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Identification and Creation

Object Number
1999.311
People
Unknown Artist
Title
Long-spouted vessel with engraved decoration and inscription
Classification
Vessels
Work Type
vessel
Date
c. 1600
Places
Creation Place: Middle East, Iran
Period
Safavid period
Culture
Persian
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/217634

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Tinned copper
Technique
Engraved
Dimensions
13.8 x 36.5 cm (5 7/16 x 14 3/8 in.)
Inscriptions and Marks
  • inscription: Inscription in cartouches (in Persian): Bâ yâr ba-hammâm shodam bâ gul ô dil // û zulf ba-gul nihâd ô man dast ba-dil // Az âb-i dô dîda hauz-hâ por kardîm // û zulf ba-gul [ba-]bast ô man dast [ba-]dil // Dawlat-at mustadâm ô bâqî bâd." Inscription under the spout (in Persian): "Sâhibuhu Shâh Begî Khânum bint-i Mîrzâ `Alî Khân." Translation: "With the friend I went to the bath, with rose and heart // He put his tresses on the rose and I [put] my hand on the heart // We filled pools with the water of two eyes // He bound his tresses with the rose and I [bound] my hand with the heart // May your fortune be perpetual and enduring." Translation under the spout: "Its owner [is] Shâh Begî Khânum, daughter of Mîrzâ `Alî Khân."

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Gift of the Estate of Margaret F. Schroeder
Accession Year
1999
Object Number
1999.311
Division
Asian and Mediterranean Art
Contact
am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu
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Descriptions

Description
Spouted bowls were known in earlier eras (a number of Mamluk examples have survived), but the graceful curves of this bowl are characteristic of Safavid metalwork. Such bowls could be used for a variety of purposes (see illustration), but this one has Persian verses about the bath, indicating that this was its primary use. This bowl has lost most of its tin coating. Notes from the Glory and Prosperity exhibition, Feb - June 2002.

Exhibition History

  • Shadows of God On Earth: Arts of the Ottoman, Safavid, and Mughal Dynasties, Harvard University Art Museums, Cambridge, 06/21/1997 - 08/31/1997

Verification Level

This record was created from historic documentation and may not have been reviewed by a curator; it may be inaccurate or incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of Asian and Mediterranean Art at am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu