High-Footed Dish with Two Horsemen
12th-13th century
Description
Two horsemen face each other from opposite sides of a central, checkered tree. The luster decoration on this bowl is so freely painted that the dotted pattern of the cavaliers’ garments merges with the foliate background. The figural scene is bordered above and below by scalloped segments filled with vertical stripes and, at the bottom, by a frieze of cursory pendants. An angular pseudo-inscription runs around the rim. The figural imagery of this bowl has close affinities with that of minai wares. Its sketchily applied decoration and somewhat confused background details put it into the category of luster ceramics exhibiting the so-called miniature style. The loosely painted scrolls on the outside of this bowl closely resemble the exterior ornamentation of several other luster vessels in the collection. Glaze only partially covers the high foot, one area of which exhibits some blue staining. The bowl has been reassembled from several pieces; its reddish luster has turned greenish in one section.
Dimensions
6.4 x 21.2 cm (2 1/2 x 8 3/8 in.)
Provenance
[Mansour Gallery, London, 1971], sold; to Stanford and Norma Jean Calderwood, Belmont, MA (1971-2002), gift; to Harvard Art Museums, 2002.
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