Fragment of Inscription, Found behind Stucco Dado Panel

Unknown

9th century · Stucco; painted · Islamic Art

The inscription on this thin layer of plaster is rendered in a form of Kufic script in which tendril-like forms extend from the tips of letters. The panel originally appeared on the lower half of a wall in one of the buildings excavated in the eastern Iranian city of Nishapur from a mound known as Sabz Pushan (the Green Covered). The excavations at Sabz Pushan uncovered part of a tenth-century residential neighborhood with several houses and an alleyway. This fragment was found was found under another wall decoration, in this case a carved stucco panel (37.40.41). Such finds provide evidence for the longevity of habitation in these spaces, which were often redecorated with fresh layers of stucco to mask older surfaces that had become worn down or dirty with time.

Artist

Unknown

Date

9th century

Medium

Stucco; painted

Department

Islamic Art

Credit line

Rogers Fund, 1938