Reciting Poetry in a Garden

Unknown

first quarter 17th century · Stonepaste; polychrome glaze within black wax resist outlines (cuerda seca technique) · Islamic Art

A lush landscape provides the setting for a picnic, complete with fruit and beverages in Chinese‑style blue-and-white vessels. Two men sit in conversation, one writing and holding a safina (an oblong format book typically containing poetry), flanked by a man standing on the left and a woman on the right carrying a covered bowl decorated with Chinese designs. The patterned robes, silk sashes, and striped turbans resemble costumes depicted in seventeenth‑century Persian drawings and paintings.

Artist

Unknown

Date

first quarter 17th century

Medium

Stonepaste; polychrome glaze within black wax resist outlines (cuerda seca technique)

Department

Islamic Art

Credit line

Rogers Fund, 1903