Late thirteenth- to fourteenth-century Mamluk trays at Lalibela (Ethiopia) are covered entirely with lavish silver inlays. These rare examples illustrate the virtuoso craftsmanship of the metalworkers still active in Cairo during a time when the growing scarcity of metal supplies contributed to the industry’s decline there. Characteristics of that production era include the concentric design with prominent calligraphy inscribed in elegant thuluth (that is, script with tall letter shafts), which the Mamluks then preferred. Similar trays were found in the church treasuries of Lalibela.
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Artwork Details
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Title:Tray
Date:late 13th–early 14th century
Geography:Made in Egypt
Medium:Brass; engraved and inlaid with silver and black compound
Dimensions:H. 1 1/2 in. (3.8 cm) Diam. 30 1/4 in. (76.8 cm)
Classification:Metal
Credit Line:Edward C. Moore Collection, Bequest of Edward C. Moore, 1891
Accession Number:91.1.604
Tray
Trays such as this one and MMA no. 91.1.605 (catalogue number 4 in this volume) were used to carry food from the kitchen to the dining area and were placed either on the floor or on a low biconical stand. These stands—many of which still survive—would have functioned as portable tables that could be easily stored when not in use.
Tray MMA no. 91.1.605 was made for export to Yemen and bears the emblem, name, and titles of a Rasulid sultan. The present tray, on the other hand, is dedicated to an anonymous high-ranking Mamluk emir, but it is clear that the two were produced in a very similar, if not the same, workshop, since the sole features that clearly differentiate one from the other are the inscriptions and the emblem of the five-petaled rosette on MMA no. 91.1.605. This workshop can be located in Cairo on the basis of yet another, similar tray in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum (no. 91.1.602), with an inscription that states that it was made in that city by an artist whose family originally was from Mosul in northern Iraq.
The designs on this tray, in concentric bands, are very elaborate, and, despite the loss of nearly all of the silver inlays, are still easily appreciated. The central roundel contains representations of the seven planets and the twelve signs of the Zodiac. The Sun is in the center, and the Moon, Mercury, Jupiter, Saturn, Mars, and Venus are shown clockwise, but, once again, they are illustrated in random order. The twelve signs are in their proper sequence, clockwise, and the majority of them are represented with their Planetary Lords but, rather atypically, the three mounts—namely, Aries (the ram), Taurus (the bull), and Capricorn (the kid)—are shown in isolation, without their planetary riders (Mars, Venus, and Saturn, respectively).
The main inscriptional band is framed by two narrow bands that include the familiar Mamluk group of quadrupeds seen in profile in a walking posture and proceeding counterclockwise. The tall and elegant thuluth calligraphy is interrupted by six large round medallions in which images of horsemen alternate with figures of musicians. The inscription informs us that this tray was made for "the lord, the great prince." However, as it does not mention this Mamluk's name, it might well be that it was produced for a very high-quality market, rather than to fill a specific commission.
The three horsemen depicted inside the medallions—two polo players and a falconer—are engaged in courtly pastimes; the other three images represent pairs of musicians sitting on three-legged benches, each twosome consisting of a musician accompanying a singer. The two narrow outer borders of the tray contain a pattern of stylized birds that seem to be changing into leaves and a geometric motif of lozenges alternating with small circles.
[Carboni 1997]
Tray
The inlaid metalwork produced under the aegis of the Mamluks is some of the most beautiful ever made. The impact of this unusually large tray when it still retained all of its silver and gold inlay must have been dazzling. Because the reverse is undecorated, it must be assumed that the piece was not made to be carried about but rather intended to be stationary, placed either directly on the floor or on a very low stand.
The central roundel is decorated with depictions of the seven planets (Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Venus, Mercury, and the Moon, all surrounding the Sun). These, in turn, are circumscribed by the twelve signs of the Zodiac. The principal band of decoration, which is divided into four sections by means of four scalloped roundels, bears a bold Arabic inscription in thuluth script enumerating anonymous Mamluk titles. Two of the four roundels bear musicians seated on a platform and the other two bear a single polo player.
Marilyn Jenkins in [Berlin 1981]
Inscription: In Arabic, in wide band, the titles of Mamluk officials
(Translation by Yassir al-Tabba, 1978): Of what was made for the high, dignified excellency, the lord, the great prince, the respected, the served, the conqueror, the fighter for the faith, the warrior, the defender of the outposts, the aided, the victorious, the aided to victory
Edward C. Moore (American), New York (until d. 1891; bequeathed to MMA)
New York. The Hagop Kevorkian Special Exhibitions Gallery, The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Following the Stars: Images of the Zodiac in Islamic Art," February 4–August 31, 1997, no. 17.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Africa & Byzantium," November 13, 2023–March 3, 2024.
Cleveland Museum of Art. "Africa & Byzantium," April 14–July 21, 2024.
"Masterpieces from The Metropolitan Museum of Art New York." In The Arts of Islam. Berlin, 1981. no. 57, pp. 148–49, ill. (b/w).
Carboni, Stefano. Following the Stars: Images of the Zodiac in Islamic Art. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1997. no. 17, pp. 40–41, ill. (b/w).
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