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Additional Views

Aug 11, 2011

Bird-shaped Vessel

1100s

Iran, Seljuq period

(1037–1194)

Bronze, cast, with chased and chiseled decoration; eyes inlaid with blue glass

Overall: 17.5 x 9.5 cm (6 7/8 x 3 3/4 in.)

Weight: 780 g (1.72 lbs.)

Edward L. Whittemore Fund 1948.458

Location

116 Islamic

Did you know?

There is an undeciphered Kufic inscription above the bird's tail feathers.

Description

This bird-shaped vessel may have been used as a medieval water vessel (aquamanile) for pouring water used in handwashing—an important element of secular and sacred rituals. In this piece, water could have been placed in the vessel through a hole in the bird’s chest and then poured out through the hinged beak. Birds in Islamic art often represented messengers and protectors, or symbolized freedom of the spirit and soaring of the soul. Possibly the blue-green eyes were considered good luck charms to protect the owner from the evil eye and to ward off misfortune.

Inscriptions

Inscription

Kufic inscription above tail feathers, undeciphered, possibly pseudo-inscription

Provenance

?-1948

(Heeramaneck Galleries, New York, NY, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art)

1948-

The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH

Citations

“Part II. Annual Report Issue for the Year 1948.” The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art, vol. 36, no. 6, 1949, pp. 111–142. Mentioned: p. 117 www.jstor.org

The Cleveland Museum of Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art Handbook. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1958. Mentioned and Reproduced: cat. no. 709 archive.org

Persian Art Before And After the Mongol Conquest.: [Exhibition] April 9-May 17, 1959. the University of Michigan, Museum of Art, Ann Arbor. Ann Arbor, MI: University of Michigan, Museum of Art, 1959. Mentioned: cat. no. 57, p. 32

The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1966. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1966. Reproduced: p. 209 archive.org

The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1969. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1969. Reproduced: p. 209 archive.org

The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1978. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1978. Reproduced: p. 265 archive.org

Exhibition history

Persian Art Before and After the Mongol Conquest. University of Michigan Museum of Art, Ann Arbor, MI (organizer) (April 9-May 17, 1959).

The Exhibition of Persian Art: 7000 Years of Art in Iran. Petit Palais, Musée des Beaux-Arts de la Ville de Paris, Paris, France (organizer) (October 19, 1961-January 31, 1962); Villa Hügel, Essen, Germany (February 16-April 24, 1962); Kunsthaus Zürich, CH-8024 Zürich, Switzerland (May 17-July 22, 1962); Gemeentemuseum den Haag, The Hague, Netherlands (September 4-November 18, 1962); MAK, the Österreichisches Museum für angewandte Kunst/Gegenwartskunst, Vienna, Austria (January 16-March 31, 1963).

Juxtapositions. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (September 11-October 10, 1965).

Art of the Islamic World (Islamic art rotation). The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (May 21, 2021-May 31, 2022).

Cite this page

{{cite web|title=Bird-shaped Vessel|url=https://clevelandart.org/art/1948.458|year=1100s|access-date=07 June 2023|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

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Bird-shaped Vessel

Bird-shaped Vessel

Iran, Seljuq period

Location

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Description

Inscription

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