IZNIK POLYCHROME DISH DECORATED WITH ROTATING RED TULIPS

Ottoman Empire Second Half of the 16th Century Diameter: 26.2 cm.

Fritware, underglaze painted in blue, coral red, green, black. Decorated with rotating red tulips around a central flower head, the rim with blue double-tulip motifs and red flower heads.

The tulip has a symbolic meaning in Ottoman art. The letters of the word tulip (Lâle [ هللا]) in Turkish and Persian are the same letters used for writing the word Allah [ اللَّه] (God). These two words have the same numerological value in the abjad system (a decimal alphabetic numeral system in which the twenty-eight letters of the Arabic alphabet are assigned numerical values). Tulip is one of the leading decorative elements in Ottoman art; frequently used together with roses, hyacinths, saz leaves. It is also used with khatai blossoms as can be seen in the present dish. Tulip also played a role in imagery in Ottoman poetry. In many poems, tulip leaves are likened to the cheeks of the beloved. The word lāleh-khad (lâle-had), often used in Ottoman poetry, means ‘tulip-cheeked’. Tulips were among the most favoured motifs used in the Ottoman court workshops in the 16th century. The name ‘tulip’ is thought to have derived from the Turkish word tülbend (from the Persian word دنبلد [dulband]) -meaning ‘large cotton band which is used in the making of turban or headgear’- because of the fancied resemblance of the flower to a turban.

During the 16th and 17th centuries interest in tulip breeding grew in Istanbul and şükûfenâmes (books on flowers) and treatises were written about tulips. For further information please see, Motif from the Sadberk Hanım Museum Collection (written by Turgut Saner, Şebnem Eryavuz and Hülya Bilgi), Sadberk Hanım Museum, Istanbul, 2020, pp. 90-93.

In the present dish, the rotating tulips form a ‘wheel of fortune’ motif which symbolises movement and transformation because of its endless turning movement. This motif has been used throughout the world since antiquity and although its meaning has varied from culture to culture it has principally symbolized various cosmic elements associated with the cycle of life. For further information please see, Motif from the Sadberk Hanım Museum Collection (written by Turgut Saner, Şebnem Eryavuz and Hülya Bilgi), Sadberk Hanım Museum, Istanbul, 2020, pp. 46-49.

A related Iznik dish decorated with rotating tulips is in the Ömer M. Koç Collection. Please see, Hülya Bilgi, AteşinOyunu–SadberkHanımMüzesiveÖmerM.Koç KoleksiyonlarındanİznikÇiniveSeramikleri, Vehbi Koç Vakfı, İstanbul, 2009, p. 280, pl. 164.

Comparable Iznik dishes decorated rotating central designs can be seen in the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation Museum (Inv. No. 819), Lisbon, Fitzwilliam museum (Inv. No. C.30-1911), Cambridge, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (Inv. no. 1971-23). Please see, Julian Raby & Nurhan Atasoy, Iznik: The Pottery of Ottoman Turkey, Alexandria Press, London, 1989, p. 243, pl. 466, 467, 468.

Provenance: Ex-Monsieur B. Collection, Paris. Ex-Private Belgian Collection.

Iznik Polychrome Dish Decorated With Bunches Of Spring Flowers And Blue Tulips

Ottoman Empire Second Half of the 16th Century Diameter: 30 cm.

Fritware, underglaze painted in cobalt blue, coral red, green, black. Decorated with bunches of red and blue spring flowers, the rim with blue double-tulip motifs and flower heads.

In the Ottoman period flowers, decorating the present dish, were a constant part of daily life, grown in gardens everywhere, from palaces to humble homes. Flowers were blessed reminders of the gardens of heaven. Foreign travellers and ambassadors who visited the empire frequently remarked about this love of flowers. The 17th century Ottoman writer and traveller Evliya Çelebi describes how vases of roses, tulips, hyacinths, narcissi and lilies were placed between the rows of worshippers in the Eski Mosque and the Üç Şerefeli Mosque in Edirne, and how their scent filled the prayer halls. As depicted in the present dish, vases of flowers adorned niches in the walls, dining trays and rows of vases were placed around rooms and pools. For further information please see, Motif from the Sadberk Hanım Museum Collection (written by Turgut Saner, Şebnem Eryavuz and Hülya Bilgi), Sadberk Hanım Museum, Istanbul, 2020, pp. 86-90.

The tulip, repeatedly used in rim of our dish, has a symbolic meaning in Ottoman art. The letters of the word tulip (Lâle [ هللا]) in Turkish and Persian are the same letters used for writing the word Allah [ اللَّه] (God). These two words have the same numerological value in the abjad system (a decimal alphabetic numeral system in which the twenty-eight letters of the Arabic alphabet are assigned numerical values). Tulip is one of the leading decorative elements in Ottoman art; frequently used together with roses, hyacinths, saz leaves. It is also used with khatai blossoms as can be seen in the present tile. Tulip also played a role in imagery in Ottoman poetry. In many poems, tulip leaves are likened to the cheeks of the beloved.

The word lāleh-khad (lâle-had), often used in Ottoman poetry, means ‘tulip-cheeked’. Tulips were among the most favoured motifs used in the Ottoman court workshops in the 16th century. The name ‘tulip’ is thought to have derived from the Turkish word tülbend (from the Persian word دنبلد [dulband]) -meaning ‘large cotton band which is used in the making of turban or headgear’- because of the fancied resemblance of the flower to a turban.

A comparable Iznik dish decorated with almost identical bunches of spring flowers, is in the Louvre Museum (Inv. No. 7880/70), Paris. Please see, Julian Raby & Nurhan Atasoy, Iznik: The Pottery of Ottoman Turkey, Alexandria Press, London, 1989, p. 234, pl 425. The present dish is a rare and important example reflecting both the high quality and awe-inspiring creativity achieved by of Iznik potters.

Provenance:

Ex-Dr. Joseph Chompret Collection. (The present Iznik dish is recorded in Dr. Chompret’s personal collection register, in page 47.)

Dr. Chompret was born in Paris, in 1869. The son of a country doctor, he chose a medical career and obtained his medical degree in 1893. He specialized in stomatology, and invented the ‘syndesmotome’. For many years he was head of the Saint-Louis hospital in Paris. He was a great collector. He was interested in old cutlery, pewter, ivory and medieval enamels. However he was very enthusiastic about ceramics and his collection of French earthenware, Italian majolica and Middle Eastern ceramics is renowned. Doctor Chompret was also a great friend of museums. The Ceramic Museum of Sèvres received 280 pieces, and the Musée des Arts Décoratifs 339 pieces from Dr Chompret’s collection. Between 1931 and 1956 he was the president of the Friends of Sèvres (Amis de Sèvres) association. He died in 1956.

Ottoman Empire Second half of the 16th Century Height: 25 cm.