Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Plate with a View of a Religious Interior
(Islamic World )
The potter who decorated this plate chose to depict an architectural interior—possibly a shrine—as if it were a flat façade, with domes over the building's three principle units. The central niche probably represents a "mihrab," orienting the building to Mecca. The large lamp, rendered here in blue, is typical of traditional lighting fixtures in mosques and other religious buildings. It hangs over a low, X-shaped book-stand intended to hold a copy of the Qur'an (the holy book of Islam). The lines of what look like Arabic writing above the stand are not legible and probably were meant to imitate Qur'anic verses.
Provenance
Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object. Learn more about provenance at the Walters.
Dikran Kelekian, Paris and New York, [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; Henry Walters, Baltimore, 1927, by purchase; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
Geographies
Syria (Place of Origin)
Measurements
H: 3 7/16 x Diam: 12 5/8 in. (8.7 x 32 cm)
Credit Line
Acquired by Henry Walters, 1927
Accession Number
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
48.1086