An Abbasid pottery bowl with a Kufic Inscription, Iraq, 9th century
Auction Closed
March 30, 12:47 PM GMT
Estimate
20,000 - 30,000 GBP
Lot Details
Description
of deep round form with a slightly everted rim, the earthenware body painted in blue on an opaque white tin glaze, featuring a central inscription written twice, the rim decorated with curved arches and dots, the exterior plain
19.8cm. diam.
inscriptions
Twice: 'abdahu' His [God's] servant' or 'ghibtah' Felicity
While the shape imitates a Chinese prototype, the use of cobalt blue is a novel departure that was to have a profound and long-lasting influence on world ceramics. The application of cobalt directly into the raw glaze creates a soft impression, described by Arthur Lane as "like ink on snow" (A. Lane, Early Islamic Pottery, London, 1947, p.13).
A nearly identical bowl is now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, inv. no.63.159.4. A further example sold in these rooms, 25 April 2012, lot 509.