Bowl with Calligraphy, anonymous, c. 900 - c. 999
painting, h c.7.5cm × d c.21cm More details
In the Islamic world calligraphy is considered the highest form of art. After all, the Koran is transmitted through writing. Some objects are decorated with pseudo writing devoid of meaning and serving a purely symbolic or aesthetic function. The inscriptions on this early 10th-century Iranian piece of pottery are still in Arabic. The repetitive pattern painted on this bowl may be the word Allah or al yumn, which means ‘prosperity’.
