Publication Date
XIII century
Publication Place
-
Bumler Group
Subject
Bronze metal plate with hammered back, with perforated and engraved decoration
Type
Other
Language
Undetermined
Digital
Yes
Manuscript
No
Physical Dimensions
الارتفاع :2.0 سم ، الطول : 33.0 سم ، العرض : 22.8 سم
Library
Museum With No Frontiers
Library Asset ID
BC 1401
Record ID
object;EPM;de;Mus23;23;ar
Library Location
Bumler Group
Date
XIII century
Notes
The low central part of this tray has a special trefoil shape on both wide sides. Its center features a pointed medallion showing a fantasy creature. It is a serpentine-winged dragon that looks back with its mouth wide open and faces another magnificent dragon that protrudes from its coiled tail. The fields in the rounded lobes around the medallion are filled with heads of animals from the feline family, just like the high climbing plants around the low area. The animals are raised while their details are fully perforated and engraved. The fur appears clearly and becomes almost leathery in texture. The piece is framed by a wide border which in turn is surrounded by a high rounded ridge. The frame bears an alternating pattern with symmetrical paper designs raised in the corners on the long sides of the frame, and the floral patterns are raised in the form of a simple decorative button. It appears that the master who made it paid most attention to developing animal shapes, leaving the leaves without any additional work on the details. Also, the inscription appears to be a simple repetition of a well-known sequence of letters and is best read from the short right end, which says “Eternal Glory and Desire,” which is a very common wish on similar trays. The rectangular table tops have The decoration is made of hammered decorative pieces found in numerous collections and dates between the 12th and 13th centuries and the dragon motif means that the date is after the Mongol conquest of the Khiva Khanate in 1220 when the motifs were spread from the Near East by the new rulers. In general, the prints on these table tops are shaped like an elongated octagon. Short, lobed ribs with a pointed lobe between the two rounded lobes on either side are more common than the inlaid square tabletops of the thirteenth century (Keir Collection No. 77 in the Louvre, Metropolitan Museum 56.144). The piece most similar to this one appears on a tray from the Khalilabad Treasure in Tajikistan.
Sample Text
"Rectangular Tray" within Discover Islamic Art Collections. Museum Without Borders, 2026. https://islamicart.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=object;EPM;de;Mus23;23;ar
