Ornamental vessel

The body imitates the form of a turned metal vase. There is a protruding, wide, short and cylindrical body between the high, narrowing foot and the broad, high neck. The surface is decorated in stripes of richly varied plant and geometrical motifs, divided by different friezes. The middle part shows blossoming flower heads among leaves, on a chequered background. Although the shapes is also known in far-eastern, Chinese art, and the geometrical leiwen (lightning) motif on the rim is also Chinese, the combination of these motifs with flowers and the three-ball pattern on the neck suggest that the vase revives rather the elements of Anatolian Islamic art from Asia Minor. The colours are yellow, terracotta-red, turquoise and black against the white base.