Description
The art of making ceramic objects with luster decoration, which has a metallic sheen, probably began in 9th-century Iraq and spread throughout the Islamic world, including to al-Andalus (the Arabic name for Spain). There, large quantities of high quality lusterware were produced during the 14th and 15th centuries and influenced ceramic decoration well after the last Islamic dynasty in Spain came to an end in 1492. Often called Hispano-Moresque ware, such pieces regularly feature foliage designs and inscriptions in pseudo-Arabic script, as on this basin. The basin's combination of luster designs with those painted in blue, including two birds flanking a stylized tree, is also typical of this ceramic tradition.
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