Bowl with Inscription

Location: Nishapur, Iran

Materials: earthenware, painted in black and red slips under a colourless glaze

Dimensions: 9.8 x 25.6cm

Accession Number: POT 850

Other Notes:

The inscription, which is in a plaited and foliated Kufic script, is of exceptionally fine execution. It reads, ‘Generosity is a disposition of the dwellers of Paradise’. In order to fill the available space, some of the letters are horizontally elongated. Because the sequence of ascenders is not very regular, some letters are surmounted by elegant half palmettes.

Bibliography:

E.J. Grube et al, Cobalt and Lustre. The First Centuries of Islamic Pottery, The Nasser D Khalili Collection of Islamic Art, volume IX, London 1994, cat.64, p.76.
J.M. Rogers, The Arts of Islam. Masterpieces from the Khalili Collection, London 2010, cat.42, p.53.