Jar with a Pattern of Spiral-Filled Trefoils

Unknown

12th century · Stonepaste; underglaze- and luster-painted, transparent colorless-greenish glaze · Islamic Art

This jar, excavated in the first decade of the twentieth century, exemplifies the findings that excited collectors and made Raqqa famous. Gertrude Bell, a traveler, archaeologist, and political officer, saw the jar in Aleppo in 1909 and later visited Raqqa; she was impressed by the amount of shards “covering” the ground and noted that the site seemed “honeycombed” with diggings by the local residents.

Artist

Unknown

Date

12th century

Medium

Stonepaste; underglaze- and luster-painted, transparent colorless-greenish glaze

Department

Islamic Art

Credit line

H.O. Havemeyer Collection, Gift of Horace Havemeyer, 1948