Mosque-lamp
BackDescription:
Mosque lamp, gilded and enamelled, painted with lotus flowers.
Object type: | mosque-lamp |
Museum number: | 1881,0909.3 |
Culture/period: | Mamluk dynasty |
Date: | 1350 (circa) |
Production place: | Made in: Syria |
Findspot: | Found/Acquired: Cairo~Found/Acquired: Fustat |
Materials: | glass, gold |
Technique: | gilded |
Dimensions: | Diameter: 24.00 cm (Rim) Height: 38.50 cm |
Location: | 9 |
Exhibition history: | Exhibited: 2002 20 Feb-15 May, Greece, Athens, Benaki Museum, Glass of the Sultans 2001 17 Sep-2002 14 Jan, USA, New York, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Glass of the Sultans 2001 24 May-2 Oct, USA, Corning, Corning Museum of Glass, Glass of the Sultans |
Subjects: | sultan/sultana |
Acquisition names: | From: Sir Augustus Wollaston Franks |
Acquisition date: | 1881 |
Curator's comments:
Unlike most Mamluk mosque lamps, this one bears no inscriptions. Others like it are associated with the Mamluk sultan Hasan ibn Muhammad (r. 1347–51, 1354–61). Three circular medallions composed of plant motifs in coloured enamels appear in place of the more traditional heraldic emblem. The design features a dark blue enamelled background with Chinese inspired lotuses. When lit, the flowers would have emerged out of their foliage, glittering against the background and conjuring thoughts of Paradise. The lamp is said to have been found at the Monastery of Saint Theodorus in Cairo.
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