Height 26.9 cm (10 1/2 in.), diameter 14.5 cm (5 3/4 in.)
LNS 321 C
Despite the popularity of underglaze-painted blue-and-white wares, a revival of lustre painting
occurred in Iranian ceramics during the second half of the seventeenth century.
The neck of this graceful bottle with a low foot and ovoid body has a thick ring to provide support
while liquid is poured out of the bottle; the mouth is shaped as a spout to control the flow of the
contents. The white body was covered with a dark blue slip and coated with a transparent glaze,
above which the design was painted in deep copper red lustre. the decoration follows a repertoire of
the age and employs floral sprays, tufts of grass, cypress trees, flying birds, vases, and lobed
cartouches in an overall design.
Lobed cartouches were commonly used on ceramics as well as metalwork. Landscape elements,
however, are derived from manuscript decoration and recall the marginal drawings executed in gold.
