Page 101 - 2021 April 1, ART OF THE ISLAMIC AND Indian Worlds Including Oriental Rugs, Christie's London

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AN IZNIK POTTERY JUG
OTTOMAN TURKEY, CIRCA 1580
The accentuated baluster body decorated in cobalt-blue, green
and bole-red on white ground with blue fish-scale motifs,
overlaid by alternating red lobed panels and green and red
cintamani motifs
9in. (22.8cm.) high
£40,000-60,000 US$56,000-84,000
€47,000-69,000
The use of elegant fish scale pattern which covers the ground
of this jug is first found decorating an example in the form of a
fish in the Benaki Museum in Athens, which dates to the 1520’s
(inv.no.10; Nurhan Atasoy and Julian Raby, Iznik, the Pottery of
Ottoman Turkey, London, 1989, p.106, no.451, pl.124). The scale
pattern was probably inspired by early 16th century Deruta
majolica although its use can be seen in Islamic art on a 15th
century twin dragon headed candlestick from Khorassan in the
David Collection (Kjeld von Folsach, Islamic Art, Copenhagen,
1990, p.207, no.346). In the late 1570s and 80s it became
popular to enliven the background of vessels with fish scale
motif, as seen here. On our jug, the fish scale is used with
another popular motif, cintamani roundels. In Ottoman Turkey
the motif appears mainly on textiles but occasionally on Iznik
pottery and represents power, force and courage. Cintamani
was sometimes seen grouped with pairs of way lines as can
be seen in a similar jug formerly in the Lagonikos Collection,
Alexandria (J. Carswell, Iznik Pottery, London, p.83, fig.62). The
three circles however appear more often on their own as on this
fine example. The combination of fish scale and cintamani is
found on a jug in the Gulbenkian Collection (inv.no.795; Maria
Querios Ribeeiro, Iznik Pottery, Lisbon, 1996, p.215, no.70).

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