Pyxis
Returned to lender
This work of art was on loan to the museum and has since been returned to its lender.Al-Fudayn, an Umayyad residence located on trade routes joining cities such as Gerasa (Jerash) with the Arabian Peninsula, belonged to the exceptionally wealthy great grandson of the third Orthodox caliph ‘Uthman ibin ‘Afan. It was destroyed in the early ninth century, when a subsequent owner opposed the Abbasids. These luxury goods were found together and were perhaps hidden at that time.
The arcades and horizontal bands decorating this pyxis are outlined by dotted circles, a widely used ancient motif. The ivory would have come to al-Fudayn from East Africa and Ethiopia through the port of Oman, where it was worked, via the trade routes of the Arabian Peninsula.
The arcades and horizontal bands decorating this pyxis are outlined by dotted circles, a widely used ancient motif. The ivory would have come to al-Fudayn from East Africa and Ethiopia through the port of Oman, where it was worked, via the trade routes of the Arabian Peninsula.
Artwork Details
- Title: Pyxis
- Date: 8th century
- Geography: Made in Eastern Mediterranean, excavated at al-Fudayn (Mafraq), Jordan
- Medium: Ivory, carved, incised, and infilled with red and black pigments
- Dimensions: H:2 3/4 in (7 cm); diam: 3 9/16 in. (9 cm)
- Classification: Ivories
- Credit Line: Jordan Archaeological Museum, Amman (J. 15708)
- Curatorial Department: Medieval Art and The Cloisters