Jar Depicting Three Spirited Peacocks

Unknown

second half 10th century · Earthenware; luster-painted on opaque white glaze · Islamic Art

Birds were a particularly popular subject in the Abbasid period, as artists in many media attempted to render the creatures’ beaks and wings in increasingly abstracted designs. This jar is decorated with three stylized peacocks, one large and two small, painted in luster. Each bird is depicted in profile and marches clockwise around the exterior of the jar.

Artist

Unknown

Date

second half 10th century

Medium

Earthenware; luster-painted on opaque white glaze

Department

Islamic Art

Credit line

Rogers Fund, 1950