Stonepaste deep bowl, lustre-painted on opaque white glaze with the central animal figure in dense decorative motifs which are imitating lush vegetation, encircled by islamic inscription. During the period from 1000 to 1400, in spite of the great political instability largely due to Turkic and Mongol armies sweeping through the region, what is nowadays Iran becomes one of the most important cultural and artistic centers in the Islamic world. Under outstanding patrons, local artists demonstrate tremendous ingenuity and technical skill, with their creations being considered among the masterpieces of late medieval Islamic art and architecture.
The artists in the area of Kashan develop very distinctive ceramics in which slip painting beneath a transparent glaze produces a durable surface on earthenware pottery and allows for much creativity. Among the most significant contributions from Muslim craftsmen to world ceramics, lustre was not only an expensive technique, but a very difficult one to master. Metal-based pigments and other substances were diluted and carefully applied to pre-glazed pots. These were then fired in special kilns with a ‘reduced’ atmosphere in which carbon monoxide triggered a chemical reaction that permanently fixed the metallic oxides onto the object’s surface, giving it its characteristic sheen.
First used on pottery in ninth-century Iraq, the technique reached Egypt in the 10th century, and then travelled back to Syria and Iran in the 12th century. This splendid stone paste bowl, with overglaze luster-paint on an opaque white glaze, is dated to the 12th century. It can be associated with the city of Kashan in Iran, which emerged as the most prominent centre of lustre production between the 12th and early 14th century.
Although unsigned, the bowl's accomplished design and technical execution make this piece stand out for its technical and stylistic perfection among 13th century Iranian lustreware.