Page 276 - The Age of Sultan Suleyman the Magnificent

ample exhibits the wave pattern, which in the second half of the equally stereotyped alternating bunches of tulips and
the sixteenth century became a formulaic decorative theme; rounded blossoms are on the exterior.
here it is painted in blue and accentuated with green and red. The design in the center is taken from tiles with scrolling
The center contains stems that spring from a cluster of leaves, rumis that have an airy and rhythmic flow and cover large
curve around the plate, and bear different flowers: a branch surfaces. The most outstanding examples rendered with deli-
from a fruit tree, a small crocus, a large tulip, a rose, an iris, cate rumis were used in the Harem suite built by Sinan for
and a spray of hyacinths. The stem with the tulip breaks at Murad III in 1 578. A fragment of a border in the British Mu-
the edge of the composition, its blossom, flanked by two seum displays a bolder treatment of the same motif, which
large leaves, overlaying the other elements. Perched on this resembles that of this plate. 124
stem is a handsome long-tailed bird with a crest facing a A different effect is achieved in another late-sixteenth-
smaller bird, which stands on a leaf on the other side of the century plate, which represents a galleon caught in a turbu-
central rose. The birds seem to represent the male and female lent storm (201) with crested waves crashing against its hull
of the same species with blue feathers, green wings, and red and violent gusts of wind whipping the sails and flags, creat-
beaks and feet. The exterior of the plate shows pairs of tulips ing a dramatic composition. The galleon has a black hull,
alternating with blossoms. blue and red decks decorated with blossoms and crosshatch-
Confronting male and female birds separated by a large ing, and fully rigged masts with plain, striped, or speckled
rose, a flower associated with unrequited love, appear to con- sails. Two sets of cloud bands appear at the top, while sea
tain a specific meaning. The iconography of flowers on iznik monsters and large fish jump menacingly around the ship.
ceramics has not been properly studied, although Ottoman The wave pattern in the everted rim unifies the composition
society was deeply involved with their meaning, and produced by repeating the turbulence of the sea.
volumes devoted to such flowers as tulips and hyacinths. The style of the galleon can be traced to an earlier blue-
iznik potters also made plates decorated with traditional and-turquoise plate (see 177), which in turn was inspired by
designs in addition to those employing saz themes and naturalis- contemporary manuscript illustrations. Sailboats and galleons
tic flora. One of these is painted blue and decorated with a were frequently depicted on late-sixteenth- and early-seven-
bold rumi scroll reserved in white and accentuated by red teenth-century plates, as well as jugs, jars, and bottles. 125
and green (200). The symmetrical composition evolves from A group of polychrome-painted ware dating from the sec-
two large rumis that grow from the base and rejoin to form a ond half of the sixteenth century employs a different tech-
trefoil; their stems loop through a cartouche placed in the nique, and shows a predominance of naturalistic flowers. The
center, fan out, and come together to create an ogival medal- objects are covered with an engobe tinted various shades of
lion at the top as well as large volutes at the sides. Additional blue and red and underglaze-painted in polychrome slips.
stems spring from a stylized blossom placed in the trefoil, in- One of these slip-painted objects is a high-footed bowl with a
tersect, overlap, or join the first scroll, their elements filling coral-colored engobe (202). A blue-and-white braid encircles
the voids. The familiar wave pattern appears on the rim and the rim and the lower edge of the flaring foot. Decorating the

202. Bowl with carnations,
second halt sixteenth century
(Paris, Musée du Louvre, 6325)

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