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Tile with Qur'anic Inscription

A work made of fritware with molded decoration, leaf gilding, and red over a blue glaze.
CC0 Public Domain Designation

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  • A work made of fritware with molded decoration, leaf gilding, and red over a blue glaze.

Date:

Ilkhanid dynasty (1256–1353), Early 14th century

Artist:

Iran
Probably Kashan

About this artwork

Overglaze painted ceramics on a blue background, called lajvardina, were developed by Ilkhanid potters in 14th-century Iran. Lajvardina wares are known for geometric patterns, although calligraphy can also be present, especially on tiles. Such tiles have not survived in large quantities because the gold leaf and overglaze painting have suffered from exposure to the elements.Despite the diminishment of its gold leaf decoration, this tile illustrates the lavish end results of the lajvardina technique: the deep cobalt blue fills the composition, red enamel highlights the calligraphic script, and the few traces of gold leaf shimmer. Cobalt blue and gold leaf were among the most expensive materials used by potters in the medieval world.

Status

Currently Off View

Department

Arts of Asia

Culture

Islamic

Title

Tile with Qur'anic Inscription

Place

Iran (Artist's nationality:)

Date  Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

Artist's working dates 1301–1353

Medium

Fritware with molded decoration, leaf gilding, and red over a blue glaze

Dimensions

18.3 × 34.8 × 4.2 cm (7 3/16 × 14 1/8 × 1 5/8 in.)

Credit Line

Gift of Martin A. Ryerson

Reference Number

1925.198

IIIF Manifest  The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world.

Learn more.

https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/86645/manifest.json

Extended information about this artwork

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

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