Fragment of a Glazed Tile Inscription

Fragment of an architectural inscription frieze

The variety of materials unearthed in the Metropolitan's excavations at Nishapur during the 1930s and 1940s indicates that it was one of the centers for the rediscovery of the secrets of making man-made composite-bodied ceramic wares (faience), which probably began in the eleventh century. Not only were kilns for firing this type of ware excavated that contained glaze materials, kiln furniture, and wasters, but a number of architectural fragments were also found that seem to represent transitional phases between the terra-cotta decoration associated with the Seljuk and Ghaznavid schools and the glazed tiles of later centuries. Some combine in a single piece unglazed (sometimes painted) and glazed areas.

This fragment is from a fully developed glazed type of frieze, entirely covered with the turquoise glaze, although this frieze may have been set into a terra-cotta facade. The inscription is too fragmentary for identification, but part of the word "Allah" is clear.

Manuel Keene in [Berlin 1981]


Fragment of a turquoise-glazed frieze tile with inscription

This tile was found at a mound in Nishapur during the excavations conducted by The Metropolitan Museum of Art in the 1930s and 1940s. The upper and lower parts of this tile are missing. Its body is thick and is carved in high relief. Standing out from the background relief of vegetal scrolls, the inscription is probably a quotation from the Qur'an, and seems to read: .. Allah cinda(hu)... "...God close to him...," a phrase so common in the Qur'an that it is not possible to establish its exact collocation or from which sura, or chapter, of the Qur'an it was copied. It is nevertheless clear that this tile used to adorn a religious building.

[Carboni and Masuya 1993]

Inscription: Part of a larger inscription which reads "Allah"

There are two words in thuluth script on the tile. The first reads:
لله
which could be الله

And the second reads:
عنلـ
Which it may be عنکم
The two words must be part of a Quranic verse.

(A. Ghouchani , 2011)

1936, excavated near the South Horn in Nishapur, Iran by the Metropolitan Museum of Art's expedition; 1937, acquired by the Museum in the division of finds

Berlin. Museum für Islamische Kunst, Pergamonmuseum, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin. "The Arts of Islam. Masterpieces from the M.M.A.," June 15, 1981–August 8, 1981, no. 35.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. Hagop Kevorkian Fund Special Exhibitions Gallery. "Persian Tiles," May 4, 1993–January 2, 1994, no. 3.

Wilkinson, Charles K. "The Iranian Expedition 1936: The Excavations at Nishapur." Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin vol. 32, section II (1937). p. 17, ill. fig. 22 (b/w).

"Masterpieces from The Metropolitan Museum of Art New York." In The Arts of Islam. Berlin, 1981. no. 35, pp. 100–1, ill. (b/w).

"Meisterwerke aus dem Metropolitan Museum of Art New York." In Islamische Kunst. Berlin: Museum für Islamische Kunst, Pergamonmuseum, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, 1981. no. 35, pp. 100–1, ill. p. 101 (b/w).

Wilkinson, Charles K. Nishapur: Some Early Islamic Buildings and their Decoration. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1986. p. 116, ill. fig. 1.116 (b/w).

Carboni, Stefano, and Tomoko Masuya. Persian Tiles. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1993. no. 3, p. 8, ill. (b/w).