Turkey, Iznik
Stonepaste; painted in turquoise and two hues of blue under transparent glaze
H. 3 in. (7.62 cm), Diam. 15 1/2 in. (39.4 cm)
Bequest of Benjamin Altman, 1913 (14.40.727)
One of the most spectacular Iznik pieces in the Museum's collection, this dish displays a synthetic design in the quintessential Ottoman manner. The rich blue and turquoise floral scroll on the cavetto echoes Yuan-dynasty celadons from the fourteenth century, while the design in the center of the plate, originally thought to emulate a celadon model as well, is probably based on an Islamic brickwork pattern found, among other places, in Seljuq tomb towers in western Iran in the late eleventh century. The combination of design sources with the developing ceramic palette underscores the creative independence of the Ottoman potter in the sixteenth century.
