Publication Place
Syria (made) -
Subject
Woodwork Islam
Type
Other
Language
Undetermined
Digital
Yes
Manuscript
No
Physical Dimensions
Length: 34.5 cm, Width: 16cm
Library
Victoria and Albert Museum
Library Asset ID
1878-1897
Record ID
1878-1897
Library Location
Middle East Section
Notes
This panel is most likely from Qal-at al-Jabar, the site where a strikingly similar panel, currently in the permanent collection of the National Museum of Damascus (inv. 1480) is also from. This site denotes the name of a castle that is situated on the left bank of Lake Assad in Raqqa, Syria, overlooking the Euphrates Vally. Although the hilltop on which the castle sits was probably already fortified in the 7th century, it passed through many occupying forces, including the Shiâa Arab Uqaylid dynasty in 1086, the Crusaders in 1102, and the Zengid dynasty, led by Nur ad-Din Zangi, in 1146. It was during this last phase of occupation that the largest additions to the complex occurred, many of which still remain today. The panel in the National Museum in Damascus was excavated from the Euphrates Valley, and is believed to have come from this caste. The Syrian artists of the 10th and 11th centuries assimilated both the Iraqi style of Samarra with that of the Fatimids in Egypt, a style that is evident in both panels as seen in their interlacing scrolls and the delicate textured pattern of carved lines and circles. Given that the Uqalids ruled in various parts of northern Syria and Iraq in the late tenth and eleventh centuries, the patterns demonstrated upon this panel visually highlight the assimilated styles and patterns of the period.
Malzemeler ve teknikler
Carved wood
Fiziksel açıklama
Rectangular panel carved in deep relief with a central running scroll pattern of interlacing palmettes, delicately detailed with a textured pattern of carved lines and small circles.
