The textiles shown here were made for wealthy Chinese households.
While some were purely ornamental, many served a practical as well as decorative purpose. Certain sets of furnishings were reserved for use only on special occasions.」
V&A(ヴィクトリア&アルバート博物館)中国ギャラリーにある展示の説明で、 テーマは 「RULING – Pursuit of Antiquity(統治 ― 古代の探求)」
「RULING – Pursuit of Antiquity
The Qing emperors considered themselves protectors of China’s cultural heritage. In the 18th century, ambitious projects were launched to build the palace collections of antiques. The treasures amassed ranged from calligraphy and paintings by greatmasters to archaic bronze vessels and rare 12th-century imperial ru wares.Catalogues of the collections were also compiled. This fascination with antiquity alsoinfluenced contemporary works produced in the imperial workshop: new objects weremade in deliberate imitation of antiques from the past.
Nos. 1, 7, 10, 12 and 15 from the Eumorfopoulos collection. Purchased with the assistance of the Art Fund, the Vallentin Bequest, Sir Percival David and the Universities China Committee.」
「Chinese wine was made from rice, until the grapevine was introduced to China via the Middle East during the 2nd century BC.
Scholars and literati approved of wine, believing that their creative powers were stimulated by alcohol. Consequently, many great poets and calligraphers wereknown for their love of drinking.
Wine was also offered to deities and the dead during ritual worship. Jade wine cups had an added significance for Daoist followers, who believed jade to have a preserving effect on the body.」
The rapid rise of Islam in the 7th century AD transformed the history of the Middle East.The religion was founded by the Prophet Muhammad, and after his death in 632 it wasruled as a religious and political state. Within 100 years it had expanded across threecontinents. By 750 it stretched from the Atlantic Ocean to the borders of India.
Two hundred years later this single Islamic empire had fragmented under the number of competing states. Despite these rivalries, the Muslim rulers of the time sharedmany ideas on culture and politics, as well as religion.
This common Islamic heritage was maintained until the 1920s. By then, almostthe whole region was under European colonial control. In most Muslim societies Islam remains the most important source of law, education and culture.
Throughout its long political history, art continued to be the principal means of religious expression and a key marker of status in both a religious and a political system.」
Málaga in Spain was still under Muslim rule when this large bowl was made. The city had been an important centre of lustre production since the early 13th century, and its wares were exported as far as England and Egypt.
This bowl may have been made for the export trade. It shows a long-haul sailing ship of the period with the arms of Christian-ruled Portugal on its sail.
Earthenware under an opaque white glaze, with colour in and lustre over the glaze
「Lustre Tiles(right)Iran, probably Kashan1262Many innovations originated in the Islamic Middle East. Decorating glazed ceramicswith metallic lustre was one of them. This difficult technique was invented in Iraq in the 9th century. It spread over an area stretching from Spain to Iran, where thesetiles were made.The tiles are from the tomb of a descendant of the Prophet Muhammad at Varaminnear Teheran. The designs, each subtly different, are surrounded by quotations fromthe Qur’an. Fritware painted in lustre over transparent glaze Museum nos. 1487, 1489, 18376A, C, E, F, 18388C, E-1876; 1077, 10996A, 11006」
When the Middle East passed under Islamic rule in the 7th century, there was no sudden break in artistic production. Early Islamic art continued much of what hadgone before. Yet it was not a simple transition from one culture to another, since the eastern and western halves of the Middle East were heirs to two distinct artistic traditions.
One originated in the Sasanian empire, which had ruled Iraq, Iran and the western part of Central Asia for four centuries before the Islamic conquest. The other was the Christianised form of Roman art we know as Byzantine, which was current in Syria and Egypt.
Islamic art was formed by the merger of these two traditions, and by the gradual addition of many new elements.」
The lower two column capitals are from the palace complex of Madinat al-Zahra near Córdoba, founded in 936. The lowest has a ‘composite’ form that is entirely Roman, except for the inscription in Arabic along the top edge. The middle capital has the same shape, but the surfaces have been decorated with plant motifs.
This column capital, made 400 years later, is clearly Islamic. It has the same basic form as the earlier examples, but the acanthus leaves have become purely abstract shapes. They were originally painted with patterns in gold as well as blue.
Artists in the Islamic world were inspired by the principles of geometry.
With a compass and ruler, they created an infinite number of star patterns and polygons.
These could be used alone or overlaid with floral and calligraphic decoration.
Geometry was also important in architecture, with complex vaulting and domes often decorated with star patterns.
The 16-pointed star (top) is from a panel from the Alhambra Palace, Spain, 14th century. The tooled leather bookbindings (left and right) were made in Iran in the 15th century. The painted page (below) is from a 16th-century Iranian manuscript.」
In many Islamic societies, scenes containing humans and animals were a common type of decoration in non-religious contexts. The source of this imagery was usually poetry, the most highly esteemed form of secular literature.
