Star-Shaped Tile

Unknown

13th–14th century · Stonepaste; inglaze painted in blue and turquoise and luster-painted on opaque white glaze · Islamic Art

This eight-pointed star tile was once part of a panel of star- and cross-shaped tiles adorning the walls of an Ilkhanid building. Probably produced in the ceramic center of Kashan in Central Iran, the tile displays many characteristics typical of this site. A donkey painted in cobalt stands amid plants, with mostly illegible Persian poetry framing the scene. The background decoration and poetic verses that run along the border are rendered in luster.

Artist

Unknown

Date

13th–14th century

Medium

Stonepaste; inglaze painted in blue and turquoise and luster-painted on opaque white glaze

Department

Islamic Art

Credit line

H.O. Havemeyer Collection, Gift of Horace Havemeyer, 1941