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| Probabl y I ran; seventeenth centur y Gl azed fri tware wi th bl ue undergl aze pai nti ng agai nst whi te Di ameter: 42 cm AKM 589 Publ : Makari ou 2007, pp. 52–53 (no. 15); AKTC 2008a, pp. 152–153 (no. 55); Farhad 2009, pp. 146–147 (no. 35) |
Farhad has suggested that the highly unusual imagery
in the central area of this blue-and-white dish should
be understood as a schematic representation of a shrine
complex, and, by extension, that the piece was created to
commemorate an act of pilgrimage.
The central space has been divided with thick blue doublelines into a series of different architectural elements and areas, with structures stacked up disconcertingly in the awkward round space of the dish, conveying a sense of progression through space.
There are several indicators that this is sacred space,
both in generic architectural signs – bulbous domes, hanging
lamps
and
a
tall
thin
structure
that
could
represent
a
minaret
–
and
more
particular
religious
symbols.
The
sandals
(Na'layn
sharif)
of
the
Prophet,
or
more
properly
their
image
(mithal),
here enshrined in niches underneath the
bulbous dome at centre foreground, represent one focus
of veneration .
To the right of the sandals is
the image of the legendary double-pronged sword of Ali,
the Dhul-fiqar, a particularly potent symbol for Shi'i Muslims
as
it
is
inseparably
linked
with
the
deeds
of Ali,
the
son-in-law
of
the
Prophet
and
the
first
Shi'i
imam.
In
addition
to
these
there
is
an
image
of
a
minbar
(the
stepped
structure
used
to
address
the
crowds
in
a
mosque)
immediately
above the sword of Ali, complete with a domed
cupola on top like those seen on many extant large wooden
minbars.
A
second
minbar,
along
with
domes,
banners,
hanging
lamps
and
what
may
be
a
candle
in
a
candlestick,
occupies
the
top
central
panel
of
the
outer
ornament,
providing
the
only
architectural
decoration
on
the
rim.
What
may
be
a
third
minbar
is
depicted
on
the
right-hand
side
of
the central
field.
The design of the dish as a whole is perhaps unique in its marriage of dif- ferent stylistic elements, fitting an illustrative style appar- ently derived in part from topographical representations in pilgrimage records and manuals into an overall composition borrowed from Chinese ceramics.
Book Reference :
Architecture in Islamic Arts Treasures of the Aga Khan Museum by Margaret S. Graves, Benoît Junod, Gérard Friedli
https://www.academia.edu/7471091/Treasures_of_the_Aga_Khan_Museum_Architecture_in_Islamic_arts
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