Publication Date
Seventh to eighth century AD
Publication Place
-
Museum of Islamic Art
Subject
Ivory with relief engravings and a metal cover with a metal frame.
Type
Other
Language
Undetermined
Digital
Yes
Manuscript
No
Physical Dimensions
الارتفاع: 9.4 سم؛ القطر: 9 سم
Library
Museum With No Frontiers
Library Asset ID
2977
Record ID
object;ISL;de;Mus01;4;ar
Library Location
Museum of Islamic Art
Date
Seventh to eighth century AD
Notes
This slightly inflated cylindrical box is made of three pieces of ivory joined together. It was decorated with a flat cover decorated with vine branches and surrounded at the top and bottom by narrow edges with tin decorations. The cover is also decorated with radial ribs, and the edge of the cover is provided with grooves and surrounded by silver sheets and an unused hinge. The bowl rests on a balled substrate fixed with metal nails. The middle metal handle is attached to the primary lid. The case is an early example of the art of Middle Eastern ivory processing. The decorations of vine branches that cover the cover here, which have been desired since pre-Islamic times, also have a high status in Islamic art. On this small box, vine branches with bunches of grapes branch out from four small vases, thus forming a theme that is also present in the mosaic decorations on the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem and on the facade of the Mshatta. This delicate art, which is not considered an easy art at all, reflects the importance of the themes of vine branches in the general context of the development of Islamic art styles since the seventh century. The theme of branching vine branches was used on this box, which later became a decorative theme for the arabesques. The primary purpose of using the can is unknown.
Sample Text
Annette Hagedorn “Jewel box with lid” in Discover Islamic Art. Museum Without Borders, 2026. https://islamicart.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=object;ISL;de;Mus01;4;ar
