Bowl
Unknown Artist
late 8th–first half 9th century
Medium
Earthenware; slip covered with polychrome decoration under green transparent glaze
Dimensions
H. 3 1/2 in. (8.9 cm) Diam. 10 1/2 in. (26.7 cm)
Classification
Ceramics
Department
Islamic Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Rogers Fund, 1936
Accession Number
36.20.57
Art Historical Context
This elegant earthenware bowl, crafted by an unknown artist in the late 8th to first half of the 9th century, exemplifies the vibrant ceramic traditions of early Islamic art. Housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Islamic Art Department (acquired through the Rogers Fund in 1936), it measures a modest 3½ inches high and 10½ inches in diameter—perfect for daily use yet adorned with artistic flair. Dating to the Abbasid Caliphate's golden age, when Baghdad flourished as a cultural hub, such vessels reflect the era's technological and aesthetic innovations in pottery-making. The bowl's medium...