Incense burner, 1181–1182; Seljuq
Jacfar ibn Muhammad ibn cAli
Khorasan (eastern Iran), Iran; Found in Khorasan (eastern Iran), Tay-abad (Kariz), Iran
Cast bronze with openwork decoration
Technical Glossary
Jacfar ibn Muhammad ibn cAli
Khorasan (eastern Iran), Iran; Found in Khorasan (eastern Iran), Tay-abad (Kariz), Iran
Cast bronze with openwork decoration
H. 33 1/2 in. (85.1 cm), L. 32 1/2 in. (82.6 cm)
Rogers Fund, 1951 (51.56)
This large metal sculpture of a lion belongs to a small group of incense burners of similar form and size. The head comes off so that the incense can be placed inside, and the arabesque interlace on the body and neck has been pierced to allow the aroma to escape. The Arabic inscriptions in kufic on various parts of the animal as well as on three bosses provide us with the name of the emir who commissioned the work, its artist, and the date, 577 A.H.
