Description:

 A RARE FIGURAL KASHAN LUSTRE POTTERY DISH, CENTRAL IRAN, EARLY 13TH CENTURY
Kashan, Central Iran, early 13th century

Description:
Fritware, painted in golden-brown and blue lustre on a cream ground, featuring a central design of three lobed medallions containing two seated figures and a vegetal motif, framed by fine scrollwork and geometric borders. The glaze shows fine craquelure consistent with age. Raised on a short footring, the reverse exhibits cobalt splash decoration around the base.

This charming and delicately rendered dish exemplifies the height of Kashan lustreware production, where human and floral imagery were harmoniously integrated into symmetrical registers. Such figural representations—possibly of courtly women or entertainers—are a hallmark of refined urban taste during the Seljuk period.

Dimensions: Diameter: 18 cm

Comparable examples:

  • A similar Kashan lustre dish with seated figure motifs sold at Sotheby’s, Arts of the Islamic World, London, 9 October 2013, Lot 138, for £43,750.

  • A Kashan figural lustre bowl, Central Iran, early 13th century, sold at Christie’s, Art of the Islamic and Indian Worlds, London, 2 May 2019, Lot 22, for £56,250.

  • Another lustre dish with multiple medallions and figural scenes, Bonhams, Islamic and Indian Art, London, 19 April 2016, Lot 18, sold for £38,750.

Note:
Lustreware from Kashan was among the most sophisticated and technically complex ceramics of the medieval Islamic world. This example is especially notable for the presence of figural decoration, which was prized for its rarity and often reserved for elite patrons. 

Provenance:
With K. Fujishiro, Japan, by 1967,
Acquired by Japanese trade until 2015, when purchased by the present owner

Accepted Forms of Payment:

MasterCard, Visa, Wire Transfer

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May 6, 2025 1:00 PM BST
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