L12220

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Lot 520
  • 520

A Rare Dated Kashan Lustre Bowl with three figures and inscriptions, Persia, AH 575/AD 1179-80

Estimate
60,000 - 80,000 GBP
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Description

  • Fritware
of deep round form on a short foot, decorated with a golden honey lustre on an opaque white glaze, with three figures with leafy stems and birds in the background with naskh inscription, the rim with a stylised inscription, the exterior decorated with a series of scroll motifs and further inscriptions

Provenance

Christie's, 20 April 1999, lot 488.

Exhibited

Perpetual Glory. Medieval Islamic Ceramics From The Harvey B. Plotnick Collection, The Art Institute of Chicago, 2007.

Literature

O. Pancaroglu, Perpetual Glory. Medieval Islamic Ceramics From The Harvey B. Plotnick Collection, The Art Institute of Chicago, 2007, pp.136-137, no.89.

Condition

In good condition, bright sheen to glaze, some hairline cracks to surface, rubbing to glaze on central internal roundel and to exterior, very minor chips to edge of rim, 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.
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Catalogue Note

inscriptions

In Persian inside bowl:

'The Emir of Mawara al-nahr [i.e., Transoxiana] says in a state of ecstasy: Labor in the land of Merv, so that your situation becomes joyous, take ample [wine] and give brimful goblets of that, which is oldest of all'

'It was written during the course of the year five hundred and seventy-five of the Prophet's Migration' [1179-80 AD].

Inscriptions in Persian around the outer rim:

'As my beloved placed her ringlets over roses and tulips [i.e. her face and lips], my soul likewise applied lamentation to my broken heart. My wretched heart did not even have the hope of a day; In short, with such desire did she place a hundred year's grief [upon my heart]. Ashraf Tabari'

Under the base:

gar pay-e ... oftadam, dar pay-e to jan bedadam

'If I fell on the feet of.... I lost my life at your feet'

The name which appears at the end of the outer inscription, Ashraf Tabarī, is actually believed to refer to Ashraf al-Dīn Hasan Ghaznavī (d. 556 AH/ 1160-1 AD), who signed this way on rare occasions. He was a poet who spent a long time at the court of the Ghaznavid sultan Bahrām Shāh and later travelled in Khurasan and Iraq and also wrote panegyric verses for the Seljuq sultans, including Mas'ūd, Sanjar, Kaykhusraw, and Malikshāh (Pancaroglu 2007, p.137, no.89.)

A similar bowl from the Aga Khan collection, featuring three figures, including a seated prince in between two attendants is illustrated in: Splendori a Corte: Arti del Mondo Islamico nelle Collezioni del Museo Aga Khan, Milan, 2007, p.182, no.159. 

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