Amongst the greatest and most eloquent
manifestations of Islamic culture and civilization
are the arts, especially the applied arts. It is
through the universal language of art that one
can appreciate the great achievements of the
Muslim peoples and the contributions they have
made to humanity.
The earliest Islamic pottery was based upon the
local traditions of newly conquered lands,
particularly those of Syria, with its Greco-Roman
traditions, and Iran and Iraq with their Sassanian
cultures. Islamic pottery first flourished under
the rule of the Abbasid dynasty when certain
technical innovations relating to glazes were
perfected. However, with the growing weakness
of the Abbasids from the middle of the 10th
century onwards, many artists and artisans
moved migrated to new centers of power,
particularly to Fatimid Egypt, importing their
technical skills. Here, the arts flourished,
nurtured and protected by the culturally
enlightened rulers, establishing Islamic
decorative techniques to pottery and ceramics
with renewed vigor.
This gorgeous fragment, the central portion of a
plate, depicts two beautiful seated figures
dressed in traditional patterned garments and
crowned with halos. Various floral interlacing
motifs fill the spaces between them. The central
design is framed by a band decorated with
serrated shapes similar to a generic depiction of
the rays of the sun. The design is executed in
reserve light olive-colored luster on a cream
background. No doubt such a stunning plate
reveals the influence that migrating artists
carried with them into Fatimid Egypt. This
period
represents one of the golden ages of Islamic art
and this fragment of a plate reflects the beauty
of their achievements.
- (PF.5507)
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