Luxury copies of narrative poems were often illustrated with fine paintings, and themore familiar episodes were depicted on palace walls and objects. Love lyrics accompanied portrayals of beautiful young men and women. Odes in praise of the ruler inspired enthronement scenes. The recitation of poems at court was depicted,as were princely activities such as hunting and playing polo.
In certain times and places, however, the ban on images in religious contexts was extended to the secular sphere, and decoration was confined to calligraphic, geometric and plant-based ornament.」
This basin is decorated with tight concentric scrolls in black, which bear tiny leaves and flowers. This pattern is often known as the ‘Golden Horn’ design, because examples were excavated near the inlet in Istanbul known as the Golden Horn.
Blue and turquoise motifs are set into the pattern. They resemble the enamelled plaques found on some silverware of the same period.
Anatolia – the Asian part of modern Turkey – was settled by Muslim Turks from about 1070 onwards. In the following century a sultanate was founded there by the Seljuk dynasty. By 1300 this state had disintegrated, and a new dynasty, the Ottomans, arose. From their base in the northwest, the Ottomans conquered the rest of Anatolia and the Balkans, and in 1453 they seized Constantinople (Istanbul), which became their capital.
The overthrow of the Mamluks of Egypt in 1517 and similar successes gave the Ottomans an empire that stretched from Algeria to Iraq and included the holy sites of Mecca and Medina.
In the 16th century, the wealth of the Ottomans was reflected in sumptuous decorative arts. Their bold designs rarely included human or animal figures, a feature that was deliberately designed to distinguish them from those produced in Iran at this time.」
「Vase with FlowersTurkey, probably IznikAbout 1575Ceramics with a white fritware body were a distinctive part of Ottoman art. Potters often showed great skill in matching the designs they used to the shapes of vessels. Here tulips, carnations and other flowering plants seem to sway gently in a breeze, following the curved shape of the vase.Fritware painted under the glazeMuseum no. 232-1876」
From the 1550s, white fritware was also used for wall tiles. This pair was made to frame a small niche in a wall. Niches were often used for storage, in place of furniture. They were also used for the display of objects suggesting refinement, such as a vase of flowers.
The Ottomans used luxurious silk textiles for furnishings and for men's and women's clothing. The most prestigious were velvet and complex silk weaves called kemha and seraser. These often incorporated thread wrapped with silver or gilded silver.
The main centre for silk-weaving was Bursa in north-west Anatolia in Turkey. The industry was established there in the 15th century, largely to compete with Italian imports.
Velvet brocade, or çatma, was used for clothing as well as furnishings, such as the three cushion covers displayed here. The designs were created with bright motifs of metal-wrapped thread set against the silk velvet background.」
The names around the hood are those of the Seven Sleepers. Persecuted under the Roman emperor Decius, these Christian men took refuge in a cave. They fell asleep, waking centuries later under Christian rule.
The Seven Sleepers are mentioned in the Qur’an as an example of God’s protection of the righteous. Their names were therefore used to invoke that protection.
「Tile-top TableTurkey, Iznik and IstanbulAbout 1560In Ottoman palaces, guests sat on a low bench, or divan, built against the wall. Trays of food and drink were set before them, resting on tables of this type.Wood faced with ebony, with inlay of ivory and mother-of-pearl; fritware painted under the glazeMuseum no. C.19-1987」
The shapes of Iznik vessels were derived from sources as varied as metalwork (9–11), leatherwork (14) and Chinese and Italian ceramics. Models included the Chinese‘grape dish’ (2) and the Italian tondino form (15).
By the 1530s, small sprays of tulips and other recognisable flowers were a common motif (9, 10, 15), but from the 1550s these were replaced by compositions on alarger scale. Many were originally developed for tilework (1, 3).」
The imperial court’s patronage of Iznik ceramics was renewed during the construction of the Suleymaniye mosque in Istanbul in 1550s.
The finest tiles were produced, and a bright red was added to the range of colours painted under the glaze. This was achieved with a slip made from a special clay.
In the following decades, tiles of high quality were decorated in red, green, turquoise, blue on a white ground. Dishes, bottles and other vessels had similar decoration on white or coloured grounds.
From the 1580s, however, standards declined and court patronage ceased. The tile industry in Iznik ceramic production was imitated by other towns (ifillegible?) and local demand. Waning importance led eventually in the 18th century to former imperial production being replaced in Istanbul called Tekfur Sarayi.」
These eight tiles show two repeats of a complex pattern. It combines an oversized arabesque in red, and fantastic blossoms formed from smaller flowers and leaves. One motif is superimposed on another, but there is no attempt to create an illusion of depth. Instead, the motifs are laid out over the flat surface of the tile.
Many Ottoman tiles and vessels originally had gilded decoration. The gold was applied cold to the finished ceramic. In many cases, it was later removed because of its value. Tiles similar to this were used to decorate the tomb of Sultan Mehmet I in Bursa. He died in 1421.
Earthenware under opaque green glaze with gilded decoration