Bowl with Polychrome Decoration on a Red Slip Ground

Unknown

9th century · Earthenware; red slip with polychrome slip decoration under transparent glaze · Islamic Art

Bowls made with slips (diluted clay) with wholly local designs were made throughout the area surrounding Nishapur. These slip wares are easily distinguished from the ceramics produced in the rest of the Abbasid Empire to which Nishapur belonged, and bear no relation to the popular Chinese-style ceramics also produced in Nishapur. This bowl combines one of the favored palettes—a brownish red, decorated with black and white—and the motifs typical of this type: strapwork enclosing abstract floral designs. Small bowls such as this were found in quantity in the Sabz Pushan area; they appear to have been common household items made locally.

Artist

Unknown

Date

9th century

Medium

Earthenware; red slip with polychrome slip decoration under transparent glaze

Department

Islamic Art

Credit line

Rogers Fund, 1938