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Source Description

Mina’i is a modern collectors’ term for ceramics made in Iran during the late 12th to early 13th centuries. The term mina’i, translates as “enamelled” in Persian, designating the colored glass pigments used to paint detailed figural decoration on vessels or tiles, which were then fixed on the ceramic base by multiple firings. The use of a wide range of colors, including turquoise, red, green, purple, and black, also led these types of ceramics to be called by the Persian term “haft rang,” or “seven colors.”Mina’i ware scenes often depict courtly pursuits, such as feasting, fighting, or poetry and music performances. These colorful compositions created complex narrative scenes which paralleled manuscript painting. A central figure on horseback is encircled by stylized vines. About the inner rim runs a pseudo inscription, and a different pseudo inscription encircles the outer rim of the bowl.

Scholar Source Context

Document identity
localId
24356
label
Bowl with Horseman
core
obj
dtoType
object
pageCount
4
Source metadata
id
24356
contentType
object
stage
normalized
title
Bowl with Horseman
description
Mina’i is a modern collectors’ term for ceramics made in Iran during the late 12th to early 13th centuries. The term mina’i, translates as “enamelled” in Persian, designating the colored glass pigments used to paint detailed figural decoration on vessels or tiles, which were then fixed on the ceramic base by multiple firings. The use of a wide range of colors, including turquoise, red, green, purple, and black, also led these types of ceramics to be called by the Persian term “haft rang,” or “seven colors.”Mina’i ware scenes often depict courtly pursuits, such as feasting, fighting, or poetry and music performances. These colorful compositions created complex narrative scenes which paralleled manuscript painting. A central figure on horseback is encircled by stylized vines. About the inner rim runs a pseudo inscription, and a different pseudo inscription encircles the outer rim of the bowl.
provenance
Dikran Kelekian, New York and Paris, [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; Henry Walters, Baltimore, [date of acquisition unknown], by purchase; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
date
late 12th-early 13th century (Seljuq (?))
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
genreSpecific
bowls (vessels)
imageCount
4
pageCount
4
source
import
dimensions
units
cm
width
4.9
height
10.8
dimensionsRaw
Overall: 1 15/16 x 4 1/4 in. (4.9 x 10.8 cm)
Source extras
med
fritware, white underglaze, black, blue, dark purple, and turquoise overglaze enamel
creator_ids
6768
collection_ids
none
exhibition_ids
none
Page inventory
seq
1
type
photo
mediaId
1c39e27778ca0ea9
hasOcr
no
hasDescription
no
seq
2
type
photo
mediaId
70d5db7d1e79985d
hasOcr
no
hasDescription
no
seq
3
type
photo
mediaId
b8d03145e31b0239
hasOcr
no
hasDescription
no
seq
4
type
photo
mediaId
cdab556501eed0b1
hasOcr
no
hasDescription
no