Page 197 - Art In The Age Of Exploration (Great Section on Chinese Art Ming Dynasty)

85

BATTLE STANDARD OF QA'IT BAY

late i$th century
Egyptian, Mamluk
iron, with traces of gilding
5
length 225 (88 /s)
c
inscribed: lzz li-mawlana al-Sultan al-Malik
al-Ashraf, Qa'it Bay
Askeri Miize, Istanbul

The forged, tonguelike blade, with cast gaping
dragons' mouths below, has a spine or midrib with
fretwork panels on either side, decorated variously
with half-lozenges, half-circles, and curved
leaves. Below is a lobed cartouche, across which is
engraved the royal dedication: "Glory to His Maj-
esty, al-Malik al-Ashraf, Qa'it Bay." Both sides are
inscribed in the name of the Mamluk Sultan of
Egypt and Syria, Qa'it Bay (r. 1472-1496).
c
These standards ( a/ara) were evidently given
out to the commanders of units on Mamluk mili-
tary campaigns. A standard and a drum were also
ceremonially presented to a Mamluk at manumis-
sion on the completion of his training, a cere-
mony comparable to the commissioning of an
officer. The original appearance of these standards
is difficult to reconstruct but, assuming they
resembled Ottoman battle standards (tug), they
would have been decorated with pennons, textile
streamers, or animal hair. J.M.R.

86

BATTLE-STANDARD OF QA'IT BAY

late i$th century
Egyptian, Mamluk
gilt steel with openwork
length
inscribed: (on one side) lzz li-mawlana al-Sultan
c
al-Malik; (on the other side) al-Ashraf, Abu'1-Nasr
c
Qa'it Bay azza nasruh
Topkapi Sarayi Muzesi, Istanbul

Like cat. 85, this standard is inscribed with the
device of Qa'it Bay, Mamluk Sultan of Egypt and
Syria (r. 1472-1496): "Glory to His Majesty, al-
Malik al-Ashraf, Qa'it Bay, may his victory be
glorious." The cast base is faceted, with a broad
band of gilding, a pierced knop, and flattened
dragons' necks, the heads of which appear to be
biting the blade. The blade is flat with a recessed
spine, semi-circular in profile. At the top are leaf-
like panels first pierced and then with gilt decora-
tion. Below are two swordlike leaves, filled with
tight scroll work, probably stencilled, of chi-
noiserie lotuses with a triangular indentation at
mid-height and with two pierced pointed hepta-
gons. Below is an eight-lobed rosette with a bar
that contains the inscriptions held as though in a
stand. J.M.R.

196 CIRCA 1492