A MONUMENTAL KASHAN LUSTRE POTTERY DISHILKHANID IRAN, LATE 13TH/EARLY 14TH CENTURYA MONUMENTAL KASHAN LUSTRE POTTERY DISHILKHANID IRAN, LATE 13TH/EARLY 14TH CENTURYThe central roundel with a figure riding a horse, encircled by a band of cobalt-blue pseudo-inscriptions, the cavetto with eight musicians against floral ground, the rim with a further band of pseudo-inscriptions, repaired breaks and areas of restoration18in. (45.7cm.) diam.This is a spectacular example of a large-scale Ilkhanid lustre dish. Although there has been some restoration, the drawing on the original elements is extremely elegant and precise - the face of the central rider and his horse, their elaborate spotted coats, and the moon-faced musicians that decorate the rim, for instance, are all drawn with a beautiful finesse. Ilkhanid figural lustre, particularly on this scale, is rare. The lustre here is beautifully dark and intense, and the drawing finds close comparison with that on a number of tiles that are typically dated late 13th or early 14th century. The figures, for instance, bear resemblance to those that decorate a number of tiles in the Museum of the Shrine of Fatima in Qumm, one dated AH 661/1263 AD and another attributed to the latter part of the 13th century (Arthur Upham Pope, ‘New Findings in Persian Ceramics of the Islamic Period’, Bulletin of the American Institute for Iranian Art and Archaeology, Vol.5, no.2, December 1937, figs.5 and 6, p.155 and 157). Our mounted horseman also finds stylistic resemblance to images from the Diez Album, originally from an early fourteenth century copy of Rashid al-Din’s Jami’ al-Tawarikh. The depiction of the horse, the horseman’s turban and the wide rounded faces of our figures all bear resemblance to those of a folio depicting a Mongol Travelling (Diez A fol.71,S.53; published The Legacy of Genghis Khan, exhibition catalogue, New York, 2002, p.43, fig.39, cat.no.22). The heavy lotus-like palmettes, also find comparison on later 13th century tiles, including those on the star tile which is lot 31 in this sale. Although there are numerous tiles that survive from this later period of lustre production, there are fewer vessels and even less on this grand scale, which allows for a real strength of design. Another very large Ilkhanid lustre dish, very different in design but with a similar overall feeling, was previously in the Kevorkian collection, and offered for sale at Sotheby’s, London, October 2011, lot 216.细节 A MONUMENTAL KASHAN LUSTRE POTTERY DISHILKHANID IRAN, LATE 13TH/EARLY 14TH CENTURYThe central roundel with a figure riding a horse, encircled by a band of cobalt-blue pseudo-inscriptions, the cavetto with eight musicians against floral ground, the rim with a further band of pseudo-inscriptions, repaired breaks and areas of restoration18in. (45.7cm.) diam. 来源 Excavated Ray, 1928 注意事项 This lot has been imported from outside of the UK for sale and placed under the Temporary Admission regime. Import VAT is payable at 5% on the hammer price. VAT at 20% will be added to the buyer’s premium but will not be shown separately on our invoice. The USA prohibits the purchase by US persons of Iranian-origin “works of conventional craftsmanship” such as carpets, textiles, decorative objects, and scientific instruments. The US sanctions apply to US persons regardless of the location of the transaction or the shipping intentions of the US person. For this reason, Christie’s will not accept bids by US persons on this lot. Non-US persons wishing to import this lot into the USA are advised that they will need to apply for an OFAC licence and that this can take many months to be granted.