A rare silver and nielloed polylobed cup with kufic inscription, Persia, 11th/12th century

of deep, rounded, polylobed form, hammered with radiating petals and a loop handle with flattened tri-lobed thumb piece, the exterior decorated with niellowork, including scrolling arabesques on the petals and an inscription along the rim   

In fairly good condition, with some cracks and associated restoration to one part of bowl (including overpainting), some slight tarnishing consistent with age, as viewed
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

inscriptions

baraka wa yumn wa surur wa ta'id wa ghibta wa sa'ada wa salama wa kifaya wa kirama li-sahibihi

'Blessing and Good-fortune and Joy and Support and Alacrity and Happiness and Well-being and Sufficiency and Generosity to its owner'

The form of this bowl, with hammered and lobed walls, is inspired by earlier Persian models. One example, dated to the fifth century BC, is now in the Freer Gallery of Art, Washington, (inv. no. 74.30) and illustrated in Gunter and Jett 1992, p.69, no.3. It is hammered with slightly shorter petals to the top described by Gunter and Jett as lotus buds and bears an inscription in Old Persian cuneiform praising the Achaemenid king Artaxerxes I (r.465-425 BC). Only three other inscribed Achaemenid silver bowls of similar shape and decoration survive, and they are thought to have been used either as diplomatic gifts or formed part of a royal dinner service.

The next example, from the second/third century AD, and now in the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Washington, (inv. no. S1987.144), illustrated in Gunter and Jett 1992, p.80, no.5, is more closely comparable in its decorative use of a double pattern of interlinking petals. Gunter and Jett link this style of ornamentation to silver vessels from Sogdiana in Central Asia dating from the sixth to seventh century, but place their origin and date in the late Parthian era.

The suggested date for the current bowl is based on comparisons with a number of examples attributed to the eleventh and twelfth centuries in Persia. Notably, the so-called "Harari hoard", once owned by the collector Ralph Harari and now in the L.A. Mayer Museum for Islamic Art, Jerusalem, which provides a number of comparable silver objects with niello decoration and inscriptions, which include jugs, incense burners, rosewater sprinklers and two footed trays (illustrated in: Hasson 2000, p.41). Another silver cup, also in the L.A. Mayer Memorial Museum in Jerusalem (inv. no. M40-68) is of shallow round form with niello decoration on the exterior and has a similar round loop handle with a flat top similar to the present cup. It was noted by Eva Baer as having parallels with Sogdian silver of the eighth to ninth century, which, though later in date, is contiguous in location with the previous example stated in this note (Baer 1983, p.105, no.83; and Pope and Ackermann 1938-9, vol.VI, pl.1351a).

Another related piece, a rosewater sprinkler with parcel gilt and niello decoration from the L.A.Mayer Museum (inv. no. M 30-68) compares to a bottle from Persia dated to the twelfth century in the Freer Gallery of Art (inv. no. 50.5) illustrated in: Atil 1985, p.85, no.31. Such extant silverwork with niello decoration, even though ascribed to a period between the tenth and thirteenth century by scholars, has not been organised in a particular chronological order but can clearly be linked together through their Persian connections attested through their inscriptions: from the fifth-century BC bowl naming the Achaemenid King Artaxerxes I, to several models inscribed with the name of Amir Abu'l-Abbas Valkin ibn Harun, who was thought to be a Daylamite prince of the tenth century (Atil 1985, p. 85).

Amir Abu'l-Abbas Valkin ibn Harun, whose name is inscribed on various silver objects with niello ornamentation, is mentioned by Rachel Ward in connection with Buyid metalwork (Ward 1993, pp.54-55). The Buyids, who ruled Iraq and Western Iran from 932 to 1062 AD, constructed their identity by emphasising their Sassanian heritage and marking themselves as "Persian" Kings. The particular notion of inscribing one's name on vessels is attributed by Ward to the tradition of the Buyid's Byzantine neighbours (Ward 1993 p.54).

The present bowl, with an inscription simply praising its owner without naming him, should be examined within the ancient tradition of Persian silverwork and the influences derived from Sogdian to Byzantine models. It is an object both of rarity and academic interest because, in its stylistic traits, it bears the imprint of a long and rich tradition of high-quality Persian silverware, of which precious few examples survive.   

The eared handle provides an important clue for the dating of this piece, being comparable to a number of other vessels in both metal and ceramic dating to the tenth/eleventh century. The variety of decorative motifs employed on such loop handles is illustrated by the Khurasan bronze cup with three-dimensional elephant-form thumb-piece, exhibited in Geneva 1985, p.253, no.254. The author ascribes this form to the Sogdian tradition with its widespread use of small ring handles for everyday objects (ibid, p.253, no.254). Another deep round silver cup with an inscription near the rim and a loop handle with a flat thumb piece from eastern Khurasan, eleventh century, is a part of the State Hermitage Museum's collection (inv. no. VZ-875; illustrated in: Kuwait 1990, p.44, no.21). Ceramic models also illustrate such a trend, notably a cup also from the State Hermitage Museum Collection, inv. no. SA-7175 (exhibited in Piotrovsky and Pritula ed., Beyond the Palace Walls: Islamic Art from the State Hermitage Museum, 2006, p.36, no.30 and also illustrated in Saint Petersburg, 2008, p.58, no.42).

Another deeper lobed cup with a loop handle and decorative thumb-piece ascribed to Khurasan, north-eastern Persia, circa eleventh century, was sold in these rooms, 3 May 2001, lot 102. Whilst a number of ceramic and base metal examples survive, the discovery of a precious metal example is extremely rare.