- 202
An Ottoman tombak water flask (matara), Turkey, circa 17th century
Estimate
60,000 - 80,000 GBP
bidding is closed
Description
- steel
cast gilt-copper body, engraved foliate designs, copper suture points around edges, small handle
Condition
The surface abraded due to erosion, minor traces of oxidisation and associated discoloration, rubbing to surface with loss to gilding as consistent with age and use, 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."
"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."
Catalogue Note
This is an extremely rare gilt-copper (tombak) example of a well-known form, a flask or ‘canteen’ that has been associated with pilgrimage and notably the collection of zamzam water. The origin of the word matara (or pilgrim flask) in Turkish, is understood to be a ‘water carrier […] covered by leather or coarse wool (such as the wool worn by dervishes)’. Originally nomadic, this shape developed from leather prototypes with the intention of portability. The illusion to dervishes insinuates a spiritual element to this definition. Only in elite circles was this form reproduced using luxurious materials such as ceramic, rock crystal and as in this instance, tombak.
The present flask was shaped using two sheets of metal, with one slightly angled straight edge; the wide base tapering together towards the circular spout with a thin border lined with rivets and a small handle. Whereas the engraved medallions and palmettes containing entwined split-palmettes are reminiscent of the designs seen on tombak armour of the same period, the rivets along its edges resemble the stitches which appear on leather prototypes and examples of the same century. Such adaptation of design is further exemplified by two comparable tombak pilgrim flasks. The first was sold in these rooms, 7 October 2009, lot 194, attributed to the second half of the sixteenth century. Of lyre form, its decoration is characterised by a stippled ground most probably imitating the grain of leather as well as dotted outlines around its arabesque design which match the look of a stitch, with borders designed as mock cording. Another example is the Ottoman tombak pilgrim flask in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (inv. no.1984.100) which also features an engraved stippled design recalling stitching. This connection is obvious when examining the details in the drawing of the scrolling palmettes on three stitched leather canteens of the same period, the most notable being the splendid flask of gilt and appliquéd leather presented around 1590 by Sultan Murad III (r.1574-95) to the Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf II (r.1576-1612) now in the Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna, inv. no.C.28. Further examples are in the National Museum, Warsaw, and the Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe, Hamburg.
The emphasis placed on the material form of such examples becomes even more evident when examining one of the only two known examples of the matara in ceramic. The sixteenth century Iznik pottery water flask sold in these rooms, 24 April 2013, lot 214, now in the Ömer Koç collection, takes on a double visual illusion by being painted with a marbled body. It is ceramic but made to appear as marble, yet retains an aspect of its original functionality in the painted red ‘strap’ which runs down the centre of the body, once an element for hanging.
The present flask was shaped using two sheets of metal, with one slightly angled straight edge; the wide base tapering together towards the circular spout with a thin border lined with rivets and a small handle. Whereas the engraved medallions and palmettes containing entwined split-palmettes are reminiscent of the designs seen on tombak armour of the same period, the rivets along its edges resemble the stitches which appear on leather prototypes and examples of the same century. Such adaptation of design is further exemplified by two comparable tombak pilgrim flasks. The first was sold in these rooms, 7 October 2009, lot 194, attributed to the second half of the sixteenth century. Of lyre form, its decoration is characterised by a stippled ground most probably imitating the grain of leather as well as dotted outlines around its arabesque design which match the look of a stitch, with borders designed as mock cording. Another example is the Ottoman tombak pilgrim flask in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (inv. no.1984.100) which also features an engraved stippled design recalling stitching. This connection is obvious when examining the details in the drawing of the scrolling palmettes on three stitched leather canteens of the same period, the most notable being the splendid flask of gilt and appliquéd leather presented around 1590 by Sultan Murad III (r.1574-95) to the Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf II (r.1576-1612) now in the Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna, inv. no.C.28. Further examples are in the National Museum, Warsaw, and the Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe, Hamburg.
The emphasis placed on the material form of such examples becomes even more evident when examining one of the only two known examples of the matara in ceramic. The sixteenth century Iznik pottery water flask sold in these rooms, 24 April 2013, lot 214, now in the Ömer Koç collection, takes on a double visual illusion by being painted with a marbled body. It is ceramic but made to appear as marble, yet retains an aspect of its original functionality in the painted red ‘strap’ which runs down the centre of the body, once an element for hanging.
An addition to the corpus of tombak pilgrim flasks from the Ottoman period, the present example reflects the cult of pilgrimage, so intricately linked to Ottoman court life.
For further examples of Ottoman pilgrim flasks, see Alexandra Roy, 'The development of the matara into a luxury object through the Ottoman trade network', a paper given as part of the Gingko Library Conference: The Mercantile Effect; On Art and Exchange in the Islamicate World during the 17th – 18th Centuries, Barenboim-Said Akademie, Berlin, 18-19 November 2016.