Bowl

Silver bowl with gold inlay work forming arabesques and a nasta’liq inscription of Persian poetry. Neillo. Engraved names of later owners in the inside of the foot.

Historical period(s)
Safavid period, 1500-1510
Medium
Silver inlaid with gold and niello
Dimensions
H x W x D: 3.2 x 11.2 x 11.2 cm (1 1/4 x 4 7/16 x 4 7/16 in)
Geography
Iran
Credit Line
Purchase — Charles Lang Freer Endowment
Collection
Freer Gallery of Art
Accession Number
F1954.115
On View Location
Freer Gallery 04: Engaging the Senses
Classification(s)
Metalwork, Vessel
Type

Bowl

Keywords
Iran, nasta'liq script, Safavid period (1501 - 1722), spinning (metalwork)
Provenance
Provenance research underway.
Description

Silver bowl with gold inlay work forming arabesques and a nasta'liq inscription of Persian poetry. Neillo. Engraved names of later owners in the inside of the foot.

Inscription(s)

1. [folder sheet entry #7]. (Wheeler Thackston, Harvard University, Summer 1990) Inscription: Rim cartouches contain a ghazal by Hafiz (Divan-i Hafiz, p. 46): [Arbc]

"That person who holds a goblet of wine in his hand will have forever the kingdom of Jamshid. The water through which Khizr attained eternal life--seek it in a tavern that has a goblet. Attach the end of the thread of life to the goblet so that thereby the thread may have order. We have wine, and the ascetics have peity -- so let the beloved decide which to take."

Engraved names of later owners in the inside of the foot.

Label

Inscriptions often refer to an object's function.  The poem encircling the rim of this bowl alludes to drinking wine as a means of reaching the beloved--a common mystical metaphor for spiritual enlightenment.  Written in fine nasta'liq script, the lines of poetry are from a well-known ode (ghazal) by the Persian poet Hafiz (died 1390).  They conclude as follows: 

Here we are with our wine and the ascetics with their piety,
Let us see which one the beloved will take. 

Published References
  • Linda Komaroff. The Timurid Phase in Iranian Metalwork: Formulation and Realization of a Style. Ann Arbor. cat. 17.
  • Assadullah Souren Melikian-Chirvani. Four Pieces of Islamic Metalwork: Some Notes on a Previously Unknown School. vol. 10, December 1976. pp. 25-26, figs. 4-5.
  • Najmieh Batmanglij. From Persia to Napa: Wine at the Persian Table. Washington. p. 33.
  • Art et Société dans le Monde Iranien. Bibliotheque Iranienne, no. 26 Paris. p. 165.
  • Dr. Esin Atil, W. Thomas Chase, Paul Jett. Islamic Metalwork in the Freer Gallery of Art. Washington, 1985. cat. 26, p. 186.
  • October Events at the Smithsonian: Smithsonian Highlights. vol. 16, no. 7 Washington, October 1985. p. 225.
Collection Area(s)
Arts of the Islamic World
Web Resources
Google Cultural Institute
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