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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. These colorful compositions created complex narrative scenes which paralleled manuscript painting. Three horsemen, framed by stylized vines, canter around the central figure of a bird, further blending the imagery of active and passive courtly life. A kufic inscription circles the rim, while a pseudo inscription is written on the outside of the bowl.

Scholar Source Context

Document identity
localId
38355
label
Bowl with Horsemen and Bird
core
obj
dtoType
object
pageCount
7
Source metadata
id
38355
contentType
object
stage
normalized
title
Bowl with Horsemen and Bird
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. These colorful compositions created complex narrative scenes which paralleled manuscript painting. Three horsemen, framed by stylized vines, canter around the central figure of a bird, further blending the imagery of active and passive courtly life. A kufic inscription circles the rim, while a pseudo inscription is written on the outside 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
7
pageCount
7
source
import
dimensions
units
cm
width
7.4
height
16.7
dimensionsRaw
Overall: 2 15/16 x 6 9/16 in. (7.4 x 16.7 cm)
Source extras
med
fritware, white underglaze, black, blue, pink, red, and turquoise overglaze enamel
creator_ids
6768
collection_ids
none
exhibition_ids
none
Page inventory
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