and a stylized flower in the centre. The inscription is benedictory in the *kufic* script: “Blessings and joy to the owner”. The bowl belongs to a type of pottery typical of the Samanid workshops in eastern Iran. The characteristic inscriptions usually include proverbs or wishes, and the reader is invited to rotate the object to read them.","type":"Bowl, earthenware, ceramic","holder":"Benaki Museum","dates":"Hegira 4th century / AD 10th century","location":"Athens","dimensions":"Diameter 24.8 cm","provenance":"Nishapur","dynasty":"Samanid","keywords":["bowl","calligraphy","earthenware","kufic","Samanid"],"materials":["Earthenware"]},"019b1d84-e6f3-5e53-a049-f7191924c562":{"name":"Ottoman wooden spoons","short_description":"The Kunstkammer at Ambras contains a number of wooden Ottoman spoons. One such spoon is recorded in the Kunstkammer at Munich as early as AD 1596, suggesting that the ones at Ambras also date from the 16th century, despite only being listed on a later inventory. The spoons feature floral motifs such as tulips, carnations and hyacinths in gold paint. Their backs and part of the handles are decorated with wave-band motifs.","type":"Tableware","holder":"Kunsthistorisches Museum","dates":"Hegira second half of the 10th century / AD 2nd half of the 16th century","location":"Vienna","dimensions":"Length: 29cm; Length: 23.5cm; Length: 25cm; Length: 23cm; Length: 27cm; Length: 27cm","method_for_datation":"Comparison with similar objects","method_for_provenance":"Probably Ambras castle AD 1596","provenance":"Turkey?","obtention":"Collection of Ambras castle","bibliography":"Haag, Sabine (ed), *Fernsucht: Die Suche nach dem Fremden vom 16. bis 19. Jahrhundert*, exh. cat. Schloss Ambras, Wien: Kunsthistorisches Museum, 2009.  \nHaag, Sabine, Sandbichler, Veronika, Klarer, Mario (eds), *Piraten und Sklaven im Mittelmeer*, exh. cat. Schloss Ambras, Wien: Kunsthistorisches Museum, 1997.","dynasty":"Ottoman","author":"Veronika Sandbichler, Thomas Kuster","copy_editor":"Liz Cooper","keywords":["domestic vessels","floral decoration","floral motifs","hyacinths","kitchenware","ottoman empire","spoons","stripes"],"materials":["Wood, lacquer painting"]},"01c7dad2-5f26-5c46-9416-87c4c613cb64":{"name":"Table and two chairs (*Peškuns*)","description":"Interested in woodcut and its application on both profane and sacral objects, artist Branko Šotra (1906–1960) created several ensembles of *peškuns* during the 1930s. In interwar Yugoslavia, *peškun* (Tr. *peşkun*), a richly decorated (with carving, mother-of-pearl, and other) circular or polygonal low table/chair of Oriental origin, was an indispensable element of the so-called *Bosnian room* that was popular in homes in Belgrade, as an emulation of the royal family’s furnishings. They were made and decorated by skilled craftsmen, the most appreciated being those from Konjic.  \nHowever, Šotra combined the traditional form of the *peškun* with the motifs he was personally interested in and treated them using the contemporary language of Art Deco. On the top hexagonal table and chair tops of the *peškuns*, he carved relief scenes of rural life, while the lower, supporting, parts with ogee arches are decorated with geometric ornaments, motifs of grain ears, flowers, affronted doves and parrots. On the tabletop, there is a representation of a kitchen where a mother is nursing a child, a father is sitting and smoking next to the table with a *fildžan* – a Turkish coffee cup (Tr. *kahve fıncanı*) – and a *džezva* – coffee pot (Tr. *cezve*) – while a cat is drinking milk from a bowl. On the chair-tops are depictions of a shepherdess spinning wool in a meadow under a tree, surrounded by sheep and a stack of hay, and, on another chair, a woman reaping grain, a tree, a water gourd, and, in the background, a road leading to the village.  \nThe introduction of contemporary features into tradition was not Šotra’s exclusive approach. As a contributor to the journal *Primenjena umetnost* (*The Applied Art*), he published, in 1937, a pattern and instruction for the woodcuts for peškun, with geometric and floral ornaments inspired by folk art. After graduating from The Royal Art School in Belgrade in 1929, Branko Šotra taught drawing in Sarajevo, Loznica, and Vršac, and woodcut in Ohrid. At the same time, he dealt with painting, fresco painting, icon painting, and woodcarving. After World War II, he dedicated himself to the art of printing and pedagogical work. He served as the rector and professor at The Academy of Applied Arts from 1948 to 1956.","type":"Furniture","holder":"Museum of Applied Art","dates":"Hegira 1352–1354 / AD 1934–1935","location":"Belgrade","dimensions":"Table: 65 x 55 x 71cm; chair: 46 x 40 x 45.5cm","place_of_production":"Sarajevo, Kingdom of Yugoslavia","method_for_datation":"Through curatorial research","obtention":"Given in 2006 by the author's niece, Ksenija Gaćinović from Belgrade.","bibliography":"Šotra, B., *Primenjena umetnost* 3 (1937): 11–12;  \n  \nKraut, V., \"Prilog za monografiju Branka Šotre\" (Summary: \"Contribution à la monographie de Branko Šotra\"), in *Matica Srpska Journal for Fine Arts* 17 (1981): 281–297;  \n  \nDamjanović, D., *Branko Šotra: Retrospektiva*, Sarajevo: Umjetnička galerija Bosne i Hercegovine, 1991;  \n  \nDamjanović D., \"Jedan iz Kolone: Branko Šotra (1906–1960)\", in: *Slikano perom*, Banja Luka: Art print, 2000: 28–40;  \n  \nPopović, B., \"*Peškuns* / Table and Two Chairs\", in: I. Zorić (ed.), *New in the Collections: Acquisitions 2001–2010*, Belgrade: Museum of Applied Art, 2010: 114–115.","dynasty":"Interwar period","artist_birthdate":"31 January 1906","artist_birthplace":"Kozice, Austria-Hungary (today Bosnia and Herzegovina),","artist_deathdate":"21 May 1960","artist_deathplace":"Stockholm, Sweden","author":"Bojana Popović","keywords":["carving","Ottoman Balkans","peškun","side table","stool","Yugoslavia"],"materials":["Beechwood","carving, dark varnish, matte polish"]},"021c9362-ae4c-5a9d-94f5-0755ebb9c1cc":{"name":"Mevlevi Kitchen (*Matbah-ı Şerif*)","description":"The term *somat* (feast table) was used to describe the table where Mevlevis ate. Spoons would be placed face down to indicate the dervishes’ gratitude and to prevent the contents from being seen. A pinch of salt was placed in front of everyone. When the food had been cooked, Kazancı Dede would bring the cauldron to the table and open its lid. After reciting a prayer, those present would invoke the name of Allah Hu.","type":"Room Restoration","holder":"Konya Mevlana Museum","location":"Konya","bibliography":"Bakırcı, Naci, *Konya Mevlana Müzesi*, Istanbul: BKG Yayinlari, 2010.","copy_editor":"Judy Harter"},"02992f2b-3701-5bc3-ba32-d5f6226b56ef":{"name":"Bowl (*Sakızlık*)","short_description":"From historical sources, we learn that vessels made of gold and silver were widely used in the Ottoman palace. Starting from the end of the 18th century, Baroque and Rococo forms of Western style replaced classical Ottoman designs. We find roses in relief, the Ottoman coat-of-arms, architectural compositions, casted flowers, birds and animals on a multitude of the vessels of the era. This cylindrical cup with pedestal foot and cupola-like hinged lid was made of vermeil silver. On the body of the cup we see a floral pattern and hanging lambs placed alternatingly. Flowers, buds and leaves are made from rubies and diamonds nailed into gold and silver contours. On the lid – instead of lamb motif on the body – a chalice was used. The foot of the chalice is in the form of a cherub from which a bundle of rays projects.","type":"Bowl; golden; Minor art","holder":"Vehbi Koç Foundation Sadberk Hanim Museum","dates":"19th century","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"H: 10.7, Diameter: 7.4 cm","copy_editor":"Daniel de la Vega","keywords":["minor arts, applied arts, silver objects"],"materials":["Silver, gold, diamond, ruby"]},"02c23c32-bafe-5d35-af62-5391f4a033ad":{"name":"The Coffee Shop of Cairo","short_description":"This colourful print depicts a typical 19th century coffeeshop in Cairo. An exclusively male domain, its design was characterised by an open front and wide benches for seating, to allow for easy congregation and the gathering of friends and acquainances. Not only in Cairo, which had over a thousands coffeehouses in Roberts's time, but all over the Middle East, coffeehouses were important social hubs for the exchange of news, entertainment, smoking (customers brought their own pipes and waterpipes) and - not rarely - political dissent. Musicians and storytellers often enhanced the experience further. In this image, the proprietor or an employee of the cafe can be seen serving a beverage in the centre. Interestingly, both the ewer and the large copper cup he uses are of a type usually associated with water, not coffee. Perhaps Roberts introduced these items for artistic effect.","type":"Lithograph","holder":"Sharjah Art Museum / Sharjah Museums Department","dates":"Published in 1849","location":"Sharjah","dimensions":"391 mm x 345 mm","provenance":"London","artist_birthdate":"David Roberts: 24/10/1796; Louis Hague: 17/3/1806","artist_birthplace":"David Roberts: Edinburgh, Scotland; Louis Hague: Tournai, Belgium","artist_deathdate":"David Roberts: 25/11/1864; Louis Hague: 9/3/1885","artist_deathplace":"David Roberts: London; Louis Hague: London","author":"Ulrike Al-Khamis","materials":["Lithograph"]},"02d54027-4e37-5e8b-a5f1-0828055c346d":{"name":"*Âftâbe* ewer","description":"The profile of this ewer for water or wine suggests glass pieces, which are more expensive to produce and more fragile. Coppersmiths translate the models into bronze or brass because Islam disapproves of gold and silver dishes.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","dates":"Hegira last quarter of 3rd-4th century / AD 10th-11th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 34.4cm, Diameter: 15cm, Opening diameter:  7.2cm, Base diameter: 8cm","provenance":"Iran","obtention":"Purchased on advice of Delavenne-Lafarge, 1988.","bibliography":"Allan, J.W., *Nishapur: Metalwork of the Early Islamic Period*, New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1982: 42-43, 82-83.  \n  \nBaer, E., *Metalwork in Medieval Islamic Art*, New York: State University of New York Press, 1983: 90; Fig. 70.  \n  \nDelpont, E., et al., *Album du musée*, Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, 2012: 386.  \n  \nFehervari, G., *Islamic Metalwork in the Keir Collection*, London: Faber and Faber, 1976: 34-35; Fig. 5 and Pl. Iic.  \n  \nFondation L. A. Meyer, Institut d'art musulman, Jerusalem, 1980: p. 10.  \n  \nKeene, M., *Selected Recent Acquisitions*, Kuwait: Kuwait National Museum, 1984: Fig. 26  \n  \nLutfiya, A., *The Central Asian art of Avicenna Epoch* Dushanbe: Irfon Publishing House, 1980: 119.  \n  \nMelikian-Chirvani, A.S., *Islamic Metalwork from the Iranian World. Catalogue of the Victoria and Albert Museum*, London: H.M.S.O., 1982: 85-86, Fig. 19.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["Cast bronze and engraved decoration, with an ornamental band"]},"03a41b10-16ab-52d7-8fef-d551e00d69c7":{"name":"Vase (three items)","description":"These massive gold and silver damascened engraved steel vases from 19th century Qajar-era Iran showcase exquisite craftsmanship and elaborate design. They feature a distinct shape, characterised by a trumpet foot, bulbous body, and decorative handles resembling curling arabesques.  \nThe surface of these metalworks is adorned with intricately etched and damascened decorations depicting scenes probably inspired by the *Shahnameh* (*The Book of Kings*). These scenes primarily portray royal garden parties, known as *bazm* or feast, where music, dance and merrymaking prevail. This decorative tradition reflects Persian kingly protocol, emphasising the concepts of *bazm* (feast) and *razm* (fight). *Bazm* is illustrated with joyful gatherings in royal gardens, while *razm* is depicted through scenes of combat and hunting.  \nWith their intricate designs and symbolic motifs, these metalworks provide insight into the rich cultural legacy of Qajar Iran in the 19th century. They serve also as ceremonial items used in dining and festive gatherings, enhancing their significance in depicting the customs and practices of the time. The vases are crafted using damascening, an ancient metalworking technique that involves inlaying gold and silver onto hard metal surfaces. The intricate designs are engraved in the steel surface, and then gold and silver are carefully hammered into these grooves. This meticulous process resulted in the detailed decorations on the vases, highlighting the skill and artistry of Qajar-era Iranian craftsmen.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani Museum","owner":"His Excellency Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"Hegira 13th century / AD 19th century","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Height: 74cm, length: 22cm","place_of_production":"Iran, Khorasan or Herat","method_for_datation":"The date and origin were established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, techniques, style and analogies.","method_for_provenance":"The date and origin were established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, techniques, style and analogies.","provenance":"Iran","obtention":"Purchased","dynasty":"Qajar Era (AH 1193–1343 / AD 1779–1925)","author":"Mahmoud Saber","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["vase, Qajar, Iran, steel, gold, silver, Shahnameh, hunting"],"materials":["embossing, engraving","Metal, brass"]},"03af3ec3-8778-533c-8919-fead5482c63d":{"name":"Coffee Grinder","description":"A wooden coffee grinder with metal bowl attached to a cubed box on a flat extended base. The user would grind the roasted beans in the chamber by turning the handle. The ground coffee accumulated in the cubed box.","holder":"Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts","dates":"13th-14th century/AD 19th century","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"26cm x 40cm x 21cm","dynasty":"Ottomans (AH 698–1340 / AD 1299–1922)","materials":["Wood, metal"]},"061b77bb-faee-50ba-9c83-99e488d5500a":{"name":"Dish","description":"Large, white plate densely covered with vivid floral decoration consisting of tulips, roses and hyacinth on curved stems in addition to other flowers and leaves. Rim decorated with simplified plant motifs. On the back side of the rim five green and three blue spots.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"National Museum in Kraków","initial_owner":"Muzeum Techniczno-Przemysłowe w Krakowie / Industrial Museum in Kraków","dates":"11th century Hegira / 17th century AD","location":"Kraków","dimensions":"Diameter: 28.5cm, height: 5cm","method_for_datation":"Dating and origin based on similar pieces from other collections","method_for_provenance":"Material, technique and design are characteristic for İznik, which was a centre of quality ceramic production in this period","obtention":"Purchased by the Industrial Museum in Kraków in 1900.","bibliography":"Abrahamowicz, Z., *Wojna i pokój. Skarby sztuki tureckiej ze zbiorów polskich od XV do XIX wieku*, Warsaw: Muzeum Narodowe, 2000: p. 455, fig. 74","dynasty":"Ottomans (AH 698–1340 / AD 1299-1922)","author":"Bożena Kostuch","keywords":["flowers","Islam","Iznik"],"materials":["polychrome painted under transparent glaze","Stone-paste (fritware)"]},"065ee648-ada2-516d-a7cd-4adf36e94026":{"name":"*Habb* water jar","description":"This large water jar (*habb*) combines a utilitarian function with ostentatious decoration. It occupied a place of honour in the domestic space. Water was drawn from it with a jug or pitcher as needed for daily living. The surface is adorned with stylised female figures that reflect the persistence, through millennia and civilisations, of the mother goddess.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","dates":"Hegira 5th-7th / AD 12th-13th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 79cm, Opening dimension: 22.5cm, Maximum diameter: 45.5cm","provenance":"Meskeneh, Syria","obtention":"Purchased at Christie, Manson & Wood Ltd, 1991.","bibliography":"Candy, S. and Beyazit, D., *Court and Cosmos. The Great Age of the Seljuqs*, New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 2016: 131, Fig. 60.  \n  \nCroisier, J-P. and Dürr, N., *Céramiques islamiques dans les collections genevoises*. Geneva: Editions du Tricorne, 1981: Fig. 241.  \n  \nDelpont, E., *L'Orient de Saladin. L'art des Ayyoubides*, Paris: Gallimard, Paris, 2001: 154, Fig. 135.  \n  \nDelpont, E., et al., *Album du musée*, Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, 2012: 295.  \n  \nMoulierac, J. and Vaudour, C., *La médecine au temps des califes: à l'ombre d'Avicenne*, Paris: Institut du monde arabe, 1996: 203, Fig. 126.  \n  \nMoulierac, J., et al., *Céramiques du monde musulman: collections de l'Institut du monde arabe et de J.P. et F. Croisier* , Paris: Institut du monde arabe, Paris, 1999: 151.  \n  \nReitlinger, G., \"Unglazed Relief Pottery from Northern Mesopotamia\", *Ars Islamica*, Vol: XV-XVI, 1951: 11-22.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["modeled and slip decoration","Unglazed clay"]},"06945f29-b3f5-5c43-b860-5d861b0794e2":{"name":"al-Ghuta ash-Sharqiyya","description":"Apricot paste is made from an apricot very specific to the Damascus oasis, the so-called *klabi*, a small, very juicy apricot with a bitter pit that grows on large trees with abundant foliage. Klabi apricots notably were found in some of the villages of Eastern Ghouta, south of the Barada valley. Klabi is characterised by its rapid ripening, with the fruit falling off as soon as it is ripe. As a result, the fruit had to be picked up from the ground day after day. Workshops for making *Qamr ad-Din* are always set up in sunny open fields in an oasis.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Anne-Marie Bianquis","initial_owner":"Anne-Marie Bianquis","dates":"Hegira 1421 / AD 2001","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Ghutat Dimashq/Syria","method_for_provenance":"Direct contact","provenance":"Ghutat Dimashq/Syria","bibliography":"Bianquis, A.-M., “Modernisation d'un artisanat traditionnel: la pâte d'abricot dans la ghouta de damas”, *Bulletin d'études orientales*, T. 56 (2004-2005): 301-328.  \n  \nDenker, J., \"'Moon of the Faith:' A History of the Apricot and Its Many Pleasures\", (14 June 2016).","author":"Hiba Bizreh","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Photographic negative"]},"0785d4ab-66cd-56c3-9f20-d7b522279ae6":{"name":"Black Cauldron","description":"The Black Cauldron, which is considered sacred by Bektashi devotees and the Janissary Corps, is situated on the large hearth at the axis of the entrance door. The Black Cauldron was constructed by fusing six substantial pieces of forged copper. Four distinct handles, two large and two small, are positioned on the exterior of the vessel. To grieve the martyrdom of Hz. Hussein – son of Hz. Ali, grandson of Hz. Muhammad – and his relatives in Karbala on Friday, 10 Muharram of the 61st year of the Hijra, Alevi-Bektashis observed a period of mourning. This was followed by a fast of mourning on the days of 1–12 Muharram, during which time the pain of those who were martyred was shared and the descendants of Ehlibeyt were commemorated. This practice continues today.  \nIn observance of the 10 Muharram, the Alevi-Bektashis engage in a water fast, which concludes at noon on the 10th day. The 10th day of Muharram is commemorated as Ashura, a period of solemn reflection and mourning. Ashura is observed as an important value that ensures social solidarity and unity. It is served to guests, neighbours and the needy.  \nDuring the period when the Külliye was operating as a lodge, the Ashura (dessert)in question was cooked and distributed in the Black Cauldron Currently, people oberve this ritual in their homes and concludes with a visit to the Külliye.","type":"Utensil","holder":"Nevşehir Hacıbektaş Museum","location":"Konya","dimensions":"Height: 83cm, width: 130cmm","dynasty":"Ottomans (AH 698–1340 / AD 1299-1922)","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda"},"0801264d-8475-5c87-a800-17b6d0cc190e":{"name":"The drawings of Janissary clothes from The Album of Mecmua-i Tesavir-i Osmaniye (The collection of Ottoman Pictures)","short_description":"Arif Mehmed Pasha is considered one of the leaders of the western style of painting in Turkey. He developed a talent for drawing and produced a series of pictures detailing the clothes Ottoman state officials wore. He prepared these pictures under the name *Mecmua-i Tesavir-i Osmaniyye*. Although his work was supposed to come out in 12 volumes, only one volume was actually published in French in Paris in 1863 and in Turkish the same year. The other 11 volumes have been lost. The published volume is considered to be the first illustrated book in Turkey. What is amazing is the praise heaped onto Arif Mehmed Pasha for his portraits, the harmony of their colours and tones, the maturity of attitude and delicate detail, the artist’s control over his pen and watercolours. The clothing reflects the time when the Janissaries were still on the scene (before 1826 when the corps was disbanded).","type":"Drawings","holder":"Military Museum and Cultural Centre Command","dates":"1863","location":"Istanbul","artist_birthdate":"1808","artist_deathdate":"1865","copy_editor":"Daniel de la Vega","keywords":["Ottoman Clothes","Janissary Clothes"]},"08735bbc-752f-5c86-962d-667f390393f6":{"name":"Nails","short_description":"These tools represent *baraka* (blessings) or *barkati* nails made of iron and adorned with fine inscriptions. Originating in Oman, talismanic qualities were attributed to the nails to protect property or vehicles.  \n  \nWhen constructing a home, furniture or vehicles such as dhows (boats), these blessed nails are hammered into the wood for additional support and protection. Islamic prayers in *naskh* calligraphy instil hidden blessings for oneself or on behalf of someone else for good fortune.  \n  \nSmall ordinary objects like nails are transformed into talismans to dispel demons (*jinn*), evil and accidents on long journeys. As iron is a precious material in Islam, the nails gain further protective properties.","type":"Domestic tools","holder":"FBQ Museum","owner":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"18th century","location":"Shahaniya","dimensions":"Length: 15cm, Width: 1cm","place_of_production":"Oman, Muscat","method_for_datation":"The date and origin were established in anthropological research-based comparison from an examination of material, engraving and pattern.","method_for_provenance":"The date and origin were established in anthropological research-based comparison from an examination of material, engraving and pattern.","provenance":"Oman","obtention":"Purchase","bibliography":"Al-Saleh, Y., \"Amulets and Talismans from the Islamic World\" in *Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History*, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000.  \nPorter, V., Saif, L. and Savage-Smith, E., \"Medieval Islamic Amulets, Talismans, and Magic\", in F.B. Flood and G. Necipoğlu (eds), *A Companion to Islamic Art and Architecture*, Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons, 2017.","dynasty":"Omani","author":"Sarah Schroeder","copy_editor":"Janice Medina","keywords":["Dhows","India","Oman","Talismans"],"materials":["Engraving","Iron"]},"08b6e3c0-94d9-573c-a123-ddbc53534246":{"name":"Ewer with epigraphic decoration","description":"In Iran, during the Seljuq period, a large number of moulds were produced, typically with epigraphic expressions, though figures or foliage are also found. The potters shaped ewers that often borrowed forms developed by coppersmiths. The turquoise glaze replaces with colour the detailed decoration of carving and silver inlay found in metal pieces.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","dates":"Hegira 6th-7th / AD 12th-13th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 31.5cm, Diameter: 16cm, Neck height: 8.5cm, Neck diameter: 7.5cm, Base height: 1.9cm, Base diameter: 10cm","provenance":"Iran","obtention":"Purchased at auction on advice from Claude Boisgirard, 2003.","bibliography":"Delpont, E., et al., *Album du musée*, Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, 2012: 387.  \n  \nGrube, E.J., *Islamic Pottery of the Eighth to the Fifteenth Century in the Keir Collection*, London: Faber and Faber, 1976: Fig. 116.  \n  \nPinder-Wilson, R.H., *Islamic Pottery 800-1400*, London: Victoria and Albert Museum, London, 1969: Fig. 77.  \n  \nSoustiel, J., *La céramique islamique*. Fribourg: Office du Livre, 1985: 101, 372; Fig. 25, 93.","dynasty":"Great Seljuq Dynasty (Hegira 429–552 / AD 1038–1157)","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["moulded and under glaze","Siliceous clay"]},"08c11707-3223-5e4f-98b6-ce06bf917293":{"name":"*Zafraan* (Saffron)","description":"*Zafraan* (Saffron) used to flavour coffee.  \nCoffee is always served at the beginning of a visit and is repeatedly offered until guests politely signal that they have had enough by rocking their cup from side to side. In order to keep coffee hot and fresh for unexpected guests it goes through many stages. After roasting and grinding the coffee beans the grains are added to boiling water inside a large *dallah* (coffee pot) called a *khamra*. Next, the liquid is poured into a medium-sized coffee pot called a *taljeemah*. At this stage cardamom seeds, saffron and rose water may be added for flavour. From this jug, the coffee is poured into a serving *dallah* referred to as a *mezallah*, where the coffee is refined and filtered. The server must hold the mezallah with their left hand and distribute the *fanayeel* (coffee cups) using the right hand. The coffee should fill less than half of the cup.","type":"Saffron","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century / AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Varies and depends on the strand. Length: 15mm","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Amanda Snyder, Mona Mukhashab","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["coffee","saffron"]},"0c64afe8-ef31-5013-ab4c-0e70f49a6799":{"name":"Traditional blue ceramic plate from Fez","description":"This ceramic dish is a remarkable example of craftsmanship in Fez, a Moroccan city renowned for its pottery production since the Middle Ages. The decoration is dominated by a circular rosette in the shape of a six-petaled flower, an emblematic motif of Islamic art combining geometry and symbolism. The centre is decorated with an interlaced six-pointed star (Star of David), symbol of infinity and universal harmony. The petals, finely filled with small blue dots on an off-white background, add texture and depth. Secondary floral motifs occupy the spaces between the petals, accentuating the decorative richness of the piece. The design is framed by a thick cobalt blue border, lending the work an elegance and striking visual contrast. This technique, which combines meticulous painting under a protective glaze, testifies to the mastery of its artisans. After being painted, the dish was baked at a high temperature to fix the colours and obtain the glossy finish characteristic of Fez ceramics.","type":"Plate","holder":"National Foundation of Museums","dates":"Hegira mid of 13th century / beginning of the 14th century – AD end of 19th century","location":"Rabat","dimensions":"Diameter: 41.5cm, height: 10.02 cm, base: 19.8 cm","place_of_production":"Fez","provenance":"Fez","dynasty":"Alawids (since AH 1076 /  AD 1666)","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["Blue glazed ceramic"]},"0c8d4c10-e0c7-58fa-9a01-827cb349e0f8":{"name":"Perfume flask","description":"This type of bottle with a long and narrow neck, also called *qumqum*, was used to disperse perfumed waters – orange blossom, rose water – on the hands and faces of guests: a gesture of hospitality also intended to expel evil forces from the house.  \nOn the surface of the pear-shaped body, cypress and bouquets of leaves alternate, and flowers emerge from a vase flanked by two seals of Solomon.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","dates":"End of 12th century-1st half of 13th century / AD end of 18th- beginning of 19th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 35.5cm, Diameter: 10cm, Base diameter: 9cm","provenance":"Morocco","obtention":"Purchased at 'Art Musulman gallery', 1992.","bibliography":"Delpont, E., et al., *Album du musée*, Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, 2012: 387.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["Cast steel","gold and silver decoration"]},"0dd50fe0-14f2-5280-8a34-a024885bc7dc":{"name":"Bedouin women cooking for a festival at Rusafa","description":"The tradition of cooking mutton in huge copper pots (*gidr*) on an open fire is still alive, although aluminium pots are available and weigh less. Surprisingly, these cooking pots do not come with lids, but serving plates (*siniyyat sufra*) are used instead. Food can be served directly on these while they are still hot. A big spoon (*jabjir*) is used to stir and distribute the meat and broth onto huge plates. The fatty mutton meat is cooked in broth that has been enriched with spices such as coriander, cumin, pepper and hot paprika.  \nA copper pot is passed down from one generation to another, as it represents the generosity of ancestors. From the size of the pot one can imagine the number of people who were fed from it.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Karin Pütt","initial_owner":"Karin Pütt","dates":"Hegira 1311 / AD 1993","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Ar-Rusafa/Syria","method_for_provenance":"Direct contact","provenance":"Ar-Rusafa /Raqqa Province","bibliography":"- Euting, J., \"Tagebuch einer Reise in Inner-Arabien\" (First Edition Leiden 1896), Hamburg, 1993, 177.
- al-Hroub, I., Atlas of Palestine Rural Heritage, Bethlehem, 2015, 74.","author":"Karin Pütt","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Slide"]},"0e671219-31d0-5818-8e46-222c869924d9":{"name":"al-Ghuta ash-Sharqiyya","description":"After being weighed, sorted and washed, then treated with sulphur, apricots are placed on a large cement platform sheltered from the sun. Exposing the apricots to sulphur vapour before pressing is a major innovation in the process. After some trial and error, sulphurisation is now a well-established part of the process; although the main argument in favour of it is commercial, the operation has the essential advantage of purifying or sterilising the fruit, therefore allowing better preservation of the *Qamr ad-Din*. A suction pump on the platform is used to load the press. A worker in boots enters the platform and pushes the apricots towards the mouth of the suction pump with a wooden shovel.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Anne-Marie Bianquis","initial_owner":"Anne-Marie Bianquis","dates":"Hegira 1320 / AD 2002","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Ghutat Dimashq/Syria","method_for_provenance":"Direct contact","provenance":"Ghutat Dimashq/Syria","bibliography":"Bianquis, A.-M., “Modernisation d'un artisanat traditionnel: la pâte d'abricot dans la ghouta de damas”, *Bulletin d'études orientales*, T. 56 (2004-2005): 301-328.  \n  \nDenker, J., \"'Moon of the Faith:' A History of the Apricot and Its Many Pleasures\", (14 June 2016).  \n  \nAl-Dawudi, F., \"L’abricot est ses dérivés dans la région syrienne\", thesis on pharmacy and chemistry, 1960, Damascus (in Arabic).","author":"Hiba Bizreh","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Photographic negative"]},"0e898325-2ca7-55a3-9b21-31bfc911229e":{"name":"Lunchbox","description":"Tin-plated copper casket for transporting food on journeys and campaigns. The whole surface is decorated with intricated designs, inscriptions and medallion with geometric motifs.","type":"Casket","holder":"Benaki Museum","dates":"AH 905-956/early 16th century","location":"Athens","dimensions":"Height: 21,3 cm, length: 34 cm, width: 20 cm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Egypt","obtention":"Antonis Benaki collection","bibliography":"Ballian, A. (ed.), *Benaki Museum: a Guide to the Museum of Islamic Art*, Athens: Benaki, 2006: fig. 184, p. 143.","dynasty":"Mamluk (AH 648–923/AD 1250–1517","author":"Mina Moraitou","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Tinned copper"]},"0ec7070c-4723-5d21-8d20-fb151e3e884f":{"name":"Coffee pots (*dallah*)","description":"With its slender waist, graceful handle and elegant spout, this coffee pot (or *dallah*) is an exquisite example of Nazwa silversmithing. The silver souq in Nazwa is famed for its superb wares; smiths tend to work alongside jewellers and khanjar-makers to produce particularly fine goods. This *dallah* features a combination of arabesque and geometric designs, while the inscription at the bottom reads, in Arabic, \"K. R. 21/6/1974\" – a reference to its maker, Khalfan bin Rashid al-Sabahi, and its date of completion.","type":"Copper, silver and brass (some with tin wash)","holder":"The National Museum – Sultanate of Oman","dates":"Hegira 13th–14th/AD 19th–20th centuries","location":"Muscat, Sultanate of Oman","dimensions":"Height: 29cm, width: 22cm, depth: 15cm, Q: 8cm","provenance":"Northern Oman","dynasty":"Al-Busaid Dynasty (AH 1167–present/AD 1754–present)","author":"Noora Al Balushi","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["Copper, silver and brass (some with tin wash)"]},"0f423815-f3be-51a7-ab13-23fc5d185723":{"name":"Takiyya al-Sulaymaniyya.","description":"Together with a *madrasa*, the Takiyya al-Sulaymaniyya was erected on the meadow belonging to a former Zangid parade ground, the Maydan al-Akhdar, located about 800 m west of the Old City of Damascus on the southern shore of the Barada River. It is the spot where once the Qasr al-Ablaq, the palace belonging to Sultan Baybars (r. AH 658–75 / AD 1260–77) stood, and where Timur resided during his attack on Damascus. The *takiyya* functioned as an inn for the accommodation of pilgrims where food was served, gratis.  \nThe whole complex was surrounded by an enclosure wall; to the west of the enclosure there was a vast area that was used as a tent encampment for pilgrims. From the main entrance on the east side, the visitor steps into the large courtyard where a central rectangular pool served as a meeting place. The mosque, preceded by a double portico, is by its twin minarets announced as a royal foundation. A row of cells is placed along either side of the courtyard while opposite the mosque is the *imaret* flanked by two long refectories along the east and west walls, each covered with 14 domes. Between them a large kitchen is preceded by a portico, the purpose of which may have been to offer shade to the pilgrims queuing for food, but which also gives a sort of splendour to the kitchen area. On each side of the kitchen, there are two twin-domed smaller rooms, which may have served as stores or dining chambers for the leaders of the *Hajj*. The enclosure to the north of the *imaret* is provided with a small entrance used by servants and to take in deliveries.  \nImmediately after the Ottoman conquest and up until the AH mid-10th / AD mid-16th century, the local – and likewise modest – building activity continued in a traditional way indicating a tolerant takeover of power. This is manifested not only by the fact that Mamluk governors were re-instated to office, but also by the employment of Damascene master architect, Shihab al-Din Ahmad ibn al-Attar who, for example, was employed by Sultan Selim I for the renewal of the funeral mosque of the renowned Sufi, Ibn Arabi in Salihiyya. Although the *takiyya* was planned by the Turkish master architect of the Sultan, Sinan (AH 895–996 / AD 1490–1588), he did not supervise the work personally but delegated much of it to a local subordinate. Native workmen were consulted, leaving their fingerprints on details of the décor such as the horizontal rows of alternating dark-and-light stone walls (*ablaq*). The tiles also show the characteristics of locally produced Damascene tiles, referring to the Turkish production of Iznik, but paler in colour.  \nThe complex's location at a prominent place amidst the long-distance trade and pilgrimage routes made it popular stop-off point for pilgrims from all over the Ottoman Empire and beyond, who were accommodated before continuing to the Holy places in the Arabian Peninsula. Its characteristically Ottoman style, with porticoes and dominant use of cupolas and pencil-shaped minarets make it a clear display of Ottoman supremacy.","short_description":"Several hundred metres before the city gates, one of the early Ottoman sultans, Sulayman the Magnificent (r. AH 926–74 / AD 1520–66), built a hospice for pilgrims who gathered in Damascus from all over the empire before turning south towards Mecca. The complex comprises a mosque, a kitchen, dormitories and a *madrasa*. For the first time, Ottoman features such as multiple cupolas and pencil-shaped minarets appear in Damascus, doubtless meant as architectural symbols of Ottoman supremacy. This is the only building in Bilad al-Sham (Greater Syria) designed by the celebrated Turkish architect Sinan.","dates":"Hegira 962–74 / AD 1554/5–1566/7.","location":"Damascus","method_for_datation":"Several Arabic sources discuss the building activities of Sultan Suleyman (see Rihawi, 1957, p.132) for a detailed list of these sources.","bibliography":"Goodwin, G., *A History of Ottoman Architecture*, London, 1971, p.256ff.  \nKafesçioğlu, C., “'In the Image of Rum': Ottoman Architectural Patronage in Sixteenth-century Aleppo and Damascus”, *Muqarnas*, 16, 1999, pp.70–96.  \nMeinecke, M., “Die osmanische Architektur des 16. Jh”, *Damaskus*, *Fifth International Congress of Turkish Art*, Budapest, 1978, pp.580–2, p.590.  \nRihawi, Abd al-Qadir, “al-Abniya al-Athariyya fi Dimashq 1: al-Takiyya wa-al-madrasa al-Sulaymaniyyatan bi-Dimashq \\[The Archaeological Buildings of Damascus: The Takiyya and the School of Sulayman in Damascus\\]”, *Annales Archéologiques de Syrie*, 1957, pp.125–34.  \nWulzinger, C., and Watzinger, C., *Damaskus, die islamische Stadt*, Berlin–Leipzig, 1924, pp.102–14.","patrons":"Sultan Suleyman ‘the Magnificent’ I (r. AH 926–74 / AD 1520–66).","architects":"The Turkish architect Sinan; the master builder was a Persian called Mullah Agha, partly substituted by Turkish building inspectors, one of them called Mustafa.","dynasty":"Ottoman.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_TR_EN_001","author":"Verena Daiber","copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["ceramic building decoration","Mosque","pilgrims","religious object"]},"109ed34a-507a-5652-bb30-736569eca0ac":{"name":"Drum","short_description":"Small round drum, pointed on the bottom, covered on the top with leather, and fastened with a linen rope. It was played with a wooden stick to create special sounds of music, and it was used during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan to wake up people to eat (*suhur*) before sunrise. Some people used to volunteer to go around before dawn to wake people up during Holy Ramadan, reflecting community spirit.","type":"Cultic drum; musical instrument","holder":"Jordan Folklore Museum, Department of Antiquities","dates":"Late 19th century – early 20th century","location":"Amman","dimensions":"Circumference 15.5 cm","provenance":"Jordan","author":"Huda Kilani","copy_editor":"Daniel de la Vega","keywords":["drum","animals skin","linen rope","wooden stick","Ramadan","to wake up"],"materials":["Animal skin, ceramics"]},"115adb41-ded2-5669-b97c-a902df406833":{"name":"Stone blazon.","description":"In the Mamluk period, heraldry played an important role and was widely used on architecture, metalwork, textiles, glass and pottery. Its use was strictly the reserve of sultans and particularly of the officers who were awarded individual blazons, each according to their rank. While the early Bahri Mamluks used blazons which represented a distinct office held by an individual, the later Burji Mamluks combined several heraldic emblems which were commonly shared by a corps of *amirs* who served a distinct master.  \nThe stone roundel with the tripartite blazon from the Aleppo Museum represents a widely used composition from the late Mamluk period: it contains the symbol of the *jamdar* (master-of-the-robes) with a so-called “napkin” in the upper field, the stemmed cup of the cup-bearer (*saqi*) charged with the pen box of the *dawadar* (secretary) in the central field, flanked by what has been identified as a pair of powder horns. A second, smaller, stemmed cup is placed in the lower field.  \nAccording to Meinecke (1972), this particular emblem was the most popular blazon of the late Burji period and is known to have been used by at least 47 *amir*s. Its first employment can be traced back to Sultan Qaytbay (AH 872–901 / AD 1468-96) when he was still an officer himself and he then conferred it upon his own followers. It was in use up to AH 922 / AD 1517 and came to represent something like the Mamluk “State blazon”.","short_description":"The use of royal emblems reached a high point during the Mamluk period. This carved stone roundel reveals a composition of symbols including those of the cup-bearer, the secretary and the master of robes.","type":"Blazon, stone","holder":"National Museum of Aleppo, Islamic Department","dates":"Hegira late 9th–early 10th century / AD late 15th–early 16th century.","location":"Aleppo","dimensions":"Height 51.4 cm, width 55 cm, depth 18.7 cm.","method_for_datation":"The piece was dated by comparison with other similar pieces.","method_for_provenance":"Although the provenance is unknown, this medallion probably belonged to either Amir Uzdamur (also known as Özdemir), who ruled Aleppo twice in 884 / 1479 and between 889–99 / 1484–93, or the last Mamluk *amir*, Kha'irbak b. Bilbay. Both were closely connected to Sultan Qaytbay, leaving examples of this emblem on various buildings in the city: Uzdamur on his *caravanserai* (Khan al-Sabun), the Qastal al-Ramadaniyya, the Qastal Jami' al-Sharaf and the Jami' al-Sharaf itself; Kha'irbak on his mausoleum south of Bab al-Maqam and his *khan* in the *suq* not far from the citadel.","provenance":"Unknown (Aleppo, Syria).","obtention":"It is not known how the Museum came by this object.","bibliography":"*Syrie: Mémoire et Civilisation*, exhibition catalogue, Paris, 1994, p.475 ; cat. no. 379.  \nHerzfeld, E., *Matériaux pour un Corpus Inscriptionum Arabicarum: Syrie du Nord, Part 2: Inscriptions et monuments d'Alep,* 3 Vols, Cairo, 1954–6, p.393ff, p.396 ff, pp.404–6; figs. 126, 128, 130; plates CLXX a, CLXXII c.  \nMayer, L. A., *Saracenic Heraldry*, Oxford, 1933, pp.136–8.  \nMeinecke, M., “Zur mamlukischen Heraldik”, *Mitteilungen des Deutschen Archäologischen Institutes, Abteilung Kairo,* XXVIII/2, 1972, pp.213–87.  \nSauvaget, J., *Alep. Essai sur le développement d'une grande ville syrienne des origines au milieu du XIXe siècle*, 2 Vols, Paris, 1941, plates XXII, XXIII.","dynasty":"Mamluk","linkcatalogs":"IAM_EG_EN_001","author":"Julia Gonnella","copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["Aleppo","blazons","coat of arms","Emblems","Michael Meinecke","stone-carving"],"materials":["Carved stone."]},"12bc77cd-3251-54d2-a1a9-9f5a47163fc7":{"name":"*Dallah* (Coffee pot), *Khamra*; preparing stage largest pot","description":"This copper *dallah* goes back to a type allegedly first used in 17th-century Baghdad, and by the 19th century, there were several production centres in the Arabian peninsula. Its design cleverly reflects its functional needs. The broad base ensures stability on the fire or in the sand, whilst the large spout prevents too much coffee sediment from reaching the cup. The lid is purposely weighted to avoid it opening during the pouring process. Throughout the Near and Middle East coffee lay at the heart of social rituals and hospitality, while providing sustenance during chats, debate and political discourse in the many coffee houses in the region. In this light, the quality of the coffee served was an important indicator of both the wealth of the host and status of the guest. In continental Europe, the fashion for coffee was at its height in the 17th and 18th centuries, with coffee houses the preferred meeting places for intellectuals and artists. In Britain, meanwhile, tea soon overtook coffee in popularity, even though certain religious organisations tried to promote coffee houses for the poor in order to steer them away from public houses that primarily sold alcohol.","type":"Coffee pot; *Khamra*","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"Hegira late 13th – early 14th century / AD late 19th – early 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Length: 414mm, width: 375mm, base diameter: 161mm, opening diameter: 110mm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","method_for_provenance":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Ulrike Al-Khamis","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["coffee pot","dallah"],"materials":["Sheet and cast copper alloy"]},"1304f4ee-e28f-57f0-a08d-b92839b37afe":{"name":"Incense burner","description":"Incense burners like this are usually made of clay mixed with water and kneaded until a mixture is formed that can then be shaped. The burner is then adorned with engravings, intricate drawings, and different colors. The incense burners are then fired in a kiln, after which they are ready for use. Note the handle; it makes the burner safe to carry from room to room. Incense occupies a central place in Omani life, as the passing of a fragrant burner at the end of a visit is customary in every region of the country.","type":"Ceramic, earthenware, acrylic colours","holder":"The national Museum - Sultanate of Oman","dates":"Hegira early 15th/AD early 21st century","location":"Muscat, Sultanate of Oman","dimensions":"Height: 12, width: 14.5","provenance":"Dhofar Governorate","dynasty":"Al-Busaid Dynasty (AH 1167–present/AD 1754–present)","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["Earthenware, acrylic colours"]},"13bd50fd-6740-5159-92f1-64ca153e073c":{"name":"Measuring instrument (*mudd*).","description":"This measuring instrument, shaped like a trunk, consists of three welded pieces. The decoration is featured along three bands. The upper band holds the beginning of an inscription written in Maghrebi characters, which indicates that the object was made under the orders of the sovereign, Abu al-Hasan, as well as indicating its function. The space left empty by the writing is decorated with double palms. The middle band is adorned with four arches; each holds an inscription in Maghrebi characters that completes the preceding one; and one of these completes the inscription on the upper band. These four inscriptions offer information on both the genealogy of the sovereign and the calibration's origin, which goes as far back as the Prophet Muhammad. The space between the arches is decorated with double palms and floral ornaments. The lower band is decorated with two curving interlacing lines. This measuring instrument features a slit-pin to which a chain is attached made of foliage hooks at either end of which are double-palm shapes that are linked to two rings.  \nThis measuring weight of the *zakat al-fitr* (alms of the breaking of the *Ramadan* fast), used to weigh out the various cereals, was also used in commercial transactions.","short_description":"Alms-measure divided into three decorative sections including an inscription in Maghrebi characters mentioning the sovereign and the purpose of the object: to measure the *zakat al-fitr* (religious alms) or commercial transactions.","type":"Mudd, measuring instrument, copper","holder":"National Museum of Antiquities and Islamic Arts","dates":"Between Hegira 731 and 749 / AD 1331 and 1348.","location":"Algiers","dimensions":"Height 10 cm, diameter of the base 11.6 cm, diameter of the opening 8.1 cm.","method_for_datation":"The inscription on the measuring instrument mentions the name of the Marinid sovereign Abu al-Hasan (r. 731–49 /1331–48).","bibliography":"Dessus-Lamare, A., “Matériaux pour un catalogue du musée de Mustapha: Note sur un vase en cuivre gravé, employé comme mesure étalon”, *Revue africaine*, 1929, pp.162–95.  \nMarçais, G., *Le musée Stéphane Gsell, musée des antiquités et d'art musulman d'Alger*, Algiers, 1950.","dynasty":"Marinid","author":"Ali Benbella","copy_editor":"Margot Cortez","translator":"Maria Vlotides","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["abstaining","Copper","epigraphy","fasting","floral adornments","floral decoration","gauging tool","lettering","Marinid","measuring instrument","mudd","zakat al-fitr"],"materials":["Yellow copper, engraved and incised."]},"13d87f91-5798-5982-ac33-c5d1d97a1228":{"name":"Ewer","description":"This brass ewer stands out among a series of distinctive brass vessels in the FBQ museum that are known for their unique shapes, sizes, and intricate designs. Many examples feature cylindrical bodies with fluted or faceted patterns and lions in relief on their necks. These Persian Islamic ewers served various purposes, including holding beverages, serving at parties, holding water for hand washing, or ablutions for affluent owners and guests. Crafted by artisans for the ruling class and aristocrats, this handle-less ewer is meticulously embossed and engraved with mythical creatures, calligraphy, and arabesques. The neck of the ewer bears two seated lions and a deer in relief, while the flattened shoulder displays an unusual pseudo-Kufic script and a human head. The faceted body is adorned with richly detailed decoration divided into four horizontal sections, featuring winged hares (some with human heads) and pseudo-Kufic script (some letters are human-headed).  \nThe use of a ewer carries religious significance, as running water is necessary for Muslims to perform ritual ablutions before prayer. Thus a family member would pour fresh water from the ewer over the individual’s hands, symbolising purification and spiritual cleansing. Crafted from brass, this ewer showcases meticulous beating and engraving techniques characteristic of Persian Islamic metalwork from the 12th to 13th centuries. The relief craftsmanship depicting mythical creatures and calligraphy would have been achieved through embossing and engraving, while the pseudo-Kufic script and arabesque designs show the influence of Islamic artistic tradition. The richly detailed decoration reflects the skill and artistry of the artisans of Khorasan or Herat in Iran during this period.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani Museum","owner":"His Excellency Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"Hegira 6th–7th century / AD 12th–13th century","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Length: 18cm, diameter: 5.5cm, base diameter: 7.5cm","place_of_production":"Iran, Khorasan or Herat","method_for_datation":"The date and origin were established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, techniques, style and analogies.","method_for_provenance":"Provenance was established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, techniques, style and analogies.","provenance":"Iran","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Mahmoud Saber","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["embossing, engraving","Metal, brass"]},"14764713-cb27-5756-8029-2aade64971eb":{"name":"Lidded bowl.","description":"A squat, elliptically shaped, lidded bowl of stone-paste (fritware) with a flattened domical lid topped by a gilded copper-alloy finial. A blue, red and green rosette enhances the base of the finial; the pattern on the lid itself then opens out from the base of the finial where, from leafy stems, four mythical, blue, serrated *saz* leaves with red centres sprout, moving in an anti-clockwise direction, their stems crossing. In between the *saz* leaves, there are four floral pairs, each consisting of a blue lily and a red-orange hyacinth. These also emerge from leafy stems, sinuously crossing over each other.  \nThe edge of the rim is decorated by a scalloped border of white on blue, a black dot in the centre of each scallop. The upper edge of the body receives a guilloche border rendered in red and green. Below, nine blue tulips with red dotted detailing flow around the bowl in a clockwise direction, giving the impression of a horizontally disposed garland, although they all rise in fact from the base. A second band below the tulips is composed of carnations, this time flowing in an anti-clockwise direction, their stems again springing from the baseline below. The well of the bowl receives a decorative roundel defined by three linear borders. It contains five flower sprays with red and blue petals. Six abstract motifs in blue fill the remaining spaces.  \nThe shape of this bowl recalls Iranian metal and ceramic bowls dating to the AH 7th / AD 13th century and also appears among the tableware of the Italian courts during the 15th century (as seen, for example, in an engraving by Mantegna where an attendant serves at table during a card game). In Ottoman court culture lidded bowls such as this were produced in gilt copper (*tombak*), and occurred as an integral part of the tableware used to serve food at mealtimes.","short_description":"In Ottoman court culture lidded bowls like this one were produced in gilt copper (*tombak*) as well as pottery and occurred as an integral part of the crockery used to serve food at mealtimes. Its style of decoration places it among other floral Iznik wares dated to the AH 10th / AD late 16th century.","type":"Ottoman ceramic, stone paste","holder":"National Museums of Scotland (NMS).","dates":"Hegira 10th century / AD late 16th century.","location":"Edinburgh, Scotland","dimensions":"Height 15.24 cm, diameter 20.3 cm.","method_for_datation":"The decorative style of this lidded bowl places it among a group of floral Iznik wares dated to the 10th / late 16th century.","method_for_provenance":"This type of ceramic ware is known to have been produced in Iznik during the 10th / late 16th century.","provenance":"Iznik, Turkey.","obtention":"Bought from the Castellani Collection in 1884.","bibliography":"Atasoy, N., and Raby, J., *Iznik: The Pottery of Ottoman Turkey*, London, 1989, figs. 559, 678, 742.  \nCarswell, J., *Iznik Pottery*, London, 1998, p.82, fig. 61.  \nScarce, J., *Domestic Culture in the Middle East: An Exploration of the Household Interior*, Edinburgh, 1996, p.60.  \n*Türkische Kunst und Kultur aus osmanischer Zeit*, exhibition catalogue, Recklinghausen, 1985, p.144, cat. no. 2/13.","dynasty":"Ottoman","linkcatalogs":"IAM_TR_EN_001","author":"Ulrike Al-Khamis","copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["Iznik","stone-paste (fritware)","tombak"],"materials":["Stone-paste (fritware), blue, green, black and bole-red underglaze, over which a clear glaze."]},"15a93784-d4c1-54ce-9448-02770e8b923f":{"name":"Coffee Cup Holder","description":"The rim is decorated with filigree. There are three coats of arms on it. There is a row of coral ornaments on the rim and triangular coral ornaments between the crests.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Ankara Ethnography Museum","owner":"The Republic of Türkiye Ministry of Culture and Tourism","location":"Ankara","dimensions":"Height: 5.2cm, diameter: 5.2cm","dynasty":"Ottomans (AH 698–1340 / AD 1299-1922)","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["telkari (filigree) technique","Tombac and coral"]},"15d519f5-c26e-5c05-ba07-ac169b9cafb2":{"name":"‘Attarin Suq","description":"As well as *funduq*s, Fez possessed markets, *suq*s, whose reputation extended far beyond the town walls. The *qaysariya*, a term signifying a commercial neighbourhood, which was situated at the heart of the Qarawiyin Quarter, with its numerous *suq*s and shops, is one of the oldest of its kind, offering goods imported from Europe and the East ever since the Middle Ages.  \nDestroyed at first by a great fire in 724/1324, and then by floods in 725/1325, the *qaysariya*, with its thousands of terraced houses, was then rebuilt. The ‘Attarin Suq, one of the most reputable in the *qaysariya*, occupies the length of a long street which links up to the Merinid *madrasa* of the same name, at *Bab al-Faraj*. Complemented by trade on adjacent streets and places, this market extends over more than 600 m. and was equipped with a large gate at each end, whose “*guardians*”, wrote Leon the African, “*do their rounds at night, with dogs, with weapons, holding up lanterns in their hands. They were paid by the traders themselves*”.  \nThe *suq*, according to Leon the African, consisted of 150 stalls, which grew in number to 170 a few years later according to the Portuguese historian Mármol de Carvajal (16th century). Originally specialising in the sale of medicinal products and groceries, medicinal stalls stood shoulder to shoulder with hardware stalls which were distinct for the opulence of their ornamentation. Doctors themselves made up the medicinal preparations, and then sent them to specialised stalls where staff would dispense them under medical supervision.  \nIn the 10th/16th century, the *suq*, through the importance it had gained in terms of the geographical area it fulfilled, through the number of important shops it represented and through the abundance of specialised products it sold, was unrivalled. Even if the *suq* of today has lost a little of its identity through the growth of product variety, one can still find some traditional hardware sellers who are living examples of this market, typical of its kind.","type":"","dates":"","bibliography":"","author":"Mohamed Mezzine, Naïma El-Khatib Boujibar"},"17063181-2e66-5196-bb7a-7cc70632a717":{"name":"Bani Isguen.","description":"When Abu al-Hattab, lord of the town of Kairouan under the orders of the Kharijites, was killed, the Ibadi appointed his companion, Ibn Rustam, as their leader, who went on to found a kingdom in AH 161 / AD 778 within the central Maghreb that extended from Kairouan to Fez, with Tahert as its capital. The word 'Kharijite' (from *kharaja*, to leave) is illustrative of recurring dissents that lead to a rupture with the dominant doctrine. In AH 37 / AD 658, four thousand followers left the town of Kufa, outraged by the decision to deny 'Ali, the Prophet's son-in-law, of his rights of succession in favour of Mu'awiya. The event is at the heart of the fracture that continues to run through and divide the Islamic world into Shi'ites and Sunnis.  \nThe Rustamids dominated the central Maghreb for a century and a half, but, under the assaults of the Fatimids, they were forced to take refuge first at Sédrata (near Ouargla), then in the M'zab region, where they founded five towns in succession that constitute the 'Pentapolis' (Ghardaïa, Mélika, Bani Isguen, Bou Noura and El Atteuf). Through ingenious means of capturing and distributing the little water that was available, they were able from as early as the AH 6th / AD 12th century to create plantations of palm trees and gardens that still testify to an efficient ecological control of natural resources.  \nBuilt on the face of a rocky hillside, Bani Isguen, founded in AH 441 / AD 1050, is the holy town of the M'zab. It is surrounded by a vast rampart that is flanked by towers and pierced by three gates, which, until recently, were closed every night. Another tower, which dominates the town, is believed to have been built in a day in anticipation of an attack.  \nThe houses that sit in the valley of the M'zab were designed to allow for a certain amount of diurnal 'nomadism'. They are usually built on two levels, on which one can find the same items necessary for daily life: the hearth, the latrines, the washroom, the bedrooms, the living room and the loom. This configuration allows one to live in the cool shade of the ground floor in summer, and at night-time, to carry on with the activities upstairs where it is fresher at night. In winter, the reverse applies. The summerhouses within the palm plantations are designed along the same lines. Beyond their functionalism, 'they were additionally endowed with beauty. The heterodox puritans preferred to live according to their own beliefs in the desert, rather than consent to live in opulence but according to the truths of others; however they did not concern themselves with beautifying their own homes. This was not through lack of good taste, rather, it was because they did not have the opportunity or the spare time to do so. Survival was first and foremost.'(From Ravereau, see Bibliography.)","short_description":"Built on the side of a rocky hill, Bani Isguen is the holy town of the M'zab region. It is defended by a vast rampart flanked by towers and crossed via three gateways, and a tower that dominates the town. The rooms, built on two storeys, included bathrooms, bedrooms and a living room, along with a loom. The summer houses in the palm grove are laid out in the same fashion. Gardens could be cultivated thanks to ingenious devices that allowed the little available water to be used.","dates":"Hegira 441 / AD 1050.","location":"Ghardaïa.","method_for_datation":"Through oral tradition.","bibliography":"Bourouiba, R., *L'art religieux musulman en Algérie*, Algiers, 1973.  \nMinistère de l'information et de la culture, *Les mosquées en Algérie*, Algiers, 1973.  \nRavereau, A., *Le M'zab, une leçon d'architecture*, Paris, 1987.","dynasty":"Ibadid / Rustamid.","author":"Ali Lafer","copy_editor":"Margot Cortez","translator":"Maria Vlotides","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["civic architecture","irrigation","M’zab.","religious architecture","Town","water"]},"172c7d19-97b3-552c-8815-9f6af6f53379":{"name":"Pitcher for rose extract (*gulabdan*)","description":"In the past, people poured *gulab* (rose extract) over their hands for purification purposes after eating.","type":"Tableware","holder":"Azerbaijan National Carpet Museum","dates":"Late Hegira 13th / AD 19th century","location":"Baku","dimensions":"Height: 30cm, diametre: 10cm","place_of_production":"Azerbaijan","method_for_datation":"By stylistic and comparative analyses with related material","obtention":"Purchased in 1994","author":"Rustam Afandiyev","keywords":["Azerbaijan","Copper","gulabdan","pitcher","rose extract"],"materials":["Copper","engraved"]},"17634e8b-75c4-531c-a525-4f57d46e78f9":{"name":"Bowl","description":"This bowl is a fine example of pottery from the Samanid (AD 819–1005) workshops of eastern Iran. Its design is stark and striking, featuring a single line of Arabic calligraphy that encircles the deep rim. The script, with its elegantly elongated horizontals and sharp-tipped verticals, is an early form of Arabic calligraphy known as New Style Kufic. The bowl's decoration is minimal yet visually compelling, with the inscription reading: “Knowledge is the most noble lineage and chivalry the most intricate.” The inscription’s meaning is elevated by the artistic manipulation of the letters. Through shortening, bending, and elongating, the script is transformed into abstract motifs of remarkable visual impact. The vertical flourishes interspersed among the horizontal flow create a rhythmic interplay that draws in the viewer. Likely used for serving on special occasions, the bowl’s message about the virtues of knowledge and chivalry is particularly apt.","type":"Pottery","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art","owner":"Qatar Museums","dates":"Hegira 4th century / AD 10th century","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Diameter: 27.8cm","place_of_production":"Iran, Khorasan province","provenance":"Iran, Khorasan province","bibliography":"Christie's London, *Art of the Islamic and Indian World*, 2011.","dynasty":"Samanid period (AH 204–395 / AD 819–1005)","author":"Teslim Sanni","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Earthenware, opaque white glaze with black painting"]},"17822504-ba29-52b3-9e9c-841ecbda9631":{"name":"Plate with seven compartments","description":"The compartments of this serving dish contained spices to improve the flavours of food and enhance the diet. In Iran, when celebrating the arrival of spring, it is customary to present “the seven spices”.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","dates":"Hegira 7th century / AD 13th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 10.5cm, Diameter: 29cm","provenance":"Iran","obtention":"Purchased at auction on advice from Pierre Bergé & Associates, 2003.","dynasty":"Great Seljuq Dynasty (Hegira 429–552 / AD 1038–1157)","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["lustre decoration over opaque glaze","Siliceous clay"]},"17d6e18b-8628-5642-bf1b-3e753e6d63d6":{"name":"Painted wooden ceiling of the Palatine Chapel.","description":"The painted wooden ceiling of the Palatine Chapel, erected by Ruggero II immediately after his coronation in 1131, is the only monumental-scale pictorial cycle from the Fatimid period in the Mediterranean basin to have survived in its entirety. The ceiling, made up of star-shaped polygons, is decorated with lively scenes, painted in a clean, clear style with an undeniable Middle Eastern influence, depicting dancing girls, musicians, gamblers, lions and other animals, horsemen and wrestlers, all combined with geometric and vegetal decorations. The polygons are surrounded by inscriptions of good omens in *kufic* script. The band between the ceiling and the walls is decorated with *muqarnas*.  \nThe identification of the craftsmen responsible for the decoration remains the subject of lively debate. G. D’Erme (1995) suggests the persistence of a late Sassanid, early Islamic pictorial tradition probably upheld in the Mediterranean basin over the centuries due to the circulation of collections of figurative models. The extremely cultured artists could have been either descendents of the island’s Iranian conquerors (whose presence in Palermo is confirmed by historical sources) or indeed Iranian Seljuq craftsmen brought to Palermo by the Norman king. D’Erme is inclined to exclude the possibility of craftsmen from North Africa or Cairo.  \nJ. Johns (1995) maintains that the paintings would have been done by a workshop imported at the behest of Ruggero II directly from Fatimid Egypt, challenging the traditional theories according to which the painters were Sicilian Arabs and the chapel ceiling the ultimate expression of the artistic legacy of the island’s Islamic past, now passed on to the new Norman kingdom and used by it for political and ideological ends. Among other things, Johns provides evidence of the close political and cultural links established between Ruggero II and the Cairo Caliphate, through the personal correspondence with Caliph al-Hafiz, the frequent exchange of gifts, the presence of Egyptian diplomatic experts at the Palermo court and the use of the same epigraphic formulas, as in the exquisite Fatimid inscription once in the Palatine Chapel (now in the Abatellis Palace regional gallery) likening the king’s palace to a sanctuary.  \nWith regard to the possible meaning of the pictorial cycle, many academics, drawn by the apparently irreconcilable nature of the secular character of the cycle and its ecclesiastical context, contrive to see a celebration of the pleasures of Qur’anic paradise, often overloading their interpretation of individual figures with religious symbolism when a more simple interpretation would be a joyful celebration of life in the royal court (celebrations that were also common in court culture in the Islamic world) and its earthly pleasures: gambling, drinking, music and hunting. Both Johns (1995) and Aurigemma (2004) interpret the cycle on the basis of this assumption, stripped of symbolic and religious implications, with the latter drawing plausible comparisons between these paintings and their contemporaries on the wooden ceiling of Cefalù Cathedral, also commissioned by Ruggero II.","short_description":"This painted wooden ceiling, produced during the reign of Ruggero (Roger) II, depicts lively scenes of dancing girls, musicians, gamblers, lions and other animals, all set against a background of plant and geometric decoration. The transition from ceiling to wall is softened by *muqarnas* (honeycomb decoration). Recent studies have revealed that the craftsmen employed included painters from Egypt, or at least painters influenced by contemporary Fatimid art.","dates":"Between 1131 and 1140.","location":"Palermo","method_for_datation":"Historical sources report the date the chapel was founded (1131) and consecrated (1140).","bibliography":"Aurigemma, M. G., *Il Cielo Stellato di Ruggero II: Il Soffitto Dipinto della Cattedrale di Cefalù*, Milan, 2004.  \nCruikshank Dodd, E., “Christian Arab Sources for the Ceiling of the Palatine Chapel, Palermo”, in *Arte d’Occidente: Studi in Onore di Angiola Maria Romanin*i, Roma 1999, pp.823–31.  \nD'Erme, G.M., “Contesto Architettonico e Aspetti Culturali dei Dipinti del Soffitto della Cappella Palatina di Palermo”, *Bollettino d’Arte* Series 6, 80, 1995 (1996), 92, pp.1–32.  \nGrube, E., “La Pittura Islamica nella Sicilia Normanna”, in *La Pittura in Italia: L’Altomedioevo*, Milan, 1994, pp.416–31.  \nJohns, J., “I Re Normanni e i Califfi Fatimidi. Nuove Prospettive su Vecchi Materiali”, in *Del Nuovo Sulla Sicilia Musulmana*, Rome: Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei, Rome, 1995, pp.9–50.  \nMonneret de Villard, U., *Le Pitture Musulmane al Soffitto della Cappella Palatina in Palermo*, Rome, 1950.  \nTronzo, W., *The Cultures of His Kingdom: Roger II and the Cappella Palatina in Palermo*, Princeton, 1997.  \n*Siculo-Norman Art: Islamic Culture in Medieval Sicily*, pp.129–32.","patrons":"King Ruggero (Roger) II.","dynasty":"Norman","linkcatalogs":"IAM_IT_EN_001","author":"Pier Paolo Racioppi","translator":"Laurence Nunny","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["figurative decoration"]},"183d0851-83f1-5a08-b1d0-f8ac2812cc73":{"name":"Spoon","description":"The spoon's rim and handle are made of black horn with nacre and metal pieces at the end of the handle. The spoon has an oval shaped rim with a rounded tip. A long cylindrical handle extendsfrom the spout and slightly narrowing towards the end. At the end of the handle is a nacre piece with a floral motif. On the handle there are round nacre and coral pieces.","holder":"Ankara Ethnography Museum","owner":"The Republic of Türkiye Ministry of Culture and Tourism","location":"Ankara","dimensions":"Length: 21.3cm","dynasty":"Ottomans (AH 698–1340 / AD 1299-1922)","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["Horn, nacre, metal"]},"1a0d6f2a-0a7e-5fdf-98b4-9f6cc792909b":{"name":"Norias (*nawa’ir*) of Hama.","description":"The waterwheel, or *noria* (properly pronounced *na'ura* (singular) and *nawa'ir* (plural)), is an ancient hydraulic structure designed for collecting and distributing water by utilising the power of a running stream. It is also the visual and aural hallmark of the city of Hama, 226 km north of Damascus, straddling the meandering River Orontes. The use of waterwheels in Syria dates to the Classical and Hellenistic periods, possibly even the Nabataean period (2nd century BC–AD 2nd century), and the first visual depiction of a *na'ura* is found on a mosaic from the ancient city of Apamea, 55 km north of Hama, dated AD 469. During the medieval period, however, there was a marked increase of references to *nawa'ir* in Islamic geographical writing, indicating their improved and multiplied development.  \nUnder the Seljuq sultanate and their various Atabeg, Zangid and Ayyubid vassals, when Syria's cities witnessed robust urban development, the *nawa'ir* of Hama received special attention. Nur al-Din Mahmud bin Zangi went on a rebuilding campaign after the earthquake of AH 551 / AD 1157, which included the restoration of Hama's water system and *nawa'ir*.  \nThe earliest of the surviving *nawa'ir* are attributed to the Ayyubid period (late AH 6th – 7th / AD 11th - 12th centuries) while the earliest inscribed *na'ura* tower, named al-Muhammadiyya, dates to the Mamluk period in AH 763 / AD 1361. This is also one of the two largest *nawa'ir* of the city: 21 m in wheel diameter and 17.5 m in aqueduct height. The aqueduct of al-Muhammadiyya is particularly long as it supplies water for the Great Mosque quarter, nearly a kilometre away from the banks of the River Orontes. The second largest *na'ura*, also 21 m in diameter and known as al-Mamuriyya, is early Ottoman, dated AH 867 (1453).  \n*Nawa'ir* are constructed basically in two parts: the mobile wheel, usually made of poplar wood, and the static aqueduct, usually made of stone. The wheel consists of a group of broad beams fixed perpendicularly around the axle, creating a quadrangular formation in the centre, and radiating out towards the wheel's periphery. These beams are held together by circular frames and further supported by more beams that are nailed in at successive angles. At the periphery of the wheel are paddles that facilitate the wheel's circular movement and compartments (*sanadiq*) that collect the water. Given that the wheel is largely a wooden construction, its beams need regular maintenance and changing every 15 years or so.  \nStone constructions, like the aqueduct for transporting water and the small dam controlling the river's water level, are also part of the *noria's* successful construction. The aqueduct is a tall rectangular receptacle standing parallel to the wheel and designed to be as wide as possible in order to receive maximum water per rotation. Attached to this receptacle is the long duct set on an arcade that serves the adjacent areas, providing them with water for domestic and irrigation purposes. On average, a *na'ura* can raise 50 litres of water per second, and irrigate no less than 75 hectares.","short_description":"The city of Hama is famous for its waterwheels, or *norias*, which charmingly dot the meandering River Orontes, which passes through the city. The technique for building these waterwheels is an ancient one, but remarkably effective and still in use. The wheels are typically made of poplar wood, requiring regular maintenance, while their supportive structures, like aqueducts and dams, are made of stone. The dimensions of the total hydraulic construction are inter-related, depending on each other to collect the maximum amount of water efficiently and ensure its most effective distribution.","dates":"Hegira 6th–10th century / AD 12th–16th century.","location":"Hama along the Orontes River.","method_for_datation":"Some *nawa'ir* are dated by inscriptions but mostly by approximation based on archaeological evidence and historical sources. Recent excavations that have taken place under water are proving that most *nawa'ir* have ancient origins and have been continuously restructured throughout the ages.","bibliography":"Burns, R., *Monuments of Syria: An Historical Guide,* 1999, pp.126–9.  \nDelpech, A., et al, *Les norias de l'Oronte: analyse technologique d'un éléments du patrimoine syrien,* Damascus, 2005.","dynasty":"Atabeg, Ayyubid, Mamluk, and Ottoman.","author":"Waal Hafian","copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["Hydraulics","Orontes River","urban architecture","water supply"]},"1b55ef6a-0fb1-56d2-9274-4f0775c2cee9":{"name":"Austrian toy theatre set: 'The Caravan to Mecca. The Halt in the Desert' by Trentsentsky","short_description":"With a desert landscape backdrop and cut-out figures on wooden stands, this toy theatre uses intricate detail and imagination to depict the stopping of a pilgrim caravan. With 45 cut out figures and with an original box, the set was made by Matthias Trentensky (1790–1868), a retired army officer and printer who became the Austrian Empire’s foremost maker of toy theatres. Miniature theatres based on popular plays were common in the 19th century particularly in Europe, although this theatre may have been produced as a result of the increasing fascination with the Arab world at the time. The artist is likely to be Theodor Jachimovicz who studied painting at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna and worked as a theatre stage painter for the State Opera House. Trentensky exported his toy theatres to England through the London company A&S Joseph Myers and Co. of 144 Leadenhall Street, importers of French, German, Swiss and Italian goods and toy merchants. It has been suggested that the theatres produced for London may be of better quality than those for the Austrian market. Other theatres produced for A&S Myers included those closely related to English themes, such as contemporary pantomimes. The collection also holds an uncut version of the theatre, a complete set of 24 plates with 168 illustrations.","type":"Toy; theatre","holder":"Khalili Family Trust – Hajj and the Arts of Pilgrimage Collection","dates":"Around early 1800s AD","location":"London","dimensions":"ARC.mx 570 box: 21x27.5x4cm, ARC.pt 401: 25x40cm","method_for_datation":"Tentensky began lithographic printing in 1815","provenance":"Europe","author":"Qaisra Khan","keywords":["camel","Childhood","Children","geography","hajj","Hijaz","Holy place","Ka'ba","Mecca","Medina","Mosque","Paper","pilgrimage","prayer","Prophet Muhammad","Qur'an","Religion","theatre","travel","Traveller"],"materials":["Paperboard"]},"1bd4ddad-a3bc-5a69-8b22-cef129e37f47":{"name":"Figurine","description":"Animal figurines were a short-lived phenomenon of the late 12th to 13th centuries AD in Syria and Iran. The cow or bull figure was especially popular, but in Iran it was made to function as a vessel with a filling spout in the back and an open mouth through which the liquid poured, whereas in Syria the trend was for figurines with a purely decorative function. However, as the basic form of the cow would have been moulded – suggesting that multiple versions of the same figure were made – the function of these decorative figurines remains a mystery. The present example is rendered with perfect naturalism. It can be identified as a zebu cow and calf. The mother is shown standing while her calf suckles; the hanging dewlap, small hump, swept-back horns and large cloven hooves of the breed are accurately modelled. This breed is indigenous to Syria, and would have been what people saw in the fields of the Euphrates Valley.","type":"Pottery","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art","owner":"Qatar Museums","dates":"Hegira 7th century / AD 13th century","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Height: 29.1cm, length: 37.2cm","place_of_production":"Syria","provenance":"Syria","bibliography":"Google Cultural Institute, *Google Art Project*, 2012.  \n  \nSotheby's London, *Arts of the Islamic World, including Fine Carpets and Textiles*, 2008.","dynasty":"Ayyubid period (AH 564–end 9 th century / AD 1169–end 15 th century)","author":"Tara Desjardins","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Stonepaste painted under transparent turquoise glaze"]},"1e36e46d-3a70-5c50-9e85-b70b2c3e4435":{"name":"Lahri (grain silo).","description":"During the reign of Sultan Mulay Isma'il, tribes often paid their taxes in kind, in particular with grain. The silos used to store the produce paid as taxes occupied a preferential position in the layout of royal towns and constituted an indispensable food reserve for supplying towns.  \nControlling these reserves was a strategic priority for the ruling body, especially during times of conflict and drought.  \nFor this purpose, Sultan Mulay Isma'il had a vast grain silo constructed, the Lahri, near to his palace. Its walls are built of pink adobe, a mix of clay earth, lime and stones, with occasional stone ashlars.  \nThe monument extends over an area measuring 182 m by 104 m. It rests on 305 arches and 23 south–east / north–west naves, giving an impression of depth and equilibrium.  \nComposed of a series of relatively cramped rooms around a spacious central room (26.30 m by 10.70 m and 9 m to the ceiling), the building was used to store foodstuffs and the fodder needed for the 12,000 horses of the royal stud farm. A central avenue is still maintained all the way to the rear wall. The pillars supporting the semi-circular arches, 3 m in diameter, divide the room into 18 rows and 23 naves, originally covered with barrel vaults. This part of the monument is particularly impressive. A large space was reserved for the mules who brought the grain from different areas of the country.  \nIts very thick walls maintained a constant temperature for the preservation of the foodstuffs. Moüette, who was a prisoner in Morocco for 11 years and who participated in the construction of Isma'il's *kasbah*, speaks of walls 30 spans, or 7 m, thick.  \nThe silo is now in partial ruin. A tower, which used to house cannons and other instruments of war to protect the royal palace and the *medina*, dominates the upper part.  \nIn the AH 12th / AD 18th century, the building was abandoned following the 1755 Lisbon earthquake, which affected the town of Meknès and destroyed part of this monument.  \nNow restored, the silo is a highlight of the 'Alawid heritage of Meknès.","short_description":"Built in the AH 11th / AD 17th century during the reign of Sultan Mulay Isma'il on a site measuring 182 m by 104 m, these vast rectangular structures were in fact underground granaries whose vaults and ceilings have collapsed. Supported on a series of 22 arcades of 14 arches each, these silos adjoin the west walls of the House of the Norias, and dominate the Sahrij Swani. These granaries were used to store foodstuffs, in particular wheat, as a contingency for sieges and wars. They have been recently restored.","dates":"Hegira 11th–12th centuries / AD 17th–18th centuries.","location":"Meknès.","method_for_datation":"John Windus, who came to Meknès to arrange the purchase of captives on behalf of King George I, described it in 1720.","bibliography":"Barrucand, M., *Urbanisme princier en islam: Meknès et les villes royales islamiques post-médiévales*, Paris, 1985.  \nMoüette, M., *Relation de la captivité du Sr Moüette dans les royaumes de Fez et du Maroc*, Paris, 1682.  \nTerrasse, H., *Villes impériales du Maroc*, Grenoble, 1937.  \nWindus, J., *A Journey to Méquinez*, London, 1725.  \n*Andalusian Morocco: A Discovery in Living Art*, p.79–81.","patrons":"Sultan Mulay Isma‘il (r. AH 1083–1140 / AD 1672–1727).","dynasty":"'Alawid.","author":"Mohamed Mezzine","copy_editor":"Margot Cortez","translator":"Laurence Nunny","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["granary","security","Silo"]},"1f5849a0-4eae-5275-9603-dfe4acb6e862":{"name":"Ewer (*ibrik*).","description":"A ewer (*ibrik*) with a pear-shaped body, a handle and a spout decorated with plant motifs and inscription friezes. The shoulder of the ewer is filled with a frieze written in *naskhi* script. A second frieze, formed of plant motifs, appears directly below. Further inscriptions in *naskhi* script are found on the neck and spout. The floral motifs and inscriptions adorning the ewer are embellished with silver leaf, while the frame of the inscription on the shoulder is embellished with red-copper leaf. The inscriptions on the shoulder and spout wish glory, fame, success and long life to the owner of the vessel. This ewer is of great importance both as a dated example of Mesopotamian work and because its inscriptions provide the names of two Mosul craftsmen.","short_description":"Mosul was an important centre of Islamic metalwork during the Zangid period. This centre had a great influence on the technique and style of Artuqid metalwork in Anatolia. The inscription states that it was made by a master called 'Iyas of Mosul. It has the characteristics of its period.","type":"Ewer, metalwork","holder":"Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts.","dates":"Hegira 627 / AD 1229.","location":"Sultanahmet, Istanbul","dimensions":"Height (without lid) 39 cm; diameter (of base) 16.5 cm; maximum diameter 20 cm.","method_for_datation":"An inscription on the neck states that the ewer was made by 'Iyas, the assistant of master Abd al-Karim ibn al-Turabi of Mosul' in 627 / 1229.","obtention":"Brought from the tomb of Süleyman Pasha in Gelibolu on 11 December 1911.","bibliography":"Erginsoy, ü., *İslam Maden Sanatının Gelişmesi*, Istanbul 1978.  \n  \nölçer, N. *et al, Museum of Turkish and Islamic Art,* Istanbul, 2002, pp.78–9.","dynasty":"Zangid (Atabeg)","author":"Alev Özay","translator":"Barry Wood, İnci Türkoğlu","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["brass","calligraphy","ewer (ibrik)","floral decoration","inscription","naskhi","vegetal decoration","zangids"],"materials":["Cast and engraved brass inlaid with red-copper and silver."]},"21047089-512d-5bfc-bf75-ac1b87ba6c5e":{"name":"Engraved cup","description":"Whether banned by the Muslim religious or celebrated by mystics for intoxication that approaches the divine, wine is praised by the poets, who compare its colour and bouquet to the beauty of the beloved.","type":"Glassware","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","dates":"Hegira End of 3th century-end of 4th century / AD 10th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 9.3cm, Diameter: 9.7cm","provenance":"Iran","obtention":"Purchased at auction on advice of Claude Boisgirard, 2002.","bibliography":"Delpont, E., et al., *Album du musée*, Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, 2012: 387.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["Engraved glass"]},"21515d04-3a00-5d77-8767-38df44429375":{"name":"Tall Abu Sarbut.","description":"Tall Abu Sarbut is located in the Central Jordan Valley about 70 km northwest of Amman, 1.5 km from Dayr Alla. It is a low hill that measures 250 m east to west and about 125 m from north to south. The highest point of the tall is at 252 m below sea level.  \nThree seasons of archaeological investigations were conducted at the site between 1988–90 as a joint venture between the Department of Antiquities of Jordan, the University of Leiden and the Netherlands Institute for the Near East. The main objective of the project was to verify the nature and the extent of the site.  \nArchaeological excavations uncovered a large Mamluk multi-roomed building with courtyards. In one of the courtyards a bread oven (*tabun*) was found. The walls were built of sun-dried mud bricks on stone foundations. The walls and the floors were plastered. Archaeological investigations demonstrated that the site was an important part of the sugar-production industry in the area; the sugar industry being a main source of revenue in the Jordan Valley during the Mamluk period. The nature of the archaeological finds discovered during the excavations showed that the site was not associated directly with the actual refinery of sugar but it was an important storage and distribution centre for the sugar that was produced in the area.","short_description":"Tall Abu Sarbut is located in the Central Jordan Valley about 70 km northwest of Amman. It is a low hill that measures around 250 m x125 m, and its highest point is 252 m below sea level. It has structures built of sun-dried mud bricks on stone foundations. The site was an important part of the sugar-production industry in the area; the sugar industry being a main source of revenue in the Jordan Valley during the Mamluk period. Although not associated directly with the actual refinery of sugar, it was an important storage and distribution centre for the sugar that was produced in the area.","dates":"Hegira 8th–9th centuries / AD 14th–15th centuries.","location":"Central Jordan Valley","method_for_datation":"The monument was dated by analysis of the material remains comprising mainly ceramics discovered during the course of archaeological investigations at the site, which dated the site to the 7th–9th / 14th–15th centuries.","bibliography":"Haas, H., et al, “First Season of Excavations at Tall Abu Sarbut, Jordan Valley”, Preliminary Report, *Annual of the Department of Antiquities of Jordan*, XXXIII (1989), pp.323–6.  \nHaas, H., et al, “Second and Third Seasons of Excavations at Tall Abu Sarbut, Jordan Valley”, Preliminary Report, *Annual of the Department of Antiquities of Jordan*, XXXVI (1992), pp. 335–43.  \nMusil, A., *The Northern Hegaz, New York, 1926.*  \nPeterson, A., *Early ottoman Forts on The Hajj Route in Jordan*, unpublished MA thesis, University of Oxford, 1986.  \nYassine, K. H., *The Archaeology of Jordan, Essays and Reports*, Amman, 1988, pp.187–206.","dynasty":"Mamluk.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_EG_EN_001","author":"Mohammad Najjar","copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["Industrial site","Jordan Valley","mud bricks","stone foundations","sugar production"]},"21645a7b-fc42-55ef-a2ec-27424e1c67fc":{"name":"Tile Plate","description":"The surface is covered in white clay and slip decorated in cobalt blue, coral red and green with black contours under a transparent colourless glaze. The plate’s surface is decorated with symmetrically distributed branches of tulips and red carnations with blue spots rising vertically from a single stem. Two tulips and carnations in the centre of the composition are held in place by a bracket. The composition is embellished with tulip and carnation buds, small stylised flowers, with cobalt blue Chinese-style clouds interspersed throughout the design. The use of bud and clover motifs in the decoration of plates was common during this period. A narrow border of white half-rosette flowers with red centres is framed by cobalt blue inside the rim. A double tulip and open rose motif alternate on the back.","type":"Utensil","holder":"Istanbul Archaeological Museums (The Tiled Kiosk)","dates":"Hegira 982-987 / AD 1575–1580","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"Diameter: 30.2cm, height: 5.1cm","place_of_production":"İznik/Bursa","dynasty":"Ottoman (AH 698–1340 / AD 1299-1922)","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Glazed terracotta/Tile"]},"22d721a5-3840-5af9-8c84-912b213423e2":{"name":"Citadel of Amman (Water Reservoir).","description":"Within the Umayyad Citadel to the east of the palatial complex is a round water cistern, 6 m deep with a diameter that exceeds 17.5 m, and which could hold up to 1300 cu m of water. This cistern was the most important source of water at the Citadel. It was fed through inlet channels connected to a system for the collection of rainwater. These channels and the associated settling tank are partially preserved to the west of the cistern. Some earlier architectural elements including columns, shafts and capitals were incorporated into the wall of the cistern as building materials, such as the shaft of a stone column which was placed in the centre of the cistern and re-used as a depth gauge. The base and the walls were covered with a thick layer of hydraulic plaster which can still be seen. Stone steps along the western side lead down into the cistern. This access was necessary in order to clean the interior from the debris collected with the run-off water and to prepare the cistern for the rainy season. A deep well adjacent to the cistern from the north may be part of the water installations necessary to feed water to the bath complex located to the west of the citadel. This round cistern is closely related architecturally and stylistically to the local tradition of rectangular cisterns, despite the superficial similarity to the round Aghlabid cisterns found at Kairouan Tunisia","short_description":"The water cistern on the Amman Citadel lies to the east of the Umayyad palatial complex. It is round, 6 m deep with a diameter of over 17.5 m, and could hold up to 1300 cu m of water. This cistern, fed by inlet channels connected to a rainwater collection system, was the most important source of water at the Citadel. Some earlier architectural elements were incorporated into the cistern wall, and a column shaft was re-used as a depth gauge. The interior was covered with a thick layer of hydraulic plaster. Stone steps along the western side led down into the cistern.","dates":"Around hegira 110 / AD 728.","location":"Amman","method_for_datation":"By way of archaeological excavations within the palatial complex the cistern was dated to around 730 / the first half of the eighth century AD.","bibliography":"Almagro, A., “El Palacio Omeya de Amman”, in *La Arquitectura*, Madrid, 1983.  \nCreswell, K. A. C., and Allan, J. W., *A Short Account of Early Muslim Architecture*, Cairo, 1989, pp.169–73.  \nKhouri, R. G., *Amman: A Brief Guide to the Antiquities*, Amman, 1988, p.17.  \nKoutsoukou, A., et al, *The Great Temple of Amman: The Excavations*, Amman, 1997, pp.16–18.  \nNorthedge, A. E., *Studies on Roman and Islamic Amman*, Vol. I., Oxford, 1992, p.152.","patrons":"Hisham ibn ‘Abd al-Malik (105–25 / AD 724–43).","dynasty":"Umayyad.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_JO_EN_001","author":"Mohammad Najjar","copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["Amman Citadel","bath complex","hydraulic plaster","palatial complex","water gauge","water installations"]},"2381cf08-bf5c-5cdf-8287-59a5e7134b2e":{"name":"Dish with cover","description":"This is an example of a lidded copper plate, dated and bearing the name of its owner, al Sayyid-Muhammad ibn […]`Alî.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","dates":"Between 1775 and 1776","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 17cm, Dimension: 24.3cm","provenance":"Tunisia","obtention":"Purchased at 'Art Musulman' gallery in 1987.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["embossed decoration, champlevé, and engraved","Tinned copper"]},"23d6b4ee-6380-5185-a38f-672a711e7d14":{"name":"Shaykh Safi al-Din asking his disciples to accept honey from the villagers but not meat  \nFrom the manuscript of *Safvat al-Safa* (The Quintessence of Purity), the Hagiography of Shaykh Safi al-Din Ishaq Ardabili (1252/3–1334)","short_description":"“Shaykh Safi al-Din asking his disciples to accept honey from the villagers but not meat” is one of fourteen paintings in the only known illustrated copy of *Safvat al-Safa* (The Quintessence of Purity), a tazkira and hagiography of Shaykh Safi al-Din Ishaq Ardabili (1252/3–1334). *Safvat al-Safa* gives detailed information about the life, sayings, virtues, and miracles of Shaykh Safi, the spiritual founder of the Safavid dynasty (1501–1736). *Safvat al-Safa* is a biography book with hagiographical accounts which falls under both genres. In Islamic literature, the term \"tazkira\" is used for biographical texts and \"hagiography\" is used for books on the lives of the mystics. *Safvat al-Safa* includes actual information on the life of Shaykh Safi al-Din Ishaq Ardabili as well as mystical and supernatural stories. It appears to have been the main source of the Safavid chroniclers for the early period of the dynasty, as there are numerous copies and translations. Safvat al-Safa has an introduction (*muqaddima*), twelve chapters (*bab*), and an epilogue (*khatima*). Each chapter has numerous sections (*fasl*) which include multiple short episodes (*hikayat*).","type":"Manuscript","holder":"Aga Khan Museum","dates":"Heigra Sha'ban 990 / September 1582 AD","location":"Toronto, Ontario","dimensions":"35.2 x 22cm","provenance":"Iran, Shiraz","obtention":"Former Prince Saddrudin Aga Khan Collection","dynasty":"Safavid","keywords":["folio","manuscript","painting","Safvat-al-Safa","The-Quintessence-of-Purity","work-on-paper","works-on-paper"],"materials":["Opaque watercolour, ink, and gold on paper"]},"2461a3b5-4ba8-5298-867c-456770c4b426":{"name":"Bowl","description":"Bowls are among the most important copper artifacts in Omani hospitality. They are usually either wholly circular or circular with a channel and include various decorative designs. They may serve to either hold the cups in which Omani coffee is served, or as basins for guests to wash their hands.","type":"Metalwork, copper","holder":"The National Museum - Sultanate of Oman","dates":"Hegira 13th–14th/AD 19th–20th century","location":"muscat, Sultanate of Oman","dimensions":"Height: 6.5cm, diameter: 13cm","provenance":"Northern Oman","dynasty":"Al-Busaid Dynasty (AH 1167–present/AD 1754–present)","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["Copper"]},"255f45d9-17b4-565e-8c90-1983dbce43f3":{"name":"*Majlis* Carpet","short_description":"This large-scale textile is termed the *majlis* (council) carpet. Handcrafted in Hamdan from wool and camel hair utilizing the Seneh knot, it represents the spatiality of the Gulf-Arab \"sitting place\". The *majlis* unites notions of privacy and hospitality appearing to be incompatible in one entity.  \n  \nWhile the carpet would have stretched from one corner of the *majlis* to the other with design elements such as the paisley, damascene rose, diamond-shapes and symmetry characteristic of Persian carpets, the discrete sections of the textile embody the different spatial components of the room. The outer segments reflect sitting positions of the head of the household, the family, friends and guests. The centrepiece would offer room to dance, perform music, play board games or display food and coffee. It would have stretched from one corner of the *majlis* to the other.  \n  \nDue to the cost of these large pieces of art, merchants began cutting apart the separable sections and selling fragments to decorate hallways and corridors. Only few of such majlis carpets may still be reassembled into their original composition.","type":"Carpet; Rug","holder":"FBQ Museum","owner":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"19th century","location":"Shahaniya","dimensions":"Length: 430cm, Width: 340cm","place_of_production":"Iran, Hamedan","method_for_datation":"Date and origin were derived from material, colour, pattern and knot examination.","method_for_provenance":"Date and origin were derived from material, colour, pattern and knot examination.","provenance":"Iran","obtention":"Purchase","bibliography":"Asmi, R., \"Finding a Place to Sit\", *Anthropology of the Middle East*, 11 : 2 (2016): 18-38.  \nSobh, R. and Belk, R., \"Domains of Privacy and Hospitality in Arab Gulf Homes\", *Journal of Islamic Marketing*, 2 : 2 (2011): 125-137.  \nSobh, R. and Belk, R., \"Privacy and Gendered Spaces in Arab Gulf Homes\", *Home Cultures*, 8 : 3 (2011): 317-340.","dynasty":"Qajar","author":"Sarah Schroeder","copy_editor":"Valerie Pulsifer","keywords":["Arabian Gulf","carpet","Hamadan","Hamdan","Iran","Majlis","rug"],"materials":["Senneh knot","Wool, camel hair"]},"26f69a41-3873-5f60-92a8-ec686e31453e":{"name":"Lunch Box","description":"This brass box, inlaid with silver, was intended for holding food. It is rectangular with rounded ends and a coffered lid. The lid is secured by a central, frontal clasp terminating in a teardrop finial, flanked by two additional clasps on the sides and a curving handle secured by two rings on top. The body is divided into three horizontal zones. The central band bears an Arabic inscription written in bold thuluth script interrupted by four eight-petalled swirling rosettes, while the upper and lower bands are comparatively plain, containing only four rosettes and eight knotted arabesques. The inscription across the centre reads: “*umila birasm al-janab al-’ali al-maulavi al-imami al-muthaghiri al-mujahidi mawlana ‘izz al-dunya wa-al … al-din nasrallaha*”, (Made by order of his great Excellency, the lordly Imam, the defender of frontiers, the striver for the faith, our lord ‘Izz al-Dunya wa’l \\[-Din\\] … al-Din, may God grant him victory). Another box in the Museum of Islamic Art in Cairo bears a similar style of inscription, stating that it was made in Sana’a, Yemen. This attribution points to a similar place of production for the present box.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art","owner":"Qatar Museums","dates":"Hegira 9th century / AD 15th century","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Height: 17.8, length: 28cm","place_of_production":"Egypt or Yemen","provenance":"Egypt or Yemen","bibliography":"Christie's London, *Islamic Art and Manuscripts*, 2000.  \nQatar Museums, et al. MIA Collection Online, 2013.","dynasty":"Mamluk period (AH 648–923 / AD 1250–1517)","author":"Tara Desjardins","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Hammered brass inlaid with silver"]},"2778ce78-5836-53cd-89f8-bb048bc613b1":{"name":"Bottle with stamped design","description":"The overall shape of the object consists of four distinct parts: neck, handle, and upper and lower hemispheres of the body. The decoration, of great complexity, consists of patterns frequently found on jewellery, which gives the impression of a goldsmith’s work transposed to clay. Included in this profusion are roundels framing a bird downed by a hawk or passing lion, twisted columns topped with discs in the shape of flowers, fish, lotus buds, palmettes, and palm trees, circular marks…  \nIt is a utilitarian but decorative piece intended for pouring water in apartments or reception rooms.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","dates":"Hegira 5th-6th century / AD 12th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 15.5cm, Diameter: 7cm","provenance":"Syria or Iraq","obtention":"Purchased on advice from Couturier-De Nicolay, 1989.","bibliography":"Atil, E., *Renaissance of Islam. Art of the Mamluks*, Washington: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1981: 128.  \n  \nBaer, E., \"Jeweled Ceramics from Medieval Islam: a Note on the Ambiguity of Islamic Ornament\", *Muqarnas, an Annual on Islamic Art and Architecture*, vol. VI (1989): 83-97.  \n  \nDelpont, E., et al., *Album du musée*, Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, 2012: 291.  \n  \nMoulierac, J., et al., *Céramiques du monde musulman: collections de l'Institut du monde arabe et de J.P. et F. Croisier* , Paris: Institut du monde arabe, Paris, 1999: 44.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["on-wheel and stamped design","Unglazed clay"]},"27f79699-e917-57d4-9288-b307d6f5229b":{"name":"*Mahbes* floral bowl","description":"This bowl, *mahbes*, has a *tawq* (collar) and lotus flower design. It is intended for washing, salted meat preparation, bread dough, or couscous. Beginning in the 18th century, workshops in Qallaline, Tunisia, reached an apogee, marked by a mastery of colour and a variety of compositions.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","initial_owner":"Alain and Dalila Loviconi","dates":"Hegira 11th-12th century / AD 17th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 23cm, Diameter base: 26cm, Diameter maximum: 39cm","provenance":"Qallaline, Tunisia","obtention":"Gift from Alain and Dalila Loviconi in 1994.","bibliography":"Daoulatli, A., *Poteries et Céramiques tunisiennes*, Tunis: Institut National d'Archéologie et d'Art, 1979: 69, Fig. 29.  \n  \nDelpont, E., et al., *Album du musée*, Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, 2012: p. 294.  \n  \nHarbi-Riahi, M., *30 ans au service du patrimoine : XXVIII centenaire de Carthage, 814 av. J. C. - 1986: de la Carthage des Phéniciens à la Carthage de Bourguiba*, Tunis: Institut National d'Archéologie et d'Art, 1986: 306, Fig. V.47.  \n  \nLoviconi, A. and Loviconi D., *Faïences de Tunisie : Qallaline et Nabeul*, Aix-en-Provence: Edisud, 1994: 46, 74.  \n  \nMouliérac, J., et al., *Céramiques du monde musulman : collections de l'Institut du monde arabe et de J.P. et F. Croisier* , Paris: Institut du monde arabe, 1999: 150.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["Clay","design painted under glaze"]},"27f89076-7ab0-561d-a64d-238a0e99fb26":{"name":"Bottle with bulbous neck","description":"This ceramic bottle with a long neck with ovoid spout has a shallow moulded and incised decoration under glaze. A gadroon frieze (ornamental series of convex forms) belts the shoulder.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Museum of the Arab word Institute","dates":"Hegira end of 7th century - beginning of 8th century / AD end of 13th century - beginning of 14th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 34.5cm, Diameter: 20.5cm","provenance":"Iran","obtention":"Purchased at auction on advice from François de Ricqlès, 1998.","bibliography":"Moulierac, Jeanne, et al., Céramiques du monde musulman: collections de l'Institut du monde arabe et de J.P. et F. Croisier, Paris: Institut du monde arabe, Paris, 1999: p. 21.  \n  \nDelpont, E. (et al.), *Album du musée*. Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, Paris, 2012:, p. 343.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["moulded design under monochrome glaze","Siliceous clay"]},"28485e93-6aee-597e-b6d4-519ba9eeb8e4":{"name":"Caucasian Rug","short_description":"Although the Ummayad and Abbasid caliphates overthrew the Iranian empires in the Caucasus and Azerbaijan, the cultural influence of Persia remains. This Caucasian carpet displays a blend of influences from Islam and pre-Islamic Persia.  \n  \nPrimary colours from natural dyes typically brighten carpets from the Shirvan region with blue likely representing water as a life's source. The symmetry in these textiles creates harmony with repeated shapes such as the *kubpa* (hexagonal medallion) with tooth-like edges and diamonds to protect from the evil eye.  \n  \nBright colours and geometric figures adorn this rug with abstracted religious symbols. The *mehrab* (arched prayer niche) denotes the direction toward toward which Muslims pray, Mecca. The upper end of the carpet displays the date, 1281 Hegira (1864 AD). Two chequered rectangles resemble a chess board, which suggests a possible alternative use for this carpet for entertainment during travels.","type":"Carpet; Rug","holder":"FBQ Museum","owner":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"1864 AD / 1281 Hegira","location":"Shahaniya","dimensions":"Length: 130cm, Height: 110cm","method_for_datation":"The date can be read on the upper side of the carpet, while the origin was derived from an examination of material, colour, pattern and knot.","method_for_provenance":"The date can be read on the upper side of the carpet, while the origin was derived from an examination of material, colour, pattern and knot.","provenance":"Caucasus, Daghistan, Shirwan","obtention":"Purchase","bibliography":"Bier, C., *Carpets For Commerce: Rug-Weaving In The Caucasus. Proceedings of The Textile Society of America Biennial Symposium*, 1990: 166-177.  \nBoggs, J., *Carpets as Signifiers of Historical Change: The Azerbaijani Carpet Industry from the Mid-nineteenth to Late Twentieth Century*, Senior Theses, University of South Carolina, 2011: 394.  \nGoswami, K. K., \"Developments in Handmade Carpets: Introduction\", in K.K. Goswami (ed), *Advances in Carpet Manufacture*, Duxford: Woodhead Publishing, 2018: 213-268.  \nMast, T. M., *Ruglore and Ruglife: A folkloric Study of Oriental Rugs, Rug Weaving and Rug Scholarship with a Focus on Turkey and the Caucasus*, Dissertation, University of Pennsylvania, 1995.","author":"Sarah Schroeder","copy_editor":"Valerie Pulsifer","keywords":["carpet","Caucasus","Mehrab","rug"],"materials":["Ghiordes knot","wool"]},"29f83378-fe07-5531-90be-4912dbf80f0f":{"name":"Coffee Cup","description":"Tile red in colour and in the shape of a Bektashi headdress.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Ankara Ethnography Museum","owner":"The Republic of Türkiye Ministry of Culture and Tourism","location":"Ankara","dimensions":"Height: 5cm, diameter: 5cm","dynasty":"Ottomans (AH 698–1340 / AD 1299-1922)","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["Terracotta"]},"2a96e20e-2325-5bea-be93-cd4c4d73eac0":{"name":"Citadel of Salah al-Din al-Ayyubi.","alternate_name":"Citadel of the Mountain (Qala’a al-Jabal).","description":"The Citadel of Salah al-Din al-Ayyubi, known also as Citadel of the Mountain (Qala'a al-Jabal), is one of the most important landmarks of Cairo and amongst the most imposing military citadels to be built in the Middle Ages. Having assumed power in Egypt Salah al-Din al-Ayyubi (Saladin) noted that despite its grandeur and vastness Cairo did not have a citadel to protect her like other great cities in the Levant such as Damascus and Aleppo. He therefore began to construct the citadel, ordering construction of its walls, semi-circular towers and its two gates: Bab al-Qarafa and Bab al-Mudarraj. Saladin's son, Al-Malik al-‘Adil (r. AH 596–615 / AD 1200–18) completed the building of the citadel and surrounded some of the towers with outer encasing towers, in order to increase their impregnability, these included three towers: Burg al-Imam, Burg al-Ramla and Burg al-Haddad. He also added two square towers: Burg al-Turfa and Burg al-Karkialan. These works were completed in AH 604 / AD 1207.  \nIn its present form the citadel is a great city, the borders of which are marked by massive walls and towers. It is divided into two parts: the northeastern section and the southwestern section. The northeastern section represents the citadel's military fortifications. It is confined inside an irregular rectangular area whose length from east to west measures 560 m and whose width from north to south is 317 m. The walls of this section are in proportion to each other due to the fact that they were built in, and are associated with, a single period.  \nThe southern side of the wall of the northeastern military section begins with Burg al-Muqattam, from the western side. This is a circular tower, dating back to the Ottoman period. Next is the Burg al-Suffa a quasi-rectangular tower, adjacent to which is the square tower, Burg al-Karkialan. This tower is followed by another, square tower, Burg al-Turfa. The southern side ends in the east with a circular tower, Burg al-Mubalat. The eastern side consists of four circular towers: Burg al-Muqawsar, Burg al-Imam, Burg al-Ramla and Burg al-Haddad. The northern side is composed of two great quasi-circular towers: one of which is Burg al-Sahraa, and the other does not have a name. On the western side of this section there is a gate, Bab al-Mudarraj, and the shared wall between the northern military section and the southern residential section.  \nThe walls of the citadel are 3 m thick and their height from within the citadel averages 10 m. The heights of the towers increase at times to over 20 m. A passageway leading to narrow, square rooms passes through the walls, the width of which measures about 90 cm. The towers contain rectangular chambers. There are two side-rooms in each tower in the form of two arms; the rooms have slits for shooting arrows. This section of the walls was built in a relatively short period of time that did not exceed seven years (AH 572–9 / AD 1176–83).  \nThe southwestern section of the citadel still preserves the features of a royal city resplendent with palaces and mosques. A successive number of rulers participated in building it, from the period of Saladin to the period of the Ottoman Pasha Muhammad Ali (r. AH 1220–64 / AD 1805–48). This section occupies an irregular surface area, which is slightly smaller than the area of the military, northeastern section. The greatest distance in it from north to south reaches 510 m, and from east to west 270 m. Al-Malik al-Kamil bin al-‘Adil (r. AH 615–35 / AD 1218–37) is considered to be the first to transfer the seat of government and administration to the citadel in AH 604 / AD 1208 during his occupation of the position of deputy (to his father) of the sultanate in Egypt. The Citadel of Salah al-Din al-Ayyubi continued to be the seat of government for close to seven centuries until Khedive Isma'il made the 'Abidin palace located outside the citadel the official seat of his rule in the year AH 1276 / AD 1874.  \nThe style used in the construction of the citadel walls and towers follows those used in the building of the walls of Fatimid Cairo in AH 480 / AD 1087, seen in features such as the attention paid to the alignment of stone, as well as the use of interlocking voussoirs seen in Bab al-Mudarraj, and the projecting balconies of Burg al-Haddad. However, new architectural elements also appear in the Citadel, such as the circular towers. There is a similarity between the architectural components of Citadel of Salah al-Din al-Ayyubi and those which are specific to two citadels in Jordan: the Citadel 'Ajlun (built AH 580 / AD 1184) and Citadel al-Kark which, incidentally, was restored by al-Malik al-‘Adil.","short_description":"This citadel is one of the most important Islamic monuments in Cairo, standing proudly through the ages since its foundation by Salah al-Din (Saladin) on an outcrop of Muqattam Hill to the east of the city. A defensive fortress against the Crusaders, it served also as a residence for the rulers in times of unrest and continued as such until the time of Khedive Isma‘il in 1874 when he built ‘Abidin Palace to be his seat of rule. The citadel was divided within its walls into a military area and a residential area.","dates":"Hegira 579 / AD 1184.","location":"Cairo","method_for_datation":"This building was dated based on two epigraphic inscriptions bearing the name of the builder and the date of construction. The first inscription is on Bab al-Qarafa and bears the date, 576 / 1180; the second is on Bab al-Mudarraj and bears the date, 579 / 1184. Historical sources such as that by Maqrizi, *al-Khitat,* and *al-Nujum al-Zahira* by Taghri Bardi, confirm the validity of these dates. Further information with regard to dating can be found in Combe *et al*, detailed in the bibliography.","bibliography":"Abu al-Mahasin, *Jamal al-Din Yusuf ibn Taghri Bardi al-Atabki* (d. 874 / 1469), *Al-Nujum al-Zahira fi Muluk Misr wa al-Qahira \\[Shining Stars in the Rulers of Egypt and Cairo\\],* Cairo, 1939; reprinted 1956.  \nAbu-Lughod, J., *1001 Years of the City Victorious*, Princeton, NJ, 1971.  \nCasanova, P., “Histoire et Description de la Citadelle du Caire”, *Mémoires de la Mission Archéologique Française du Caire*, No. 6, Paris, 1897.  \nCombe, E., Sauvaget, J., and Wiet, G. *Répertoire Chronologique *d'épigraphie* Arabe*, Vol. 9, Cairo, 1931.  \nLyster, W., *The Citadel of Cairo: A History and Guide,* Cairo, 1993.  \nMackenzie, N., *Ayyubid Cairo: A Topographical Study*, Cairo, 1992.  \nRabbat, N., *The Citadel of Cairo,* Geneva, 1989.  \nZaki, Abd al-Rahman, *Qala'a Salah al-Din al-Ayyubi wa ma hawlaha min al-Athar \\[Citadel of Salah al-Din al-Ayyubi and the Monuments Surrounding it\\],* Cairo, 1971.","patrons":"Al-Malik al-Nasir Salah al-Din al-Ayyubi (also known as Saladin, r. AH 564–89 / AD 1169–93).","dynasty":"Ayyubid.","author":"Tarek Torky","copy_editor":"Majd Musa","translator":"Amal Sachedina (from the Arabic).","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["citadel.","military architecture","Tower","wall"]},"2bb20c6b-1cd4-5c87-a1f5-c0764436f8b3":{"name":"*Taḏkerat al-Awliāʾ by Farid-al-Din ʿAṭṭār Neishabouri* (Social Gathering for Entertainment in Meadow)","description":"The *Taḏkerat al-Awliāʾ*, in which Farīd al-Dīn Attār (Hegira 618 / AD 1221) narrates stories of the saints, begins with the chapter devoted to Ja'far al-Sādiq and ends with Hallāj al-Mansūr. The work contains information about the lives of 72 individuals, including Imām al-ʿĀzam, Imam Shāfi'ī, Ahmad b. Ḥanbal, Weysel Karānī and Rābia al-Adawiyya, and their stories and sayings. Each person is allocated a chapter, and the word *zikr* (remembrance) is placed at the beginning of each chapter. The work is written in Persian in *taliq* calligraphy on paper. On pages 1b-2a an entertainment scene is depicted that covers the entire page, while on pages 2b-3a the first section is written in two facing medallions. The work contains 27 miniature scenes depicting various parables. The outer edges of the medallions are embellished with a profusion of *simurgh* birds (benevolent mythical creatures) and a variety of floral motifs crafted in the *ringar* technique. The chapter headings are illuminated in a style characteristic of the period.","type":"Manuscript","holder":"Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts","dates":"Hegira 11th century/ AD 17th century","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"35cm x 24cm","place_of_production":"Iran","obtention":"Brought to the Museum on 13 April 1914  from the Sadreddin Konevi Tomb in Konya.","dynasty":"Safavids (AH 907–1150 / AD 1501–1737)","materials":["Finished (aharli) paper, ink, leather binding"]},"2beef8e7-b877-5cfe-9c4a-0c073bef5099":{"name":"*Khameer wa Dibs* (Leavened bread and date molasses)","description":"Leavened bread and date molasses","type":"Bread","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century / AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Bread varies. Diameter: 120mm, thickness: 5mm; Date molasses (*dibs*) is liquid.","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Amanda Snyder, Mona Mukhashab","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["Bread","Dibs"]},"2c11d15b-86e5-562f-bbfd-ef12cbbb45f1":{"name":"İmaret Mosque","description":"","type":"","dates":"","bibliography":""},"2c1e6a09-4e26-51fb-a7ae-7206e8f1288d":{"name":"Tray (*sinija*)","description":"The term *sinija* (Tr. *sini*) relates to a large round brass or copper tray that functioned as a low table on which food was served.  \nThis artefact is a large, circular brass tray with stepped flat rim. The central medallion is decorated with incised geometric arabesque filled with intricate scroll ornamentation. It is further encircled by several narrow and broader bands decorated in the same manner of combining different geometric shapes with vine and scroll patterns.","type":"Tableware","holder":"Museum of Applied Art","dates":"Hegira 13th century / AD 19th century","location":"Belgrade","dimensions":"Diameter: 825mm, weight: 4250g","place_of_production":"Persia","method_for_datation":"By stylistic and comparative analysis with related material.","obtention":"Purchased in 1951.","bibliography":"Karamehmedović, M. A., *Umjetnička obrada metala*, Sarajevo: Veselin Masleša, 1980: 186–187.","author":"Mila Gajić","keywords":["brass","Persia","sinija","Tableware","Tray"],"materials":["Brass","hammering, engraving"]},"2d3a9974-408a-5de5-bdff-8cfdae9e0b29":{"name":"*Akbarnama*","short_description":"The Mughal emperors ruled India for more than three centuries. Akbar (r. 1556–1605), the third emperor, was the longest ruling and is considered the greatest of them all. His biography is known as the *Akbarnama* (‘Book of Akbar’) and is an official, imperial biography written by the emperor’s close friend and associate, Abu ’l-Fazl. Begun in 1598, it took almost ten years to complete the text. Two illustrated copies of the text were produced during Akbar’s lifetime, this being the later of the two. In the numerous illustrations that accompany the text, Akbar is portrayed as a powerful, dynamic and highly heroic figure, much as he seems to have been perceived by his contemporaries.","type":"Manuscript","holder":"The Chester Beatty Library","dates":"Hegira c. 1008–12 / AD 1600–03","location":"Dublin","dimensions":"43.5 x 26.8 cm","provenance":"India","dynasty":"Mughal","catalogue_holding_link":"https://viewer.cbl.ie/viewer/image/In_03/1/LOG_0000/","keywords":["battle","ceremony, royal","court","Elephant","figural decoration","Illustration","Jesuit","manuscript","miniature painting","Religion","warfare"],"materials":["Coloured pigments and gold on paper"]},"2de63d8c-14d0-5261-834c-c9e9983b302a":{"name":"*Al Hammath* (Sorrel), *Rumex Pictus*","description":"The leaves of this plant were eaten with dried fish and white rice. People still collect and eat the leaves following the annual rainfall. The plant was also valued for its therapeutic qualities, specifically its use as a pain reliever.","type":"Sorrel","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"Hegira 15th century / AD 21st century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Varies and depends on the piece. Length: 55mm, Wwidth: 55mm","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Field collection","author":"Amanda Snyder, Mona Mukhashab","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["desert","hammath","rumex pictus","sorrel"]},"2e402c4d-0004-5e48-84c2-e6f4b24d7d3e":{"name":"Bowl with dark brown slip and white slip decoration","short_description":"This earthenware bowl was covered in a dark brown slip before receiving an as yet unread, white floriated *kufic* inscription – possibly containing blessings. The secondary motifs evoking a textured background and rim, may suggest that the bowl was inspired by a metal prototype. Vessels like this have been associated with Nishapur and Afrasiyab.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Sharjah Museum of Islamic Civilisation","dates":"Hegira 4th century / AD 10th century","location":"Sharjah","provenance":"Iran, probably Nishapur","dynasty":"Samanid","keywords":["bowl","calligraphy","ceramic","inscription","kufic"]},"2f89b9bc-9361-56b1-82d3-0071ee525367":{"name":"*Oomah* (Sardine Fish)","description":"*Al Ooma*, sardines were fried before being eaten, or more often dried and crushed into a fine powder and eaten with rice. They were also used as fertilizer and livestock fodder.","type":"Sardine","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century / AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Varies, Length: 70mm","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","author":"Amanda Snyder, Mona Mukhashab","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["fish","sardine"]},"2fe554a9-e532-5b15-814f-963ca40c1b1c":{"name":"Small water-basin.","description":"On the broad border of this wide basin there are depicted, between four round medallions, scenes of courtly pleasure hunts. Three riders are shown in every scene, undertaking various hunting practices. The hunters are fighting in tournament, armed with lances, swords, bows and arrows. One rider is accompanied by a hunting cheetah on a horse. These illustrations represent a view of an idealised life. Images of riders and hunters refer not only to the riding abilities of the princes, but also to the courage, strength and perseverance of the rulers. Depictions of hunters with falcons and leopards could be referring to the immense wealth of the rulers. Only rulers such as these could afford to keep and train such expensive hunting animals, only they could hold such lavish hunting parties. This princely lifestyle reached its height during the Mamluk period. The underside of the basin is decorated with plaited bands, and arabesques, vines and birds fill the spaces in between. The decoration is finished in gold and silver inlay. The precious metal decoration gives the brass receptacle a multicoloured appearance and rich tone.  \nThe coat of arms of Amir Sumul Abu’l-‘Izz, who belonged to the retinue of the ruling Sultan al-Nasir Muhammad bin Qalawun, is set at the centre of each of the round medallions. It can be only guessed that Abu’l-‘Izz commissioned the basin on the basis of a fragment of inscription. Abu’l-‘Izz and his brother Salar, viceroy of Egypt, rebelled against the Sultan and were captured and imprisoned in 1310. At the bottom of the basin, two well-wishing inscriptions are addressed to the person who commissioned it, whose identity remains unclear. Sumul Abu’l-‘Izz’s name could have been inscribed here. If it had, the basin would have been dateable to between AH 693 and 710 / AD 1293 and 1310.","short_description":"The design of this brass water-basin with gold and silver inlays shows a frieze with riders hunting or at a tournament. They are separated by four medallions holding a coat of arms typical of the Mamluk nobility. The basin was commissioned for a Mamluk *amir*.","type":"Basin, metalwork","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art at the Pergamon Museum","initial_owner":"Sumul Abu’l-‘Izz.","dates":"Around hegira 700 / AD 1300.","location":"Berlin","dimensions":"Height 10 cm, diameter 21 cm.","method_for_datation":"The coat of arms suggest that the basin belonged to the patron Sumul Abu’l-'Izz. He was in the service of the Mamluk Sultan al-Nasir Muhammad bin Qalawun from 693 to 710 (1293–1310).","method_for_provenance":"The Mamluk coat of arms, which establishes the identity of the basin’s patron, points towards Egypt as the country of origin.","provenance":"Cairo, Egypt.","obtention":"As a donation from the Berlin collector Friedrich Sarre, who bought it in 1897.","bibliography":"Hagedorn, A., *Die Blacas-Kanne: Zu Ikonographie und Bedeutung Islamischer Mettallarbeiten des Vorderen Orients im 13. und 14. Jahrhundert*, Münster, 1992, pp.127–33, 152–3, no. 162.  \nMayer, L. A., “Three Heraldic Bronzes from Palermo”, *Ars Islamica* 3, 1936, pp.184–6.  \n*Museum für Islamische Kunst*, Catalogue, Mainz, 2001, p.76.  \nSarre, F., *Erzeugnisse Islamischer Kunst*, Part 1, *Metall*, Berlin, 1906, no.64.  \nWard. R., *Islamic Metalwork*, London, 1993, 71–93.","dynasty":"Mamluk","linkcatalogs":"IAM_EG_EN_001","author":"Annette Hagedorn","translator":"Maria Vlotides, Brigitte Finkbeiner","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["amir","Basin","brass","inlay","Mamluk"],"materials":["Brass, silver and gold inlay."]},"30c59814-d0f8-5ae7-87c8-2350a319fd1f":{"name":"Men meeting in a guesthouse","description":"The coffee fireplace is located on the narrow side of the guesthouse near the entrance door, and coffee pots of various sizes adorn its cornice. Guests are offered bitter coffee as soon as they enter the typically one-room building. The pot of coffee is ready and needs only to be heated.  \nIf necessary to support the guesthouse, villagers bring coffee beans or coffee powder from the nearest town. Bitter coffee is also served in private households on happy and sad occasions, such as religious feasts and funerals. The use of these guesthouses in rural northeast Syria corresponds to that of the urban room type *diwan* in Damascus, the *qa’a* in Aleppo, the *mudif* in southern Iraq, and the *mafraj* in Yemen.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Karin Pütt","initial_owner":"Karin Pütt","dates":"Hegira 1408 / AD 1988","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Al-Hazima/Syria","method_for_provenance":"Direct contact","provenance":"Al-Hazima /Syria","bibliography":"Ababsa, M., “La madâfa à Raqqa : mutation d’un lieu de sociabilité tribale en attribut de notabilité citadine”, Géographie et cultures, L’Harmattan, 2001, 17-36.  \n  \nNippa, A., “Haus und Familie in arabischen Ländern”, 1991, 57.  \n  \nPütt, K. Article “Guesthouse”, *Encyclopedia of Vernacular Architecture of the World*, Paul Oliver (ed), vol 1, “Theories and Principles”, 668.  \n  \nPütt, K., “Zelte, Kuppeln und Hallenhäuser – Wohnen und Bauen im ländlichen Syrien“, Petersberg, 2005, 162.","author":"Karin Pütt","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Slide"]},"30cafd37-23c3-561f-9f01-a12c90b5d8b6":{"name":"Base for a tray (*sinija*)","description":"The *Sinija* (Tr. *sini*) is a large, round tray made of copper or brass. It was used for serving food or as a floor dining table – a *sofra* (Tr. *sofra*). tTherefore it had an important place in the shared living culture of the Ottoman Balkans among urban populations of different confessional and ethnic backgrounds. The diameter of *sinijas* sometimes reached 1–2 meters or more. When used as a floor dining table, the *sinija* was placed on a wooden or iron base. Valued for their craftsmanship, locally produced or imported *sinijas* have also found a place in the interiors of the modern age as wall decor or top parts of decorative side tables placed on custom-made bases of different styles.","type":"Table","holder":"Museum of Applied Art","dates":"Hegira late 13th–early 14th century / AD late 19th–early 20th century","location":"Belgrade","dimensions":"Height: 34.5cm, width: 34.5cm","place_of_production":"Ottoman Empire","method_for_datation":"By stylistic analysis, material, technique, and analogy with other similar examples","obtention":"Purchased in 1954.","author":"Ana Samardžić","keywords":["carving","floor dining table","Ottoman Balkans."],"materials":["carving, turning","Walnut"]},"315346db-710f-5c89-a554-c7db806dc960":{"name":"Ram mould.","description":"A ram-shaped mould made from two equal parts to form the body, and another small piece that forms the head. There are four hinged joints: one on its back, one on the top of its head and two at its feet. The horns of the ram are clearly visible behind the ears.  \nThe object seems to have functioned as a special kind of mould used for shaping bread or cake for children. Another mould in the shape of an elephant was found along with this one.  \nThe ram has particular significance for Muslims. It is mentioned several times in the Qur'an in for instance, *sura* 'Al Saffat' (chapter 37, verses 102–7), where the story of Abraham's sacrifice of his son Isaac is related and how ultimately Abraham sacrificed a ram in place of his son. Within the Muslim festival calendar is that of Eid Al-Adh'ha (Greater Bairam) when a ram is sacrificed, along with other animals such as a camel, a cow or a lamb.  \nRams are also a feature of the mosaic floors found in Jordanian Byzantine-period churches. The ram is also evident on the mosaic floor of the Umayyad palace, Qasr Hallabat. A number of Islamic-period metalwork pieces are made in the form of animals.","short_description":"A cast iron mould shaped in the form of a ram from the Umayyad palace of al-Fudayn. It was found along with another mould in the shape of an elephant and they were probably meant to produce bread or cakes for children. Metalwork representing animals is common in early Islamic art.","type":"Mould, metalwork","holder":"Jordan Archaeological Museum.","dates":"Hegira 2nd century / AD 8th century.","location":"Amman","dimensions":"Height 17 cm, width: 16.5 cm, depth 6 cm.","method_for_datation":"The object was dated by its location in the archaeological strata and also in association with pottery located close to it which was characteristically Umayyad.","method_for_provenance":"The provenance is unknown, but the mould was probably produced in Syria.","provenance":"Hallado en al-Fudayn.","obtention":"The mould was obtained as a result of an excavation which was carried out in al-Fudayn, a site located 70 km northeast of Amman, where an Umayyad palace and a mosque were discovered.","bibliography":"Humbert, J. B., \"El-Fedei-Mafraq”, in *Contribution française à l'archéologie française jordanienne*, Amman, 1989, pp.125–31.","dynasty":"Umayyad","linkcatalogs":"IAM_JO_EN_001","author":"Aida Naghawy","copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["Abraham","metal","mould","Ransom Story"],"materials":["Cast iron."]},"315f5403-c2b3-5aaf-8a31-139f4ec1548a":{"name":"*Reposadero* or vat-base","description":"It has a cylindrical, hollow body with a straight base and a square-shaped rim, featuring a hole that would have served as a conduit for drainage. Both the base and the rim are slightly concave, the latter also has a whitish colour that could be interpreted as calcareous remains.  \n  \nThe decoration is concentrated on the wall and consists of an epigraphic frieze between concave mouldings with marked edges. The central frieze is stamped with the inscription al-mulk with a six-pointed star positioned above the “m”.  \nFunctionally, the objects are known as *reposaderos* and served as supports for large water vats, which were both placed either in the courtyard or in domestic interiors. They preserved the water from impurities and kept it fresh, while also collecting any oozes liquid. By the spout of the *reposadero*, the water was transferred to basins or other vessels and could be used for washing hands or for human consumption. Furthermore, the stamped decoration, which repeats the word \"*al-mulk*\" or \"the power\", alludes to prophylactic practices of protection and praise of God.","type":"*Reposadero* or Vat-base","holder":"National Archaeological Museum","initial_owner":"Unknown","dates":"Second half of Hegira 6th century / AD 12th century","location":"Madrid","dimensions":"Height: 13cm, mouth diameter: 27cm, Base diameter: 23.5cm","place_of_production":"Al-Andalus","method_for_datation":"Art-historical and archaeological studies have demonstrated the proliferation of different types of *reposaderos* in the domestic environments of al-Andalus from the end of the Hegira 6th / AD 12th and beginning of the Hegira 7th / AD 13th centurycenturies, following oriental models (Navarro 1995). This coincides with the generalisation of stamped decoration on ceramics for everyday use.","provenance":"Málaga","obtention":"In the Museum's collection before 1980.","bibliography":"Fernández López, M. Á., “El ajuar cerámico andalusí de almacenamiento de agua en la región de Murcia”, in L. Cara Barrionuevo (ed), *El agua en zonas áridas. Arqueología e historia. Hidráulica tradicional de la provincia de Almería*, Instituto de Estudios Almerienses, 1989: 199-225.  \n  \nNavarro Palazón, J. and Jiménez Castillo, P., “Maquetas arquitectónicas en cerámica y su relación con la arquitectura andalusí”, in J. Navarro Palazón (ed.), *Casas y palacios en Al-Andalus: siglos XII-XIII*, Madrid: Lunweg, 1995: 287-230.","dynasty":"Almohads","author":"Helena Lahoz Kopiske","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","keywords":["Conservation","Household goods","Prophylactic practices","Technology","water"],"materials":["Ceramic","modelling, stamping, firing"]},"32d8b057-33a0-5b68-b4bf-587d420f1185":{"name":"Ford Model-T popcorn car","description":"This extraordinary truck popularised popcorn, an American movie snack. The Columbia Buddy Company converted one of three Ford Model-Ts into a popcorn vending machine on wheels. Besides fresh buttered popcorn made with the original popcorn equipment, this crimson red vehicle would sell ice-cold sodas and roasted peanuts. Special-purpose vehicles were not unknown, as model-Ts were also transformed into ambulances and fire trucks. The popcorn wagon presented a unique marketing and entertainment opportunity within a charming circus-like aesthetic.","type":"Cardamom","holder":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani Museum","owner":"His Excellency Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"Hegira 1330 / AD 1912","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Length: 511cm, height: 280cm, width 191cm","place_of_production":"USA, Detroit, Michigan","method_for_datation":"Based on research.","method_for_provenance":"Based on research.","provenance":"USA","obtention":"Purchased","workshop":"Ford Motor Company","author":"Marc Martinez","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["car, popcorn, soda, food, truck, Ford, movie, circus, peanut, entertainment"],"materials":["Metal, glass, rubber, paint, wood, leather, spray-paint, magnet, chemicals"]},"33362f44-34f0-5545-a2a1-056208f5dff6":{"name":"Sahrij Swani (Basin of the Norias).","description":"According to the Meknès historian Ibn Zaydan, Mulay Isma'il had an ornamental lake, large enough to sail pleasure boats on, built inside the *kasbah*. In fact, the 'Alawid prince, a contemporary of Louis XIV, had this lake constructed to guarantee the supply of water, in times of siege or drought, to the palaces and mosques of the town, as well as to the public baths, homes, gardens and the orchards that surrounded the town and provided for its daily fruit and vegetable requirements.  \nThe masterpiece of the complex known as Hri Swani, the Basin of the Norias, Sahrij Swani, is an artificial lake notable for its size (148.75 m by 319 m with a depth of 3.20 m). Three tall crenellated walls that stood around the lake have today been reduced to an isolated section of rampart located on the southwest side towards the Bani Ahmad district and the remains of the base of an enclosure wall more than 2 m thick.  \nThe size of the lake is reminiscent of the lakes of the Middle Atlas mountains located to the south of the town. The lake was filled from two sources:  \n\\- Water from the ten wells dug near the Sahrij, below the silo, brought up using ten norias and ceramic channels. Water from the wells was used at times of trouble (war, etc.) and drought.  \n\\- Water from the Wadi Bufekrane which descends from the Middle Atlas mountains, crosses the southern part of Meknès and feeds the lake and part of the town of Meknès.  \nToday the lake attracts tourists visiting the town and also its inhabitants, who come at weekends to cool down during the summer.","short_description":"Located beside the building containing the Meknès grain silos within the enclosure wall of the Royal Palace, the Sahrij Swani lake, or Basin of the Norias, or House of the Ten Norias, was created in the AH 12th / AD 18th century. A rectangular artificial reservoir, like the one at the Menara in Marrakesh, this hydraulic structure was intended to provide water for the buildings and monuments in Mawlay Isma'il's town in times of siege. It was supplied by the ten norias (waterwheels) of the neighbouring building and surrounded by three tall crenellated walls more than 2 m thick. This site has been restored very recently.","dates":"Hegira 11th–12th centuries / AD 17th–18th centuries.","location":"Meknès.","method_for_datation":"Ibn Zaydan provides the approximate date of 1107 / 1695 in *al-Ithaf*.","bibliography":"Barrucand, M., *Urbanisme princier en islam : Meknès et les villes royales islamiques post-médiévales*, Paris, 1985.  \nMennouni, M., *Four ages of urban planning in the town of Meknès* (in Arabic), Rabat, undated.  \nTerrasse, H., *Villes impériales du Maroc*, Grenoble, 1937.  \n*Andalusian Morocco: A Discovery in Living Art*, p.81.","patrons":"Sultan Mulay Isma‘il (r. AH 1083–1140 / AD 1672–1727).","dynasty":"Alawid.","author":"Mohamed Mezzine","copy_editor":"Margot Cortez","translator":"Laurence Nunny","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["channels","lake","reservoir","security","water"]},"336e6afb-8f0e-5f3a-a491-c18e56f13628":{"name":"*Hag Al Layla'* celebration","description":"*Hag Al Layla'* takes place in Sha’ban, the month before Ramadan. On this night, families hand out sweets and nuts – peanuts, almonds, *meez* and *nakhi* (chickpeas) – to the neighbourhood children. The children recite *dua’as* (verbal prayers) as they collect treats inside handmade cloth bags, however, should their neighbour refuse to hand out treats they may express anger toward that person. Traditionally, women give out the sweets, which are kept in a *geffah* (palm leaf basket), while sitting outside their front door. Each child would take care to visit every house in the neighbourhood.","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"In current practice","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","author":"Amanda Snyder, Mona Mukhashab","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["hag al layla","ramadan","shaban"]},"33fb43d3-39d9-5067-a872-1b4b9314584b":{"name":"Covered al-Buzuriyya Market","description":"During the Mawlid (Feast of the Birth of Prophet Muhammad), people from all over Damascus rush to buy the first gift of this occasion, the *Mulabbas*, distinguishing the capital from other Syrian cities. This sweet, made of roasted almonds coated with sugar, is linked to the emotional history of the people of the capital because it is white, symbolising new birth, as in the birth of the Prophet. Many shops in the historic Buzuriyya market in Damascus are filled with sweets and chocolates in preparation for Mawlid al-Nabawi. According to one of its makers, the *Mulabbas* industry in Damascus dates back more than 150 years, and its main sales area is centred in the historic Buzuriyya Market.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Christine Delpal","initial_owner":"Christine Delpal","dates":"Hegira 1412 / AD 1992","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Damascus/Syria","method_for_provenance":"Direct contact","provenance":"Damascus/Syria","bibliography":"al-Maliki, M. A., “On Celebrating the Birth of the Prophet”, Imam Ghazali Institute, 2016.  \n  \nRabbat, N., “Ideal-type and Urban History: The Development of the Suq in Damascus”, Gharipour, Mohammad, ed. *The Bazaar in the Islamic City: Design, Culture, and History*. American University in Cairo Press, 2012.  \n  \nZarcone, T., Mevlid Kandili. “La fête de la naissance du Prophète en Turquie”, Nathalie CLAYER et Erdal KAYNAR, “Penser, agir et vivre dans l'Empire ottoman et en Turquie”, Paris, Louvain, Walpole, MA, 2013: 308-320.","author":"Hiba Bizreh","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Photography, black and white"]},"33fcf5d8-adfd-5c10-84bb-8756c9079c6e":{"name":"Coffee set","description":"Set contains tray and six porcelain inner cups with copper handles and saucers.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"National Museum in Kraków","initial_owner":"Muzeum Techniczno-Przemysłowe w Krakowie / Industrial Museum in Kraków","dates":"13th century Hegira / 19th century AD","location":"Kraków","dimensions":"Tray diameter: 34cm","method_for_datation":"Dating and origin based on stylistic grounds and similar pieces from other collections.","method_for_provenance":"Material and technique are characteristic for Turkish metalwork production in this period","provenance":"Turkey","obtention":"Gifted to the Industrial Museum in Kraków by Zdzisław Hordyński in 1920; collection taken over by NMK in 1950.","dynasty":"Ottomans (AH 698–1340 / AD 1299-1922)","author":"Monika Paś","keywords":["coffee","Islam"],"materials":["forged, engraved copper","Porcelain","traces of silver plating"]},"3440c04d-68d2-580e-aa99-011805aecccb":{"name":"*Dallah* (Coffee pot), *Mezallah*; serving stage smallest pot","description":"This copper *dallah* goes back to a type allegedly first used in 17th-century Baghdad, and by the 19th century, there were several production centres in the Arabian peninsula. Its design cleverly reflects its functional needs. The broad base ensures stability on the fire or in the sand, whilst the large spout prevents too much coffee sediment from reaching the cup. The lid is purposely weighted to avoid it opening during the pouring process. Throughout the Near and Middle East coffee lay at the heart of social rituals and hospitality, while providing sustenance during chats, debate and political discourse in the many coffee houses in the region. In this light, the quality of the coffee served was an important indicator of both the wealth of the host and status of the guest. In continental Europe, the fashion for coffee was at its height in the 17th and 18th centuries, with coffee houses the preferred meeting places for intellectuals and artists. In Britain, meanwhile, tea soon overtook coffee in popularity, even though certain religious organisations tried to promote coffee houses for the poor in order to steer them away from public houses that primarily sold alcohol.","type":"Coffee pot; *Mezallah*","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"Hegira late 13th – early 14th century / AD late 19th – early 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Length: 283mm, width: 250mm, base diameter: 80mm, opening diameter: 75mm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","method_for_provenance":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Ulrike Al-Khamis","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["coffee pot","dallah"],"materials":["Sheet and cast copper alloy"]},"346fd021-610d-5725-a5ab-51fb974e49fc":{"name":"Coffee preparer and his utensils","description":"The coffee cook usually sits next to the fireplace. The embers might be in a portable fire bowl (*mawqid* or *manqal*), or in a chimney with a smoke outlet built into the guesthouse wall (*fkhayriyya, bakhura, nafila, tafiyya*).  \nThe making and serving of bitter coffee follows certain rules and traditions, among them that the coffee cook serves himself first and drinks in front of the guests. The explanation given for this tradition is that the *qahwaji* wants to control both the quality and temperature of the coffee.  \nThe order in which guests receive their coffee was traditionally fixed, but is not necessarily followed today. The highest-ranking or eldest man received his coffee first, followed by the men sitting to the right of this person to the end of the row, then beginning again with those persons to the left of the highest-ranking person to the last one, who was often seated near the door. During funeral services, and in Damascus today, the coffee will be served counterclockwise from right to left, regardless who sits where.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Karin Pütt","initial_owner":"Karin Pütt","dates":"Hegira 1409 / AD 1989","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Al-Mustafawiyya /Syria","method_for_provenance":"Direct contact","provenance":"Al-Mustafawiyya /Syria","bibliography":"- Myriam Ababsa. “La madâfa à Raqqa: mutation d’un lieu de sociabilité tribale en attribut de notabilité citadine ”, Géographie et cultures, L’Harmattan, 2001, 16.","author":"Karin Pütt","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Slide"]},"34f380b0-4a42-5a73-b60e-c3be05e1e957":{"name":"Bukhara Ewer","short_description":"Fine engravings of Islamic motifs such as plaited bands, rows of ellipses and floral patterns such as rose and palm scrolls cover the pear-shaped body of this copper ewer originating from Bukhara (Uzbekistan), a hub of trade and culture located on the Silk Road. Additionally, the object is engraved with the inscription of the owner’s name - Ibrahim.  \n  \nBecause food is eaten with the hands in Arab and Persian custom, hosts would frequently offer to pour water from this vessel into a guest’s hands in a washing ceremony. Until this day, people in the region may offer an opportunity to clean one’s hands in their home or majlis. Often, guests receive soap and a fresh towel as an act of politeness and hospitality.","type":"Domestic tool","holder":"FBQ Museum","owner":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"17th century","location":"Shahaniya","dimensions":"Length: 15cm, Width: 9cm, Height: 37cm","place_of_production":"Uzbekistan, Bukhara","method_for_datation":"The date and origin were established from a research-based comparison of metalwork of Bukhara.","method_for_provenance":"The date and origin were established from a research-based comparison of metalwork of Bukhara.","provenance":"Uzbekistan","obtention":"Purchase","bibliography":"Baer, E., *Metalwork in Medieval Islamic Art*, Albany: State University of New York Press, 1983.  \nChaffetz, D., *A Journey Through Afghanistan*, Chicago / London: University of Chicago Press, 2001.  \nGray, B., \"Post-Sasanian Metalwork\", *Bulletin of the Asia Institute*, 5 (1991): 59–64.  \nRahmonī, R., Perry, J. R., \"Traces of Ancient Iranian Culture in Boysun District, Uzbekistan\", *Asian Folklore Studies*, 60 : 2 (2001): 295–304.","author":"Sarah Schroeder","copy_editor":"Valerie Pulsifer","keywords":["Bukhara","ewer","metalwork","Uzbekistan"],"materials":["Copper","Engraving"]},"34f94cfa-2246-5c81-93dc-34dc25afa481":{"name":"al-Ghuta ash-Sharqiyya","description":"Stainless steel trolleys are used to transport the apricot paste to the drying area in the oasis, where it is spread onto the wooden boards. In this last operation, we find the traditional gestures: the workers coat the board with olive oil, and the boss, the most experienced, spreads the paste with a sure hand and using the old measure *kayl* (about 2.5 kg) of liquid paste.  \nAt daybreak, the apricot paste is left to dry on boards that are placed on the open ground. From the small workshop with rudimentary equipment to today’s industrial enterprise, this vast drying area in full sun remains the essential element of the *Qamr ad-Din* installation. The dough stays in the drying area for several days until it can be peeled off in long dark orange strips at the end of the day. Strips are folded and transported to the workshops, where the second phase of preparing the *Qamr ad-Din* takes place: the dough is cleaned, cut and packaged for the local market or for export.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Anne-Marie Bianquis","initial_owner":"Anne-Marie Bianquis","dates":"Hegira 1320 / AD 2002","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Ghutat Dimashq/Syria","method_for_datation":"Direct contact","provenance":"Ghutat Dimashq/Syria","bibliography":"Al-Dawudi, F., \"L’abricot est ses dérivés dans la région syrienne\", thesis on pharmacy and chemistry, 1960, Damascus (in Arabic).  \n  \nBianquis, A.-M., “Modernisation d'un artisanat traditionnel: la pâte d'abricot dans la ghouta de damas”, *Bulletin d'études orientales*, T. 56 (2004-2005): 301-328.  \n  \nDenker, J., \"'Moon of the Faith:' A History of the Apricot and Its Many Pleasures\", (14 June 2016).","author":"Hiba Bizreh","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Photographic negative"]},"3618877a-1f1a-5330-864f-53d4725fe233":{"name":"*Mokhfia* conical dish","description":"This *mokhfia*, a conical dish on a short pedestal, is polychrome earthenware, with a design known as “turtle”. The example is characteristic of Moroccan ceramics in its shape and decoration.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","initial_owner":"Catherine Dolla","dates":"Hegira 2nd quarter of 14th century / AD first quarter of the 20th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Dimension: 30cm","provenance":"Fes, Morocco","obtention":"Gift of Catherine Dolla.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["Clay","design painted under glaze"]},"36adfe60-d1bb-5d20-835e-c6987c2d3ca0":{"name":"Coffee group","description":"Coffee is always served at the beginning of a visit and is repeatedly offered until guests politely signal that they have had enough by rocking their cup from side to side. In order to keep coffee hot and fresh for unexpected guests it goes through many stages. After roasting and grinding the coffee beans the grains are added to boiling water inside a large *dallah* (coffee pot) called a *khamra*. Next, the liquid is poured into a medium-sized coffee pot called a *taljeemah*. At this stage cardamom seeds, saffron and rose water may be added for flavour. From this jug, the coffee is poured into a serving *dallah* referred to as a *mezallah*, where the coffee is refined and filtered. The server must hold the *mezallah* with their left hand and distribute the *fanayeel* (coffee cups) using the right hand. The coffee should fill less than half of the cup.","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Amanda Snyder, Mona Mukhashab","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["beans","coffee","coffee beans"]},"370c5dcb-5b24-584f-9109-fe182b74b751":{"name":"Long-necked amphora","description":"This long-necked terracotta amphora from 19th-century Algeria is a prime example of impressive Kabyle pottery. These large terracotta amphorae are distinguished by their elongated necks, multilinear decorations, and distinctive horned handles.  \nEven today, Kabyle women continue the tradition of coil-building and mould pattern techniques, decorating pottery with intricate geometric designs for household use.  \nSkilled artisans create vessels of diverse sizes and shapes for storing water, milk, and oil, and for cooking and dining. The amphora’s decorative motifs, in black and brick red on a yellow slip, under a glaze, bear profound symbolic significance within Amazigh culture. These patterns, deeply ingrained in the Kabyle tradition, include a distinctive U-shaped design at the centre of the vessel that corresponds to the letter \"ⵓ\" in the Amazigh language, pronounced \"oo\" as in \"moo\". This symbolises either the moon, representing female fertility, or a horseshoe, symbolising fidelity.
The firing process not only ensures the vessel’s durability, but also enhances the vibrant colours of the glazes, showcasing the exceptional skill and craftsmanship of Kabyle artisans. These artefacts speak to the cultural heritage and linguistic richness of the Amazigh people.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani Museum","owner":"His Excellency Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"Hegira 13th century / AD 19th century","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Height: 40cm, length: 20cm","place_of_production":"Algeria","method_for_datation":"The date and origin were established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, techniques, style and analogies.","method_for_provenance":"Provenance was established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, techniques, style and analogies.","provenance":"Algeria","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Mahmoud Saber","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["ceramic, pottery, terracotta, glaze, Algeria, Kabylie, amphora, Amazigh"],"materials":["glazed, painted","Terracotta"]},"3879f402-ef45-5009-af10-a145fd162aa2":{"name":"Bowl.","description":"A bowl on a high foot-ring, painted in lustre on a white clay slip. The interior is decorated with a bold design of a robed and hooded figure, traditionally thought to be a Coptic priest, carrying a lamp or censer. Beside him stands an object often thought to be a cypress tree, but sometimes interpreted as an *ankh* or ‘key of life’ cross, an ancient Egyptian hieroglyphic sign which the Copts adapted for Christian use. The priest’s robe, his lamp, and the tree are all decorated with thin white lines scratched through the lustre to create spirals and other motifs. On the outside of the bowl, the word ‘Sa‘d’’ is written twice in *kufic* script. Oddly, the word is written in reverse, i.e. beginning with the last letter. It is unclear whether the word is a blessing (‘good luck, good fortune’) or whether it is the name of a particular craftsman or workshop. It appears on a group of similar Fatimid ceramics over a number of decades during the reign of the Caliph al-Mustansir (AH 427–87 / AD 1035–94).","short_description":"A footed bowl painted in lustre with a picture of a robed and hooded figure holding a lamp or censer. He is a Coptic Christian priest, and his presence on such a fine object suggests the importance of this community in Fatimid Egypt.","type":"Painted glazed ceramic","holder":"Victoria and Albert Museum.","dates":"About hegira 427–87/ AD 1035–94.","location":"London, England","dimensions":"Height 9.8 cm, diameter 22.1 cm.","method_for_datation":"This bowl belongs to a group of objects which all have the word ‘Sa‘d’ painted on them. These have been assigned to the reign of the Fatimid Caliph al-Mustansir based on comparisons with other media such as textiles.","method_for_provenance":"Cairo was the Fatimid capital and thus the likeliest place that an object of such quality would have been made.","provenance":"Probably Cairo, Egypt.","obtention":"In 1910 the art collector Dikran Garabed Kelekian placed his collection of Islamic ceramics on loan to the V&A.  Fifteen of the finest pieces, including this bowl, were purchased by the Museum (with the assistance of the National Art Collections Fund) after Kelekian’s death.","bibliography":"Caiger-Smith, A., Tin-Glaze Pottery in Europe and the Islamic World, London, 1973, p.37 and plate B.  \n  \nContadini, A., Fatimid Art at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, 1998, p.86.  \n  \nJenkins, M. \"Sa‘d: Content and Context,\" Content and Context of the Visual Arts in the Islamic World (ed. P. Soucek), Pennsylvania and London, 1988, pp.67–75 and fig. 6.  \n  \nSoustiel, J., La céramique islamique, Fribourg, 1985, p.133 no. 148.  \n  \nStanley, T., with Rosser-Owen, M. and Vernoit, S., Palace and Mosque: Islamic Art from the Middle East, London, 2004, pp.118–22.","dynasty":"Fatimid","author":"Barry Wood","copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["Christian themes","figurative decoration"],"materials":["Painted glazed ceramic."]},"388b0d1b-5233-57de-a649-d3f01bcaafa3":{"name":"Lidded Jar","description":"This baluster-shaped pot is typical of imperial Mughal-style production. The decoration includes the traditional Kundan technique, where the stones are foil-backed and set into metal collets using high-carat gold foil, as opposed to being soldered. The technique dates back centuries in India but gained popularity during the Mughal period (AD 1526–1858), where today it remains the most popular method of setting stones. This lidded jar is decorated almost exclusively with green enamel in the champlevé technique, which etches the metal ground with fine lines before applying and fusing the enamel to the surface. Here, a series of fine lines can be seen through the translucent green enamel. The table-cut diamonds are arranged into six foliated panels set with floral sprays. The most unusual decorative feature is the green enamelled flower at the bottom of the base, detailed with petals ascending in size from the centre.","type":"Jewellery","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art","owner":"Qatar Museums","dates":"Hegira late 12th, 13th century / AD 18th, 19th century","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Height: 12.2cm","place_of_production":"India, probably Jaipur or Delhi","provenance":"India, probably Jaipur or Delhi","bibliography":"Christie's London, *Arts of India*, 2003.","dynasty":"Mughal period (AH 1058–1273 / AD 1648–1857)","author":"Tara Desjardins","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Copper alloy","diamonds","enamel"]},"3b8b9f68-e0cc-5ffc-84c6-1dee91c19a09":{"name":"Nejjarin Funduq.","description":"Although they were constructed almost one century apart, the *funduq* (caravanserai) and *seqqaya* (fountain) of the Place Nejjarine (Carpenters' Square) constitute a single social and civic entity.  \nUsually erected charitably and often as an annex to a mosque, this fountain is unusually connected to a hostel.  \nThe Nejjarin *funduq* occupies an almost regular rectangular space and faces northeast/southwest. It is accessed through a large opening extending onto a straight hallway. Two steps give access to the courtyard. This rectangular courtyard is surrounded on all four sides by galleries that in turn lead to bedrooms of different sizes.  \nThere are two upper floors above the ground floor. The façades of the courtyard are symmetrical.  \nThe building is noteworthy for its large portal (5 m high by 3 m wide) that dominates the square and the building. The composition of the portal is uniform and harmonious. Its decoration is based on a horseshoe arch resting on two full brick pillars set into the wall. This arch is surrounded by a second poly-lobed arch in sculpted plaster, whose spandrels are tiled with *zellij* (small tiles) bearing floral, and epigraphic decoration. Above the arch there is a band bearing an inscription and a succession of arcades in sculpted plaster or wood. The ensemble is crowned by consoles that support a large canopy in sculpted wood. They are marked by series of arches resting on pillars and wooden beams.  \nThe interior, similar to all *funduq*, was restored in 1998 and converted into a museum of woodwork.  \nThe Nejjarin fountain opposite the *funduq*, located near the centre of the square, is a rectangular pool which served as a drinking trough, in particular for the horses of the customers of the *funduq*. Its upper part and the back of the pointed horseshoe arcature that rises behind it are covered with ceramic marquetry. On either side of the arcature, two demi-columns support overhanging wooden lintels and cornices.","short_description":"Al-Nejjarin Funduq is a *caravanserai* built in the AH 12th /AD 18th century by Sultan Mulay Isma'ïl to house the large numbers of passing merchants in Fez. Built on a rectangular site, the *funduq* is noteworthy for its gateway, which dominates the square. The ground floor was used exclusively for stabling, with the guest rooms on the first floor. At the beginning of the 20th century, the *funduq* was used as a police station by the Protectorate. It was recently restored (1998) and turned into a museum of woodwork. It stands beside a beautiful 19th-century fountain.","dates":"Hegira 1123 / AD 1711.","location":"Fez.","method_for_datation":"There are no dates on the monument or the fountain, but classical texts such as Ibn Zaydan's *Ithaf* date the *funduq* to 1123.","bibliography":"Aouni, L.M., “Les monuments de Moulay Ismaïl à Fès”, Actes du colloque Moulay Ismaïl, Meknès, 1995, pp.87–109.  \n*Schéma directeur d'urbanisme de la ville de Fès*, Dossier technique no. IV, Les inventaires, Paris, 1980, p.20.  \n*Andalusian Morocco: A Discovery in Living Art*, pp.123–4.","patrons":"Mulay Isma‘ïl (AH 1083–1140 / AD 1672–1727) for the funduq, Mulay ‘Abd Al-Rahman (AH 1238–76 / AD 1822–59) for the fountain.","dynasty":"'Alawid.","author":"Mohamed Mezzine","copy_editor":"Margot Cortez","translator":"Laurence Nunny","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["ceramic","fountain","funduq","hostelry","trade","water"]},"3de78d7d-0ff4-5d07-a1ac-c4173aa7e91e":{"name":"*Peškun*","description":"Hexagonal *peškun* (Tr. *peşkun*) is made of carved walnut wood. It is divided into a bottom middle part with a hexagonal plate in the form of a shelf, making two stories for storing – an upper and a lower plate. Both plates are richly decorated with interlacing floral motifs. In the center of the upper plate, there is a motif of the six-pointed star, while beneath its edges a frieze of trefoil elements is formed. Each of the six vertical sides is divided by a plate into two zones with three openings in the shape of the oriental arch each.  \n*Peškun* is the name of a traditional piece of Ottoman furniture in the shape of a table or stool. It was originally meant for sitting, although it had different purposes throughout history, especially as a decorative table in Balkan oriental interiors of the 19th and of the first half of the 20th century. Over time, the larger table (in the set of usually three pieces,) began to be used as a coffee table, while the smaller ones were used as stools. *Peškun* were ordinarily made of walnut wood, ornamented with incrusted floral and geometric motifs made of mother of pearl and bone.","type":"Table","holder":"Museum of Applied Art","dates":"Hegira late 13th–early 14th century / AD late 19th–early 20th century","location":"Belgrade","dimensions":"Height: 44.5cm, width: 46cm","place_of_production":"Ottoman Empire","method_for_datation":"By stylistic analysis, material, technique, and analogy with other similar examples.","obtention":"Purchased in 1964/65.","author":"Ana Samardžić","keywords":["carving","Ottoman Balkans","peškun","side table","stool"],"materials":["carving, turning","Walnut"]},"3e0c77fe-e569-53cb-a6e6-0d26f3ac626b":{"name":"Coffee pot","short_description":"This copper pot has been covered in a thin layer of silver and lavishly decorated. Its swelling shape shows the influence of the European Baroque style on the Ottoman decorative arts. Most metal coffee pots were made of cheaper materials such as tinned copper. In richer homes, coffee was served to honoured guests in pots like this one, made of precious metals (or imitations of them) and decorated in the latest taste.  \nThe Ottoman Baroque style developed from the 1740s as artists and designers began to apply non-figurative European motifs to Ottoman forms. It flourished until the 1820s, when new types of European ornament were introduced.","type":"Coffee pot","holder":"Victoria and Albert Museum","dates":"early 19th century","location":"London","provenance":"Turkey","author":"Victoria and Albert Museum","keywords":["coffee","metalwork","Ottoman Baroque"]},"3e51e99d-8ff0-545e-95fc-52a15be8b042":{"name":"*A Coffee House in Tophane*","short_description":"A Thomas Allom composition which appears in the first volume of Robert Walsh’s book *Constantinople and Scenery of Seven Churches of Asia Minor* is *The Coffee-House*. This is an oil copy of the composition by Civanyan. Written by Robert Walsh, who served as the private priest of British ambassador Lord Strangford after 1820, the book was published in two volumes in London in 1838. It includes engravings and the book, which was later published in French, acted as an important visual resource on Istanbul and its engravings were used as models by numerous artists. In the corresponding text, Robert Walsh provides information on the interior organisation and decoration of the coffeehouse and relates various details ranging from making music and smoking pipes to the plays of the *meddah* (storytellers).","type":"Painting","holder":"Pera Museum","dates":"Late 19th century","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"W: 1330 + H: 960 cm.","copy_editor":"Daniel de la Vega","keywords":["Thomas Allom","Jivanian","Orientalism","painting","İstanbul"],"materials":["Oil on canvas"]},"3ed0bda5-ca9d-536f-b3ed-1c1519674199":{"name":"The rocky lotus: Sumulutun  \nFolio from the manuscript of *Khawass al-Ashjar* (The Characteristics of Trees)","short_description":"Born around 40 AD in Anazarbus in Cilicia (today’s Turkey), Dioscorides exerted a great influence on scholarship and practice from the Middle Ages until the 16th century. His treatise *De Materia Medica* was first translated into Syriac, a language generally familiar to physicians in the Abbasid empire (750–1258).\\[1\\] The earliest Arabic translation directly translated from a Greek copy\\[2\\] was made by two scholars, Istafan ibn Basil and Hunayn ibn Ishaq, in the mid 9th century in Baghdad under the reign of the Abbasid caliph al-Mutawakkil (r. 847–61).1 Ibn Ishaq was a physician, Arab scientist, and Nestorian Christian. Known as the “master of translators,” he was active in the Bayt al-Hikm (House of Wisdom) in Baghdad.  \nAccording to sources, in 948, Byzantine Emperor Romanus I offered a Greek copy of *De Materia Medica* as a gift to the Umayyad caliph of Cordoba, ‘Abd al-Rahman III (912-961). There is no evidence to suggest a full Arabic translation of this copy was ever made in Cordoba.\\[3\\] In the intervening years, both the Greek text and accompanying illustrations continued to undergo revision as new copies were made.  \nA famous Arabic copy made in the first quarter of the 13th century was widely recopied and distributed and is now dispersed throughout many private and public collections, including the Aga Khan Museum Collection. Known as the Khawass al-Ashjar, it describes the fabrication of medicines from some 500-600 plants; animals, like fish and shellfish; and minerals that serve as the basis for pharmacology in Near Eastern countries and beyond.","type":"Folio","holder":"Aga Khan Museum","dates":"13th Century","location":"Toronto, Ontario","dimensions":"29.6 x 20cm","provenance":"Iraq","obtention":"Former Prince Saddrudin Aga Khan Collection","bibliography":"Notes:  \n\\[1\\] See Saliba, George and Komaroff, Linda, “Illustrated Books May Be Hazardous to Your Health: A New Reading of the Arabic Reception and Rendition of the ‘Materia Medica’ of Dioscorides,” *Ars Orientalis*, 35 (2008): 8.  \n\\[2\\] Ibid.  \n\\[3\\] Ibid., 9.  \n  \nBloom, Jonathan, “The introduction of Paper to the Islamic Lands and the development of the illustrated Manuscripts,” *Muqarnas*, 17 (2000): 17–23. ISBN: 9789004116696.  \nD’Andiran, Gerald, *Early Medicine, from the body to the Stars*, Basel: Schwabe, 2011. ISBN: 9783796527098.  \nGraves, Margaret S. et al. (eds), *Treasures of the Aga Khan Museum: Arts of the Book & Calligraphy*, Istanbul: Sakıp Sabancı Müzesi, 2010: 200–05. ISBN: 9786054348084.  \nSaliba, George and Komaroff, Linda “Illustrated Books May Be Hazardous to Your Health: A New Reading of the Arabic Reception and Rendition of the ‘Materia Medica’ of Dioscorides,” *Ars Orientalis*, 35 (2008): 6–65.","dynasty":"Abbasid","artist_birthdate":"ca. 40","artist_deathdate":"ca. 90","keywords":["folio","plants","science","science-and-learning","work-on-paper","works-on-paper"],"materials":["Opaque watercolour, ink, and silver on paper"]},"3f16b552-d46e-5615-93a4-6d3aa09a3cdd":{"name":"Ewer.","description":"A ewer made of copper and inlaid with silver. Decorated with ornamentation and inscriptions in *naskhi* script; the text reads: 'The honourable Excellency, Tabtaq. Glory to his triumph'. Blazons decorate the surface of the ewer, bearing depictions of a goblet, thereby alluding to the position of cupbearer. Adorning the upper section of the ewer's body is a decorative band featuring a series of prominent roundels inside each of which is depicted a pair of confronting birds. The mouth is decorated with vegetal motifs and is equipped with a two-hinge cover and a strainer, which sits inside the mouth. The spout of the ewer has three decorative bands: the middle one carries propagandistic inscriptions in the *naskhi* script, while the other two are adorned with diamond-shaped units filled with vegetal motifs. The name on the ewer dates back to Amir Tabtaq, one of the elite officers of al-Malik al-Ashraf Khalil, who ruled from AH 689–93 / AD 1290–4. Tabtaq was Governor of the City of Qus in Upper Egypt during the third reign of the Sultan al-Nasir Muhammad ibn Qalawun (r. A.H. 709–41 / AD 1309–40).  \nThe crafting of ewers was an industry that flourished in Iran; it then transferred to Iraq and from there to Egypt, during the Ayyubid and Mamluk periods. The different forms of ewers and the roles that they played were manifold; they were used to pour water for bathing, for hand-washing, or for *wudu* (obligatory ablutions before prayer). However, ornamental ewers were used to decorate the palaces and houses of *amirs* and sultans.","short_description":"The importance of this ewer stems from its fine decoration. It bears the name of Amir Tabtaq, a follower of Sultan al-Nasir Muhammad, and a cup blazon, the emblem of his post as cupbearer. Ewers came to Egypt and Iraq from Persia and took many shapes. They were used in palaces and houses for bathing, hand-washing and obligatory ablutions.","type":"Ewer, copper","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art","dates":"Hegira 709–41 / AD 1309–40.","location":"Cairo","dimensions":"Height 40 cm, diameter (of base) 15 cm; diameter (of mouth) 10 cm.","method_for_datation":"The ewer is dated based on the name that it carries: Amir Tabtaq, who was one of the officers of al-Malik al-Ashraf Khalil, and the Governor of the City of Qus, during the third reign of the Sultan al-Nasir Muhammad ibn Qalawun (r. A.H. 709–41 / AD 1309–40).","method_for_provenance":"The ewer was crafted in Egypt, specifically for Amir Tabtaq, a fact verified by the inscription. Furthermore it was uncovered during an archaeological excavation in the Egyptian City of Qus. Likewise, the technique of inlay used is typical of the style that flourished in Egypt during the Mamluk period.","provenance":"Egypt.","obtention":"This piece was uncovered during the course of archaeological excavations in the City of Qus in Egypt in 1966.","bibliography":"Abd al-Razzaq, A., “Al**\\-**Runuq ala 'asr Salateen al-Mamalik \\[Blazons in the Period of the Mamluk Sultans\\], *Mijala al-Jam'iya al-Tarikhiya \\[Journal of the Historical Association\\],* 21, Cairo, 1974.  \nAtil, E., *Renaissance of Islam: Art of the Mamluks,* Washington D.C., 1987.  \n\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_, et al, *Islamic Metalwork in the Freer Gallery of Art*, Washington D.C., 1985.  \nMusilhi, S., *Adawat wawani al-Matbakh al-Ma'adaniya fi 'Asr al-Mamluki \\[Metal Implements and Tools of the Kitchen During the Mamluk Period\\],* thesis, University of Cairo, 1983.  \nStierlin, H., and Stierlin A., *Splendours of the Islamic World: Mamluk Art in Cairo (1250–1517),* London, New York, 1997.","dynasty":"Mamluk","linkcatalogs":"IAM_EG_EN_001","author":"Muhammad Abbas Muhammad Selim","copy_editor":"Majd Musa","translator":"Amal Sachedina (from the Arabic).","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["blazon","Copper","epigraphic decoration","ewer","inlay","inscription","naskhi script","Propaganda"],"materials":["Copper inlaid with silver."]},"3f5acf05-17af-5634-925f-1feecdda3b69":{"name":"Tray (*sinija*)","description":"The term *sinija* (Tr. sini) refers to a large circular brass or copper tray, that functioned as a low table on which food and beverages were served.  \nThis large, circular plate is decorated with the court life theme. In the center of the composition is a large scene depicting the ruler on the throne, surrounded by courtiers, servants, musicians, and dancers, with small tables with jugs and cups. The central scene is encircled with small medallions with seated human figures in each of them. The background is filled with floral and vegetal patterns, as in the case of the next decorative band. In that band, there are twelve roundels with alternately combined court life scenes and inscriptions – verses from Omar Khayyam's Rubaiyat and Ghazaliyat of Hafiz. Next to the raised sides and lobbed rim is the last decorative frieze, with medallions with, again, seated human figures and animals.  \nInscriptions in medallions:  \nرد هد یم لعل هلل نوگ یا ( یقاس  \n1  \nاشگب ز یولگ هشیش نوخ یا ( اس )  \n2  \nزورماک نورب ز ماج یم تسین  \n3  \nکی مرحم کاپ نوردنا یا  \n4  \nب زور هعقاو مغ اب بارش دیاب و ( تفگ  \n5  \nهک دامتعا هب سک تسین رد نینچ (ز ینم )  \n6","type":"Tableware","holder":"Museum of Applied Art","dates":"Hegira 12th century / AD 18th century","location":"Belgrade","dimensions":"Diameter: 655mm, weight: 4490g","place_of_production":"Persia","method_for_datation":"By stylistic and comparative analysis with related material.","obtention":"Purchased in 1951.","bibliography":"Karamehmedović, M. A., *Umjetnička obrada metala*, Sarajevo: Veselin Masleša, 1980: 162–164.","author":"Mila Gajić","keywords":["Copper","Persia","sinija","Tableware","Tray"],"materials":["Brass","hammering, engraving"]},"3fb68c28-e2b3-5087-9283-6b67b63e3936":{"name":"Wellhead","description":"Wellhead in the shape of an external octagonal and internal semicircular prism, made of sifted reddish clay on which various decorative motifs have been stamped and complemented with green glaze. On a circular and smooth base, a prismatic shape rises, which is reinforced by the moldings that vertically decorate each of the walls, ending at the top with lobed modillions. Two decorative motifs alternate on its eight fronts. The first consists of a decoration of quadrilobed flowers included in a rhomboidal pattern, in the manner of the sebka network, all glazed in green and bordering its contours with manganese oxide. The second has a trilobed arch, whose central lobe is a sharp pointed horseshoe arch, and which houses a decoration with a mirror pseudoepigraphic motif ending in palmettes that end in a twisted stem. It ends, under the mouth of the border, with two borders: the lower one with a stamped seven-point star decoration, on which three bands with incised zig-zag lines and a central one with knife-corded thread, and the upper one contains a inscription in florid Kufic, transcribed by Sahwki Zayed (2015) as *at-tawfiq*, \"The Providence\", repeated five times on each side of the octagon. The presence of this inscription is confirmed in numerous Almohad works, and is common in the Merinid and Mudéjar works, but not in the Nasrid works. Its upper edge, thickened on the outside and rectangular in profile, is octagonal and smooth.  \n  \nSuch wellheads can be understood within the broader development of water management systems in al-Andalus. Methods and objects were introduced and disseminated to optimise the water usage, an essential resource that significantly shaped everyday life. As part of these innovations, systems for water collection, distribution, and storage were devised. Among these, wells played a key role in accessing underground water, and wellheads such as this one were installed both in public spaces and in domestic courtyards.","type":"Wellhead","holder":"National Archaeological Museum","owner":"Spanish State","initial_owner":"Unknown / Daniel Aguilera Camacho (owner of the Córdoba house)","dates":"Hegira 6th–7th century / AD 12th–13th century","location":"Madrid","dimensions":"Height: 70cm, inside diameter: 55cm, outside diameter: 70cm","place_of_production":"Córdoba (attributed)","method_for_datation":"The techniques of stamping and the *cuerda seca* technique (original and innovative technique, created in al-Andalus at the end of the 10th century that will continue to be used in later centuries), become widespread and reach their best expression in the AH 6th - 7th / AD 12th–13th centuries. Decorative motifs such as stars are frequent in pieces from the Almohad, Mudejar and Nasrid periods, throughout the AH 6th - 8th / 12th–14th centuries.","method_for_provenance":"The stamping and the dry rope techniques (which were created in al-Andalus at the end of the 10th century and would continue to be used long afterwards) became widespread and reached their best expression in the Hegira 6th–7th / AD 12th–13th centuries. Decorative motifs such as stars are frequent in pieces from the Almohad, Mudéjar and Nasrid periods throughout the Hegira 6th–8th / AD 12th–14th centuries.","provenance":"House No. 6, Ambrosio de Morales Street, Córdoba.","obtention":"Bought from the antique dealer Apolinar Sánchez Villalba in 1943.","bibliography":"Galván, M. L., “Brocal de pozo morisco”, in *Adquisiciones del Museo Arqueológico Nacional (1940-1945)*. Madrid: Aldus, S.A. Imp., 1947: 168.  \n  \nSantos Gener, S., “Nuevos brocales de pozo hispano-mahometanos”, *Boletín de la Real Academia de Ciencias Bellas Letras y Nobles Artes de Córdoba*, Año XV: No. 49 (1944): 71-86.  \n  \nBernus-Taylor, M., “Brocal de pozo”, en Marte Bernus-Taylor (Com), *Las Andalucías. De Córdoba a Damasco.* Exposition presented in the Institut du Monde Arabe from 28 November 2000 to 15 April 2001, Paris: Ed. Hazan-IMA-Fundación El Legado Andalusí, 2000: 148.  \n  \nArias Sánchez, I., “Brocal” en Félix Jiménez Villalba (Dir.), *España, encrucijada de civilizaciones*. México. Madrid: Lundwerg Editores, 2007: 221.  \n  \nShawky Sayed, Z., *Brocales de pozo y aljibes andalusíes y mudéjares*. Doctoral thesis. Univesidad Complutense de Madrid, 2015: 135-137. \\[Date accessed: 3 January 2024 https://produccioncientifica.ucm.es/documentos/5d1df62d29995204f76639e1\\]","dynasty":"Kingdom of Castile","author":"Beatriz Campderá Gutiérrez, Al Blooshi Khuloud","copy_editor":"Judy Harter, Alvaro Miranda","translator":"Dept. of Medieval Antiquities of the MAN, Ruth Checa","keywords":["Water, dwelling, cuerda seca technique, stamped decoration"],"materials":["Clay, kaolin, metal oxide","Stamping, engraving, firing, partial dry rope"]},"40153d07-6252-5b57-89aa-964009f142c0":{"name":"Bowl with horseman.","description":"The main decoration of the bowl consists of a large figure of a horseman, whose face clearly shows some Mongol features, on a background filled with plant shoots in relief.  \nThe decoration is characterised by a particularly delicate and elegant design painted in polychrome, with each colour requiring a separate firing.  \nThis piece belongs to a type known as *mina’i*’, in Persian ‘*haftrang*’(‘seven colours’). This technique effectively uses seven colours (red, blue, green, yellow, gold, white and black) applied on top of the glaze and occasionally, as in this case, with some details worked in relief and gilded.","short_description":"This piece belongs to a type of ceramic known as *mina’i*, recognisable through the use of seven colours in its decoration. In antiquity, the main centre of production for *mina’i* ceramics was Kashan in central northern Iran.","type":"Bowl, ceramic","holder":"Museum of Civilisations | Museum of Oriental Art “Giuseppe Tucci”","dates":"Hegira 6th–7th / AD 12th–13th centuries.","location":"Rome","dimensions":"Height 9.2 cm, diameter 21.8 cm.","method_for_provenance":"*Mina’i* ceramics were mainly produced in Kashan (central northern Iran) and in all probability would have been made by the illuminators of the manuscripts produced at that time that were lost with the Mongol invasion of 1220. Consequently, they are an important historical document for the study of illuminations of that time.","provenance":"Iran.","obtention":"Purchase.","bibliography":"Allan, J.W. , “‘Abûl Qâsim’s Treatise on Ceramics”, *Iran* XI, 1973, pp.111–20.  \nFèhervari, G., *La Ceramica Islamica*, Milan, 1985.  \nFolsach, K. von, *Islamic Art: The David Collection*, Copenhagen, 1990.  \nGrube, E.J., *Cobalt and Lustre. The First Centuries of Islamic Pottery. The Nasser D. Khalili Collection of Islamic Art*, Vol. IX, London, 1994.  \nLane, A., *Early Islamic Pottery*, London, 1953.","dynasty":"Seljuq","author":"Paola Torre","copy_editor":"Pier Paolo Racioppi","translator":"Laurence Nunny","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["ceramics","figurative decoration","Minai"],"materials":["Glazed ceramic (mina'i)"]},"40301340-cb49-5d31-8fc4-0266c8f1e953":{"name":"*Medbasa* (Dibs/date-molasses Extraction Room)","description":"Many markets in the UAE had medbasas, which were special rooms that contained grooves in the floor for collecting *dibs* (date molasses). Date palm leaf bags full of dates were piled on top of each other above the grooved floor. The combined weight of the bags pressed molasses out of the dates. The molasses drained between the grooves and into a pot where it could be collected and sold. Several *medabasa* rooms still exist in Sharjah and can be visited at Al Hisn (Fort) Museum and Souq Shinasiyya.","holder":"Sharjah Hisn (Fort) Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century / AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","author":"Amanda Snyder, Mona Mukhashab","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["date","date molasses","Dates","Dibs","medbasa"]},"4045cd73-fd45-55dc-bfc3-29df4bf6d174":{"name":"Lidded bowl (*sahan*)","description":"A deep bowl on a rounded foot, with lid – *sahan* (Ar. *sân*) – was used for serving food. The bell-shaped lid is decorated with vegetal and geometric motives, with a small, circular, star-like handle on the top. The same type of leafy, vegetal pattern is engraved on the bowl.","type":"Tableware","holder":"Museum of Applied Art","dates":"Hegira 13th century / AD 19th century","location":"Belgrade","dimensions":"Height: 220mm, length: 210mm, weight: 565g","place_of_production":"Ottoman Balkans","method_for_datation":"By stylistic and comparative analysis with related material.","obtention":"Purchased in 1953.","author":"Mila Gajić","keywords":["Copper","lidded bowl","Ottoman Balkans","sahan","sân","Tableware"],"materials":["Copper","tinned, hammering, engraving, black compound"]},"40da55c5-df3f-5ef8-9186-8a1b2ad360ca":{"name":"Lidded bowl (*sahan*)","description":"The term *sahan* (Ar. *sân*) refers to a bowl or plate, usually made of copper, in which food was served. This particular nickel alloy bowl is deep and heavy, on a round foot and with a wavy rim. The lid is bell-shaped with a lifting handle on the top. All surfaces are decorated with leafy scrolls and flowers, using the cutting technique and black compound.","type":"Tableware","holder":"Museum of Applied Art","dates":"First half of the Hegira 14th century / AD 20th century","location":"Belgrade","dimensions":"Height: 185mm, length: 222mm, weight: 1665g","method_for_datation":"By stylistic and comparative analysis with related material","obtention":"Purchased in the 1950s.","author":"Mila Gajić","keywords":["lidded bowl","nickel alloy","sahan","sân","Tableware"],"materials":["casting, cutting, black compound","Nickel alloy"]},"41a3ec4b-1e2e-5b41-a889-b733678cd8fd":{"name":"Pear-shaped bottle.","description":"This piece is distinguished by its fine decoration painted in white, red and black with gold leafing on a blue background (*lajvard* in Persian, ‘lapis lazuli’) consisting of tiny stylised spiral motifs, large gold-leaf poly-lobed medallions and geometric decoration.  \nUnlike *mina’i* ceramics, the decoration on lajvardina ceramics is mostly non-figurative and is characterised by the presence of floral, calligraphy and geometric motifs. This type of ceramic was used to produce elegant long-neck vases, polygon-sided recipients, cylindrical containers and diamond- or cross-shaped tiles.","short_description":"This bottle is recognisable as an example of the type known as ‘lajvardina’ by its white, red and black paint with gold leaf on a blue base. This latter gives the style its name, as *lajvard* mean lapis lazuli in Persian.","type":"Bottle, ceramic","holder":"Museum of Civilisations | Museum of Oriental Art “Giuseppe Tucci”","dates":"Hegira 7th–8th / AD 13th–14th centuries.","location":"Rome","dimensions":"Height 35 cm.","method_for_datation":"Lajvardina work has been dated using the famous treatise of the techniques of Islamic ceramicists written by Abûl Qâsim of Kashan in 1301. By that time, the *mina’i* ceramic technique was no longer in use, with Kashan ceramicists appearing to prefer the lajvardina technique. Production of these ceramics must therefore have started before 1301, as suggested by archeological finds at Takht-i Sulayman in northwest Persia from the excavations recently carried out in the Palace of Abaka-Khan (1265–81).","provenance":"Iran.","obtention":"Purchase.","bibliography":"Allan, J.W., “ ‘Abûl Qâsim’s Treatise on Ceramics”, *Iran* XI, 1973, pp.111–20.  \nFèhervari, G., *La Ceramica Islamica*, Milan, 1985.  \nFolsach, K. von, *Islamic Art: The David Collection*, Copenhagen, 1990.  \nLane, A., *Early Islamic Pottery*, London, 1953.  \nTorre, P., *Le Mille e una Notte: Ceramiche Persiane, Turche e Ispano-Moresche*, Faenza, 1990.","dynasty":"Ilkhanid","author":"Paola Torre","copy_editor":"Pier Paolo Racioppi","translator":"Laurence Nunny","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["bottle","ceramic","floral decoration","geometric decoration","Glazed"],"materials":["Glazed ceramic (lajvardina technique)"]},"41ddc5d1-7460-5d12-80ee-4872e35c50e0":{"name":"Incense Burner","short_description":"This bird-shaped incense burner would waft fragrance throughout homes, reception areas and mosques in Iran. Often hosts would sprinkle scented water over the censers for religious or ceremonial occasions.  \n  \nThe province of Khurasan became known for intricate and distinct metalwork during the early Islamic Seljuq dynasty (12th - 13th centuries). Borrowing influences from Sassanid Persia and blending in new approaches to metalwork, the school of Khurasan produced candlesticks and incense burners in animal and bird shapes.  \n  \nWhile birds symbolize freedom, heaven and the power of soul over body in Islam, the feathered animal bestowed good fortune upon its owner in the Seljuq era. The censer displays words about nature in old *Saljuqi* calligraphy. Today the pigeon-appearing burner represents the unique class of zoomorphic metalwork with enduring influences on enchanted objects transformed into animals.","type":"Domestic tools","holder":"FBQ Museum","owner":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"13th century","location":"Shahaniya","dimensions":"Length: 24cm, Width: 17cm, Height: 21cm","place_of_production":"Iran, Khurasan","method_for_datation":"The date and origin were established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, style and calligraphy.","method_for_provenance":"The date and origin were established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, style and calligraphy.","provenance":"Iran","obtention":"Purchase","bibliography":"Aga-Oglu, M., \"An Iranian Incense Burner\", *Bulletin of the Museum of Fine Arts*, 48: 271 (1950): 8–10.  \nAllan, J. W., *Nishapur: metalwork of the early Islamic period*, New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1982.  \nCanby, C. S. (ed), *Seljuqs and their Successors: Art, Culture and History*, Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2020.  \nO'Kane, B. (ed), *Iconography of Islamic Art: Studies in Honour of Robert Hillenbrand*, Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2019.  \nShıran, H. S., Parvın, S. and Mastalızadeh, M., \"THE THEMES OF METALWORKING IN THE SALJUQID PERIOD VIS-ÀVIS KHORASAN AND MOSUL SCHOOLS\", *Art-Sanat Dergisi*, 9 (2018): 95–107.","dynasty":"Seljuq","author":"Sarah Schroeder","copy_editor":"Janice Medina","keywords":["bird","Incense burner","Iran","Khurasan","metalwork","Seljuq"],"materials":["Engraving","Iron"]},"4312ed57-80a5-53ca-a579-d77d2e79388d":{"name":"Hexagonal dinner stand.","alternate_name":"Dining pedestal.","description":"This piece assumes the shape of a hexagonal (six-sided) pedestal upon which dinner trays would be placed; it is therefore known as a dinner stand. Its top surface, which is also hexagonal in shape, has a central circular decoration comprising a radiating inscription in a plaited *kufic* script. The radiating form of the inscription increases its decorative impact as it appears to simulate the rays of the sun coming from a central medallion, in which the artist has inscribed the name of Sultan al-Nasir Hasan ibn al-Nasir Muhammad ibn Qalawun, for whom this table was probably made. Framing the surface of this piece, is an inscription in Mamluk *thuluth* script which includes the name of the sultan and a number of his titles, it reads: 'Glory to our lord the Sultan al-Malik al-Nasir al-'Alam, al-'Adil, al-Mujahid, al-Murabit, al-Muthaghir, al-Mu'ayyad, al-Mansur, the Sultan of Islam and the Muslims, the Destroyer of Apostates and Infidels, the Reviver of Justice to all, the Protector of the oppressed against the oppressors, the Protector of the Muslim community, the Protector of worldly and spiritual matters, ibn al-Sultan al-Malik al-Mansur Qalawun Al-Salihi'. And surrounding these inscriptions along the interior are a series of lobed semi-circles decorated with flying ducks that are distinguished by their vitality and movement.  \nEach of the six sides of the pedestal's surfaces is comprised of four decorated panels arranged vertically one on top of the other. In the centre of one of these panels is a small door with two arched leafs which open to reveal an internal shelf. The panels are ornamented with openwork arabesque designs, composed of intertwining vegetal leaves and stems, lotus blossoms, and epigraphic inscriptions in *thuluth* script, on a background of openwork decorative motifs. The table has six short 'supports', posts that rest on the legs. A series of inscriptions are recorded on them, which indicate the name of the craftsman and his titles the English translation of which reads: 'Made by the poor slave hopeful of his God's forgiveness, known as the son of the teacher professor Muhammad, son Sunqur al Baghdadi al-Sanqari, in the year AH 728 \\[1327\\] in the days of our lord al-Malik al-Nasir, glory to his triumph'.  \nSuch objects, although used extensively as stands for food trays, were also used to carry the Qur'an or torches at night in mosques or palaces, as well as to carry drinks, vases and incense burners. It is possible that this pedestal, which belonged to al-Nasir Muhammad, had been used to carry these types of items in his private palace or in his *madrasa* which was built on the street of the coppersmiths *(Shari' Nahhāsin)* in Cairo. This supposition is made more likely in view of the fact that the object was recovered from the Bimaristan (hospital) of al-Mansur Qalawun, which is adjacent to the Madrasa of al-Nasir Muhammad.  \nThe dinner stand is one of the most valuable acquisitions in the collections of the Museum of Islamic Art in Cairo for it demonstrates the prolific production of metalwork in the Mamluk period. The importance of this particular piece stems from its having been crafted specifically for Sultan al-Nasir Muhammad ibn Qalawun, not to mention the fact that it contains the name of the craftsman who made it along with the date of manufacture. Its exceptional quality is magnified when its splendour and size are considered.","short_description":"This type of table, made from metal or wood, was extensively produced during the Mamluk period in Cairo. It was used to hold food or items that need to be elevated from the floor. This table is made of brass inlaid with silver on which the name and titles of Sultan al-Nasir Muhammad and the maker's name were inscribed.","type":"Stand, hexagonal dinner, copper","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art","initial_owner":"Sultan al-Nasir Hasan ibn al-Nasir Muhammad ibn Qalawun who reigned three times: AH 693–4 / AD 1294–5; AH 698–708 / AD 1299–1309; AH 709–41 / AD 1309–40.","dates":"Hegira 728 / AD 1327.","location":"Cairo","dimensions":"Height 81 cm, diameter 40.5 cm.","method_for_datation":"This piece can be dated based on the inscription it carries, which includes the name of the craftsman who made it and the date it was manufactured. This is in addition to the inscriptions on the piece which specifically name Sultan al-Nasir Muhammad ibn Qalawun.","method_for_provenance":"It is highly probable that the piece was crafted in Cairo, especially in view of the fact that it is decorated with epigraphic inscriptions in Mamluk *thuluth* script, a style prevalent in Mamluk pieces attributed to Egypt. Additionally, the design technique used in its manufacture and the decoration, closely resemble those used in a number of other objects known to have been made in Egypt, including a box (for a Qur'an manuscript) made of copper and inlaid with gold and silver, currently housed in the library of al-Azhar Mosque, which bears the name of Sultan al-Nasir Muhammad ibn Qalawun and is dated 723 (1322). There is an almost identical box in the collections at the Museum of Islamic Art in Berlin, known to have been taken from a mosque in Cairo; this is inscribed with the name of the same craftsman as the pedestal under discussion here: Muhammad ibn Sunqur al-Baghdadi. There is also a silver inlaid candlestick currently in the collections of the Islamic Art Museum in Cairo (reg. no. 15080) which bears the name of Sultan al-Nasir ibn Muhammad ibn Qalawun.  \nFurthermore, in Cairo during the Mamluk period there was a *suq* dedicated to the manufacture and sale of inlaid metalwork. The author and historian al-Maqrizi refers to the market in his work *al-Khitat* (1853) as 'the *suq* of the inlay craftsmen' (Suq al-Koftiyin), which was located in a street that in present-day Cairo lies between al-Ghuriyya Street and al-Azhar Street. The market's documented presence further supports the supposition that this piece was crafted in Cairo.","provenance":"Cairo.","obtention":"This piece was transferred from the Bimaristan of Sultan al-Mansur Qalawun to the Museum of Islamic Art. It was one of the first pieces to enter the collections at the time of the inauguration of the Museum in 1903.","bibliography":"Al-Maqrizi, *Al-mawā'iz wa'l-i'tibār bi-dhikr al-khitat wa'l-āthār \\[Exhortations and Contemplation of the Recollection of Plans and Monuments\\],* 2 vols, Cairo, 1853.  \nAl-Pasha, H., et al, *Al-Qāhira,Tārikhuha, Fūnunuha, Āthāruha \\[Cairo: Its History, Arts and Monuments\\],* Cairo, 1970.  \nAllan, J., *Islamic Metalwork: The Nuhad Es-Said Collection,* London, 1982.  \nAtil, E., *Renaissance of Islam: Art of the Mamluks,* Washington D.C., 1987.  \nHamdi, A., et al, *Katalog Ma'rid al-fan al-islāmi fi misr \\[Catalogue of the Islamic Art Exhibition in Egypt\\],* Cairo, 1969.  \nStierlin, H. and Stierlin A., *Splendours of the Islamic World: Mamluk Art in Cairo (1250–1517),* London, New York, 1997.  \nWiet, G., “Les Objets en Cuivre”, in *Catalogue général du Musée arabe,* Cairo, 1932.","dynasty":"Mamluk","linkcatalogs":"IAM_EG_EN_001","author":"Salah Sayour","copy_editor":"Majd Musa","translator":"Amal Sachedina (from the Arabic).","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["copper.","decorative motif","furnishing","inlay","inscription","openwork","Thuluth","vegetal motif"],"materials":["Copper, inlaid with silver and decorated in filigree and openwork."]},"43af2c13-f67f-56c2-8949-67eff891e370":{"name":"Rosewater sprinkler","short_description":"This rosewater sprinkler belongs to a group of brassware that has sculpturally shaped motifs as its most distinctive decorative element.  \nThe most monumental pieces are a group of large candlesticks. But despite their size, they are surpassed by this masterfully executed bottle when it comes to decoration. Ten lions, and six birds were embossed in incredibly high relief and furthermore engraved and punched.","type":"Rossewater sprinkler, metalwork","holder":"The David Collection","dates":"Hegira 2nd half of the 6th century / AD 2nd half of the 12th century","location":"Copenhagen","provenance":"Eastern Iran or Afghanistan","dynasty":"Ghurid","keywords":["animal decoration","Ghurid","metalwork","Rosewater sprinker"],"materials":["Embossed, engraved, and punched brass, inlaid with copper and silver"]},"43ffaf04-43ad-5080-a54a-5966af0905ea":{"name":"Rosewater sprinkler","description":"This *mirash* vessel is designed to hold and sprinkle rosewater onto the hands of guests as a sign of hospitality. These vessels come in a variety of shapes and decorations; the people of the Green Mountain in eastern Oman have traditionally pursued this craft for thousands of years, and their goods are known today for their quality and precision in manufacturing.","type":"Metalwork, silver","holder":"The National Museum - Sultanate of Oman","dates":"Hegira 12th–13th/AD 18th–19th century","location":"Muscat, Sultanate of Oman","dimensions":"Height: 24cm, diameter: 7.5cm","provenance":"Northern Oman","dynasty":"Al-Busaid Dynasty (AH 1167–present/AD 1754–present)","author":"Noora Al Balushi","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["silver"]},"48232ccd-b83a-5ed3-a7ae-09f26487f289":{"name":"Large tray (*s’ni*).","description":"The decoration on this circular tray is arranged in concentric bands encircling a rosette with many petals. The first band is adorned with stylised leaves, followed by another band that is wider and engraved with alternating vegetal elements representing the cypress tree, as well as arabesque medallions. A signature in cursive lettering carries the name of the owner, 'sahibihi Al-Hadj Ibrahim (Zaytuna)' and, composed in Indian numerals, the date of the object's fabrication, 1156; which can be translated as: 'its owner al-Hadj Ibrahim (Zaytuna) 1156' (AD 1743). The last letter of the word *sahibihi*, which surrounds the whole of the inscription, ends in the form of a tulip, in imitation of the *tughra* (the signature of the Ottoman sultans). The third band features interweaving foliar ornaments enclosing small rosettes, and the last band features semi-circular arches adorned with flowers.  \nIn former times, the *s'ni* would be placed on a small painted wooden table as a means of serving the different daily meals. It is still used in Algeria.","short_description":"Large circular dish decorated with concentric incised circles around a central rosette with several petals. The decoration in the gaps is mainly plant-based. A signature in cursive characters states the name of the owner and the date when the piece was made.","type":"Metalwork, red copper, kitchenware","holder":"National Museum of Antiquities and Islamic Arts","initial_owner":"Al-Hadj Ibrahim (Zaytuna).","dates":"Hegira 1156 / AD 1743.","location":"Algiers","dimensions":"Width 2.7 cm, diameter 94.2 cm.","method_for_datation":"According to the date on the object.","method_for_provenance":"Algiers was the main manufacturing centre for this type of brassware.","provenance":"Algiers.","bibliography":"*Catalogue descriptif et illustré des principaux ouvrages d'or et d'argent de fabrication algérienne*, Algiers, 1900.  \nEudel, P., *Dictionnaire des bijoux de l'Afrique du Nord, Maroc, Algérie, Tripolitaine*, Paris, 1906.  \nMarçais, G., *Le musée Stéphane Gsell, musée des antiquités et d'art musulman d'Alger*, Algiers, 1950.","dynasty":"Ottoman","author":"Ali Benbella","copy_editor":"Margot Cortez","translator":"Maria Vlotides","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["brass","Copper","cypress","food","Tray","vegetal decoration"],"materials":["Hammered and incised red copper."]},"4859f5a8-7af7-59f7-8271-982ef083627b":{"name":"*Fellahs* (peasants) use a *shadouf* to draw water from the Nile from a well.","short_description":"Ernest Benecke (1817–1894), a French photographer of Anglo-German origins, was one of the first to be interested in the people rather than the monuments he saw during his travels in the Middle East. His pictures foreground daily life, as we can see from this photograph, which was taken in Egypt and shows a traditional mode of irrigation using the *shadouf*, a weighted appliance which allowed water to be poured from a well over a field.","type":"Photograph","holder":"National Library of France","dates":"1852","location":"Paris","artist_birthdate":"1817","artist_deathdate":"1894","translator":"Flaminia Baldwin","keywords":["Irrigation","Egypt"]},"48bdc968-6993-58b8-bc33-10fac1289cbd":{"name":"Showing how to roast the coffee beans","description":"After roasting and crushing the coffee beans, the equally complex cooking begins. The coarse coffee powder is boiled down in a large quantity of water.  \n“In the meantime, the three *dells* (tinned copper pots with handle and lid) are put in readiness. The first and largest of these, containing either pure water or water with old coffee grounds, is put on the fire and heated until it boils. The swirling contents are then poured into the second container, which contains the ground coffee that has just been crushed; this second container is then placed on the fire (for about ten minutes), and carefully prevented from overflowing, until no more foam rises and the grounds remain completely boiled on the bottom. In the meantime, the landlord will have fetched some beans of *hêl* (cardamom.) and given them to be pounded in a mortar. The *hêl* is then thrown into the third *delleh* and the contents of the second are poured on top. This third pot is put on the fire again for a short time, but soon is put to one side so all the sediment settles finely on the bottom.” Formerly in some regions the coffee was strained through a piece of palm cloth inserted into the pot. But usually it is enough to let the coffee grounds settle, before the *qahwaji* pours the coffee into the serving pot (*masabb, delle*), from which the small cups can be filled with the three sips. Often the *masabb* is set on the edge of the embers to keep the coffee hot.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Karin Pütt","initial_owner":"Karin Pütt","dates":"Hegira 1409 / AD 1989","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Al Yusufiyya/Syria","method_for_provenance":"Direct contact","provenance":"Al Yusufiyya/Syria","bibliography":"al-Hroub, I., Atlas of Palestine Rural Heritage, Bethlehem, 2015, 139.  \n  \nBlunt, A., “Bedoun Tribes of the Euphrates“, 1879 New York, 123.  \n  \nEuting, J., \"Tagebuch einer Reise in Inner-Arabien\" (First edition Leiden 1896), Hamburg, 1993, 84.  \n  \nKalter, J., “Die Kultur der Nomaden”, Kalter, J., Pavaloi, M., Zerrnickel, M. (eds), “Syrien – Mosaik eines Kulturaumes”, Stuttgart, 1991, 130, photo 308.","author":"Karin Pütt","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Slide"]},"49103ef0-90f2-547a-8043-173577467243":{"name":"Dates group","description":"As a sign of hospitality guests are given *fuala* (light refreshments). Coffee, dates, *betheetha* (a sweet made of dates and fired flour), *khabees* (a sweet made of saffron, ghee and fried flour), leavened bread, and *dibs* (date molasses) were served on a *saroud* (palm mat) and covered with a *mechabeh* (palm food cover) to protect the food from dirt and insects.  \nWhen guest finished eating they were offered a *ghasool* (a bowl of water) or a *maghsal al yad* (pitcher and vessel) to wash their hands. At the end of a visit, guests were perfumed with a *merash* (perfume sprinkler) filled with rose water and other fragrances. Guest were also perfumed with '*oud* incense'.","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","initial_owner":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century/AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Amanda Snyder, Mona Mukhashab","copy_editor":"Judy Harter"},"49271df4-3589-5288-9f2d-848a3ad34181":{"name":"Cup","description":"Cup decorated with a series of lozenges with floral and leaf motifs. In the center a circular medallion dispays three fish and the number 25.","type":"Cup","holder":"Benaki Museum","dates":"AH 1215-1317/19th century","location":"Athens","dimensions":"Height: 10 cm","place_of_production":"Istanbul","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Turkey","obtention":"Donation","bibliography":"Moratiou , M. (ed), *The Mando & Londos Oeconomides Collection of Coloured Glass*, Athens: Benaki Museum, 2013: cat. no. 17, p. 62.","dynasty":"Ottoman (AH 698–1340/AD 1299-1922)","author":"Mina Moraitou","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Glass, gilt decoration"]},"493fd5de-9ad8-584b-b87f-0c109a23012d":{"name":"Tile Plate","description":"The plate is coated with white clay and slip decorated with shades of grey and blue beneath a transparent colourless glaze. The plate’s scalloped, rimmed interior is adorned with a large medallion featuring flowers and leafy curling branches. The body is divided vertically into thirteen sections separated by grooves, each section decorated with a floral bouquet. The wide rim is encircled by a curving vine of alternating large and small flowers and leaves. The back of the plate is embellished with floral bouquets. The motifs are delineated in dark cobalt blue. Examples of this technique can be observed in the dull grey-blue flowers used in Chinese-influenced Iznik ceramics and pointed leaves seen on late 15th-century Ming porcelain. The production of plates in this style continued until the second half of the 16th century. In form and decoration these plates resemble Chinese porcelain of the Early Ming, Hsuan-te period (1426–1435).","type":"Utensil","holder":"Istanbul Archaeological Museums (The Tiled Kiosk)","dates":"Hegira second quarter of the 10th century / AD first quarter of the 16th century","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"Diameter: 36.6cm, height: 9.4cm","place_of_production":"İznik/Bursa","dynasty":"Ottoman (AH 698–1340 / AD 1299-1922)","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Glazed terracotta/Tile"]},"49b2df90-5908-57b9-bdfe-fdda5ade09fe":{"name":"*Mehmaas* (Coffee roasting stirrer)","description":"*Mehmaas* (Coffee roaster) used to stir roasting coffee beans.  \nCoffee is always served at the beginning of a visit and is repeatedly offered until guests politely signal that they have had enough by rocking their cup from side to side. In order to keep coffee hot and fresh for unexpected guests it goes through many stages. After roasting and grinding the coffee beans the grains are added to boiling water inside a large *dallah* (coffee pot) called a *khamra*. Next, the liquid is poured into a medium-sized coffee pot called a *aljeemah*. At this stage cardamom seeds, saffron and rose water may be added for flavour. From this jug, the coffee is poured into a serving *dallah* referred to as a *mezallah*, where the coffee is refined and filtered. The server must hold the *mezallah* with their left hand and distribute the *fanayeel* (coffee cups) using the right hand. The coffee should fill less than half of the cup.","type":"Stirrer","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century / AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Length: 490mm, diameter: 35mm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","method_for_provenance":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Amanda Snyder, Mona Mukhashab","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["coffee","coffee beans","roaster","stirrer"],"materials":["Iron"]},"4a2ff8cf-3035-5df6-b37d-f996ba871f8d":{"name":"Illustrated manuscript of Sa'di's *Bustan*","short_description":"This illustrated manuscript of Sa‘di’s *Bustan* features a spurious colophon and four paintings, presumably all by the early twentieth-century artist Turabi Bek Khurasani. Turabi Bek was active during the first decades of the twentieth century – the final years of the Qajar dynasty. As confirmed by the paintings in this *Bustan*, some of which recall those in the renowned *Haft Awrang* of Jami (Mashhad, 1556–65) in the Freer Gallery of Art, he excelled in the Safavid revival style.","type":"Islamic, Indian & Southeast Asian works of art; manuscript","holder":"Shangri La, Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Art","dates":"Hegira early 14th century / AD early 20th century (spurious colophon dated 779 AH / 1377 AD)","location":"Honolulu, Hawai'i","dimensions":"Overall: 27.9 x 17.1 cm","provenance":"Iran","dynasty":"Late Qajar or Early Pahlavi","keywords":["Bustan","Illustration","manuscript","revivalism","Sa'di","Safawid revival","Turabi Bek Khurasani"],"materials":["gilded leather binding","Ink, opaque watercolor, and gold on paper"]},"4a7d2384-96d3-5574-ba51-84cb41cd1805":{"name":"*Madkhan* (Incense burner)","description":"The burning of incense is part of the routine for welcoming a guest. A *Mmadkhan* (incense burner) is used to hold a smouldering piece of charcoal on which incense is placed. The heat causes incense to burn thus, releasing its scent. The *madkhan* is passed around from person to person to share and perfume their clothing.","type":"Incense","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century / AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Height: 125mm, width: 120mm, diameter: 117mm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","method_for_provenance":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Amanda Snyder, Mona Mukhashab","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["ceramic","Incense","Incense burner"],"materials":["Ceramic"]},"4b5af6a4-7de4-5e18-87de-8bf5e62763db":{"name":"Dish","description":"The Orientalism or Neo-Mudéjar style gave new light to old techniques such as ceramic with lustre decoration; the Manises workshops begun again to use lustre decorations and shapes from the Middle Age period.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"National Museum of Decorative Arts","dates":"1876–1925","location":"Madrid","dimensions":"4,2 x 36,8 cm","provenance":"Manises","author":"Manuel Alonso","copy_editor":"Anne Dowell","keywords":["Neo-mudejar style","Applied Arts"],"materials":["Tin-glazed earthenware; lustre decoration"]},"4b991957-3850-5dff-ab19-d438bef7536d":{"name":"Pre-Islamic ewer with female figures","short_description":"This silver-gilt ewer was made in Pre-Islamic times during the Sassanid dynasty. Four dancing female figures are depicted on the vessel’s pear-shaped body, each holding a ceremonial object. The women are framed by embossed arches and accompanied by birds. The neck of the vessel is decorated with a vine-leaf pattern.  \nThe iconography of dancing female figures is often associated with the maenads, attendants of the god Dionysus in Greek mythology. As the vessel is from the Sassanid dynasty, the link to Greek mythology is uncertain. It has been suggested that the motif of dancing figures originated in the Iranian cult of the goddess Anahita, where the ewer could have been used to serve wine during court celebrations or religious ceremonies. There is no evidence, however, to support this hypothesis.","type":"Bottle","holder":"MKG Museum for Applied Arts","dates":"AD 5th-7th century","location":"Hamburg","dimensions":"Height: 16.5cm, Diameter: 10cm, Mouth Diameter: 5cm","method_for_datation":"By comparison with similar objects e.g. the Sassanian ewer (67.10 a, b) in the collection of The Metropolitan Museum of Art.","method_for_provenance":"Purchased from Saeed Motamed.","provenance":"Iran","obtention":"Purchased in 1990.","bibliography":"Lebas, F., Lienert, U. and Rowinski, S., \"Erwerbungen für die Asien-Sammlungen in den Jahren 1988 bis 1990,” *Jahrbuch des Museums für Kunst und Gewerbe Hamburg*, 9/10 (1990-1): 253-286.  \nLuckhardt, U. and Heitmann, B., *Kunst für Hamburg von laut bis leise; 50 Jahre Stiftung für die Hamburger Kunstsammlungen*, Hamburg: Stiftung für die Hamburger Kunstsammlungen, 2006.","dynasty":"Sassanid","copy_editor":"Caitlin Link","keywords":["metalwork","Sasanid"],"materials":["embossed and chased","Silver-gilt"]},"4bc307ac-f977-5e18-aec7-21b9827679aa":{"name":"Cup with turned-out rim","description":"Several examples of this type of tumbler with a wide rim are known and variously decorated. They belong to the production of Syrian and Egyptian workshops at the time of the Ayyubid sultans (1169-1260). This one bears an incomplete circular band with the calligraphic inscription in *naskhei*: “\\[…\\] glory to the sultan our master \\[…\\]”.","type":"Glassware","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","initial_owner":"Irène Montaz","dates":"Hegira 7th century / AD 13th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 16cm, Opening diameter: 14cm","provenance":"Aleppo, Syria","obtention":"Purchased in 1993.","dynasty":"Ayyubid Dynasty (Hegira 564-658 / AD 1169-1260)","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["Blown glass"]},"4bccb3e9-a964-52ef-937f-7a6d6e11e5cf":{"name":"*Interior of a house in Boussaada*","short_description":"This painting, showing the interior of a traditional house in the Boussaada region, elicits a certain intimacy, recalling the muted atmosphere also evoked by Guillaumet's *Fileuse*. The nervous, moving brushstrokes and his use of melted or soldered lead are clear references to the style of the Dutch masters.","type":"Painting","holder":"Musée National des Beaux-Arts","dates":"c. 1920","location":"Algiers","dimensions":"52 x 67 cm","artist_birthdate":"1874","artist_birthplace":"Gand","artist_deathdate":"1955","artist_deathplace":"Boussaada","author":"Dalila Orfali","translator":"Flaminia Baldwin","keywords":["Orientalism"],"materials":["Oil on canvas"]},"4c1bace8-ab18-5e91-a949-35cf6a8187e1":{"name":"Mevlevi Dining Table (*Somat*)","description":"The term *somat* (feast table) was used to describe the table where Mevlevis ate. Spoons would be placed face down to indicate the dervishes’ gratitude and to prevent the contents from being seen. A pinch of salt was placed in front of everyone. When the food had been cooked, Kazancı Dede would bring the cauldron to the table and open its lid. After reciting a prayer, those present would invoke the name of Allah Hu.","type":"Room Restoration","holder":"Konya Mevlana Museum","location":"Konya","bibliography":"Bakırcı, Naci, *Konya Mevlana Müzesi*, Istanbul: BKG Yayinlari, 2010.","copy_editor":"Judy Harter"},"4c9c682b-e3ff-589b-807b-5e22f9819c18":{"name":"Tankard","description":"A cylindrical tankard with one handle. The body is decorated with a series of white flowers with a blue centre and green leaves on a red ground. On the top and bottom there is a band in the form of a chain. The handle is decorated in blue and white.","type":"Tankard","holder":"Benaki Museum","dates":"AH 983 / c. AD 1575","location":"Athens","dimensions":"Diameter of base: 13.8cm, height: 22.7cm","place_of_production":"Iznik","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Turkey","obtention":"Donation","bibliography":"Carswell, J., Gibson, M. (ed.), and Moraitou , M., *Iznik Ceramics at the Benaki Museum*, London: Gingko, and Athens: Benaki Museum, 2023: cat. no. 58, p. 112.","dynasty":"Ottoman (AH 698–1340 / AD 1299-1922)","author":"Mina Moraitou","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Glazed ceramic"]},"4d271fb9-86f6-54f6-8ff7-b1f5b8365eb6":{"name":"Plate","description":"White clay and slip, decorated in yellow, green, blue, red and manganese purple tones under transparent glaze. The motifs are outlined in black. On the plate’s surface a female figure is seen from the front in a garden. She is wearing a yellow robe and blue and white striped shalwar. The shalwar, a garment of traditional Turkish origin, was made from the fabric called *selimiye*, which was widely worn in the Ottoman Empire during the second half of the 18th century. Figures depicted on Kütahya ceramics sometimes are presented in a schematic manner in traditional Ottoman attire. Female figures on these plates, which were mainly produced for export in the late 18th century, were sometimes referred to as concubines. In the years following the proclamation of the Republic, these plates, colloquially referred to as *kızlı tabak*, were included in the dowries of girls who were about to be married.","type":"Ustensil","holder":"Istanbul Archaeological Museums (The Tiled Kiosk)","dates":"Hegira second half of the 12th century / AD Second half of the 18th century","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"Diameter: 15.7cm, height: 3.7cm","place_of_production":"Kütahya","dynasty":"Ottoman (AH 698–1340 / AD 1299-1922)","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Glazed terracotta"]},"4f35a232-fd44-5945-a2d3-5c34f4b1ae6a":{"name":"Incense burner","description":"Incense burners like this are usually made of clay mixed with water and kneaded until it forms a mixture that can then be shaped. The burner is then adorned with engravings, intricate drawings, and different colors. The incense burners are then fired in a kiln, after which they are ready for use. Note the handle; it makes the burner safe to carry from room to room. Incense occupies a central place in Omani life, as the passing of a fragrant burner at the end of a visit is customary in every region of the country.","type":"Ceramic, earthenware, natural dye (ochre)","holder":"The National Museum - Sultanate of Oman","dates":"Hegira early 15th/AD early 21st century","location":"Muscat, Sultanate of Oman","dimensions":"Height: 12cm, diameter (bowl): 12.3cm, diameter (base): 10cm","provenance":"Musandam Governorate","dynasty":"Al-Busaid Dynasty (AH 1167–present/AD 1754–present)","author":"Noora Al Balushi","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["Earthenware, natural dye (ochre)"]},"4ff662e6-ce17-5b02-96f0-77d7ed40404e":{"name":"*Shahnameh by Firdowsi* (Sassanid Emperor Anushirvan Feasting)","description":"The work begins with praise written in the centre of a multicoloured gilded illumination on a navy blue background on facing pages. All pages containing the eulogy and inscriptions on the pages with miniatures are illuminated in the style of Beynes Sudûr. All chapters in the *Shahnameh* begin with the illumination of the title page. The white text written above and below the miniatures and enclosed in an illuminated frame at the end of the *Shahnameh* states that the *Shahnameh*, which tells the history of Persia, was completed in seven years, that 12 of the most famous artists of the period worked on it, and that it was written by Mehmed al-Kâtib in Shiraz. The illumination of the work was by Mehmed bin Hüseyin of Shiraz in 1549. The book, one of the most distinguished works of the period, is notable for its intricate miniatures created in a superior technique characteristic of the Shah Tahmasb period. These miniatures were made by calligraphers and *musehhep* in Shiraz, for centuries a centre of the art of miniatures. Consequently, the decorative style of the Shiraz-Turkmen miniature school, evident in works created in Shiraz during the first half of the 16th century, is also noteworthy in this work. It is characterised by thin, elongated and elegant figures.","type":"Manuscript","holder":"Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts","dates":"Hegira 956 / AD 1549–1550","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"37cm x 23xm","place_of_production":"Shiraz/Iran","obtention":"Brought to the museum in 1915 from the Pertevniyal Valide Sultan Library.","dynasty":"Safavids (AH 907–1150 / AD 1501–1737)","materials":["Finished (aharli) paper, ink, gilding, leather binding"]},"50900128-bb54-580c-9129-d9d24be9c5ef":{"name":"Ten folios from the *Shahnamah* of Firdawsi made for Shah Tahmasp I","short_description":"The ten folios come the *Shahnamah* made for the Safavid ruler, Shah Tahmasp I (r. 1524–1576). One of the finest illustrated Persian manuscript ever made, it has been referred to as the ‘Houghton’ *Shahnamah* after the collector who broke it up in New York in the 1970s. It is of large format, on fine gold-sprinkled paper, and with 258 illustrations. The format is independently conceived for each painting and must have involved constant consultation between scribes, painters and marginators. Folio 516, which in the Khalili Collection, is the only folio in the manuscript to bear a date.  \nThe manuscript was given by Shah Tahmasp to the Ottoman Sultan Selim II at the time of the latter’s accession in 1566. By 1903, the manuscript was in the possession of Edmond de Rothschild. It changed hands once again in the 1960s, when its then owner, Arthur Houghton Jr, began to disperse it. Today, some 140 of its paintings are in museums and collections throughout the world. The rest of the manuscript – the binding, the text block and 118 paintings – have been in the Contemporary Art Museum in Tehran since 1994.","type":"Manuscript; miniature painting; *Shahnamah*","holder":"Khalili Family Trust – Nasser D. Khalili Collection of Islamic Art","dates":"Manuscript: 1520s – 1540s; folio 516b: dated Hejira 934 / AD 1527–8","location":"London","dimensions":"Folio: 47 x 32cm","method_for_datation":"Date and provenance are based on information within the paintings themselves, on historical records and on numerous detailed studies by a number of academics and authors.","provenance":"Iran, Tabriz","obtention":"Folio 119 only: ex-Edmond de Rothschild; Arthur Houghton Jr, Diane Woodner and Andrea Woodner; Christie’s, London, sale of 27 April 1993, lot 71.  \nRemaining 9 folios: ex-Edmond de Rothschild, Arthur Houghton Jr and Khosrovani Collections.","bibliography":"Canby, S.R., *The Shahnamah pf Shah Tahmasp. The Persian Book of Kings*, New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2014.  \nDickson, M.B., and Welch, S.C., *The Houghton Shahnameh* (2 vols), Cambridge, MA, and London: Harvard University Press, 1981.  \nFalk, T. (ed.), *The Treasures of Islam*, exhibition catalogue, Geneva: Musée Rath, 1985: 68–71, n. 42–4, 46, 49, 50, 53, 57 and 61.  \nRogers, J.M., *The Arts of Islam. Masterpieces from the Khalili Collection*, London: Thames & Hudson, 2010: n. 299–308, pp.262–69.","dynasty":"Safavid","keywords":["gold","ink","Iran","manuscript","painting","Paper","Safavid","Shahnamah","watercolour"],"materials":["Ink, gold and opaque watercolour on paper","margins heavily sprinkled with gold","text copied in a superior nasta‘liq,headings are in riqa‘"]},"525fce2f-a859-5439-8cdd-d1b640752ea5":{"name":"*Ghotar* plate","description":"In Morocco, the *ghotar* is a large dish for the presentation of food, such as *pastilla* (chicken cooked in pastry), or fruit.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","initial_owner":"Bernard Aubert","dates":"Hegira end of 12th century - beginning 13th century / AD end of 18th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 10cm, Diameter: 46.4cm, Base diameter:  24.4cm","provenance":"Fes, Morocco","obtention":"Purchased from Bernard Aubert, 1989.","bibliography":"Boukobza, A., *Poteries et céramiques marocaines*, Casablanca: Alpha, 1974: 38-39, 115-116, 143-144.  \n  \nDelpont, E., et al., *Album du musée*, Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, 2012: 372, 386-387.  \n  \nMoulierac, J., et al., *Céramiques du monde musulman: collections de l'Institut du monde arabe et de J.P. et F. Croisier* , Paris: Institut du monde arabe, Paris, 1999: 149.  \n  \nSoustiel, J., *La Céramique islamique*, Fribourg: Office du Livre, 1985.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["Clay","painted decoration on glaze"]},"53cfa936-38e2-5b23-a6c4-d57b4297fc81":{"name":"Peacock-shaped incense burner","description":"This peacock-shaped object, an incense burner (*mabkhara* or *majmar* in Arabic, *ud-suz* in Persian), is a stunning example of medieval Islamic artistry. It belongs to a common tradition of incense burners shaped like falcons, peacocks, and cockerels from Iraq and Iran, with examples dating back to the 9th century in the FBQ Museum collection. The artist ingeniously adapted anatomical elements to accommodate incense burning, concealing the incense chamber within the bird’s belly. The removable upper part facilitated the placement of coal and incense, while open metalwork allowed the release of scented smoke. The elongated tail served to disperse the fragrance. Crafted from bronze, this incense burner showcases exquisite inlay work with turquoise beads, adding to its aesthetic allure. The intricate details and figurative scenes were likely achieved through engraving and embossing.  \nDespite its ornamental appearance, the incense burner is adorned with engraved animal-like imagery, figurative scenes, and turquoise bead embellishments. These beads, characteristic of Khorasan origin, enhance its decorative appeal, adding a touch of colour and vibrancy. The handle-less design and heat-sensitive turquoise beads suggest it might have been used as a pomander in ceremonies or palaces. In this role it would have held a mixture of ambergris and spices to produce an exotic fragrance. The unprofessional welding on the movable part suggests it might have become dysfunctional and been repurposed as a purely decorative item.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani Museum","owner":"His Excellency Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"Hegira 11th century / AD 17th century","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Height: 63cm, length: 26cm, width: 32cm","place_of_production":"Iran, Khorasan province","provenance":"Iran","dynasty":"Safavid (AH 907–1150 / AD 1501–1737)","author":"Mahmoud Saber","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Metal, bronze","turquoise, inlay, engraving, embossing"]},"53e8326b-0e17-5ddf-979b-47c8bb8ffcd0":{"name":"*Marash* (Rosewater sprinkler)","description":"*Marash* (rosewater sprinkler) holds rosewater and is offered to a guest to perfume and cleanse their hands.","type":"Sprinkler","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century / AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Height: 280mm, Diameter: 70mm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","method_for_provenance":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Amanda Snyder, Mona Mukhashab","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["copper alloy","rosewater","sprinkler"],"materials":["Copper alloy"]},"548a0da4-daad-5893-abb1-4453dabee1bc":{"name":"Maulana Shams ad-Din Muhammad ‘Assar at-Tabrizi, *Mihr u Mushtari* (Romantic epic of the friendship of Prince Mihr with the youth Mushtari)","short_description":"Maulana Shams ad-Din Muhammad 'Assar at-Tabrizi (died 784 AH / 1382-83 AD) completed this romantic epic of the friendship of Prince Mihr and the youth Mushtari (*Mihr u Mushtari*) in 778 AH / 1377 AD. This manuscript was acquired for the Austrian National Library in 1677 in Constantinople by Peter Lambeck for 30 gold ducats and 15 kreuzer. It was copied in *nasta’liq* script by the scribe Hidayat-Allah in c. 977-88 AH / 1570-80 AD, possibly in Shiraz, Iran. According to the 16th-century Turkish historian Mustafa 'Ali, Hidayat-Allah came from Isfahan and was the pupil of the calligrapher Mu'izz ad-Din Muhammad Amin from Kashan. Four other manuscripts with miniatures – produced between 1564 and 1584 – are signed by him. Stylistically, the eight full-page paintings can be linked to the artistic output of the city of Shiraz, where the manuscript was likely created between 1570 and 1580. Its dating to the end of the 16th century becomes more certain through closer inspection of the compositions throughout; the stylization of landscape and architectural forms, the colour scheme, and sparse presence of the *taj-i haidari* (Safavid staff turban) that went out of fashion during this period.","type":"Manuscript","holder":"Austrian National Library (ANL)","dates":"c. 977-88 AH / 1570-80 AD","location":"Vienna","dimensions":"242 x 170 mm (165 x 97mm), ff. I, I*, 435 folios.","method_for_datation":"One colophon: scribe's name mentioned.","method_for_provenance":"On fol. 1a, there is a destroyed oriental owner's stamp. It was acquired in 1677 by Peter Lambeck in Constantinople for 30 gold ducats and 15 kreuzer. On fol. IIa: 'Ex Augustissima Bibliotheca Caesarea Vindobonensi N. 6'.","provenance":"Possibly Shiraz","obtention":"Unknown but part of the Austrian National Library in the second half of the 17th century.","bibliography":"Duda, Dorothea, *Islamische Handschriften I. Persische Handschriften, Die illuminierten Handschriften und Inkunabeln der Österreichischen Nationalbibliothek*, vol. 4, Vienna: Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, 1983: 25-28.","dynasty":"Safavid","scriber":"Shams ad-Din b. Giyath ad-Din al-Hafiz al-Kirmani","binding_desc":"The dark brown leather binding has a flap, and on its front cover displays a central field with gold arabesque decoration of florals and cloud scrolls that are pressed from two matrices, incorporating the central medallion with two pendants. Flanking the shorter edges of the central block, circles and ovals form pseudo-title cartouches with inlays of gold leather filigree on red and blue paper and green silk backgrounds. All around, the frame mouldings are stamped in two shades of gold with rowed, elongated vine medallions. The back cover and the flap are decorated in the same manner. Doublures of lighter-coloured leather are overlaid with a medallion design of gold and brown arabesque filigree fillings against a pink, red, blue paper background, and green silk inlays. Their central panels are decorated with gold cloud band and floral vine ornamentation pressed with matrices. The binding was probably made in late 16th-century Shiraz, Iran.","catalogue_holding_link":"http://data.onb.ac.at/rec/baa18848907","author":"Theresa Zischkin","copy_editor":"Sophie-Anne Mullen","keywords":["Epic","mi'raj","painting","romance","Safavid"],"materials":["Ink, opaque watercolour and gold on paper. Calligraphic nasta'liq script of 14 lines per page."]},"5501e9aa-67d7-5274-a82e-34b2b10220d6":{"name":"Huge tray for the *shaykhs’* banquets","description":"Today's visitors in the houses of tribal *shaykhs* or village notables are often shown large trays to illustrate the historical stories that are told on site. They are a symbol of hospitality and generosity. On a huge tray the meat of a complete sheep could be served. At other times the heavy giant tray, unusable in everyday life, is kept in a storage room.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Karin Pütt","initial_owner":"Karin Pütt","dates":"Hegira 1409 / AD 1989","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Al-Mansura/Syria","method_for_provenance":"Direct contact","provenance":"Al-Mansura/ Raqqa Province","bibliography":"Kalter, J., \"Die Kultur der Nomaden\", Kalter, J., Pavaloi, M., Zerrnickel, M., “Syrien – Mosaik eines Kulturaumes”, Stuttgart, 1991, photo 316 - Euting, J., \"Tagebuch einer Reise in Inner-Arabien\" (First Edition Leiden 1896), Hamburg, 1993, 177.  \n  \nLange, K., \"Heroic Faces, Disruptive Deeds. Remembering the Tribal Shaykh on the Syrian Euphates\", Dawn Chatty (ed), *Nomadic Societies in the Middle East and North Africa: Entering the 21st Century*. Leiden, 946.","author":"Karin Pütt","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Slide"]},"556ddc9e-29c0-523e-bb8e-eb53f4c45d06":{"name":"Ablutions basin.","description":"This parallelepipedic tank marked with plain striations on the inside, the short sides and the corners, was beautifully adorned on the outside, and almost all of the decoration has survived on two sides. The design on the decorated face, whose inscription has been destroyed, is divided into two styles. The first one, rising from the base, consists of a large frieze of grooved foliage, dotted with buds and rosettes and wide-veined plain palms with calyxes, and double ones with acanthus leaves and buds. The second comprises a strip in relief with two lines of grooved intersecting knotwork, one curved and the other straight, bearing fleurons and veined palms. It is framed by an edge, set back, formed by vegetal knotwork accentuated with small stylised palm leaves in the shape of six-pointed stars.  \nThe short side is occupied by two identical animal scenes, sculpted on two vertical panels separated by an empty space. On each panel, there is an eagle spreading its tail, carrying two quadrupeds on its wings and two gazelles from its claws. Two winged ibex confronting each other on either side of a fleuron finish the scene in the lower part.  \nMost of the ornamentation on the other two sides has been destroyed, leaving only the text in *kufic* characters sculpted in relief on the rim and the decoration of the framing ribbon on the large side, which consists of a frieze of aquatic birds and fish alternating on a plant background.  \nThe surviving elements of the inscription that crowned the entire rim of the tank include the last digit of the hegira date (300), and the name of the patron, 'Abd al-Malik, *hajib* (chamberlain) of Hisham II.  \nThe design and animal scenes of this beautiful example of Caliphate artwork are reminiscent of the tank at al-Mansur and would appear to be from the same Madinat al-Zahira marble workshop in Córdoba.","short_description":"This basin is the work of a marble workshop in Madinat al-Zahira, Córdoba, the princely city built by al-Mansur. It was brought to Marrakesh by 'Ali ibn Yusuf and placed in the ablutions room of the Great Mosque.","type":"Basin, marble","holder":"Dar Si Saïd Museum.","dates":"Hegira 381–98 / AD 991–1008 (when 'Abd al-Malik served as *hajib*).","location":"Marrakesh.","dimensions":"Height 70 cm, length 155 cm, width 82 cm, depth 50 cm, thickness of sides 10 cm, thickness of base 20 cm.","method_for_datation":"1\\. The inscription, partially destroyed, sculpted on the upper rim of the tank reads '(the year) three hundred, in the name of God! God's blessing. Victory and divine assistance to the Hajib \\[followed with his honours\\] Abu Marwan 'Abd al-Malik ibn Amir (…), this is part of what he commissioned (…)'.  \n2\\. We know that 'Abd al-Malik was appointed *hajib* of Hisham II between 381 and 398 / 991 and 1008) by his father al-Mansur.","method_for_provenance":"Although it was discovered in the Ibn Yusuf Madrasa in Marrakesh, which belongs to the Sa'did period (10th / 16th century), the name of the patron and the comparative study with the al-Mansur basin in the National Archaeological Museum in Madrid suggest that it was originally from Madinat al-Zahira in Córdoba.","provenance":"Córdoba.","obtention":"As state property from a historical monument.","bibliography":"Deverdun, G., *Marrakech des origines à 1912*, Rabat, 1959.  \nDeverdun, G., *Inscriptions arabes de Marrakech*, Rabat, 1956.  \nGalloti, J., “Sur une cuve de marbre datant du Khalifat de Cordoue”, *Hespéris*, III, fasc. 3, Rabat, 1923, pp.363–91.  \nLévy-Provençal, É., *Histoire de l'Espagne musulmane*, Vol. III, Paris, 1953.  \nPigeon, G., *Manuel d'art musulman*, Vol. I, Paris, 1927.","workshop":"Madinat al-Zahira workshop, Córdoba.","dynasty":"Umayyad Caliphate of Córdoba; reign of Hisham II (AH 366–99 / AD976–1009)","author":"Naima El Khatib-Boujibar","copy_editor":"Margot Cortez","translator":"Laurence Nunny","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["epigraphic decoration","figurative decoration","floral decoration","geometric decoration","religious object","vegetal decoration","water"],"materials":["Sculpted white marble."]},"559aa521-7185-5807-b191-e79fc16098c9":{"name":"Tree of Life Carpet","short_description":"Vegetal and animal motifs decorate this Iranian carpet with the central Tree of Life motif. Originating from Kerman in the Qajar dynasty, the pile is only cut once the knotting process is complete and the textile is taken off its loom.  \n  \nPeople of different faiths and geographic contexts have embraced the tree of life as a symbol of the essence and interconnectedness of all living things. As such, the motif becomes a thread binding people in their shared ideas of the evergreen tree from Bhutan to Germany, the Mayan Empire and the Iroquois People.  \n  \nQajar depictions of the tree of life stem from pre-Islamic Zoroastrianism, considered to be the ancestor of all humans, animals and plants. In Islam, the life tree is called *sidra* or *tuba* and grows in paradise. The fruits known as *haoma* (also *homa*) feed those who enter heaven after death. The carpet displays fruits including grapes, pears, figs and pomegranate. The woven peacock, phoenix and eagle are protectors of the tree according to Persian mythology.  \n  \nA poem by Sufi poet Saadi frames the carpet within its border. The poetry mirrors the garden imagery, as one of Saadi's central themes and symbols of Persian cultural continuity.","type":"Carpets and rugs","holder":"FBQ Museum","owner":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"19th century","location":"Shahaniya","dimensions":"Length: 200cm, Width: 140cm","place_of_production":"Iran, Kerman","method_for_datation":"Date and origin were derived from material, colour, pattern and knot examination.","method_for_provenance":"Date and origin were derived from material, colour, pattern and knot examination.","provenance":"Iran","obtention":"Purchase","bibliography":"Abed-doust, H. and Kazempour, Z., \"Various forms of 'life tree' on Persian carpets\" *Journal Scientific Goljaam*, 5 : 12 (2009): 123–139.  \nAckles, S. F., *Symbols and their meanings in the carpets and prayer rugs of the Turkish, Armenian and Persian traditions,* Doctoral dissertation, Colorado: Colorado State University Libraries, 1998.  \nGans-Ruedin, E., *Iranian Carpets: Art, Craft, and History,* London: Thames and Hudson, 1978.  \nFarzin, A. A. and Hashemi Zadegan, A., \"Interpretation of Garden Position in Saadi Poems\", *Journal of Art and Civilization of the Orient*, 4 : 13 (2016): 3–12.  \nLechler, G., \"The Tree of Life in Indo-European and Islamic Cultures,\" *Ars Islamica*, 4 (1937): 369–419.  \nNikandish, B., Askari, S., Chitsazian, A. \"Symbology of Bird Motifs in Persian and Indian Carpets\", *Peykareh*, 7 : 14 (2019): 33–51.  \nSharbatian, Y. and Bagheri, R., \"Anthropological Study of Kerman Carpet Symbols, Shapes, and Designs\" *American International Journal of Social Science Research*, 7 : 1 (2021): 15–29.  \nSoltis, D. E. and Soltis, P. S. \"Tree of Life in Ancient Human Culture and Art\", *The Great Tree of Life*, (2019): 1–19.","dynasty":"Qajar","author":"Sarah Schroeder","copy_editor":"Janice Medina","keywords":["Carpets","Iran","Kerman","Qajar","Rugs","tree of life"],"materials":["Senneh knot","wool"]},"564aae8a-774b-5338-a643-bbb087c1fa49":{"name":"Tray (*sinija*)","description":"A large, brass tray – *sinija* (Tr. *sini*) – of circular form, with raised sides, intended to be placed on a low wooden stand to serve as a table for food and beverages. The whole surface is decorated with intricate compositions of engraved ornaments and calligraphy. The small central medallion is filled with an ornament inspired by Rumi. Around it, there is a radial Arabic inscription with the year 1129 (Mamluk *thuluth* script) within a broader band, combined with flowers and leaves. The next frieze is filled with a complicated pattern made of interlaced palmettes and flowers.  \nInscription: ...كونوا أهل خير، تفضلوا، كلوا، واشربوا (Be good people, come \\[please\\], eat and drink...).","type":"Tableware","holder":"Museum of Applied Art","dates":"Hegira 1129 / AD 1716","location":"Belgrade","dimensions":"Diameter: 670mm, weight: 3480g","place_of_production":"Ottoman Empire, possibly Syria","method_for_datation":"By stylistic and comparative analysis with related material.","obtention":"Purchased in 1951.","bibliography":"Karamehmedović, M. A., *Umjetnička obrada metala*, Sarajevo: Veselin Masleša, 1980: 188–190.","author":"Mila Gajić","translator":"Alaa El-Din Daoud","keywords":["brass","ottoman empire","sinija","Tableware","Tray"],"materials":["Brass","hammering, engraving"]},"567ac179-c89c-5f43-a912-af9c71a221ec":{"name":"Collection of Mughal miniatures","short_description":"This album contains 70 miniature paintings realised using the courtly Mughal style, arranged on 66 folios. As the miniatures were composed by different artists they vary greatly in size and execution. It is assumed that these miniatures constituted a part of a large collection of miniatures that Maria Theresia had purchased to decorate the so-called \"Millionenzimmer\" (Millions Room), one of her private reception rooms in Schönbrunn Palace. Most likely, only part of the overall collection was used for the decoration resulting in the remaining miniatures then being gathered into two albums, Min. 44 and this one, Min 64. This thesis is supported by the contemporaneous renovations of the Millions Room, which we know for a fact that Maria Teresia undertook around the 1760's AD, and the arrival of the two albums into the collection of the Imperial Court Library in 1762 AD.  \nThe themes of the miniatures range from intricate courtly portraits and illustrations of Persian epics to classical scenes from Hindu-mythology.","type":"Album","holder":"Austrian National Library (ANL)","dates":"10th to 11th century AH / 17th to 18th cenutry AD","location":"Vienna","dimensions":"530 x 398mm, 70 miniatures on 66 folios","method_for_datation":"The date and origins of the miniatures were establish based on the artistic style of the paintings.","method_for_provenance":"There are many Dutch marginalia throughout the album, mainly providing the titles of miniatures. It is likely that the miniatures in this album came to Amsterdam through the Dutch East India Company, from where they made their way to Vienna.","provenance":"India","obtention":"A written record of the album appears in the card catalogue of the Imperial Court Library in the 19th century. Despite this, there is no information on how the miniatures and the album were obtained initially. It appears to have entered the collection at the same time as a similar album of Mughal miniatures (Min. 44), around 1762 AD.","bibliography":"Duda, Dorothea, *Islamische Handschriften I. Persische Handschriften, Die illuminierten Handschriften und Inkunabeln der Österreichischen Nationalbibliothek*, vol. 4, Vienna: Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, 1983: 256-290.  \nDuda, Dorothea, \"Islamische Buchkunst\" in O. Mazal (ed), *Kultur des Islam: Orientalische Handschriften der Österreichischen Nationalbibliothek* , Vienna: Österrichische Nationalbibliothek, 1980: 256-258.  \nIrblich, Eva, \"Das Unternehmen der Konservierung und wissenschaftlichen Bearbeitung der indischen Miniaturen des Millionenzimmers von Schloss Schönbrunn in Wien\" in W. Koschatzky (ed), *Maria Theresia und ihre Zeit*, Salzburg/Vienna: Residenzverlag, 1979: 89-92.  \nHolter, Kurt, \"Die indischen Miniaturen des Millionenzimmers im Schloss Schönbrunn\" in W. Koschatzky (ed), *Maria Theresia und ihre Zeit*, Salzburg/Vienna: Residenzverlag, 1979: 109-111.","dynasty":"Mughal","binding_desc":"The brown leather binding was done in a classical style. A golden, double-headed eagle, the coat of arms of the Austrian Empire, is embossed in the centre of both the front and back cover, whilst the spine of the album is embossed with gold ornaments. The binding was expertly crafted in Vienna around 1820 AD.","catalogue_holding_link":"http://data.onb.ac.at/rec/AC14450761","author":"Leonie Fernsebner","copy_editor":"Jonathan Turnbull","keywords":["Album","Millions Room"],"materials":["The album is made of thick, white, European paper stamped with a watermark by the Dutch paper mill C. et J. Honig."]},"56f05326-4b1d-5eff-9a58-a822374155ee":{"name":"Portrait Of Binjamin Uziyel","short_description":"In 1911, when the Ottomans had to leave Tripoli, Binjamin Uziyel, who served in the consulate there, did research on a project of setting up sugar factories in Turkey after going to Genoa. He presented it to the Istanbul Chamber of Commerce by preparing a detailed report about setting up sugar factories in Turkey and ways to use the sugar beet.","type":"Photograph","holder":"The Quincentennial Foundation Museum, Archive of Turkish Jews","dates":"19th century","location":"Istanbul","copy_editor":"Daniel de la Vega","keywords":["Jewish community in Istanbul in 19th century","trade","sugar","commodities","markets"]},"5744051d-d0c3-5168-aa40-d29af0d0c410":{"name":"Communal serving tray (*siniyyah*)","description":"This copper serving tray (*siniyyah*) was made by a family-owned copper and iron workshop located in Bahla souq, al-Dakhiliyah Governorate, and is just one example of the millennia-long tradition of artisinal metalworking in Oman. Its decoration is suitably domestic: the palm motif is a prevalent symbol of hospitality, and its ceremonial importance is manifested in particularly fine workmanship.","type":"Copper work","holder":"The National Museum - Sultanate of Oman","dates":"Hegira mid-to-late 14th/mid-to-late 20th century","location":"Muscat, Sultanate of Oman","dimensions":"Height: 5cm, diameter: 58cm","place_of_production":"Northern Oman","dynasty":"Al-Busaid Dynasty (AH 1167–present/AD 1754–present)","author":"Noora Al Balushi","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","keywords":["Copper","hospitality","Oman","Tray"],"materials":["Copper"]},"5759f401-121f-5cef-8f4b-62d3d8fa9962":{"name":"Spoon","description":"The rim of the spoon is made of coconut shell and the long, cylindrical handle is made of bone, glass and brass. The spoon has an oval rim with a slightly pointed tip. The end of the spoon's handle is carved to resemble a Mevlevi cap . The handle  is decorated with a series of small cylindrical pieces of brass and coloured glass. A round piece of coral is attached to the handle of the spoon near the rim.","holder":"Ankara Ethnography Museum","owner":"The Republic of Türkiye Ministry of Culture and Tourism","location":"Ankara","dimensions":"Length: 23.7cm","dynasty":"Ottomans (AH 698–1340 / AD 1299-1922)","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["Coconut shell, bone, glass, brass"]},"57c9e92a-cab4-5c9c-a712-2d7757fdd1cc":{"name":"Four ivory panels.","description":"The four panels made of carved and openworked pieces of ivory are outstanding examples of the repertoire of work commissioned by the court of the Fatimid period. They are among the most important works of art from this period.  \nTwo of these panels display a horizontal pattern, while the other two have been decorated linearly along the vertical axis. These latter vertical panels have been shortened slightly. Traces of red indicate that there was once a coloured frame or mount.  \nFigures, carved to stand out in high relief, are depicted undertaking a variety of activities. Spiralling grapevines form a backdrop against which people are portrayed in action. Thick grapes hang off the plants. Huntsmen with falcons, helpers carrying small hoofed game, musicians (flute, oboe, lute, plucked stringed instruments), a reveller, pouring into his goblet from a jug, workers picking grapes, and falcons on the hunt – are all depicted in a lifelike and realistic fashion. The illustrations of animal fighting show a lion hunting down a bull, a falcon hunting a deer. A prince reclines on a bolster holding a goblet in his left hand. Everyone wears robes common to that era, made of fabrics decorated with a variety of designs. Even the headdresses are illustrative of the period rather than creations of fantasy.  \nSome depictions refer to pre-Islamic art and reflect the continuing existence of older traditions. It was especially during the Fatimid period that the ban on pictures was circumvented in courtly circles and that representations of the human form were undertaken.  \nFrom stylistic and thematic similarities, a good comparison can be drawn between the works on ivory and the woodwork and ceramics created during the Fatimid period, in which the finer technique seen in the ivory engraving demonstrates greater skill.  \nWhat remains unexplained is their function. The panels could have been used to decorate or coat a wooden surface (such as a door or large trunk), or could have been used as part of a throne. The Arab historian al-Maqrîzî (AH 766–845 / AD 1364–1442) described a Fatimid throne made of ebony and ivory.","short_description":"The function of these panels with themes from princely life is not known, but the carving of hunters with hawks, musicians and revellers against a background of vine scrolls demonstrates the artistic quality of Fatimid ivory carving at its best and thus may be a ruler’s commission for a palace.","type":"Panel, ivory","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art at the Pergamon Museum","initial_owner":"Freiherr von Zu-Rhein Collection; F. v. Amerling Collection; A. Figdor Collection.","dates":"Hegira 5th–6th centuries / AD 11th–12th centuries.","location":"Berlin","dimensions":"Horizontal panels: length 36.5 cm, width 5.8 cm. Vertical panels: height 30.3 cm, width 5.8 cm. Depth of panels 1–1.5 cm.","method_for_datation":"The fact that these panels have not been attributed to a particular building, and that stylistic comparisons to other works of ivory from southern Italy have demonstrated substantial differences, indicates that they might date from the Fatimid period, as they compare stylistically to other artworks from Egypt, above all to Fatimid woodwork.","method_for_provenance":"As Fatimid woodwork from Egypt is the only art form that bears close stylistic comparison to these panels, so far it is thought that these most probably come from Egypt.","provenance":"Egypt.","obtention":"Bought from a private art gallery in 1936.","bibliography":"Ettinghausen, R. and Grabar, O., *The Art and Architecture of Islam, 650–1250*, Harmondsworth, 1987, pp.202–206.  \nHoffman, E. R., “A Fatimid Book Cover: Framing and Re-framing. Cultural Identity in the Medieval Mediterranean World”, in *L’Egypte Fatimide: Son Art et Son Histoire*, (ed. M. Barrucand), Paris, 1999, pp.403–19.  \nKühnel, E., *Die Islamischen Elfenbeinskulpturen, VIII-XIII. Jh*., Berlin, 1971, pp.68–9, no. 88, plates 97–8.  \n*Museum für Islamische Kunst*, Catalogue, Berlin, 1979, no. 21.  \n*Museum für Islamische Kunst*, Catalogue, Stuttgart; Zürich, 1980, no. 19, pp.50–1.","dynasty":"Fatimid","author":"Annette Hagedorn","translator":"Maria Vlotides, Brigitte Finkbeiner","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["engraving","Fatimid","framed/mounted","ivory"],"materials":["Ivory."]},"58571b94-fb2a-50e6-8245-cbdd1f785d50":{"name":"Floor Spread (*sofra*) with Design of Tulips and Pomegranates","short_description":"A circular floor spread (*sofra*) with design of tulips and pomegranates. Around the outer edge is a narrow border of floral motifs. Within this comes a wide ring containing large tulips and artichoke or pomegranate motifs which have tulips within them set alternately. In the center is a double circle containing floral motifs like those in the border. The textile is mounted on a red velvet background. The design features red, blue, green, white, and yellow embroidered elements on a natural plain cloth background. There are slight repairs and many stains. The textile is pieced down the middle.","type":"Textiles and Clothing","holder":"Saint Louis Art Museum","dates":"Hegira 11th century to early 12th century / AD 17th century","location":"Saint Louis","dimensions":"Diameter: 106.7cm","method_for_datation":"Scholarly review and/or comparison to similar objects from the period.","method_for_provenance":"This circular shaped *sofra* is filled with tulip motifs characteristic of Ottoman embroidery. Tulips were originally a wild flower growing in Central Asia, and by the late seventeenth century Ottoman artists had perfected representations of the tulip form.","provenance":"Istanbul, Turkey, Asia","obtention":"Gift of Mrs. Frank H. Cook, 1952","bibliography":"Denny, Walter and Krody, Sumru Belger, *The Sultan’s Garden: The Blossoming of Ottoman Art*, Washington D.C.: The Textile Museum, 2012.","dynasty":"Ottoman period, 1281–1924","keywords":["Asia","embroidery","Floor","Istanbul","linen","Ottoman","silk","Sofra","Spread","textile","Turkey"],"materials":["Linen with silk embroidery"]},"588403a2-2a6d-58c2-a765-7c8f4bdf08f0":{"name":"Lid (*sarpush*) for the plate (*dovra*)","description":"The conical food cover (*sarpush*) was placed atop a round dish (*dovra*) to keep food warm while serving. It is usually made of copper and richly engraved with zoomorphic and floral motifs and inscriptions containing mainly name of the owner and/or master, year of production, *ayahs* from the Quran, as well as wishes for the owner's well-being. Such inscriptions were normally depicted inside cartouches. In 2015, the copper craftsmanship of Azerbaijani Lahij was inscribed on the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.  \n  \nOn this item, the year Hegira 1280 (AD 1859–1860) and floral motifs are depicted. On the upper border there are two lines of Hafez and an inscription stating that the artifact's owner is Agha Bayram, son of the late Aghadadash. Additionally, another inscription reads as follows:  \n\"Remove the sarpush,  \nSo the beloved one could taste the food.  \nSarpush hugged the bowl.  \nImmediately his heart forgot grief.  \nHe calmed down as his lips touched the dish and he ate food.  \nHe was born smart.  \nMay the conversations accompany the feast.\"","type":"Tableware","holder":"Azerbaijan National Carpet Museum","dates":"Hegira 1280 / AD 1863–1864","location":"Baku","dimensions":"Height: 34cm, diametre: 24.5cm; height: 6cm, diametre: 29cm","place_of_production":"Azerbaijan","method_for_datation":"By stylistic and comparative analyses with related material","obtention":"Purchased in 1988; puchased in 1974","author":"Rustam Afandiyev","keywords":["Azerbaijan","Copper","dovra","Lidded plate","sarpush","Tableware"],"materials":["Copper","hammered, engraved."]},"58b05d1c-5f36-5062-be5d-8dc0b6573bbf":{"name":"Plate of polychrome ceramic from Fez","description":"This polychrome ceramic dish illustrates the refinement of Moroccan craftsmanship, especially that of Fez, a city famous for its pottery. In the centre, a six-pointed star outlined in yellow and blue immediately catches the eye. This motif is surrounded by rich floral and vegetal ornaments, arranged symmetrically, evoking the harmony and proliferation of nature. Stylised flowers, mainly blue and yellow, occupy spaces between the star’s branches, while green arabesques add dynamic and contrasting touches. The border of the plate is decorated with a multicoloured diamond pattern, alternating among blue, yellow and green, framed by a thin blue line. This detail gives a captivating finish to the whole, enhancing the composition’s effect.","type":"Plate","holder":"National Foundation of Museums","dates":"Hegira mid of 13th century/ beginning of the 14th century - AD End of 19th century\"","location":"Fez","dimensions":"Diameter: 30 cm, height: 10.02 cm; base: 19.8 cm","place_of_production":"Fez","provenance":"Fez","dynasty":"Alawids (since AH 1076 /  AD 1666)","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["Polychrome glazed ceramic"]},"596c14fe-038a-5166-8b18-291ff7388f1d":{"name":"Dish","description":"Large, white plate decorated with chequered pattern: squares painted either white with black dots, pale blue or green. Rim decorated with a twigs and simplified leaves. On the back side of the rim five blue spots.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"National Museum in Kraków","initial_owner":"Muzeum Techniczno-Przemysłowe w Krakowie / Industrial Museum in Kraków","dates":"11th century Hegira / 17th century AD","location":"Kraków","dimensions":"Diameter: 28.7cm, height: 6cm","method_for_datation":"Dating and origin based on similar pieces from other collections.","method_for_provenance":"Material and technique are characteristic for Turkish ceramic production in this period","provenance":"Turkey","obtention":"Purchased by the Industrial Museum in Kraków.","bibliography":"Holender A., et al., *Katalog wystawy kobierców mahometańskich, ceramiki azjatyckiej i europejskiej : urządzonej w Muzeum Narodowem w Krakowie, luty - czerwiec 1934*, Kraków: Muzeum Narodowe, 1934: p. 97, fig. 217.  \n  \nAbrahamowicz, Z., *Wojna i pokój. Skarby sztuki tureckiej ze zbiorów polskich od XV do XIX wieku*, Warsaw: Muzeum Narodowe, 2000: p. 455, fig. 74.","dynasty":"Ottomans (AH 698–1340 / AD 1299-1922)","author":"Bożena Kostuch","keywords":["chequered pattern","Islam"],"materials":["polychrome painted under transparent glaze","Stone-paste (fritware)"]},"59c2fb21-a451-5ddc-860d-380e07ae8190":{"name":"Ceramic bowl","short_description":"The bowl has a broad centre painted in underglaze blue with a round tripartite blazon showing in the middle a stemmed cup. This is the emblem of the office of the Mamluk cupbearer or *saqi*. Blazons are not often met on underglaze painted ware but are most commonly represented on metalwork and earthenware ceramics of the sgraffiato type from the end of the 13th century on.","type":"Bowl, ceramic","holder":"Benaki Museum","dates":"Hegira 7th-8th century / AD late 13th-early 14th century","location":"Athens","provenance":"Syria","dynasty":"Mamluk","keywords":["bowl","ceramic","Mamluk","Saqi"],"materials":["Frit body, underglaze painted"]},"5d530e40-18f0-5e71-b689-999b1ed68ae4":{"name":"Medical prescription.","description":"A medical prescription written on paper using a simple *naskhi* script used in daily life. This prescription is attributed to Shams al-Din ibn al-'Afif, one of the most famous physicians practising during the reign of the Mamluk sultan, al-Ashraf Barsbay (r. AH 825–41 / AD 1422–37). The historian Ibn Iyas (d. AH 930 / AD 1524) mentions that al-'Afif was the most eminent doctor in Egypt, and that he was the head of Bimaristan (hospital) of Sultan Qalawun, in Egypt. In addition he was the personal physician to Sultan al-Ashraf Barsbay, and also responsible for granting doctors authorisation to practice. It is important to note here, that the afflicted who resided in Egyptian hospitals during the Mamluk period underwent both social and medical care, for they were clothed and paid until their treatment was finished. There were *Awqaf* (Endowments) made out to these hospitals, the proceeds of which defrayed the costs incurred by these institutions.  \nThe prescription itself is describing a treatment for the celiac disease. And although there are some grammatical errors in the writing of the description it is readable as follows:  \n'*Praise be to the one God* ///  \n*A* \\[medicinal\\] *powder known as “Sufuf al-Kifaya” \\[complete in its treatment\\] from the diwan of ///*  \n*ibn al-'Afif, the head of the maristan of Egypt who said: Take /// a quarter cup of Qaraz \\[a pod-like fruit of* Acacia Nilotica*\\], the same \\[measure\\] of aniseed, the same \\[measure\\] of fennel,/// 2 ounces of Kirmani cumin, … an ounce of mahagony wood, /// an ounce of seed of clover dodder, an ounce of wormwood from al-Sham \\[Syria\\] and two ounces of almonds./// Roast the qaraz and fennel and grind and crush the remaining components. /// Put hem together and add 3 ounces of water of the sand \\[al-ramli\\] radish \\[to the mixture\\] /// and the same measure of the water of green fennel. The leaves /// of two bunches of sweet basil and the leaves of one bunch of mint, 3 ounces of the water of bearberry, /// then the leaves of a fresh chopped-up bunch of sweet myrtle /// and 3 ounces of celery water. /// Mix them together and add to the \\[medicinal\\] powder, then dry the mixture /// and continue this process until it has soaked up all the water. /// Then add a quarter of a ratl \\[a measure, 449.28 g in Egypt today\\] of white sugar /// and take it in the morning and evening. This is good /// for the celiac disease.'*  \nThe latest scientific studies in nutrition indicate that some foods might cause illnesses, which can lead to death. One of these ailments is celiac disease. Those who are afflicted with this disease are not able to absorb wheat protein as a result of a disorder in the function of the intestines. If the sufferer does eat wheat or one of its by-products he or she may develop chronic diarrhoea and weight loss, ending, finally, in death. Doctors during the Mamluk period knew about this illness, and this prescription describes a treatment which modern science arrived at only very recently. Worth contemplating is the variety of herbs and plants that appear on this prescription which have a number of positive effects in the treatment of stomach ailments.","short_description":"This medical prescription describes a cure for a stomach ailment. It is attributed to Ibn al-‘Afif, the most eminent doctor of the Mamluk period and head of the Bimaristan (hospital) of Sultan Qalawun, where patients were provided with free medicine, clothes and an allowance as well as medical care until their treatment was finished","type":"Prescription, medication, paper","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art","dates":"Hegira 9th century / AD 15th century.","location":"Cairo","dimensions":"Length 16 cm, width 10 cm.","method_for_datation":"This prescription is dated in accordance with historical sources with regard to Doctor Ibn al-‘Afif, which mentions that in addition to the above, Ibn al-‘Afif treated Sultan al-Ashraf Barsbay during the final days before his death in 841 / 1437 while he was suffering from a malady of the stomach.","method_for_provenance":"Provenance of this object was established based on the fact that the document was uncovered during the course of archaeological excavations in Fustat.","provenance":"Fustat, Egypt.","obtention":"This document was uncovered during archaeological excavations that took place in 1931 in the city of Fustat.","bibliography":"Ibn Iyas, Muhammad ibn Ahmad (d. 930 / 1524), *Bada'i al-Zuhur fi Waqa'i al-Duhur \\[The Wonders of Flowers in Events Through the Ages\\],* Cairo, 1894.  \nIbn Maymun (known as Maimonides), Musa ibn Abd Allah (1135–1204), *Sharh asma' al-'iqar \\[Explanation of the Names of Drugs\\], Cairo, 1940.*  \nMuhammad, Sobhi Eid, *“*Tathkara Tibiyya Nadira Min 'Asr Barsbay \\[A Rare Medical Prescription From The Time of Barsbay\\]” *in Majala Dirasat Athariyya \\[Journal of Archaeological Studies\\],* Vol.3, Cairo, 1988.  \nSaid, M. H., (ed., with translation), *Al-Biruni's Book on Pharmacy and Materia Medica,* 2 Vols. Karachi, 1973.  \nYusuf, M. M., \"Wa min al-Ghidha' ma Katal \\[And Some Food May Kill\\]*\",* in *Al-Ahram* Newspaper, 22 August 2003.","dynasty":"Mamluk","linkcatalogs":"IAM_EG_EN_001","author":"Salah Sayour","copy_editor":"Majd Musa","translator":"Amal Sachedina (from the Arabic).","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["Disease","ink","medicine","naskhi script","paper."],"materials":["Paper and black ink."]},"5dc7ada7-555b-5b55-b162-ac8e969fa698":{"name":"*A Place for Breakfast in the Algerian Pavillion* \\[Paris Exhibition 1878\\]","short_description":"Within the International Exhibition in Paris, 1878, commercial activities typical of the colony were performed in the park next to Trocadero Pavilion This scene shows a refreshing small space that the author used to depict the tradition of sharing a couscous with friends or work colleagues. The recreation of an – even only hypothetically - typical setting had to include also works and related activities.","type":"Photo from magazine","holder":"National Central Library","dates":"1878","location":"Rome","copyright":"Copyright image: Biblioteca Nazionale Centrale, Roma.","author":"Marina Minozzi","copy_editor":"Anne Dowell","keywords":["Exposition universelle de Paris","industrialisation","exhibition building","Moorish city","exhibitions and urban spaces","Moorish style","Islamic architecture","reinterpretation","exoticism","reproduction","model","magazine"]},"5dd25402-aa83-5544-9e46-d6ccfe8b2a79":{"name":"Small magic cup","description":"Religious formulas or numbers written on magic bowls are used to compensate for medicine’s limitations. Liquid that comes into contact with these formulas acquires their curative property. The centre is decorated with a representation of the *Ka'ba* on top and a six-pointed star on the reverse.","type":"Copperware","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","dates":"Hegira 10th-11th century / AD 16th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 4.5cm, Diameter: 20.5cm","provenance":"Near East","obtention":"Purchased at auction on advice of François de Ricqlès, 2001.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["Copper alloy with engraved decoration"]},"5e49717d-377e-51a8-a5cc-e5b4d8ad7979":{"name":"Water jar","description":"This piece belongs to a set that came from a Turkish shipwreck in the Red Sea, in the Gulf of Aqaba, near Sharm al-Sheikh, during the second quarter of the 18th century. The precise origin of these ceramics is not known, but these water jars are similar to those still used in Egypt today. After the Ottoman conquest, Sultan Selim I deported Egyptian craftsmen from various trades to Istanbul. As a result, ceramics declined irremediably, and production was limited to utilitarian objects such as this one, whose designs are incomparable to those produced from the 9th to the 15th centuries.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","initial_owner":"Jean Soustiel","dates":"Hegira 2nd to 3rd quarter of the 12th century / AD 2nd quarter of the 18th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 28.5cm, Diameter: 12.4cm","provenance":"Near East, from a marine wreck","obtention":"Purchased from the Art Musulman gallery in 1985.","bibliography":"Delpont, E., et al., *Album du musée*. Eric DELPONT (et al.), Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, 2012: 291.  \n  \nMoulierac, J., et al., *Céramique du monde musulman: collections de l'Institut du monde arabe et de J.P. et F. Croisier* , Paris: Institut du monde arabe, 1999: 39.  \n  \nRaban, A. \"The Shipwreck Off Sharm el-Sheikh\". *Archeologia*, volume 24:2 (1971): 146-155.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["Clay","smooth on surface, incised and applied decoration"]},"5e68b14d-8eb3-5454-8d3b-cd5efa2239df":{"name":"Pilgrim bottle.","description":"A free-blown, globular-shaped glass vessel with enamel decoration. One of the wider sides and the lower half of both narrower sides are flattened. The colours of the enamel are wide-ranging: red, white, blue, pale-green, yellow, pink, mauve, and greyish black. Two applied handles sit on either side of the cylindrical neck. An eleven-pointed rosette within an eight-lobed flower containing vegetal scrolls decorates the flattened side. Decorating the curved side is a four-sided lobed motif, with a geometric shape filled-in with arabesques and surrounded by scrolls, terminating in human, animal, or bird heads. On the left of the curved side is a horseman in the act of killing an animal with a spear, he has a beard and a halo around his head and wears a conical hat with ribbons. Below this figure is a medallion with a female harp player, wearing a veil and a long tunic. On the other narrow side is a horseman under a tree killing a lion with a javelin; birds are flying overhead. He has a halo and wears a long coat and boots. In the circular medallion below him is a man sitting cross-legged, with a beaker in one hand, drinking. His tunic has decorative tiraz bands on the sleeves.  \nThe two horsemen recall those found in Christian iconography, whereas the figures in the medallions are typical of figures depicted in Islamic art. The mixture of motifs suggests the patron was either a Muslim who was familiar with Christian imagery or a Christian who appreciated the work of Muslim craftsmen. The shape of this vessel recalls leather flasks or unglazed ceramic pilgrim bottles, rather than other glass and metal objects. Although made of glass, this flask may have been carried on journeys or pilgrimages in a leather container. It was certainly a luxury object, perhaps made specifically as a gift.","short_description":"This enamelled glass pilgrim bottle is an interesting example of the crossover of Christian and Islamic cultures. Two of the figures decorating the vessel derive from Christian iconography of St George and the dragon, whereas the musician and drinker are found in Islamic art.","type":"Glasswork, gilded glass","holder":"The British Museum.","dates":"Hegira third quarter 7th century / AD third quarter 13th century.","location":"London, England","dimensions":"Height 23 cm, length 23 cm, width 16.2 cm.","method_for_datation":"The decoration resembles late Ayyubid and early Mamluk compositions.","method_for_provenance":"The technique and decoration are close to other glass objects produced in the Mamluk domains of Egypt and Syria.","provenance":"Egypt or Syria.","obtention":"Bequeathed to the British Museum by Felix Slade in 1869.","bibliography":"Carboni, S., and Whitehouse, D., Glass of the Sultans, New York, 2001, p.247–9, cat. no. 123.  \nHarden, D., Painter, K., Pinder-Wilson, R., and Tait, H., Masterpieces of Glass, London, 1968, p.114–5, cat. no. 153.  \nPinder-Wilson, R., \"The Islamic Lands and China\", in Five Thousand Years of Glass (ed. H. Tait), 1991, p.134, cat. no. 170.  \nRogers, J. M., \"European Inventories as a Source for the Distribution of Mamluk Enamelled Glass\", in Gilded and Enamelled Glass from the Middle East, (ed. R. Ward), 1998, pp.69–73.","dynasty":"Mamluk","linkcatalogs":"IAM_EG_EN_001","author":"Emily Shovelton","copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["arabesque","drinker","figurative decoration","horsemanship","musician","Pilgrim flasks","pilgrimage","vegetal decoration"],"materials":["Enamelled and gilded glass."]},"5eb1c735-e657-5f39-8791-b8112b9f9ac5":{"name":"Mamluk candlestick","description":"Crafted from copper alloy, this bell-shaped candlestick is a testament to the remarkable craftsmanship of the Mamluk period. Its design features intricate cursive inscription bands interrupted by roundels adorned with whirling rosettes, each meticulously engraved with the official titles of the owner. Notably, the inscription on the cylindrical base is upside down, adding a captivating detail to its design that invites further scholarly inquiry.  \nOne of the most intriguing aspects of this candlestick is the inscription on its neck, which suggests its ownership by a Mamluk sultan. However, the illegibility of the name presents a challenge to dating the object with certainty, leaving room for scholarly debate and analysis. Nevertheless, the presence of such prestigious ownership hints at the candlestick’s significance within the context of Mamluk court culture and patronage.  \nFurther examination reveals variations in copper composition between the base and the neck, and differences in script styles in the inscriptions. These subtle variations suggest the possibility that the candlestick was repurposed from a different object; perhaps originally one part served as a tray stand or another decorative item. This adaptive reuse highlights the resourcefulness and ingenuity of Mamluk artisans, who were adept at recycling materials to create new and innovative works of art.  \nIn addition to its artistic and historical significance, this candlestick offers valuable insights into the material culture and artistic practices of the Mamluk period through meticulous analysis of its craftsmanship, inscriptions and materials, with intricate details likely achieved through engraving and embossing.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani Museum","owner":"His Excellency Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"Hegira c. 7th to 10th century / AD c. 13th to 16th century","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Height: 20cm, diameter: 5cm, base diameter: 20.5cm","place_of_production":"Egypt or Syria","method_for_datation":"The date and origin were established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, techniques, style and analogies.","method_for_provenance":"Provenance was established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, techniques, style and analogies.","provenance":"Egypt or Syria","obtention":"Purchased","dynasty":"Mamluk (AH 648–923 / AD 1250–1517)","author":"Mahmoud Saber","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["engraving, embossing","Metal, copper alloy"]},"611887bb-d44c-51a1-b6d3-d89221fb788c":{"name":"Ewer","short_description":"The late 17th century witnessed the rise of Kütahya, the Ottoman second largest ceramic centre, situated in the south-eastern outskirts of Istanbul. Europeans, impressed by richness and refinement of its exotic patterns, called Kütahya \"The Sevres of the East\".  \nThis large egg-shaped ewer with strikingly thin walls belongs to rare samples of Kütahya ware. Painted with short rapid strokes of cobalt pigment on a snow white background it represents the best achievements of the second half of the 18th century.  \nThe original style of Kütahya décor genuinely combines different artistic traditions of East and West which were brought to the Ottoman culture due to trade activities of the Armenian community, settled in the town. Some researchers also suggest that the major part of the Kütahya ceramics was produced by Armenian potters.","holder":"The Khanenko Museum","dates":"AD 18th century","location":"Kyiv","dimensions":"Height: 28.8cm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis by M. Vyazmitina (examination, 1930, date, origin), Yu. Miller (publication, 1972, date specified).","method_for_provenance":"According to the entry in the old Museum Inventory Register (1925-1946).","provenance":"Kütahya, Turkey","obtention":"Purchased by Bohdan and Varvara Khanenko. Donated by Varvara Khanenko in 1918, nationalized by Bolshevik regime in 1919.","bibliography":"Carswell, J. and Dowsett, C.J.F., *Kütahya tiles and pottery from the Armenian cathedral of St. James*, 2 vols, Jerusalem: Oxford, 1972.  \nCrowe, Yo, \"Armenians and Kutahua ceramics\" in H.C. Evans (ed), *Armenia: Art, Religion, and Trade in the Middle Ages*, New Haven: The Metropolitan Museum of Art and Yale University Press, 2018: 221-224.  \nMiller, Yu, *Art of Turkish Ceramics*, Leningrad: Aurora Publishing House, 1972.  \nRudyk, Hanna, \"Ottoman Collection in The Khanenko Museum\", *Chronicles-2000*, 1: 95 (2013): 479-495.  \nVyazmitina, M. (ed), *Mystetstvo krain islamu (Art from Islamic Countries)*, catalogue, VUAN Museum of Art, Kyiv: All-Ukrainian Academy of Sciences, 1930.","dynasty":"Ottoman","author":"Antonina Makarevych, Hanna Rudyk","copy_editor":"Janice Medina","keywords":["ceramics","ewer","Kütahya","Ottoman","stonepaste","Turkey"],"materials":["painted in cobalt blue under transparent glaze","Stonepaste"]},"611b1a5d-121e-5d2d-aabc-4a2151130229":{"name":"Aghlabid Reservoirs.","description":"These two reservoirs were built using the same method. They are constructed of rubble and surfaced with a waterproof coating. The walls are consolidated by internal and external buttresses which alternate, thus providing maximum resistance against the water pressure. These buttresses are semi-cylindrical in shaped and topped with semi-spheres, combining aesthetics with technical performance.  \nThey are composed of three main sections:  \n– The small reservoir measures 17 m in diameter and is reinforced by 17 internal and 26 external buttresses. Its holding capacity is 4,000 cubic metres. It is a filtering basin which receives the untreated water and rids it of most of the debris that it carries before decanting it into the large reservoir.  \n– The large reservoir is circular in shape, measures 128 m in diameter and is 4.8 m deep. Its holding capacity is 57,000 cubic metres. No less than 182 buttresses were needed (118 external and 64 internal) to contain the pressure and guarantee the viability of the project, which was to store enough water for the needs of daily life in the town. A squat poly-foil pillar rises up from its centre. Formerly surmounted by a dome, it was used as a leisure pavilion.  \nThe water travels from here into two parallel dispensing water-tanks set perpendicular to the reservoirs. They are covered with barrel vaults held up by arch-beams that rest on pillars. Six openings at the top of the vaults allow the water to be drawn.","short_description":"These hydraulic structures are the most famous in the Muslim world. They were among 15 pools outside the city walls that provided water to Kairouan. The imposing majesty of these installations earned Kairouan the epithet ‘city of water tanks’ in the Middle Ages. There are two semi-cylindrical pools supplied by an ingenious system for draining rainwater and the water from a nearby depression filled by tributaries of the *wadi* Merguelli.","dates":"Hegira 248 / AD 862.","location":"Kairouan","method_for_datation":"Historical sources: Ibn Khaldoun, *Histoire des Berberes*.","bibliography":"Lezine, A., *Architecture de l'Ifriqiya, recherches sur les monuments Aghlabides*, Paris, 1966.  \nMaoudoud, K., *Kairouan*, Tunis, 2000, pp.37–9.  \nSolignac,M.M., *“Les installations hydrauliques de Kairouan et des steppes tunisiennes du VIIIe au XIe siecle”*, t.X, Algiers, 1953, pp.187–92.  \n*Ifriqiya: Thirteen centuries of Art and Architecture in Tunisia*, pp.162–3.","history":"The Aghlabid reservoirs, of which only two survive, were part of a group of about 15 reservoirs, located outside the city walls, which supplied the town with water. They are considered to be among the most important hydraulic works of the Muslim world. They provoked the admiration of travellers and led to the town being given the name 'city of the cisterns'. They were filled by draining rainwater as well as water from the tributaries of the *wadi* Merguelli, which flow in the surrounding lowlands. Its waters were harnessed by small dams and a conveyance canal which transported it to the small pool. In 350 (961), the Fatimid Caliph al-Mu'izz built an aqueduct that brought water from the Shreshira springs, located 40 km to the west of Kairouan.","patrons":"Abu Ibrahim Ahmed.","dynasty":"Abbasid.","author":"Jamila Binous","keywords":["Aghlabid","aqueducts","buttresses","cisterns","filtering pools","hydraulic works","leisure pavilion","reservoirs","Umayyad"]},"61338d55-fb32-555c-a06d-c7ca35110c05":{"name":"Les foggaras","description":"An ingenious system of drawing and distributing water simultaneously in an extremely dry area, foggaras consist of a row of wells on a gentle and uninterrupted slope that allows surface water to flow to gardens.  \n  \nThe well shafts are made by drilling a tunnel at the base of a mountainous area and following an aquifer, with the goal of bringing water to the surface for irrigation of agricultural land. The tunnels are horizontal and dug with extreme precision on a regular slope to allow the water to flow steadily.  \n  \nThe tapped foggara water table is deeper than the water table under the dunes, but closer to the surface in the nearby plateau of Tadmaït (to the east), which makes it accessible by digging horizontally. The size of this network of wells is estimated at thousands of kilometres between the Gourara and the Touat; seven kilometres for just the Mghayer, the foggara of Timimoun. The punishing work of digging could not have been accomplished without the exploitation of many slaves. For this reason maintaining foggaras that collapse or become silted is problematic.  \n  \nThe term foggara refers not only to this system of pumping from the water table, but also to the pooling of water to irrigate the palm groves. The oases of Gourara and Touat have comb-like structures (*kesria*) that direct the water flowing between the “teeth” (*kiel el-Ma*). The water is distributed according to the requirements of the private gardens, and routed through channels (*seguias*) that drain into ponds (*majens*) from which farmers draw water to the extent allowed. This system, specific to Saharan regions, is evidence of its early use, and of the people’s deep desire to live in harmony by sharing with each other the meagre resources of the Sahara in a strict but fair manner.","type":"","dates":"","bibliography":"","author":"Curatorial committee (Farida Benouis, Houria Chérid, Lakhdar Drias, Amine Semar)","translator":"Judy Harter (French to English)"},"61c3680d-7e1f-5627-a43b-1ebb99008f0e":{"name":"Folio with two miniatures from Persian translation of 'The Wonders of Creation and the Oddities of Existence' by Zakaria Qazwini","short_description":"A folio from Persian translation of a popular cosmography treatise \"The Wonders of Creation and the Oddities of Existence\" by Zakaria bin Muhammad al-Qazwini. The book, written in AD 13th century, covers the fields of geography, astronomy, astrology and natural history, in a mixture of science and superstition. Both sides of the folio are embellished with miniatures featuring fruit-bearing trees.","type":"Manuscript; Miniature; Calligraphy","holder":"The Khanenko Museum","dates":"AD 16th century","location":"Kyiv","dimensions":"Length: 11.5cm, Width: 11.5cm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis by V. Krachkovskaya (publication, 1926, origin), A. Ivanov (examination, 1966, date).","method_for_provenance":"Publication of Vera Krachkovskaya (1927): the Khanenkos' collection.","provenance":"Iran","obtention":"Purchased by Bohdan and Varvara Khanenko in Paris, 1914, presumably from Fredrik Robert Martin's collection. Donated by Varvara Khanenko in 1918, nationalised by Bolshevik regime in 1919.","bibliography":"Berlekamp, Persis, *Wonder, Image, and Cosmos in Medieval Islam*, New Haven: Yale University Press, 2011.  \nBilenko, H. and Rudyck (Rudyk), H., *Oriental Collection*, guidebook, Kyiv: The Khanenko Museum, 2005.  \nKrachkovskaya, V., \"Musulmsnskoye iskusstvo v sobranii Khanenko (Muslim Art from the Khanenkos' Collection)\", in Bartold V.V. (ed), *Zapyski Kollegii Vostokovedov (Notes of the College of Orientalists)* at Asian Museum of USSR Academy of Sciences, Vol II, Leningrad: USSR Academy of Sciences, 1927.  \nNewman, Andrew (ed), *Society and Culture in the Early Modern Middle East: Studies on Iran in the Safavid Period*, Leiden: Brill, 2003.  \nVyazmitina, M. (ed), *Mystetstvo krain islamu (Art from Islamic Countries)*, catalogue, VUAN Museum of Art, Kyiv: All-Ukrainian Academy of Sciences, 1930.","dynasty":"Safavid","author":"Antonina Makarevych, Hanna Rudyk","copy_editor":"Janice Medina","keywords":["calligraphy","Iran","manuscript","miniature","Safavid"],"materials":["Paints and ink on paper"]},"63a0f023-76ca-5378-a69c-036e6ca9862e":{"name":"*Divan-ı Hafız* by Şemşeddin Muhammed Hafız Şirazi","description":"The miniature depicts a social gathering for entertainment. A servant offers a plate of pomegranates to the individual seated on the carpet in the centre, who is accompanied by a beautiful young boy clapping his hands and reciting a *ghazal* (love poem) to the accompaniment of musicians.","type":"Book","holder":"Konya Mevlana Museum","dates":"AH 958/AD 1560","location":"Konya","dynasty":"Ottoman (AH 698–1340/AD 1299-1922)","copy_editor":"Judy Harter"},"643b2b9c-20f5-5b36-9e17-3be5e6f47f5b":{"name":"Khassaki Sultan Complex","description":"","type":"","dates":"","bibliography":""},"65786a69-ccf0-52e9-acec-40d5ded53000":{"name":"Covered al-Buzuriyya Market","description":"Before the celebrations of Mawlid al-Nabawi (Feast of the Birth of the Prophet), shops in the historic Buzuriyya market in Damascus are filled with many types of sweets and chocolates. The most important sweet for Aid al-Mawlid is the *Mulabbas*, which consists of roasted almonds coated with a thin layer of sugar mixed with rose water. The shopkeepers arrange the various sweets inside the shops, while they place large bags of *Mulabbas* at the entrance to attract customers. The mosques organise the Mawlid celebrations, which take place between the Maghrib and Isha prayers in the evening, and a number of women like to host a Mawlid party in their homes. During the celebration of Mawlid, *Mulabbas* are distributed to all celebrants. Damascenes believe it is important to cook white food or serve white sweets on religious occasions, in order to greet the coming days with optimism symbolised by the colour white.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Karin Pütt","initial_owner":"Karin Pütt","dates":"Hegira 1408 / AD 1988","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Damascus/Syria","method_for_provenance":"Direct contact","provenance":"Damascus/Syria","bibliography":"al-Maliki, M. A., “On Celebrating the Birth of the Prophet”, Imam Ghazali Institute, 2016.  \n  \nRabbat, N., “Ideal-type and Urban History: The Development of the Suq in Damascus” in Gharipour, Mohammad, ed. *The Bazaar in the Islamic City: Design, Culture, and History*. American University in Cairo Press, 2012.  \n  \nZarcone, T., Mevlid Kandili. “La fête de la naissance du Prophète en Turquie”, Nathalie CLAYER et Erdal KAYNAR, “Penser, agir et vivre dans l'Empire ottoman et en Turquie”, Paris, Louvain, Walpole, MA, 2013: 308-320.","author":"Hiba Bizreh","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Colour photography"]},"65a53b99-07d5-5553-b2ed-33b6de70f6c6":{"name":"Covered Vessel with Relief Design of Arabic Inscription in *Kufic* Script","short_description":"A circular steatite vessel with a thin, flat lid with a vertical, eared wing handle that has a mushroom-shaped cut-out in the center. Around the exterior of the lid is a band of cross-hatching, and another band of the same width crossing the diameter of the lid. This band is also cross-hatched on one half, up to where it intersects with the handle, then becomes \"transparent,\" filled only with the raised relief inscription beneath that covers the remaining surface of the lid.  \nThe vessel has straight sides with an upper and lower border of cross-hatching, enclosing a relief band of inscription. The stone is carved to form an Arabic inscription in relief, in an angular script style known as *Kufic*. The tops of the taller letters end in leaves and flowers, a popular calligraphic device in the 10th century. On opposing sides of the vessel are bar-like handles with deep gouges on their outer edges. The area where each handle attaches to the vessel is bordered by cross-hatching.","type":"Stone and Mineral","holder":"Saint Louis Art Museum","dates":"Hegira Late 2nd to late 4th / AD 10th century","location":"Saint Louis","dimensions":"Height with cover: 14.9cm; Diameter of cover: 21.9cm; Height of vessel without cover: 10.2cm; Diameter of mouth: 22.2cm; Width across handles: 24.8cm; Diameter of base: 22.2cm","method_for_datation":"The stone is carved to form an Arabic inscription in relief, in an angular style known as *kufic*. The tops of the taller letters end in leaves and flowers, a popular calligraphic device in the 10th century.","method_for_provenance":"Steatite vessels such as this one were used for cooking in the 9th–10th centuries in the northeastern Iranian city of Nishapur. Many small steatite objects have been excavated, but this is the largest complete vessel known.","provenance":"Nishapur, Khorasan, Iran, Asia","obtention":"Museum Purchase, 1949","dynasty":"Seljuq","keywords":["Asia","bowl","Covered","Iran","Khorasan","Mineral","Nishapur","Persian","steatite","stone"],"materials":["Steatite"]},"6683cc1c-52e6-5a4a-a227-4855d653487b":{"name":"Rosewater bottle.","description":"The rosewater bottle has a pear-shaped body and a short round base. The tall, slender neck is shaped like a cypress tree and is fitted to the body with a knob, which has vegetal decoration and turns on a shaft.  \n  \nPieces of polished turquoise are attached to the body, a technique called *firuzekari*. An openwork design with alternating bunches of tulips, roses and carnations, and cypress trees, has been created by carving out the metal background. There are *firuzekari* cypress trees on the sprinkler as well as palmettes in the same technique on the base. The entire surface is decorated with rubies and emeralds fitted into sockets. *Firuzekari* and gold were used decoratively on Qur'an covers in particular, during the last quarter of the AH 10th century / AD 16th century.  \n  \nTurquoise, a greenish-blue gemstone, is considered in Turkish popular culture to this day to be a talisman against the evil eye and is thought to prevent bad luck and accidents.  \n  \nIn the Ottoman period such rosewater bottles, exquisitely crafted and decorated with precious stones, were used mostly by palace officials. Rosewater bottles were made of gold, silver, porcelain and glass; they had long necks, narrow mouths and large bodies. They were used for pouring or sprinkling rosewater over the hands of guests, including at religious gatherings such as *mevlid* (the celebration of the birthday of the Prophet). Normally a rosewater bottle would also have a tray and be used together with an incense-burner during such ceremonies.","short_description":"Rosewater was sprinkled on guests' hands during religious ceremonies and private meetings. Gold rosewater bottles were especially used by courtiers. According to Islamic tradition, rosewater carries the fragrance of 'rose', the symbol of Prophet Muhammad and its use adds to the meaning of the worship.","type":"Gold, silver, metal","holder":"Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts.","dates":"Hegira last quarter of the 10th century / AD 16th century.","location":"Sultanahmet, Istanbul.","dimensions":"Height 32 cm.","method_for_datation":"Naturalistic motifs of tulips, roses, hyacinths, cypresses and pomegranates started to infuse the Ottoman decorative repertory in about the middle of the 10th / 16th century. As such motifs are found on our example as well as on similar works of art at the Topkapı Palace Treasury, this rosewater bottle is dated to the last quarter of the 10th / 16th century.","method_for_provenance":"The high-quality workmanship, as well as the existence of similar objects at the Topkapı Palace, suggests that this bottle was made in the Topkapı Palace workshops in Istanbul.","provenance":"Istanbul, Turkey.","obtention":"It was brought to the museum on 10 January 1919 from the Tomb of Eyüp Sultan (Ayyub al-Ansar).","bibliography":"*Anadolu Medeniyetleri III, Selçuklu–Osmanlı* (*Anatolian Civilizations III, Seljuqs–Ottomans*), Istanbul, 1983, p.181.","dynasty":"Ottoman","linkcatalogs":"IAM_TR_EN_001","author":"Alev Özay","translator":"Barry Wood, İnci Türkoğlu","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["Firuzekari technique","hyacinths","rosewater bottle"],"materials":["Gold, silver, various metals, porcelain and glass. Decorated with turquoise-work (firuzekari) and openwork."]},"66adc4ae-b72a-5645-9464-e6b42ed42fe6":{"name":"Plate","description":"Red clay with cream slip, decorated with purple-brown and mustard tones under a transparent colourless glaze. A traditional latticed decoration encircles the rim of the plate. The interior surface displays a particularly intriguing example of early Çanakkale ceramics. The centrepiece is a tow boat with waving pennant and regimental banners. In the 16th–18th centuries, depictions of the Ottoman navy can be found in various examples of ceramics, miniatures and wall paintings. These decorations are likely related to the city's seafront location and to Ottoman ships, of which the city's inhabitants were very proud. The unadorned lines of the oared and unmanned boats impart a naive quality to these plates, reflecting the diverse and creative enthusiasms of folk art.","type":"Utensil","holder":"Istanbul Archaeological Museums (The Tiled Kiosk)","dates":"Hegira late 12th century / AD late 18th century","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"Diameter: 29cm, height: 7.5cm","place_of_production":"Çanakkale","dynasty":"Ottoman (AH 698–1340 / AD 1299-1922)","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Glazed terracotta"]},"66ef3821-0608-5a20-9446-662a31c4e610":{"name":"*Divan-ı* Ali Şir Nevai (Social Gathering for Entertainment)","description":"This copy of Ali Şîr Nevâî's *Divan*, a collection of poems written under his pseudonym, Fânî, is dated Hegira 943 / AD 1536–1537, and is signed by Mir Ali al-Bukhârî. It is written in Chagatai Turkish in *Nastaliq* calligraphy in two columns on papers of various colours with different patterns and *zerefşan* (gold leaf).  \nOn page 1a is a text written in a circular medallion with superscript text. This states that the work was prepared for Abdülazîz Khan, b. Ubeydullah Khan, one of the rulers of the Shaybânî Dynasty, an Islamic dynasty that ruled in Mâverâünnehir, Khârezm and Khorasan. At the top of the same page is the seal of Sultan Mahmud I's foundation, and below it is the seal of Derviş Mustafa Efendi, inspector of Evkaf. On the following facing pages is a scene of entertainment in the countryside. The title page is decorated with floral and geometric motifs. There are a total of eight miniatures in the work.  \nThe binding comprises two covers, the outer of which is leather over cardboard. It is decorated with Chinese clouds and various floral motifs on a gilt ground. The inner cover is made of brown leather, and the backgrounds of borders, corners, and edges of panels are navy blue. These sections with navy blue grounds are decorated with floral motifs obtained by the *kat’ı* (paper cutting) technique.","type":"Manuscript","holder":"Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts","dates":"AH 943/AD 1536–1537","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"30cm x 17cm","obtention":"The item was brought to the Museum from the Mahmud I Library on 13 April 1914.","dynasty":"Shaybanids","materials":["Finished (aharli) paper, ink, gilding, leather binding"]},"670eba93-83b0-54bf-987d-360af123a3ea":{"name":"Coffee cups","description":"Coffee in Oman is traditionally served in small cups without any added sugar or milk. The host holds the cup between the fingers of their right hand and pours in coffee from a *dallah* held in their left. Coffee is typically served first to the most honored guests.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"The National Museum - Sultanate of Oman","dates":"Hegira 14th / AD 20th century","location":"Muscat, Sultanate of Oman","dimensions":"Height: 4.8cm, diameter: 6.3cm","provenance":"Northern Oman","dynasty":"Al-Busaid Dynasty (AH 1167–present/AD 1754–present)","author":"Noora Al Balushi","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Clay"]},"67ae5352-aaad-57a1-9050-4df90cfc07e6":{"name":"*Suz u gudaz* (‘Burning and Melting’)","short_description":"*Suz u gudaz* (‘Burning and Melting’) is a romance, an allegorical poem that tells of the soul’s yearning for God through the story of a Hindu woman who, following the custom known as *sati*, ended her life on her husband’s funeral pyre. The poet Muhammad Riza, known as Naw‘i (d.1619), was born in Khabushan in north-eastern Iran, but later travelled to India where he composed the poem for Prince Daniyal, son of the Mughal emperor Akbar (r. 1556–1605). The three paintings shown here depict the worship of fire, the young man telling his father of his beloved, and the two lovers seated in a garden with an attendant standing nearby.","type":"Manuscript","holder":"The Chester Beatty Library","dates":"Hegira mid 11th century / AD mid 17th century","location":"Dublin","dimensions":"24.6 x 14.5 cm","provenance":"Iran","dynasty":"Safavid","catalogue_holding_link":"https://viewer.cbl.ie/viewer/image/Per_268/1/LOG_0000/","keywords":["calligraphy","illumination","Illustration","miniature painting","script"],"materials":["Coloured pigments and gold on paper"]},"68325b3d-407d-58cd-871d-f55852f7184e":{"name":"Albarello","description":"An albarello (plural: albarelli) is typically an earthenware jar originally designed for medicinal purposes and used to hold apothecaries' ointments and dry drugs. The origins of this type of pharmacy jar trace back to the Islamic world. Its craftsmanship and design influence spread to Europe through Muslim-European interaction. This particular albarello exemplifies 14th-century AD Valencian ware by Muslim potters. It has a cylindrical body, tall neck, and slanting shoulder on a short foot. It is decorated in blue and lustre glazes, with seven horizontal geometric bands that include many abstract motifs favoured for pharmacy jars, including two bands bearing *al-afiya*, a stylised inscription of the Arabic word for health and happiness. While the albarello was originally used for medicines, glazed jars like this one were used for storing and transporting items like wine, water, butter, honey and olives.","type":"Pottery","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art","owner":"Qatar Museums","dates":"Hegira second half of 8th century /AD second half of 14th century","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Height: 36cm","place_of_production":"Spain, Valenciana, Manises","provenance":"Spain, Valenciana, Manises","dynasty":"Late Middle Ages","author":"Teslim Sanni","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Tin-glazed earthenware with lustre and cobalt blue decoration"]},"69a91c1d-a3b0-5106-9135-ad44679f9576":{"name":"Nilüfer Hatun Imaret.","alternate_name":"Iznik Museum.","description":"The monument was built in the style of a mosque with *tabhane* (guest-rooms) (also known as mosques with *zawiya*, or multifunctional mosques), many of which were built in Anatolia in the AH 8th–9th / AD 14th–15th centuries. It consists of a rectangular area with two rooms (the prayer hall and the central courtyard) flanked by a room on the north and south sides; there is also a portico for latecomers extending along the eastern side. The eastern façade is 40.50 m wide; the portico for latecomers 25.35 m wide. Inclusive of the portico for latecomers the building is 33.60 m in length.  \nThe portico for latecomers has five bays supported with four piers. Four columns join two pointed arches on each of the sides, and five pointed arches on the front. Contrary to custom, the portico for latecomers does not extend the length of the entrance façade. It has a dome over its central bay and vaults over the others. In the centre of the west wall is an entranceway to the central hall; above which is the building's foundation inscription on marble.  \nThe central hall is square and covered by a dome with a round lantern. The prayer hall to its west is divided in two by an arch. The eastern half has an eight-section dome, while the dome in the western half has been placed between cross- and star-vaults. The *mihrab* niche is in the south wall. The rectangular rooms to the north and south of the central hall have been transformed into squares using flat-top (Bursa-type) arches, and they are each covered with a dome supported on a transition zone of broken triangles. The east wall of each room has a hearth-niche.  \nThe building is covered with red roof tiles. Its walls are made of single rows of cut stone alternating with triple rows of brick. The upper parts of the walls feature four rows of brick dog-tooth eaves, while the domes have two rows of dog-tooth eaves.  \nIn the portico for latecomers the capitals of the columns are of marble, so also are the frame and lintel of the entrance door, the tympanum and the side piers. The walls have some decorative brick- and stonework. The piers with torus-mouldings on the entrance axis are noteworthy for their different decoration. Decorative plasterwork with friezes of palmette motifs in relief, embellish the dome in the centre of the portico for latecomers and the upper part of the walls of the entrance area.  \nSeveral functions have been proposed for the Nilüfer Hatun Imaret. Some researchers claim that the building was a soup-kitchen, since the name *imaret* means an institution for distributing food to the poor. Others hold that the term *imaret* did not come to have this meaning until later and that, initially, the term was used for any building used for charitable deeds, and that in the AH 8th–9th / AD 14th–15th centuries buildings like this, of which many examples called *imaret* exist in Anatolia, were constructed to shelter itinerant dervishes.  \nThe building was badly damaged during the Turkish War of Independence (1919–1922) and was later used as a storage depot. After 1955 it was restored and opened as a museum. The museum displays ceramic finds from the excavations in Iznik as well as various antique and ethnographic objects recovered in archaeological excavations in and around Iznik.","short_description":"Built of bricks, stones and marble this relatively plain monument is noteworthy for the variety of its superstructure, especially inside. It was built by Sultan Murad I in the name of his mother after her death. Daughter of the Byzantine *tekfur* of Harmankaya, Holofira married Orhan Gazi and converted to Islam, taking the name Nilüfer Hatun. She was renowned for her charitable work. The structure was built in the style of a mosque with *tabhane* (guesthouse), which housed the missionary dervishes who played a great role in the Islamisation of Anatolia during the AH 8th-9th / AD 14th-15th centuries.","dates":"Hegira 790 / AD 1388.","location":"İznik, Bursa","method_for_datation":"There is an inscription of three lines carved on a marble plaque above the entrance portal. The monument was built for Nilüfer Hatun, mother of Sultan Murad I and was completed on 30 Rabi' al-Awwal 789 / 8 April 1388.","bibliography":"Aslanapa, O., *Osmanlı Devri Mimarisi \\[Architecture of the Ottoman Period\\]*, Istanbul, 1986.  \nAyverdi, E. H., *İstanbul Mi'mâri çağının Menşei. Osmanlı Mi'mârisinin ilk Devri 630–805 (1230–1402) \\[The Origins of Istanbul Architecture, The First Period of Ottoman Architecture, The Reigns of Ertuğrul, Osman and Orhan Gazis, Hüdavendigar and Yıldırım Bayezid 630–805 (1230–1402)\\]*, Istanbul, 1962, pp.320–8  \nEyice, S., “İki Türk Abidesinin Mahiyetleri Hakkında Notlar. İznik'te Nilüfer Hatun İmareti ve Kayseri'deki Köşk Medrese \\[Notes on the Content of Two Turkish Monuments. The Nilüfer Hatun İmaret in İznik and the Köşk Madrasa in Kayseri\\]”, *İFYAD* 2 (1957), pp.107–10  \nEyice, S., “İlk Osmanlı Devrinin Dini-İçtimai Bir Müessesesi: Zaviyeler ve Zaviyeli Camiler \\[A Religious-Social Institution of the Early Ottoman Period: Zawiyas and Mosques with Zawiyas\\]”, *İktisat Fakültesi Mecmuası \\[Journal of the Faculty of Economics\\]*, *XXIII* (1962/63), pp.1–80.  \nGoodwin, G., *A History of Ottoman Architecture*, London, 1992, p.22; pp.44–5","patrons":"Sultan Murad I (r. AH 761–91 / AD 1360–89).","dynasty":"Early Ottoman.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_TR_EN_001","author":"Mehmet Kahyaoğlu","translator":"Barry Wood, İnci Türkoğlu","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["imaret (soup-kitchen)","itinerant dervish.","tabhane (guest-room)","zawiya (dervishes’ lodge)"]},"6a082742-d8cb-5964-8ea7-e722c9a23660":{"name":"Ceramic jar","description":"A tall pottery jar with a flat base used for storage and short-distance transport, as indicated by its shape and four short handles. The handles are placed at the shoulder below a rimmed mouth. Under its yellow and pistachio-coloured glaze it is decorated with brown and green glazes in three horizontal registers. The band below the lip is delineated by a thin brown line at the top and a green stripe between two thin brown lines at the bottom, a motif that is repeated below the second and the third bands. It depicts a row of six-petalled flowers, outlined in brown, with a leaf on each side of the stem. The petals are decorated with a spot of green. In the second band, a brown-edged diamond pattern circles the body. The third band is decorated with a row of brown-edged leaves filled in with green. The pot is glazed inside in dark green. From historical documents (cookbooks or single recipes) we know some methods of traditional preservation; many of them remained in use in traditional communities in the 20th century, and even today. Meat or butter was preserved in relatively big pots, or salted in stoneware or earthenware jars. Curing with liquid and dry-curing were also used, the latter using salt mixed with other ingredients, such as spices, before smoking.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani Museum","owner":"His Excellency Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"Hegira 12th century / AD 18th century","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Height: 48cm, length: 23cm","place_of_production":"Iran, Khorasan province","method_for_datation":"Analysis of techniques, style and motifs","method_for_provenance":"Analysis of techniques, styles and motifs; analogies","provenance":"Iran, Khorasan province","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Terézia Bardi","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Clay","underglaze painting, glaze"]},"6a2ad1b6-4e61-5b64-aa4c-e23e31a8188c":{"name":"*Sübhatü'l Ebrar* by Molla Camii","description":"Molla Camii was a poet and scientist of the Naqshbandi order who was born and raised in Samarkand during the Timuri period (1414–1492). He was a highly renowned figure during his lifetime, and was frequently invited by the Ottoman sultans.  \nIn this miniature Prophet Abraham and a fire-worshipping priest are depicted. Prophet Abraham informs the pagan priest that he can invite him to his table only if the priest accepts Islam. The elderly priest, declaring that he would not alter his beliefs for a mere morsel of bread, rises from the table and departs. At this point, a voice from the heavens is heard saying it is unjust to compel an elderly man to leave the table hungry, regardless of his beliefs. Prophet Abraham then realises his error and invites the priest back to the table. The priest, after being invited a subsequent time, becomes a believer upon being told what had happened.  \nIn the miniature, Prophet Abraham's head is haloed and his face is veiled. He points to the food, indicating that the priest should join him.","type":"Book","holder":"Konya Mevlana Museum","dates":"AH 943/AD 1537","location":"Konya","dynasty":"Ottoman (AH 698–1340/AD 1299-1922)","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["finished (aharlı) paper, ink, leather binding"]},"6a3340c0-c680-5459-91d6-e838dcb5662c":{"name":"Mortar (*havan*)","description":"Mortars exist in varying sizes, some more easily suited to being handheld while others, such as this larger (and heavier) example, most likely was placed on a flat surface. This bronze mortar (*havan*) is octagonal – its edges considerably worn – around a cylindrical container with an everted rim and widening base. Moulded bull’s heads on two sides are fitted with looping ring-handles to facilitate transport of this heavy vessel. Its body is divided into three horizontal registers incised with a combination of running animals, calligraphic inscriptions and foliate scrolls. The middle panel features a series of single or triple beads in high relief, framed by polylobed arches – probably designed to hold the vessel more securely in place when grinding with a pestle. A band of eight panels of Kufic calligraphy alternating with foliate roundels runs around the top rim, forming a continuous blessing to an unknown patron. Two panels read: “*al yamoon wa … albta lmaa hbaa*” (continuous prosperity … eternal glory), with “*al-barakat*” (blessing) also legible. The upper band features the same decorative motif, yet the calligraphy is written in naskh script, with the word *al-izz* faintly visible. The lower band is engraved with running animals (a dog or feline) chasing its prey, a motif commonly seen across metalwork and lustre-painted ceramics from the period. The combination of both scripts (Kufic and naskh), appears less frequently, however, and suggests that this mortar is a transitionary one between the late Seljuk and Ilkhanid periods.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art","owner":"Qatar Museums","dates":"Hegira late 6th, early 7th century / AD 12th, early 13th century","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Diameter: 20.2cm, height: 14.9cm","place_of_production":"Western Iran","provenance":"Western Iran","bibliography":"Fraser, Marcus, *The Honar Collection of Islamic Art*, 2008.","dynasty":"Late Seljuk – early Ilkhanid period","author":"Tara Desjardins","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Cast copper, tin, zinc and lead alloy"]},"6a900d8a-d3e6-5851-b145-8c3ebfc27556":{"name":"*Sabil* (Water Dispensary) and *Kuttab* (Qur’anic School) of ‘Abd al-Rahman Katkhuda.","description":"This monument has a special artistic importance, for it is a free-standing complex that consists of a *sabil* (water dispensary) and a *kuttab* (Qur'an school) both of which display many of the glories of Islamic art specific to the Ottoman period. The building represents the style of *sabil* that has three windows and which is a blend of the Mamluk and Ottoman styles.  \nThe *sabil* has three facades (south, north and west) that are identical and equal in length. Each façade contains a semi-circular arch, which is supported by two spiral marble pillars. In the middle of the arch is a large opening from which cups of water may be obtained for passers-by (windows for the procurement of water or *tasbil*).  \nThe opening seen here sits within a semi-circular arch supported by two marble spiral pillars. The *tasbil* are covered with copper grills in the form of intersecting tri-lobed arches; these allow drinking-cups to be passed through them. The spandrels of the arches are decorated with splendid geometric designs executed in fine polychrome marble. The walls of the outer façade contain interlocked stone courses in the form of whirling vegetal leaves. The façade of the *sabil* is crowned with nine tiers of *muqarnas*, which bear the floor of the first storey containing the *kuttab*. The entrance to the *sabil* is located on Tambakshiyya Street, to the left of the southern façade, and resembles the Mamluk portal. The entrance is composed of a recessed wall crowned with a tri-lobed arch and a semi-dome decorated with tiers of *muqarnas*. In the middle of the recessed wall is the door to the *sabil* the straight, top lintel of which is adorned with carved verses of poetry. Above the lintel there is a marble decorative unit comprising a central circle. It contains the foundation text surrounded by four tiny circles.  \nThe entrance to the *sabil* leads to a small vestibule, which contains three doors: the first is located to the right of the entrance and leads to the cistern chamber; the second is to the left of the entrance and leads to the room from which the water is distributed *hograt al-tasbil* (water dispensing room), and the third is at the rear of the vestibule leading to the stairs and up to the *kuttab*. The floor-plan of the water-dispensing room is rectangular (3.50 m x 4.50 m). Three windows are located within the recessed areas of the room's three walls, which overlook the street. The walls of the room are panelled with blue-glazed ceramic tiles and decorated with a multiplicity of vegetal decoration. The southern wall contains a panel of glazed tiles depicting a view of the Holy Ka'aba and the buildings surrounding it.  \nThe *kuttab*, or school room, has a rectangular floor-plan of the same dimensions as the *hograt al-tasbil*. The *kuttab* overlooks the street from three directions by means of three *mashrabiyya*, and it has seven marble pillars, which resemble the pillars on the façade. The pillars are topped by six stone pointed arches, crowned with an inclined wooden awning. A balcony projects from the *kuttab,* characterised by 14 exquisite slim wooden pillars which bear 15 arches supported by balustrades, made from beautiful turned wood. The balcony is roofed with a wooden awning that is lower than the first.","short_description":"This building has special artistic importance as a freestanding establishment in the heart of al-Muizz Street. It consists of a *sabil* (water dispensary) with three façades and three windows covered with iron grills for distributing free drinking water to the local population, passers-by and travellers. The second floor is occupied by a *kuttab* (Qur'anic school for children) with a balcony overlooking three sides through *mashrabiyya* screens. The Mamluk and Ottoman styles blend harmoniously in the construction of this monument.","dates":"Hegira 1157 / AD 1744.","location":"Cairo","method_for_datation":"The building was dated based on an inscription above the entrance that includes the name of the sponsor and the date of construction. Furthermore, a *waqf* deed is preserved in the archives of the Ministry of Awqaf or Endowments (file no. 941, dated 1158 \\[1745\\]), it also gives the name of the builder.","bibliography":"Briggs, M. S., *Muhammaden Architecture in Egypt and Palestine,* Oxford, 1924.  \nAl-Hussaini, Mahmoud H., *Al-Asbila al-Othmaniya bi madinat al-Qahira \\[The Ottoman Sabils in the City of Cairo\\],* Cairo, 1999.  \nKhalifa, R., *Al-Balatat al-Khazafiya ala al-'Ama'ir bil Qahira \\[Glazed Tiles on Architecture in Cairo\\],* MA thesis, University of Cairo, 1977.  \nRaymond, A., *Le Caire *des Janissaires: L'Apogée* de la Ville Ottomane sous Abd al-Rahman Katkhuda,* Paris, 1995.  \nSameh, Kamal al-Din, *Athar al-Amir Abd al-Rahman Katkhuda al-Mi'mariya bil Qahira \\[Architectural Monuments of the Amir Abd al-Rahman Katkhuda in Cairo\\],* PhD thesis, University of Cairo, 1947.","patrons":"The Commander 'Abd al-Rahman Katkhuda ibn Husayn Jawish al-Qardughli, who occupied the post of Overseer of *Awqaf* (Endowments) in AH 1161 / AD 1748. Many buildings in Cairo are associated with him.","dynasty":"Ottoman.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_TR_EN_001","author":"Tarek Torky","copy_editor":"Majd Musa","translator":"Amal Sachedina (from the Arabic).","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["civil architecture","geometric marble decoration","Glazed-ceramic tiles","interlocking stone decoration","Mashrabiyya"]},"6b6b4b3d-5bf3-5fad-ab1e-65d67c460f9d":{"name":"Dining room set with bench","description":"Displayed in the reception room of Yusuf Al-Sabai's former residence, now part of the FBQ Museum, is a striking dining set comprising a table, chairs, and a bench crafted in the Islamic arabesque style. Renowned for its intricate inlay craftsmanship, this set incorporates mother-of-pearl, ivory, and wood, utilising even the smallest wood chips and other available materials. This approach not only enhances aesthetic appeal but also minimises waste and encourages sustainable practices.  \nThe set features intricate geometric patterns and architectural elements such as arches and squinches influenced by the Coptic art of Egypt. This piece embodies the essence of Islamic decoration, characterised by unity and meticulous craftsmanship. Its rich ornamentation reflects the concept of *horror vacui* (fear of emptiness), and is evidence of the artist’s desire to fill any available space with intricate details.","type":"Furniture","holder":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani Museum","owner":"His Excellency Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"Hegira first hald of 13th century / AD early 20th century  (Yusuf Al-Sabai's former residence: AH c. 1232/1398 / AD 1917–1978)","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Height: 157cm, length: 183cm, width: 60cm","place_of_production":"Egypt","method_for_datation":"The date and origin were established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, techniques, style, inscription, analogies and the provenance or historical background of the items.","method_for_provenance":"The date and origin were established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, techniques, style, inscription, analogies and the historical background of the items.","provenance":"Egypt","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Mahmoud Saber","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["furniture, wood, mother-of-pearl, Yusuf Al-Sabai, Egypt"],"materials":["mother-of-pearl, ivory, carving, inlay","Wood"]},"6bc80197-f494-512f-83bf-359f1180b074":{"name":"Baking flatbread on a metal griddle in the Syrian Dead Cities","description":"Flatbread is the staple food of the Syrian population to this day. It is mostly baked in state-licensed bakeries, where only thin flatbreads from superfine wheat flour are made. Rarely do women have to bake their own flatbread every day, as bakery flatbread is available in nearly all parts of the country. For special occasions and huge feasts the traditional flatbread is preferred. In a spirit of mutual help, often a neighbour’s wife bakes bread for the feast. In the photo, the wafer-thin flatbread is baked on a convex metal griddle (*saj*), which is heated on an open fireplace. This griddle bread (*khubz saj*) consists of wheat flour – preferably from coarse local wheat – and water and salt.  \nThe dough must be kneaded intensely to retain its stickiness and not tear. The wafer-thin flatbread consists of only one layer. In some regions – as visible in the photo – the dough is rolled with the help of a rolling pin, and in other regions it is beaten back and forth with the palms of the hands to obtain a large thin bread.  \nThe flatbread, when torn into pieces, serves as spoon and is eaten along with the food.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Peter Heiske","initial_owner":"Peter Heiske","dates":"Hegira 1423 / AD 2002","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Burj Haydar/Syria","method_for_provenance":"Direct contact","provenance":"Burj Haydar/Idlib Province","bibliography":"Pasqualone, A., “Traditional flat breads spread from the Fertile Crescent: Production process and history of baking systems”, Journal of Ethnic Foods, vol. 5, issue 1, March 2018, 15.","author":"Karin Pütt","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Digital photo"]},"6c5c8e73-e448-5d73-a3ad-4f85d6d02cff":{"name":"Cup","description":"The production of raw glass in Cordoban workshops is documented at least since the 10th century. By using vegetable fluxes to replace natron, it was possible to implement local production and multiply its presence in luxury crockery.  \nAs glass crockery was understood as a sign of refinement, Abbasid caliphs such as Harun al-Rashid might have sponsored their industry in Baghdad. Similarly, it is thought that some of the great workshops found in the Iberian Peninsula may have been sponsored by rulers of al-Andalus, both in the Caliphate period and later.","type":"Cup","holder":"National Archaeological Museum","owner":"State-owned","initial_owner":"Unknown","dates":"Hegira 6th century / AD 10th century","location":"Madrid","dimensions":"Height: 9cm, Mouth diameter: 12cm, Base diameter: 5.5cm","place_of_production":"Madinat al-Zahra","method_for_datation":"Archaeological excavation directed by Félix Hernández","method_for_provenance":"Archaeological excavation directed by Félix Hernández","provenance":"Córdoba","obtention":"The object was deposited to the National Archaeological Museum by Félix Hernández, in representation of the *Comisión Directora de las Excavaciones Oficiales*, on 14 January 1943.","bibliography":"Castejon y Martinez de Arizala, R. (1945), “Excavaciones del plan nacional en Medina Azahara (Córdoba). Campaña de 1943.  \nMinisterio de Educacion Nacional. Comisaria general de excavaciones arqueologicas”, *Informes y Memorias*, No. 8.  \n  \nCamps Cazorla, E., \"Cerámica y vidrios califales de Medina Azzahra (Córdoba)\", *VVAA, Adquisiciones del Museo Arqueologico Nacional (1940-1945)*, 1947: 154.  \n  \nCressier, P. (ed), *El vidrio en al-Andalus*, Madrid: Casa de Velázquez, 2000.  \n  \nRontomé Notario, E. (ed), *Vidrio Islámico en al-Andalus*, Cuenca: Real Fábrica de Cristales de la Granja, 2006.  \n  \nGovantes-Edwards, D., C. Duckworth and R. Córdoba de la Llave, “Recipes and experimentation: the transmission of glassmaking techniques in Medieval Iberia”, *Journal of Medieval Iberian Studies*, 8 (2016): 176-95.","workshop":"Madinat al-Zahra workshops","dynasty":"Umayyads of al-Andalus","author":"Helena Lahoz Kopiske","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","keywords":["glass","Refinement","Tableware"],"materials":["blowing, printing","glass"]},"6cac4f71-4c6d-5af5-91b7-33d7f396babe":{"name":"*Iyar-i Danish* (‘Touchstone of Wisdom’)","short_description":"The text of *Iyar-i danish* (‘Touchstone of Wisdom’) derives from the collection of Sanskrit animal fables known as Panchatantra and thought to have been compiled sometime before AD 500. Since then, several versions of the fables have appeared, in ancient Pahlavi, Persian and Arabic. The version known as *Iyar-i danish* was compiled at the Mughal court for the emperor Akbar (r. 1556–1605). The fables are part of the genre of literature known as ‘mirrors for princes’, consisting of stories intended to instruct rulers in the art of statecraft. Each chapter of the text consists of a frame story dealing with a specific moral. The characters of the frame story then each tell their own stories of behaviour exemplifying the moral in question.","type":"Manuscript","holder":"The Chester Beatty Library","dates":"Hegira c. 1003–04 / AD 1595","location":"Dublin","dimensions":"19.6 x 12.8 cm","provenance":"India","dynasty":"Mughal","keywords":["animal","education","fables","fox","Illustration","Kalila wa dimna","lion","literature","manuscript","miniature painting","stories"],"materials":["Coloured pigments and gold on paper"]},"6cd11199-5a66-5c15-872a-057190826a48":{"name":"Rosewater sprinkler","description":"This *mirash* vessel is designed to hold and sprinkle rosewater onto the hands of guests as a sign of hospitality. These vessels come in a variety of shapes and decorations; the people of the Green Mountain in eastern Oman have traditionally pursued this craft for thousands of years, and their goods are known today for their quality and precision in manufacturing.","type":"Metalwork, brass","holder":"The National Museum - Sultanate of Oman","dates":"Hegira 12th–13th/AD 18th–19th century","location":"Muscat, Sultanate of Oman","dimensions":"Height: 30.5cm, diameter: 10.5cm","provenance":"Northern Oman","dynasty":"Al-Busaid Dynasty (AH 1167–present/AD 1754–present)","author":"Noora Al Balushi","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda"},"6cd1576c-84dc-565e-8f5b-d3d3ed636ea8":{"name":"Al-Hariri, *Maqamat* ('Assemblies')","short_description":"The Arab poet Al-Hariri of Basra, or Abu Muhammad al-Qasim ibn Ali ibn Muhammad ibn Uthman al-Hariri (d. 516 AH / 1122 AD), wrote the *Maqamat al-Hariri* (‘Assemblies of Hariri), which is a collection of fifty stories written in the *Maqama* style of rhymed prose with intervals of poetry. Al-Hariri also extensively utilises Arabic idioms and proverbs. While this style of writing was developed a century earlier, Al-Hariri elevated this genre into a major literary form through this work. In his *Maqamat*, the anecdotes are told by the roguish wanderer and eloquent trickster Abu Zayd to the narrator, al-Harith b. Hammam al-Basri. This copy was written in calligraphic large Mamluk *naskh* script by Abu'l-Fada'il b. Abi Ishaq in 734 AH / 1334 AD. The quality of the manuscript, its courtly title page, and large format suggest that it was created in Cairo, then capital of the Mamluk Sultanate and Caliphate. The sultan who possibly commissioned the manuscript and who may be the one depicted on the dedicatory title page is An-Nasir Muhammad b. Qala'un, who was in power for the third time from 709 AH / 1309-10 AD to 741 AH / 1340-41 AD. The manuscript includes seventy paintings, which must have been completed by a group of artists or a workshop. It is likely that multiple pages are no longer extant. The images that are preserved reflect a Mamluk style of painting, including bright colours on a golden background, more monumentalised scenes, and a reduction to essential elements in expression and composition, especially when compared to the Persian-Seljuk style of Baghdad and Mosul book-painting. The figures’ facial features follow the Turkish-Mongolian ideal of beauty that emerged under the Seljuks in Persia. The essential principle of composition throughout the manuscript is the juxtaposition of individual figures with figural groups, whereby means of deliberate contrast or symmetry are employed. These compositions underline the textual structure of the stories. The manuscript probably entered the Austrian National Library between 1820 and 1840.","type":"Manuscript","holder":"Austrian National Library (ANL)","dates":"734 AH / 1334 AD","location":"Vienna","dimensions":"373 x 260 mm (c. 260 x 160mm), ff. II, II*, 195 folios.","method_for_provenance":"On fol. 1a, a note in the margin with incomplete names.","provenance":"Possibly Cairo","obtention":"Unknown but came into the Austrian National Library between 1820 and 1840.","bibliography":"Duda, Dorothea, *Islamische Handschriften II. Persische Handschriften, Die illuminierten Handschriften und Inkunabeln der Österreichischen Nationalbibliothek*, vol. 5, Vienna: Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, 1992: 20-46.  \nGrabar, Oleg, *The Illustrations of the Maqamat*, Chicago and London: University of Chicago Press, 1984.","dynasty":"Mamluk","scriber":"Abu'l-Fada'il b. Abi Ishaq","binding_desc":"The classicist brown leather binding has a double-eagle supralibros printed in gold. On fol. 195b, brownish traces reveal the imprint of the original Mamluk leather binding. The binding dates to the first half of the 19th century and was likely produced in Vienna, Austria.","catalogue_holding_link":"http://data.onb.ac.at/rec/AC14421947","author":"Theresa Zischkin","copy_editor":"Sophie-Anne Mullen","keywords":["Assembly","Mamluk","Maqamat","painting"],"materials":["Ink, opaque watercolour and gold on paper. Calligraphic Mamluk naskh script of 13 lines."]},"6d4e1728-d908-5cfd-8404-e26c1049c233":{"name":"Mortar and pestle","description":"Bronze mortar and a pestle ornamented with protruding lozenges, lotus-shaped knobs and inscriptions.","type":"Mortar and pestle","holder":"Benaki Museum","dates":"AH 545-647/late 12th-early 13th century","location":"Athens","dimensions":"Height: 13cm, diameter: 18cm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Iran","obtention":"Acquired in Cairo","bibliography":"Ballian, A. (ed.), *Benaki Museum: a Guide to the Museum of Islamic Art*, Athens: Benaki, 2006: fig. 57, p. 70.","author":"Mina Moraitou","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Bronze"]},"6f45b4c6-e6d0-562e-aa92-b2efaf2a5915":{"name":"Bowl.","description":"A thrown, earthenware bowl with a wide and flaring shape that sits on a small, round pedestal base; it has been moulded by hand around the rim to produce a ring of indentations. The bowl has been coated with a slip of liquefied clay and decorated with a simple flowing design on the inside with black and blue underglaze. It is glazed overall with a thickly applied glaze that is a transparent, intense yellow.","short_description":"This North African bowl would have been used for serving a vegetable stew with meat and couscous, a wheat product. Thrown on a wheel, it has a lid that matches it in shape but has a slightly smaller diameter. Vessels like this are still made today.","type":"Earthenware","holder":"Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, Glasgow Museums.","dates":"Hegira 13th century / AD 19th century.","location":"Glasgow, Scotland","dimensions":"Height 13 cm, diameter 34 cm.","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis: the object was collected by the donor from Algeria along with other similar Ottoman ceramics.","method_for_provenance":"The object was collected by the donor from Algeria along with other similar Ottoman ceramics.","provenance":"Algeria.","obtention":"Donated to the Museum in 1877.","dynasty":"Ottoman","linkcatalogs":"IAM_TR_EN_001","author":"Noorah Al-Gailani","copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["abstract decoration","domestic pottery"],"materials":["Earthenware decorated with black and blue underglaze, over which a transparent yellow glaze."]},"711fba2c-8e7a-5558-8785-0e3951b191e0":{"name":"Table","description":"In Arab households symbols of hospitality and the embrace of visitors were deeply ingrained in the cultural fabric, taking on multiple forms. Chairs and tables in spaces like reception halls often bore inscriptions extending warm greetings to guests, occasionally integrating profound aphorisms and verses of poetry. These inscriptions served as decorative elements and cultural expression, and reflected philosophical ideals central to the household’s ethos.  \nThe FBQ museum holds a remarkable 19th-century Syrian wooden table adorned with meticulously carved inscriptions in *thuluth* script featuring mystical verses attributed to Ibn al-Farid. These poetic excerpts, drawn from his renowned poetry “If my position in love with you\", epitomise the fusion of artistic refinement and intellectual depth, enhancing the ambiance of hospitality within the domestic sphere. It says:  \nأُمْنِيّة ظفِرَتْ روحي بها زَمَناً واليومَ أحسَبُها أضغاثَ أحلام  \nولو علِمْتُ بأَنّ الحُبّ آخِرُهُ هذا الحِمَامُ (الموت ) لَمَا خالَفتُ لُوّامي.  \nA wish my soul held onto for a while,  \nToday I deem it mere illusions that beguile.  \nHad I known love’s end is but a final breath,  \nI'd not have shunned the counsel, evading death.  \nIbn al-Farid (1181–1234) was an acclaimed Arab poet born in Cairo to parents originating from Hama, Syria. Revered as the greatest mystic poet among Arabs, his literary compositions are reputed to have been penned during states of spiritual inspiration.  \nThe table is crafted from wood with intricately-carved inscriptions inlaid with mother-of-pearl. The carving process involves meticulous engraving with overlapping work. This fusion of techniques reflects the cultural sophistication and skilled craftsmanship of 19th-century Syrian artisans.","type":"Woodwork","holder":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani Museum","owner":"His Excellency Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"Hegira 13th century / AD 19th century","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Height: 75cm, length: 80cm, width: 55cm","place_of_production":"Syria","method_for_datation":"The date and origin were established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, techniques, style, inscription and analogies.","method_for_provenance":"The date and origin were established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, techniques, style, inscription and analogies.","provenance":"Syria","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Mahmoud Saber","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["wood, mother-of-pearl, hama, Syria, Thuluth, Ibn al-Farid, Cairo, Egypt"],"materials":["mother-of-pearl, carving, inlay","Wood"]},"71d208fd-0631-5cc6-ad2e-caf974f2e875":{"name":"Coffee-making utensils","description":"Traditional preparation involves roasting the green coffee beans over a fire in a pan with a long handle (*mahmas*). A pusher (*yad al-mahmas*) is used to move the beans back and forth in the pan. Once roasted on all sides, the black coffee beans are poured onto the cooling tray (*mubarrad*, at left in the photo). In the large, typically wooden or metal mortar (*mahbash, hawun*) the cooled coffee beans are crushed by using a pestle (*nijr, mudgag*). The physical effort required to do this produces a loud, sonorous noise. It is said that some coffee cooks employed unique beating rhythms.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Karin Pütt","initial_owner":"Karin Pütt","dates":"Hegira 1409 / AD 1989","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Nahiyat Maskana/Syria","method_for_provenance":"Direct contact","provenance":"Nahiyat Maskana/Syria","bibliography":"Euting, J., “Tagebuch einer Reise in Inner-Arabien” (First Edition Leiden 1896), Hamburg, 1993, 84.","author":"Karin Pütt","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Slide"]},"71e530f4-815b-573d-aae7-8e626e13cbde":{"name":"Khassaki Sultan Complex","description":"It took four years to complete the complex (959/1552–963/1556), making it the largest charitable institution in the whole city.  \nThe complex is vast and has two entrances. The northern one lies on Aqabat al-Takiyya, while the southern one lies on Aqabat al-Saraya. In the local language, *al-Takiyya* means “*the place where food is served free of charge*”. *Al-Saraya*, on the other hand, means the seat of the governor or the *wali* and is named after the Ottoman mayor’s residence prior to the British Mandate.  \nThe complex is attributed to Roxelane, the wife of the Ottoman Sultan Sulayman the Magnificent (926/1520–974/1566), known as Haseki Hürrem (the cheerful, good-humoured one). Ottoman sources refer to her as Khassaki Sultan, in other words the Sultan’s favourite and beloved. Khassaki Sultan endowed generous *waqf*s on her social and charitable project to guarantee the perpetuation of its activities. The revenues of 30 towns and villages in Palestine and other places went into its budget. She added to them a *waqf* of four more villages donated by Sultan Sulayman to support her *waqf* after her death. These villages were located in different regions in Gaza, Nablus, Jerusalem, Sidon and Tripoli.  \nThe complex consisted of four different sections, some of which have survived: A large *caravanserai* to accommodate travellers and traders. It consists of a large entrance that leads to a corridor with rooms on both sides. The corridor ends in an open courtyard, which is surrounded by more corridors that form the *caravanserai*s. These parts can be seen today from the southern entrance, though some of their functions have changed.  \nA mosque for prayer, reciting the Qur’an and praying for the benefactor. It has many domes and arches. However, its exact location is unknown and it is presumed that part of it was demolished and that the current student refectory was built over it.  \nA *ribat*55 rooms to house *sufis*, the poor and visitors. Like the mosque, its location is also unknown today. It seems that most of the rooms have been demolished and changed into other utilities, although it was probably east of the southern entrance where the printing shop currently stands.  \nA large kitchen, a bakery, a mill, many storage rooms and a fountain to provide water to the residence have all survived and can be seen after entering the courtyard from the northern gate and turning east via some stairs. The kitchen continues to provide delicious soups every morning plus meat and rice during Ramadan and every Tuesday, even though the *ribat*’s *waqf* ceased long ago.  \nThis active institution was administered by a number of senior Ottoman employees. The Inspector was posted from Istanbul and was helped by approximately 50 members of staff, each having a detailed job description allocated to him in the *waqf*. Among the employees were a person who washed the cups, another who picked the rice, two chefs and their three assistants, a renovator, and a maintenance person who would look after the building. In addition to the running costs, the total annual wage bill was approximately 795.5 silver dirhams.","type":"","dates":"","bibliography":"","author":"Yusuf Natsheh"},"72293d68-7e1a-5946-bc56-664b0db6be36":{"name":"*Kama’ Al Sahra* (Desert truffles)","description":"*Kama’ Al Sahra* (desert truffle, *Tirmania nivea*) are subterranean fungi rather than true truffles. They are a delicacy eaten on their own or prepared in traditional dishes. People collect the fungi soon after rainfall in spring. *Kama' Al Sahra* grows close to *Ragroog* (rock rose, *Hellanthemum lippil*) bushes, which is perhaps how people locate the hidden truffles.","type":"Truffles","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","initial_owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century / AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Varies and depends on the piece. Length: 45mm, Wwidth: 45mm","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Model","author":"Amanda Snyder, Mona Mukhashab","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["desert","desert truffles","truffleas"]},"7262d726-e0b4-585c-b021-af6abc741b84":{"name":"Covered al-Buzuriyya Market","description":"Apricot paste can be consumed in two ways. It can be eaten raw after cutting it into small pieces, or – especially during Ramadan – a syrup can be made from *Qamr ad-Din* after soaking it in water for several hours, straining, then cooling it. Sometimes orange blossom or rose water is added to the syrup. *Qamr ad-Din* is traditionally served thick and cold, and is thought to be particularly fortifying and a good energy source after a day of fasting. Some Damascenes add pine and ice cubes.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Anne-Marie Bianquis","initial_owner":"Anne-Marie Bianquis","dates":"Hegira 1426 / AD 2005","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Damascus/Syria","method_for_provenance":"Direct contact","provenance":"Damascus/Syria","author":"Hiba Bizreh","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Colour photography"]},"7269ff1c-7668-58a5-a38d-e8ec83dace0c":{"name":"*Zafarnāmah by Sharaf al-Din ʿAli Yazdi* (Timur's Return to Samarkand and the Festive Celebrations in the Garden of Bagh-ı Behesht)","description":"*Zafarnāmah* is a significant historical text from the 15th century that describes Timur's leadership and achievements. Written by Şerafeddin Ali Yezdî (Hegira 858 / AD 1454), the work was commissioned by Timur's grandson, Ibrahim Sultan. As a historical source, *Zafarnāmah* is invaluable for its comprehensive information about Timur's life. The book was compiled using notes taken by Timur's royal scribes and secretaries, indicating that its contents were meticulously selected. Its most significant source is the biography of Timur, *Zafarnāmah*, written by Nizāmeddīn-i Sāmī in 1404. The primary distinction between Şerafeddin's *Zafarnāmah* and Sāmī’s earlier *Zafarnāmah* lies in the novel information presented in Şerafeddin's later version, and the more elaborate embellishments, including miniatures, in Sāmī’s earlier one. 
The later work was inscribed by Hamdullah ibn al-Sheikh Murshid al-Kātib in Hegira 891 / AD 1486–1487, and is written in Persian with black ink in *taliq* calligraphy on fine paper. The work contains ten miniature scenes of rich workmanship, most of which depict Timur. The miniatures generally portray battles, council meetings and festivities that took place during the Timurid period. The first page contains the foundation seal of Hacı Mehmed Aga, the trustee of Teke Sancağı (Antalya region). The following page displays an illumination comprising geometric and floral motifs on blue and gilt backgrounds. The titles of the chapters and some of the prayers are written in gilt, red and blue ink.","type":"Manuscript","holder":"Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts","dates":"Hegira 891 / AD 1486–1487","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"34.5cm x 23cm","place_of_production":"Herat/Afghanistan","obtention":"The object was brought to the Museum from Antalya Müsellim Mosque on 31 March 1916.","dynasty":"Timurids (AH 771-911 / AD 1370-1505)","materials":["Finished (aharli) paper, ink, gilding, leather binding"]},"72c0e86c-b1ae-5017-a60e-32986c29c774":{"name":"*Surname-i Hümayun* (‘Book of the Imperial Circumcision Festival’).","description":"The *Surname-i Hümayun* ('Book of the Imperial Circumcision Festival') is a work dealing with the celebrations held for the circumcision festival of Prince Mehmed, son of Sultan Murad III, which lasted for 52 days and 52 nights in AH 990 / AD 1582. It documents, in both word and image, how during the festivities the craft guilds paraded their various products, how a variety of entertainments were organised, how banquets were held and food distributed to the public every day, how the sultan would scatter gold and silver among the people from time to time, how poor children were circumcised and given new clothes, how beggars were made happy, and how people who had been imprisoned for debt were granted their freedom by having their debts paid. For this reason the *Surname* is an important historical source providing for us a record of the AH 10th- / AD 16th-century Ottoman lifestyle; its economy, social life, culture, art and entertainment.  \n  \nThe celebration was held in the Hippodrome, i.e. the 'Horse Square'. The Ibrahim Pasha Palace is depicted here, and the three-storey wooden spectators' gallery erected at one of its corners for the use of palace officials and representatives of foreign governments, is an indispensable element of the scenes in the *Surname*.  \n  \nOne of these scenes represents the parade of the glassmakers' guild. Here the sultan, seated on the enclosed balcony of the audience hall in the Ibrahim Pasha Palace, watches the glassmakers' guild along with the assembled people and the guests sitting in the spectators' gallery. The glassmakers present the glass objects they have made, even showing the stages of glass production and the tools they use with the help of a furnace mounted on a wheeled wagon.  \n  \nAnother painting in the *Surname* shows the procession of architects and engineers with a faithful replica of the Süleymaniye Mosque made of wood and ivory. This picture is noteworthy because it represents Ottoman art in all its splendour, celebrated in both the depiction of the architect Sinan, who was still alive in this period and probably participated in this parade, and, through his most monumental building: the Süleymaniye Mosque.  \n  \nThe celebrations of the circumcision festival are transformed into a painted story through 250 double-page miniatures with compositions generally similar to the two seen here.","short_description":"*Surname* is a magnificent manuscript telling the story of the circumcision festival of Prince Mehmed, son of Sultan Murad III, held at the Hippodrome in front of the Ibrahim Pasha Palace in AH 990 / AD 1582. The setting, processions and events are depicted both in writing and in miniatures.","type":"Manuscript, paper, ink, watercolor, miniature painting","holder":"Topkapı Palace Museum.","initial_owner":"Sultan Murad III (r. AH 982-1003 / AD 1574-95).","dates":"Hegira 991–7 / AD 1583–8.","location":"Sultanahmet, Istanbul.","dimensions":"Height 33.5 cm, width 23.5 cm.","method_for_datation":"Since some pages of the manuscript are missing, including the colophon, it has been ascertained from the Kepeci Ruus register in the archives (3 Safar 997/1583 no. 250, 37) that it was completed in 997 / 1588.","method_for_provenance":"It is known that this manuscript was prepared by the team of artists in the Topkapi Palace atelier, and that it was therefore produced in Istanbul.","provenance":"Istanbul, Turkey.","obtention":"The *Surname* was made for Sultan Murad III in the Topkapi Palace atelier and is still in the palace library.","bibliography":"And, M., *Kırk Gün Kırk Gece*, Istanbul, 1959.  \nAtasoy, N., *Surname-i Hümayun*, Istanbul, 1998.  \nAtasoy, N., “Tarih Konulu Minyatürlerin Usta Nakkaşı Osman”, *Sanat Dünyamız*, 73 (1999), pp.213–21.  \nİpşiroğlu, M.Ş. “Das Hochzeitbuch Murats III”, *Deutsch-Türkische Gesellschaft*, Bonn, 1960.  \nTansuğ, S. *Şenlikname Düzeni*, Istanbul, 1961.","dynasty":"Ottoman","linkcatalogs":"IAM_TR_EN_001","author":"Şebnem Tamcan","translator":"Barry Wood, İnci Türkoğlu","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["calligraphy","glass","Ibrahim Pasha Palace","miniature painting","Sinan.","Süleymaniye Mosque"],"materials":["Finished (aharlı) paper, ink, watercolour, gilding, leather (binding)."]},"749834b9-5f86-513c-a750-311aca2067e7":{"name":"Deer-Figured Water Container","description":"The ceramic, off-white paste and one-colour turquoise glazed figurine has a navy blue glazed relief decoration with lines and dots on the back. The deer on a rectangular base has a hole in the back and on the head, and the three antlers are curved and joined at the top.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Ankara Ethnography Museum","location":"Ankara","dimensions":"Length: 43cm, width: 36.5cm","dynasty":"Seljuqs","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["Glazed ceramic"]},"74a9ac30-d924-5b63-8349-21d424570c93":{"name":"Covered al-Buzuriyya Market","description":"During the Prophet’s birthday, the historic Buzuriyya Market in Damascus is crowded with people buying the necessities for the occasion, such as sweets and chocolate. The celebration usually takes place in the evening after Maghrib prayers in many mosques. The Mawlid opens with a short recitation of the Holy Qur’an, then comes the “Mawlid Recitation”, which is a narration of the Prophet’s biography recited in a special style. After that, specialised chanting groups perform religious songs and praise of the Prophet, and the Mawlawiyya dance to their music. The ceremony concludes with the Isha prayer and the distribution of sweets.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Rania Kataf","initial_owner":"Rania Kataf","dates":"Hegira 1438 / AD 2017","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Damascus/Syria","method_for_provenance":"Direct contact","provenance":"Damascus/Syria","bibliography":"al-Maliki, M. A., “On Celebrating the Birth of the Prophet”, Imam Ghazali Institute, 2016.  \n  \nRabbat, N., “Ideal-type and Urban History: The Development of the Suq in Damascus”, Gharipour, Mohammad, ed. *The Bazaar in the Islamic City: Design, Culture, and History*. American University in Cairo Press, 2012.  \n  \nZarcone, T., Mevlid Kandili, “La fête de la naissance du Prophète en Turquie”, Nathalie CLAYER et Erdal KAYNAR, “Penser, agir et vivre dans l'Empire ottoman et en Turquie”, Paris, Louvain, Walpole, MA, 2013: 308-320.","author":"Hiba Bizreh","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Digital photo"]},"78a0a931-9669-5643-bd59-4f57da550407":{"name":"Relief","description":"Cereals and olive oil were the bases of the local diet, wealth and trade. Their production expanded in al-Andalus thanks to technical innovations such as hydraulic and irrigation systems. Their implementation facilitated the control of agricultural cycles and changed working methods. Farming expanded into arid lands, increasing and diversifying harvests. The diversity of cultivated grains –wheat, rye, etc.– made it possible to develop multiple recipes for bread, an essential food shared by the whole of society.","type":"Relief","holder":"National Archaeological Museum","initial_owner":"Unknown","dates":"Hegira 4th century / AD 10th century","location":"Madrid","dimensions":"Height: 30cm, Width: 22.2cm, Thickness: 7.5cm","place_of_production":"Madinat al-Zahra","method_for_datation":"The piece came from archaeological excavations at Madinat al-Zahra.","method_for_provenance":"The piece came from archaeological excavations at Madinat al-Zahra.","provenance":"Córdoba, Spain","obtention":"The fragment was given to the National Archaeological Museum by the Comisión Provincial de Monumentos of Córdoba on 18 April 1901.","bibliography":"Hidalgo López, R. et al., “Elaboración de pan según indicaciones documentales hispanas de fines de la Edad Media”, *Meridies. Estudios de Historia y Patrimonio de la Edad Media*, 14, 2023: 7-33.  \n  \nRevilla Vielva, R., *El Patio arabe del Museo Arqueológico Nacional*. Descriptive catalogue, Madrid: Imprenta de Estanislao Maestre, 1932: 19, fig. 17.","workshop":"Madinat al-Zahra workshops","dynasty":"Umayyads of al-Andalus","author":"Helena Lahoz Kopiske","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","keywords":["agriculture","diet","Technical innovation","trade"],"materials":["carved, bevelled","Limestone"]},"78f02594-a873-58a6-aa68-7ebabf8da732":{"name":"*Oud* (Incense)","description":"Incense is traditionally used — and particularly on special occasions — to perfume one’s clothing, hair and body, and scent the home to welcome and honour guests. Three popular types of incense in the UAE and the Gulf region are *liban* (frankincense) a resin from the *Boswellia* tree species; *Bukhoor*, a mixture of aromatic woods, spices and oils; and the rare and expensive *Oud*, made from shavings of agarwood (*Aquilaria* species) infected by a fungi (*Phialophora parasitica*). The infected wood produces a dense and fragrant protective resin, which releases a unique scent when heated.","type":"Incense","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century / AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Varies and depends on the fragment of wood. Length: 40mm, width: 15mm","method_for_datation":"Purchase date","method_for_provenance":"Current traditional practice","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Amanda Snyder, Mona Mukhashab","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["Incense","Oud"],"materials":["Wood"]},"78fd5c1b-903d-5e4d-a4fa-83c8d3da2f2e":{"name":"Bowl with two dancing girls, a flowering tree and bands of script","short_description":"This bowl was made in the *mina’i* technique, which was developed by potters in Kashan and was very popular in the late 12th century. *Mina’i* ware is identified by the use of coloured pigments under the glaze. Like many vessels made during this period, the bowl is coloured with muted colours and gold overglaze and was fired several times.  \nThe Inside of the bowl is decorated with two figures dancing around a small flowering tree, their headdresses flying. The edge of the bowl is inscribed in *kufic* script, wishing the owner happiness. The colourful picture resembles miniature paintings of the era and it is reminiscent of the rural life and cultural ceremonies of the region, possibly referring to Norouz, the Iranian New Year ceremony.","type":"Bowl","holder":"MKG Museum for Applied Arts","dates":"Hegira late 6th century-early 7th century / AD late 12th-early 13th century","location":"Hamburg","dimensions":"Height: 6.5cm, Diameter: 15cm","method_for_datation":"By stylistic analysis and by comparison with pieces from the Seljuq period.","method_for_provenance":"Gift of French Comp. Inc., New York.","provenance":"Iran, Kashan","obtention":"Endowment.","bibliography":"Haase, C.-P., Kröger, J. and Lienert, U., *Oriental Splendour: Islamic Art from German Collections*, Hamburg: Museums für Kunst und Gewerbe Hamburg, 1993.  \nHagedorn, A. and Wolf, N., *Islamische Kunst*, Köln: Taschen, 2009.  \nHohl, H. and Eckhardt, W. (eds), *Jahrbuch der Hamburger Kunstsammlungen*, vol. 20, Hamburg: Dr. Ernst Hauswedell und Co. Verlag, 1975.  \nJakobsen, K., *Islamische Keramik*, Hamburg: Bilderhefte des Museums für Kunst und Gewerbe Hamburg, 1959. Pope, A. U., *Masterpieces of Persian Art*, New York: Asia House, 1954.  \nSchimmel, A., *Islamic Calligraphy*, New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1992.  \nWilkinson, C. K., *Iranian Ceramics*, New York: Asia House, 1963.  \nWilkinson, C. K., *Nishapur: Pottery of the Early Islamic Period*, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1973.","dynasty":"Seljuq","copy_editor":"Caitlin Link","keywords":["ceramics","Minai"],"materials":["fritware, paint (gold and other pigments)","Mina'i ware"]},"79968466-a94b-5053-a5e9-1155df32e285":{"name":"Wash basin and jug.","description":"The jug and basin were used at court on dining tables for the washing of hands. Medieval Arabic sources include descriptions of this sort of utensil. The daughters of amirs, viziers, high-ranking noblemen, officials and merchants all had this hand-washing equipment as part of their trousseau. Judging by the iconographic motifs of its decoration, the Berlin jug and basin look as if they were made for a lawyer. The inscriptions include blessings of a general nature (well-being, wealth, health, knowledge and leniency) for the unknown owner. Its original magnificence is clearly visible, as it has been excellently preserved.  \nJudging by its shape, with its flap lid and straight spout, the jug has been made as a sculpted three-dimensional form. Its body, shoulder and neck are decorated with three friezes featuring figurative motifs within medallions of different sizes. The medallions are filled with depictions of thrones and riders and images of planets. The base of the neck shows 11 arched fields with standing figures in the style of Christian representations. A unicorn is being hunted in the animal frieze on the jug’s shoulder. There are additional Arabic well-wishing inscriptions within the friezes or spread over the jug.  \nIn the bottom of the basin, six planets are drawn encircling the sun, and in a second frieze, the signs of the Zodiac are depicted in relationship to particular planets. As on the jug, the outer surface of the basin is decorated with six large medallions that depict a prince flanked by two bodyguards, scenes of hunting and revelry. They are linked together by an inscription wishing for strength and victory, knowledge and leniency, qualities belonging to Allah.  \nThe complexity of the design and the highest quality of craftsmanship substantiate the high status of the person who commissioned its making. The jug and the basin are even signed with the name of the craftsman, which demonstrates that the artist was also held in very high regard.","short_description":"The extremely fine design and workmanship of this basin and jug demonstrate the skill of the metal craftsmen working in Mosul around 1270. Commissioned by someone of high rank and depicting the planets and scenes of courtly life, the set may have been used for washing hands on special occasions.","type":"Wash basin, jug, metalwork","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art at the Pergamon Museum","dates":"Hegira second half of 7th century / AD second half of 13th century.","location":"Berlin","dimensions":"Jug: height 37 cm, diameter 20.6 cm; basin: height 17 cm, diameter 43 cm.","method_for_datation":"The artist, ‘Ali ibn ‘Abdallah al-‘Alawi, who signed both the jug and the basin, lived during the mid-7th / mid-13th century.","method_for_provenance":"The artist, who signed both the jug and the basin, includes in the inscription of his name an indication of his town of origin: al-Mawsili, ‘from Mosul’, signifying where he was born or where he worked. The signature and the motif of the figure with a crescent in front of its body suggest that it is very probable that this piece originates from Mosul.","provenance":"Mosul, northern Iraq.","obtention":"From a private art gallery in 1938.","bibliography":"Baer, E., *Ayyubid Metalwork with Christian Images*, Leiden, 1989, pp.15-17, plates 50–1.  \nHagedorn, A., *Die Blacas-Kanne: Zu Ikonographie und Bedeutung Islamischer Metallarbeiten des Vorderen Orients im 13. und 14. Jahrhundert*, Münster, 1992, no. 28.  \nKühnel, E., “Zwei Mosulbronzen und ihr Meister”, *Jahrbuch der Preußischen Kunstsammlungen* 60, 1939, pp.1–20.  \n*Museum für Islamische Kunst*, Mainz, 2001, pp.72–3.  \nRice, D. S. “Inlaid Brasses of the Workshop of Ahmad Al-Dhaki al-Mawsili”, *Ars Orientalis* 2, 1957, pp.225–53.","dynasty":"Post-Zangid","author":"Annette Hagedorn","translator":"Maria Vlotides, Brigitte Finkbeiner","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["brass","inlay","Mosul","Zangid"],"materials":["Brass, gold and silver inlay."]},"7a68823e-191b-5fd3-bb5a-c45c2eb03deb":{"name":"*Qolla* jar for provisions","description":"Directly inspired by the *khabiya*, a large jar for food preservation, this pot was used to store and preserve liquids such as oil or water, and various foods. The decoration includes a stylised branch motif with alternating leaves called *babbouch* (snail).","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","dates":"Hegira 13th-14th / AD 19th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 30.5cm, Diameter: 24cm, Base diameter: 10.5cm, Opening diameter: 13.5cm","provenance":"Tunis, Tunisia","obtention":"Purchased at auction on advice from Ader-Picard-Tajan, 1994.","bibliography":"Biro, A., *Couleurs de Tunisie: vingt-cinq siècles de céramique* . Paris: Institut du monde arabe, 1994: Fig. 167-168.  \n  \nDelpont, E., et al., *Album du musée*, Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, 2012: 291.  \n  \nLoviconi, A. and N., *Faïences de Tunisie: Qallaline et Nabeul*, Aix-en-Provence: Edisud, 1994: 72-73.  \n  \nMoulierac, J., et al., *Céramiques du monde musulman: collections de l'Institut du monde arabe et de J.P. et F. Croisier* , Paris: Institut du monde arabe, Paris, 1999: 151.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["Clay","design painted on opaque glaze"]},"7a94e504-793e-5d4f-8a12-0fe92e32a0e7":{"name":"Jug with depiction of animals","short_description":"The shape of this jug with handles ending in dragon heads comes from Timurid Iran. On the body of the jug and amidst Ottoman decoration hunting scenes are depicted with fantastic and real animals. On the neck paradisiac scenes: two naked figures under a tree, a bear holding a musical instrument and peaceful animals. This animal style originates in German Renaissance silver and was adapted into the repertory of the Balkan Christian workshops before passing into the Iznik ceramics.","type":"Silver jug","holder":"Benaki Museum","dates":"Hegira 10th century / AD second half 16th century","location":"Athens","dimensions":"Height 16 cm","provenance":"Balkans","dynasty":"Ottoman","keywords":["animal decoration","figurative decoration","garden","hunting","imaginary animal","Ottoman Balkans"],"materials":["Parcel-gilt silver"]},"7aacbb88-ad52-5968-8bde-ffaeaaf35c53":{"name":"Tray (*sinija*)","description":"Copper tray – *sinija* (Tr. *sini*) – of circular form with raised omphalos in the middle, which is the center of the rosette with pointed petals and flower motifs within. The broad band that frames the central design is decorated with zoomorphic ornaments, composed of twisted vines and heads of different animals like leopards, lions, elephants, etc. Islamic brass or copper trays were used as serving trays for food and beverages, as well as decorative items in homes or public places.","type":"Tableware","holder":"Museum of Applied Art","dates":"Hegira 12th century / AD 18th century","location":"Belgrade","dimensions":"Diameter: 617mm, weight: 4370g","place_of_production":"Persia","method_for_datation":"By stylistic and comparative analysis with related material.","obtention":"Purchased in 1951.","bibliography":"Karamehmedović, M. A., *Umjetnička obrada metala*, Sarajevo: Veselin Masleša, 1980: 160–161, 164.","author":"Mila Gajić","keywords":["Copper","Persia","sinija","Tableware","Tray"],"materials":["Copper","tinned, hammering, engraving"]},"7bf56987-b874-51e5-91e1-bf19f3afba07":{"name":"*Tabica* (small board).","description":"The splendid collar-beam framework of Teruel Cathedral, which has been erroneously described as a coffered ceiling, is one of the examples of Mudéjar carpentry most studied by art critics for several reasons, including its extraordinary iconographic and iconological complexity and its significance in the social context, and the interest generated by its style and dating, which has been helped by analysis of the wood. Among other items, the National Archaeological Museum holds two *tabicas* (small wooden boards) from the gables or planking, one of which shows a male figure and the other, the one examined here, a female figure.  \nThe woman is from the working class, a water bearer dressed in a long-sleeved, corded tunic or dress tied at the waist. The decorative horizontal lines give her a characteristic air. Her hair is short and her head appears to be uncovered, uncommon in figures on ceilings. She is carrying a two-handled jar. The flat colours are dominated by reds, whites and black outlines.  \nIt is possible to determine the *tabica*'s original position in the eighth section on the left, in the very place where a bomb fell during the war in 1936","short_description":"This *tabica* (small wooden board) decorated the planks in the roof of Teruel Cathedral, showing the different classes of Mediaeval society. The figure is a water bearer dressed in contemporary costume: a long-sleeved dress tied around the waist.","type":"Woodwork, board, tabica, wood","holder":"National Archaeological Museum.","dates":"Late 13th century.","location":"Madrid","dimensions":"Height 36 cm, width 23.8 cm, depth 1.7 cm.","method_for_datation":"From its style and from dendrochronological analysis of the wood.","method_for_provenance":"When giving this and three other pieces to the National Archaeological Museum, the donor, Pablo Gil y Gil, a professor at the University of Saragossa in 1869, reported that they came from the roof.","provenance":"Cathedral of Santa Maria de Mediavilla, Teruel, Spain.","obtention":"The piece was donated to the National Archaeological Museum on 19 August 1869.","bibliography":"Alquézar Yáñez, E., Arias Sánchez, I. and Franco Mata, A., “Carpintería y Elementos Arquitectónicos Mudéjares en el Museo Arqueológico Nacional Procedentes de Aragón”, in *Actas del VI Simposio Internacional de Mudejarismo, Teruel, 16–18 September 1993*, Teruel, 1996, p.874.  \nRabanaque, E., Novella, A., Sebastián, S. and Yarza, J*., El Artesonado de la Catedral de Teruel*, Saragossa, 1981.  \n*Mudéjar Art: Islamic Aesthetics in Christian Art*, pp.82 and 107–10.","dynasty":"Mudéjar","linkcatalogs":"IAM_ES_EN_001","author":"Ángela Franco","copy_editor":"Rosalía Aller","translator":"Laurence Nunny","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["collar-beam roof","Mudéjar","polichromy","Tabica","Teruel","wood"],"materials":["polychromy.","Wood"]},"7e379f31-6dae-5207-977d-3021cf599c7d":{"name":"Coffee Cup Holder","description":"The base and body rim are segmented, and the inside of the segment is filled in with filigree. One hollow flower is attached to the inside of the slices on the body and to the borders where the segments meet.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Ankara Ethnography Museum","owner":"The Republic of Türkiye Ministry of Culture and Tourism","location":"Ankara","dimensions":"Height: 5.5cm, diameter 4cm","dynasty":"Ottomans (AH 698–1340 / AD 1299-1922)","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["silver","telkari (filigree) technique"]},"7e9c43e1-9c01-5ae6-aa4e-69ea000166c4":{"name":"*Shahnameh by Firdowsi* (Social Gathering for Entertainment)","description":"The text is written in verse and prose in six columns in black ink and *taliq* calligraphy on Harar paper. The outer edges of some pages are decorated with the *halkâr* technique, while the chapter titles are illuminated in a style typical of the period. Pages 1b and 2a are entirely covered with miniatures, with the scenes surrounded by illuminated edging. The book contains 32 miniature scenes, each depicting a story from the *Shahnameh* painted in the Timur-school style.  \nThe volume is bound in black leather over cardboard and is of a similar period. Four *salbek*s are at the corners, and in the centre of the white umbrella on the covers. The outer border panels are decorated with a variety of colours in the *kat’ı* technique.","type":"Manuscript","holder":"Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts","dates":"AH 10th century /AD 16th century","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"42cm x 18cm","obtention":"The item was brought to the Museum from Hekimoğlu Ali Paşa Library on 1 March 1914.","dynasty":"Safavids (AH 907–1150 / AD 1501–1737)","materials":["Finished (aharli) paper, ink, gilding, leather binding"]},"8153536b-21de-5451-826b-5c0aed191888":{"name":"Bowl","short_description":"Some *mina’i* ceramics enjoy a particularly close relationship to poetry. Many examples are inscribed with verses, and others are decorated with figures referring to well-known poetic themes and tales. Several of these colorful wares, including this bowl, appear to depict the act of poetic recitation itself: taking place at a *majlis* (an assembly of courtiers and literati for the purpose of poetic recital), it can be imagined that the performer here, seated at the left before a courtly audience, is delivering the verses inscribed along the exterior rim of the bowl, which begin: \"If the beloved leaves me, what am I to do? If s/he does not see the wisdom of our union, what am I to do?\"","type":"Furnishings","holder":"Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA)","dates":"Hegira Muharram 583 / AD March 1187","location":"Los Angeles","dimensions":"9.2 x 21.27cm","method_for_datation":"The bowl is dated Hegira Muharram 583 / AD March 1187. It is one of five *mina’i* bowls dated to the month of Muharram in its inscriptions. Among these, three have very similar scenes of a literary *majlis*. Two of them, the LACMA bowl and another in the British Museum (1945,1017.261) are dated Muharram 583, the third, in the Metropolitan Museum of Art (64.178.1), dated 4th Muharram 582 / AD 27th March 1186, is signed by Abu Zayd. Both the Metropolitan Museum and LACMA bowls share the same curious figure at far left, a young man standing with his right leg bent and foot pointing downward; in the former, the figure is clearly holding his leg as though tired from standing. The LACMA bowl can be attributed to Abu Zayd, who not only created works in both *mina’i* and luster but was a talented poet. He is known to have included some of his own verses among the poetic inscriptions on his luxury ceramic wares.","method_for_provenance":"The bowl is decorated in the *mina’i* technique. A modern designation from the Persian word for \"enamel\", *mina’i* is almost entirely restricted to Seljuq Iran. While *mina’i* wares once were variously attributed to several sites on the basis of archaeological finds, the evidence demonstrates at present that the central Iranian city of Kashan was the nucleus for the production of these objects as well as contemporary luster wares; in fact, both types of wares were made by some of the same potters, in the same workshops. The *mina’i* technique involves the application of as many as seven colors, resulting in a well-controlled, polychromatic decorative surface not possible in other contemporary pottery types. The method for producing the polychrome enamel pigments is described in a treatise on pottery making by Abu’l-Qasim of Kashan, completed in Hegira 700/1301 AD, by which time *mina’i* or haft rang (“seven colors”) wares, as they are known in the textual tradition, were no longer being produced.","provenance":"Iran, Kashan","obtention":"Possibly acquired by Mr. and Mrs. Allan C. Balch (1864-1943, and 1863-1943, respectively) from MacDermid Parish-Watson, New York (d. 1948). Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Allan C. Balch, until 1945 (gifted to); LACMA, gift of Mr. and Mrs. Allan C. Balch.","bibliography":"Komaroff, Linda, *Lo Terrenal y lo Divino: Arte Islámico siglos VII al XIX Colección del Museo de Arte del Condado de Los Ángeles*, Santiago: Centro Cultural La Moneda, 2015: 79.  \nKomaroff, Linda, *Beauty and Identity: Islamic Art from the Los Angeles County Museum of Art*, Los Angeles: Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 2016: 152-153, cat. no. 73.  \nPancaroglu, Oya, \"Potter's trail: an Abu Zayd ewer in the Saint Louis Art Museum,\" in Venetia Porter and Mariam Rosser-Owen (eds), *Metalwork and Material Culture in the Islamic World: Art, Craft, Text*, London: I.B. Tauris, 2012: 397-409.  \nPope, Arthur Upham, and Ackerman, Phyllis (eds), *A Survey of Persian Art from Prehistoric Times to the Present*, Vol. 5, London: Oxford University Press, 1938: plate 687; Plates 511-980: Architectural Ornament; Pottery and Faience; The Art of the Book.  \nWatson, Oliver, “Documentary Mina’i and Abu Zaid’s Bowls,” in Robert Hillenbrand (ed), *The Art of the Saljuks in Iran and Anatolia: Proceedings of a Symposium Held in Edinburgh in 1982*, Costa Mesa, CA: Mazda Publishers, 1994: 171.","dynasty":"Seljuq","author":"LACMA Staff","keywords":["bowl","ceramic","figural motifs","Fritware","inscription","Iran","Kashan","Minai","overglaze-painted","poetry","Seljuq"],"materials":["Fritware, inglaze- and overglaze-painted (mina'i)"]},"81885d7a-1511-5ad9-862a-b08626bdae85":{"name":"Pitcher (*dolcha*)","description":"The *dolcha* is used to serve various drinks such as *gulab* (rose water), *ovshara* (a syrup served cold), *iskanjabi* (a syrup made from honey and vinegar), which enhance the culinary culture of Azerbaijan. Rich, delicate floral patterns, *butas*, flowers, zoomorphic and geometric figures are depicted on the copper jugs of various shapes and capacities. Additionally, some inscriptions include the date of make and the names of the master, customer and owner are reflected: in this case, the date Hegira 1281 (AD 1864–1865) and the work order of merchant Abdul Ali are written on the lower right.","type":"Tableware","holder":"Azerbaijan National Carpet Museum","dates":"Hegira 1281 / AD 1864–1865","location":"Baku","dimensions":"Height: 25cm, width: 18cm","place_of_production":"Karabakh, Azerbaijan","method_for_datation":"By stylistic and comparative analyses with related material","obtention":"Purchased in 1971","author":"Rustam Afandiyev","keywords":["Azerbaijan","Copper","dolcha","drinks","pitcher"],"materials":["Copper","hammered, engraved"]},"8224937d-eb35-5a76-923e-7d2bb6181a08":{"name":"Coffee-roasting spoon","description":"In Oman, copper is a traditional material for making equipment related to the kitchen and dining room. Smiths still practice the trade along the coasts of al-Batinah and the interior; this spoon hails from the al-Dakhiliyah Governorate. Coffee-roasting spoons are one of the most important tools used in the preparation of Omani coffee in the *dallah* pot, where coffee beans are stirred until roasted and ready for grinding and boiling.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"The National Museum - Sultanate of Oman","dates":"Hegira early 15th/AD early 21st century","location":"Muscat, Sultanate of Oman","dimensions":"Length: 44cm, diameter (spoon bowl): 3.5cm","provenance":"Bahla, Al Dakhiliyah Governorate, Northern Oman","dynasty":"Al-Busaid Dynasty (AH 1167–present/AD 1754–present)","author":"Noora Al Balushi","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Brass"]},"823fdade-8900-58b3-bcda-59a5e61574cf":{"name":"Ewer and basin set.","description":"A set comprising two pieces: a ewer and a basin that was used for ritual ablution. The basin is large with a flaring rim. The ewer has a pear-shaped body, a curved handle and a lid. The flaring rim of the basin and the body, lid and lower part of the spout of the ewer are decorated with lozenges formed by small grooves. Vertical and horizontal grooves in the lozenges also form square motifs. On top of the lid are a flower-bud and leaf in keeping with the fashion of the time.  \n  \nThe set is decorated in a gilding technique known as *Tombak* and engraved. In Turkish metalwork gilding, especially of pure copper artefacts, appears in the AH 12th / AD 18th century. Technically, this method of gilding involves spreading an amalgam of powdered gold and mercury on the surface of the object, which is then fired in a kiln. The mercury evaporates during the firing, while the gold powder adheres to the surface. Sometimes gold leaf is placed on a mercury-coated metal surface, and when the mercury evaporates during firing, the gold leaf is fixed to the object.  \n  \nThe inscriptions on the ewer and the basin inform us that the objects were dedicated to the Tomb of Pertevniyal Valide Sultan, and they give the date of AH 1286 (AD 1870). Pertevniyal was the second *iqbal* (lit. 'fortunate one') of Sultan Mahmud II (r. AH 1223–55 / AD 1808–39). When she gave birth to Abdülaziz, she ascended to the highest female rank at court and when Abdülaziz ascended the throne in AH 1278 / AD 1861 she became the Valide Sultan (Mother of the Sultan, i.e. the Queen Mother). She had a complex built in her own name in the Aksaray Quarter of Istanbul. It comprised a mosque, a *maktab* (school), a *sabil* and a public fountain, and a tomb which was built for her in the courtyard of the mosque and in which she was buried when she died in AH 1300 / AD 1883. The Museum owns several objects taken from this tomb, some of which are in this exhibition.","short_description":"Gold has been the expression of economic power in all periods of history. *Tombak* is a technique that gives the look of gold to items and is used to decorate this ewer and basin set used by Pertevniyal Valide Sultan, mother of Sultan Abdülaziz, during religious ceremonies.","type":"Gilded copper, tombak technique","holder":"Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts.","initial_owner":"Possibly Pertevniyal Valide Sultan (d. 1300 / 1883; queen mother from 1277–92 / AD 1861–76).","dates":"Hegira 1286 / AD 1870.","location":"Sultanahmet, Istanbul.","dimensions":"Basin: height 12 cm, diameter 60 cm; ewer: height 30.5 cm.","method_for_datation":"Both the ewer and basin bear an inscription stating that they were dedicated to the Tomb of Pertevniyal Valide Sultan and giving the date of 1286 (1870).","method_for_provenance":"Both the ewer and basin were dedicated to the tomb of Sultan Abdülaziz's mother, Pertevniyal Valide Sultan, in Istanbul and, due to the fact that the *tombak* technique was used especially in Istanbul, it is highly likely that this set was produced there.","provenance":"Istanbul, Turkey.","obtention":"The ewer and basin were transferred to the museum in 1926 from the Tomb of Pertevniyal Valide Sultan in Istanbul, to which they were dedicated.","bibliography":"*Anadolu Medeniyetleri III, Selçuklu-Osmanlı (Anatolian Civilizations III, Seljuqs-Ottomans)*, Istanbul, 1983, p.305.","dynasty":"Ottoman","linkcatalogs":"IAM_TR_EN_001","author":"Alev Özay","translator":"Barry Wood, İnci Türkoğlu","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["Abdülaziz.","Basin","ewer","Mahmud II","Pertevniyal Valide Sultan","tombak"],"materials":["Gilded copper, known as the tombak technique."]},"84aca75b-106a-53be-b6ce-f390d4bbcb97":{"name":"Pilgrim flask","description":"A round bodied pilgrim flask covered with intricate polychrome decoration and painted with floral motifs and circular medallions with checkered designs and red dots. In the centre, there is a stylised flower in yellow and dark blue.","type":"Flask","holder":"Benaki Museum","dates":"AH 1112-1214/18th century","location":"Athens","dimensions":"Height: 17cm, body diameter: 14.5cm","place_of_production":"Kütahya","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Turkey","obtention":"Aquired in Alexandria","dynasty":"Ottoman (AH 698–1340/AD 1299-1922)","author":"Mina Moraitou","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Glazed ceramic"]},"854b0143-ae03-59b2-a467-18c4378eee8e":{"name":"*Kahveci başı*","short_description":"Sheet from *Costumes Turcs*, a lavish set of volumes produced in Turkey for a European audience. They present the appearance of people from different areas, with different jobs etc. Chief of the coffee-makers whose task it was to make coffee for the Sultan.","type":"Watercolour","holder":"The British Museum","dates":"c. 1790","location":"London","provenance":"Turkey","keywords":["costume","coffee","Orientalism","travel","traveller","fashion","court life"]},"85cf7a4a-6a0b-533a-a23e-b4e6fb959910":{"name":"Offering bitter coffee in a guesthouse","description":"The bitter, unsweetened coffee (*qahwa murra*) is drunk from a small, handleless porcelain cup (*finjan*), into which less than three sips are poured. The guest drinks the coffee immediately and is offered the opportunity to drink another cup. Out of politeness or taste, the guest accepts a second and possibly a third portion. To indicate that he does not want any more coffee, he waves the cup back and forth slightly between his thumb and index finger and adds the phrase *dayman*, meaning “May you always have the means to serve coffee!”  \nThere are various regional sayings about the three cups that are usually drunk. A Palestinian saying goes:  \n“The first cup, take to the generous who would feed his tribe bread and butter in hard times;  \nAnd the second cup, pass to the one who would sacrifice his soul to protect a refuge-seeker;  \nAnd the third, take to the one who would come forward, undeterred by barking dogs.”  \nThe effect of the coffee on the body is immediate: the long boiling process causes the bitter substances contained in the *Coffea arabica* to be released in such a way that the stimulant is felt and the immediate thirst is quenched.  \nCoffee was first introduced to the Muslim world by Sufis, who used it during their religious practises, as reported by the traveler Mustafa Ali, who visited Cairo in Hegira 1007/AD 1599.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Karin Pütt","initial_owner":"Karin Pütt","dates":"Hegira 1412 / AD 1992","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Nahiyat ad-Darbassiya/Syria","method_for_provenance":"Direct contact","provenance":"Nahiyat ad-Darbassiya/Syria","bibliography":"Lange, K., \"Heroic Faces, Disruptive Deeds. Remembering the Tribal Shaykh on the Syrian Euphrates\", Dawn Chatty (ed.),","author":"Karin Pütt","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Slide"]},"86141f73-f2d4-5de6-b66c-a5955dcb470a":{"name":"Public drinking fountain.","description":"This fountain was designed for the Mosque of Mustafa Lala Pasha. It resembles a bench and is made of fine marble decorated with calligraphic carving and geometric mosaics composed of coloured marble and mother-of-pearl. The upper section consists of a marble panel grandly engraved with two lines of Arabic inscriptions written in the busy and rhythmically over-lapping *diwani* script, a calligraphic type popular during the Ottoman era. A thin band of vegetal motifs divides the two lines of inscription. This central panel is flanked by a pair of curvilinear brackets that are also heavily ornamented with vegetal and calligraphic carvings.  \nThe inscription conveys that the fountain, referred to as a *rub*' (a unit of water measurement), was built and made available to the public in honour of Sultan Sulayman by the High Aristocrat Mustafa Pasha in AH 971 / AD 1564. The date seems to have been important as it is written numerically and alphabetically in three different locations within the inscription. This is the date upon which Mustafa Lala Pasha became the governor of Damascus and he would remain in this prominent position for the next five years. Of his *waqf* endowments to Damascus, he built a new mosque and a new *khan* with lavish water supplies. During the reign of Sultan Salim II (AH 973–81 / AD 1566–74) Mustafa Lala Pasha was assigned as the military commander to conquer Cyprus in AH 977 / AD 1570, one of the greatest victories of the Ottoman military.  \nThe inscription on this fountain translates as follows:  \n“The one who built this public *rub'*, may God make it the most useful, during the era of the most God-fearing sultan, the Sultan Sulayman Khan son of the Sultan Salim Khan, may God the Most Exalted raise him to the throne of the sultanate, is the High Aristocrat Mustafa Pasha, may God include him in the intercession of his mediator, the heir of the Ottoman kingdoms of the Sultan Salim Khan, the most God-fearing, may God light up his realm with his brilliant light, the utterance of this text was dictated and inscribed in the year nine hundred and seventy-one, 971 \\[1564\\].”","short_description":"An important marble fountain made in Damascus and dedicated to Sultan Sulayman the Magnificent by the powerful military aristocrat and governor of Damascus, Mustafa Lala Pasha.","type":"Marble, mosaic, public monument","holder":"National Museum of Damascus","initial_owner":"The ruler of Damascus Mustafa Lala Pasha (r. AH 971–6 / AD 1563–9) in honour of Sultan Sulayman the Magnificent (r. AH 926–74 / AD 1520–66).","dates":"Hegira 971 / AD 1564.","location":"Damascus","dimensions":"Height 78.5 cm, width 1.50 m.","method_for_datation":"The inscription on the object includes the date of its completion in 971 (1564).","method_for_provenance":"The fountain is dated by the documentary records at the Museum.","provenance":"Mosque of Mustafa Lala Pasha, Damascus, Syria.","obtention":"The Mosque of Lala Mustafa Pasha in Damascus was demolished between 1928 and 1930 so that the Suq al-Hal could be built. However, this piece along with a number of other archaeologically valuable objects, were relocated to the Museum for preservation. This piece was registered at the Museum in 1931.","bibliography":"Abu al-Faraj al-Ush, M., *A Concise Guide to the National Museum of Damascus,* Damascus, 1969, p.183, p.244.","dynasty":"Ottoman","linkcatalogs":"IAM_TR_EN_001","author":"Mona al-Moadin","translator":"Hilary Kalmbach (from the Arabic)","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["Damascus","marble","mosaics","Mustafa Lala Pasha","public fountain","Selim II","Sultan Sulayman the Magnificent"],"materials":["Carved marble inlaid with marble mosaic and mother-of-pearl mosaic at the base."]},"869766dc-71ca-53a7-b67f-e1ed2b58d4ac":{"name":"La Goulette","short_description":"The expansion of the city of Tunis necessitated the construction of a large modern port which would be accessible to large-tonnage ships. Thus, in the early years of the French protectorate, the port of Tunis, La Goulette, saw a sharp increase in traffic. As well as a fishing port, the primary function of La Goulette, it also became an industrial centre thanks to the construction of a power plant on the north side of the canal, which served the tramways and the electric railway going to the northern suburbs. Finally, on the eve of the war, La Goulette had also become a residential town, particularly popular in summer for its seaside resorts.","type":"Photograph","holder":"Institut Supérieur d’Histoire Contemporaine de la Tunisie","dates":"1861","location":"La Manouba, Tunis","author":"Saloua Zangar","translator":"Flaminia Baldwin","keywords":["La Goulette port","Little Sicily"],"materials":["Paper"]},"882edb61-7d84-519e-90cd-1e8568e3abc4":{"name":"*Mokhfia* conical dish","description":"This conical plate, or *mokhfia*, is concave on a ring-shaped base. It has an arcade decoration called \"turtle\". In the centre of the dish a five-pointed star with green central point is inscribed in a double circle. Six blue dots are inside and five are outside of this star. From this central motif is a radiating design of five large green rounded forms, or scales, each with two dots on either side of a wide decorative stripe edged in yellow. The inside rim of the cup features a braided pattern enhanced with small blue strokes. This particular decoration and type of ceramic are characteristic of Moroccan work between the 17th and 19th centuries. They are widespread in Morocco and Spain. We note the Andalusian influence in certain motifs, such as the use of geometry.  \nThis piece cannot be attributed with certainty to a single production centre. However, Fes is the most important one of the period. The decoration with concentric arches called \"turtle\" is characteristic of these polychrome Moroccan ceramics. In the 19th century, the colours used were more assertive, the shapes heavier, and the designs less spontaneous than before.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","dates":"Hegira 13th century / AD 19th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 12cm, Diameter: 28cm","provenance":"Morocco","obtention":"Purchased at auction on advice of Piasa, 2002.","bibliography":"Delpont, Eric (et al.), *Album du musée*. Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, 2012: p. 294; p. 386.  \n  \nRoux, Jean-Paul (ed), *Arts de l'Islam: des origines à 1700*, Paris: Musée national de l'Orangerie (Réunion des Musées nationaux), 1971: Fig. 83.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["Ceramic with polychrome decoration enhanced with red lead"]},"891d79a5-c271-5792-99f2-8c563766ed94":{"name":"Dish","description":"Large, white plate adorned with sophisticated floral motifs such as blue tulips, red roses and other flowers, which had both ornamental and symbolic meanings. Rim decorated with black spirals. On the back side of the rim eight green and pale blue spots.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"National Museum in Kraków","initial_owner":"Muzeum Techniczno-Przemysłowe w Krakowie / Industrial Museum in Kraków","dates":"Late 10th century Hegira / Late 16th century AD","location":"Kraków","dimensions":"Diameter: 31cm, height: 5.4cm","method_for_datation":"Dating and origin based on similar pieces from other collections.","method_for_provenance":"Material, technique and design are characteristic for İznik, which was a centre of quality ceramic production in this period.","provenance":"İznik, Turkey","obtention":"Purchased by the Industrial Museum in Kraków from Adam Jaroszyński in 1896.","bibliography":"*Katalog wystawy kobierców mahometańskich, ceramiki azjatyckiej i europejskiej urządzonej w Muzeum Narodowem w Krakowie. Luty - czerwiec 1934*, Kraków, 1934, p. 97, fig. 215.  \n  \n*Wojna i pokój. Skarby sztuki tureckiej ze zbiorów polskich od XV do XIX wieku*, Warszawa 2000, p. 455, fig. 73.","dynasty":"Ottomans (AH 698–1340 / AD 1299-1922)","author":"Bożena Kostuch","keywords":["flowers","Islam","Iznik"],"materials":["polychrome painted under transparent glaze","Stone-paste (fritware)"]},"893a0815-f9f4-52c7-8775-ffe7b752a7e5":{"name":"al-Ghuta ash-Sharqiyya","description":"The apricots are pressed using a press installed in the orchard or in the sheltered part of the facility. This press is equipped with two superimposed sieves, one with large holes to remove the stones and another with a much finer mesh to remove the fibres, leaving only the juice to pass through. The juice is collected in a large-capacity basin of more meticulous construction; the interior is tiled and surmounted by a fixed metal structure. The model of press dates from the 1970s. This operation takes place when the heat dies down at the end of the afternoon.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Anne-Marie Bianquis","initial_owner":"Anne-Marie Bianquis","dates":"Hegira 1320 / AD 2002","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Ghutat Dimashq/Syria","method_for_provenance":"Direct contact","provenance":"Ghutat Dimashq/Syria","bibliography":"Al-Dawudi, F., \"L’abricot est ses dérivés dans la région syrienne\", thesis on pharmacy and chemistry, 1960, Damascus (in Arabic).  \n  \nBianquis, A.-M., “Modernisation d'un artisanat traditionnel: la pâte d'abricot dans la ghouta de damas”, *Bulletin d'études orientales*, T. 56 (2004-2005): 301-328.  \n  \nDenker, J., \"'Moon of the Faith:' A History of the Apricot and Its Many Pleasures”, (14 June 2016).","author":"Hiba Bizreh","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Photographic negative"]},"899ab17a-563d-52eb-b76f-6ab3b73e0e14":{"name":"*Fanayeel* or *Fanyaal* (Coffee cups)","description":"*Fanayeel* (Coffee Ccups)  \nCoffee is always served at the beginning of a visit and is repeatedly offered until guests politely signal that they have had enough by rocking their cup from side to side. In order to keep coffee hot and fresh for unexpected guests it goes through many stages. After roasting and grinding the coffee beans the grains are added to boiling water inside a large *dallah* (coffee pot) called a *khamra*. Next, the liquid is poured into a medium-sized coffee pot called a *taljeemah*. At this stage cardamom seeds, saffron and rose water may be added for flavour. From this jug, the coffee is poured into a serving dallah referred to as a mezallah, where the coffee is refined and filtered. The server must hold the mezallah with their left hand and distribute the *fanayeel* (coffee cups) using the right hand. The coffee should fill less than half of the cup.","type":"Coffee cup","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century / AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Height: 55mm, Ddiameter: 75mm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","method_for_provenance":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Amanda Snyder, Mona Mukhashab","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["ceramic","coffee","coffee cup","cup"],"materials":["Ceramic, paint"]},"89f6478a-1ada-5ce1-adfa-ba98750e463f":{"name":"Tray.","description":"A large brass tray with extensive silver inlay, much of it now missing. The layout is a study in circles: the central motif, a geometric pattern itself derived from intersecting circles, is linked to three circles which divide the surrounding inscription into equal parts. Within this arrangement there are further circles within circles. The whole composition serves as a framework for no less than seven inscriptions, whose verticals, arranged like spokes within wheels, provide a striking and satisfying visual contrast. The largest inscription reads, 'Glory to our master the Sultan, the wise, the diligent, the just, the warlike king – may his victory be glorified'! The same sentiments are reflected in all the inscriptions, right down to the tiny roundels which proclaim, 'Glory to our master, the Sultan'! A bold use of inscriptions, in which a laudatory text becomes the main part of the decoration, is a hallmark of Mamluk art. Although the identity of the patron is not clear (see below), a magnificent tray like this would have been a valued adornment of his court.","short_description":"A splendid brass tray extensively inlaid with silver to form geometric and calligraphic decoration. The bold inscriptions are particularly striking, although the identity of the sultan they praise is ambiguous. Such a tray would undoubtedly have been used at court gatherings.","type":"Metalwork, brass, silver, gold","holder":"Victoria and Albert Museum.","initial_owner":"Possibly either of the Mamluk rulers Sultan Abu Bakr (r. AH 742 / AD 1341) or Sultan Muhammad (r. AH 762–4 / AD 1361–3).","dates":"Hegira 742 / AD 1341 or AH 762–4 / 1361–3.","location":"London, England","dimensions":"Diameter 78.7 cm.","method_for_datation":"The style of the tray is that of the mid-8th / 14th century. The specific identity of the patron is ambiguous; the inscriptions make reference to 'al-Malik al-Mansur', a regnal name which was used by two Mamluk sultans in this period: Abu Bakr (r. 742 / 1341) and Muhammad (r. 762–4 /1361–3).","method_for_provenance":"Cairo and Damascus were the two most important centres of art production under the Mamluks.","provenance":"Cairo or Damascus.","obtention":"Purchased by the Museum in 1854.","bibliography":"Stanley, T., with Rosser-Owen, M. and Vernoit, S., Palace and Mosque: Islamic Art from the Middle East, London, 2004, p.97.","dynasty":"Mamluk","linkcatalogs":"IAM_EG_EN_001","author":"Barry Wood","copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["calligraphy","geometric patterns","inlay","inscription"],"materials":["Brass inlaid with silver and gold."]},"8a2ff55d-1f20-5c07-9cc0-adf4d8569dfe":{"name":"Incense burner","description":"Incense burners like this are usually made of clay mixed with water and kneaded until a mixture is formed that can then be shaped. The burner is then adorned with engravings, intricate drawings, and different colors. The incense burners are then fired in a kiln, after which they are ready for use. Note the handle; it makes the burner safe to carry from room to room. Incense occupies a central place in Omani life, as the passing of a fragrant burner at the end of a visit is customary in every region of the country.","type":"Ceramic, earthenware, acrylic colours","dates":"Hegira early 15th/AD early 21st century","dimensions":"Height: 10.5cm, width: 8.4cm, length (with handle): 11cm","provenance":"Dhofar Governorate","dynasty":"Al-Busaid Dynasty (AH 1167–present/AD 1754–present)","author":"Noora Al Balushi","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["Earthenware, acrylic colours"]},"8b04bc89-ef4a-56d1-a8a5-314527494983":{"name":"Stag aquamanile","description":"This aquamanile in the shape of a standing stag illustrates that animal motifs were considered suitable for handwashing vessels in Fatimid Egypt in the 10th and 11th century. The object is characterized by a cup-shaped opening, through which it can be filled with water, and spouts located in the snout and nostrils. The front of the snout is closed, instead water flows out from openings located on either side of the mouth. The handle is shaped like a slender and highly stylized quadruped standing on the stag’s back; it leans its front legs against the neck, where the cup is positioned, and stretches its head upwards, as if trying to reach the water source. Notably, aside from several folds in its skin, the stag’s body is not ornamented. This makes it one of the few Fatimid aquamaniles, and indeed one of the few Islamic animal figures, with an unadorned body surface.  \n  \nThe work is primarily compared with the only other known stag aquamanile, now located in Munich (Museum Five Continents, Inv.-Nr. 26-N-1). The motif of the drinking stag was transmitted into Islamic culture through the translations of the Physiologus, a didactic Christian text written in Greek by an unknown author in Alexandria during the 2nd century AD. It describes animals and fantastic creatures and provides accompanying moral commentary. Thus, both Christian and Islamic stag iconography refer back to the same source. In addition to stags and deer, there are other aquamanilia surviving today that originate from regions under the control of the Sasanian as well as the Umayyad, Abbasid, and Fatimid rule. These can be dated between the 6th/7th century and the early 13th century.  \n  \nThe handle and the spout reveal the function of the object; it allowed for the pouring of two streams of water onto two outstretched hands, so they may be washed. Its material made it unsuitable for holding wine and its large size prevented its use as a drinking vessel. Aquamanilia were most likely used in a courtly context for lavish festivities and private events with wine, singing, riddles, games, and friendly competition between poets. This would also explain the iconography of the aquamanilia, which refers to courtly culture. The imagery of the falcon, for example, was usually intended as a representation of sovereign power and a sign of authority.","type":"Aquamanile","holder":"Museo e Real Bosco di Capodimonte","owner":"Museo e Real Bosco di Capodimonte","initial_owner":"Nicola Santangelo (1785-1851)","dates":"Hegira 4th–5th century / AD 10th–11th century","location":"Naples","dimensions":"Height: 38cm, length: 27.3cm","place_of_production":"Egypt","method_for_datation":"Bibliography","method_for_provenance":"Bibliography","provenance":"Santangelo Collection, until 1967 in the Archaeological Museum, subsequently in the National Museum of Capodimonte","obtention":"Acquired in 1865","bibliography":"Olchawa, Joanna, in Claudia Höhl, Felix Prinz, and Pavla Ralcheva (eds.), Islam in Europa 1000-1250, exhibition catalogue, Regensburg: Schnele & Steiner, 2022, n. 77: 316–319; Scerrato, Umberto (ed.),  Arte islamica a Napoli. Opere delle raccolte pubbliche napoletane, exhibition catalogue, Napoli: L'Arte Tipografica, 1968, n. 1: 1","dynasty":"Fatimids","author":"Mario Epifani, Maria Rosaria Sansone","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","keywords":["Aquamanile, stag, Fatimid, Egypt, Museo e Real Bosco di Capodimonte"],"materials":["Copper alloy, cast, engraved"]},"8b6cb8d7-5e2c-57b5-b1ee-487c8180ac0d":{"name":"Khanqah of Baybars al-Gashanqir.","description":"The Khanqah of Baybars al-Gashanqir overlooks Jamaliyya Street, and is characterised by a large façade made of stone which is located on the western side of the building. The façade of the mausoleum, which is situated within the *khanqah* together with its enormous dome, occupies a large part of the building's façade. The entrance is located on the southern end of the facade and is composed of a recessed wall, crowned by an arch, with a semi-dome roof. The area below it is ornamented with corner *muqarnas* with pendentives. The entrance is panelled with marble, and carved with Qur'anic verses in black and white marble. Along the entire length of the building façade there is an engraved epigraphic inscription in *thuluth* script. The inscription consists of the decree to construct the building and grant it as an endowment for the *sufi*s, and also names the sponsor. Above the roof of the portal is a minaret that is composed of three stories, each of which is separated by *muqarnas* tiers. The minaret is crowned by a pinnacle in the form of a small lobed dome. It resembles the summits of Ayyubid minarets which assumed the form of a *mabkhara* (an incense burner) such as the minaret of the Madrasa of al-Salih Najm al-Din Ayyub, also in Cairo. The minaret also has the remains of ceramic tiling reminiscent of that used on the minaret of the Mosque of al-Nasir Muhammad in the Citadel of Salah al-Din al-Ayyubi, also known as Citadel of the Mountain (Qala'a al-Jabal).  \nThe *khanqah* consists of a rectangular, central open courtyard measuring 16.50 m x 20 m; there are two large *iwan*s on its east and west sides, the bigger of which is the *qibla iwan* measuring 10 m x 12 m. In the middle of the *qibla iwan* there is a stone *mihrab*, which is simple and devoid of ornamentation. This might be due to the fact that the building was a *sufi khanqah*. At the north and south sides of the courtyard are the cells or the living quarters designated for the *sufis*. The *waqf* deed for the *khanqah* indicates that the building comprised three stories which included 100 *sufi* cells for permanent residence. Today only 11 of these cells are extant. The floor of the mausoleum is decorated with black and white marble and the walls are adorned with fine marble revetment to a height of 3.6 m. The mausoleum contains the grave of the builder and a lofty *mihrab* panelled with fine marble. Many of the building's annexes, such as the bakery and the kitchen areas, have been destroyed.","short_description":"The *khanqah* (a hostel built to accommodate Sufis) had 100 cells on three floors, and a kitchen that provided each Sufi (mystic) with meat, food, three loaves of bread and dessert daily. For its upkeep the Sultan used craftsmen from Damascus, Aleppo and lands in upper and lower Egypt. When Sultan Ruqn al-Din Baybars al-Gashanqir was dethroned, Sultan al-Nasir Muhammad arrested and killed him. He seized all the establishment's property and deleted the Sultan's name from the epigraphic band on its facade. The *khanqah* remained out of service for 20 years.","dates":"Hegira 709 / AD 1309.","location":"Cairo","method_for_datation":"The building was dated based on an inscription band in the entrance passageway, which includes the date that construction was completed. Furthermore, the *waqf* deed specific to the building mentions that the Sultan Rukn al-Din Baybars ordered construction in 707 (1307) when he was a commander, and before he assumed power. The *waqf* document bears the number 6–22 and is preserved in the Office of National Archives in Cairo.","bibliography":"Abd al-Wahab, H.,*Tarikh al-Masajid al-Athariya bil Qahira \\[History of Historical Mosques in Cairo\\],* Cairo, 1994.  \nCreswell, K. A. C., *Muslim Architecture in Egypt, Vol II*, Oxford, 1960.  \nRizq, A., *Khanaqahwat al-Sufiya fi Masr fi al-'asr al-Ayyubi wa al-Mamluki \\[Sufi Khanqahs in Egypt in the Ayyubid and Mamluk Periods\\],* Cairo, 1997.  \nSalem, al-Sayyed Mahmoud 'Abd al-Aziz, *al-Ma'din al-Masriya – Nazra 'Amma 'an Aslaha wa Tatawuriha mundu al-Fath al-'Arabi hatta al-Fath al-Othmani \\[Egyptian Minarets – A General View of the Origins and Development from the Arab Conquest to the Ottoman Conquest\\],* Cairo, 1959.","patrons":"Sultan Rukn al-Din Baybars al-Gashanqir (r. AH 708–9 / AD 1309–10).","dynasty":"Mamluk.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_EG_EN_001","author":"Tarek Torky","copy_editor":"Majd Musa","translator":"Amal Sachedina (from the Arabic).","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["funerary architecture","khanqah","Mausoleum","religious architecture.","Sufi"]},"8b90eb6b-ced6-5988-a13e-7f83f166a462":{"name":"Coffee Container","description":"It is made of Lüleci clay. The base is in the shape of a circle and has a rounded centre. There is a Mevlevi headdress on the cover. It is decorated with flowers and parallel lines.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Ankara Ethnography Museum","owner":"The Republic of Türkiye Ministry of Culture and Tourism","location":"Ankara","dimensions":"Height: 12.cm, diameter: 3.8cm","dynasty":"Ottomans (AH 698–1340 / AD 1299-1922)","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["Terracotta"]},"8d436c70-8d15-5b93-b5b5-044a974ad60d":{"name":"Cooking pot.","description":"Pot with vertical straight rim with flattened lip and external flange, circular mouth and cylindrical neck. The body is shaped like a truncated cone with sharp carination close to the base. It has two strap handles with a central ridge and convex base. There are horizontal incisions around the rim, neck and body and fire marks indicate that it was used in cooking. The object has been restored.","short_description":"Kitchen implement with an extremely simple form and very little decoration. This type of pot was found in an Almohad oven excavated in Mértola and appears almost exclusively in this region, which helps to identify it as a local product.","type":"Pot, ceramic","holder":"Mértola Museum.","dates":"Early Hegira 7th century / early AD 13th century.","location":"Mértola., Beja.","dimensions":"Height 21.5 cm, width 35 cm, diameter (of rim) 23.5 cm, diameter (of base) 19 cm.","method_for_datation":"It was dated to the Almohad period on the basis of stratigraphy, since it was found in the abandoned levels of one of the houses of the citadel vacated after the Christian conquest of Mértola in AH 635–6 / AD 1238.","method_for_provenance":"This type of pot has been found in an Almohad kiln excavated in Mértola and is almost exclusive to this region. This indicates that it was produced locally.","provenance":"Mértola.","obtention":"Found in the archaeological excavations carried out by the Campo Arqueológico de Mértola in the citadel of the Castle of Mértola.","bibliography":"Gómez Martínez, S., “Catálogo da Cerâmica”, in *Museu de Mértola. Arte Islâmica*, ed. S. Macias, Mértola, 2001, pp.107–67.  \nTorres, C. and Macias, S. (eds.), *O Portugal Islâmico*, Lisbon, 1998, p.155.","dynasty":"Almohad","linkcatalogs":"IAM_PT_EN_001","author":"Susana Gómez Martínez","translator":"Gilla Evans","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["cooking","Daily life","food"],"materials":["Common ceramic made from reddish paste, modelled on a potter’s wheel and fired in an oxidising atmosphere."]},"8eee28ae-e98c-58dd-82dd-0212290a8232":{"name":"Strainer.","description":"The greyish earthenware fragment showing openwork at the centre was part of a jug with strainer. The slightly convex strainer was placed at the juncture of neck and shoulder of the vessel and was intended to protect the stored liquid from pollution and insects. Its design is inscribed in a circle and shows a quadruped passing to the left. The motif is set against a filigree background of rhombs. The major outlines of the animal, usually called a gazelle, are incised into the material. The remaining surface of the body is left plain. A striated zigzag line between two circles surrounds the quadruped.  \nDecorated strainers are known from excavations of sites dated to the AH 2nd–9th / AD 8th–15th century. Strainers of the Fatimid period, which was the high point of their development, show not only the most varied patterns, but also the most elaborated compositions and the finest execution. As well as gazelle-like quadrupeds, other zoomorphic motifs such as elephants, lions, hares, birds or fish are depicted on the strainers.  \nThe strainers are only small fragments of vessels, but they call attention to themselves. One reason might be the unexpected combination of simple earthenware, mostly undecorated on the outside, with costly designs inside the neck of the jugs. Another might be that the potters created a highly aesthetic form for a simple utilitarian object. The complex patterns of the openwork carried out within small areas reveal the skills of the craftsmen.","short_description":"Earthenware fragment which was integrated in a vessel as a strainer. The latticework displays a quadruped, possibly a gazelle, passing to the left. The strainer was placed at the juncture of neck and shoulder of the earthenware vessel to protect the stored liquid from insects and pollution.","type":"Strainer, earthenware","holder":"Museum of Mediterranean and Near Eastern Antiquities (Medelhavsmuseet).","owner":"National Museum of Fine Arts, Stockholm. In order to reorganise the expanding collections, the main part of the Islamic collection has been on permanent loan to the Museum of Mediterranean and Near Eastern Antiquities since 1982.","dates":"Hegira 5th century / AD 11th century.","location":"Stockholm","dimensions":"Diameter 6.5 cm.","method_for_datation":"A strainer also showing a gazelle was excavated at al-Fustat and dated according to numismatic evidence of undisturbed loci to the 5th / 11th century.","method_for_provenance":"Similar strainers were excavated at al-Fustat and their place of manufacture ascribed to the city. According to F. R. Martin, this strainer comes from excavations at al-Fustat.","provenance":"Al-Fustat, Egypt.","obtention":"Purchased from the collection of the Swedish art dealer and art historian F. R. Martin in 1921.","bibliography":"Olmer, P., *Catalogue Général du Musée Arabe du Caire: Les Filtres de Gargoulettes*, Cairo, 1932.  \nScanlon, G. T., *Fustat Expedition Final Report. Vol. 1: Catalogue of Filters*, Winona Lake, 1986.  \nWittkowski, G., “Arabic Filters from the Collection of the Cracow Archaeological Museum”, *Materialy Archeologiczne* XXX, 1997, 41–55.","dynasty":"Fatimid","author":"Friederike Voigt","copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["animal decoration","earthenware","purity of water","water","zoomorphic imagery"],"materials":["Earthenware","unglazed, incised."]},"8ef1e4eb-e7ca-506a-8117-7e5c9d0e9a18":{"name":"Small Octagonal Pavilion Tent","short_description":"A tent comprising eight contiguous panels, each measuring 211cm x 135cm, and an octagonal canopy of eight triangular pieces. The plain-weave cotton exterior is embroidered with silk and metallic yarns, and the interior is lined with woven silk panels.  \nThe exterior of the tent is a plain-weave cotton, which is resistant to sunlight and less likely to be damaged by rain, while the interior is lined with more fragile and luxurious silk fabric. The form of this small pavilion tent inevitably recalls the shape of medieval Iranian octagonal tomb structures or gunbad, whose decorative brickwork frequently includes corner columns or \"tent poles.\"  \nOne of the eight wall panels is designed to open as an entrance, and the central part of each wall panel is embellished by a fabric \"grille\" that clearly imitates Persian wooden or metal grille-work. The design provides plenty of shade and privacy coupled with maximum air circulation, and the door panel could be closed for additional privacy.","type":"Textiles","holder":"Saint Louis Art Museum","dates":"Hegira Mid 12th to early 13th century / AD late 19th century","location":"Saint Louis","dimensions":"Length: 345.4cm x Width: 406.4cm x Diamter: 406.4cm","method_for_datation":"Scholarly review and/or comparison to similar objects from the period.","method_for_provenance":"Scholarly review and/or comparison to similar objects from the period.","provenance":"Rasht, Persia (Iran), Asia","obtention":"Gift of James F. Ballard, 1929","bibliography":"Denny, Walter and Farnham, Thomas, *The Carpet and the Connoisseur: The James F. Ballard Collection of Oriental Rugs*, Saint Louis: The Saint Louis Art Museum, 2016.","dynasty":"Qajar","keywords":["Asia","cotton","Iran","Metallic","Octagonal","Pavillion","Persia","Persian","Rasht","silk","tent","textile","Yarn"],"materials":["Silk, cotton, metallic yarns"]},"90313d34-f14e-568c-b0bd-898e9a4aef37":{"name":"Bowl","description":"This bowl was made using the *mina'i* enamel technique. Patterns and figures are depicted in cobalt blue, brown, green, red and black on a white primed surface. The centre of the bowl depicts a round-faced, almond-eyed, human figure with arched brows holding a goblet while seated cross-legged on a throne. On each side of this figure is a person standing with folded arms.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"The Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts","dates":"The Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"20.6cm, 8.6cm","place_of_production":"Iran","dynasty":"Great Seljuqs (AH 429–552 / AD 1038–1157)","materials":["Ceramic","Mina’i technique"]},"90e3e9c4-c63a-5a36-8816-be80a1947fe7":{"name":"Tray *majmayi*","description":"This large, round tray (*majmayi*) for serving pilaf appeared at large feasts, such as weddings, engagements and funerals. They are usually made of copper and richly engraved with floral motifs and inscriptions in Arabic, usually the name of the owner and/or master, year of production, *ayahs* from the Quran, as well as wishes for owner's well-being. Such inscriptions were normally depicted inside cartouches. In 2015, the copper craftsmanship of Azerbaijani Lahij was inscribed on the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. According to the calligraphic inscription on the item, it dates to 1869–1870. It has a wavy edge and an inscription of a couplet from Hafez’s poetry engraved in the cartouch:  \n\"Saqi, brighten our cups with the light of wine.  \nSing, Minstrel. The world is now as we wished it.\"","type":"Tableware","holder":"Azerbaijan National Carpet Museum","dates":"Hegira 1285–1287 / AD 1859–1870","location":"Baku","dimensions":"Height: 35mm, diametre: 600mm","place_of_production":"Karabakh, Azerbaijan","method_for_datation":"By stylistic and comparative analyses with related material","obtention":"Purchased in 1971","author":"Rustam Afandiyev","keywords":["Azerbaijan","Copper","Karabakh","majmayi","Tableware","Tray"],"materials":["Copper","engraved, hammered."]},"9107cee6-86c6-50d5-afa3-39c67845bd31":{"name":"Cup stand (*zarf*)","description":"These delicate silver pieces known as *zarf* are an important part of the coffee ritual in Turkey, as they work as a protection and stand for the hot cups. We can admire those pieces as a part of the scenography in the portrait of the marquise of the Cerralbo and his daughter in Turkish costume made by Abdullah Fréres.","type":"Silverwork","holder":"Cerralbo Museum","dates":"Late 19th century","location":"Madrid","dimensions":"5,5 cm","provenance":"Turkey, Istanbul","author":"Cecilia Casas Desantes","copy_editor":"Anne Dowell","keywords":["Silver","Commodities"],"materials":["Silver"]},"92830f7a-b5c3-5e7e-9a7f-a0686de50300":{"name":"*Peškun*","description":"This *Peškun* (Tr. *peşkun*) has a base of ten vertical sides that carry a protruding decagonal plate at the top. The sides are also divided horizontally into three zones, the highest of which has a central flower motif, the middle a honeycomb-like openwork ellipse, and the lowest an opening in the form of a pointed five-leafed arch, below which is a flower with leaves and a rounded three-leafed arch. On the upper panel, there is a star-shaped field with a flower in the center of it, while other floral motifs are in the spaces between the decagon and the arms of the star. All floral and geometric ornaments are made of mother-of-pearl and brass wire using the incrustation technique, while the edge of the decagonal top plate is ornamented with bone.  \n*Peškun* is the name of a traditional piece of Ottoman furniture in the shape of a table or stool. It was originally meant for sitting, although it had different purposes throughout history, especially as a decorative table in Balkan oriental interiors of the 19th and of the first half of the 20th century. Over time, the larger table (in the set of usually three pieces) began to be used as a coffee table, while the smaller ones were used as stools. *Peškun* were ordinarily made of walnut wood, ornamented with incrusted floral and geometric motifs made of mother-of-pearl and bone.","type":"Table","holder":"Museum of Applied Art","dates":"Hegira late 13th–early 14th century / AD late 19th century–early 20th century","location":"Belgrade","dimensions":"Height: 59.5cm, width: 46cm","place_of_production":"Austria-Hungary, possibly Sarajevo","method_for_datation":"By stylistic analysis, material, technique, and analogy with other similar examples.","obtention":"Purchased in 1951.","author":"Ana Samardžić","keywords":["incrustation","Ottoman Balkans","peškun","side table","stool"],"materials":["incrustation","Walnut, mother of pearl, bone, brass"]},"92b5f36b-5cba-54c2-8f14-3426b9111ac4":{"name":"Palais de la Rose","short_description":"The Palais de la Rose is an example of \"Moorish\" architecture from Spain and North Africa with Italian influences. Its most notable features are the grand staircase, the great hall surrounded by a marble gallery, and the huge, luxurious courtrooms. It is richly decorated in a variety of styles, with Italian marble in rare colours and an elegant rococo style, as can be seen from the Neapolitan faience pottery, the vaulted ceilings, and the tympanums finely carved from stucco or naqsh hadida in one of the styles popular at the time, such as an eight-point star between two stylised cypress trees. Finally, palace-museum's four great rooms invite its visitors to learn about the history of the Tunisian army from antiquity to the War of Independence.","type":"Palace and gardens","holder":"Ministère de la Défense nationale, Tunis","dates":"18th–19th centuries","location":"La Manouba, Tunis","history":"The Palais de la Rose was built in the late 18th century, within La Manouba's royal gardens. Although originally used as a recreational palace for the Husainid beys, it soon began to receive many famous guests or persons visiting Tunisia, such as Queen Caroline of Brunswick in 1816. During the reign of Ahmed Pacha Bey (1837–1855) the palace became a residence for foreign teachers at the École Militaire du Bardo, among whom was the famous hero of Italian independence, Giuseppe Garibaldi. From 1881, the beginning of the French protectorate in Tunisia, the palace became the occupying army's headquarters. Following independence, the palace was restored and thus regained its original splendour and the became home to the Musée Militaire National.","author":"Saloua Zangar","translator":"Flaminia Baldwin","keywords":["Architecture","art","painting","stucco","mosaic","marble","ceramics"]},"93ee1091-8763-5b6d-885f-d833bd95f55d":{"name":"Incantation bowl","description":"The bowl is inscribed in Mandean script, in Aramaic Mandean dialect. The text spirals from the bottom of the bowl about fifteen times around. The beginning of the text is unreadable because of a crystal deposits and blackening. The name of the sponsor, the beneficiary of these incantations, which is typically stated at the beginning of the text, remains unknown here. The remaining lines consist essentially of a repetition of names of demons exorcised by linked formulas, including the female demon Lilith, her ancestors (“all her families and lineages”), and her offspring. The Aramaic communities of Mesopotamia are heirs to ancient beliefs dating back to the Akkadian and even Sumerian texts, according to which demons were of an inexhaustible variety. The Mandean, because of his dualistic faith, believes in evil spirits whose harmful actions he dreads. Magic is therefore an essential aspect of his religious life. This practice, consisting in burying the cups thus inscribed at the four corners of the house, was widely diffused among the various religious communities of Mesopotamia until the Muslim conquest and beyond.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","dates":"Before Hegira 2nd-1st century / AD 6th-7th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 6.4cm, Diameter: 19cm, Base diameter: 5.8cm","provenance":"Nippur (?), Iraq","obtention":"Purchased at Art Musulman gallery in 1984.","bibliography":"Delpont, E., et al., *Album du musée*, Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, 2012: 295.  \n  \nMoulierac, J., et al., *Céramiques du monde musulman: collections de l'Institut du monde arabe et de J.P. et F. Croisier* , Paris: Institut du monde arabe, Paris, 1999: 151.  \n  \nSafadi, Y.H., *Calligraphie islamique*, Paris: Chêne, 1978: 6.  \n  \nRéunion des Musées nationaux, *Naissance de l'écriture: cunéiformes et hiéroglyphes*, Paris: Réunion des Musées nationaux, 1982: 113, 183, Fig. 73, 74.  \n  \nSoustiel, J., *La céramique islamique*, Fribourg: Office du Livre, 1985: 34, Fig. 16.  \n  \nTeixidor, J., \"The Syriac Incantation Bowls in the Iraq Museum\", Sumer,18 (1962): 51–62.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["inscription traced in black ink.","Unglazed ceramic"]},"9759fb2e-169a-5a39-8d80-11289577854b":{"name":"Al-Haswa Dagger (*khanjar*)","short_description":"Attributed to Imam Saif bin Sultan al-Yarubi I (*Qaid al-Ard’*)  \nCollections of Sultan Qaboos bin Said bin Taimur  \n  \nSaif bin Sultan I was the fourth of the al-Ya’aruba dynasty Imams of Oman (ruled Hegira 1104–23 / AD 1692–1711). He made the ar-Rustaq Fort his residence, adding the *Burj al-Riah,* “the wind tower”.  \n  \nThe Omani navy reached a great degree of development during the Imam’s reign, where his foreign policy was based on renewing the struggle against the Portuguese on the Persian, Indian and East African coasts. In Hegira 1110 / AD 1696, the Omani naval fleet attacked Mombasa, besieging the Portuguese who had taken refuge in Fort Jesus. The Siege of Fort Jesus (also known as the Battle of Mombasa), ended after 33 months when the remaining survivors surrendered. Soon after the Omanis took Pemba, Kilwa and Zanzibar, becoming the dominant power on the coast.  \n  \nAt home, Imam Saif bin Sultan invested in agrarian reform, building new *aflaj* water management systems and maintaining old systems; expanding the plantation of crops such as wheat, barley and sugar cane; planting date palm and fruit trees; introducing new varieties of plants such as turmeric, saffron and coffee; and establishing beekeeping.  \n  \nSaif bin Sultan earned the title Qaid al-Ard’ meaning \"the Earth's bond\" or \"the chain of the Earth\" for the benefits he brought to the people of Oman.","holder":"National Museum Oman","dates":"Hegira 1104–23 / AD 1692–1711","location":"Muscat","dimensions":"Dagger width: 17cm, dagger length: 33cm; Belt length: 133cm; Blade length: 31.5cm, blade width: 7.2cm","dynasty":"Al-Yarubi","copy_editor":"Liz Cooper","materials":["Rhinoceros horn, steel, wood, leather and silver"]},"9844c72d-8d2f-50e5-8d5b-86ef15a82164":{"name":"*Egyptian village scene*","short_description":"Egyptian men and women are seen here in a town or village on the Nile. In the shade of an overhanging tree a market stall displays its wares, including paper lanterns and bread. At the stall behind, sugar cane is for sale. In the background is a mosque with a white minaret, though not distinctive enough to establish the scene's locality. Pilleau had visited Egypt in the winter of 1842-43 with Lieutenant Colonel George Everest (after whom Mount Everest was named) and two other companions, on their way home from India. On his return to England he published a set of twelve coloured lithographs, Sketches in Egypt (1845), which, like the better-known publications of Wilkie, Roberts and Owen Jones in the same decade, fuelled popular interest in Egypt and the Holy Land.","type":"Painting; watercolour","holder":"Victoria and Albert Museum","dates":"1869 (painted)","location":"London","dimensions":"Height: 25.2 cm, Width: 35.3 cm","artist_birthdate":"1813","artist_deathdate":"1899","author":"Victoria and Albert Museum","keywords":["Economy","Market","sugar cane","Egypt","local product","rural life","eating","paintings"],"materials":["Water- and bodycolour over pencil, heightened with white, on blue/grey paper"]},"9895b895-3959-594b-bd4c-2539f527b755":{"name":"*Segaa* (milk churn)","description":"This *Segaa* (milk churn) was used to process milk into *laban* (buttermilk). Milk was poured into the bag and shaken from side to side to thicken into buttermilk. *Laban* tastes similar to yoghurt.","type":"Milk churn","holder":"Bait Al Naboodah Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century/AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Height: 650mm, length: 300mm, height: 230mm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","method_for_provenance":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Amanda Snyder, Mona Mukhashab","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["Churn"],"materials":["Goat skin, date-palm fibre, date palm leaf mid-rib stick"]},"99b86f8f-18fe-561f-b1d1-b10181beb328":{"name":"Baking flatbread in a *tannur* in an Assyrian village in northeast Syria","description":"Inhabitants of the western mountain areas and parts of northeast Syria bake the thicker (1–2 cm) flatbread that is baked on the wall of a bulbous vertical clay oven (*tannur*). To achieve the required temperature of the oven wall the firewood must be burnt down to embers.  \nThese ovens consist of an interior part made from clay mixed with goat hair and chaff, which is fired to become the inner wall. If the *tannur* should be placed above the ground, it will be given a thick coating of at least 30 cm from pieces of sun-dried mud brick and mortar, with a worktop to the side. These huge ovens are often placed in the corner of the courtyard or sometimes outside the compound as a common oven. In Syria rarely is a *tannur* dug into the ground, like the one in the photo taken in an Assyrian village in the Upper Khabur valley.  \nThe *tannur* bread (*hubz tannur*) requires more time to prepare, as yeast is added, and the dough is kneaded intensively. Preferably local wheat is used.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Karin Pütt","initial_owner":"Karin Pütt","dates":"Hegira 1410 / AD 1990","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Nahiyat Tall Tamr/Syria","method_for_provenance":"Direct contact","provenance":"Nahiyat Tall Tamr/Hasaka Province","bibliography":"Mulder-Heymans, N., \"Archaeology, experimental archaeology and ethnoarchaeology on bread ovens in Syria\", “Civilisations\". “Revue international d’anthropologie et de sciences humaines”, 49 (2002), 197-221. https://doi.org/10.4000/civilisations.1470  \n  \nPasqualone, A., \"Traditional flat breads spread from the Fertile Crescent: Production process and history of baking systems\", “Journal of Ethnic Foods”, vol. 5, issue 1, March 2018, 10-19.  \n  \nPütt, K., Zelte, \"Kuppeln und Hallenhäuser – Wohnen und Bauen im ländlichen Syrien\", Petersberg, 2005, 240.","author":"Karin Pütt","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Slide"]},"9a80618f-fbfd-5d5e-b4ee-f9684139776e":{"name":"Kirman carpet","description":"The name of Persia (modern Iran) is so intimately associated with oriental rugs that they are often referred to generically as “Persian”. The golden age of carpet weaving had been during the Safavid rule of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. The dynasty collapsed in 1722/3 and the country remained in turmoil for decades. It is likely that with the fall of Safavids most urban based weaving diminished greatly or ceased. All that remained was local production on a much reduced scale. The revival of the Persian carpet trade dates from the 1860s and was mainly due to enterprising merchants of the north-western city of Tabriz.  \nKirman has long been one of the major carpet-producing areas of Persia. Development of the carpet industry is poorly documented in Kirman, although there is clear evidence that weaving occurred during the Safavid times. Some of the best wool in the country is grown around Kirman. Weaving was well-developed during much of the 19th century. The rugs of Kirman always display a brilliant variety of colours and the number of shades is enormous. The dyes are varied and imaginative. Insect dyes have traditionally been used for reds and indigo was used for blues, providing a variety of shades. Colours can range from ivory, blue magenta to more golden and saffron cast.  \nPersian workshops in the towns of Kirman, Tabriz and Kashan were the main producers of pictorial carpets. They portray humans and/or animals and illustrate historical and mythological stories. Sometimes the composition makes one or more characters that show famous people or events from the past.  \nThis pictorial carpet was a gift to the Museum of Arts and Crafts from Kemal Nanić and his family. The figural compositions depict the scenes from the famous Persian tragic romance *Khusraw and Shirin* written by the poet and writer Nizami Ganjavi (1141–1209). The poem describes the romance of the Persian king Khusraw II Perviz (590–628) and his wife Shirin, an Armenian Christian. The novel includes Khusraw's courtship of Shirin, their marriage and her romance with the architect Farhad. After a series of heroic romantic episodes, Shirin agrees to marry Khusraw who later built her a palace called Qasr-e-Shirin (the remains are visible even today). For the construction of palace architect Farhad was hired. Shirin then fell in love with Farhad, but their romance ended tragically.  \nThe central field of the carpet is divided into four horizontal rows. Each row has a mirror image of a group of human figures. They illustrate scenes from the poem *Khusraw and Shirin*, including a famous scene when Khusraw glimpses Shirin bathing. The central field is framed with four equally wide borders. The inner border is the *laleh abbasi* (abbasi tulip) border. The other three borders are a variation of the floral meander border.","type":"Carpet","holder":"Museum of Arts and Crafts","dates":"Second half 19th century / beginning of the 20th century","location":"Zagreb","dimensions":"H: 303cm, W: 270cm","method_for_datation":"By stylistic analysis","method_for_provenance":"By stylistic analysis","provenance":"Iran","obtention":"Donated by Kemal Nanić","bibliography":"Klobučar, Andrea, “Zbirka tekstila i mode”, in M. Bagarić *et al*. (ed.), *Akvizicije MUO 2003. - 2013*, Zagreb: Muzej za umjetnost i obrt, Zagreb, 2013: 146-161; 225-226.","author":"Andrea Klobučar","translator":"Petra Milovac","translation_copy_editor":"Daniel de la Vega","keywords":["Kerman","medahil","Persia","pictorial carpet","pictorial rug"],"materials":["asymmetrical knots","Cotton","knotted carpet","wool"]},"9aa3edb0-723c-5c98-a50f-327c1df9829a":{"name":"*Maghsal Al Yad* (bowl and pitcher)","description":"*Maghsal Al Yad*; Aluminium bowl and pitcher  \nWater from the pitcher is poured over the hands often by the host helping the guest.","type":"Pitcher; bowl","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century / AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Height: 190mm, diameter: 365mm, height: 285mm, width: 220mm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","method_for_provenance":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Amanda Snyder, Mona Mukhashab","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["Basin","bowl","copper alloy","Handwash"],"materials":["Aluminium"]},"9ae96ed6-bd10-5baf-ba3d-16ece349d35e":{"name":"Bowl (*kasa*)","description":"The bowl's decoration includes a calligraphic inscription invoking Allah's blessing to the Fourteen Infallibles, the owner’s name (Mehdi) and the production date (AH 1221), in addition to floral motifs.","type":"Tableware","holder":"Azerbaijan National Carpet Museum","dates":"Hegira 1221 / AD 1806","location":"Baku","dimensions":"Height: 12cm, diametre: 24.5cm","place_of_production":"Azerbaijan","method_for_datation":"By stylistic and comparative analyses with related material","obtention":"Purchased in 1971","author":"Rustam Afandiyev","keywords":["Azerbaijan","bowl","Copper","kasa","Tableware"],"materials":["Copper","engraved, hammered."]},"9b34f332-f8dc-57eb-8c05-7765d9622dbd":{"name":"Coffee Cooler","description":"This carved wooden coffee cooler is mostly circular and has short zigzagging linear patterns on top. The date AH 1303 (AD 1885) is visible on a side.","type":"Woodwork","holder":"Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts","dates":"13th-14th century/AD 19th century","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"23cm x 15cm","dynasty":"Ottoman (AH 698–1340 / AD 1299-1922)","materials":["Wood"]},"9b938f78-dd1b-5b00-a709-62c11978cdc8":{"name":"Basin","description":"This basin was discovered in pieces at the end of the 19th century in the centre of Seville. Restoration work has reconstructed the bands of inscriptions, as well as the decoration on three of its sides.  \nThe front is decorated with three tri-lobed arches, framed by alfiz (frame) panels supported on columns. Each arch contains a plant sprouting leaves, palmettes, pinecones and intertwining stems. The space between the arch and the alfiz panel shows the same type of decoration, and the whole thing is framed by an inscribed strip.  \nThe right-hand side shows a space divided vertically into three parts. The central area is undecorated, probably to allow space for the water to come out, and the other two sides show similar scenes: eagles, seizing deer with their talons, bear two lions face to face on their outspread wings, while beneath them two griffins facing each other complete the scene. This iconography, of Sassanid origin, refers to power, abundance and eternity.  \nOnly the inscribed band is preserved from the third side, a strip with ducks and fishes, and, underneath it, the remains of a lion attacking a deer.  \nWe know from the inscription that this basin was commissioned for the royal palace of al-Zahira on the orders of al-Mansur, prime minister and favourite of Hisham II, who was still a child when he became Caliph in AH 366 / AD 976, following the death of his father al-Hakam II. The unstoppable rise to power of al-Mansur started shortly after the accession of Hisham II. With the intention of establishing a parallel dynasty to the legal Umayyad one, al-Mansur built a palatine city called Madinat al-Zahira. This new city, rival to Madinat al-Zahra, was in the eastern part of Córdoba, but limited material remains have survived to the present day. The city was burnt to the ground in AH 399 / AD 1009.","short_description":"Emulating the Umayyad caliphs who built Madinat al-Zahra, the hajib of Córdoba al-Mansur built the palatine city of Madinat al-Zahira, and he commissioned this ablutions basin for it, as stated on the inscription. Animal-shaped spouts would have emerged from the attached side pillars, of which only traces have survived.","type":"Basin, marble","holder":"National Archaeological Museum.","dates":"Hegira 377 / AD 988.","location":"Madrid","dimensions":"Height 68 cm, width 150 cm, depth 77 cm.","method_for_datation":"The inscription in *kufic* lettering says: '…Almanzor Abi Amir Muhammad ben Abi Amir and glory to God. \\[This was\\] ordered to be made for the royal palace of al-Zahira and was finished with the help and assistance of God under the direction of the great Amiri Fata in the year seven seventy and three hundred'. Consequently, the basin has been dated to 377 / 988.","method_for_provenance":"There are two other basins attributable to the same period and place, one of which can be found in the Alhambra Museum, Grenada, and the other in Marrakesh (Morocco). This latter was made for ‘Abd al-Malik, son of Al-Mansur. The three pieces have similar decorations of eastern origin on one of their sides.","provenance":"The missing royal palace of Madinat al-Zahira (Córdoba), Spain.","obtention":"The basin arrived at the National Archaeological Museum in stages. The two most important parts, the front and part of one of the sides, were bought on 22 November 1882. Another fragment arrived in 1923. Finally, on 30 July 1930, the last piece arrived from the Provincial Archaeological Museum of Seville.","bibliography":"Bernus-Taylor, M., ‘Les cuves’, in *Les Andalousies de Damas à Cordoue. Exposition presentée á l’Institut du monde arabe du 28 novembre 2000 à 15 avril 2001*. Paris : Hazan, 2000 : p. 133.  \n  \nEwert, C., *et al.*, “Denkmaler des Islam”, *Hispania Antiqua*, 21 (1997): 176.  \n  \nLévi-Provençal, E., *Inscriptions Arabes d'Espagne*, Paris : Larose, 1931: p.194.  \n  \nRevilla Vielva, R., *Catálogo de las Antigüedades que se Conservan en el Patio árabe del Museo Arqueológico Nacional*, Madrid: Imp. De Estanislao Maestre, 1932: p.77.  \n  \nRosser Owen, M., *Articulating the Hijjaba: Cultural Patronage and Political Legitimacy in al-Andalus. The ‘Amirid Regency c. 970-1010*, Leiden: Brill, 2021: pp. 274-282.  \n  \nTorres Balbás, L., ‘España Musulmana Hasta la Caída del Califato de Córdoba (711–1031)’, in *Historia de España, vol. 5*, Madrid: Espasa Calpe España, 1957: p.718.  \n  \nZozaya, J., ‘Antigüedades Andalusíes de los Siglos VIII al XV’, in *Guía General del Museo Arqueológico Nacional, vol. II*, Madrid: Ministerio de cultura y deporte, 1991: p.66.","dynasty":"Umayyads of al-Andalus, Caliphate period","author":"Margarita Sánchez Llorente, Beatriz Campderá Gutiérrez","copy_editor":"Rosalía Aller","translator":"Laurence Nunny","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["Basin","Palace","water"],"materials":["Carved marble."]},"9c2ac3c9-ddf9-5578-9e26-fad8ec3a615c":{"name":"Dhow collection","short_description":"The National Museum of Qatar holds, in its collection, a fleet comprising of 14 dhows. The growing collection includes a variety of traditional dhows, with several models dating to the early 20th century, as well as more recent replicas of traditional vessels. Originating from Oman, Bahrayn, India and Qatar, among other places traditional dhows represented include *jalbut* (small to medium sized), *shuw\\`i* (medium sized, once used for fishing and coastal trade), *sanbuq* (largest type in the Arabian Gulf today) and *baglah* (traditional, deep-sea dhows once used for the long – haul transport of goods.)","type":"Transport","holder":"National Museum of Qatar","dates":"19th century","location":"Doha","keywords":["Boat","ship","dhow","pearling","fishing","trade","transportation"],"materials":["Timber"]},"9dd54e6a-3ac7-5825-b7ce-cc73c549cb45":{"name":"Jar with lid.","description":"The spherical jar stands on a high foot and has a cylindrical rimless neck with a flat lid with a knob. The body is covered inside and outside with an opaque, pale turquoise-coloured tin glaze. In the lower part the glaze is not thick enough so that the reddish colouring of the body shines through the glaze. The abstract decoration of the jar is mainly composed of a series of vertical stripes alternating with dotted lines, called 'millipedes', around the neck and a scale pattern filled with stylised half-carnations on the spherical section of the jar. The foot-ring is undecorated. The colours used are a deep limonite yellow, two gradations of brown, a light one of iron oxide and a dark one of manganese, and cobalt-blue and copper green. The use of brown, yellow, blue and green as full, unmixed tones is the characteristic colour scheme of Moroccan polychrome faience. Faience is the type of decoration: after a first firing the potters put on the opaque tin glaze on the earthenware vessel; the mineral pigments used for the polychrome decoration were applied over the dried glaze; in a second firing glaze and pigments melted together.  \nThe small and large red dots irregularly spread over the whole outside surface of jar and lid are a striking feature. It is a paste with a base of red lead applied over the glaze by fingertip. After drying, the paste appears like red wax. However, this kind of decoration was not executed by the potters themselves. It was done by the faience traders, at first to cover the traces of the firing tripods on plates and later on all kinds of pottery vessels.  \nFaience was an urban ceramic in Morocco whose most important centre of production was Fez. The objects made by the faience potters were mostly functional and for everyday use. This pot was possibly used for storing fat or yeast. Unlike other examples of this kind of stock pot, however, this one does not have the usual two handles.","short_description":"Jar on a high foot and with a flat lid with knob. The decoration is composed of vertical stripes alternating with dotted lines and stylised half-carnations. The colour scheme is characteristic of Moroccan polychrome faience. This pot might have been used for storing fat or yeast.","type":"Jar, ceramic","holder":"Museum of Mediterranean and Near Eastern Antiquities (Medelhavsmuseet).","dates":"Possibly Hegira 13th century / AD 19th century.","location":"Stockholm","dimensions":"Height approx. 21.3 cm, diameter of rim 10.5 cm.","method_for_datation":"Dating is difficult. There are only a few dated faiences and the same forms and patterns were used throughout various periods. The red dots were probably common from the end of the 12th / 18th century.","method_for_provenance":"On the basis of the pattern, the technique and the colour scheme.","provenance":"Morocco, possibly Fez.","obtention":"Bequest from the Bielke collection.","bibliography":"Bel, A., *Les Industries de la Céramique à Fès*, Alger, Paris, 1918.  \nBoukobza, A., *Poteries et Céramiques Marocaines*, Casablanca, 1974.  \nHakenjos, B., *Marokkanische Keramik*, Stuttgart, 1988.  \nHasson, R., *Pottery from Morocco: 19th–20th century C. E.*, Jerusalem, 1982.  \nHedgecoe, J. and Damluji, S. S., *Zillij: The Art of Moroccan Ceramics*, Reading, 1992.","dynasty":"Alawid","linkcatalogs":"IAM_MA_EN_001","author":"Friederike Voigt","copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["Faience","geometric ornament"],"materials":["Ceramic","faience."]},"9e9bdaad-fced-506e-b618-ed3c5b61255c":{"name":"Base for a tray (*sinija*)","description":"The wooden base for the food tray – *sinija* (Tr. sini) – that was once placed on top, consists of three elements joined together in the middle by a turned vertical piece. Each element is in the shape of a letter H with two horizontal parts in the middle and two turned muxrabija-like ornaments in every corner. The elements can be folded as needed. The vertical side of each element is carved with floral and geometric motifs.","type":"Table","holder":"Museum of Applied Art","dates":"Hegira late 13th–early 14th century / AD late 19th–early 20th century","location":"Belgrade","dimensions":"Height: 35cm, width: 33.5cm","place_of_production":"Ottoman Empire","method_for_datation":"By stylistic analysis, material, technique, and analogy with other similar examples.","obtention":"Purchased in 1954.","author":"Ana Samardžić","keywords":["carving","floor dining table","Ottoman Balkans"],"materials":["carving, turning","Walnut, mother of pearl"]},"9faeadc1-e075-5681-bdc1-072dabd412c6":{"name":"Miniature 'Wine-Server' ('Portrait of a Young Man')","short_description":"According to the inscription in the lower left corner of the composition, the author of the painting is Reza Abbasi, the most prominent Iranian artist of the AD 17th century. The founder of the new style of painting and the head of the famous Isfahan school, Reza Abbasi has departed from the bright decorative colours of the classic Persian miniature and turned to a more restrained and unusual palette. He chose a thin and sensitive calligraphic line as his main means of expression. Wine-server (Persian: *saqi*) - a young man who served at banquets, pouring wine to guests. A flask in a form of a gourd in his right hand testifies to his role. The man is dressed in a malachite green robe. An orange silk scarf is untied and carelessly thrown over his shoulders. His full face, dreamy staring eyes, curls falling down on cheeks, small gentle hands and graceful posture, the smooth curves of which seem to echo the flexible lines of plants - all correspond to the traditional type of an effeminate youth-*saqi*.","type":"Miniature","holder":"The Khanenko Museum","dates":"AD 1627–1628","location":"Kyiv","dimensions":"Length: 22.3cm, Width: 13.5cm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis and inscription reading by V. Krachkovskaya (publication, 1926, origin and date).","method_for_provenance":"Publication of Vera Krachkovskaya (1927): the Khanenkos' collection.","provenance":"Isfahan, Iran","obtention":"Purchased by Bohdan and Varvara Khanenko in Paris, 1914, presumably from Fredrik Robert Martin's collection. Donated by Varvara Khanenko in 1918, nationalised by Bolshevik regime in 1919.","bibliography":"Bilenko, H. and Rudyck (Rudyk), H., *Oriental Collection*, guidebook, Kyiv: The Khanenko Museum, 2005.  \nCanby, Sheila R. *The Rebeeious Reformer: The Drawings and Paintings of Riza-Yi Abbasi of Isfahan*, London: Azimuth Editions, 1996.  \nKrachkovskaya, V., \"Musulmsnskoye iskusstvo v sobranii Khanenko (Muslim Art from the Khanenkos' Collection)\", in Bartold V.V. (ed), *Zapyski Kollegii Vostokovedov (Notes of the College of Orientalists)* at Asian Museum of USSR Academy of Sciences, Vol II, Leningrad: USSR Academy of Sciences, 1927.  \nNewman, Andrew (ed), *Society and Culture in the Early Modern Middle East: Studies on Iran in the Safavid Period*, Leiden: Brill, 2003.  \nRudyk, H. (ed), *Charisma of Iran. Persian art of 12th–19th centuries from museum collections of Ukraine*, Kyiv: The Khanenko Museum, 2017.","workshop":"Reza Abbasi workshop","dynasty":"Safavid","artist_birthdate":"1575","artist_deathdate":"1635","author":"Antonina Makarevych, Hanna Rudyk","copy_editor":"Janice Medina","keywords":["Iran","miniature","Reza Abbasi","Safavid"],"materials":["Opaque watercolour, gold and ink on paper"]},"9fe1e828-67e2-5249-a654-e86e4a5b6c0c":{"name":"Irrigation bucket","description":"The cylindrical object features a straight mouth and pointed base, with retaining recesses located at the start of the mouth and base. The surface shows traces of hand modelling, leaving indentations on the body in the form of perimeter circumferences and on the base in parallel lines following the conical shape.  \n  \nMade of whitish porous, unglazed clay, it retains traces of *almagra* (reddish pigment) drips on both the exterior and interior. Functionally, such objects can be understood within the context of irrigation and hydraulic systems in al-Andalus. Their development enabled the introduction of new plant species, the expansion of arable land, and the diversification of the diet. These innovations changed working methods, the agricultural cycle, and the landscape.  \n  \nWaterwheels spread throughout the Iberian Peninsula. The waterwheel buckets, which were secured with ropes at the top and halfway down their cylindrical body, underwent technical improvements. These elements reflect a series of small but significant technical advances. The earliest ones, with an annular or pointed bottom, gradually were replaced by others with a perforated bottom that prevented their tilting and breakage in addition to the backward movement of the wheel.","type":"Irrigation bucket","holder":"National Archaeological Museum","initial_owner":"Unknown","dates":"Hegira 4th–5th century / AD 10th–11th century","location":"Madrid","dimensions":"Length: 28.7cm, diameter: 12.2cm","method_for_datation":"Comparative study of typologies; references provided by previous owner.","method_for_provenance":"References provided by previous owner on file.","provenance":"Arcos de la Frontera, Cádiz","obtention":"The bucket was donated to the National Archaeological Museum on 1 January 1987.","bibliography":"Cara Barrionuevo, L. and Malpica Cuello, A. (coord), *II Coloquio Historia y medio Físico. Agricultura y regadío en al-Andalus*. Conference proceedings. Almería, 9–10 June 1995, Almería: Instituto de Estudios Almerienses, 1995.  \n  \nGómez Espín, J.M. and Hervás Avilés, R. M. (coord), *Patrimonio hidráulico y cultura del agua en el Mediterráneo*, Murcia: Fundación Séneca, AECID, 2012.  \n  \nPoveda Sánchez, Á., “Un estudio sobre las norias de sangre de origen andalusí: el caso de la alquiería de Benassal (Castellón)”, *Historia Agraria*, 32 (April 2004): 37-58.","dynasty":"Umayyads of al-Andalus, Taifas","author":"Helena Lahoz Kopiske","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["Ceramic, pigment"]},"9ffa2249-250d-57c6-aa02-12cdbaa08791":{"name":"Covered al-Buzuriyya Market","description":"The historic Buzuriyya Market is located south of the Great Umayyad Mosque in Damascus. This photo shows the very crowded market during Mawlid an-Nabawi (Prophet Muhammad’s Birthday). The Buzuriyya Market dates back to the Ayyubid era (AD 12th century). In the 18th century, the Ottoman government and several khans developed it together. In 1893, the Ottoman governor of Damascus, Hussein Nazim Pasha, replaced the Buzuriyya Market’s wooden roof with a metal roof. During Mawlid the market is decorated with colourful flags, especially green ones, and banners bearing the name of the Prophet Muhammad. Shops are filled with sweets, especially *Mulabbas*, which is associated with Mawlid and distributed in mosques and homes to all.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Rania Kataf","initial_owner":"Rania Kataf","dates":"Hegira 1439 / AD 2017","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Damascus/Syria","provenance":"Damascus/Syria","bibliography":"al-Maliki, M. A., “On Celebrating the Birth of the Prophet”, Imam Ghazali Institute, 2016.  \n  \nRabbat, N., “Ideal-type and Urban History: The Development of the Suq in Damascus” in Gharipour, Mohammad, ed. *The Bazaar in the Islamic City: Design, Culture, and History*. American University in Cairo Press, 2012.  \n  \nZarcone, T., “Mevlid Kandili. La fête de la naissance du Prophète en Turquie”, Nathalie CLAYER et Erdal KAYNAR, “Penser, agir et vivre dans l'Empire ottoman et en Turquie”, Paris, Louvain, Walpole, MA, 2013: 308-320.","author":"Hiba Bizreh","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["photography"]},"a0252068-e151-5eac-8d48-3f1ff00fc162":{"name":"Jug","description":"This exquisite jug, a prime example of Ottoman silverware, stands at just under 10cm tall. Adorned with intricate interlacing floral reliefs against a finely stippled background, it features a bulbous body, cylindrical neck, and a dragon-headed handle. Reflecting Timurid influences of the 15th century AD, and crafted in the early 16th century, it bears the faint tughra (monogram) of Sultan Selim (ruled AD 1512–1520) inside the neck. Renowned centres in the Balkans produced similar high-quality metalwork during this period. The jug, likely used as a drinking vessel, was probably commissioned for an elite or royal member of the Ottoman court, as evidenced by its delicate floral designs and partial gilding.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art","dates":"Hegira first half of 10th century / AD 16th century","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Height: 12.2cm","place_of_production":"Türkiye or the Balkans","provenance":"Türkiye or the Balkans","bibliography":"Allan, James W. & Maddison, Francis, *Metalwork Treasures from the Islamic Courts*, 2002.  \n  \nAl Khemir, Sabiha, *From Cordoba to Samarqand, Masterpieces from the Museum of Islamic Art in Doha*, 2006.  \n  \nQatar Museums, et al, *MIA Collection Online*, 2013.","dynasty":"Ottoman period (AH 698–1340 / AD 1299-1922)","author":"Teslim Sanni","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["embossed, with a cast handle","Gilded sheet silver"]},"a0806d9b-0bf1-52cf-8538-62ee4530485b":{"name":"Bowl with floral arabesque","short_description":"This shallow bowl has a separate disc riveted to the centre. The ornamentation represents almost the entire repertory of mid-16th century Ottoman decoration. A split-leaf arabesque is engraved on the disc; the cavetto has interlaced quatrefoil medallions and cloud scrolls; on the outer walls the half medallions are engraved with saz and rosette design. Broken stems around the base recall the mannerism of the Sünnet Odası panels, the Rüstem Pasha tiles and ceramic dishes from circa 1545-50.","type":"Silver bowl","holder":"Benaki Museum","dates":"Hegira c.956 / AD c.1550","location":"Athens","dimensions":"Diameter 15.5 cm","provenance":"Probably Istanbul","dynasty":"Ottoman","keywords":["arabesque","Ottoman metalwork","Saz design"],"materials":["Silver-gilt"]},"a0a31a62-7361-5268-8ad7-1a7b0126f09d":{"name":"Alhambra vase.","description":"This piece is one of the so-called 'Alhambra vases'. Formally, all of these are similar: a large egg-shaped body and a narrow, unglazed base from which two large, flat handles emerge, and an octagonal neck reinforced with vertical mouldings.  \nThe decoration of pale gold on a white base is arranged horizontally in broad bands of different widths that are separated from one another by other smooth, narrower bands. The central, and widest, band contains vegetal motifs and an inscription in *kufic* characters in white on a golden background, in which the word 'forgiveness' is repeated several times. Both above and below the central band there are other similar bands decorated with plant arabesques and gold circles, all joined by a thread. The decoration of the main body is completed by another two bands, one on the lower part with small arches and another nearer the neck with a *kufic* inscription, now almost completely disappeared.  \nThe neck, which has eight sides separated by mouldings, is decorated with stylised vegetal motifs. The handles, attached close to the body, are decorated with the hand of Fatima (*hamsa*) on each side.  \nThe Alhambra vases constitute the most important examples of Nasrid ceramic production. These pieces became extremely well known for their delicate decoration and large size, and were exported to other places. The best-preserved examples are to be found in Palermo (Regional Museum of Sicily), St Petersburg (Hermitage), Stockholm (National Museum of Fine Arts) and Madrid (Institute of Valencia de D. Juan and the National Archaeological Museum). Some are decorated exclusively in gold and others in gold and cobalt-blue, always on a tin-glaze background.  \nAlthough its form derives from large storage vessels, its cumbersome size and the absence of any strengthening elements in the handles suggest a purely ornamental function.","short_description":"The so-called ‘Alhambra vases’ were luxury items because of the technical complexity of their manufacture and the beauty of their decoration and lustrework. The intended use is not known, but their renown led them to be exported to Sicily and Mamluk Egypt.","type":"Vase, ceramic","holder":"National Archaeological Museum.","initial_owner":"Unknown, Cristóbal Bermúdez Plata","dates":"Hegira 8th century / AD 14th century.","location":"Madrid","dimensions":"Height 126 cm, max. diameter 63 cm.","method_for_datation":"It is difficult to determine the date of manufacture of these vases. Nonetheless, all writers agree that, on the basis of the inscription, the oldest examples are those decorated solely with gold on white, which were produced from the last third of the 7th / 13th century and, in particular, during the 8th / 14th century.","method_for_provenance":"Although all of these pieces are known generically as the Alhambra vases, they were produced in Malaga and exported. From the 7th / 13th century, Arab writers begin to mention Malaga as a large centre for the production and export of ceramics with gold or metallic highlights.","provenance":"Malaga, Spain.","obtention":"The piece was found by chance at the beginning of the 20th century during work to shore up vaults in the monastery of Santa María de la Defensión in Jerez de la Frontera (Cadiz). It was donated to the National Archaeological Museum on 29 July 1930.","bibliography":"Llubía, L. M., *Cerámica medieval española*, Barcelona: Nueva Colección Labor (2nd edition), 1973: 82–110.  \nMartínez Caviró, B., *Cerámica hispanomusulmana: andalusí y mudéjar*, Madrid: El Viso, 1991: 76–7.  \nSerrano García, C., “Los Jarrones de la Alhambra”, in *Estudios dedicados a D. Jesús Bermúdez Pareja*, Granada: Asociación Cultural de Amigos del Museo Hispanomusulmán, 1988: 127–62.  \nTorres Balbás, L., \"Arte Almohade, Arte Nazarí, Arte Mudéjar\", *Ars Hispaniae*, Vol. IV, Madrid: Plus Ultra, 1949: 217.  \nPatronato de la Alhambra y Generalife (sel.), *Los Jarrones de la Alhambra. Simbología y poder*, Madrid: Junta de Andalucía, Patronato de La Alhambra y Generalife, 2006.","dynasty":"Nasrid","author":"Margarita Sánchez Llorente","copy_editor":"Rosalía Aller","translator":"Laurence Nunny","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["Alhambra","Alhambra vase","ceramic","Malaga","Nasrids"],"materials":["Ceramic, glazure, lustreware"]},"a0b18c27-d268-5654-bb42-5550a1992777":{"name":"*Tamr* (Dates)","description":"*Tamr* (dates), the nutritious fruit of the palm tree, a staple part of the diet in the region.","type":"Dates","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century/AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Varies depending on type. Length: 40mm, width: 20mm, thickness: 15mm","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Amanda Snyder, Mona Mukhashab","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["Dates"]},"a0be739f-bf67-5116-9ebd-ce73ca66626f":{"name":"Magharif (Spoon)","short_description":"The date palm tree (Phoenix dactylifera), an enduring symbol of Oman, is identified with the early oasis Civilisation of Magan in the 3rd millennium BC and the taming of the desert. It is one of the few tree species specifically mentioned in the Holy Qur’an, and according to Islamic tradition Maryam (Mary) gave birth to 'Iesa (Jesus) in the shade of a palm.  \n  \nHighly simplified palm motifs such as those adorning this *magharif* (spoon), reminders of the teachings of the Holy Qur'an, appear as principle design elements often combined with geometric or floral elements to create circular or linear patterns as a repetitive motif.","type":"Silver Work","holder":"National Museum Oman","dates":"13th–14th century AH / 19th–20th century AD","location":"Muscat","dimensions":"Length: 27.3cm","provenance":"Northern Oman","obtention":"The Museum of Omani Heritage","dynasty":"Al-Busaid","copy_editor":"Valerie Pulsifer","keywords":["Date Palm","floral","Holy Qur'an","Magharif","spoon"],"materials":["Copper"]},"a0dd981d-e256-57f4-ba5c-7f37591cb8b5":{"name":"Coin (*dirham*)","description":"This Umayyad coin, minted during the reign of al-Walid I (AH 86–96 / AD 705–15), bears an inscription in its centre that reads ‘*â ila illâ Allâh wahda-hu lâ sharîk la-hu*’ (‘There is no God but Allah, the One, there is none like unto him’) and the edge reads ‘*bismi-llâh duriba hadâ-l-dirhâm bi fî sanat ihda wa tis in*’ (‘In God’s name this *dirham* was minted in Sijistan in the year one and ninety \\[91\\]’).  \nThe front face bears two inscriptions, one in the centre and one on the edge. The central inscription reads ‘*Allâh ahad Allâh al-samad lam yalid wa lam yûlad wa lam yakun la-hu kufû’ an ahad*’ (‘God is one, God is eternal. He does not beget, nor is he begotten and there is none like unto him’) and the edge inscription reads ‘*Muhammad rasûl Allâh arsala-hu bi-l-hudâ wa al-haqq li-yuzhira-hu alâ al-dîn kulli-hi wa la-hu kariha al-mushrikûn*’ (‘Muhammad is the messenger of God. He has sent His messenger with the guidance and the true religion, and will make it dominate all religions, in spite of the idol worshipers’).","short_description":"*Dirham* minted during the reign of al-Walid I. The basic coin in the Arab world until the arrival of the Mongols, the *dirham* takes its name from the Greek *drachma*. Coins usually weighed 2.97 grams.","type":"Coin, dirham, silver","holder":"Museum of Civilisations | Museum of Oriental Art “Giuseppe Tucci”","dates":"Hegira 91 / AD 709.","location":"Rome","dimensions":"Diameter 2.6 cm, weight 2.88 g.","method_for_datation":"From the inscription on the edge of the obverse.","method_for_provenance":"From the inscription on the edge of the obverse.","provenance":"Iran, Sijistan.","obtention":"Donation.","bibliography":"Walker, J., *A Catalogue of the Arab-Byzantine and Post Reform Umayyad Coins*, London, 1956, p.159.","dynasty":"Umayyad; Caliph al-Walid I (r. AH 86–96 / AD 705–15)","linkcatalogs":"IAM_JO_EN_001","author":"Paola Torre","copy_editor":"Pier Paolo Racioppi","translator":"Laurence Nunny","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["al-Walid I","Coin","Coinage","numismatics","Umayyad"],"materials":["Silver / minting."]},"a248d8b4-e492-5f6d-bdb7-ab94d668d922":{"name":"Aleppo Room.","description":"A prosperous broker and a Christian citizen of the town of Aleppo commissioned the painted panels of the walls of the entrance room in his house at the beginning of the 17th century. The paintings within the Aleppo room thus make up the oldest collection from a Syrian dwelling house from the Ottoman period. The Christian patron engaged craftsmen from the best workshops of the time in his desire for the entrance room, into which his guests would first arrive, to be painted in a variety of themes. These themes were based on contemporary Islamic book illustration, consisting of floral and geometric compositions, rendered in the best traditional Ottoman style. Christian themes from the Old and New Testaments, and the depiction of Mary with Child, sit alongside courtly scenes like those portrayed in Persian book illustration. The selection of encircling Psalms, Arabic proverbs and Persian principles further add to the impression of a peaceful community of different religious beliefs living together.  \nThe central panels are found in the back part of the main niche, to the left and right of a wall cupboard. Courtly themes are repeated on the left-side panel, including a ruler sitting on a throne, a hunt and a hunting party with a prince holding a falcon. In contrast, Christian themes are portrayed on the right-side panel, and include the Last Supper, Salome’s dance in front of King Herod and the sacrifice of Isaac. Other panels around the room have individual depictions from either courtly or Christian subject matters, such as the love story of Leila and Majnun of Nizami (1141–1202) from the Haft Paykar, or the Virgin Mary and Child or Saint George. Real and imaginary animals are depicted alongside. It is the variety of the themes of these paintings that make these earliest surviving wall panels such a comprehensive collection, a variety that could perhaps only have arisen in the Syrian trading town Aleppo.  \nThe name Halab Shah ibn Isa, one of the craftsmen, appears on the cornice.  \n  \nClick [here](https://youtu.be/4toX47mtAIE) to **watch a video presentation** of this artefact.","short_description":"The painted wooden panels belong to the audience room in a house of a Christian merchant in Aleppo, Syria, which is the only surviving example of a painted and dated room from the 17th century. Its ornamental and figural repertoire includes Christian themes as well as Arabic verses.","type":"Woodwork, painting, architectural decoration","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art at the Pergamon Museum","initial_owner":"Isa ibn Butrus (Jesus, son of Peter).","dates":"Hegira 1009 or 1012 / AD 1600–01 or 1603.","location":"Berlin","dimensions":"Height 260 cm, total length 35 metres.","method_for_datation":"Two dates are inscribed in different places in the Aleppo Room: 1009 (1600–01) and 1012 (1603).","method_for_provenance":"The Aleppo Room was obtained in 1912 by Friedrich Sarre in Aleppo. The deeds certify that the room was originally in House Wakil in Aleppo, where it was also photographed *in situ* prior to 1912.","provenance":"Aleppo, Syria.","obtention":"Acquired in Aleppo by Friedrich Sarre for the Museum of Islamic Art in 1912.","bibliography":"Duda, D., *Innenarchitektur Syrischer Stadthäuser des 16. bis 18. Jahrhunderts: Die Sammlung Henri Pharaon in Beiru*t, Beiruter Texte und Studien, 12, Wiesbaden, 1971.  \nGangler, A., *Ein Traditionelles Wohnviertel im Nordosten der Altstadt von Aleppo in Nordsyrien*, Tübingen, 1993.  \nGonella, J., *Ein Christlich-Orientalisches Wohnhaus des 17. Jahrhunderts aus Aleppo (Syrien)*,Mainz, 1996.  \nOtt, C., “Die Inschriften des Aleppozimmers im Berliner Pergamonmuseum”, *Le Muséon* 109(1–2), 1996, pp.185–226.  \nSarre, F., “Bemalte Wandverkleidung aus Aleppo”, *Berliner Museen, Berichte aus den Preußischen Kunstsammlungen* 41(4), 1919–20, pp.143–58.","dynasty":"Ottoman","linkcatalogs":"IAM_TR_EN_001","author":"Annette Hagedorn","translator":"Maria Vlotides, Brigitte Finkbeiner","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["Ajami","Ajami room","Aleppo room","architectural decoration","ceiling","Damascus room","interior ornament","late Ottoman","painted wooden wall paneling","Syria","Syrian craft","wood","wood paneling"],"materials":["Wood, multi-layered painting using a variety of pigments and metal coatings."]},"a3a07cf1-1507-5919-b64e-f5d8ebae73c5":{"name":"Bottle","description":"Glass flask ornamented with gilded floral design. The shape derives from the square European flasks intended for the separate compartments of wooden chests.","type":"Glass","holder":"Benaki Museum","dates":"18th century","location":"Athens","dimensions":"Height: 14.3cm, Width: 6.5cm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","method_for_provenance":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Gujurat","obtention":"Donated by Alexandros Pallis","dynasty":"Mughal","author":"Mina Moraitou","keywords":["Benaki Museum","gilded","glass","India","Mughal"],"materials":["glass","moulded, gilded"]},"a4a2465e-0ea9-5fe8-9719-b7e20f0986e6":{"name":"Dish.","description":"'Brazier' dish with a large, flat circular base and straight, shallow sides finished with a narrow brim. The piece is made of red clay and covered with a tin glaze. It is decorated with gold and cobalt-blue lustre on a creamy white background. The base of the dish, decorated with interlaced, small and stylized vegetal patterns, is divided into quadrants with alternating blue and golden motifs. The brim is decorated with the traditional ‘fish-like border’ pattern. Golden spirals fill and break up the white background throughout the piece.  \nTechnically, ceramics from the AH 8th and 9th / AD 14th and 15th century are no more than a continuation of the Almohad tradition. However, the incorporation of cobalt oxide into the glaze in the Nasrid era gave rise to a wide range of blues, and the application of copper sulphate, silver and red ochre to achieve metallic highlights resulted in some exceptional pieces. Centuries-old gilded Andalusian ceramics had their heyday during the Nasrid reign in Granada.  \nThe manufacture of this type of ceramic required three firings. The final firing, in a reduction kiln, was the most delicate as it required perfect control of the kiln and its temperature. The mix of metal sulphides had to adhere to the piece without the glaze from the previous firing melting again.  \nThe importance of the pottery workshops of the kingdom of Granada, and specifically of Malaga as the main centre of production, caused the expression *obra de maliqa* (made in Maliqa) to be used, with some variations, to refer to gilded ceramics regardless of where they were produced. This term was also used in the Christian world for pottery workshops of Nasrid origin that, from the late AH 8th / AD 14th century, began to move to various places on the east coast of Spain, of which Manises was the most important centre for highlighted ceramics produced in the Malaga style for Christian customers.","short_description":"This enormous dish represents a continuation of the technique and decorative style of Nasrid ceramicists in Mudéjar workshops to meet the needs of their Christian clientele, who wanted new shapes like this shallow dish with its flat base, straight sides and horizontal rim.","type":"Dish, ceramic","holder":"National Archaeological Museum.","dates":"Hegira 802–38 / AD 1400–35.","location":"Madrid","dimensions":"Height 4.5 cm, maximum diameter 41.5 cm, base diameter 34.8 cm.","method_for_datation":"The perfect development of the technique, the type of decoration and the style of the plant arabesques are characteristic of ceramics with golden highlights from the first third of the 9th / 15th century.","method_for_provenance":"The growing decadence of the Nasrid kingdom, along with the development of the maritime power of the kingdom of Aragon and its control over the trade routes of the Mediterranean resulted in Mudéjar centres, contemporaries of the Nasrid producers that used the same traditional procedures and decorative styles, springing up around the east coast. The intense colour of the cobalt and its shape are more characteristic of Valencian pieces, but only an analysis of the clays could determine the precise origin of the piece.","provenance":"Nasrid kingdom of Granada or Christian kingdom of Valencia, Spain.","obtention":"The piece was purchased for the National Archaeological Museum by the State on 6 June 1875.","bibliography":"Camps Cazorla, E., *Catálogo Sumario del Museo Arqueológico Nacional. Cerámica Española (Nuevas Instalaciones)*, Madrid, 1936, pp.28–30.  \nCamps Cazorla, E., *La Cerámica Medieval Española*, Madrid, 1943, p.29.  \nMartínez Caviró, B., *Cerámica Hispanomusulmana Andalusí y Mudéjar*, Madrid, 1991, pp.76–82.  \nPérez Higuera, T., *Objetos e Imágenes de al-Andalus*, Barcelona, 1994, pp.24–5.","dynasty":"Nasrid or Mudéjar","linkcatalogs":"IAM_ES_EN_001","author":"Margarita Sánchez Llorente","copy_editor":"Rosalía Aller","translator":"Laurence Nunny","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["ceramic","gilding","Granada","highlight","Manises","Mudéjar","Nasrids","Valencia"],"materials":["Ceramic","glazing, metallic highlights."]},"a4ee987f-15bb-56a1-b262-8f402df53ad9":{"name":"*Inside a Jewish household*","short_description":"This copy of a beautiful watercolour by Charles Lallemand shows the inside of a bourgeois Jewish household. This snapshot of daily life reveals a great deal of similarity between Jewish and Muslim traditional dress and interiors.","type":"Watercolour","holder":"Institut Supérieur d’Histoire Contemporaine de la Tunisie","dates":"19th century","location":"La Manouba, Tunis","author":"Saloua Zangar","translator":"Flaminia Baldwin","keywords":["Judaism","Jews in Tunisia"],"materials":["Paper"]},"a52ea6dc-cf4f-5836-a534-c806ce30745b":{"name":"Tile Bowl","description":"The bowl’s surface is coated in white clay and slip and decorated in blue and white under a transparent colourless glaze. On the exterior a dark grey-blue ivy branch, reminiscent of a Chinese cloud, is adorned with large stylised flowers and shoots in cobalt blue. The contours are grey-blue. The exterior of the rim is encircled by a band of short angled lines, and the interior by a band of half rosettes. Inside the bowl is a medallion featuring a large stylised flower with six petals in the centre. This is a unique example of the influence of Chinese porcelain.","type":"Utensil","holder":"Istanbul Archaeological Museums (The Tiled Kiosk)","dates":"Hegira second quarter of the 10th century / AD second quarter of the 16th century","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"Diameter: 26cm; height: 11.4cm","place_of_production":"İznik/Bursa","dynasty":"Ottoman (AH 698–1340 / AD 1299-1922)","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Glazed terracotta/Tile"]},"a5415d97-5be6-5b62-af8d-da90cb25b7f5":{"name":"Sufi assembly","short_description":"The miniature features a nocturnal landscape with a dervish surrounded by six male characters wearing costumes typical of the age of Shah Abbas I (1588-1629). The exquisite finesse of the drawing is enhanced by the subdued colour range, the gold highlights and the beautiful *nasta'liq* calligraphy of the Persian verses: ‘Don’t drink the wine-cup, for every drop is a king’s blood,/Don’t listen to the music, for every tune is just a tale of sorrow./The night has fallen; the drunken feast has neither lamp nor candle; /Join us, for the gathering of maids most fair is pleasant.’ (Translated into English from the Romanian version by Viorel Bageacu, 1987). The verses, as well as the image, are replete with Sufi symbolism.","type":"Miniature","holder":"The National Museum of Art of Romania","dates":"Hegira early 11th century / AD early 17th century","location":"Bucharest","dimensions":"Height: 12.7cm, Width: 6cm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","method_for_provenance":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Isfahan, Iran","obtention":"Donated by Prof. George Oprescu in 1960.","bibliography":"Beldescu, A., *Manuscrise persane în colecţii din România*, Bucharest: Editura Meridiane, 1987: 49 no. 13.","dynasty":"Safavid","author":"Mircea Dunca","keywords":["Sufi"],"materials":["Ink, wash and gold on paper"]},"a5c93080-d37b-5926-ad79-2d9bb61932f2":{"name":"*The Grand Bazaar*","short_description":"Amadeo Preziosi often presented genre scenes from Istanbul in his unique style. Specifically, he incorporated diverse scenes from the Bazaar in a number of his paintings. This venue, particular to Istanbul, has been of great interest to western artists, and in Edmondo De Amicis’s words “is not just a building but a town”. The Grand Bazaar, which housed shops for a wide range of commercial goods and catered to almost all of the needs of customers, offered an incredible visual richness and diversity to the western artist. A reflection of this opulence is also evident in Preziosi’s painting, which includes numerous details from daily life.","type":"Painting","holder":"Pera Museum","dates":"Second half of the 19th century","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"W: 670 + H: 455 cm.","artist_birthdate":"1816","artist_deathdate":"1882","copy_editor":"Daniel de la Vega","keywords":["Amadeo Preziosi","Orientalism","painting","İstanbul"],"materials":["Oil on canvas"]},"a5defb3f-7271-5a06-9b25-33267fdf495e":{"name":"Vessel","description":"The vessel is cream-coloured, with a ring base, convex body, long thin neck and scalloped rim. The figural, stylised geometric and floral decorations in a lustre technique cover the entire surface.","type":"Sürahi (*Sırlı Seramik*)","holder":"Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts","dates":"AH 6th century/AD 12th century","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"Height: 21.8cm","place_of_production":"Iran","dynasty":"Great Seljuk (AH 429–552 / AD 1038–1157)","materials":["Ceramic"]},"a5f7ac5a-c7e3-5149-8a1c-17cd76006305":{"name":"Two Chinese blue-and-white porcelain sealed ‘Zamzam’ water bottles","short_description":"Prophet was known to drink from the well and use the water for significant purposes. The most famous *hadith* (Prophetic saying) regarding Zamzam states that the water is good for whatever purpose it is intended. Thus, over time, the water has been used for many purposes: in graves, to prevent harm, to cure and in ceremonies to obtain blessings.  \nSimilar examples to these bottles are in the Topkapi Palace in Istanbul and were used during ceremonies involving the mantle of the Prophet. During these ceremonies the mantle was dipped in Zamzam water and what dripped from the cloth was then collected in bottles similar to these. Other comparable types were simply sent from Mecca to Istanbul containing Zamzam water and closed with leather, string and sealed with wax.  \nThe well is believed to have been discovered by Hagar and Ismael, after being abandoned by Abraham in Mecca. It was later rediscovered by ‘Abd al-Muttalib, Prophet Muhammad’s grandfather, who is credited with having dug several wells, most importantly that of Zamzam. From then on the responsibility of giving water to pilgrims was to remain in the lineage of one of his sons.  \nWater from the well of Zamzam was previously collected in buckets by a rope pulley mechanism and then transferred to earthenware vessels. Now the well is entirely managed subterraneously by electric pumps and the King Abdullah Zamzam Water Factory produces approximately 200,000 bottles of water a day.","type":"Bottle; Porcelain; Containter; Flask","holder":"Khalili Family Trust – Hajj and the Arts of Pilgrimage Collection","dates":"19th century","location":"London","dimensions":"21.4x11.5cm","method_for_datation":"Date and provenance based stylistic grounds and by comparison with similar items in the Topkapi Palace Museum.","provenance":"China","bibliography":"Aydin, H., *Sacred Trusts: Pavilion of the Sacred Relics (Topkapi Palace Museum, Istanbul), The Fountain*, 2005.  \n*Zamzam*, in Saudi Geological Survey ([https://sgs.org.sa/English/Topics/Pages/Zamzam.aspx](https://sgs.org.sa/English/Topics/Pages/Zamzam.aspx) last accessed 08-07-2019)","dynasty":"Qing","author":"Qaisra Khan","keywords":["blue-and-white","China","Hijaz","Holy place","Ka'ba","Mecca","Medina","Mosque","pilgrim flask","pilgrimage","prayer","Prophet Muhammad","Religion","water"],"materials":["Porcelain, leather, string, wax"]},"a7ce0231-54e8-5757-928a-48c3c0b66585":{"name":"Süleymaniye waterway map.","description":"The Süleymaniye waterway map is handmade on unfinished paper. The waterway was designed to supply water to the entire complex of the mosque, including its *imaret* (soup-kitchen), *maristan* (hospital), *maktab* (school) and public fountains. Fed by the Aypah (Kirazlı) and çınar springs, the highest-capacity branches of the Halkalı water supply system, this waterway supplied the Süleymaniye Complex as well as 80 other points in Istanbul. The map shows the waterway in detail from its source all the way to its end, including the places where it is joined by other waterways, the points where it enters the city through the walls, and especially the water-distribution centres and aqueducts.  \n  \nThe map was prepared without a scale and has a schematic style. Therefore, many structures and neighbourhoods cannot be precisely placed. At the far end of the map there is the drawing of the Süleymaniye Complex.  \n  \nSuch waterway maps tell the story of water from springs being conveyed via pipes, crossing valleys in aqueducts, its pressure adjusted at certain points, being sent off in various directions at distribution centres and reaching public fountains. These maps also provide information about the urban structure; how people lived, and the infrastructure and buildings in a given quarter. For example, the Roman Aqueduct of Valens (AD 375), known as Bozdoğan Aqueduct in Turkish is introduced as 'the big aqueduct in the Horse Market'. The names of the people and the structures receiving water from this aqueduct are also given. The water of the Halkalı network could be distributed to private estates only on the written permission of the sultan. For instance, we find the house of Süleyman the Magnificent's dentist, Moshe Hamon, (AH 899–962 / AD 1490–1554) listed as 'House of Hamudoğlu'.  \n  \nFrom the Süleymaniye Complex waterway map, we learn not only how the water was brought to the city but also about the quarters where the courtiers and dignitaries resided. Therefore, the waterway maps are important for describing the social topography of the city.","short_description":"Istanbul has always suffered from water shortage due to a lack of sufficient springs nearby and its demand was met by conveying water via aqueducts from afar. Waterway maps provide information about the routes from the springs to the city, monuments on the way and the social structure of the city.","type":"Paper, ink","holder":"Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts.","dates":"Hegira second half of the 12th century / AD 18th century.","location":"Sultanahmet, Istanbul.","dimensions":"Length 2572 cm, width 30 cm.","method_for_datation":"Although the map does not have a date it is clear from the names of people and structures therein that this is an 18th-century document. For example, it is known that water was supplied to Taygun Palace in 1161 / 1748, a building shown on this map; therefore, this map must have been prepared after 1161 / 1748.","method_for_provenance":"The map does not bear any date. However, that our copy is an 18th copy is clear from the names of people and structures given therein. For example, it is known that water was supplied to Taygun Palace in 1161 / 1748, a building shown on our map; therefore, this map must have been prepared after 1161 / 1748. Public services such as the water supply were under the supervision of the state and due to this fact the waterway would have been designed and constructed by the official architects of the Topkapı Palace.","provenance":"Istanbul, Turkey.","obtention":"The map was transferred to the museum in 1923 from the Directorate of Supplies for Pious Foundations.","bibliography":"Aksoy, Ş., “İstanbul'un Suyolları (Waterways of Istanbul)”, *P Dergisi (P Magazine)*, 22 (Summer 2001), pp.17–29.  \n  \nçeçen, K., *Süleymaniye Suyolları (Süleymaniye Waterways)*, Istanbul, 1986.  \n  \nçeçen, K., *Halkalı Suları (Halkalı Water Supply System)*, Istanbul, 1991.  \n  \nYerasimos, S., *Soliman le Magnifique*, Paris, 1999, cat. no. 323.","dynasty":"Ottoman","linkcatalogs":"IAM_TR_EN_001","author":"Şule Aksoy","translator":"Barry Wood, İnci Türkoğlu","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["water"],"materials":["Paper, ink, coloured paints."]},"a87439ea-aee1-50f5-a0b5-501d95e7044f":{"name":"*Divan-i Shahi* (Collection of Poems by Shahi)","short_description":"This manuscript is a *divan*, a collection of poems, by Amir Shahi Sabzavari. Amir Shahi Sabzavari, also called Shahi, was a poet and calligrapher at the court of Prince Baysunghur in Herat. Shahi died in 857 AH / 1453 AD.  \nThe manuscript contains 60 folios in total, of which five are illustrated. According to the colophon the scribe of this manuscript was Abd al-Wahid. Some of the folios are signed by their painter Abd al-Gani, who is also responsible for the astonishing lacquer binding.  \nJudging by a portrait on the frontispiece that looks like Sultan Suleiman I. , the manuscript must have been finished during his reign between 926-936 AH /1520-30 AD. The manuscript was part of the collection of Polish orientalist Waclaw Rzewuski until his death in 1831 AD, when the manuscript was bought for the Imperial Court Library in Vienna.","type":"Manuscript","holder":"Austrian National Library (ANL)","dates":"Around 926-936 AH / 1520-30 AD","location":"Vienna","dimensions":"204 x 128mm (120 x 60mm), 60 folios","method_for_datation":"Dorothea Duda recognizes portraits of Sultan Selim I. on the binding of the manuscript. She suggests that the manuscript might have been started during the reign of Sultan Selim I. but finished during the reign of Sultan Suleiman I., who succeeded his father in 1520. This is supported by the presence of an additional portrait of a man on the frontispice that looks like Sultan Suleiman I. The inclusion of both rulers therefore indicates a probable date of production somewhere between 926-936 AH /1520-30 AD.","method_for_provenance":"The provenance was established through documentation in the inventory book of the Imperial Court Library by Joseph Freiherr von Hammer-Purgstall.","provenance":"Istanbul","obtention":"Following the death of  the explorer and orientalist Waclaw Seweryn Rzewuski in 1831 AD, the manuscript was bought directly from his collection for the Imperial Court Library in the same year.","bibliography":"Duda, Dorothea, *Islamische Handschriften I. Persische Handschriften, Die illuminierten Handschriften und Inkunabeln der Österreichischen Nationalbibliothek*, vol. 4, Vienna: Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, 1983: 185-187.  \nDuda, Dorothea, \"Islamische Lackeinbände - ihre künstlerische Entwicklung und ihr Verhältnis zum Buch als Gesamtkunstwerk\", *Journal of Turkish Studies* , 26 : I (2002), 163-203.","dynasty":"Ottoman","scriber":"'Abd al-Wahid","binding_desc":"The richly decorated lacquer binding on this manuscript is an artwork in itself. Executed in the Shirazi style, this binding has courtly scenes painted on its front and back cover. The doublures of the manuscript are decorated with a medallion surrounded by floral ornaments, painted in two kinds of gold on a black background.  \nThe front cover depicts a group of men set in an outdoor scene. The men in the upper half of the painting are wearing Ottoman turbans, while some men on the lower half are wearing head gear that look like a mixture of the hats the *Janissaries* wore and those the *silahdars* wore. As the *Janissaries* were part of the elite infantry of the Ottoman army and *silahdars* were close aides of the Ottoman sultans it can be assumed that the binding was in fact manufactured within the realms of the Ottoman Empire.  \nAdditionally, Duda notes that the man in the middle of the front cover and the man sitting on a throne on the back cover have similarities with formal portraits of Sultan Selim I. She consequently advocates that at least the binding must have been commissioned during the reign of Selim I.","catalogue_holding_link":"http://data.onb.ac.at/rec/AC14410969","author":"Leonie Fernsebner","copy_editor":"Jonathan Turnbull","keywords":["Divan","Shahi"],"materials":["Blue, green and gold ink on thin, white paper. Calligraphic Nasta'liq script of 11 lines per page. 2 decorative pages, 5 miniature paintings."]},"a8c2cd08-42f5-5b60-8ef5-5d255e20c9a4":{"name":"Decanter (one of a set of three)","short_description":"During the nineteenth century, European centres of glass production, particularly those in France and Bohemia, created Islamic-style works of art to be exported to countries like Egypt, Syria, Iran, and India. The DDFIA collection includes several examples of such European glass. This bottle – one in a set of three – was certainly produced for an Iranian recipient, for it features portraits of the Qajar shah Nasr al-Din (r. 1848–96). Purchased in 1959.","type":"Furniture and decorative objects; vessel; glasswork","holder":"Shangri La, Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Art","dates":"Hegira 13th century / AD 19th century","location":"Honolulu, Hawai'i","dimensions":"Overall: 16.5 x 7.9 x 6.7 cm","provenance":"Europe, made for export to Iran","keywords":["decanter","glass","beads","decoupage","Qajar","Nasr al-Din Shah","Europe","portrait"],"materials":["Coloured glass, beads, decoupage"]},"aab30960-8950-5111-bdd0-0a590079ba20":{"name":"Spontaneous feast for a *shaykh* at Tall Tishrin in northeast Syria","description":"Unexpected important guests are also lavishly served, such as the tribal *shaykh* in the photo; his visit is considered an honour for the host family. Although the women, assisted by the elder children, immediately start to prepare, it might take at least two hours until the feast is ready. The family might own the chicken to be slaughtered, or its meat can be bought from a nearby butcher. In the meantime, the host chats with the guests, drinking tea or coffee with them. When the meal is ready, the bigger boys will carry in the food, taking meticulous care to place the big plate in the middle and the small bowls in such a way that everyone will help themselves, and therefore is on an equal level. Only then does the host invite the guests to eat.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Karin Pütt","initial_owner":"Karin Pütt","dates":"Hegira 1409 / AD 1989","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Tall Tishrin/Syria","method_for_provenance":"Direct contact","provenance":"Tall Tishrin/Hasaka Province","bibliography":"Euting, J., \"Tagebuch einer Reise in Inner-Arabien\", (First Edition, Leiden 1896), Hamburg, 1993, 177.  \n  \nLange, K., \"Heroic Faces, Disruptive Deeds: Remembering the Tribal Shaykh on the Syrian Euphates\", Dawn Chatty (ed),  \n*Nomadic Societies in the Middle East and North Africa: Entering the 21st Century*. Leiden, 940–965, 947.  \n  \nNippa, A., (Ed.) \"Kleines abc des Nomadismus\". Museum für Völkerkunde, AK33Hamburg, 2011.  \n  \nPütt, K., \"Ländliche Hausformen in Nordostsyrien – Bauen und Wohnen in einer ländlich geprägten Gesellschaft\", Petersberg 2005, 48.","author":"Karin Pütt","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Slide"]},"ab2b67d7-838e-59c7-9a3d-24e8458ff5d8":{"name":"Tankard","description":"Iznik pottery, originating from the town of Iznik in western Anatolia, emerged during the reign of Ottoman Sultan Mehmed II (AD 1451–1481). Initially influenced by blue and white Chinese Ming porcelains, Iznik ceramics evolved to incorporate vibrant hues. This cylindrical tankard, adorned with intricate carnations and tulips in blue, green and red, likely hails from the mid- to late 16th century, a pinnacle era for Iznik pottery. The distinctive red pigment, introduced circa 1570, possibly originated from iron-rich Armenian clay. Notably, cross-hatched black lines on the tankard suggest it was crafted based on a leather prototype.","type":"Pottery","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art","owner":"Qatar Museums","dates":"c. Hegira 970 / AD 1570","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Height: 18.5cm","place_of_production":"Türkiye, Iznik","provenance":"Türkiye, Iznik","bibliography":"Carswell, J., *Iznik, Pottery for the Ottoman Empire*, 2003.  \n  \n*Art from the World of Islam 8th–18th Century*”, Humlebaek : Louisiana Revy, 1987.","dynasty":"Ottoman period (AH 698–1340 / AD 1299-1922)","author":"Teslim Sanni","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Stonepaste painted in blue, green and red under a transparent glaze"]},"abac828d-5728-5fdb-8767-366c5beb8fa5":{"name":"Café du Marabout in the Souk Ettrouk","short_description":"This copy of a beautiful watercolour from Charles Lallemand's book Tunis et ses Environs shows the Café el-Mourabit in the Turkish souk, also known as the tailors' souk, in the Tunis medina near the Zaytuna Mosque. The café was especially known for its Andalusian architecture. The customers sit on mats sipping coffee, leaning on archways and pillars.","type":"Watercolour","holder":"Institut Supérieur d’Histoire Contemporaine de la Tunisie","dates":"Early 19th century","location":"La Manouba, Tunis","author":"Saloua Zangar","translator":"Flaminia Baldwin","keywords":["Souk","café","Marabout","Turkish"],"materials":["Paper"]},"ac145afe-b9b0-58dd-85c6-6ba8e3edd580":{"name":"Coffee pot with matching zarfs","description":"A coffee pot with a globular body decorated with an arabesque design. The six zarfs are decoraed with a series of panels with floral motifs.","type":"Pot and zarfs","holder":"Benaki Museum","dates":"AH 1163-1214/Second half of the 18th century","location":"Athens","dimensions":"Pot height:21cm, zarfs height:5cm, rim diameter: 6.5cm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Turkey","obtention":"Acquired in Greece","dynasty":"Ottoman (AH 698–1340/AD 1299-1922)","author":"Mina Moraitou","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Copper, sliver gilt decoration"]},"acffa1ff-e78f-59cd-a3d3-aa606fa1ebc7":{"name":"*Burma* (Camel milking bowl)","description":"The camel is the symbol of Bedu life. Offering both essential transport and milk, without camels, the Bedu would not have been able to survive in the desert. Camel milk is said to test saltier and more acidic than cow’s milk. Camels need milking two to four times per day. Milking bowls were traditionally made from clay.","type":"Bowl","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century / AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Diameter: 183mm, height: 160mm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","method_for_provenance":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Amanda Snyder, Mona Mukhashab","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["bowl","camel milk","milking bowl"],"materials":["Ceramic"]},"ad125621-18c6-5924-8844-db8d2b7fae55":{"name":"Coffee set","description":"Set contains tray, coffee pot (*cezve*), coffee jug with lid, sugar bowl and small bowl.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Kational Museum in Kraków","initial_owner":"Muzeum Techniczno-Przemysłowe w Krakowie / Industrial Museum in Kraków","dates":"13th century Hegira / 19th century AD","location":"Kraków","dimensions":"Tray diameter: 26cm","method_for_datation":"Dating and origin based on stylistic grounds and similar pieces from other collections.","method_for_provenance":"Material and technique are characteristic for Turkish metalwork production in this period","provenance":"Turkey","obtention":"Gifted to the Industrial Museum in Kraków by Zdzisław Hordyński in 1920; collection taken over by NMK in 1950.","dynasty":"Ottomans (AH 698–1340 / AD 1299-1922)","author":"Monika Paś","keywords":["coffee","Islam"],"materials":["Forged, engraved, partially tinned copper"]},"ad8d142b-0f91-580b-88d2-b78b4b99e310":{"name":"Sherbet *gabi* and *pialas* set","description":"A set consisting of the vessel, a large tray and a number of *pialas* (a type of local bowl for drinking). The liquid (usually sherbet) from the vessel was poured into the *pialas* by a ladle and served to guests during feasts. The surface of the whole set is generally richly decorated with images of people, inscriptions in Arabic, and more. This particular set is decorated with human images and inscriptions that read as follows:  \n\"Husayn, the apple of Ahmad's eye,  \nMemory of Heydar!  \nAgain, what is this rebellion that has covered the people of the whole world  \nAgain, what is this song of mourning, what is grief, what is lament?  \nWhat a great resurrection this is again,  \nOn the day of resurrection, your trumpet will rise from the earth to the majestic throne.  \nThat’s why this sad morning has come,  \nThe people of the world turned upside down  \nAs if the Sun has risen from the west, so that the excitement would cover all parts of the world.  \nThere is so much sorrow in the palace of Jerusalem,  \nPeople in Jerusalem are very sad.  \nIt is the mourning of remarkable person, the most honourable of the children of Adam.  \nHusayn fluttered in blood in the soil in Karbala. Husayn is the light of the Land, West and the East, the Sun and the Sky. He grew up in the arms of the Prophet Muhammad.  \nHe (his soul) cries of the thirsty now from Karbala, reaching the highest Star.  \nWhile the eye of the wind cries at him  \nBlood began to flow on the porch of Karbala.  \nPeople didn't see *gulab* \\[rose water\\] but tears.  \nOn that day, the people of Kufa didn't even give him water.  \nThey had deep respect for the Karbala guest.  \nThey all drank and turned to the beast, and to the devil.  \nIn Karbala, Suleyman's water was drained.  \nThe enemy neighbours shamelessly  \nWent towards the tent of the Sultan of Karbala.  \nFate became a *Sahand* \\[obstacle, mountain\\] to zeal.  \nOut of fear of the enemy, a cry rose in the holy place.","type":"Tableware","holder":"Azerbaijan National Carpet Museum","dates":"Hegira 13th / AD 19th century","location":"Baku","dimensions":"Sherbet *gabi*: height: 59cm, diametre: 50cm; first *piala*: height: 6.5cm, diametre: 12.5cm; second *piala*: height: 6.5cm, diametre: 12cm; third *piala*: height: 7.5cm, diametre: 12cm; *majmayi*: height: 2cm, diametre: 61cm","place_of_production":"Azerbaijan","method_for_datation":"By stylistic and comparative analyses with related material","obtention":"Purchased in 1970; 1970; 1992; 1980; 1980","author":"Rustam Afandiyev","keywords":["piala","sherbet gabi","sini","Tableware","vessel"],"materials":["Copper","hammered, engraved"]},"ada2243f-108b-5eed-b2bf-2399e60e1491":{"name":"Cauldron.","description":"A cauldron (a huge cooking pot) from the Complex of Khassaki Sultan, also known as a charitable institution or *takiyya* (asylum) for the needy. The building, completed in AH 964 / AD 1557, is located in Jerusalem. As a patroness of charitable institutions, Khassaki Sultan undertook the construction of this complex, and endowed it with a *waqf*. This establishment is considered to be one of the largest social institutions to survive from Ottoman Jerusalem. In its day, it offered meals, daily, to the poor of the city, students, scholars and others who were among those who were entitled to food in accordance with the requirements of the *waqf*. The number of people who benefited from this institution on a daily basis exceeded 1000, thus requiring the availability of large spaces to prepare huge quantities of food in enormous cooking utensils. Despite the changing administrative and political circumstances in Palestine during the past few centuries, this institution still occupies a minor social role today.  \nThe Islamic Museum acquired three cauldrons from the complex of Khassaki Sultan. The cauldron exhibited here was produced using tin-plated copper, constructed by means of coiled copper which forms part of the body of the cauldron. The coil is then fixed together with solid copper nails, as hammering was not used on these large pots as it was with smaller cooking vessels. The cavity of the cauldron has been fixed to the base by a series of nails that surround the junction of the base with the body. The vessel has four large carrying handles. The body is supported by a group of copper stays that sometimes form extensions to the handles and are fastened to the cauldron with nails, or that are simply located between two of the handles. It seems that the cauldron was coiled only in the middle of its cavity, for its hollow has been tin-plated and secured with copper nails in the same manner as was used to fix the base. The cauldron contains an inscription that appears to have been added at a later period, it reads: “The *waqf* of the late mother of the sultan who had built edifices in Jerusalem under the charge of Hajji Khalil Aga … designated formerly 1235 \\[AD 1819\\]”. There is another date next to this that reads, “1161 \\[AD 1748\\]”.","short_description":"This is a large cooking utensil made of copper that was used to prepare meals in the Khassaki Sultan charitable institution established in Jerusalem by the wife of Sultan Sulayman the Magnificent. The great size of this cauldron reflects the amount of food that was prepared on a daily basis.","type":"Tin plated, hammered Copper","holder":"Islamic Museum, al-Aqsa Mosque / al-Haram al-Sharif.","initial_owner":"Khassaki Sultan (also known as Haseki Hürrem Sultan or Roxelana; d. AH 965 / AD 1558), wife of Sultan Sulayman, the Magnificent (r. AH 926–73 / AD 1520–66).","dates":"Hegira 10th century / AD 16th century.","location":"Jerusalem","dimensions":"Height 80 cm, diameter 131 cm.","method_for_datation":"The piece has been dated in accordance with the date of construction of the Complex of Khassaki Sultan, since it was probably made to be used there.","method_for_provenance":"The cauldron does not contain any distinguishing marks that enable us to narrow down the place of its manufacture. However, the manufacture of vessels such as this was, and still is, undertaken in Palestine and Syria so it is possible that this piece was made in one of these two places.","provenance":"Palestine or Syria.","obtention":"The piece was transferred from the Complex of Khassaki Sultan to the Islamic Museum in 1928.","bibliography":"Al-'Arif, 'A., *Al-Mafssal fi Tarikh al-Quds \\[An Articulation of the History of Jerusalem\\],* Jerusalem, 1999.  \nAl-Hanbali, Mujir al-Din (d. 927 / 1520), *Al-Uns al-Jalil fi Tarikh al-Quds wa al-Khalil. \\[The Significant Ambiance in the History of Jerusalem and Hebron\\],* Amman, 1973.","dynasty":"Ottoman","linkcatalogs":"IAM_TR_EN_001","author":"Nazmi Al-Ju'beh","copy_editor":"Majd Musa","translator":"Amal Sachedina (from the Arabic).","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["charitable institution","Copper","hammering","Khassaki Sultan","takiyya","Tin","Tin-plate"],"materials":["Tin-plated and hammered copper."]},"ada30dbf-d7f6-59db-9686-df60e9f94fc9":{"name":"Blossoming almond trees.","description":"One of Portugal's most well-known legends tells of how it was that almond trees came to be part of the landscape of the southern region of the country. An Arab prince, married to a Christian from the north, noticed that his wife lived in a permanent state of melancholy, and so one day he asked her for the reason for this enduring mood. She told him that she missed the snow, frequent in the north of the Peninsula, but which rarely fell in the more southerly regions. The prince then ordered the planting of almond trees, whose blossoming at the end of the winter would create the illusion of fields covered with snow.  \nThis romantic and highly lyrical legend does nevertheless contain some basis of truth and demonstrates deep links with the Portuguese land.  \nAl-Mu'tamid, a poet and lord of the Abbadid dynasty (AH 461–84 / AD 1069–91), one day set a challenge to Ibn Amar, as they were travelling along the Guadalquivir: 'The breeze turns the river / into a coat of mail'. The response came from Itimad, a slave woman of Romaik: 'A better coat of mail cannot be found / since the river freezes it'. Impressed by the slave's beauty and by her poetic inspiration, al-Mu'tamid took her as his wife and made her queen. The family and geographical origins of Itimad were confined to helping construct the legend. Although the story told relates to the region of Seville, al-Mu'tamid was born in Beja and was a lord of Silves, having later governed a large part of the south of the Iberian Peninsula.  \nDeposed from power, al-Mu'tamid ended up living in exile in Morocco, where he died on 30 Dhu'l-Hijja 487 / 10 January 1095. Itimad lies at his side in a mausoleum in Agmat.","short_description":"Towards the end of the winter, the landscape of the Algarve is marked by blossoming almond trees. Legend has it that they were planted by an Arab prince in homage to his beloved, who came from the north, in order to create the illusion of snow, which is rare in the south. The legend is based on the romance between the Abbadid prince Al-Mu‘tamid and the slave girl Itimad. Impressed by her beauty and poetic inspiration, Al-Mu‘tamid married her and made her queen. Itimad’s geographical and family background helped to create the legend.","dates":"From the earliest Muslim presence in the region.","location":"Southern Portugal","method_for_datation":"Through oral tradition.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_PT_EN_001","author":"Isabel Cristina Ferreira Fernandes","translator":"Gilla Evans","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["al-Mu'tamid","almond trees","landscape","Legend","Southern Portugal","traditions"]},"ae5a92a8-98ae-588a-a771-9a2c3a38eb09":{"name":"*Al Rahaa* (Millstone)","description":"*Al Rahaa* (millstone) is used to grind grains, such as wheat and barley to make flour. Grain is fed between the two stones through the central hole. The top stone is turned using the handle and this action crushes the grain.","type":"Millstone","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century / AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Height: 425mm, Ddiameter: 345mm, Tthickness: 140mm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","method_for_provenance":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Amanda Snyder, Mona Mukhashab","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["barley","flour","grains","grind","millstone","wheat"],"materials":["Stone, wood"]},"ae99c07a-63eb-5689-9082-49c9d484164e":{"name":"*Suq al-Hamidiyya, Damascus*","short_description":"The Suq al-Hamidiyya, built in 1886 and 1894, is by far the biggest and most famous suq in Damascus. This bazaar street also links the two most important historic buildings, the Umayyad Mosque and the Citadel. It was built along its western section by incorporating earlier structures, whereas the eastern part of the street was a completely new construction cutting through the existing buildings. The commercial thoroughfare is 450 metres long and 8.70 to 9.90 metres wide, its enormous size and the high standard of its execution accentuate new design principles. So in various respects, this suq is a very interesting example of structural change in a traditional commercial centre.","type":"Photograph; postcard","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art at the Pergamon Museum, State Museums","dates":"1910","location":"Berlin","author":"Stefan Weber"},"aed162cf-cef3-52e5-aa78-567138f64d2a":{"name":"Bowl with stand","short_description":"This bowl with a bulging rim sits on a stand. The decoration is made of two layers of concentric patterns around a central circle, filled with winged motifs. These green and brown patterns are painted on a yellow background. Although this kind of bowl is usually used to serve couscous, in the town Nabeul, and particularly for the occasion of Islamic New Year, each child is presented with a *methred* bowl, filled with golden couscous, dried fruit, dates, a hard-boiled egg and sweets. This all surrounds a statuette made of sugar, moulded and coloured to resemble an animal (such as a rooster or a gazelle) or a figure, like a doll or cavalier.","type":"Ceramics","holder":"Musée de la Céramique Sidi Kacem Jelizi","dates":"19th century","location":"Tunis","provenance":"Unknown","author":"Saloua Zangar","translator":"Flaminia Baldwin","keywords":["Floral motifs","winged motifs","cermaics from Nabeul"],"materials":["Ceramic"]},"aee0d03f-b711-5643-8552-3ef51656eff4":{"name":"*Jarrita* vase with two handles","description":"This drinking vase has a pear-shaped body and two rounded handles that join a short neck that widens toward the top; it rests on a low base. The decoration, painted in dark blue and a beautiful shade of bronze-gold on the ivory opaque glaze, is placed symmetrically on both sides of the handles. A frieze of pseudo-epigraphy whose drawing seems to recall the word *al-'afiya* (good health)... is drawn in blue on the neck over a glossy background of a wormlike pattern. On the body, eight-lobed medallions in bronze-gold have a blue pseudo-epigraphic pattern in the centre. On each side of the handles is a scalloped almond composition. Directly below each handle is another pseudo-epigraphic motif against a glossy background. A series of horizontal lines rings the lower part of the body. The lustre decoration with metallic reflections is a process peculiar to the arts of Islam. The technique is seen as early as the eighth century on fragments of Egyptian glasses; it was later applied to ceramics, beginning in the ninth century in Mesopotamia under the reign of the Abbasids. It is a decoration painted on a glazed piece that has undergone a first firing. The lustre consists of a mixture of copper and silver oxides to which are added sulphur and red ochre, and a binder to permit a brushed application. A second firing in an oxygen-poor atmosphere results in the incorporation of the oxide particles, now reduced to a metallic state in the softened glaze. Quite characteristic effects are produced when the pieces are observed in light. The secrets of this complex and sometimes unpredictable technique were jealously guarded in pottery workshops. Nevertheless, the process spread to both the East and the Muslim West, and in Spain its development was encouraged by the Nasrid rulers, especially in Malaga. Since the Reconquest, the craze for Hispano-Moorish ceramics (*loza dorada*), continues, since production is exported to Muslim countries and Christian Europe. Cobalt blue and brown lustre, combined in bold compositions, as here, give a characteristic identity to a process that is still used, for example in Manises (in Valencia).","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","dates":"Hegira last quarter of 8th century or beginning 9th century / AD end of 14th or beginning of 15th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 16.2cm, Diameter: 13.4cm, Length: 18cm, Base diameter: 9.8cm, Opening diameter: 9.5cm","provenance":"Malaga (Spain)","obtention":"Purchased at 'Art Musulman' gallery in 1987.","bibliography":"Delpont, E., et al., *Album du musée*, Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, 2012: 386.  \n  \nMoulierac, J., et al., *Céramiques du monde musulman: collections de l'Institut du monde arabe et de J.P. et F. Croisier* , Paris: Institut du monde arabe, 1999: 146.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["Ceramic with lustre paint decoration"]},"b01b60d5-e457-5cea-b280-e145d44183d1":{"name":"*Haal* (Cardamom)","description":"*Haal* (Cardamom) used to flavour the coffee.  \nCoffee is always served at the beginning of a visit and is repeatedly offered until guests politely signal that they have had enough by rocking their cup from side to side. In order to keep coffee hot and fresh for unexpected guests it goes through many stages. After roasting and grinding the coffee beans the grains are added to boiling water inside a large *dallah* (coffee pot) called a *khamra*. Next, the liquid is poured into a medium-sized coffee pot called a *taljeemah*. At this stage cardamom seeds, saffron and rose water may be added for flavour. From this jug, the coffee is poured into a serving *dallah* referred to as a mezallah, where the coffee is refined and filtered. The server must hold the mezallah with their left hand and distribute the *fanayeel* (coffee cups) using the right hand. The coffee should fill less than half of the cup.**","type":"Cardamom","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century / AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Varies and depends on the piece. Length: 15mm, width: 5mm","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Amanda Snyder, Mona Mukhashab","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["cardamom","coffee"]},"b01b920c-bd76-5e6a-b3c9-4e331c550bdd":{"name":"Karagöz and Hacivat Shadow Play","short_description":"Shadow play consists of solid figures being shown and moved behind a semi-transparent screen. The characters of Hacivat and Karagöz plays reflect the multi-ethnic makeup of the Ottoman Empire. They are represented with a high level of detail through their figures, attitudes, dances, etc. Shadow play received its basic character in the 17th century and developed further in the following centuries, eventually becoming one of the most popular traditional forms of entertainment among Turks. It was performed by a single artist that is called a *hayali* (imaginary person) or *hayalbaz*. One of the main characteristics of shadow play is that the *hayali* changes his voice and manner of speaking depending on the character he was animating.","type":"Puppet","holder":"Bursa Karagöz Museum","location":"Bursa","copy_editor":"Daniel de la Vega","materials":["Leather"]},"b1c9d73d-7178-5324-9b0c-d946356b48ab":{"name":"Plate","description":"Red clay, cream slip, decorated in purple-brown and mustard tones under a transparent colourless glaze.  It is one of the few surviving examples of a plate used on a daily basis. In a naive manner the giraffe is depicted tied to two trees. The rim is decorated with an intermittent lattice pattern. The model for the giraffe was sent as a gift to Sultan Mahmut II in 1823 by the governor of Egypt, Kavalalı Mehmet Ali Pasha. It was kept on a ship anchored in Çanakkale harbour that was being resupplied on its way to Istanbul. Upon seeing the giraffe in the harbour, ceramic masters were inspired to produce a new motif in their workshops by reproducing the giraffe on plates.","type":"Utensil","holder":"Istanbul Archaeological Museums (The Tiled Kiosk)","dates":"Hegira 1st half of 13th century / AD early 19th century","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"Diameter: 31cm, height: 5.5cm","dynasty":"Ottoman (AH 698–1340 / AD 1299-1922)","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Glazed terracotta"]},"b1fe1635-a0ea-5d86-871f-4148f5ba34cc":{"name":"Plate","short_description":"The genuine enthusiasm that Chinese blue-and-white porcelain aroused in Iran since AD 14th century led to various attempts of Persian potters to unravel the main Chinese secret and to devise ways to simulate the unparalleled effects of porcelain.  \nAlong with plates and bottles that more or less closely imitated Chinese porcelain in the motifs and style, an authentic Iranian style of cobalt-blue décor developed in the 17th–18th century. This plate depicting tigers and birds in dense thickets of forest or garden, freely arranged in a decentralized composition, was possibly made in Kerman of the early 18th century.","type":"Ceramics","holder":"The Khanenko Museum","dates":"AD early 18th century","location":"Kyiv","dimensions":"Diameter: 21.7cm, Height: 4.7cm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis by I. Rapoport (examination, 1963, date, origin).","method_for_provenance":"According to the entry in the old Museum Inventory Register (1925-1946).","provenance":"Iran, probably Kerman","obtention":"Purchased by Bohdan and Varvara Khanenkos. Donated by Varvara Khanenko in 1918, nationalized by Bolshevik regime in 1919.","bibliography":"Bilenko, H. and Rudyck (Rudyk), H., *Oriental Collection*, guidebook, Kyiv: The Khanenko Museum, 2005.  \nBilenko, Halyna and Vyshnevetska, Mariya, et al., *State Collections of Ukraine*, album, The Bohdan and Varvara Khanenko National Museum of Arts, 2009.  \nCrowe, Y., *Persia and China: Safavid Blue and White Ceramics in the Victoria and Albert Museum 1501-1738*, London: La Borie, 2002.  \nLane, A., *Later Islamic pottery: Persia, Syria, Egypt, Turkey*, London: Faber and Faber, 1957.  \nRudyk, H. (ed), *Charisma of Iran. Persian art of 12th–19th centuries from museum collections of Ukraine*, Kyiv: The Khanenko Museum, 2017.","dynasty":"Safavid","author":"Antonina Makarevych, Hanna Rudyk","copy_editor":"Janice Medina","keywords":["ceramics","cobalt","Iran","Safavid","stonepaste"],"materials":["Stonepaste","underglaze painted with cobalt"]},"b2a64729-0616-53e6-bc8d-4d7583ceac8c":{"name":"Plate","short_description":"Sultan Abdülhamid II founded in 1891 the *Yıldız Çini Fabrika-i Hümâyûnu* (Yıldız Royal Tile Factory) in the garden of Yıldız Palace in order to revive Turkish tile art and give it a new direction and momentum. Vases, hanging wall plates and many sorts of daily-use wares were produced in the factory, including writing and dinner table utensils, card plates, lidded bowls, pans, *aşure* (a kind of dessert) trays, sugar bowls, tea and coffee cups. This plate features a dark green background on which there is a *tuğra* (monogram) made of gilding and a border around the edge.","type":"Ceramic plate","holder":"Yıldız Palace Museum","location":"Istanbul","provenance":"Istanbul","copy_editor":"Daniel de la Vega","keywords":["yıldız ceramic","Turkish decorative arts"],"materials":["Ceramic"]},"b35798dc-77ea-5958-913f-2fb174b5a6c6":{"name":"Raqqa lustre bowl.","description":"The thin wall of the bowl is decorated symmetrically on the inside with a quatrefoil motif that covers its entire surface. A stylised trefoil leaf is painted within each of the four petals. Corkscrew tendrils, each with a bifid leaf, occupy the spaces between the outer contours of the petals. The outer edge is emphasised with a lustre stripe.  \nA collection of about 100 pieces of pottery, to which this piece belongs, was found at Tell Minis in Syria. At first it was thought that such pieces were imported into Syria from Egypt, but the discovery at Tell Minis confirmed that they were made in Syria. Meanwhile, the findings gained from excavating in the urban area of Raqqa have confirmed that a large number of these ceramics were produced in Raqqa. Some of these feature inscriptions. The decoration is very reminiscent of Fatimid ceramics, modified by the introduction of lustre painting and the use of quartz fritware. It can be assumed that, following the end of the Fatimid dynasty (AH 564 / AD 1169), Egyptian manufacturers of ceramics moved to Syria, where they introduced the new techniques. The existence of identical ceramic pieces strongly suggests that pattern drawings were used in the workshops.","short_description":"Small thin-walled bowls with figurative or vegetal patterns in a reddish colour are typical of Syrian lustre-ware pottery of the Ayyubid period. The design of this bowl with four petals in ovals and arabesque leaves in the spandrels is very clear and perfectly fits the round shape of the bowl.","type":"Bowl, ceramic","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art at the Pergamon Museum","initial_owner":"Henri Pharaon Collection, Beirut.","dates":"Hegira late 6th–early 7th century / AD late 12th–early 13th century.","location":"Berlin","dimensions":"Height 6.5 cm, diameter 21 cm.","method_for_datation":"The excavations in Raqqa confirm that lustre ceramics glazed with reddish-brown lustre were made in Syria during the Ayyubid period. The technique was brought over by potters from Egypt following the downfall of the Fatimids.","method_for_provenance":"Findings made in Tell Minis and in Raqqa have led to the conclusion that this type of ceramic originated in Syria.","provenance":"Raqqa, Syria.","obtention":"From a private gallery in London, 1992.","bibliography":"Allan, J. W., *Islamic Ceramics*,Oxford, 1991, pp.40–1.  \nCaiger-Smith, A. *Lustre Pottery*, London, 1985, pp.51–5.  \nPorter, V., *Medieval Syrian Pottery*, Oxford, 1981, pp.3–8.  \nPorter, V. and Watson, O., “Tell Minis Wares”, in *Syria and Iran: Three Studies in Medieval Ceramics* (eds. J. W. Allan and C. Roberts), Oxford Studies in Islamic Art, IV, Oxford, 1987, pp.175–248.  \nWatson, O., *Ceramics from Islamic Lands*, London, 2004, pp.14–5, 289–94.","dynasty":"Ayyubid","author":"Annette Hagedorn.","translator":"Maria Vlotides.","translation_copy_editor":"DRAFT VERSION.","keywords":["Fatimid","lustre-ware","quartz fritware","Raqqa","Syria","Tell Minis"],"materials":["Quartz fritware ceramic. Lustre decoration painted over the greenish-white glaze."]},"b381524f-09dd-5a75-8920-d87af44e1cd5":{"name":"Public fountains.","description":"Al-Djazaïr and its *fahs* (rural surroundings) possessed a large number of fountains. Their number, for the walled town, varied from seven according to Haëdo in the AH 10th / AD 16th century, to 125 according to the knight of Arvieux in 1674–5, and to 'seventy-three as recorded in 1840' (S. Missoum, *Alger à l'époque ottomane* – see Bibliography). A large number of these fountains were built during the AH 12th / AD 18th century by *deys*.  \nBenefactors were responsible for the creation of these fountains. Attached to each one, on a plaque of marble or shale, in Arabic or Ottoman Turkish, is an inscription extolling the merits of the benefactor. Under the auspices of a *k**hudjat al-'uyun* – a sort of 'fountains secretary' – an administrative body was responsible for managing the *habus* (estate donations) that were collected on behalf of these fountains.  \nOne of these fountains, known as the fountain 'de la Calle aux Vins', has ended up on an exterior wall of the present National Museum of Antiquities and Islamic Art. Built by the *dey* Husayn in AH 1235 / AD 1820 outside Bab al-Djazira (Gate of the Island', also referred to as Gate of the Holy War) and below the battery of al-Andalus, it was moved for the first time in 1867 to 'underneath the stairway of the present bastion of the Gate of France' (undated report on the proposition of making an endowment to the state; but the agreement on the endowment is dated 13 May 1905). Then it was moved a second time to the Park of Liberty (formerly Gallant Park), to be placed against the wall of the Department of Antiquities, where, in correspondence dated 27 May 1968, it is the subject of an account of the maintenance work carried out by the chief architect of historic monuments.","short_description":"The town of Al-Djazaïr had a number of public fountains, most of which were built during the AH 12th / AD 18th century by the Ottoman *deys*. These fountains bore, on a marble or slate plaque, the names of the benefactors who commissioned them and were managed by an body under the aegis of the 'fountains secretary'. In AH 1235 / AD 1820, *dey* Husayn had a fountain built outside Bab al-Djazira, the gateway that bears an inscription in his honour.","dates":"Hegira 1235 / AD 1820.","location":"Algiers","method_for_datation":"Through an inscription in Arabic and Osmanli: 'Everything lives through water. The governor of Algiers along with his sultan, who is Husayn Pasha, incessantly strives, with virtuous intentions, to accomplish good deeds. His bounty attempts above all to bring running water in sufficient quantities to all places. It is he who commissioned the building of this fountain. He gives life to him that is thirsty and deprived, in this place that lacks water. Drink fresh water thanks to the generosity of Husayn and his love. Year 1235 [1820].'","bibliography":"Belhamissi M., *Alger par les eaux XVIe–XIXe*, Algiers, 2004.  \nMissoum, S., *Alger à l'époque ottomane*, Aix-en-Provence; Algiers, 2003.  \nNational Archaeological and Historic Monuments Agency, Archives, notably the report on endowments to the state, undated.","dynasty":"Ottoman.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_TR_EN_001","author":"Ali Lafer","copy_editor":"Margot Cortez","translator":"Maria Vlotides","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["fountain","water"]},"b4d34b89-c6b2-5e46-8e41-4f74dec4c93d":{"name":"Spice box.","description":"A circular spice box made from brass that is incised and inlayed with silver. The container is original but the lid is a replacement, a fact verified by the decoration on the lid being distinctly different to that on the container. The lid is decorated with concentric bands surrounding a roundel in the centre. The roundel contains an arabesque quatrefoil with secondary leaf motifs surrounded by a band of leafy scrolling. The pattern is interrupted by three roundels with motifs of eight-pointed stars, created from trefoils and leaf motifs, and issuing from a central lozenge motif. A broader band occupies the main part of the lid; it contains 12 complex interconnected knot motifs that are separated from each other by vertically disposed, twisted-rope designs. The composition issues from pseudo-*kufic* elements above and below. The outermost band repeats the decorative scheme of the border around the central roundel, but on this occasion it is interrupted by six roundels rather than three. The container displays a guilloche around the upper body. Below, separated from the guilloche by a ridge, the main part of the body has four large roundels with scrolling borders, filled with alternating arabesque scrolls and a coat of arms. The areas in between the roundels are filled alternately with a three-knot design, issuing from pseudo-*kufic* elements top and bottom, or a geometric interlace pattern, rising from a pseudo-*kufic* base and terminating in trilobal motifs. The lower body is enhanced by a band of leafy scrolling, interrupted by four roundels with quatrefoils.","short_description":"During the AH late 8th–9th / AD late 14th–15th centuries Mamluk metalworkers developed a range of wares specifically for the European market and decorated to European taste, a fact borne out by the appearance of European coats of arms and blazons on many examples. This box conveyed expensive spices to the West.","type":"Metalwork, brass, silver","holder":"National Museums of Scotland (NMS).","dates":"Hegira 9th century/ AD 15th century.","location":"Edinburgh, Scotland","dimensions":"Height (with cover) 7.62 cm, diameter 13.97 cm.","method_for_datation":"Containers such as this one were made specifically for the European market during the late 8th– 9th/ late 14th–15th centuries, a fact borne out by the appearance of European coats of arms and blazons on other examples of the period.","method_for_provenance":"Pieces like this are known to have been made in the Mamluk realm, probably Damascus, during the Mamluk period.","provenance":"Egypt.","obtention":"Purchased from W. Wareham, London, in 1870.","bibliography":"Atil, E., *Art of the Arab World*, Washington D.C., 1975, p.148, cat. no. 80.  \nCuratola, G., (ed.) *Eredita dell’ Islam: Arte Islamica in Italia*, Venice, 1993, p.486, cat. no. 303; p.487, cat. no. 304.  \nWard, R., *Islamic Metalwork*, London, 1993, p.115, fig. 92.","dynasty":"Mamluk","linkcatalogs":"IAM_EG_EN_001","author":"Ulrike Al-Khamis","copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["arabesque","pseudo inscriptions","Veneto-Saracenic"],"materials":["Incised brass with silver inlay."]},"b4e72974-c00c-5720-9454-206dc84e1405":{"name":"Pashmina Niche Rug","description":"The new carpet style in the time of Mughal ruler Shah Jahan (1628-1647) was the flower style, featuring the naturalistic depiction of flowering plants. The refined elegance of the decorations, the use of expensive silk and pashmina and the high knot count are characteristic of the luxury carpets of this period. The silk warp was frequently dyed in bands. The flower style lived on in the works of the post-Shah Jahan workshops.  \n  \nIn the field, the ivory-coloured *mihrab* (prayer niche) with lobed arch is adorned on both sides by a crimson half cypress growing from a finely delineated column base. From the apex of the *mihrab* hangs a trapezoidal lamp; in the centre below, a three-branched floral bush grows from the bottom of the *mihrab*. Faint glimmers of the colourful bands (ivory, yellow, crimson, blue and green) can be seen in the plain ivory surface. The crimson spandrel is adorned on both sides with symmetrical floral patterns – vines, leaves and poppy blossoms. As is typical of flower style rugs, the major border of the rug contains lotus flowers against a dark blue ground and is enclosed in ivory field minor borders.","type":"Carpet","holder":"Museum of Applied Arts","dates":"Third quarter of 17th century","location":"Budapest","dimensions":"Height: 151cm, Width: 104.5cm, Knot density: 5,893/dm2","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","method_for_provenance":"Manufacturing techniques and stylistic analysis","provenance":"Kashmir or Lahore, North India or Pakistan","obtention":"Purchased from Adolf Roger, an art dealer of Budapest, 1895","bibliography":"Batári, Ferenc, *Csomózott indiai, kelet turkesztáni, kínai, tibeti és európai szőnyegek: Kiállítás a Miskolci Galériában a Budapesti Iparművészeti Múzeum gyűjteményéből / Knotted Rugs from India, Eastern-Turkestan, China, Tibet and Europe: Exhibition in the Miskolc Gallery from the Collection of the Budapest Museum of Applied Arts*, Miskolc: Miskolci Galéria, 1980: no. 1 and figure.  \nCsányi, Károly (ed), *Magyar szőnyegkedvelők egyesületének régi keleti szőnyegkiállítása az Orsz. Magyar Iparművészeti Múzeumban \\[Early Oriental Carpet Exhibition of the Hungarian Carpet Collectors' Association in the National Hungarian Museum of Applied Arts\\]*, Budapest: Iparművészeti Múzeum, 1924: 33, no. 151.  \nGombos, Károly, *Régi keleti imaszőnyegek*, Szolnok: Damjanich János Múzeum, 1979: no. 96.  \nLayer, Károly (ed), *Régi perzsa szőnyegek kiállítása: leíró-lajstrom \\[Early Persian Carpets Exhibition. Descriptive List\\]*, Budapest: Iparművészeti Múzeum, 1936: no. 42 and figure.","workshop":"Imperial workshop","dynasty":"Mughal","author":"Emese Pásztor","copy_editor":"Valerie Pulsifer","translator":"Lara Strong","keywords":["cotton","mihrab","Mughal rug","Pashmina"],"materials":["Asymmetrical (Persian or Senneh) knot, Open to the left","Pile: Pashmina wool","Warp: Ivory, red, yellow and green silk in stripes, alternates moderately depressed","Weft: Beige cotton, 3 shoots"]},"b5a220ba-715c-5b3c-87dd-4d32b38cbcb1":{"name":"*Kwar* (Brazier)","description":"*Kwar*; a low, circular wooden brazier that stands on four legs. The *kwar* is filled with sand to protect it from the hot charcoal that is used to roast coffee beans, prepare bread, heat milk, or to add the smell of incense or *oud* to the room.","type":"Brazier","holder":"Bait Shaikh Saeed bin Hamad Al Qasimi Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","initial_owner":"Arabian Peninsula","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century/AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Height: 280mm, diameter: 780mm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","method_for_provenance":"Stylistic analysis","obtention":"Purchased","catalogue_holding_link":"brazier; kwar","author":"Hazelle Page","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Wood, iron"]},"b5eeb317-b1a2-5710-8891-111d70b464e6":{"name":"Ewer for Zamzam water","description":"Pear-shaped ewer with strap handle and serpentine spout. Brass lid and stopper for the spout are both screw-threaded, which allows them to be securely sealed in place. The body and neck engraved with floral pattern, with applied palmette bosses to each side with trefoil suspension loops (one is missing).","type":"Metalwork","holder":"National Museum in Kraków","initial_owner":"Muzeum Techniczno-Przemysłowe w Krakowie / Industrial Museum in Kraków","dates":"12th century Hegira / 18th century AD","location":"Kraków","dimensions":"Height:  32cm","method_for_datation":"Dating and origin based on stylistic grounds and similar pieces from other collections","method_for_provenance":"Material and technique are characteristic for Turkish metalwork production in this period","provenance":"Turkey","obtention":"Purchased by the Industrial Museum in Kraków from Markus Schwarz in 1900; collection taken over by NMK in 1950","dynasty":"Ottomans (AH 698–1340 / AD 1299-1922)","author":"Monika Paś","keywords":["Islam","tombak","Zamzam"],"materials":["decoration cast and engraved","Gilded copper (tombak)","piece cast"]},"b6518af0-5029-5a94-8521-524613b875bb":{"name":"Citadel of Aleppo.","description":"The Citadel of Aleppo is a masterpiece of medieval Islamic fortress architecture. Its massive ovoid shape and extensive defences enclose an area of approximately seven hectares. The natural hill upon which the Citadel was built has long been used as a stronghold (including evidence of a Hittite temple from the first millennium BC). During the Hamdanid reign of Aleppo under Sayf al-Dawla in the AH 4th / AD 10th century, early constructions of a citadel took place. The Citadel's strategic importance was reactivated by the time the Crusades began.  \nWhen Nur al-Din ruled Aleppo in the early AH 6th / AD 12th century, he rebuilt its fragmented interior and fortified the remnants of the earlier fortress. His expansion included the construction of Maqam Ibrahim, an important shrine with legendary associations to the Prophet Abraham. However, the majority of the citadel's surviving features date to the period of Saladin's son, al-Malik al-Zahir Ghazi, who ruled between AH 582–613 / AD 1186–1216. He ordered the deeper, 22-m moat, the magnificent bridge, the glacis of smooth impregnable stone, the enlarged towers (or *burgs*), and the outstanding gateway designed to ambush any enemy who managed to approach. Unlike Damascus, Aleppo was more exposed to Frankish attacks from nearby Edessa and the western coastlands. There was also the threat of the powerful and stealthy \"Assassins\", followers of the esoteric Isma'ili sect of Shi'i Islam.  \nAl-Zahir rebuilt many of the civil and religious constructs initiated by Nur al-Din, including the Citadel's beautifully proportioned Great Mosque and the administrative Dar al-'Adl (House of Justice) facing the Citadel. Some scholars speculate the existence of a tunnel between the two.  \nMost importantly, al-Zahir Ghazi constructed the royal palace complex and baths within the Citadel walls. This represents a new development in the history of Islamic architecture. Palatial residences were not usually constructed behind military fortresses but due to high- level security during this period, a new model emerged. The palace was renovated by al-Aziz Muhammad in AH 627 / AD 1230, but most of it was destroyed by the Mongols.  \nAltogether, Al-Malik al-Zahir's project radically changed both the scale and scope of the Citadel and its surrounding area, making it the impressive sight it is today. Decorative elements appear particularly around the gates. Two well-known examples are the Lion Gate and the Serpent Gate, each decorated in high-relief figurative stone carving. Lions had long been used as signs of power and royalty; here symbolising throne guardians. The serpents and dragons on the other hand curl backwards to bite themselves; they mark the limits of a protected and controlled area.  \nParts of the Citadel, especially the entrance block and bridge, underwent renovation during the Mamluk period, some time in the AH 7th / AD 14th century. Stylistically this is evidenced by the more flamboyant decorative features.","short_description":"This masterpiece of medieval fortification is the hallmark of Aleppo since the AH 6th / AD 12th century. Its entrance block alone is an impressive work. Linking the citadel to the city by a stately ramp, it also includes two massively constructed towers which conceal a U-shaped corridor that would force an attacking army to change direction six times, while exposing them to projectiles and burning liquid from gaps in the vaults above. Most of the citadel's construction, both military as well as the palatial and religious buildings within, date to the Ayyubid al-Malik al-Zahir Ghazi (d. 613 / 1216).","dates":"Hegira 6th–7th century / AD 12th–13th century.","location":"Aleppo","method_for_datation":"Various inscriptions and historical records have preserved an accurate account of the various stages of the Citadel's construction and evolution.","bibliography":"Allen, T., “Ayyubid Architecture”, *Occidental* (electronic publication 7th edition), 2003.  \nEttinghausen, R., Grabar, O., and Jenkins-Madina, M., *Islamic Art and Architecture 650–1250*, New Haven, 2001, p.230.  \nHerzfeld, E., “Matériaux pour un Corpus Inscriptionum Arabicarum: Syrie du Nord”, Part 2: *Inscriptions et monuments d'Alep*, 3 Vols, Cairo, 1954–6, p.12.  \nBurns, R., *Monuments of Syria: An Historical Guide,* London-New York, 1999, p.33; fig. 3.  \nTabbaa, Y., Constructions of Piety and Power in Medieval Aleppo, Pennsylvania, 1997, pp.17–26, pp.53–6, pp.59–69, pp.71–96; figs 9–37.  \nQujjeh, M., \"Al-'amara fi 'ahd Sayf al-Daula al-Hamadani \\[Architecture in the Era of Sayf al-Din al-Hamadani\\]\", *al-Ma'rifa* 2006, no. 508; pp.280–4.  \nIbn Shaddad, Izz al-Din (d. 1285), *Al-A'laq al-Khateera fi dhikr Umara al-Sham w al-Jazira \\[The Crucial Core in the Mention of the Rulers of Greater Syria and the Jazira\\]*, Damascus, 1953.","patrons":"Nur al-Din Mahmud bin Zangi (d. AH 569 / AD 1174); al-Malik al-Zahir Ghazi (d. AH 613 / AD 1216); al-Malik al-‘Aziz Muhammad (d. AH 634 / AD 1236).","architects":"Many architects, builders and craftsmen took part in the construction, the involvement of master architect Thabit b. Shaqwayq during the reign of Nur al-Din is recorded in the historical literature. He was the supervising engineer who died when the upper entry block collapsed in AH 600 / AD 1203–4.","dynasty":"Zangid, Ayyubid and Mamluk.","author":"Zena Takieddine, Samer Abd al-Ghafour, Abd al-Razzaq Moaz","copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["al-Malik al-Zahir Ghazi bin Salah al-Din","Aleppo","Citadel","defences","dragons","figurative stone carving","Fortress","lions","military architecture","moat","Nur al-Din Mahmud bin al-Zangi","Palace","Sayf al-Dawla al-Hamadani","serpents","zoomorphic stone carving"]},"b666eda8-3aa4-5e7c-a57e-1511705d233d":{"name":"Brass *Badiye* Bowl","description":"This is a broad-bodied, wide-mouthed bowl shaped by the hammering technique and decorated all over with inlaid gold and silver leaf. The rim is bordered with lotus, flowers and leaves. This type of ornamentation can also be seen in the book decorations of the Qaitbay Period. Immediately below this border are round medallions and rectangular cartouches with inscriptions adorned with knotted weave motifs. The lower part of the body is encircled by scalloped niches with floral decorations and a pattern of intertwined Ys and Ts (truncated meander). The composition adorning the bottom of the bowl, decorated with geometric interlaces formed by the arms of a multi-pointed star on a background of curved branches and *rumili* (stylised designs), is one of the most beautiful examples of its period. In Mamluk art similar compositions were used with the same skill in woodcarving, bookbinding and stonemasonry.  \n  \nThe composition, carving of the surface and placement of silver and gold leaf are typical of the Mosul school. Some of the craftsmen of Mosul origin, fleeing the Mongol invasion, migrated to other regions and worked under the Artuqids, the Ayubids of Syria and Egypt, and later the Mamluks. The Kaygbay bowl was probably made by a Mosul craftsman.  \n  \nThe inscriptions read: \"Our glorious Sultan al-Malik al-Ashraf, the victorious Kaidbay, may his victory be blessed\".","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts","dates":"AH 874-895 / AD 1470–1490","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"Height: 16.5cm, width: 36cm","provenance":"Mosul","dynasty":"Mamluk (AH 648–923 / AD 1250–1517)","materials":["Brass"]},"b71ad5bf-0537-5bae-a28c-3289c9d237b7":{"name":"Beylerbeyi Palace.","description":"Beylerbeyi Palace is a seaside residence in the Beylerbeyi district (formerly known as İstavroz Bahçeleri or 'Cross Gardens') on the Anatolian side of the Bosphorus Strait. The various parts of the palace complex have been put together independently, regardless of symmetry. The main structure, the palace building, is a two-storey brick construction rising on a high basement. It occupies a rectangular area oriented north to south and measures approximately 65 m x 40 m. The southern section is designed as state apartments (*mabeyn*), the northern section as the family's living quarters (*harem*). The main building has a symmetrical and axial layout; in contrast to the Western influence apparent from the outside, its plan resembles that of a traditional Turkish house, arranged around a central courtyard with *iwan*s. The wall which runs along the quay, enlivened with repeating triple pilasters, includes two gates opening onto the water and two small seaside pavilions, one for men and the other for women. These splendid gates, called waterside or sea gates, were used to secure the entrance to the palace from the water. The sea gates, one of which was designed to belong to the men's quarters and the other to the women's, show Eastern influence; their design is interesting, enlivening as they do the two ends of the straight line created by the shore-side wall.  \nThe other buildings in the complex, dispersed throughout the complex within walled gardens and connected to one another by stairs and ramps, are the Marble Pavilion, the Yellow Pavilion and the private stables. The Deer House, Bird House, Lion House, the Pavilion of the Pashas and Music Pavilion are no longer standing.  \nThe façades of the Beylerbeyi Palace, like the organisation of the inner spaces, take eclectic forms. It is clear that Sultan Abdülaziz was inspired by his new palace and interested in its decoration. The façades include arches and windows in the Greek and Roman styles, a balanced Classical scheme is achieved also by the use of round arches and limited architectural forms; the plastic effect of Baroque designs is also apparent. In contrast to the evident Western influence seen in the external decoration, the interior spaces are heavy with traditional Ottoman and Eastern motifs. Many rooms and salons feature paintings of seascapes as well as military motifs like swords and flags. Since no provision was made for a heating system in the palace, it is inferred that the whole complex was designed as a summer palace.  \nThe first Beylerbeyi Palace was wooden and built for Sultan Mahmud II (r. AH 1223–55 / AD 1808–39 by the architect Krikor Amira Balyan. The present Beylerbeyi Palace was designed and built under the auspices of the architects Sarkis Balyan and Agop Balyan, and on the orders of Sultan Abdülaziz between 1276 and 1281 / 1861 and 1865, after the original palace was abandoned following a fire during the reign of Sultan Abdülmecid (r. AH 1255–77 / AD 1839–61). Over the years the Beylerbeyi Palace hosted many foreign guests; its last resident under the Ottoman Empire was Sultan Abdülhamid II (r. AH 1293–1327 / AD 1876–1909), who was dethroned. During the Republic period (after 1923) some sections of the palace were used to host state guests; these were opened to visitors in 1985 and renovated for various artistic activities. The Beylerbeyi Palace serves today as a palace museum linked to the National Palaces.","short_description":"One of the most magnificent Ottoman coastal palaces, Beylerbeyi Palace is located on the Asian coast of the Bosphorus. It was commissioned by Sultan Abdülaziz and consists of the main palace structure and its auxiliaries. Its façade and interior decorations blend various Western influences with Eastern motifs. This summer residence is remarkable for its rich decoration and its two sea-pavilions on the water are the most striking and typical examples of Orientalism in Istanbul. It was opened to the public as a museum in 1984.","dates":"Hegira 1281 / AD 1865.","location":"Beylerbeyi, Istanbul","method_for_datation":"Archival documents, inscriptions found on the monument, newspapers of the period, travel journals and the works of historians of the time are all useful in dating the monument. In addition, stylistic details of the palace complex provide important clues as to the period in which it was constructed.","bibliography":"Batur, A., “Beylerbeyi Sarayı \\[The Beylerbeyi Palace\\]”, *İstanbul Ansiklopedisi \\[Encyclopaedia of Istanbul\\]*, Vol. II, Istanbul, 1994, pp.206–10.  \nEldem, S. H., *Boğaziçi Anıları \\[Memoirs of Bosphorus\\]*, Istanbul, 1979.  \nGülsün, H., *Beylerbeyi Sarayı \\[The Beylerbeyi Palace\\]*, Istanbul, 1993.  \nKarahüseyin, G., “Beylerbeyi Sarayı ve ünlü Konukları \\[The Beylerbeyi Palace and its Famous Guests\\]”, *Milli Saraylar Dergisi \\[Journal of the National Palaces\\]*, II (1992), pp.126–41.  \nSözen, M., *Devletin Evi Saray \\[The Palace, the House of the State\\]*, Istanbul, 1990.","patrons":"Sultan Abdülaziz (r. AH 1277–93 / AD 1861–76).","architects":"Sarkis Balyan and Agop Balyan.","dynasty":"Ottoman.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_TR_EN_001","author":"Semra Daşçı","translator":"Barry Wood, İnci Türkoğlu","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["Bosphorus Strait","Ottoman architecture","pavilion","Seaside palace","Sultan Abdülaziz"]},"b86322b9-31bb-52dc-86d7-821809e043fd":{"name":"Pottery bowl","description":"A glazed small pottery bowl decorated under a blue, light green, and brown radial design under a greyish glaze. The rhythm of the five colours evokes the five pillars of Islam, elevating the object from an ordinary houseware to a spiritual level. The radials point to a blueish spot in the middle of the bowl. The rim is lined with the same blue as one of the radials inside the bowl. We see the radial underglaze or lustre design in some beautiful AH 6th / AD 12th-century Kashan Iranian pottery bowls.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani Museum","owner":"His Excellency Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Height: 6cm, Diameter: 18cm, Base Diameter: 7cm","place_of_production":"Morocco","method_for_datation":"Analysis of techniques, style and motifs","method_for_provenance":"The origin of acqusitions","provenance":"Morocco","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Terézia Bardi","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Ceramic","glazed, underglaze painting"]},"b94cb9f7-6fcd-59f6-9089-a055c78e4311":{"name":"Hunting Picnic Trunk","description":"In the three compartments of the picnic trunk are plates, flasks, glasses, candlesticks, figurines, forks, knives, penknives, and pipes made of metal, glass and porcelain.","holder":"Museum of the Turkish and Islamic Arts","dates":"AH 12th-13th century/AD 18th century","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"Width: 1m, height: 51 cm","method_for_provenance":"It is believed that the hunting picnic chest was sent as a gift to Sultan Abdülhamid II by Emperor Franz Joseph of Austria (1830–1916).","obtention":"The item was brought from the Istanbul University Library to the Museum of Turkish and Islamic Art in 1935.","dynasty":"Ottomans (AH 698–1340/AD 1299–1922)","materials":["Wood, velvet, glass, porcelain, metal"]},"b95967f4-71c0-5313-9654-d9eb492b2fb1":{"name":"Candlestick (*Mash ‘al*)","description":"This Safavid cylindrical candlestick is crafted from brass and adorned with intricate decorations. It features a blend of floral and geometric motifs alongside bands of *nasta’liq* script inscriptions. These are verses from Persian mystical poetry, particularly those by the renowned 14th-century poet Hafez Shirazi, including the famous line:  \nالا یا ایها الساقی ادر کأسا و ناولها","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani Museum","owner":"His Excellency Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"Hegira 12th century / AD 18th century","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Height: 28cm, diameter: 9cm, base diameter: 16cm","place_of_production":"Iran","method_for_datation":"The date and origin were established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, techniques, style and analogies.","method_for_provenance":"Provenance was established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, techniques, style, iconography, inscription and analogies.","provenance":"Iran","obtention":"Purchased","dynasty":"Safavid (AH 907–1150 / AD 1501–1737)","author":"Mahmoud Saber","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["engraving, embossing","Metal, brass"]},"ba61949f-4fe6-55e5-a72f-065204514600":{"name":"Long-necked bottle","description":"This monochrome bottle with a long neck has a facetted design, imitating metal bottles. This type of object appears in painted miniatures in which the cupbearer pours wine from an identical bottle. Prohibited by the Qur’an, wine nevertheless could have medicinal and digestive virtues, according to Al-Râzî: “the usefulness of wine for the preservation of health, and the improvement of digestion, is certain if it is given its rightful place, and if its quantity, quality, and timing are in accordance with the rules of the art\".","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","initial_owner":"Jean Soustiel","dates":"Hegira 5th - 7th century / AD 12th or 13th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 24cm, Diameter: 14cm, Diameter base: 7cm","provenance":"Iran","obtention":"Purchased from the Art Musulman gallery in 1992.","bibliography":"Delpont, Eric, et al., *Album du musée*, Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, 2012: p. 293.  \n  \nMocelin, G. and Brohard, Y., *Sur les chemins d'Ispahan, savoir et médecine entre Orient et Occident*, Grenoble: Edition Cent Pages, Grenoble, 2006, p. 62.  \n  \nMoulierac, J. and Vaudour, C., *La médecine au temps des califes: à l'ombre d'Avicenne*, Paris: Institut du monde arabe, 1996: Fig. 130, p. 205.  \n  \nMoulierac, Jeanne, et al., Céramiques du monde musulman: collections de l'Institut du monde arabe et de J.P. et F. Croisier, Paris: Institut du monde arabe, Paris, 1999: p. 114.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["moulded design under transparent turquoise glaze","Siliceous clay"]},"baf45ab7-f9b5-5700-a897-9353a2be95f3":{"name":"Incense container","description":"Copper container adorned with embossed decoration. Vessels like this are usually used to store incense or jewelry.","type":"Metalwork, brass","holder":"The National Museum - Sultanate of Oman","dates":"Hegira 13th–14th/AD 19th–20th century","location":"Muscat, Sultanate of Oman","dimensions":"Height: 11cm, diameter: 9.5cm","provenance":"Northern Oman","dynasty":"Al-Busaid Dynasty (AH 1167–present/AD 1754–present)","author":"Noora Al Balushi","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["Brass"]},"bb6ff3f2-34bc-53a8-ab51-b32bd5e8a3c1":{"name":"*Al Loz* (Indian Almond tree, *Terminalia catappa*)","description":"These colourful trees produce edible fruit and nuts. Extracts from the tree have been used for dying clothes and for medicinal purposes.","type":"Almond","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"early 21st century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Varies and depends on the leaf. Length: 90mm, width: 35mm","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Field collection","author":"Amanda Snyder, Mona Mukhashab","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["almond","almond tree"],"materials":["Leaves"]},"bc31e6e4-7f37-5725-b63d-89472dbadb64":{"name":"Fragment of a pottery bowl.","description":"The Raqqa region contains a group of Abbasid palaces that have been labelled with the letters A, B, C and D. This ceramic fragment was found during archaeological excavations carried out in Palace A. The fragment is part of a delicate bowl that was made in a mould and decorated around its girth with Arabic *kufic* script that reads: “from the work of Ibrahim al-Nasrani that has been made in Hira for the Amir Sulayman, son of the Commander of the Faithful.\" The Commander of the Faithful, or Caliph, in question is the Abbasid Abu Ja'far al-Mansur (r. AH 136–58 / AD 754–75). The text indicates that this piece was made in Hira by Ibrahim al-Nasrani and transported to Raqqa. The name of the craftsperson (al-Nasrani, i.e. the Christian) indicates that he was probably a master craftsman in the Christian ceramic-producing quarter of al-Hira.  \nThe base of the bowl was stamped with geometric and stylised vegetal motifs including palm trees.","short_description":"Although this bowl is delicate and fragmented, its moulded band of early *kufic* inscription has mostly survived. It includes the name of the craftsman, Ibrahim al-Nasrani, evidently a Christian, the place of production in Hira and the dedication to Sulayman, '\\[son\\] of the commander of the faithful'.","type":"Bowl, earthenware","holder":"National Museum of Damascus","initial_owner":"Prince Sulayman (son of the Abbasid Caliph Abu Ja'far al-Mansur (r. AH 136–58 / AD 754–75).","dates":"Hegira 136–58 / AD 754–75.","location":"Damascus","dimensions":"Height 7.5 cm, diameter 12.2 cm.","method_for_datation":"The inscription on the fragment associates it with the rule of the Abbasid Caliph Abu Ja'far al-Mansur (136–58 / 754–75).","method_for_provenance":"The text inscribed on the vessel fragment specifies Hira, in Mesopotamia (Iraq) as the place of production.","provenance":"Produced in Hira in southern Mesopotamia (Iraq).","obtention":"The fragment was found during an archaeological excavation carried out in 1948 in Palace A by the Syrian General Directorate of Antiquities under the direction of archaeologist Nasib Salibi.","bibliography":"Abu al-Faraj al-Ush, M., *A Concise Guide to the National Museum of Damascus,*  \nDamascus, 1969, p.160.  \nKohlmeyer, K. (ed), *Land des Baal,* Mainz, 1982.  \nSoustiel, J., and Kiefer C., *La céramique islamique*, Fribourg, 1985.  \nWeiss, H. (ed), *Ebla to Damascus*, Washington DC, 1985, p.518.","dynasty":"Abbasid","author":"Mona al-Moadin","translator":"Hilary Kalmbach (from the Arabic)","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["Caliph Abu Ja'far al-Mansur","ceramic","Christian","earthenware","Hira","Ibrahim al-Nasrani","Iraq","kufic script","moulded","Nasib Salibi","pottery","Prince Sulayman","Raqqa","stamped"],"materials":["Earthenware","moulded and stamped."]},"bd8ff36e-5588-5aad-949e-bfd038a77ce8":{"name":"Coffee Cup","description":"The piece has a round, wide mouth, single handle, round, wide body and thin ring bottom.  \nThe exterior is decorated with yellow gilding and dark red, white and blue encaustic floral decoration on a white ground. The inner surface is white. The handle and base are brass and were added later. There is a flying bird figure on the upper part of the handle.  \nThe saucer is made of silver and has a rounded form and wavy rim. The entire circumferenceis decorated with vine leaves and grape clusters in relief. The centre is curved upwards and stamped","holder":"Ankara Ethnography Museum","owner":"The Republic of Türkiye Ministry of Culture and Tourism","location":"Ankara","dimensions":"Height: 3cm, diameter: 6.2 cm","dynasty":"Ottomans (AH 698–1340 / AD 1299-1922)","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["Porcelain and silver"]},"bdeda37e-0f4a-5fd6-ad87-d9dacdb11131":{"name":"‘Imara al-‘Amira (Flourishing Edifice).","description":"The 'Imara al-'Amira contains four architectural components: a large kitchen, with its subsidiary additions which includes two ovens, a bakery and a fountain; a large *caravanserai* and a mosque as well as a *ribat,* composed of 55 rooms, for Sufis and the poor. This large building has two entrances, the northern entrance on Aqabat Takiyya Street and the southern entrance on Aqabat al-Saraya Street. The northern entrance has a transition zone, known as a *derka*, which leads into an open courtyard. In the northern section of the complex are the remains of an adjoining entrance and the kitchen, storage areas and a fountain, in addition to a two-storey building. The southern entrance leads into a corridor with walls that are rich in decorative stonework, which finally leads into the open courtyard surrounded by arcades that form the *caravanserai* (*khan*) of the 'Imara al-'Amira. To the east of the *caravanserai* with itsopen courtyard, there is a building that was constructed in the AH 13th / AD 19th century, known as Adaliyya. Perhaps it was built on the site of the *ribat* that vanished over the course of time. The Adaliyya building faces a hall of which little remains but for four cross vaults it may, however, have been part of the mosque of the 'Imara al-'Amira. To the east of the hall there is a dome-covered shrine that is believed to be the final resting place of Sa'ad al-Din al-Rasafi, author of the work, *al-Manhal al-Safi wa al-Mashrab al-Wafi \\[The Pure Spring and the Inundated Fountain\\]*.  \nThe multiplicity of elements that make up the complex indicate that it served several purposes: as a place for religious worship; for charitable purposes, as may be noted by the kitchen which was and still is used for the preparation of food for the poor and the needy and for trade and economic purposes, represented by the *caravanserai* that accommodated merchants and consummated mercantile trading.","short_description":"This grandiose social complex was also known as 'Khassaki Sultan' after its patron, the wife of Sultan Sulayman the Magnificent. The complex was built as a result of incorporating a number of buildings and other additions. It includes a large kitchen, two ovens, two bakeries, a *sabil* (public fountain), a large *khan* (inn), a mosque and a Sufi ribat. It has two entrances and a number of open plazas. The complex provided food daily to the needy as well as to visitors, regardless of their identity or religion, as did the *zawiya* and the *arbita* (Sufi hospice and teaching establishment). Over 1000 meals were offered daily.","dates":"Built in around hegira 964 / AD 1557.","location":"Jerusalem","method_for_datation":"The building is dated by *waqf* documents associated with it, among which is record number 270 in the Shari'a Court of Jerusalem (Folio No. 18–49). This document is further supported by the archives of the Palestinian Museum (Rockefeller Museum). Through these documents it is possible to deduce that the construction of the 'Imara al-'Amira began in 959 / 1552 and was completed in around 964/ 1557.","bibliography":"Myers, D., “Al-Imara al-Amira: The Charitable Foundation of Khassaki Sultan (959/1552)”, in S. Auld and R. Hillenbrand (eds), *Ottoman Jerusalem: The Living City 1517–1917* (Part I), London, 2000.  \nNatsheh, Y., “My Memories of Khassaki Sultan or the 'Flourishing Edifice'”, *Jerusalem Quarterly* File No. 7, winter 1999, pp.29–35.  \nPierce, L., *The Imperial Harem: Women and Sovereignty in the Ottoman Empire.* London, 1992.  \n*Pilgrimage, Sciences and Sufism: Islamic Art in the West Bank and Gaza,* pp.105–7.","patrons":"Khassaki Sultan (also known as Haseki Hürrem Sultan, d. AH 965 / AD 1558), wife of Sultan Sulayman the Magnificent (r. AH 926–73 / AD 1520–66); she was known in European literature by the name of Roxelana.","architects":"None of the names of those who designed and implemented the building can be clearly identified but they are likely to have included local architects and others from the city of Aleppo in Syria.","dynasty":"Ottoman.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_PA_EN_001; IAM_TR_EN_001","author":"Yusuf al-Natsheh","copy_editor":"Majd Musa","translator":"Amal Sachedina (from the Arabic).","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["'Imara al-Amira","kitchen","roxelana","takiyya"]},"be60fc30-4879-59b7-9f1b-3a7a358298d0":{"name":"Jug and basin set (*aftafa-layan*)","description":"The *aftafa-layan* is a jug and basin set with a separating lid used for washing, usually made of copper and richly decorated. It was widely distributed in the Near and Middle East and used during large feasts. The lid was used as an esthetic cover for the basin. It is decorated with inscriptions and floral elements. One or two lines from Hafez’s ghazal poem were written on the upper border of *aftafa*. The edge borders of the *layan* are decorated with inscriptions. The inscription in the cartouches on the border read as follows:  \n\"It's time to enjoy the flowers and life.  \nSagi! Give the water of life.  \nIn the meadow, wine and jam \\[bowl\\] are pleasant.  \nAlong with crimson tulips.  \nWasted youth is a pity, it can't be considered a life.\"","type":"Tableware","holder":"Azerbaijan National Carpet Museum","dates":"Hegira 13th / AD 19th century","location":"Baku","dimensions":"Height: 27cm, diametre: 18cm","place_of_production":"Azerbaijan","method_for_datation":"By stylistic and comparative analyses with related material.","obtention":"Purchased in 1973","author":"Rustam Afandiyev","keywords":["aftafa-layan","Azerbaijan","Basin","Copper","Jug","Tableware"],"materials":["Copper","hammered, engraved."]},"bf8c236d-a3f0-57db-aaff-72a234666a2c":{"name":"Portrait of Sultan Selim II","short_description":"This large album portrait of Sultan Selim II (reigned 1566–74) reveals much about his reign. It was Selim’s father, Sultan Süleyman the Magnificent (reigned 1520–66), who solidified the geographical borders of the Ottoman Empire and refined the central administration of his government, allowing his son and successor to pursue more sedentary pleasures such as literature, art and wine-drinking. Nicknamed “Selim the Sot” for his affection for wine, the sultan was nonetheless a great bibliophile and patron of architecture, music and the arts of the book. The painter, poet and naval commander Haydar Reis depicted Selim II as larger than life; the robust sultan in his luxurious fur-lined and brocaded gold garment dwarfs both the page boy and the interior in which he sits in a cross-legged position on a carpet. This composition was one of a number of conventions for Ottoman royal portraiture developed in the 1570s and is similar to portraits in Loqman’s *Kiyafetu’l Insaniye fi Semailu’l-Osmaniye*, a study to record the physiognomy of the Ottoman sultans.","type":"Folio","holder":"Aga Khan Museum","dates":"1570 or 1590","location":"Toronto, Ontario","dimensions":"44.2 x 31.2cm","provenance":"Istanbul, Turkey","obtention":"Former Prince Saddrudin Aga Khan Collection","dynasty":"Ottoman","keywords":["folio","painting","Portrait","ruler","sultan","work-on-paper","works-on-paper"],"materials":["Opaque watercolour, gold, paper"]},"c0f8bfaf-f9ca-5ac0-84ba-67ebfcaf39e4":{"name":"Tablecloth (*dastarkhan*)","description":"A *dastarkhan* is a thin white *palas* (a kind of traditional, flat-woven carpet popular in Azerbaijan) that functioned as a tablecloth for Azerbaijanis and other Turkic peoples. The central field of Azerbaijani *dastarkhans* was rectangular, usually plain, and the borders spotted vivid decoration in contrast with the *dastarkhans* produced in Central Asia that boast elaborate designs. A *dastarkhan* denoted a sacred meaning, as its ornaments protected the food and the breadwinner and brought abundance to the family.  \nIn the central field of this artifact, there are inscriptions in the old epigraphic alphabet, stylized images of birds (symbolizing protection), butas (symbolizing different abilities bestowed on a person) and branches (symbolizing blessings). Images of arrows on the *dastarkhan's* border symbolize honour, prosperity and blessings.","type":"Tableware","holder":"Azerbaijan National Carpet Museum","dates":"Hegira 1305 / AD 1887","location":"Baku","dimensions":"Length: 188cm, width: 90cm","place_of_production":"Karabakh, Azerbaijan","method_for_datation":"By stylistic and comparative analyses with related material","obtention":"Purchased in 1984","author":"Rustam Afandiyev","keywords":["Azerbaijan","dastarkhan","flat-woven","tablecloth","wool"],"materials":["interweaved, wrapped.","Wool pattern yarn for the warp, cotton yarn for the weft"]},"c11ef512-f9e7-5a23-bafe-934bc32549ba":{"name":"Hearth of Ateşbaz-ı Veli (*Makam-ı Ateşbaz-ı Veli*)","description":"Ateşbaz was a Mevlevi *dede* (elder) who lived during the lifetime of Mevlana. It is said that one day an elder was preparing a meal in the kitchen when he discovered that he had exhausted his supply of fuel. He informed Kazancı Dede of the situation. Upon receiving the reply, \"If there is no wood, you should have put your foot,\" he did not hesitate, and placed his foot into the fire, cooking the food in its flame. This earned him the name Ateşbaz, or \"playing with fire”. A sign reading *Ya Hazret-i Ateşbaz-ı Veli* (O His Holiness Ateşbaz-ı Veli) used to be hung over the hearth in Mevlevi kitchens.  \nAccording to sources associated with the Mevlevi Order, Sultan Veled, the son of Mevlana, engaged in a period of asceticism lasting forty days. This involved seclusion and reduced food, sleep and speech. Once the forty days of asceticism had been completed, Ateşbaz would prepare a meal. The first mausoleum for a cook was constructed for Ateşbaz in Meram, Konya.","type":"Room Restoration","holder":"Konya Mevlana Museum","location":"Konya","bibliography":"Bakırcı, Naci, *Konya Mevlana Müzesi*, Istanbul: BKG Yayinlari, 2010.","copy_editor":"Judy Harter"},"c13e07a9-25e9-500c-a2eb-4f7568251a1e":{"name":"Qajar Carpet -Hunting Scene","short_description":"The pictorial carpets of Qajar Iran illustrate royals and famous people in various scenarios. This Persian Kashan wool rug displays a hunting scene with a portrait of a king or a nobleman sitting on a chair embellished with crowns, drinking and holding a copper ewer in his other hand, and a wide variety of animals and plants. The phoenix above the nobleman, a popular creature in Persian mythology, represents immortality. Hunting dogs symbolize honour and glory, while the gazelle symbolizes innocence. The imagery of water is significant, denoting purity and the source of life, and in which the fish embody undying love. The cypress tree signifies Persian perseverance and pride.","type":"Carpet; rug","holder":"FBQ Museum","owner":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"19th century","location":"Shahaniya","dimensions":"Length: 245cm, Height: 150cm","method_for_datation":"Date and origin were derived from material, colour, pattern and knot examination.","method_for_provenance":"Date and origin were derived from material, colour, pattern and knot examination.","provenance":"Iran, Kashan","obtention":"Auction","bibliography":"Ahmadi, R.,\"Symbolism in Persian Rugs\",*Manuscripta Orientalia*, 3 : 1 (1997): 62-64.  \nNikandish, B., Askari, S., and Chitsazian, A., \"Symbology of Bird Motifs in Persian and Indian Carpets\", *Peykareh*, 7 : 14 (2019): 33-51.  \nRouhina, M., and Ahmad Panah, S. A., \"The Motif of Cedar Tree in Qajar and Safavid Rugs\", *Peykareh*, 7 : 13 (2018): 17-35.  \nSharbatian, Y., and Bagheri, R., \"Anthropological Study of Kerman Carpet Symbols, Shapes, and Designs\", *American International Journal of Social Science Research*, 7 : 1 (2021): 15-29.  \nVandshoari, A., and Ebrahimi, A. N., \"Epic and Myth in Pictorial Carpets of Qajar Era in Iran\", *Art-Sanat*, 5 (2016): 103-118.","dynasty":"Qajar","author":"Sarah Schroeder","copy_editor":"Valerie Pulsifer","keywords":["carpet","hunting","Iran","Kashan","Portrait","Qajar","rug"],"materials":["Senneh knot","wool"]},"c166cd2d-8939-540b-a898-6cea4e8dc0ae":{"name":"Brocaded velvet","short_description":"Figurative design flowered in Safavid textiles in the AH 10th century / AD mid-16th century. These figures often share the same features as book paintings from the period. This velvet is unique due to the large size of its figures, unknown on other velvets of the AH 10th century / AD 16th century, and the richness of surface textures. Uncut loops of metal-wrapped silk thread have been added in some areas to the traditional silk pile, contrasting with the glittering metal thread background.","type":"Textile","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art","dates":"Hegira 977-987 / AD 1570s","location":"Doha","dimensions":"Height: 164 cm, width: 70 cm","provenance":"Iran, Qazvin","obtention":"Sotheby's London,  Fine Oriental and European Rugs and Carpets, 14 Oct 1998, lot 37 to Qatar Museums","bibliography":"Al Khemir, Sabiha, *From Cordoba To Samarqand, Masterpieces from the Museum of Islamic Art in Doha*, Milan: Musée du Louvre Editions, 2006.  \n  \nThompson, Jon, *Silk. 13th to 18th centuries. Treasures from the Museum of Islamic Art, Qatar*, Doha: National Council for Culture, Arts and Heritage, 2004.","dynasty":"Safavid","author":"Tara Desjardins","keywords":["Brocaded","Iran","Safawid","textile","Velvet"],"materials":["Silk, Metal Thread","weaving"]},"c1dc368c-d1ca-53c8-a0da-a63bd4ed9f6b":{"name":"*Jobbana* covered pot","description":"The word *jobbana* comes from the Arabic word *jben*, which refers to cheese. This lidded jar was originally used in Morocco to curdle milk, but was used also to preserve butter or serve *harira*, a soup with which the Ramadan fast is broken in the evening. The delicacy of the decoration of this pot is characteristic of the workshops of the city of Safi, a city on the west coast, whose name is inscribed under the base. The tone of blue reflects the use of a handmade nickel-based pigment. Ceramic production development in Safi would result from the arrival of potters from Fes who appreciated the quality of clay in banks near the city.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","initial_owner":"Bernard Aubert","dates":"Hegira 2nd–3rd quarter of 13th century / AD first half of 19th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Maximum height: 25cm, Opening dimension: 18cm, Base dimension: 11.4cm","provenance":"Safi, Morocco","obtention":"Purchased from Bernard Aubert, 1989.","bibliography":"Bel, A., *Les industries de la céramique à Fès*, Algiers: Bastide-Jourdan, 1918: 292.  \n  \nBoukobza, A., *La poterie marocaine*, Casablanca: Alpha, 1974: 24, 27, 114; Fig. 17, 21.  \n  \nDelpont, E., et al., *Album du musée*, Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, 2012: 386.  \n  \nEbert, C. and Kalter, J., *Marokkanische Keramik*, Stuttgart: Hansjörg Mayer, 1988: 105, 117, 120, 134.  \n  \nMoulierac, J., et al., *Céramiques du monde musulman: collections de l'Institut du monde arabe et de J.P. et F. Croisier* , Paris: Institut du monde arabe, 1999: 149.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["Clay","painted decoration on opaque glaze"]},"c2c6489a-b997-5d3e-a98c-d31891a7ba03":{"name":"Large *khabiya* jar","description":"This large jar, *khabiya*, is intended for the storage of grain, semolina, oil, or water. Its motifs are typical of Tunisian craftsmanship, whose main production centre was in the pottery district (Qallaline) of Tunis. These motifs, the *taouq* (rim decoration), the strip of vertical hatching, and the band of ovoid kernels (*qloub*) are linked by similar designs. The composition is arranged in parallel bands, with the repeated use of yellow, green and brown.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","initial_owner":"Alain and Dalila Loviconi","dates":"Hegira 4th-5th century / AD 11th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 57cm, Diameter base: 20cm, Diameter opening: 25cm, Diameter maximum: 39 cm","place_of_production":"Qallaline, Tunisia","provenance":"Qallaline, Tunisia","bibliography":"Curatola, G., *Eredita' dell' Islam. Arte islamica in Italia*, Milan: Silvana Editoriale SpA, 1993: Fig. 84  \n  \nDaoulatli, A., *Poteries et Ceramics tunisiennes*, Tunis: Institut National d'Archéologie et d'Art, 1979: 71  \n  \nDelpont, E., et al., *Album du musée*. Eric DELPONT (et al.), Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, 2012: 291  \n  \nHarbi-Riahi, M., *30 ans au service du patrimoine: XXVIII centenaire de Carthage, 814 av. J. C. - 1986: de la Carthage des Phéniciens à la Carthage de Bourguiba*, Tunis: Institut National d'Archéologie et d'Art, 1986: 306  \n  \nMarcais, G., *Le Musée Stéphane Gsell. Musée des Antiquités et d'Arts musulman d'Alger*, Algiers: Gouvernement général de l'Algérie, Direction de l'intérieur et des beaux-arts, 1950: Pl. XXXIX","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["Clay","design painted on opaque glaze"]},"c2e80ac9-c3fb-51a3-8cd2-d3cc5c1a3b20":{"name":"Tray stand","description":"This Mamluk bronze tray stand exemplifies the iconic shape, size and ornamentation characteristic of Mamluk metalwork, with a notable influence from China in the shape of the tray. Originally serving as a portable support for a food tray, it would have been accompanied by multiple table stands.  \nAdorned with intricate *thuluth* inscriptions, geometric and floral motifs, and interrupted by cartouches, this stand is a testament to the exquisite craftsmanship of the Mamluk artisans. Distinctive Arabic inscriptions grace the upper and lower parts and the exposed section of the lower rim. Epigraphic analysis reveals that these inscriptions identity of the owner – a high-ranking official (Amir) in the Mamluk court hierarchy who belonged to the second-highest rank. The display of titles underscores the owner’s esteemed position and societal status. One of the inscriptions, “*Al-maqarr al-‘ali al-mawlawi al-amiri al-kabiri al-‘alimi al-‘adili al-ghazi al-mujahidi al-maliki al-nasiri*”, suggests that the owner is a follower of Al Sultan Al-Nasir. While many Mamluk sultans held the title Al-Nasir, it is unclear which one is referred to here. However, the decoration style indicates that it likely belongs to the period of Al-Nasir Muhammad bin Qalawun (1258–1341). Crafted from bronze, this tray stand displays intricate detail achieved through engraving and embossing. The *thuluth* inscriptions, geometric and floral motifs, and cartouches are meticulously executed, reflecting the skill and artistry of Mamluk metalworkers in Egypt during the 14th century.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani Museum","owner":"His Excellency Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"Hegira 8th century / AD 14th century","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Height: 25.5cm, diameter 25cm, base diameter: 25cm","place_of_production":"Egypt","method_for_datation":"The date and origin were established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, techniques, style, inscription and analogies.","method_for_provenance":"Provenance was established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, techniques, style and analogies.","provenance":"Egypt","obtention":"Purchased","dynasty":"Mamluk (AH 648–923 / AD 1250–1517)","author":"Mahmoud Saber","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["Bronze, Egypt, Mamaluk, Al Sultan Al-Nasir, Al-Nasir Muhammad bin Qalawun, China, Chinese"],"materials":["Bronze","engraving, embossing"]},"c3101633-812c-5595-969c-ee2b57886090":{"name":"Mosque lamp.","description":"An enamelled glass and gilt mosque lamp with a wide funnel-shaped neck and a rounded rim. The lamp has a squat body, steeply sloping shoulder and a flattened base, and a tall pedestal foot with a pronounced pontil mark on the underside. Six trailed suspension loops are placed around the body at regular intervals. The lamp is decorated comprehensively with enamel decoration executed in red, blue and light-green, embellished with gilding. Around the neck is a wide band of *thuluth* script executed in blue enamel, surrounded by a floral border. An excerpt from the Qur’an (*Sura* 2; verse 256), the inscription is interrupted by decorative roundels rendered in gold, red and green, each of which contain a little cup in the centre. The lower neck and upper body are decorated with floral bands interrupted by roundels with individual floral motifs. On the main body, another inscription in *thuluth* script gives the titles of the official who commissioned the lamp: Zain al-Din Mubarak who, according to the blazon above, was cupbearer to the sultan, al-Malik al-Salih, who is also named in the inscription. There were two rulers with the same titulature, both of whom were the sons of Nasir Nasir al-Din Muhammad ibn Qalawun: the first, al-Malik al-Salih Isma’il (r. AH 742–5 / AD 1342–5); the second, al-Malik al-Salih Salih (r. AH 751–4 / AD 1351–4).","short_description":"Glass mosque lamps with enamelled decoration were commissioned in large numbers by the Mamluk elite in Egypt and Syria. Decorated with Qur’anic inscriptions and the titles of the patron, they were destined for the numerous mosques and *madrasas* endowed by the Mamluks throughout Cairo and the empire.","type":"Glasswork, enameled","holder":"National Museums of Scotland (NMS).","dates":"Hegira 742–54 / AD 1342–54.","location":"Edinburgh, Scotland","dimensions":"Height 38.10 cm, diameter 26.67 cm.","method_for_datation":"The appearance of the name of al-Malik al-Salih on this mosque lamp assigns the piece to the reign of either al-Malik al-Salih Isma’il (r. 742–5 / 1342–5) or to al-Malik al-Salih Salih (r. 751–4 / 1351–4).","method_for_provenance":"Mosque lamps of this type were made in large numbers in both Egypt and Syria during the 8th / 14th century.","provenance":"Syria.","obtention":"Purchased by NMS from the Major W. J. Myers Collection in 1900.","bibliography":"Carboni, S., and Whitehouse, D., *Glass of the Sultans*, New York, 2002 (for discussion on related mosques lamps and Mamluk glass).  \nEremin, K., and Al-Khamis, U., ‘Mamluk and Pseudo-Mamluk Glass in the National Museums of Scotland’, in *Annales du 15e Congrès de l’Association Internationale pour l’Histoire du Verre, New York, 2003.*","dynasty":"Mamluk","linkcatalogs":"IAM_EG_EN_001","author":"Ulrike Al-Khamis","copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["al-Malik al-Salih Isma’il","al-Malik al-Salih Salih","blazons","calligraphy","coat of arms","Emblems","enamelled glass","Mosque interior decoration","Mosque Lamp","Thuluth","Zayn al-din Mubarak"],"materials":["Enamelled and gilded glass."]},"c343e522-683c-5e4b-8f73-edba72f1ed53":{"name":"Aş Evi (Bektashi Kitchen)","description":"The most significant part of the Hacı Bektaş Velî Dervish lodge is the Aş Evi (kitchen), which is accessed via a large door with two wings. After traversing two corridors, one reaches the location of the main Aş Evi. On the right side of the first corridor is the grave of the father of the Ash House, which is marked by an inscription dated 1560 on the door of the second corridor. To the right of this corridor is a window that opens to the room of the Father of the House, while to the left is the Pantry Room, where meat is cooled.  \nThe main hall of the house is entered through an arched doorway and is divided into two parts by a large arch based on the north and south walls. In the centre of the hall is the stone where meat was chopped and fat was drained. On the south, north and east walls there are six large and small hearths where food was cooked.","holder":"Nevşehir Hacıbektaş Museum","location":"Konya, Nevşehir","dynasty":"Ottomans (AH 698–1340 / AD 1299-1922)","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda"},"c466c19a-6e61-556b-a637-4712a73de575":{"name":"Three fragments of woven fabric decorated with female figures carrying rose water bottles","description":"These silk weavings once framed a large blanket with an embroidered middle section and have been remounted to the original fabric sheet. Depicted on the background, which used to be gold, are young women in elegantly curved stance holding rosewater bottles in their arms. Curved blossoming plants emerging from a rise in the ground are visible in the spaces between the figures. The décor is arranged in offset horizontal rows: the direction of the women’s gaze switches in each row and the colouring of the garments is repeated after every fourth row. Miniature paintings were often used as templates for silk weaves during this era. An especially delightful detail is the circlet-shaped feathered headdress with a long scarf that falls behind the back and is elegantly ruffled. This type of headdress was common until c. 1620 and is defining for the time in which this silk weaving was created.","type":"Woven fabric (wall hanging?)","holder":"GRASSI Museum of Applied Art","owner":"GRASSI Museum of Applied Art, Leipzig","dates":"First third of seventeenth century","location":"Leipzig","dimensions":"H: 245cm, W: 71cm","method_for_datation":"By comparison, typical stylistic and technical elements","method_for_provenance":"Documented by acquisition","provenance":"Iran","obtention":"Formerly in the Collection Saposchnikoff, Moscow; acquired 1927","bibliography":"Küster, Babette, “Drei Gewebefragmente mit einem Dekor aus Rosenwasserflaschen tragenden Frauen”, in GRASSI Museum für Angewandte Kunst Leipzig, *Ständige Ausstellung, Asiatische Kunst Impulse für Europa*, Leipzig: Passage-Verlag, 2009: 178.","author":"Stefanie Seeberg, Silvia Gaetti","translator":"Aminata Estelle Diouf","translation_copy_editor":"Daniel de la Vega","keywords":["blue","collection","craftmanship","crafts","dark-blue","decorative atrs","floral decoration","floral motifs","Fragment","garden","gold","human figure","human representation","Iranian","miniature painting","Mongol influence","Persia","silk","vegetal decoration","vegetal motifs"],"materials":["ground warp: silk","ground weft: silk","pattern weft thread: silk, silver thread, gilded","pile warp: silk","Woven fabric"]},"c4a199cd-9f33-5a29-aa87-3eb7131bf868":{"name":"Dish.","description":"A dish with the shield belonging to the Tondi family of Siena, Italy, in the centre surrounded by radiating chains of 'bryony' flowers (those with blue petals and lustre-painted centres) alternating with chains of blue 'parsley'-shaped leafs (those that are made up of ragged trefoil shapes), and both interwoven with lustre-coloured spindly 'fern' leaves. This style of dish belongs to a distinctive range that was much sought after in Spain and in other parts of Europe where it was exported in large quantities. This explains the presence of the Italian family's shield, for this type of lustre-ware was extremely popular in Italy.  \n  \nManises was one of the main pottery-making towns in Valencia, and played a leading role in the manufacture of lustre-wares for export to Europe, principally to France and Italy. Manises's pottery left for export from the Valencian port of Grao where many Manises potters owned pottery warehouses and shops. These potters were a mixture of Christians and Moors (Muslims), the latter of which were not permitted to take their skills to work outside the town, testifying to the value of their special skills to the economy of Manises. By the mid-16th century (AH 956), Manises had a major monopoly on the production of lustre-wares in Valencia.","short_description":"The old name for this type of Mudéjar-style Spanish lustre ceramics is ‘Hispano-Moresque’, a term indicating that the potters who made it were a mixture of Christians and Moors (Muslims), the latter of which were restricted to practising their much-praised skill outside the town of Manises in Valencia.","type":"Glazed earthenware","holder":"Burrell Collection, Glasgow Museums.","dates":"Hegira 864–84 / AD 1460–80.","location":"Glasgow, Scotland","dimensions":"Diameter 45 cm.","method_for_datation":"Artistic analysis and identification of the shield belonging to the Tondi family of Siena, Italy.","provenance":"Manises, Valencia, Spain.","obtention":"Part of the collection given to the City of Glasgow by Sir William and Lady Burrell in 1944.","bibliography":"Ray, A., *Spanish Pottery 1248–1898*, the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, 2000.","dynasty":"Mudéjar / Nasrid","linkcatalogs":"IAM_ES_EN_001","author":"Noorah Al-Gailani","copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["coat of arms","Commerce","floral decoration","Hispano-Moresque"],"materials":["Glazed and lustre-painted earthenware."]},"c4af05d4-9269-5543-8456-f8734f0e243b":{"name":"Conical cup","description":"Stoneware, celadons, and porcelain from China fascinated the Arab, Iranian, and Turkish worlds. The chronicles of the reigns of the Abbasid caliphs bear witness to this, as do the collections of the Ottoman sultans.  \nIn the absence of kaolin, and to replace porcelain, ceramists opt for a new clay mixture, obtained from pulverised quartz pebbles, white clay, and frit (pulverised mixture of quartz pebbles and soda from vegetable ash). These are the available materials. The mixture is soft; this piece mimics the translucency of porcelain. This technique was not known in the West until the 18th century, evidence of the technical progress made by Eastern ceramists.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","initial_owner":"Jean Soustiel","dates":"Hegira 4th-5th century / AD 11th century","dimensions":"Height: 9.6cm, Diameter: 7.5cm","provenance":"Rayy, Iran","obtention":"Purchased at the Art Musulman gallery in 1993.","bibliography":"Delpont, E., et al., *Album du musée*.  \n  \nMoulierac, J., et al., *Céramiques du monde musulman: collections de l'institut du monde arabe et de J.P. et F. Croisier* , Paris: Institut du monde arabe, Paris, 1999: 39.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["champlevé design, colourless transparent glaze","Siliceous material (pulverised quartz pebbles, white sintered clay)"]},"c4fe88f8-b165-52e3-b23f-fce061f8c81f":{"name":"A Prince Meeting a Muslim Holy Man","description":"The young man in princely attire seated in the presence of a mullah, a Muslim holy man, is thought to be one of the sons of Emperor Jahangir (1569–1627, reign 1605–1627). The facial features of the prince conform to portraits of Sultan Khurram (1592–1666) who became the emperor Shah Jahan (reign 1627–1658).  \nThe young prince appears to be around 18 years of age. Khurram had an early interest in art and even commissioned court paintings at the age of 14. This miniature may be seen as an illustration of the prince's interest in Islam. Unlike his forefathers, Shah Jahan was a practicing Sunni Muslim. He is best remembered for building the Taj Mahal, the stunning white marble memorial to his beloved wife, Mumtaz Mahal.  \n  \nThe painting is unsigned, making the identity of the artist unclear, but a tentative attribution can be made on stylistic grounds to the gifted court painter Manôhar (active c.1580–1620) and his atelier. The artist worked at court for at least forty years during the successive reigns of Akbar (1542–1605), Jahangir, and Shah Jahan.","type":"Drawings and watercolors, paintings","holder":"Saint Louis Art Museum","dates":"Hegira c. 1019 / AD c. 1610","location":"Saint Louis, United States of America","dimensions":"Image: 16.4cm, 11.2cm; sheet: 43.6cm, 30.4cm","method_for_datation":"Scholarly review and/or comparison to similar objects from the period.","method_for_provenance":"Scholarly review and/or comparison to similar objects from the period.","obtention":"Gift of J. Lionberger Davis, 1952","bibliography":"Owyoung, Steven, *Thinking of God: Indian Miniature Paintings at The Saint Louis Art Museum*, Saint Louis: Saint Louis Art Museum, 2001.","workshop":"Attributed to Manôhar and his studio","dynasty":"Mughal","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["Ink, opaque watercolor and gold on paper"]},"c5b5daa1-000f-54c3-95f9-2872725c902d":{"name":"Tile Bowl","description":"The bowl has a round and flaring rim. Its round body narrows towards the ring base. It is decorated with dark blue, green, red and yellow gilding on a white glazed ground. On the external part of the bowl, there are Surahs of al-Falaq and al-Ikhlas in medallions.  \nProduced in China for the Ottoman market.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Ankara Ethnography Museum","owner":"The Republic of Türkiye Ministry of Culture and Tourism","dates":"Hegira 12th century / AD 18th century","location":"Ankara","dimensions":"Diameter: 15cm","place_of_production":"China","dynasty":"Qing","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["Terracotta tile"]},"c7f58b8f-d101-5a99-a3cc-dcb898bbfeeb":{"name":"An Algerian woman grinds her meal in an old wooden mill","short_description":"Many Western photographers took great interest in women's daily lives, or in daily rural tasks. In this photograph from 1920 an Algerian woman is pictured as she grinds wheat with a wooden pestle and mortar.","type":"Photograph","holder":"National Library of France","dates":"1920","location":"Paris","translator":"Flaminia Baldwin"},"c8452185-b564-5d73-9086-7f2303088f36":{"name":"Coffee Pot","description":"A coffee pot decorated with an image of a mosque and an Istanbul scene. Decorated in *savat*, or niello, an engraving technique using a black sulphide alloy.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts","dates":"13th-14th century/AD 19th century","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"42cm x 18cm","dynasty":"Ottomans (AH 698–1340 / AD 1299–1922)","materials":["metal"]},"c87b0cb3-05b6-5a2d-aa6c-454893216166":{"name":"*Sema* Practice in *Matbah-ı Şerif* (whirling practice in the kitchen)","description":"The *Matbah-ı Şerif* (kitchen) was constructed at the same time as the dervish cells by Murad III in 1584. Some sections of the building have two floors. The building's present form dates from repairs made in 1867. The kitchen's upper section, separated by a marble wall, can be accessed via marble steps. The space is characterised by two barrel-vaulted domes and is illuminated by eight wooden windows. The portals, decorated with plant motifs, harmonise with the simplicity of the surrounding environment.  \nThe floor is covered with wood, as *Sema* (whirling) practice was done in this section. The nail visible in the corner of the marble wall on the right side of the room has been identified as a *Sema* training nail (note the nail in the centre of a practice board in photo).","type":"Room Restoration","holder":"Konya Mevlana Museum","location":"Konya","copy_editor":"Judy Harter"},"c9b1b21a-3afb-57cb-86e1-8e151adf4e75":{"name":"Haftvad and the Worm  \nFolio from the *Shahnameh* (Book of Kings) of Shah Tahmasp","short_description":"The vast historical scope, imaginative power, and national importance of the *Shahnameh* (Book of Kings), an epic poem completed by Firdausi in 1010, have inspired countless works of art in all media. This folio AKM164 (folio 521 verso) from the *Shahnameh* produced for Safavid ruler Shah Tahmasp (r. 1524–76) centres around Haftvad, a modest man with seven sons and one daughter whose fate is entwined with the rise of the Sasanian dynasty (224–651).","type":"Folio","holder":"Aga Khan Museum","dates":"ca. 1540","location":"Toronto, Ontario","dimensions":"45 x 30cm","provenance":"Iran, Tabriz","obtention":"Former Prince Saddrudin Aga Khan Collection","dynasty":"Safavid","keywords":["book-of-kings","folio","kings","painting","Shahnameh","Shanama","work-on-paper","works-on-paper","Zahhak"],"materials":["Opaque watercolour, ink, and gold on paper"]},"c9e2a362-f0a6-5922-bdbb-3b8f58f34d64":{"name":"*Mechabeh (food cover)*","description":"*Mechabeh* (palm food cover) used to protect food from dirt and insects.  \nThe cover is formed by braiding nine to 11 palm leaves together to form a flat strip. The strips are sewn together to form a cone shaped cover.","type":"Food cover","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century / AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Height: 390mm, diameter: 387mm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis  \nCurrent traditional practice","method_for_provenance":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Amanda Snyder, Mona Mukhashab","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["Food cover"],"materials":["Palm, dye"]},"ca7280db-3428-5b5d-8d37-2c4fe8ed2c6b":{"name":"Ewer","short_description":"For centuries, romantic myths have surrounded the ewer. The name Ashkdan translates to “tear-container”, alluding to use of the vessel. According to Persian folklore, women would bottle-up tears shed for their husbands during long separations. Upon their return, husbands could measure their love. Shia mourning rituals also emphasized tear-preservation in commemoration of martyrs that were believed to have curable powers.  \nThis ewer with a striking swan-neck and tear-shaped opening depicts humans, birds, and scrolls of ellipses typical for the Safavid dynasty (16th – 18th century). Although the tear-legends have endured over time, scents rather than tears might flow within the vials. Persians to this day pour perfume or rose water from vessels with long necks onto hands and clothing.","type":"Domestic tool","holder":"FBQ Museum","owner":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"17th century","location":"Shahaniya","dimensions":"Length: 43cm, Width: 30cm","method_for_datation":"The date and origin were established in a research-based comparison of metal work, examining the engraved patterns including human figures and birds.","method_for_provenance":"The date and origin were established in a research-based comparison of metal work, examining the engraved patterns including human figures and birds.","provenance":"Iran","obtention":"Purchase","bibliography":"Melikian‐Shirvani, A. S., \"Safavid Metalwork: A Study in Continuity\", *Iranian Studies*, 7 : 3-4 (1974): 543-585.  \nYamanaka, Y., \"The Tear-Bottle Quest: European Perception of the Biblical Orient and Iranian Shiite Ritual\", in Regina F. Bendix and Dorothy Noyes (eds), *Terra Ridens - Terra Narrans*, Dortmund: Verlag für Orientkunde, 2018.","dynasty":"Safavid","author":"Sarah Schroeder","copy_editor":"Valerie Pulsifer","keywords":["ewer","Iran","metalwork","mythology","Ritual","Tear"],"materials":["Copper","Engraving"]},"ca7afc73-93f0-57b7-bf5b-affec7602629":{"name":"al-Ghuta ash-Sharqiyya","description":"Sugar, or glucose today, can be added and mixed with the juice in the basin. The introduction of glucose into the dough is another innovation that transforms the final product. Traditionally, only a small amount of sugar was added to the dough. Beginning in the 1960s and 1970s, glucose syrup was gradually introduced. In addition to treating the fruit with sulphur, mixing glucose into the dough meant that the product could be preserved more safely and for longer. What's more, the resulting paste was softer and more attractive. The glucose syrup is poured into the basin from which the pressed juice flows. Manufacturers have gradually increased the percentage of this inexpensive ingredient to the detriment of the quality of the dough.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Anne-Marie Bianquis","initial_owner":"Anne-Marie Bianquis","dates":"Hegira 1320 / AD 2002","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Ghutat Dimashq/Syria","method_for_provenance":"Direct contact","provenance":"Ghutat Dimashq/Syria","bibliography":"Al-Dawudi, F., \"L’abricot est ses dérivés dans la région syrienne\", thesis on pharmacy and chemistry, 1960, Damascus (in Arabic).  \n  \nBianquis, A.-M., “Modernisation d'un artisanat traditionnel: la pâte d'abricot dans la ghouta de damas”, *Bulletin d'études orientales*, T. 56 (2004-2005): 301-328.  \n  \nDenker, J., \"'Moon of the Faith:' A History of the Apricot and Its Many Pleasures\", (14 June 2016).","author":"Hiba Bizreh","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Photographic negative"]},"ca84a358-0e08-5345-bc08-43570cf84e04":{"name":"*Women grinding corn in Sinai*","short_description":"Many of the most popular subjects of stereographs were of topographical views or of scenes unfamiliar to the western audience for whom they were generally produced. This group of Islamic women from Egypt's Sinai Peninsula is shown grinding corn. Their faces are hidden by veils. The veil turns away the gaze while at the same time attracting it. The secrecy of the veil prompted fascination for what was often seen as the mysterious and exotic world of the East or the 'Orient' to 19th-century western viewers. In contrast, the men in the background confront the camera.","type":"Stereograph; photograph","holder":"Victoria and Albert Museum","dates":"1869","location":"London","dimensions":"Height: 8.5 cm Size of card, Width: 17.4 cm","provenance":"Egypt, Sinai","author":"Victoria and Albert Museum","keywords":["Women","stereograph","stereoscope","agriculture","peasants","work","Egypt","Sinai","grain","grinder","topography","photographs"],"materials":["Card; albumen stereoscopic print"]},"ca90aa20-6045-5b3e-a90f-eb2fa90c0be6":{"name":"Pitcher","description":"The rim is shaped like a rooster's head. In form, it has a thin long neck, vertical round handle, bulging wide body and ring bottom. The white paste is covered with blue glaze. The entire exterior surface is decorated with curly and wave motifs in dark brown paint on blue glaze.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Ankara Ethnography Museum","owner":"The Republic of Türkiye Ministry of Culture and Tourism","location":"Ankara","dimensions":"Height: 29cm, width: 22cm, depth: 15cm, Q: 8cm","dynasty":"Seljuqs","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["Terracotta"]},"cbadcbe0-3272-59a1-a3b3-967703ee5993":{"name":"Alms Vessel","short_description":"Known as the Prophet’s *mudd* vessel, this bronze pot would collect and measure the alms given as charity by the people of Medina in Saudi Arabia. The cylindrical jar features the *basmala* or Muslim invocation and Qur’anic verses in *thuluth* and *naskh* script.  \n  \nCommissioned by the Naqib al-Ashraf, Mohamed Jamal Allah, the pot represents a replica of the original *mudd* vessel employed by Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) to gather and distribute charity money. Inhabitants of Saudi Arabia would quantify money using the Abbasid Islamic economic measure called *mudd*.  \n  \nWith *zakat* (charity) as one of the pillars of Islam, wealthy Muslims are obligated to donate alms. Muslims base the amount of *zakat* on a surplus of wealth, rather than one’s income, while a minimum amount prevents the application of this tax. This minimum amount called *nisab* akin to the modern-day minimum wage determines who should give and receive charity. *Zakat* meaning \"purity\" or \"purification\" enacts a reciprocal gift-giving exchange, where the recipient and charity-giver accept blessings from God.","type":"Religious relics","holder":"FBQ Museum","owner":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"19th century","location":"Shahaniya","dimensions":"Diameter: 12cm, Height: 11cm","method_for_datation":"The date and origin were established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, engraving, shape and calligraphy.","method_for_provenance":"The date and origin were established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, engraving, shape and calligraphy.","provenance":"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Medina","obtention":"Purchase","bibliography":"Aljabr, H., \"Weights and measures in the Hijaz during the Abbasid period 132-334H/749-945 A.D: An overview\", *Journal of Islamic Accounting and Business Research*, 11 : 7 (2020): 1417–1425.  \nKochuyt, T., \"God, Gifts and Poor People: On Charity in Islam\", *Social Compass*, 56 : 1 (2009): 98–116.","dynasty":"Saud","author":"Sarah Schroeder","copy_editor":"Janice Medina","keywords":["Alms","Medina","metalwork","Prophet Muhammed","Saudi Arabia"],"materials":["Bronze","Engraving"]},"cc2e6597-5498-5c64-94ac-0ecb6099dcdd":{"name":"Lustre bowl.","description":"The inner surface of the bowl is decorated with two patterns: symmetrical arabesques and bands of intertwining *kufic* calligraphy. Both motifs are framed within eight separate boxes, and the two patterns alternate with each other. Both are painted in golden brown lustre over a white glaze. The surrounding space is covered in dots or small entwining scrolls. The outer surface is decorated with hastily painted flutings and a braided band, over a light blue glaze. The bowl is one of the most important examples of Nasrid ceramics given its display of painstaking paintwork and the fact that the place where it was made is noted on its ring-base.","short_description":"The technique of lustre-ware pottery was introduced to al-Andalus from Egypt and outstanding quality was soon attained. This bowl with a design of geometrical and vegetal panels has an inscription on the foot stating that it was made in the Spanish city of Malaga.","type":"Bowl, ceramic","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art at the Pergamon Museum","initial_owner":"W. von Bode, F. Sarre.","dates":"Hegira mid-8th century / AD mid-14th century.","location":"Berlin","dimensions":"Height 8.5 cm, diameter 23 cm.","method_for_datation":"The production of lustre-ware in Andalusia began in the 6th / 12th century. In 750 / 1350, the Arab chronicler Ibn Battuta noted the production of ceramics in his writings on Malaga. This bowl is the only intact item by which the source may be verified. Overall the decoration also corresponds to other branches of the arts and crafts of that period, an example being the decorative patterns used in textiles.","method_for_provenance":"There is an inscription in cursive Arabic script on the bowl’s base stating that it was made in Malaqa (Málaga). Thus the bowl acts as an important marker for the identification and dating of the entire collection of Spanish lustre-ware from the same period.","provenance":"Malaga, Spain.","obtention":"A gift donated by Friedrich Sarre. The bowl was bought in 1901 in Italy by W. v. Bode and was given to Sarre as a gift, which he later donated to the museum.","bibliography":"*Islamische Keramik*, Catalogue, Düsseldorf, 1973, no. 470.  \nMartin, F. R. and Sarre, F. (eds.), *Die Ausstellung von Meisterwerken Muhammedanischer Kunst München 1910*, Munich, 1912, Vol. 2, no. 1610, pl. 117.  \n*Museum für Islamische Kunst Berlin*, Catalogue, Berlin, 1973–9, no. 342.  \nSarre, F., “Die Spanisch-Maurischen Lüsterfayencen und ihre Herstellung in Malaga”, *Jahrbuch der Preußischen Kunstsammlungen* 24, 1903, 103–30.  \n*Schätze der Alhambra: Islamische Kunst aus Andalusien*, Catalogue, Berlin, 1995, no. 122.","dynasty":"Nasrid","author":"Annette Hagedorn","translator":"Maria Vlotides, Brigitte Finkbeiner","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["Andalusia","Luster","Malaga","Nasrid"],"materials":["Ceramic with lustre painting."]},"cd089341-0bb9-55f0-b578-8f53eb67a553":{"name":"*Woman with a Cat*","short_description":"During the rule of the Zand and Qajar dynasties in Iran (1750–1925), artists created paintings that combined both Persian and Western sensibilities. From Europe came the tradition of large-scale oil painting, while the subject matter of youthful beauty, patterned textiles, and court life was quintessentially Persian. Many of these works were arched at the top because they were originally intended for display in arched niches of buildings.","type":"Islamic, Indian & Southeast Asian works of art; painting","holder":"Shangri La, Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Art","dates":"Hegira late 12th century / AD late 18th century","location":"Honolulu, Hawai'i","dimensions":"Overall: 163.8 x 88.3 cm","provenance":"Iran","dynasty":"Zand","keywords":["Iran","painting","women","Zand dynasty"],"materials":["Oil on canvas"]},"ce05bc9c-4579-5b05-b81e-5aae5c270b67":{"name":"Pottery jar","description":"Although blue and white porcelains were described as vulgar by Chao Zaho (Chao Mingzhong) in his 1388 book about art and antiquities (the first book for connoisseurs) entitled *Gego yaolun* (The Essential Criteria of Antiques), these porcelains became more beloved and fashionable from their earliest appearance in Chinese and European markets. The first use of these two colours: blue (evoking the infinity of sea and sky) and white can be traced back to the Near and Middle East. They had a large impact on Chinese ceramics. Blue is also said to be effective against bad intentions. The pigments used for underglaze blue in Persia were lapis lazuli (*lajavard*) and cobalt, which was cheaper. The inside of the bowl is decorated with dynamic, loose floral motifs applied with sparse brushstrokes under the greyish-white glaze of the bowl on a small base. The rim is lined with blue.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani Museum","owner":"His Excellency Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","initial_owner":"Unknown","dates":"Hegira 13th century / AD 19th century","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Height: 4.5cm, diameter: 15cm, base diameter: 7cm","place_of_production":"Algeria","method_for_datation":"Analysis of techniques, style and motifs","method_for_provenance":"The origin of acqusitions","provenance":"Algeria","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Terézia Bardi","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["clay, underglaze painting, glaze","Earthenware"]},"cf314a7e-b71e-5876-a94f-3e498400a91f":{"name":"Persian flask","short_description":"This elaborate flask dates from the late 16th century. Its wooden body is covered with a linen and chalk ground that was gilded and painted where we see lovers and musicians in a garden filled with flowers.","type":"Flask","holder":"Kunsthistorisches Museum","dates":"Hegira 10th century / AD 16th century","location":"Vienna","dimensions":"Height: 25.5cm, Width: 23.5cm, Depth: 12cm, Diameter at the neck: 2.3cm","method_for_datation":"Collection Ambras Castle","method_for_provenance":"Collection Ambras Castle","provenance":"Iran?","obtention":"Collection Ambras Castle, obtained in AD 1869","bibliography":"Gamber, Ortwin and Beaufort-Spontin, Christian, *Katalog der Leibrüstkammer II. Teil. Der Zeitraum von 1530-1560*, Busto Arsizio: Bramante, 1990.  \nThomas, Bruno, \"Aus der Waffensammlung in der Neuen Burg zu Wien: Orientalische Kostbarkeiten\", *Bustan*, 4 : 5 (1963/64).","dynasty":"Safavid","author":"Matthias Pfaffenbichler, Tobias Roeder","copy_editor":"Liz Cooper","keywords":["court life","Drinking flask","figurative decoration","flask","floral decoration","garden","music","poetry","receptacles","vessels"],"materials":["handle: silk and silver thread","Leather with chalk ground and gold leaf paint","wood painted to imitate leather"]},"cfa923e7-7677-5dde-b481-034397401b10":{"name":"Coffee Cup Set in Box","description":"A set of 12 blue-rimmed white porcelain coffee cups with silver holders in their original box, which is red outside and lined with blue fabric.","holder":"Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts","dates":"13th-14th century/AD 19th century","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"42cm x 18cm","dynasty":"Ottomans (AH 698–1340 / AD 1299–1922)","materials":["Porcelain, silver, wood, fabric, metal"]},"d06f4d6a-a257-5324-a2d7-ce12318aa95d":{"name":"Dish.","description":"The deep pottery dish has a flat foliated rim and is decorated in underglaze cobalt-blue, bright turquoise, green, relief opaque red and black for the outlines. The centre of the dish shows a symmetrical design of two curving red dotted tulips and two smaller red flowers on stalks clasped together with a pointed, scalloped medallion between them. Small roses and other flowers springing from a leafy tuft fill the area underneath. The shape of the dish, with a foliated rim, and the stylised pattern of waves breaking on rocks on the rim are of Chinese origin. The latter developed into a popular Iznik design with a tendency to stylisation during the AH 10th / AD 16th century. The rocks and waves, originally painted in different colours, are both blue on this dish, a characteristic feature of later Iznik ware. The pointed, scalloped medallion developed in the courtly ateliers, used to decorate textiles or tiles, occurred on pottery from the AH 980s / AD 1580s. Vessels from the second half of the AH 10th / AD 16th century are mostly not imperial commissions, even if they show designs of the courtly ateliers. The potters, producing for the local market, created their own compositions by combining single elements of various styles and sources. On the back the dish is painted with four blue coloured tulips alternating with four rosettes on a white background. The transparent glaze on the back is slightly yellow coloured.","short_description":"Polychrome underglaze painted dish with a foliated rim. In the centre is a symmetrical design of flowers and a medallion. The single elements, originally designed in the courtly workshops, were combined in a pattern by the potters themselves. The wave and rock motif on the rim is of Chinese origin.","type":"Ottoman ceramics, glazed","holder":"Museum of Mediterranean and Near Eastern Antiquities (Medelhavsmuseet).","owner":"National Museum of Fine Arts, Stockholm. In order to reorganise the expanding collections, the main part of the Islamic collection has been on permanent loan to the Museum of Mediterranean and Near Eastern Antiquities since 1982.","dates":"Hegira late 10th–early 11th centuries / AD late 16th–early 17th centuries.","location":"Stockholm","dimensions":"Height 6 cm, diameter 30.5 cm.","method_for_datation":"The scalloped medallion as an element of decoration occurred on pottery from the 980s / 1580s.","method_for_provenance":"The floral decoration and the shape are both specific to Iznik ceramics.","provenance":"Iznik, Turkey.","obtention":"Purchased with government funds from the collection of F. R. Martin.","bibliography":"Atasoy, N. and Raby, J., *Iznik*: *The Pottery of Ottoman Turkey*, London, 1989.  \nCarswell, J., *Iznik Pottery*. London, 1998.  \nMüller-Wiener, M., *Türkisch-Osmanische Keramik*, Traunstein, 2004.","dynasty":"Ottoman","linkcatalogs":"IAM_TR_EN_001","author":"Friederike Voigt","copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["Dish","floral decoration","Ottoman ceramic","Plate","pottery"],"materials":["Ceramic","painted and glazed."]},"d1fc6e82-6e79-5203-89e4-cd774dcda7fd":{"name":"Pertevniyal Valide Sultan Mosque Complex.","description":"The complex, which comprises several buildings around a central mosque (*külliye*), was commissioned by Pertevniyal Valide Sultan and consists of a mosque, a tomb, a *sabil*, a public fountain, a clock-room where timepieces for calculating prayer times accurately on a daily basis were kept, a library, and a theological school (*madrasa*). The mosque is a single-domed, square prayer hall, following the traditional plan. In front of its strongly vertical mass is an additional two-storey building that comprises the portico for latecomers, men's and women's areas, the sultan's loge and various rooms. Attached to this additional building, separate from the main body of the mosque, are two minarets, each with a single balcony. The square prayer hall measures 10 m x 10 m and is extended with arches on four sides. The mosque's east, west and south façades are all emphasised with turrets and the outward projections of their central sections are each crowned with a triangular pediment. Each section has two rows of three windows. The dome, separated from the walls and brought inward, is supported on a high, 12-sided drum.  \nThe Pertevniyal Valide Sultan Mosque is noteworthy for the density and variety of its decoration. The projecting central sections of the façades and the windows on the drum of the dome are executed in the Gothic style. The design of triple blind niches above the windows, for instance, borrow elements from Ottoman decorative art, while their location recalls examples from North African and Andalusian architecture. The blind niches, as well as the decorative compositions of arabesques and palmettes on the façades, are, like the *muqarnas*, elements borrowed from Classical Ottoman art. The corner turrets, each of which terminates in a lobed onion-dome reminiscent of Indian architecture, are decorated with niches containing *muqarnas,* again borrowed from Classical Ottoman architecture, as well as the simple blind niches and various geometric motifs.  \nThe interior space, like the façades, is densely decorated. Ottoman motifs are used in painted decoration (*kalemişi*) in which blue dominates. A cornice with *muqarnas* surrounds the upper section of the lower row of windows. On the surfaces of the walls, as on the façades, classical Ottoman elements are found including blind niches, *muqarnas*, arch motifs, arabesques, and Chinese-inspired floral ornament. The marble *mihrab* and *minbar* are plain.  \nThe building, which reflects the stylistic characteristics and innovations of the period of its construction, was built in an eclectic style with a strongly Oriental inclination.  \nThe simultaneous use in the Pertevniyal Valide Sultan Mosque of different elements from several styles and disciplines, such as Gothic, Ottoman, and Indian architecture and decorative arts, illustrates the influence of this eclectic viewpoint, which was widespread throughout Europe in this period.  \nThe *madrasa* built by order of Pertevniyal Valide Sultan burned down in AH 1328 / AD 1911, while the tomb, *sabil* and clock room were removed during the renovation of Aksaray Square and surroundings in 1956–9. Following various works to the roads in the area the mosque remained below the level of the street, while parts of the tomb were taken to the graveyard (*hazire*) adjoining the tomb of Sultan Selim III. Later, the tomb of Pertevniyal Valide Sultan was rebuilt in the complex courtyard using original parts of her tomb that had been dismantled, taken to the *hazire,* brought back to the courtyard and remounted. Her body was removed first to the Topkapı Palace, then to the tomb of Sultan Mahmud II, and then returned to her own tomb, where it remains today.","short_description":"The complex was built by Pertevniyal Valide Sultan, wife of Sultan Mahmud II and mother of Sultan Abdülaziz, who was known for her charitable works. It comprises a mosque, a mausoleum, a *sabil* (water dispensary), a fountain, a clock-room and a school. The mosque reflects the characteristics of its period. The square prayer hall covered with a dome is extended with a wide arch to four sides. Mainly Oriental in style, the mosque is lavishly decorated. It was built with an eclectic taste bringing together elements from Gothic, Ottoman, Islamic and Indian arts.","dates":"Hegira 1288 / AD 1871.","location":"Aksaray, Istanbul","method_for_datation":"According to the inscription above the gate to the courtyard, construction was completed in 1288 / 1871. Some documents indicate that the foundations were laid in ceremonies in Sha'ban 1285 / November 1869 and that construction took three years.","bibliography":"Batur, A., “Valide Camii \\[The Valide Mosque\\]”, *İstanbul Ansiklopedisi \\[Encyclopaedia of Istanbul\\]*, Vol. 7, 1994, pp.360–2.  \nEyice, S., “İstanbul'un Tarihi Eserleri \\[Historical Monuments of Istanbul\\]”, *İslam Ansiklopedisi \\[Encyclopaedia of Islam\\]*, Vol. 5/2, pp.1214–63.  \nOkçuoğlu, T., “Pertevniyal Valide Sultan Türbesi \\[The Tomb of Pertevniyal Valide Sultan\\]”, *İstanbul Ansiklopedisi \\[Encyclopaedia of Istanbul\\]*, Vol. 6, 1994, p.246.  \nöz, T., *İstanbul Camileri \\[The Mosques of Istanbul\\]*, Vol. I, Ankara, 1962.  \nSaner, T., *19\\. Yüzyıl Osmanlı Mimarlığında “Oryantalizm” \\[“Orientalism” in 19th-Century Ottoman Architecture\\]*, Istanbul, 1988.","patrons":"Pertevniyal Valide Sultan (the mother of Sultan Abdülaziz, d. AH 1301 / AD 1883).","architects":"There are different opinions regarding the identity of the architect. Some researchers think it was the Italian architect Montani Effendi, while others believe the architect was Sarkis Balyan. It has also been suggested that Agop Balyan participated in the design, and that the designer Osep assisted with construction.","dynasty":"Ottoman.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_TR_EN_001","author":"İnci Kuyulu Ersoy","translator":"Barry Wood, İnci Türkoğlu","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["Gothic","Mosque","orientalism","religious architecture","Women patrons"]},"d23ab450-22c3-5cba-b10f-0719d1398789":{"name":"Mirror box","short_description":"The mirror box is signed with the characteristic formula \"*kamtarin muḥammad baqir*\" (the most humble Muhammad Baqir) and dated Hegira 1174 (AD 1760/61). Muhammad Baqir is one of the most famous Persian artists in the 18th century. He was the pupil of Muhammad ʿAli Ashraf (active Hegira 1134-1190 / AD 1722-1777) and worked in the 1750s on the borders of the so-called St. Petersburg album. Without doubt, this mirror box is one of his early independent lacquer works.  \n  \nMuhammad Baqir's oeuvre comprises border paintings for albums, single-leaf drawings and lacquer works. A striking feature of his art is his fascination in works by such renowned late Safavid artists as Muhammad Zaman (active Hegira ca, 1072-1105 / AD ca. 1662-1694) and ʿAliquli Jabadar (active Hegira 1059-1086 / AD 1649-1675) whose work he either copied or used as inspiration for his own creations. This is also the case with the three figurative panels of this mirror box. Thus, the half-naked bathing woman with a red towel sitting on a small rock can be compared to Muhammad Zaman's illustration of the bathing Shirin in a *Khamsa* from 1674/75.","type":"Pencase","holder":"Museum Rietberg","initial_owner":"Elsa Mäder","dates":"Hegira 1174 / AD 1760/61","location":"Zurich","dimensions":"Length: 17.1cm, Width: 11.6cm, Height: 1.5cm","method_for_datation":"The artist signed and dated his work.","method_for_provenance":"Old museum inventory","provenance":"Iran","obtention":"Gift of Elsa Mäder","bibliography":"Ivanov, Anatoly, “The Compiling and Decoration of the Album”, in Francesca von Habsburg and Elena Kostioukovitch (eds), *The St. Petersburg Muraqqaʿ: Album of Indian and Persian Miniatures from the 16th through the 18th Century and Specimens of Persian Calligraphy by ʿImad al-Hasani*, Lugano/Milan: ARCH Foundation and Leonardo Arte, 1996: 19-32.  \nMaury, Charlotte, and Guillaume, Carol, with a contribution by Alavi, Aida “A First Overview of Golestan 1644: Album Making, Connoisseurship and the Painter Muhammad Baqir”, in Melanie Gibson and Gwenaëlle Fellinger (eds), *Revealing the Unseen: New Perspectives on Qajar Art*, Berkeley: Gingko Press, 2022: 16-41.","dynasty":"Afshar; Zand","author":"Axel Langer","copy_editor":"Jonathan Turnbull","materials":["Papier maché, opaque watercolour, lacquer, metal"]},"d364400e-08ec-5cf3-9810-eaa259a97ddd":{"name":"Pitcher","description":"This ceramic pitcher has a handle, a straight cylindrical neck and a ring base. It is dark blue and turquoise under a transparent glaze. There is an inscription border around the rim. The neck is decorated with vertical lines, and the shoulder has dark blue motifs on a turquoise ground. The body is covered with a geometric design of hexagons.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts","dates":"AH end of 5th–end 7th century/ AD 12th–13th centuries","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"Height 27.5, base diameter: 8.5cm","dynasty":"Great Seljuk (AH 429–552 / AD 1038–1157)","materials":["Ceramic"]},"d3c49832-be80-5864-92b1-0536f5ce79f7":{"name":"*Tawa* (Roasting pan)","description":"*Tawa* (roasting pan) used to roast coffee beans.  \nCoffee is always served at the beginning of a visit and is repeatedly offered until guests politely signal that they have had enough by rocking their cup from side to side. In order to keep coffee hot and fresh for unexpected guests it goes through many stages. After roasting and grinding the coffee beans the grains are added to boiling water inside a large *dallah* (coffee pot) called a *khamra*. Next, the liquid is poured into a medium-sized coffee pot called a *taljeemah*. At this stage cardamom seeds, saffron and rose water may be added for flavour. From this jug, the coffee is poured into a serving dallah referred to as a mezallah, where the coffee is refined and filtered. The server must hold the *mezallah* with their left hand and distribute the fanayeel (coffee cups) using the right hand. The coffee should fill less than half of the cup.","type":"Pan","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","owner":"Sharjah Museums Authority","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century / AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Length: 450mm, diameter: 200mm, depth: 45mm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","method_for_provenance":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Amanda Snyder, Mona Mukhashab","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["coffee","coffee beans","pan","roasting pan"],"materials":["Iron"]},"d5d23f2f-61a6-5999-8a66-d5d4b3d9da12":{"name":"*Saroud (palm mat)*","description":"*Saroud* (palm mat)  \nThe mat is formed by braiding nine to 11 palm leaves together to form a flat strip. The strips are sewn together to form a circular flat mat.","type":"Mat","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","dates":"Hegira mid 14th century/AD mid 20th century","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Diameter: 510mm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis.  \nCurrent traditional practice","method_for_provenance":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Amanda Snyder, Mona Mukhashab","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["Food mat"],"materials":["Palm, dye"]},"d6aabbc5-689a-572b-bc5c-97c69c34d4f6":{"name":"Mina'I bowl","short_description":"A typically round bowl sitting on a short circular foot. The interior is decorated with pairs of seated figures dressed in brightly coloured clothes separated by small pointed cypress trees with a man on horseback in the centre. Below the rim on the inside is a calligraphic band whilst on the exterior is a red and blue decoration.","type":"Bowl","holder":"Sharjah Museum of Islamic Civilization","dates":"Late 6th-early 7th century AH / Late 12th-early 13th century AD","location":"Sharjah","dimensions":"Height: 7.5cm, Diameter: 17.1cm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","method_for_provenance":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Kashan, Iran","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Hazelle Page","materials":["Ceramic, Mina'I ware","enamelled paint"]},"d8e1d81f-2112-5652-987b-f417b3f15ad1":{"name":"Scalloped ewer","description":"This pitcher with gadrooned (scalloped) body is used to rinse the hands and face of a guest who has arrived at a host’s residence. The shape of the object is well known in Türkiye and India; it was also reproduced in ceramics.  \nThe mark of the owner is visible in two places: under the spout, in an almond cartouche, and again in a hexagon whose sides are extended by a three-lobed floret.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","owner":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","dates":"Hegira 11th century / AD 17th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 31.5cm, l. 28cm, Diameter: 17.5cm, Minimum diameter: 12cm","provenance":"Iran or India","obtention":"Purchased at auction on advice of Ader-Picard-Tajan, 1990.","bibliography":"Delpont, E., et al., *Album du musée*, Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, 2012: 387.  \n  \nLane, A., *Later Islamic Pottery: Persia, Syria, Egypt, Turkey*, London: Faber and Faber, 1971: Fig. 94.  \n  \nMelikian-Chirvani, A.S., *Le bronze iranien*, Paris: Musée des Arts Décoratifs, 1973: 105.  \n  \nSkelton, R., et al., *Facets of Indian Art. A symposium Held at the Victoria and Albert Museum on 26, 27, 28 April and I May 1986*, London: Victoria and Albert Museum, 1986: 253-259.  \n  \nZebrowski, M., \"The Indian Ewer\", in *Facets of Indian Art*, London: Victoria and Albert Museum, 1986: 256, Fig. 8.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["Bronze","cast, chiseled, engraved"]},"d9cffa1d-0e9d-59ee-a8f9-0f2a12a3c7dd":{"name":"Dish serving for dried fruits or nuts","short_description":"Sultan Abdülhamid II founded in 1891 the *Yıldız Çini Fabrika-i Hümâyûnu* (Yıldız Royal Tile Factory) in the garden of Yıldız Palace in order to revive Turkish tile art and give it a new direction and momentum. Vases, hanging wall plates and many sorts of daily-use wares were produced in the factory, including writing and dinner table utensils, card plates, lidded bowls, pans, *aşure* (a kind of dessert) trays, sugar bowls, tea and coffee cups. Many native and foreign artists have worked in the tile factory of Yıldız. One of them, Halid Naci received training in tile painting in Sevres, France after his education at the *Sanayi-i Nefise Mektebi* (School of Fine Arts) and he was assigned to be head painter of the tile factories after his return.","type":"Ceramic plate","holder":"Yıldız Palace Museum","location":"Istanbul","provenance":"Istanbul","artist_birthdate":"1875","artist_birthplace":"Istanbul","artist_deathdate":"1927","artist_deathplace":"Istanbul","copy_editor":"Daniel de la Vega","keywords":["yıldız ceramic","Turkish decorative arts"],"materials":["Ceramic"]},"da76c25e-e703-5257-a4cf-5bf924f5d270":{"name":"Ewer and dish","short_description":"Veneto Saracenic refers to a large group of 15th and 16th century metal ware, primarily in European collections. It is attributed to Muslims artists working in Venice. Such ware is domestic in nature and includes bowls, spherical incense burner and candlesticks. They are made of bronze or brass and are usually inlaid with geometric or arabesque motifs in silver, with occasional traces of gold and frequent additions of a black compound.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Islamic Arts Museum Malaysia","dates":"c. Hegira 900-1000 / c. AD 1500-1600","location":"Kuala Lumpur","dimensions":"Height: Dish: 5.5cm, Ewer: 30.5cm; Diameter: Dish: 45.3cm, Ewer: 19.5cm","provenance":"Veneto Saracenic","bibliography":"Islamic Arts Museum Malaysia, *IAMM Guide Book*, Kuala Lumpur: IAMM Publications, 2014: 17.  \nIslamic Arts Museum Malaysia, *Beyond Orientalism: How The West Was Won Over By Islamic Art*, Kuala Lumpur: IAMM Publications, 2014: 180.  \n*Islamic Arts Museum Malaysia*, Volume 2, Kuala Lumpur: IAMM Publications, 2015: 182-183.","dynasty":"Mamluk inspired","materials":["Hammered and engraved gilt brass"]},"dba5d352-7562-5547-8859-795834833d9c":{"name":"Wikala (*caravanserai*) of al-Ghuri.","description":"There are a number of *wikala*s or *caravanserai*s in Cairo that date back to the Mamluk and Ottoman periods. *Wikala*s were international centres of commerce between countries and regions, and this fact necessitated the presence of sleeping accommodation for merchants and their clients from all over the world who might stay in Cairo for a period of time. The Wikala of al-Ghuri is distinguished from others of its kind in Cairo by the fact that most of its architectural constituents are preserved. Today this *wikala* is considered to be an on-site museum for the art of *mashrabiyya*, as it boasts 29 of the finest examples of these turned-wood lattice window-screens, which form a basic component, beside stone, in the architectural design of the building. The *wikala*, in fact, offers a rare example of Mamluk *mashrabiyya* within the context of the building for which they were made.  \nThe principal façade of the building is on the north overlooking the street, and contains nine *mashrabiyya*s. The entrance, crowned by a tri-lobed arch, leads to a straight passageway which opens directly onto the rectangular open courtyard of the *wikala*, in the midst of which is a marble fountain. This arrangement was aimed at attracting customers, as much as it was to facilitate the easy transportation of goods to and from the storage areas of the *caravanserai*.  \nThere are four stories that overlook the courtyard of the *caravanserai*. Each of the two lower floors hold more than 20 rooms covered with stone vaulted ceilings; these were used as storage areas for the traders who resided at the *caravanserai*. These rooms overlook the courtyard by way of colonnades, characterised by pointed arches supported by stone piers. The upper two stories were designed as residential units, each consisting of two floors. In between the two floors there is a hidden level containing the kitchens and storage areas. The facades of these units overlook the courtyard by means of a splendid group of *mashrabiyya* that project from the walls and which are supported by wooden brackets. In the lower part of the *mashrabiyya* are two rows of windows, furnished with wooden screens that have movable covers (or flaps) opening upwards, thus allowing those who are within the rooms to see the courtyard without anyone seeing them in the upper stories. By this means, the design of the *caravanserai* accomplished friendly contact and closer intimacy between its residents from different countries and regions, while also ensuring their privacy, as each apartment was separated both vertically and horizontally from the next.  \nThe Ministry of Culture has recently transformed the building into a centre for the conservation of traditional handicrafts, especially the art of wood-turning and stucco coloured glass. The centre also houses the ateliers of modern artists, whose presence together with the other craftsmen, assists in the efforts of continuity and preservation at the site, and of the artistic and cultural welding between the traditional and modern.","short_description":"This *wikala* is an intact example of the caravanserais that spread through Cairo in the Mamluk period, when trade with the outside world reached its peak. It comprises residential quarters for travellers and merchants, storerooms and an open courtyard, where transactions took place. Its most outstanding feature is a wonderful group of windows covered with turned wood *mashrabiyya* (screens) overlooking the courtyard and the façade.","dates":"Hegira 909–10 / AD 1503–5.","location":"Cairo","method_for_datation":"Dating of the building is supported by historical sources such as *Kitab al-Nujum al-Zahira*, by Ibn Taghri Bardi. A study of its architectural constituents and decoration such as the *mashrabiyya* also helped in dating it.","bibliography":"Al-Pasha, H., *Madkhal ila al-Athar al-Islamiya \\[An Introduction to Islamic Monuments\\],* Cairo, 1979.  \nAbu al-Mahasin, *Jamal al-Din Yusuf ibn Taghri Bardi al-Atabki* (d. 874 / 1469), *al-Nujum al-Zahira fi Muluk Misr wa al-Qahira \\[Shining Stars in the Rulers of Egypt and Cairo\\],* Cairo, 1939; reprinted 1956.  \nWilliams, C., *Islamic Monuments in Cairo: The Practical Guide,* Cairo, 2002.  \nZaki, Abd al-Rahman, *Al-Azhar wa ma hawlahu min al-Athar \\[Al-Azhar and the Surrounding Monuments\\],* Cairo, 1970.","patrons":"Sultan Qansuh al-Ghuri (r. AH 906–22 / AD 1501–16).","dynasty":"Mamluk.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_EG_EN_001","author":"Tarek Torky","copy_editor":"Majd Musa","translator":"Amal Sachedina (from the Arabic).","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["caravanserai","civil architecture","Mashrabiyya","trade","turned woodwork","wikala."]},"dbe5d877-10e6-5723-8ea6-cd192909e5b0":{"name":"Tile panel in the form of a fireplace surround","short_description":"Islamic art may often operate on two visual levels: surface impressions and detailed study. A quick peruser may find pleasure from a work of art's bold colors and designs, but those who take the time to look more closely will be amply rewarded. In this tile, shaped to surround a small fireplace, dancing and acrobatic female entertainers, kings in repose who drink wine from small glasses, quietly seated aged advisors, thoughtful soldiers, and busy musicians fill the composition.","type":"Islamic, Indian & Southeast Asian works of art; Tilework; ceramic","holder":"Shangri La, Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Art","dates":"Hegira 13th century / AD 19th century","location":"Honolulu, Hawai'i","dimensions":"Overall: 208.3 x 329.6 cm","provenance":"Iran","dynasty":"Qajar","keywords":["architectural decoration","court life","fireplace surround","Iran","music","musician","Qajar","stonepaste","Tile panel","tilework","underglaze-painted"],"materials":["Stonepaste","underglaze-painted"]},"dc123c01-a94a-53ca-b79e-5fb7aeb83571":{"name":"Vat","description":"Globular vat with a conical base, a flaring neck, a flanged rim and winged handles. The paste is whitish and unglazed. Its decoration consists of a stamped, alternating series of lozenges and eulogetic epigraphy arranged in perimeter friezes.  \n  \nA common feature of Andalusian homes, these large earthenware vats were strategically placed in the courtyards or in interior rooms to preserve goods such as oil, cereals, or water, as well as to store domestic objects. In this case, the porous nature of the unglazed clay suggests that this example functioned specifically as a water vat, as it would have filtered and cooled the water, keeping it clean and fresh.  \n  \nBeyond their practical function, some vats had also an aesthetic value, as can be seen in the stamped decoration or glazing. Decorations included epigraphic motifs invoked to protect the vats' contents. The production and use of these vats continued after the Castilian conquest.","type":"Vat","holder":"National Archaeological Museum","initial_owner":"Unknown","dates":"Hegira 7th century / AD 13th century","location":"Madrid","dimensions":"Height: 68cm, maximum diameter: 203cm, mouth diameter: 34cm, base diameter: 18cm","place_of_production":"Al-Andalus","method_for_datation":"Archaeological and art-historical studies have established certain formal features that allow us to date the piece to the 7th–8th century Hegira / 13th–14th century AD. The globular body and stamped decoration are particularly present in the Almohad world, evolving towards more stylised forms, with more pronounced winged handles.","provenance":"Seville","obtention":"In the Museum's collection before 1980.","bibliography":"Aguado Villalba, J., *Tinajas medievales españolas: islámicas y mudéjares*, Toledo: Instituto Provincial de Investigaciones y Estudios Toledanos. Provincial council, 1991: 48, fig. 23.  \n  \nFernández López, M. Á., “El ajuar cerámico andalusí de almacenamiento de agua en la región de Murcia”, in L. Cara Barrionuevo (ed), *El agua en zonas áridas. Arqueología e historia. Hidráulica tradicional de la provincia de Almería*, Instituto de Estudios Almerienses, 1989: 199-225.  \n  \nFranco Mata, M. Á., “Antigüedades cristianas de los siglos VIII al XV», in L. Balmaseda et al. (eds), *Edad Media: salas XXIV-XXXV*, general guide. Museo Arqueológico Nacional, Madrid: Ministerio de Cultura, 1992: 75-111.  \n  \nNavarro Palazón, J. (ed.), *Casas y palacios en Al-Andalus: siglos XII-XIII*, Madrid: Lunweg, 1995.","dynasty":"Taifas","author":"Helena Lahoz Kopiske","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","keywords":["Conservation","Household goods","Prophylactic practices","Technology","water"],"materials":["Ceramic","modelling, stamping, firing"]},"ddfbe2bf-75cf-508a-af85-5d9ab86020a7":{"name":"Enamelled flask","short_description":"The finely decorated flask has a tall neck decorated with a fleur-de-lis band with enamel highlights, a plaited guilloche band and a row of male standing figures wearing church vestments. Two of the figures hold open books, perhaps missals. The body bears a band of seated figures, drinkers and musicians. Between the figures are beakers, a wine flask or footed dishes. On the shoulders of the flask rosettes alternate with large birds, evidently pelicans – in medieval Western Europe a symbol of Christ and the institution of the Eucharist.  \nThe robbed figures and the pelicans may suggest that the flask was ordered for a European, perhaps a pilgrim, as a memento of a visit to the Holy Land or as a gift to a Christian church or monastery.  \nThe flask is a superb specimen of the skills of Ayyubid glassworkers. The application of enamel to the glass indicates that this flask was made at an early stage in the development of enamelling, which would be consistent with an Ayyubid date.","type":"Flask; glass; enamel","holder":"Khalili Family Trust – Nasser D. Khalili Collection of Islamic Art","dates":"AD mid-13th century","location":"London","dimensions":"34.5 x 17.2cm","method_for_datation":"Date and provenance are based on the shape of the bottle and on stylistic comparisons with objects in glass and other media.","provenance":"Syria","bibliography":"Goldstein, S.M., *et al.*, *Glass. From Sasanian Antecedents to European Imitations*, London: The Nasser D Khalili Collection of Islamic Art, volume 15, 2005: cat.308, pp.282–3.  \nRogers, J.M., *The Arts of Islam. Masterpieces from the Khalili Collection*, London: Thames & Hudson, 2010: no.154, pp.128–9.","dynasty":"Ayyubid","keywords":["Ayyubid","Christian themes","Enamel","gilding","glass","Syria"],"materials":["Brownish glass, blown, tooled and decorated with polychrome enamels and gilding"]},"ded7dbe8-bac2-5eb8-a10a-58b0b930b749":{"name":"Bektashi Dining Table","description":"The inscription indicates that the Aş Evi section, the most significant of the twelve houses in Bektashism, was constructed in 1560 by relatives of Malkoç Bali Bey, the Governor of Silistre, in his honor.  \nThe Aş Evi section, which is an independent building where the meals of the lodge are prepared, contains a room that is used by the Aş Evi Babası as a daily sitting room. In this room, he watches the kitchen work and decides on the meals to be prepared that day. It contains karakazan and halife boilers and kitchen utensils.  \nThe meals prepared in the Aş Evi were made available to the employees of the Dervish lodge and guests, as well as to the poor and the needy.","holder":"Nevşehir Hacıbektaş Museum","location":"Konya","dynasty":"Ottomans (AH 698–1340 / AD 1299-1922)","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda"},"df34e2f3-4b74-586f-9068-15107f458dd8":{"name":"Lidded bowl (*sahan*)","description":"Small rounded lidded bowl – *sahan* (Ar. *sân*) – with lobed rim, for keeping and serving food. The lid is bell-shaped, with a small brass lifting handle on the top. The bowl is decorated with an abstract geometric pattern, while lid's decorations are in the forms of flower petals with leafy branches within.","type":"Tableware","holder":"Museum of Applied Art","initial_owner":"Painter and collector Ljuba Ivanović","dates":"Hegira late 13th century / AD late 19th century","location":"Belgrade","dimensions":"Height: 115mm, length: 147mm, weight: 180g","place_of_production":"Kingdom of Serbia","method_for_datation":"By stylistic and comparative analysis with related material.","obtention":"Purchased in 1951.","author":"Mila Gajić","keywords":["Copper","lidded bowl","Ottoman Balkans","sahan","sân","Tableware"],"materials":["Copper","tinned, hammering, cutting"]},"df4709cd-ab73-5f8f-9d79-ecac52cd3487":{"name":"Damascus Room","short_description":"The Damascus Room is a residential winter reception chamber (*qa‘a*) typical of the late Ottoman period. Among the earliest extant, nearly complete interiors of its kind, the room’s large scale and refined decoration suggest that it was part of the house of an affluent family. Poetry inscribed on the walls indicates that the patron was Muslim and possibly a member of the religious elite who claimed descent from the Prophet Muhammad. Because wealthy homeowners periodically refurbished reception rooms in accordance with shifting trends, Damascene houses and their interiors rarely date to a single building phase. Although an inscription dates most of the woodwork to 1707, alterations were made to the room in subsequent years.","type":"Reproductions","holder":"The Metropolitan Museum of Art","dates":"Dated Hegira 1119 / AD 1707","location":"New York","dimensions":"H: 671.6cm, W: 509.2cm, D: 804.2cm [from inside front entrance to back wall]","provenance":"Damascus, Syria","obtention":"Gift of The Hagop Kevorkian Fund, 1970  \nFormer owner \\[dealer\\]: \\[Asfar and Sarkis, Damascus, Syria, until early 1930s; sold to Kevorkian\\]  \nFormer owner: Hagop Kevorkian, New York (early 1930s–d. 1962)  \nFormer owner: Kevorkian Foundation, New York (1962–70; gifted to MMA)","bibliography":"Burn, Barbara (ed), *Masterpieces of the Metropolitan Museum of Art*, New York/Boston: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1993: 90-91, ill. (colour).  \nCampbell, Thomas P. (ed), *The Metropolitan Museum of Art Guide*, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2012: 142-143, ill. (colour).  \nDaskalakis-Matthews, Annie Christine, \"Pearls from Water Rubies from Stone: Studies in Islamic Art in Honor of Priscilla Soucek,\" in Linda Komaroff and Jaclynne Kerner (eds), *Artibus Asiae, Vol. 66/2. Festschriften*, Zurich: Artibus Asiae Publishers, 2006: 69-96, ill. figs. 19, 20, 24. Mamluk Elements in the Damascene Decorative System of the 18th and 19th centuries by Annie-Christine Daskalakis-Mathews.  \nEkhtiar, Maryam, Canby, Shelia R., Haidar, Navina and Soucek, Priscilla P. (eds), *Masterpieces from the Department of Islamic Art in The Metropolitan Museum of Art*, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2011: no. 238, 7,13, 14, 333-337, ill. 335 (colour).  \nEkhtiar, Maryam and Moore, Claire (ed), *Art of the Islamic World. A Resource for Educators*, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2012: 186-187, ill. pl. 38 (colour).  \nEttinghausen, Richard, \"Islamic Art\", *Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin*, 33/1 (Spring 1975): ill. 40-1 (colour).  \nde Montebello, Philippe and Howard, Kathleen (ed), The Metropolitan Museum of Art Guide, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1992: 327, ill. fig. 37 (colour).  \nPeck, Amelia and Daskalakis-Mathews, Annie-Christine, *Period Rooms in the Metropolitan Museum of Art*, New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1996: 287–95, ill.  \nSwietochowski, Marie and Jenkins-Madina, Marilyn, *Notable Acquisitions 1965–1975*, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1975: 141, ill. (b/w).  \nWelch, Stuart Cary, *The Islamic World. Vol. 11*, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1987: 126-127, ill. fig. 97 (colour).","dynasty":"Ottoman","copyright":"The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Gift of The Hagop Kevorkian Fund, 1970","keywords":["Ajami room","Aleppo room","Arabic inscription","architectural decoration","brass","calligraphy","carpentry","ceramic tiles","Damascus room","domestic furnishing","fountain","geometric decoration","geometric patterns","gold","gold leaf","interior ornament","marble","metalwork","Mother-of-pearl","Ottoman architecture","painted wooden wall paneling","stucco","Syrian tiles","wood paneling"],"materials":["wood (cypress, poplar, and mulberry), mother-of-pearl, marble and other stones, stucco with glass, plaster ceramic tiles, iron, brass","Wood (poplar) with gesso relief, gold and tin leaf, glazes and paint"]},"df86393e-c508-5ae4-9acc-14d37c1a879f":{"name":"Coin (*dinar*).","description":"A gold coin worth a *dinar*. Inscriptions in *kufic* script appear on the obverse and on the reverse. The centre, obverse, holds a five-line inscription that reads: 'To God / Muhammad / Prophet / of God / Sanctioned by God'. The margin, obverse, bears a circular inscription that reads: 'Muhammad, the Prophet of God. It is he who has sent his messenger with guidance and the religion of truth to prevail it over all religion even though it is hated by the pagans'. On the reverse, the coin bears at its centre four lines of inscription that reads: 'There is no God except / the One God / Who has no Partners / Authorised by God'. On the outer margin, reverse, there is a circular Qur'anic inscription (Chapter 30, 'Romans', verses 4 and 5): 'With Allah is the Decision in the Past and in the Future. On that day will the Believers rejoice with the help of God'. Along the interior margin, reverse, a circular inscription states: 'In the name of God this coin was struck in Egypt the year 268 AH' (AD 881).  \nWhen Ahmad ibn Tulun ruled as Governor of Egypt (r. AH 254–70 / AD 868–84), he aimed toward the unity of the Islamic provinces, and in AH 266 / AD 880 was able to establish a large Islamic State. Due to the fact that numismatics was the most important insignia of authority and dominion, he undertook the enterprise of minting coinage in his name in order to affirm his power over the State. The Abbasid coinage, which was struck in the name of the Abbasid caliphs, was in circulation in Egypt at the time of the establishment of the Tulunid state. This type of coinage continued in use in the period of Ibn Tulun where Arabic inscriptions and the name of the contemporary Abbasid caliph appeared on the reverse of the coin. In view of the fact that Ibn Tulun did not contest the legitimacy of the Abbasid caliphate, the name of Ahmad ibn Tulun was included under the name of the Abbasid caliph.  \nIbn Tulun was instrumental in purifying gold and raising the standard measure of the Ahmadi *dinar* to the point where it was accepted as the basis of transactions to the exclusion of all other currencies. Likewise, the Ahmadi *dinar* continued to be the model that other currencies followed. No alterations occurred subsequently in later caliphates to its standard measure or its inscriptions except for the substitution of the names of the contemporary Abbasid caliph and Tulunid ruler.","short_description":"Coin minting as a sign of power and sovereignty was practised under the Muslim caliphs and sultans, who put their names on the coins. This piece bears the name of the Abbasid caliph and under it we find the name of Ahmad ibn Tulun, the ruler of Egypt.","type":"Coin, dinar, gold","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art","dates":"Hegira 3rd century / AD 9th century.","location":"Cairo","dimensions":"Diameter 1.2 cm, weight 3.45 g.","method_for_datation":"The coin has a date engraved on the reverse: 'In the name of God this coin was struck in Egypt the year 268' (881).","method_for_provenance":"Egypt has been narrowed down as the city where the coin was minted in view of the fact that Egypt is named as the place where the coin was struck.","provenance":"Egypt.","obtention":"The coin was bought in 1961 from an antiquities dealer in Alexandria, Bouy Obeer.","bibliography":"Fahmi, Abd al-Rahman, *Al-Nukud al-Arabiya: Madiha wa Hadiruha \\[Arab Currency: Its Past and Present\\],* Cairo, 1964.  \nFahmi, Abd al-Rahman, *Fajr al-Saka al-Arabiya: Mawsua' al-Nukud al-Arabiya wa 'ilm al-Numiyat \\[The Beginnings of Arabic Minting: An Encyclopaedia of Arabic Currency and the Science of Numismatics\\],* Cairo, 1965.  \nAl-Maqrizi, Taqi al-Din Abi al-Abbas Ahmad ibn Ali (d. 845 / 1442), *Al-mawā'iz wa'l-i'tibār bi-dhikr al-khiţaţ wa'l-āthār \\[Exhortations and Contemplation of the Recollection of Plans and Monuments\\],* Vol. 3*,* Cairo, Egypt, 1853.  \nMarzuq, Muhammad Abd al-Aziz, *Al-Funun al-Zukhrufiya al-Islamiya fi Masr qabl 'asr al-Fatimiyyin \\[Islamic Decorative Arts in Egypt before the Fatimids\\],* Cairo, 1974.  \nYasin, Abd al-Nasir, *Al-Funun al-Zukhrufiya al-Islamiya fi Masr mundu al-Fath al-'Arabi hatta nihayat al-'Asr al-Fatimi – Dirasa Athariya lil Ta'thirat al-Faniya al-Wafida \\[Islamic Decorative Arts in Egypt from the Islamic Conquest until the End of the Fatimid Period – An Archaeological Study on Outside Artistic Influences\\],* Alexandria, 2002.","dynasty":"Tulunid","author":"Al-Sayyed Muhammad Khalifa Hammad","copy_editor":"Majd Musa","translator":"Amal Sachedina (from the Arabic).","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["Coin","Coinage","Currency","Dinar","gold","kufic script","numismatics"],"materials":["Gold cast in a mould."]