POWERHOUSE COLLECTION

Wine pitcher جام شراب

Object No. A3935

This large wine pitcher was handcrafted in 19th-century Persia (Iran). A highly prized object, it was probably made under the patronage of a wealthy Qajar family by one of the ceramist masters (sofalgar) in the city of Isfahan or Kashan, known for ceramic production since the 11th century. During the late Qajar era (1800s-1900s), many royal and aristocratic families in Persia had a strong interest in collecting similar pictorial ceramic objects. As a result, a range of pictorial ceramic vases and pitchers found their way into the lifestyles of royal and aristocratic families, and consequently similar high-quality crafts were adopted for the Persian market. This Qajar pitcher is made of fritware, a mixture of minerals, mostly made of glass and clay. The pitcher’s surface is painted over with a general white lustre. The design of the main body is unique and beautifully decorated on both sides with the motifs of two lovers in a garden holding a cup of wine (sharab) and a Persian lute (barbat) in their hands. The neck and the main body of this pitcher is also painted with 'floral and foliate' (gol-o barg) bands. The paintings of two lovers in the garden recalls a series of Persian poems engraved on the surface of other objects in the Powerhouse collection (A5828, A5829, A5832), which are from the famous Ghazaliyat of Khajeh Shamseddin Mohammad Hafiz Shirazi (Hafez, 1315-1390), the renowned Persian poet. In Persian visual, literal and oral culture, the concepts of wine, wine drinking and intoxication can have at least three different interpretations: factual, literary, and mystical. The usage of wine in a factual manner draws attention to where the intention is to show the pleasures of earthly life. However, in some philosophical and mystical usages, mostly depicted through art objects such as this wine pitcher, drinking wine, being intoxicated and dancing refer to achieving a type of celestial knowledge and spiritual cognition; being prepared for something beyond the routine human life. In such cases, symbolically drinking wine unveils the unseen and reveals secrets. Dr Pedram Khosronejad, Curator of Persian Arts, 2021

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Summary

Object Statement

Wine pitcher, depicting two lovers, glazed fritware (stonepaste) / underglaze painting, Isfahan / Kashan, Persia (Iran), Qajar era, 1800s

Physical Description

Qajar fritware under glazed pottery pitcher with complex design. The neck and main body are painted with foliate motifs and vegetal bands. There are motifs of two lovers on both sides of this pitcher depicted in a garden holding a cup of wine and Persian lute in hand.

DIMENSIONS

Height

445 mm

Width

225 mm

Depth

215 mm

SOURCE

Credit Line

Gift of Mr John Shorter, 1943

Acquisition Date

2 November 1943

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