ticketsMember | Make a donation

Black and Blue Painted Bowl

early 13th century
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 453
The whiteness of stonepaste provided a canvas upon which potters could paint pigments directly, rather than applying a slip. By the early thirteenth century, a new type emerged, decorated in black and blue against the white ground, usually with vegetal motifs inside radial frameworks. The stable black pigment creates crisp outlines and fine details, while the rather runny blue fills contours and highlights forms. Underglaze painting would have long‑term consequences on the development of Iranian ceramics.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Black and Blue Painted Bowl
  • Date: early 13th century
  • Geography: Made in Iran, probably Kashan
  • Medium: Stonepaste; polychrome painted under transparent glaze
  • Dimensions: H. 3 7/8 in. (9.8 cm)
    Diam. of rim: 8 13/16 in. (22.4 cm)
    H. of base: 13/16 (2.1 cm)
    Diam. of base: 3 7/16 in. (8.7 cm)
  • Classification: Ceramics
  • Credit Line: Purchase, Joseph Pulitzer Bequest, 1964
  • Object Number: 64.256
  • Curatorial Department: Islamic Art

More Artwork

More Artwork
A slider containing 5 items.
Press the down key to skip to the last item.
Pierced Jug with Harpies and Sphinxes, Stonepaste; openwork, underglaze-painted, glazed in transparent turquoise
Pierced Jug with Harpies and Sphinxes
dated 612 AH/1215–16 CE
Luster Bowl with Winged Horse, Stonepaste; luster-painted on opaque monochrome glaze
Luster Bowl with Winged Horse
late 12th century
Bowl with Deer and Phoenix Motifs, Stonepaste; blue and black painted under transparent glaze (Sultanabad ware)
Bowl with Deer and Phoenix Motifs
first half 14th century
Bowl with Bahram Gur and Azada, Stonepaste; glazed (opaque monochrome), in-glaze- and overglaze-painted, gilded
Bowl with Bahram Gur and Azada
late 12th–early 13th century
Bowl with Musicians, Stonepaste; luster-painted on opaque monochrome glaze
Bowl with Musicians
mid-13th century

Related Content

Publications

Books, guides, and catalogues published by The Met.

Research Resources

The Met provides unparalleled resources for research and welcomes an international community of students and scholars. The Met's Open Access API is where creators and researchers can connect to the The Met collection. Open Access data and public domain images are available for unrestricted commercial and noncommercial use without permission or fee.

To request images under copyright and other restrictions, please use this Image Request form.

Feedback

We continue to research and examine historical and cultural context for objects in The Met collection. If you have comments or questions about this object record, please complete and submit this form. The Museum looks forward to receiving your comments.