},"e01c5dee-ecbd-5793-a4c3-93b23100ee13":{"name":"Bowl.","description":"A large conical bowl with an upturned rim that is made of tin-glazed earthenware and decorated with lustre. The exterior of the bowl is ornamented with abstract tree-like motifs, while the interior features a spectacular image of a large sailing ship that is complete with multiple masts and riggings, fore and aft decks, flags, and a rudder. Below the ship, four large fish swim back and forth; around it, tightly wound curlicues and other abstract motifs fill the surface of the bowl. The ship’s sail bears a motif which has been interpreted as the arms of Portugal, possibly indicating that the bowl was commissioned by a wealthy Portuguese merchant. This, plus the fact that the most important centre of Spanish lustre production in the 9th / 15th century was Christian Valencia, initially led scholars to believe that this bowl was Valencian ware. However, scientific tests in 1983 showed the presence of mineral deposits in the bowl which come not from Valencia, but from Málaga. This city, one of the most important port cities of the medieval western Mediterranean, had been the premiere centre of lustre production in Spain until it was eclipsed by Valencia in the early 9th / 15th century; production there appears to have ceased a few decades later. This bowl, then, is spectacular proof that the potteries of Málaga continued to create first-class lustre ceramics right up until the end.  \n  \nThe fish beneath the ship, as well as the tree-like motifs on the exterior of the bowl, are strikingly similar to Fatimid work of centuries before, and remind us that the lustre industry in Islamic Spain was born precisely when Fatimid workers brought the technique from Egypt.","short_description":"A large bowl with lustre-painted decoration that includes a representation of a ship at sea. The ship’s sail bears a coat of arms which has been interpreted as that of Portugal; thus this bowl may have been commissioned by a wealthy Portuguese merchant.","type":"Glazed and painted ceramic","holder":"Victoria and Albert Museum.","dates":"Second quarter of the hegira 9th / AD 15th century.","location":"London, England","dimensions":"Height 20.1 cm, diameter 51.2 cm.","method_for_datation":"Stylistic grounds; the large tree-like motifs on the exterior of the bowl, in particular, are characteristically Nasrid.","method_for_provenance":"In 1983 scholars established that the bowl was produced in Málaga, once the centre of lustre production in Spain until it was eclipsed by Valencia in the early 9th / 15th century (see description above).","provenance":"Málaga, Spain.","obtention":"Purchased by the Museum in 1864.","bibliography":"*Al-Andalus: The Art of Islamic Spain* (ed. J. Dodds), New York, 1992, p.361, cat. no. 114.  \nCaiger-Smith, A., *Lustre Pottery: Technique, Tradition and Innovation in Islam and the Western World,* London, 1985, pp.94–6.  \nFrothingham, A., *Lustreware of Spain,* New York, 1951, pp.91–3.  \nSoustiel, J., *La céramique islamique,* Fribourg, 1985, p.187, plate 223.  \nStanley, T., with Rosser-Owen, M. and Vernoit, S., *Palace and Mosque: Islamic Art from the Middle East,* London, 2004, p.120.","dynasty":"Nasrid","author":"Barry Wood","copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["coat of arms","tree"],"materials":["Glazed and painted ceramic."]},"e0b9788f-2138-5261-bd75-1329e810829d":{"name":"*Sabil* (Water Dispensary) and *Kuttab* (Qur’anic School) of Sultan Qaytbay.","description":"The *sabil* (a water dispensary) is constructed out of stone and is distinguished by the opulence of its southern and western facade. The elevated and narrow entrance located on the southern face, is crowned with a tri-lobed arch and decorated with stone and polychrome-marble designs. It is similar to the entrance of Ashrafiyya Madrasa in Jerusalem. To the left of the entrance, just above the grill, there is a large, square decorative panel in polychrome marble and stone. The panel is divided into nine sections and arranged in three rows, consisting of carved vegetal and geometric designs. These decorations are not common in Mamluk buildings and are reminiscent of those seen in illuminated manuscripts. This design brings to mind one on the cover of the manuscript by al-Busairi entitled, *al-Kawakib al-Duriya fi Madh khayr al-Bariya \\[The Shining Stars in Praise of the Most Blessed of Creation\\]*, popularly known by the name of 'al-Burda'. This manuscript, which is preserved in Dublin, Ireland, suggests that decorative designs were transferred with no restriction from one art form or medium to the other. It also indicates that the decorative designs were drawn on paper first of all as a template, and then adapted to various mediums, whether metal, stone, marble or wood.  \nThe *sabil* is made up of three stories. The first level is deep below ground and constitutes the water cistern built out of solid rock. A marble lid covered the mouth of the cistern which was then filled annually after being cleaned and purified. The second level is located at ground level, and consists of a room overlooking the street by way of an iron grill through which water was handed out to passers by, while allowing sufficient ventilation to air-cool the water. The water-dispensing room contains a marble panel, over which the water flows to be gathered in a trough below the window, thus the water is further air-cooled. The third level of the fountain-house consists of the *kuttab*, added in the Ottoman period, which taught orphaned children to memorise the Qur'an.  \nThis building is considered one of the most prominent of Sultan Qaytbay's monuments in Cairo. In addition to its façade, which contains beautifully lavish decoration, this is the first example of a free-standing *sabil-kuttab* in Egypt. Sultan Qaytbay built another *sabil* in Jerusalem which is topped by a dome. In Cairo, *sabil*s became increasingly popular and were prolific during the Ottoman period. Today, there are approximately 100 *sabil*s in the City of Cairo.","short_description":"*Sabils* are spread all over Cairo to provide free drinking water for inhabitants, passers-by and travellers. Such buildings were charitable institutions that sultans, amirs and the wealthy vied to build. They were commonly situated in the corner of a mosque or an architectural complex. This *sabil* built by Qaytbay is considered to be the first freestanding construction of this type. Above the *sabil* is a *kuttab* to teach orphans the rudiments of Islam, the Arabic language and memorising the Qur'an.","dates":"Hegira 884 / AD 1479.","location":"Cairo","method_for_datation":"The building was dated based on an inscription flanking the entrance, which bears the name of the patron, Sultan al-Ashraf Abu al-Nasr Qaytbay, and his titles as well as the date of construction.","bibliography":"Behrens-Abouseif, D., *Islamic Architecture in Cairo,* Leiden, 1989.  \nMostafa, Saleh Lamei, “The Cairene Sabils: Form and Meaning”, *Muqarnas,* 6, pp.33–42.  \nPasha, H., *Mawsu'at al-'Emara wa al-Athar wa al-Funun al-Islamiya \\[Encyclopedia of Architecture, Archaeology and Islamic Arts\\].* Cairo, 1999.","patrons":"Sultan al-Ashraf Abu al-Nasr Qaytbay (r. AH 872–901 / AD 1468–96).","dynasty":"Mamluk.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_EG_EN_001","author":"Tarek Torky","copy_editor":"Majd Musa","translator":"Amal Sachedina (from the Arabic).","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["civil architecture","geometric decoration","kuttab (Qur’an School)","Sabil (water dispensary)","vegetal decoration"]},"e0dd9b89-fd8e-5b2e-a57e-fda48b2a6792":{"name":"*Peškun*","description":"Оctagonal *peškun* (Tr. *peşkun*) decorated with floral and geometric motifs, each side having a blossom branch ornament that rests on a pointed draped arch at the bottom spreading to the top of a side. A heart-shaped branch has a flower at the top, while its bottom makes a central part of an opening in the shape of braces. The leaves surround the branch and are placed in a horizontal rectangular field at the top of the side as well. Eight sides carry an octagonal plate at the top with a central flower and floral motifs that surround it. The inner octagonal of the plate’s edge is decorated with leaves. All ornaments are made of mother-of-pearl and brass wire using the incrustation technique, while the edge of the octagonal top plate is ornamented with bone. Peškun is the name of a traditional piece of Ottoman furniture in the shape of a table or stool, originally meant for sitting, although it had different purposes throughout history, especially as a decorative table in Balkan oriental interiors of the 19th and of the first half of the 20th century. Over time, the larger table in the set (of usually three pieces) began to be used as a coffee table, while the smaller ones were used as stools. The *Peškun* was ordinarily made of walnut wood, ornamented with incrusted floral and geometric motifs made of mother of pearl and bone.","type":"Table","holder":"Museum of Applied Art","dates":"Hegira late 13th–early 14th century / AD late 19th century–early 20th century","location":"Belgrade","dimensions":"Height: 49.5cm, width: 43cm","place_of_production":"Austria-Hungary, possibly Sarajevo","method_for_datation":"By stylistic analysis, material, technique, and analogy with other similar examples.","obtention":"Purchased in 1951.","author":"Ana Samardžić","keywords":["incrustation","Ottoman Balkans","peškun","side table","stool"],"materials":["incrustation","Walnut, mother-of-pearl, bone, brass"]},"e249d142-ee34-5f84-8b9c-0144ff7e19d8":{"name":"*Shahnameh by Firdowsi* (Social Gathering for Entertainment)","description":"The Persian text was composed in verse and prose, divided into four columns, and written in black ink and *taliq* calligraphy on pale paper. The work comprises a total of 202 miniature scenes, which collectively represent the pinnacle of miniature art. The vast majority of these miniatures depict scenes from the *Shahnameh*, making this a work of great importance.  \nThe circular medallion on the *Zahriye* (titular inscription) page of the work is decorated with a profusion of richly coloured floral, leaf and branch motifs, and Chinese clouds. The medallion is inscribed at its centre in black ink script on a gilt background. The inscription states that it was prepared for Sultan Ali Mirza, (ruled 1478–1505) of the Karkiya Dynasty, one of the most important dynasties of the Timurid Period.  \nThe binding is leather affixed to cardboard, typical of this period. The exterior covers are crafted from black leather embellished with a variety of animal figures, including birds, sheep, foxes, gazelles, deer, and floral motifs. The inner covers are burgundy leather featuring intricate floral and animal motifs on a green, blue, and gilt background.","type":"Manuscript","holder":"Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts","dates":"AH 9th century/AD 15th century","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"35cm x 24cm","place_of_production":"Gilan/Iran","obtention":"The item was brought to the Museum from the Hâlet Efendi Library on 28 May 1917.","dynasty":"Timurids (AH 771-911 / AD 1370-1505)","materials":["Finished (aharli) paper, ink, gilding, leather binding"]},"e27cfedb-4426-5918-bebf-2002418ec65c":{"name":"Storage vessels and two-part cooking pot","short_description":"The contrast between the public and private, male and female spheres offer the Berber women \"free space\" which allows them to express their own view of life. In the seclusion of the home they make the space of everyday life viable, and visibly materialise a particular life design, in that they symbolically reproduce their bodies: in the hand-built up pottery, repeating the image of \"body as vessel.\" In a world controlled by men, the women have developed a cultural model which is based on their corporeal experience.  \nIn art, the French philosopher Gilles Deleuze maintained, it is never to do with the reproduction of forms, but with the capturing of powers. Therefore, no art is ever just figurative: \"Art is the language of emotions (…). Art has no opinion.\" The women produced their pottery exclusively for personal use. Limits were only placed on their completely free artistic development by the social norms which applied in their environment and which govern the relationships between people.","type":"Ceramic; household item","holder":"Weltmuseum Wien","dates":"Before resp. ca. 1900","location":"Vienna","dimensions":"H: max. 42cm, Diameter: 52cm","method_for_datation":"Entry in the TMS digital collection database and archival documents, personal information from the collector.","method_for_provenance":"Entry in the general inventory book, personal information from the collector.","provenance":"Southern and central Tunisia; Berber people","obtention":"Purchased from the collector, Renate Anna Menzel, Vienna, 2005.","bibliography":"Steinmann, Axel, \"Psychological Profiles\", in Christian Schicklgruber (ed), *Weltmuseum Wien, exhibition catalogue*, Vienna: Weltmuseum Wien, 2017: 230-231.","materials":["Clay, slip, bitumen, pigment"]},"e388c5d6-a7bc-53e2-8fe9-b004758a5838":{"name":"Bowl with *tuğra* of Bayezid II","short_description":"This hemispherical bowl has a facetted honeycomb cavetto and a rivet in the centre showing where a disc was once attached. The underside is engraved with elongated split leaves found on late 15th century illuminations and Iznik ware. One of the cells is stamped with the *tuğra* of Bayezid II, the earliest known monogram of a sultan which serves as a control stamp guaranteeing the purity of the silver.","type":"Ottoman metalwork, silver","holder":"Benaki Museum","dates":"Hegira 885-917 / AD 1481-1512","location":"Athens","dimensions":"Diameter 12.5 cm","provenance":"Balkans","dynasty":"Ottoman","keywords":["geometric decoration","Geometric pattern","Ottoman Balkans","Ottoman Imperial symbols","Ottoman monograms","silver"],"materials":["Parcel-gilt silver"]},"e39d2fbb-2774-52a9-868e-e26f46c215f7":{"name":"*Preparing Medicine from Honey*, folio from a dispersed manuscript of an Arabic translation of the *Materia Medica* of Dioscorides","short_description":"This scene from a translation of *De Materia Medica* by Dioscorides is typical of the Baghdad School of illustration, which employed bold colors and symmetrical compositions to depict urban life. The use of an architectural structure to divide the painting into six sections is typical of the period, as is the fact that the oatmeal-coloured paper remains visible. This folio, which comes from volume 5, chapter 9 of the work, depicts a pharmacist preparing a honey‑based medicine in a cauldron while an assistant upstairs distributes it into jars.","type":"Codex","holder":"The Metropolitan Museum of Art","dates":"Dated Hegira 621 / AD 1224","location":"New York","dimensions":"H: 31.4cm, W: 22.9cm","provenance":"Possibly Baghdad, Iraq or Northern Jazira","obtention":"Bequest of Cora Timken Burnett, 1956  \nCalligrapher: 'Abdullah ibn al-Fadl  \nFormer owner: F. R. Martin, Stockholm (by 1910–at least 1912)  \nFormer owner: V. Everit Macy, New York (by 1922–at least 1927)  \nFormer owner: Cora Timken Burnett, Alpine, NJ (until d. 1956; bequeathed to MMA)","bibliography":"Ackerman, Phyllis, *Guide to the Exhibition of Persian Art. The Iranian Institute, New York*, New York: The Iranian Institute, 1940: 189, no. case 72F.  \nAnet, Claude, \"Exhibition of Persian Miniatures at the Musee des Arts Decoratifs, Paris\", *Burlington Magazine*, 22 (1912): 15–16, ill. pl. I, A (b/w).  \nBuchthal, Hugo, Kurz, Otto and Ettinghausen, Richard, \"Supplementary Notes to K. Holter's checklist of Islamic Ill. Mss. before 1350.\" Ars Islamica vol. 7 (1940): 151–52, no. 27.  \nBuchthal, Hugo, \"Early Islamic Miniatures from Baghdad\", *Journal of the Walters Art Gallery*, V. (1942): 10, 15, 19–39, 20, no. 9, ill. fig. 12, 13, 17. Leaves from MS now in Top Kapu Saray, Istanbul, which has colophon giving name of copyist and date Rajab AH 621. No. 9, fig. 12 illustrates 56.20; no. 10, fig. 13 illustrates 57.51.21; no. 15, fig. 17 illustrates 13.152.6.  \nCanby, Sheila R., *Shah 'Abbas: The Remaking of Iran*, London: British Museum Press, 2009.  \nCanby, Sheila R., Beyazit, Deniz and Rugiadi, Martina, *Court and Cosmos. The Great Age of the Seljuqs*, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2016: 178–79, no. 107a, ill. 178 (colour).  \nDimand, Maurice S., \"A loan of Near Eastern Miniature Paintings\", *Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin*, 22 (1927): 127.  \nDimand, Maurice S. (ed), \"Dated Specimens of Mohammedan Art in the Metropolitan Museum of Art\", *MMA Studies 1* 2 (1929): 208.  \nDimand, Maurice S., \"New Accessions of Islamic Art\", *Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin*, 16 (April 1958): 229, ill. 229 (b/w).  \nEkhtiar, Maryam, Canby, Shelia R., Haidar, Navina, and Soucek, Priscilla P. (eds), *Masterpieces from the Department of Islamic Art in The Metropolitan Museum of Art*, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2011: 6, 87, 94, no. 55, ill. 94 (colour).  \nEkhtiar, Maryam and Moore, Claire (ed), *Art of the Islamic World. A Resource for Educators*, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2012: 100–01, ill. pl. 18 (colour).  \nGluck, Heinrich and Diez, Ernst, *Die Kunst des Islam. Propylaen Kunstgeschichte, Vol. 5*, Berlin: Propylaen-Verlag, 1925: 95, 502, ill. (b/w).  \nKirketerp-Moller, Hertha, *Det Islamiske Bogmaleri*, Copenhagen: Nyt Nordisk Forlag, 1974: 5, ill. fig. 6.  \nKühnel, Ernst, *Miniaturmalerei im Islamischen Orient*, Berlin: Bruno Cassirer Verlag, 1922: ill. pl. 5.  \nKurz, Otto, \"Folding chairs and Koran stands\", in Richard Ettinghausen (ed), *Islamic Art in The Metropolitan Museum of Art*, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1972: 302, ill. fig. 5  \nMartin, F. R., *The Miniature Painting and Painters of Persia, India and Turkey from the 8th to the 18th century. Vol. 1*, London: Bernard Quaritch, 1912: no. volume 2, 7, ill. pl. 5b.  \nRicci, Seymour, *Catalogue d'une Collection de Miniatures Gothiques et Persanes appartenant à Léonce Rosenberg*, Paris: Montassier et Odend'hal, 1913: 36–37, ill. pl. XVIII.  \nSaliba, George and Komaroff, Linda, \"Illustrated Books May be Hazardous to your Health\", *Ars Orientalis*, 35 (2005): 30–31, ill. fig. 10 (b/w).  \nSarre, Friedrich and Martin, F. R., *Die Ausstellung von Meisterwerken Muhammedanischer Kunst in Munchen 1910. Die Stoffe, die Waffen, Holz und Elfenbein*, Munich: F. Bruckmann A.-G., 1912: no. 583, vol. 1, ill. pl. 5b.  \nStchoukine, Ivan, *La Peinture Iranienne sous les derniers 'Abbasides et les Il-Khans*, Bruges: Imprimerie Sainte Catharine, 1936 : no. II.  \nVever, Marteau, *Miniatures Persanes. Volumes 1-2*, Paris: Musée des Arts Décoratifs, 1913: ill. pl. 1 XXXVIII. Illustrated another leaf from this manuscript, dated here 1222, entitled \"Le chien enrage\", in Mutiaux collection (same leaf illustration in Anet reference), pl. XXXVIII (ill. another leaf, in Sambon collection (same leaf illustrated in Rosenberg collecti.  \nWelch, Stuart Cary, *The Islamic World. Vol. 11*, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1987: 34–35, ill. fig. 22 (colour).  \nKunsthaus Zürich (ed), *Kunstschätze aus Iran von der prähistorischen bis zur islamischen Zeit. 27. Mai bis 5. August 1962*, Zürich: Kunsthaus Zürich, 1962: no. 556, ill. pl. 82.","dynasty":"Abbasid","copyright":"The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Bequest of Cora Timken Burnett, 1956","keywords":["Abbasid","Arab literature","Arabic inscription","Baghdad","gold","ink","Iraq","medical plant","medicine","nashki","opaque watercolour","Paper","science","scientific manuscript","treatise"],"materials":["Ink, opaque watercolour, and gold on paper"]},"e3f36ab1-bb2a-5793-ac55-177827b3e390":{"name":"Plate","description":"This enamelled bronze plate in the FBQ Museum shows the Cuerda Seca (dry cord) technique, a method of enamelling that emerged during the Seljuk period in Persia.  \nRenowned for its beauty and utility, enamelling serves both aesthetic and practical purposes, offering protection against corrosion while providing stunning decorative elements.  \nWhile both Cuerda Seca and the Persian Minakari technique are used in enamelling, they differ in their execution. In Minakari, the coloured enamel powders are applied directly onto the metal surface, resulting in smooth and continuous colour blending. In contrast, Cuerda Seca uses a greasy material to create boundaries between different enamel colours to prevent them from blending during firing, producing sharp motifs with clearly defined edges in various hues. Both techniques yield vibrant and decorative surfaces, showcasing the artistry and craftsmanship of enamelling traditions in the Islamic world.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani Museum","owner":"His Excellency Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"Hegira 12th century / AD 18th century","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Diameter: 32cm, height: 1.5cm","place_of_production":"Syria","method_for_datation":"The date and origin were established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, techniques, style, inscription, analogies and the provenance or historical background of the items.","method_for_provenance":"The date and origin were established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, techniques, style, inscription, analogies and the historical background of the items.","provenance":"Syria","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Mahmoud Saber","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Bronze","enamel, Cuerda Seca technique"]},"e58c69db-bd74-5185-a678-96228b8d0ba3":{"name":"Water seller's jar","alternate_name":"Water jar","short_description":"The egg-shaped jar has a narrow neck the top of which is covered by a dome-shaped lid. There is a curved handle on each side of the neck base and a long, straight spout. The lower part of the jar is made of unglazed and undecorated earthenware, a common material for water vessels that enables water evaporation thus keeping the water inside cool. The upper part is made of copper alloy, engraved with decorative bands of intertwined floral motifs; knot work patterns; stylised four-legged animals amongst a vegetal design; and two calligraphic bands. The jar sits in a knotted rope net with handle for carriage on the water seller’s back.","type":"Jar","holder":"Sharjah Museum of Islamic Civilization","dates":"13th century AH / 19th century AD","location":"Sharjah","dimensions":"Height: 87.4cm, Diameter: 29cm","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","method_for_provenance":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Egypt","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Hazelle Page","keywords":["Egypt","Everyday life","Water jar","Water seller"],"materials":["Ceramic, copper alloy, rope"]},"e69c15fd-110a-59c2-9a6e-7ae708a7ea8e":{"name":"Ewer.","description":"A ewer carved from a single piece of rock-crystal. It has a pear-shaped body, beaked rim, and slightly splayed foot; a handle, which originally had a vertical thumb-piece at its apex, joins the rim to the lower part of the body. The body of the ewer is decorated on either side with identical scenes of a bird of prey attacking a four-legged animal with horns (a gazelle?). These vignettes are framed by large, leafy arabesque motifs. The whole design is contained within a delicate raised band which goes around the neck and down the body of the ewer on either side of the handle. This band acts as a frame and gives the design the feel of a textile wrapped around the ewer’s body. All of the details are drilled and cut with great skill, including the texturing in the form of lines and dots covering the bird and animal and the leaves of the arabesque patterns. Objects like this ewer were among the thousands of precious items looted from the Fatimid treasury during the unrest of 450 AH / AD 1060. A number of these made their way to Europe, where they were used as reliquaries in church treasuries.","short_description":"A pear-shaped ewer carved from a single block of the clear, colourless quartz known as rock-crystal. It is one of a number of luxury wares carved from rock-crystal for the Fatimid court in Cairo. Many such objects made their way into European church treasuries, where they were used as reliquaries.","type":"Glasswork","holder":"Victoria and Albert Museum.","dates":"About hegira 391–452 / AD 1000–1060.","location":"London, England","dimensions":"Height 19.4 cm, diameter (of base) 9 cm.","method_for_datation":"There is a clear relationship between this ewer and a group of others in European collections, one of which has an inscription naming the Fatimid Caliph al-‘Aziz (r. AH 365–86 / AD 975–96). The decoration on the V&A ewer, including the arabesque pattern, is more complex and mature than is that on the others, suggesting a later date. Finally, Fatimid rock-crystal production was severely disrupted when violent social upheavals began in AH 452 / AD 1061.","method_for_provenance":"Cairo was the Fatimid capital and thus the likeliest place that an object of such quality would have been made.","provenance":"Probably Cairo, Egypt.","obtention":"Purchased by the Museum in 1862.","bibliography":"Contadini, A., Fatimid Art at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, 1998, pp.16–38.  \n  \nStanley, T., with Rosser-Owen, M. and Vernoit, S., Palace and Mosque: Islamic Art from the Middle East, London, 2004, pp.94–5.","dynasty":"Fatimid","author":"Barry Wood","copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["animal decoration","arabesque","bird","carving","figurative decoration","floral decoration","incision","reliquary","rock-crystal","sumptuary art"],"materials":["Carved rock-crystal."]},"e71fe850-fa1a-5797-b0c5-b50e5f9a25ed":{"name":"Dish.","description":"Ceramics with metallic highlights were exceptionally successful in the late Middle Ages, and were sought after by the finest European courts. The coats of arms of royalty and nobility, in particular Italians such as the Tedaldi or Nasi families, are commonly depicted. These ceramics, so colourful and elegant, are reminiscent of Gothic painting. The manufacturing and decorating processes were complex, as the pieces required several firings to obtain the different colours. This dish was turned on a potter's wheel. Its surface is covered with a white or cream tin glaze. The sides are concave and the brim slightly inclined. The topside is decorated in gold and deep blue. The central, golden coat of arms, inscribed in a toothed blue border, shows an eagle with outstretched wings. It is possible that it belonged to the Despujols family, and it is repeated in other pieces. The coat of arms is surrounded by a thin strip of fringes and spirals and tiny fern leaves. Near the edge, there is a wide band with large gilt pinecones in reserve, alternating with large deep-blue flowers. The remaining spaces are filled with arabesque leaves. On the underside there is another eagle in the same position as the first, covering the entire area, and fern leaves in the empty spaces. The heraldic coats of arms, as well as telling us about the tastes of high society, are useful for determining when the pieces were manufactured, as they include data on family history.","short_description":"Dish decorated in a manner typical of AH 9th-/ AD 15th-century Mudéjar ceramics, with Nasrid-style motifs such as the gold and blue motifs on the front combined with the coat-of-arms of the family that commissioned the piece. In this case, an eagle appears on both sides of the dish.","type":"Dish, clay, ceramic","holder":"National Archaeological Museum.","dates":"Second half of the 15th century.","location":"Madrid","dimensions":"Height 9 cm, diameter 45 cm, diameter of base 14.5 cm.","method_for_datation":"From its style and from comparison with other similar dishes. In this case, the coat of arms that decorates it serves as a historical reference.","method_for_provenance":"From its formal and stylistic characteristics, from the archaeological digs that have been carried out and from the extensive documentation that is available.","provenance":"Manises or Paterna, Valencia, Spain.","obtention":"The piece was purchased for the National Archaeological Museum from Vicente Juan y Amat on 27 June 1872.","bibliography":"Camps Cazorla, E., *Catálogo Sumario del Museo Arqueológico Nacional. Cerámica Española (Nuevas Instalaciones)*, Madrid, 1936, p.31, plate III.  \nFranco Mata, á., Balmaseda Muncharaz, L., Arias Sánchez, I. and Papí Rodes, C., “La Documentación de las Cerámicas Valencianas Medievales en el Museo Arqueológico Nacional”, in *La Cerámica de Paterna. Reflejos del Mediterráneo*, Exhibition catalogue, Valencia, 2002, pp.106–18.","dynasty":"Mudéjar","linkcatalogs":"IAM_ES_EN_001","author":"Ángela Franco","copy_editor":"Rosalía Aller","translator":"Laurence Nunny","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["clay","coat of arms","Dish","firing","Glazed","gold highlight","kaolin","Manises","Mudéjar","Paterna","Valencia"],"materials":["Clay, kaolin","firing, glazing, gold highlights."]},"e74099f6-1c27-5325-b008-aca137d56990":{"name":"*Saka Postu* (small alcove where a new apprentice observed elders)","description":"Upon entering the printing house through the large wooden door, one passes through the vaulted corridor and reaches the barrel-vaulted chamber. In the left-hand corner there is a raised platform covered by a hide over a carpet. Here *Nevniyaz* (a newly accepted apprentice) would sit and observe for a period of three days, at the conclusion of which he would decide whether to stay or leave.","type":"Room Restoration","holder":"Konya Mevlana Museum","location":"Konya","copy_editor":"Judy Harter"},"e9446de8-0118-5c68-aa90-cc7965c9040a":{"name":"Nilometer.","alternate_name":"Al-Miqyas.","description":"The Nilometer (Kiosk of the Nile; known in Arabic as *al-Miqyas*) is considered among the enduring architectural foundations tied to the Egyptian culture and way of life. It is in fact unique in the Islamic world. Its importance goes back to a time when measuring the rise of the waters of the Nile was closely related to the levying of taxes on agricultural lands. Taxes were levied only when the waters of the Nile had risen to a certain designated level, which would irrigate the land during flood season.  \nThe Nilometer itself is the equivalent of a well whose walls are built from skilfully hewn stone blocks. The thickness of the walls increases the greater the depth. The well consists of three levels: the lowest level is a circular base, while the middle level is a square whose sides measure more than the diameter of the level below. The highest level is also square in shape, and bigger than the middle level. It is due to this design that the walls can bear the horizontal pressure of the earth that increases the greater the depth.  \nThe waters of the Nile would flow into the well by means of three tunnels, which discharged their waters into the well by means of three 'mouths' on the eastern side that are in the form of subterranean entrances in the wall. These openings are oriented towards pointed arches supported by compact decorated columns with globular bases. These arches are considered to be not only the oldest known examples in Islamic Egypt, but precede the European Gothic type by three centuries. We may also view similar examples on the arches of the Ibn Tulun Mosque in Cairo (AH 265 / AD 879).  \nA staircase curves around the inside walls of the well and extends all the way to the bottom. Adorning the upper reaches of the well on two sides, the northern and the eastern internal walls, are inscriptions in *kufic* script, which represent the oldest (dated) Arabic inscription in Egypt ever recorded. In the centre of the well stands the principal component of the monument, an octagonal marble pillar whose length extends to 16 cubits (10.50 m). It is engraved with measurements in cubits *(kirat)* and inches *(zira')*, which demarcate the water inundation levels.  \nAhmad ibn Tulun (r. AH 254–70 / AD 868–84) carried out restoration of al-Miqyas in AH 259 / AD 873 and replaced the two bands of ancient inscriptions with more contemporary ones on the south and west sides. He placed his name within the new inscription, but kept the original date of construction untouched. Throughout the ages the building has been subject to many restorations and renovations (Fatimid, Mamluk and Ottoman). It was renovated in the modern age in 1925 when the Mamluk dome crowning the outside of the building was replaced by a conical-shaped roof covered by lead panels.","short_description":"Set on Roda island in the Nile, the Nilometer is a unique structure in Islamic architecture. It gained its importance from being the means for calculating tax levies on agricultural lands according to the size of the Nile flood every year. Its design and the building materials used in its construction helped it to resist corrosion by water for over one thousand years.","dates":"Hegira 247 / AD 861.","location":"Cairo","method_for_datation":"Historians concur that al-Miqyas was built in the year 247 / 861 by order of the Abbassid Caliph al-Mutawakkil, although some scholars trace its foundation back to the Caliph al–Ma'mun (r. 169–217 / 786–833). However, the historian Ibn Khalkan (d. 681 / 1282) mentions that the name of the al-Mutawakkil and the year the Nilometer was constructed (247 / 861) was engraved within an inscription on the walls of the well, and that this inscription dated to the foundation of the monument. This inscription has now been lost and may have been removed when Ibn Tulun carried out his restoration of the building in the year 259 / 873.","bibliography":"Allen, T., *A Classical Revival in Islamic Architecture*, Weisbaden, 1986.  \nBehrens-Abouseif, D., *Islamic Architecture in Cairo: An Introduction,* London and New York, 1992.  \nCreswell, K. A. C., *Muslim Architecture of Egypt,* Vol. II, Oxford, 1940.  \nGhaleb Pasha, K.*, Le Mikyâs ou Nilomètre de l'Ile de Rodah*, Cairo, 1951.  \nHillenbrand, R., *Islamic Art and Architecture*, London, 1989.  \nIbn Khalkan, Abu al-Qasim Shams al-Din Ahmad (d. 681 / 1282), *Anba' al-Zaman \\[News of the Times\\],* Beirut, 1968.  \nPopper, W., *The Cairo Nilometer: Studies in Ibn Taghri Bardi's Chronicles of Egypt: I*, California, 1951.  \nShafi'i, F., *Al-Emara al-Arabia fi Misr al-Islamiya \\[Arab Architecture in Islamic Egypt\\],* Vol. I, Cairo, 1994.  \nWilliams, C., *Islamic Monuments in Cairo: A Practical Guide*, Cairo, 2002.","patrons":"Caliph Al-Mutawakkil Ala Allah, (r. AH 232–47 / AD 847–61).","architects":"Ahmad ibn Muhammad al-Hasib supervised construction.","dynasty":"Abbasid.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_EG_EN_001","author":"Tarek Torky","copy_editor":"Majd Musa","translator":"Amal Sachedina (from the Arabic).","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["civil architecture","conical surface","corbel","hydrology","kufic script","Nilometer","pointed arch","Well"]},"ea3d8d8e-c04b-5794-9b49-13d8075523c6":{"name":"Spouted bowl (*sahlah bu mirzab*)","description":"Bowls are among the most important copper artifacts in Omani hospitality. They are usually either wholly circular or circular with a channel and include various decorative designs. They may serve to either hold the cups in which Omani coffee is served, or as basins for guests to wash their hands.","type":"Metalwork, copper","holder":"The national Museum - Sultanate of Oman","dates":"Hegira 14th/AD 20th century","location":"Muscat, Sultanate of Oman","dimensions":"Length (with spout): 31.5cm, height: 11cm, diameter: 19cm","provenance":"Northern Oman","dynasty":"Al-Busaid Dynasty (AH 1167–present/AD 1754–present)","author":"Noora Al Balushi","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["Copper"]},"eb9313ce-3a64-5d73-bea2-13a7a7012be8":{"name":"Magic cup","description":"The bowl is lined with inscriptions inside and out – verses from the Koran, the most beautiful names of God, religious and talismanic expressions – alternating with magic squares. On the outer perimeter, images of the zodiac and planets engraved inside medallions were scrupulously obscured at a later date with floral motifs, no doubt in order to avoid the association of the Koranic text with representations of living creatures.  \nConsuming drinks or food in such cups, thus closely connecting religion, medicine, and astrology, permitted one to resist the effects of poisons, fevers, and other physical ailments. *The Thousand and One Nights* invoked a divinatory purpose too.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","initial_owner":"Marcel Destombes","dates":"Hegira 11th - 1st quarter of 14th century / AD 17th and 19th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 8.5cm, Diameter: 22.7cm","provenance":"India","obtention":"Bequest of Marcel Destombes.","bibliography":"Delpont, E., et al., *Album du musée*, Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, 2012: 295.  \n  \nRoux, J-P., *Arts de l'Islam: des origines à 1700*, Paris: Musée national de l'Orangerie, 1971: 112.  \n  \nWelch, A., *Calligraphy in the arts of the Muslim world*, Austin: University of Texas Press, 1979: 186-187, Fig. 80.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["Cast and chiseled brass"]},"ecf2b49c-b70f-51b8-8c61-216edf4189e1":{"name":"Plate","short_description":"This elegant plate was crafted in Guangzhou (formerly Canton) in AH 1309 / AD 1891-1892, exemplifying the refined artistry of Chinese export porcelain during the late Qing Dynasty. The intricate design showcases scenes of daily life, featuring pagoda-style architecture and traditional Chinese elements, capturing the cultural essence of the period.  \n  \nA particularly intriguing feature of this piece is its inscription. Written in Arabic-Persian script, it bears the phrase هو الباقي (He \\[Allah\\] is the Everlasting), emphasising divine permanence. Additionally, the inscription includes the word فرمايش (ordered), indicating that the plate was specially commissioned for Mohamed Sadiq Khan, who is most likely Sarwar al-Malak, a renowned musician from the courts of Shah Naser al-Din and Shah Muzaffar al-Din. This suggests that the plate may have been part of the Persian royal court’s cultural or artistic exchanges.  \n  \nAt the lower part of the plate, we can also notice the marking \"ص 92\". While its exact meaning remains uncertain, it may indicate the production year (1892) or serve as a workshop code or inventory mark.  \n  \nThis plate stands as a remarkable testament to the artistic and cultural exchanges between China and the Persian-speaking world, seamlessly blending Chinese craftsmanship with Persian artistic and literary influences.","type":"Domestic tools","holder":"FBQ Museum","owner":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"1891","location":"Shahaniya","dimensions":"Diameter: 41cm, Height: 7cm","method_for_datation":"The date and origin were established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, painting, and style.","method_for_provenance":"The date and origin were established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, painting, and style.","provenance":"China","obtention":"Purchase","bibliography":"Bosworth, C. E., *The New Islamic Dynasties*, Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 1996.  \nMedley, M., \"Islam, Chinese Porcelain and Ardabīl,\" *Iran*, 13 : 1 (1975): 31–37.  \nOtte, J., & Floor, W., \"English Ceramics in Iran 1810–1910\", *NCS Journal*, 20 (2020): 117–143.","dynasty":"Qajar","author":"Mahmoud Saber","keywords":["China","Farsi","Iran","Persian","Plate","Porcelain"],"materials":["Porcelain"]},"ed2b34d8-0b3b-5e62-9f3b-c352b83a9b49":{"name":"Tile Cup","description":"The drinking vessel is composed of a white clay and slip with polychrome decoration beneath a transparent colourless glaze. The composition features a series of tulips and stylised carnation branches of varying sizes rising vertically from separate roots on a white ground. The red, green and blue motifs are outlined in black. Beginning in the second half of the 16th century, it appears that the emerald green glaze, which was used extensively, would run during the firing process. It is posited that the quality of ceramics began to decline in tandem with the deterioration of the economy. Examples from the 16th century demonstrate that the naturalistic floral motifs, which were widely employed in Classical Ottoman style, were still being used during this period.","type":"Utensil","holder":"Istanbul Archaeological Museums (The Tiled Kiosk)","dates":"Hegira late 10th century / AD late 16th century","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"Diameter: 9.4cm, height: 17cm","place_of_production":"İznik/Bursa","dynasty":"Ottoman (AH 698–1340 / AD 1299-1922)","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Glazed terracotta/Tile"]},"edd94d46-2a69-592f-80d7-0c535b109eff":{"name":"Coffee","description":"Coffee is always served at the beginning of a visit and is repeatedly offered until guests politely signal that they have had enough by rocking their cup from side to side. In order to keep coffee hot and fresh for unexpected guests it goes through many stages. After roasting and grinding the coffee beans the grains are added to boiling water inside a large *dallah* (coffee pot) called a *khamra*. Next, the liquid is poured into a medium-sized coffee pot called a *taljeemah*. At this stage cardamom seeds, saffron and rose water may be added for flavour. From this jug, the coffee is poured into a serving *dallah* referred to as a *mezallah*, where the coffee is refined and filtered. The server must hold the *mezallah* with their left hand and distribute the *fanayeel* (coffee cups) using the right hand. The coffee should fill less than half of the cup.","type":"Coffee","holder":"Sharjah Heritage Museum","location":"Sharjah, United Arab Emirates","dimensions":"Varies and depends on the coffee bean. Length: 10mm, width: 7mm","provenance":"Arabian Peninsula","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Amanda Snyder, Mona Mukhashab","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["beans","coffee","coffee beans"]},"ede6db87-1998-5d51-a8e0-97a1ffe99c48":{"name":"Jug","description":"A ceramic jug with one handle, the body is decorated with diamond-shaped panels, in white and turquoise with a single white flower, superimposed on a blue ground.","type":"Jug","holder":"Benaki Museum","dates":"AH 957 / c. AD 1550","location":"Athens","dimensions":"Diameter of body 13.6 cm, height 18.6 cm","place_of_production":"Iznik","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Turkey","obtention":"Donation","bibliography":"Carswell, J., Gibson, M. (ed.), and Moraitou , M., *Iznik Ceramics at the Benaki Museum*, London: Gingko, and Athens: Benaki Museum, 2023: cat. no. 5, p. 58.","dynasty":"Ottoman (AH 698–1340 / AD 1299-1922)","author":"Mina Moraitou","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Glazed ceramic"]},"ee84f4a0-84fc-5ae3-9c0f-88b366037681":{"name":"Qasr al-Azm.","description":"Qasr al-Azm, the largest and oldest completely preserved private residence in Damascus, covers a space of about 5,500 sq m. It is a typical example of Damascene domestic architecture, with its simple outer appearance and its splendid interior furnishings. The division of the apartments according to official space and private space is also typical of Muslim domestic architecture in general, a feature not seen in their Christian or Jewish counterparts.  \nFrom the entrance with a guard's room to its left, a long, winding cross-vaulted corridor leads into the *madafa* (“chamber of the coffee-server”), before entering the official apartments (*salamlik*). The *Salamlik* is arranged around a small courtyard with an *iwan* on the south wall, flanked by two reception rooms. There are also guest rooms and a small kitchen for catering. From this area there is access to the most splendid area of the building, the *haramlik,* where the family functioned and the women and children stayed. The rooms in this area are arranged around a spacious courtyard measuring 56 m x 24 m, with two fountains and a garden at the centre. The chambers on the north side of the courtyard served as living rooms in the winter. They are provided with a portico (*riwaq*) supported by antique-basalt columns brought in from Dar'a and Bosra. Opposite the *riwaq* there is the magnificent tripartite reception hall (*qa'a)* with splendid stone-paste decoration, and small gardens to the north and east sides. At the southeast side the *iwan* faces the large rectangular fountain. The bathhouse or *hamam*, an unusual feature in private houses, is adjoined. There is also a kitchen section, similarly arranged around a courtyard, and remises for the vehicles and horses.  \nThe use of high-quality materials for the palace interior can be seen by the basalt from Hauran, limestone from Mezze, Zabadani and Aleppo, and marble that was probably imported from Italy. Elaborately painted wooden panels decorated the walls and ceilings of the reception rooms. In 1830 the building was renovated and furnished with *trompe l'oeil* paintings according to the fashion of the time.  \nThe construction of As'ad Pasha al-Azm's residence required two years and over 800 workmen for completion. The 18th-century chronicler, al-Budairi, reports the consequent scarcity of workmen and construction materials at the time, and that the city's water supply was interrupted in order to be divert it to the palace.  \nExcavations in the 1920s revealed the probability that the palace was built on a site of former importance, such as the residence of the Mamluk Governor Tankiz (AH 712–29 / AD 1312–27). The spiritual and socio-political prestige of the location comes from its proximity to the Umayyad Mosque. With new Ottoman *caravanserai*s constructed to the south, the political and commercial power of the Azm family is further attested as As'ad Pasha built the largest and most splendid *caravanserai* in the city in AH 1171 / AD 1757, still known as Khan As'ad Pasha.","short_description":"This is the largest completely preserved private house in Damascus. It occupies more than 5,500 sq m. In typical Damascene domestic architectural style, the outer appearance is simple but the interior is splendid. It includes an official or formal 'male' space and a private or familial 'female' space, each provided with a courtyard of flower gardens, fountains and reception rooms decorated with *ablaq* masonry, stone paste patterns and painted wooden panels. This palace, prestigiously located in the religious and commercial heart of the city, was the residence of the Damascene Governor Asad Pasha al-Azm.","dates":"Hegira 1163 / AD 1749–50.","location":"Damascus","method_for_datation":"The 18th-century Damascene chronicler, Ahmad Budairi al-Hallaq reports for the year 1163 (1750) that construction work on the palace commences.","bibliography":"Budairi al-Hallaq, A., *Hawadith Dimashq al-*yawmiyya *\\[The Daily Events in Damascus\\],* (Ahmad Izzat Abd al-Karim, ed), Cairo, 1959.  \nEcochard, M., “Le Palais Azem de Damas”, *Gazette des Beaux-Arts*, April, 1935.  \nSack, D., *Damaskus, Entwicklung und Struktur einer orientalisch-islamischen Stadt*, Mainz, 1989.  \nSauvaget, J., *Les monuments historiques de Damas*, Beyrouth, 1932.  \nSinjab, K., *Das Arabische Wohnhaus des 17. bis 19. Jahrhunderts in Syrien*, Aachen, 1965.","patrons":"Asad Pasha al-Azm (r. AH 1156–71 / AD 1743–57).","dynasty":"Ottoman.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_TR_EN_001","author":"Verena Daiber","copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["palatial architecture","Residential architecture"]},"ef6f3f6c-f567-5300-9a2c-887d4b9a516c":{"name":"Anonymous, *Ruznamce-i shemsiyye ve qamariyye* ('Small calendar of solar and lunar years')","short_description":"The anonymous Arabic treatise titled *Ruznamce-i shemsiyye ve qamariyye* (‘Small Calendar of Solar and Lunar Years’) was compiled for the years 905 AH / 1499 to 1000 AH / 1592. It was possibly written in the 16th-17th centuries in Ottoman Syria. The Latin marginalia *Deo Trino et Uno honor Lausq infinita* on fol. 8a were probably written by a later Christian owner, while the owner’s stamp on fol. 8b is by Joseph von Hammer-Purgstall, from whom the manuscript was purchased by the Austrian National Library in 1842. The extant European half-leather binding corresponds to a possibly Viennese production date in the 19th-century. The calendar itself is composed in a format similar to Ottoman prayer calendar scrolls and their tabular arrangement. Particularly fascinating, however, is the fact that small paintings are pasted in the margins of the manuscript, which is atypical for this manuscript format. These paintings include both zodiac images as well as monthly allegories. The zodiac miniatures are stylistically relatable to Timurid Shiraz of the early 15th century when patrons had great interest in astrology and the natural sciences. It can be hypothesised that these paintings were cut out from an older calendar or astrological treatise and reused in a new context. They are visually integrated into the page layout, as the border is drawn around the images. The monthly allegories, in contrast, are pasted over these borders and hence must have been added later. They display themes from a Christian context mixed with Islamic artistic conventions, the scenes reminiscent of Islamic metalwork. As such, it is possible that the calendar was later owned by a Christian who pasted this second group of illustrations onto the pages.","type":"Manuscript","holder":"Austrian National Library (ANL)","dates":"Possibly 16th-17th centuries","location":"Vienna","dimensions":"251x145mm (190x80mm), ff. II, II*, 8 folios.","place_of_production":"Possibly Syria","method_for_provenance":"On fol. 8a, an owner's stamp by Joseph von Hammer-Purgstall dated to 1223 AH / 1808 AD is visible.","obtention":"Acquired  in 1842 from Joseph von Hammer-Purgstall.","bibliography":"Duda, Dorothea, *Islamische Handschriften II/2. Persische Handschriften, Die illuminierten Handschriften und Inkunabeln der Österreichischen Nationalbibliothek*, vol. 5/2, Vienna: Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, 2008: 66-70.","dynasty":"Ottoman","binding_desc":"The European half-leather binding has the following written in gold print on the spine: ‘Almanac from 905-1000’. It was likely made in 19th century Vienna.","catalogue_holding_link":"https://data.onb.ac.at/rec/AC14387499","author":"Theresa Zischkin","copy_editor":"Sophie-Anne Mullen","keywords":["Calendar","lunar","month","solar","Thuluth","year","zodiac"],"materials":["Ink, opaque watercolour and gold on paper. Calligraphic thuluth script."]},"f02545d3-2c1e-56ed-999c-fd59a3ff72c3":{"name":"*Shahnama*","short_description":"This is a fragmentary copy of the *Shahnama* (‘Book of Kings’), the verse epic that tells the story of the pre-Islamic kings and heroes of Iran. The manuscript was probably produced for the Iranian ruler Shah Abbas the Great, sometime after his accession in 1587, and contains sixteen paintings, two of which were added later, in about 1676. The paintings are amongst the finest examples of Persian painting ever produced, each one finely rendered and filled with abundant detail.","type":"Manuscript","holder":"The Chester Beatty Library","dates":"Hegira 10th century / AD late 16th century","location":"Dublin","dimensions":"40.7 x 26.1 cm","provenance":"Iran","dynasty":"Safavid","catalogue_holding_link":"https://viewer.cbl.ie/viewer/image/Per_277/6/LOG_0000/","keywords":["border decoration","calligraphy","court","Elephant","illumination","Illustration","imaginary animal","miniature painting","script","Simurgh","warfare","women","zoomorphic imagery"],"materials":["Coloured pigments and gold on paper"]},"f02afe0c-f6ec-51aa-8c81-d0230b93ff9f":{"name":"Animal-head ewer","description":"The Kashan turquoise ceramic animal-head ewer is a stunning example of Persian ceramics from the 12th century. This vessel showcases a vibrant turquoise blue glaze with a top in the likeness of a horned animal head, complete with a spout resembling a long open beak. It stands on a short foot, with a globular body transitioning into a slender neck. A partly curved handle, like a rope, extends from the head to the body. At the top, two curved horns and an upward-pointing finial enhance its overall elegance.  \nThe exquisite craftsmanship of this ewer highlights the skill and creativity of Persian artisans. This ewer originated in Kashan, renowned for its pottery tradition. The turquoise glaze adds to its allure and symbolises prosperity and protection. The animal motif holds various symbolic meanings, representing virtues and beliefs deeply ingrained in Persian customs and rituals. Used in ceremonial contexts, such as feasts or religious rituals, the ewer reflects ancient Persian traditions and cultural practices.  \nHighly prized by collectors and enthusiasts alike, this Persian Kashan turquoise ceramic animal-head ewer serves as a timeless reminder of the beauty and sophistication of Persian craftsmanship. Its rich cultural heritage and artistic significance make it a cherished artefact, showcasing the legacy of Persian artisans.  \nThe ewer is crafted using traditional ceramic techniques prevalent in Kashan during the 12th century. Skilled artisans shaped the vessel by hand. The firing process ensured the durability of the vessel while bringing out the brilliance of the turquoise glaze, resulting in a masterpiece of Persian ceramics.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani Museum","owner":"His Excellency Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani","dates":"Hegira 6th century / AD 12th century","location":"Doha, Qatar","dimensions":"Height: 31cm, length:14 cm","place_of_production":"Iran, Kashan","method_for_datation":"The date and origin were established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, techniques, style and analogies.","method_for_provenance":"Provenance was established in research-based comparison from an examination of material, techniques, style and analogies.","provenance":"Iran, Kashan","obtention":"Purchased","author":"Mahmoud Saber","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","keywords":["ceramic, pottery, glaze, drinking, Iran, Kashan, Persian, animal, turquoise, ewer"],"materials":["glazed","Pottery"]},"f03adf8f-d5b8-514b-88b4-1fa35cd992e2":{"name":"Plate.","description":"Chinese earthenware ceramics with a dichromatic decorative scheme of white and blue were very popular and widely admired in the Islamic world. Their export to the eastern Mediterranean began as early as the AH 2nd / AD 8th century. This type of vessel with its bright whiteness and extensive blue decoration was the most popular export ware during the Chinese reigns of the Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties. They exported profusely, both by land and sea, especially during the AH 8th / AD 14th century.  \nArtisans in the Islamic world imitated these Chinese ceramics because of its popularity and because they were not always readily available. Thus imitative Chinese ceramics were themselves a valuable commodity.  \nThis plate is decorated with a bouquet of flowers that incorporates gracefully sweeping stems bound with a ribbon. A decorative band of stylised vegetal motifs surround the bouquet, and a band of stylised geometric motifs articulates the rim of the plate. The decoration is executed in various shades of blue on a white base.","short_description":"This ceramic dish was found in the Citadel of Hama and it clearly indicates the intercultural influence of exported Chinese blue-and-white porcelain on Syrian and Egyptian Mamluk pottery.","type":"Plate, earthenware","holder":"National Museum of Damascus","dates":"Hegira 8th century / AD 14th century.","location":"Damascus","dimensions":"Height 5.5 cm, diameter 35 cm.","method_for_datation":"The Danish excavations revealed objects that have been dated to the Ayyubid and Mamluk periods, primarily from the 7th–8th / 13th–14th centuries. However, since this piece is influenced by Chinese ceramics, especially in the use of blue and white, and since such ceramics were exported to the Islamic world beginning in the 8th / 14th century, it is believed that the object belongs to this later period.","method_for_provenance":"This object was found in Hama, known as a production centre for this kind of ware. However, the underglaze painted wares found in Syria (Hama and Damascus) and Egypt (Fustat and Alexandria) are essentially identical, so it is difficult to assign a definitive provenance.","provenance":"Possibly Hama, Syria.","obtention":"The plate was found during archaeological excavations that took place in the Citadel of Hama between 1931 and 1938 by a Danish expedition under the direction of Harold Ing Holt. The piece was registered in the Museum in 1934.","bibliography":"Abu al-Faraj al-Ush, M., *A Concise Guide to the National Museum of Damascus,* Damascus, 1969, p.221.  \nPorter, V., *Medieval Syrian Pottery*, Oxford, 1981.  \nSoustiel, J., and Kiefer, C., *La céramique islamique*, Fribourg, 1985.  \nWatson, O., *Ceramics from Islamic Lands*, London, 2004.","dynasty":"Mamluk","linkcatalogs":"IAM_EG_EN_001","author":"Mona al-Moadin","translator":"Hilary Kalmbach (from the Arabic)","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["blue-and-white","ceramics","chinese","Chinese motifs","earthenware","Hama citadel","Harold Ing Holt","Plate"],"materials":["Earthenware with blue-and-white underglaze."]},"f03b716a-a1e0-58f0-b452-2c2a089e34f2":{"name":"Members of Court of Sultan Selim II Mounted as an Album Leaf","short_description":"From the late sixteenth century until the formation of the Republic of Turkey in 1922, the Ottoman sultans maintained a strong tradition of imperial portraiture. Influenced by European oil painting and Persian miniatures, Ottoman portraits provide important information about court ceremonies, changing fashions, and members of the court. The right side of a double-page composition, this painting was created as a pendant to a portrait of Selim II (r. Hegira 974-982/1566-1574) on the left, now in the collection of the Aga Khan Museum, Toronto. The musicians, servants, and courtiers, who are identified by their inscriptions, face left, toward the sultan, in a show of deference to their ruler. Taken together the pair of paintings depict a *majlis* scene reflecting the pleasure-oriented atmosphere of Selim’s court. It is possible that the figure of the court jester at far right is a self-portrait of the artist.","type":"Manuscript","holder":"Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA)","dates":"AH c. 968-969 / AD c. 1561-1562","location":"Los Angeles","dimensions":"44.6 x 31cm","method_for_datation":"Less formal than official Ottoman royal depictions, this painting (and its pendant) was likely made prior to Selim’s ascension to the throne in 1566 and was probably produced during his time as a prince governing Kütahya. Several of the figures depicted with captions can be further identified as boon companions of Selim II, one of whom, Turak Çelabi, died in 1561-62, suggesting a terminus ante quem for the work.","method_for_provenance":"It is signed “Nigari, slave of Sultan Selim Khan.” Nigari was the pseudonym used by the famed Turkish navigator Haydar Reis, who was also well-known as a portrait painting under Sultan Suleyman and his son and successor Selim II.","provenance":"Turkey","obtention":"Collection of Major R. Hawkins (dates unknown), until unknown date (sale, Sotheby’s, London, May 3, 1977, lot 3, sold to); Edwin Binney, 3rd (1866-1934), collection of Edwin Binney, 3rd, Portland, ME, until 1985 (gifted to); LACMA, The Edwin Binney, 3rd, Collection of Turkish Art at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.","bibliography":"Denny, Walter B., *Turkish Treasures from the Collection of Edward Binney, 3rd*, Portland, OR: Portland Art Museum, 1979: 22, cat. 11.  \nFetvaci, Emine, *Picturing History at the Ottoman Court*, Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2013: 42.  \nKangal, Selmin (ed), *The Sultan's Portrait: Picturing the House of Osman*, Istanbul: Türkiye Is Bankasi, 2000: 227.  \nKomaroff, Linda, *Beauty and Identity: Islamic Art from the Los Angeles County Museum of Art*, Los Angeles: Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 2016: 218-219, cat. no. 112.  \nNecipoglu, Gulru, *The Age of Sinan: Architectural Culture in the Ottoman Empire*, London: Reaktion Books, 2005: 56.","dynasty":"Ottoman","author":"LACMA Staff","keywords":["court life","gold","ink","inscription","manuscript","Ottoman","painting","Portrait","watercolour"],"materials":["Ink, opaque watercolor, and gold on paper"]},"f13296ae-615e-5b30-99df-9e194b691b4f":{"name":"Coffee Mortar and Pestle","description":"A carved wooden mortar and stone pestle for pounding coffee beans. Coffee drinkers consider coffee ground by hand to be the most desirable kind.","holder":"Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts","dates":"13th-14th century/AD 19th century","location":"Istanbul","dimensions":"Diameter: 14.4cm, height: 27cm, pestle: 30cm","dynasty":"Ottomans (AH 698–1340 / AD 1299–1922)","materials":["Wood, metal"]},"f182ff55-9430-5024-a039-37fa558855a8":{"name":"Large dish.","description":"A large dish with a surface edge that bends outward to a rim embellished by a consecutive series of triangles that resemble the jagged teeth of a saw. The interior of the dish is painted with a portrayal of a seated woman playing a stringed instrument that looks like a guitar. She wears a long garment with a V-shaped collar and wide sleeves, which is decorated with thick stripes and cross shapes. She wears a choker-type necklace, the V-shape of which sits inside the neck of her garment. The designs on her garment, in which the folds around the legs are embellished with decorations, are distinctive to Fatimid apparel. The musician's face is portrayed in profile. A toque, which resembles a turban, crowns her head and two locks of her hair appear from under the headdress on either side of her face along with a small tuft of hair behind her neck. The background around the figure is embellished with irregular surfaces demarcated by thin strokes filled with circles, dots and painted branches from which cone-shaped leaves grow. On the left-hand side of the woman is a delicately designed ewer surrounded by stylised vegetal-leaf designs; from the mouth of the ewer two flowering branches emerge. Below the rim of the dish underneath the painted serrated edge are a series of thick lines.","short_description":"Economic prosperity in the Fatimid period led to the flourishing of the lustre-ware ceramic industry. Such lustre-ware vessels, where the metallic lustre resembles gold, incorporate a variety of decorations including splendid scenes of Fatimid daily and social life.","type":"Dish, ceramics","holder":"Museum of Islamic Art","dates":"Hegira 5th century / AD 11th century.","location":"Cairo","dimensions":"Diameter 40 cm.","method_for_datation":"The dish was dated based on the study of its painted female musician, and specifically the design and decoration of the clothing she wears. The figure reflects the distinguishing traits that mark the portrayal of people in Fatimid art, including circular moon-shaped faces and almond-shaped eyes. The turban seen on the heads of men, and the toques on the heads of women, are also indicative of the period. In addition, the decorations that are present on the dish are borrowed from the vegetal and non-vegetal decorative motifs seen most commonly on wood, ivory and metal objects of the Fatimid period. This date is further supported by a comparison between this dish and other similar examples that bear the signatures of potters who are associated with the period.","method_for_provenance":"The place of manufacture was narrowed down to Egypt in view of the fact that ceramic production and metallic lustre-ware products were renowned in Fatimid Egypt. This industry grew and flourished in Fustat where archaeological excavations have uncovered a large number of ceramic pieces similar to this dish.","provenance":"Egypt.","obtention":"The dish was bought in 1944 from a dealer of antiquities, Fuqyan Jaan.","bibliography":"\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_, *Trésors fatimides du Caire*, exhibition catalogue, Paris, 1998.  \nHassan, Z. M., *Funun al-Islam (Arts of Islam),* Cairo, 1948.  \nJenkins, M., “Islamic Pottery: A Brief History”, *Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin,* Vol. 40 (4), spring, 1983.  \nKhadr, M. Y., *Tarikh al-Funun al-Islamiya \\[History of Islamic Art\\],* UAE, 2003.  \nPhilon, H., *Early Islamic Ceramics: Ninth to late Twelfth Centuries*, Athens,Vol. 1, London, 1980.","dynasty":"Fatimid","author":"Al-Sayyed Muhammad Khalifa Hammad","copy_editor":"Majd Musa","translator":"Amal Sachedina (from the Arabic).","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["ceramics","Female figure","figurative decoration","metallic lustre","music","musician","vegetal decoration, dish"],"materials":["Ceramic with metallic lustre decoration over a glazed surface."]},"f2c92da1-bd97-52aa-b11f-4ac0d34fc18e":{"name":"Khan al-Khalili.","alternate_name":"Bab al-Ghuri or Bab al-Badistan.","description":"Khan al-Khalili is a world-renowned market and tourist landmark to which most visitors flock in order to buy products and gifts of the East. It also contains the largest gold and silver market in Egypt. In AH 786 / AD 1384, during the reign of al-Malik al-Zahir Barquq who ruled twice (AH 784–91 / AD 1382–9 and 792–801 / AD 1389–98), Amir Jaharqas al-Khalili set up an inn (*khan)* on the site of the Za'afran tomb. In AH 917 / AD 1511 Sultan Qansuh al-Ghuri destroyed Khan al-Khalili and constructed *rubu'* (small hotels) in its place, as well as warehouses and shops, which are known today by the name of Wikalat al-Kotn (Cotton Caravanserai). There were three principal entrances to the *khan* but little remains of these today except for one gate: Bab al-Ghuri, also known as Bab al-Badistan (*Badistan* being Turkish for cotton or linen), which is located at the west end of the road leading from al-Husayni Shrine to the interior of Khan al-Khalili.  \nBab Al-Badistan resembles the portals leading into Mamluk mosques and *madrasa*s, especially those that were erected during the period of Sultan al-Ghuri, a good example of which is the entrance to the Mosque of al-Ghuri (built AH 909 / AD 1504). This entrance consists of an arch that contains beautiful geometric decoration carved into the stone. The spandrel of the arch is decorated with geometric designs of white and black marble, in the middle of which is the blazon of the sponsor. The entrance of the portal is surmounted by an epigraphic inscription that includes the name of the sponsor and his titles. A tri-lobed arch decorated with *muqarnas*, which contains beautiful vegetal motifs, crowns the portal. There are three *mashrabiyya* screens in the windows, mid-way between the arched opening of the gate and the tri-lobed arch.  \nThe *khan* region was neglected during the Ottoman period, but began to flourish again in the period of Muhammad Ali Pasha (r. 1220–64 / AD 1805–48).  \nIt is known that many late 19th- and early 20th-century personalities of the Egyptian Revival (*nahda*) were amongst those who frequented the coffee houses in the region of Khan al-Khalili, when they were still students. The prominent Egyptian political leader, Sa'ad Zaghloul (1860–1927), expressed how areas such as that around Khan al-Khalili endeared themselves to him during his student days at al-Azhar. Many other prominent personalities of literature, arts and music also frequented the coffee houses in the region of Khan al-Khalili to discuss and exchange ideas and works in an atmosphere that emanated the essence of Egyptian, indeed world, history.","short_description":"A world-famous name in the heart of Fatimid Cairo, this is one of the oldest markets in Egypt. It is a tourist attraction and a meeting place to buy souvenirs and antiques. This historical area, with its narrow streets, alleys and old buildings, allows the visitor to enjoy the feel and smell the aroma of history, while watching craftsmen at work on their traditional products.","dates":"Hegira 917 / AD 1511.","location":"Cairo","method_for_datation":"The monument was dated with the help of historical sources such as *Bada'i al-Zuhur* by Ibn Iyas; the presence of both the name and titles of the sponsor is seen on the blazon at the entrance.","bibliography":"Prisse d'Avennes, é., *L'Art arabe d'après les monuments du Caire depuis le VIIe siècle jusqu'à la fin du XVIIIe*, Paris, 1877.  \nIbn Ayas, Abu al-Barakat Muhammad ibn Ahmad (d. 930 / 1524), *Bada'i al-Zuhur fi waqi'ia al-Duhur \\[The Wonders of Flowers Throughout the Events of Time\\],* Cairo, 1894.  \nRoberts, D., *Egypt Nubia,* London, 1896.  \nWilliams, C., *Islamic Monuments in Cairo: A Practical Guide,* Cairo, 2002.  \nZaki, Abd al-Rahman, *Al-Azhar wa ma Hawlahu min al-Athar \\[Al-Azhar and the surrounding Monuments\\],* Cairo, 1970.","patrons":"Sultan Qansuh al-Ghuri (r. 906–22 / AD 1501–16).","dynasty":"Mamluk.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_EG_EN_001","author":"Tarek Torky","copy_editor":"Majd Musa","translator":"Amal Sachedina (from the Arabic).","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["civil architecture.","geometric decoration","khan","marble decoration","Portal","Suq","vegetal decoration"]},"f31ff28f-d559-5abc-880d-148f4aa71f67":{"name":"Table (*khwan*) with scenes of princely leisure and inscribed with Persian poetry","short_description":"This low, rectangular wood table on four legs is extensively ornamented with lacquerwork on the table top. Around the interior rim are painted and gilded floral arabesques surrounding inscriptions in cartouches. On the surface of this table, young men and women repose, feast, and hunt in abundant landscapes, and their style of depiction echoes manuscript illustrations of canonical Persian poetry.","type":"Islamic, Indian & Southeast Asian works of art; painted woodwork; furniture","holder":"Shangri La, Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Art","dates":"Hegira early 14th century / AD late 19th or early 20th century","location":"Honolulu, Hawai'i","dimensions":"Overall: 28.9 x 82.9 x 157.5 cm","provenance":"Iran","dynasty":"Probably Qajar","keywords":["animal decoration","court life","Figurative representation","floral decoration","fugurative decoration","furnishing","garden","horsemanship","human representation","hunting","poetry"],"materials":["painted, gilded and lacquered","Wood"]},"f4b200cf-1a1b-5c49-9a62-cb9310e74f00":{"name":"Coffee-house","short_description":"Traditionally, social life in the Islamic world revolved around the tea-house or coffee-house, where men would gather to drink tea and coffee, eat sweet pastries or savoury food, and to smoke flavoured tobacco in water pipes (*narghile* or *qalian*). There they would play board games, listen to music and poetry recitations or discuss current events. This scene of a Turkish coffee-house would originally have been part of an album of images.","type":"Single-page painting","holder":"The Chester Beatty Library","dates":"Hegira 11th century / AD 17th century","location":"Dublin","dimensions":"41.5 x 27.2 cm","provenance":"Turkey","dynasty":"Ottoman","catalogue_holding_link":"https://viewer.cbl.ie/viewer/image/T_439_9/1/LOG_0000/","keywords":["border decoration","calligraphy","Illustration","miniature painting","script"],"materials":["Coloured pigments and gold on paper"]},"f54ccda0-cd2f-59b9-b97e-ba28a8e6ef05":{"name":"Pedestal bowl or tazza","description":"A deep bowl, decorated in blue and white, with a sloping rim and supported on a pedestal base. The rim has been embellished with a pattern of rocks and waves, whilst the cavetto is decorated with floral sprays with a medallion surrounded by palmettes at the very centre. The base is also decorated with floral sprays.","type":"Bowl","holder":"Benaki Museum","dates":"AH 972 / c. AD 1565","location":"Athens","dimensions":"Diameter 28.2cm, height 15.8cm","place_of_production":"Iznk","method_for_datation":"Stylistic analysis","provenance":"Turkey","obtention":"Acquired in Greece","bibliography":"Carswell, J., Gibson, M. (ed.), and Moraitou , M., *Iznik Ceramics at the Benaki Museum*, London: Gingko, and Athens: Benaki Museum, 2023: cat. no. 49, p. 103.","dynasty":"Ottoman (AH 698–1340/AD 1299-1922)","author":"Mina Moraitou","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Glazed ceramic"]},"f5534c7f-4ba5-5e47-aca4-efc34893cbc5":{"name":"Textile.","description":"The fabric is decorated in the centre with a large motif of a vase of flowers inside a pointed frame that rests on two small columns, at the base of which there are two cypress trees. The lower part of the fabric depicts a gated entrance crowned with a crescent moon beneath an epigraphic motif in Arabic characters. On either side there are large cypress trees beside star motifs. The entire piece is framed with plant volutes with lance-shaped leaves and four- and five-petal flowers. The decoration consists of gold- and silver-plated wire embroidery.","short_description":"This fabric is of Turkish origin produced in the late Ottoman era and is characterised by naturalistic floral motifs, in which the influence of Western decorative trends can be clearly seen.","type":"Silk, satin, metal thread","holder":"Museum of Civilisations | Museum of Oriental Art “Giuseppe Tucci”","dates":"Hegira 13th century / AD 19th century.","location":"Rome","dimensions":"Height 300 cm, width 200 cm.","method_for_provenance":"This fabric was produced in late-Ottoman Turkey in the 13th / late 19th century and is characterised by the use of naturalistic floral motifs that clearly show a strong influence of more Western decorative elements.","provenance":"Turkey.","obtention":"Purchase.","bibliography":"Barışta, H. ö., “Turkish Embroideries: Later Period of The Ottoman Empire”, *Seventh International Congress of Turkish Art*, Warsaw, 1990, pp.37–42.  \nGönül, M., “Some Turkish Embroideries in the Collection of the Topkapisaray Museum in Istanbul”, *Kunst des Orients*, 1969, VI, pp.43–76.  \nTaylor, R., *Ottoman Embroidery*, London, 1993.","dynasty":"Ottoman","linkcatalogs":"IAM_TR_EN_001","author":"Paola Torre","copy_editor":"Pier Paolo Racioppi","translator":"Laurence Nunny","translation_copy_editor":"Monica Allen","keywords":["embroidery, Ottoman textiles","floral decoration","textile","vegetal decoration"],"materials":["Silk satin embroidered with metal thread."]},"f68354eb-cd48-5520-b352-24d135f08193":{"name":"Covered Box with Design of Figural, Vegetal, and Geometric Motifs","short_description":"A twelve-sided brass box with silver and gold inlay has a cover with a central hemispherical dome on the top. The cover is relief decorated with interlocking geometric and vegetal patterning, separated by plain bands of meander. The main register of the dome has circles containing kneeling figures. The dome is surrounded by a stepped, scalloped area, surrounded again by a broader scalloped step, points of the scallops corresponding in location. This broader step has the same incised decoration. The cover tapers in slightly around a plain bottom lip and joins to the box at a thin band of stylized guilloche.  \nThe box has the same type of background relief decoration, registers separated by bands of meander. The roundels contain seated, cross-legged figures. The box rests on a convex bottom.  \nThere is some wear and abrasion over the entire surface of the box. The very top of the dome has a notable hole; some of the metal has been folded back over the top \\[this was the point of attachment for a handle and a ring that appears in older photographs of the object, but has since been removed\\]. Also, one area on the side of the cover seems to have a small metal \"plug\" type of repair.","type":"Metalwork","holder":"Saint Louis Art Museum","dates":"Hegira First half 8th century / AD first half 14th century","location":"Saint Louis","dimensions":"Length: 26.7cm x Width: 27.3cm","method_for_datation":"Scholarly review and/or comparison to similar objects from the period.","method_for_provenance":"Scholarly review and/or comparison to similar objects from the period.","provenance":"Iran, Asia","obtention":"Museum Purchase, 1926","dynasty":"Ilkhanid","keywords":["Alloy","Asia","Box","Copper","Covered","gold","inlay","Iran","metalwork","Persian","silver"],"materials":["Copper alloy with silver and gold inlay"]},"f71b30b4-5cfa-55d7-a2fa-6790d5d186d8":{"name":"Tray (*sinija*)","description":"The term *sinija* comes from the Turkish word *sini*, which describes a large round brass or copper tray that functioned as a low table on which food was served. These plates were typically decorated with ornaments arranged inside concentric belts, around the central roundel.  \nIn this case, inside the central roundel is the stylized, leaf-like motif. In the widest, central belt, the same motif is alternately composed of cypresses and ibrik motifs. The rim is flattened, and decorated with geometric patterns.","type":"Tableware","holder":"Museum of Applied Art","dates":"Hegira 12th century / AD 18th century","location":"Belgrade","dimensions":"Diameter: 690mm, weight: 4890g","place_of_production":"Sarajevo, Ottoman Empire","method_for_datation":"By stylistic and comparative analysis with related material","obtention":"Purchased in 1959.","bibliography":"Karamehmedović, M. A., *Umjetnička obrada metala*, Sarajevo: Veselin Masleša, 1980: 295, 302–303.","author":"Mila Gajić","keywords":["Copper","Ottoman Balkans","sinija","Tableware","Tray"],"materials":["Copper","tinned, engraving, cutting, black compound"]},"f795fd67-bd2c-50a0-87cd-f4f308542324":{"name":"Earth and celestial globe, the so-called 'St. Gallen Globe'","description":"For many years, the so-called St. Gallen Globe, one of the prized objects of Swiss cultural history, was a source of contention. The globe featuring Mercator maps of the earth and the celestial sphere was created by Tilemann Stella in northern Germany towards the end of the sixteenth century, as a document discovered in 2016 reveals. Although they were not suitable for navigation, globes were extremely popular in the early modern period. What makes the St. Gallen Globe so special is its combination of world and celestial globes. Entitled as a gift, which, however, was later satisfied, the globe was incorporated in the library of the Abbey of St Gallen where it was kept until 1712. During the Second War of Villmergen the globe was robbed and carted off to Zürich where it was displayed in the Wasserkirche (Water Church). St Gallen demanded the return of the globe, but to no avail. When the Swiss National Museum was established in 1898, the globe passed into the hands of the Swiss Confederation; it has been on display in the museum ever since. The dispute over the treasure, which went down in Swiss history as the cultural heritage conflict between Zürich and St Gallen, was only resolved in 2006 when the St Gallen Abbey library received a true copy of the contested globe.","type":"Globe","holder":"Swiss National Museum","owner":"Zentralbibliothek Zürich","dates":"Around 1570","location":"Zurich","dimensions":"H: 233cm, W: 174cm, Diameter: 121cm (with frame), L: 380cm","method_for_datation":"In 2016 a document was found which revealed the globe’s origin.","provenance":"Northern Germany, Mecklenburg","obtention":"The globe was donated 1595 to the Stiftsbibliothek St. Gallen and robbed 1712 by Zürich troops during the second Villmerger-wars. Since then it is in the property of the Stadtbibliothek Zürich, now called Zentralbibliothek. When the Landesmuseum opened its doors in 1898 it was given into possession of the Landesmuseum as part of the “Morgengabe”.","keywords":["Scientific instruments","St. Gallen Globus","terrestrial and cellestial globe"],"materials":["painted","Papier-mâché, wood"]},"f7b54067-2ca1-5b6d-bcf0-c61b4f118231":{"name":"Bayezid II Complex (*külliye*).","description":"The Bayezid II Complex is of the *külliye* type comprising a large collection of buildings of which the mosque is central. Located on the north shore of the Tunca River, it occupies an area of some 22,000 sq m and is surrounded by walls. It consists of a mosque, two guest-houses (*tabhane*s) adjoining the mosque, a *madrasa*, a hospital (*darüşşifa*), a soup-kitchen (*imaret*), food-storage areas, and (outside the courtyard walls) a double bathhouse (*hammam*) and a bridge. The double bathhouse at the west of the complex no longer survives. The bridge over the Tunca River, built to connect the *külliye* to the city, has large spans of pointed arches.  \nThe *madrasa* and *darüşşifa* are on the western side of the central courtyard, which is accessed through a gate in the north wall of the outer courtyard. The *imaret* is on the eastern side, while the mosque is on the south side. On the east side of the courtyard gate is the fountain of Sinan Ağa.  \nThe single-domed, cubic mosque is adjoined by *tabhane*s on its east and west sides. Each of these guest-houses has a four-*iwan* plan and contains nine bays. The rectangular courtyard, north of the prayer hall, is accessed through three gates in its north, east and west walls. The courtyard is surrounded on all four sides by domed porticoes and has a marble fountain in the centre. The seven-bay portico for latecomers extends along the façade of the mosque and its central dome, decorated with *muqarnas*, is higher than the others. The building's two minarets rise from the outer corners of the *tabhane*s. Each has one balcony, both are almost 38 m high, and have grooved bodies, 3.25 m in diameter. The dome covering the square prayer hall is approximately 20.55 m in diameter and rises on pendentives.  \nThe *mihrab*, *minbar* and sultan's loge are all made of marble. The geometric decoration on the *minbar* and the gallery are noteworthy. The wooden door wings, cupboards and window shutters are richly decorated. In addition to geometric and floral decoration, the ornament includes various inscriptions.  \nThe single-storied *madrasa* occupies a rectangular area and has an open courtyard with porticoes on all four sides; the fountain in the centre of the courtyard is in a ruined state. The entrance is in the middle of the east side. The north, south and west wings contain a total of 18 students' cells behind the porticoes. Both the portico bays and the students' cells are domed. The classroom is a square space of approximately 7.36 m x 7.37 m located in the centre of the west side. It is covered with a large dome, and the mezzanine built onto its east wall, which looks like a balcony, is the library.  \nThe *darüşşifa* to the west of the mosque is made up of a main building and two courtyards. The main building is hexagonal and consists of a central domed space with six *iwan*s opening onto it, and rooms between the *iwan*s. Both the *iwan*s and the rooms are each covered with a single dome. The south *iwan* is deeper than the others and extends to the outside.  \nThe *imaret* to the east of the mosque comprises a kitchen, oven, dining hall, pantry, storage space, and stables. It was built in two clusters of structures.  \nToday the *darüşşifa* and the *madrasa* have been appropriated by Trakya University and are open to visitors as a Museum of Health and a Fine Arts Museum.","short_description":"One of the monumental Ottoman complexes, it was built on the bank of the River Tunca. Covering an area of 22,000 square m the complex comprises a mosque with two *tabhane*s (guesthouse) adjoining it, a *madrasa*, a hospital, an *imaret* (soup-kitchen), storerooms within the walls, a double-bathhouse outside which has not survived, and a bridge over the river. Its foundations were laid with a ceremony attended by the sultan himself. It is known that musical therapy was applied at its hospital and its *madrasa* is said to have served for medical training.","dates":"Hegira 893 / AD 1488.","location":"Edirne","method_for_datation":"Historical documents tell us that Sultan Bayezid II himself participated in the ceremonies to mark the foundation of this complex in Rabi' al-Akhir 889 / May 1484. The mosque, according to the inscription by Sheikh Hamdullah over the main portal, was completed in AH 893 / AD 1488. It is thought that the other buildings of the complex were also finished on the same date. The fountain lying east of the gate to the outer courtyard was ordered built in AH 1080 / AD 1670 by Sinan Ağa.","bibliography":"Eyice, S., “Beyazıt II Camii ve Külliyesi \\[The Mosque and Complex of Beyazıt II\\]”, *Türkiye Diyanet Vakfı İslam Ansiklopedisi \\[Encyclopaedia of Islam by the Religious Affairs Foundation of Turkey\\]*, Vol. 6, 1992, pp.42–5.  \nKuyulu, İ., “II. Bayezid Külliyesi”, *Erken Osmanlı Sanatı, Beyliklerin Mirası \\[Early Ottoman Art: The Legacy of the Emirates\\]*, Madrid, 1999, pp.189–93.  \nMüderrisoğlu, F., “Edirne II, Bayezid Külliyesi \\[Bayezid II Complex in Edirne\\]”, *Vakıflar Dergisi \\[Journal of the Waqfs\\]*, XXII (1991), pp.151–98.  \nRi'fat O., *Edirne Evkâf-ı İslâmiyye Tarihi Camiler ve Mescitler \\[The History of Islamic Foundations, Mosques and Masjids in Edirne\\]*, (simplified from the Ottoman by ü. (Ayan) özsoy), Ankara, 1999.  \nYüksel, İ. A., *Osmanlı Mimarisinde II. Bâyezid Yavuz Selim Devri (886–926/1481–1520) \\[The Reigns of Bayezid II and Yavuz Selim in Ottoman Architecture (886–926/1481–1520)\\],* Istanbul, 1983.","patrons":"Sultan Bayezid II (r. AH 886–917 / 1481–1512).","architects":"There are several opinions as to the identity of the architect. According to some researchers, the complex was built by the architect Hayreddin [Khayr al-Din], while according to others it was built by the architect Yakub Shah bin Sultan Shah. Calligrapher: Sheikh Hamdullah [Hamd Allah].","dynasty":"Ottoman.","linkcatalogs":"IAM_TR_EN_001","author":"İnci Kuyulu Ersoy","translator":"Barry Wood, İnci Türkoğlu","translation_copy_editor":"Mandi Gomez","keywords":["bridge","calligraphy","Edirne","floral decoration","geometric decoration","guest-house (tabhane)","hospital (darüşşifa)","külliye","madrasa","religious architecture","soup-kitchen (imaret)"]},"f982124c-5947-5618-a36f-528cc79bcd18":{"name":"Sugar Bowl","description":"Made of white porcelain. There are two handles on the side starting from the rim and going down to the bottom. The surface is decorated with floral and leaf motifs painted in yellow gilt. The handles are also painted in yellow gilt. The cover is decorated with embossed flowers, roses and leaves painted in yellow, blue, green, pink and red.","holder":"Ankara Ethnography Museum","owner":"The Republic of Türkiye Ministry of Culture and Tourism","location":"Ankara","dimensions":"Height: 7.4cm, diameter: 14cm","dynasty":"Ottomans (AH 698–1340 / AD 1299-1922)","copy_editor":"Alvaro Miranda","materials":["Porcelain and silver"]},"fa4916ad-b0f5-5f83-898a-6d97cf9229fd":{"name":"Vase with zoomorphic design","description":"This vase with zoomorphic decoration perpetuates the shape of ritual libation vases of Zoroastrianism, a religion originating in Iran in the first millennium BC. The pouring spout is topped by a bull’s head whose snout is hollow. Its decoration, in relief, is divided into separate concentric registers whose motifs are geometric and floral.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","initial_owner":"Annie Kevorkian","dates":"Hegira 4th-6th century / AD 11th-12th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 22.5cm, Base diameter: 6.2cm, Maximum diameter: 16cm","provenance":"Middle East","obtention":"Gift of Annie Kevorkian.","bibliography":"Delpont, E., et al., *Album du musée*, Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, 2012: 291.  \n  \nMoulierac, J, et al., *Céramiques du monde musulman: collections de l'Institut du monde arabe et de J.P. et F. Croisier* , Paris: Institut du monde arabe, 1999: 39.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["patterned, moulded, and carved decoration.","Unglazed clay"]},"fb0a9d2b-8b7a-5bd9-808e-71eac145b020":{"name":"Wedding banquet with German guests","description":"During big events like weddings or funerals, several plates (*siniyyat sufra*) must be placed in a long row, where about six people on each side can eat from one big plate. Following old traditions, mutton meat is placed on a mountain of rice or on many layers of wafer-thin flatbread. A very rich, well-seasoned meat broth is poured over all.  \nWhen the guest has finished eating, he/she will say *dayman*, meaning “May you always have the means to eat like this!” and stand up to give another person the opportunity to take his/her place to eat. A member of the family will bring water, soap and a towel to wash the guest’s hands after eating.  \nThe big feast takes place on the last day of the wedding celebrations, usually after three days of dancing to the sounds of musicians in the courtyard of the groom’s family or in a village plaza.  \nFeasts often are set up according to gender, depending on whether guests are family members, more distant relatives or acquaintances. Women who belong to a mixed-gender group are asked whether they prefer to eat with the men or with the women of the house. In the photo, a German tour group was invited to a wedding party in a village.","holder":"Museum for Islamic Art","owner":"Karin Pütt","initial_owner":"Karin Pütt","dates":"Hegira 1430 / AD 2009","location":"Berlin","place_of_production":"Habuba Kabira/Syria","method_for_provenance":"Direct contact","provenance":"Habuba Kabira/Aleppo Province","bibliography":"- Nippa, A., \"Haus und Familie in arabischen Ländern\", München 1991, 48.","author":"Karin Pütt","copy_editor":"Judy Harter","materials":["Digital photo"]},"ffe08b8f-98ad-5e02-a0ff-ceaa5ae4d13f":{"name":"Collection of Persian poetry","short_description":"The collection of Persian poetry is a work of Abd al-Wahhab ibn Muhammad ibn al-Sayyid. The manuscript in *nasta\\`liq* script contains two miniatures attributed to Aqa-malik and representing a princess in a garden.","type":"Manuscript","holder":"MAO Museum of Oriental Art","dates":"Hegira 10th century / AD 16th century","location":"Turin","dimensions":"Height 28 cm, width 17 cm","provenance":"Iran","dynasty":"Safavid","keywords":["manuscript","Nasta`liq","Safawid"],"materials":["Paper, ink, gold and pigments"]},"ffff8d3d-ab9b-5733-9ca0-900b6b34002e":{"name":"*Ghotar* concave dish","description":"The radiant design is organised around the seal of Solomon, or eight-pointed star, that adorns the centre of the dish. The contour of the star is painted blue, and a flower with eight green petals is inside it. The star is on a white background with small yellow patterns outlined in black. Oval patterns extend from the points of the star. Decorated concentric bands complete the ornamentation of the piece.  \nThe decoration and form are characteristic of Moroccan ceramics between the 17th and 19th centuries. They are widespread in Morocco and Spain, and even in France. An Andalusian influence can be seen in certain features, such as the use of geometry. The piece reflects the polychrome earthenware made in Fes, but also in Safi, a production centre. In the 19th century, colours were more assertive, shapes heavier, and decorations less spontaneous than before. This piece is of high technical and aesthetic quality.","type":"Ceramic","holder":"Museum of the Arab World Institute","dates":"Hegira 13th century / AD 19th century","location":"Paris","dimensions":"Height: 11.5cm, Diameter: 34cm, Diameter base: 4cm","provenance":"Fes, Morocco","obtention":"Purchased at auction on advice from Ader-Picard-Tajan, 2002.","bibliography":"Delpont, E., *Album du musée*, Paris: Somogy éditions d'art, 2012: 294.","translator":"Judy Harter","materials":["Clay","design painted on opaque glaze under transparent glaze"]}}