Bowl with Kufic Calligraphy
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Object Label
Cosmetics and Eye Care
Egyptian women and men used eye makeup for both decoration and protection.
The most popular eye cosmetic consisted of ground galena, a dark lead ore, mixed with water or gum to produce a black paste called kohl. It was stored in squat containers usually made of stone. Applied to the rims and lashes, kohl emphasized the eyes’ contours and reduced sun glare, much like lamp-black worn by modern football players.
This ancient cosmetic is still used as eye makeup throughout the Near East.
Caption
Bowl with Kufic Calligraphy, 10th century. Ceramic; earthenware, painted in brown slip on a white slip ground under a transparent glaze, 5 1/16 in. (12.9 cm) diameter: 16 3/4 in. (42.5 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of the Ernest Erickson Foundation, Inc., 86.227.8. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 86.227.8_PS2.jpg)
Collection
Collection
Title
Bowl with Kufic Calligraphy
Date
10th century
Period
Samanid Period
Geography
Possible place made: Greater Khurasan, Possible place made: Northeast Iran, Iran
Medium
Ceramic; earthenware, painted in brown slip on a white slip ground under a transparent glaze
Classification
Dimensions
5 1/16 in. (12.9 cm) diameter: 16 3/4 in. (42.5 cm)
Inscriptions
In Arabic (Kufic script), "التدبیر قبل العمل یؤمنک من الندم، الصبر مففتاح الفرج” [Planning before work protects from regrets; patience is the key to comfort]. The two proverbs written on this bowl are attributed to Imam `Ali. The proverbs were published by Abdullah Ghouchani in “Inscriptions on Nishapur Pottery” (1986, see Bibliography for full citation in English and Persian). In Arabic (Kufic script), "Planning before work protects from regrets; patience is the key to comfort." The two proverbs written on this bowl are attributed to Imam `Ali. The proverbs were published by Abdullah Ghouchani in “Inscriptions on Nishapur Pottery” (1986, see Bibliography for full citation in English and Persian). Inscription read by Abdullah Ghouchani
Credit Line
Gift of the Ernest Erickson Foundation, Inc.
Accession Number
86.227.8
Rights
Creative Commons-BY
You may download and use Brooklyn Museum images of this three-dimensional work in accordance with a Creative Commons license. Fair use, as understood under the United States Copyright Act, may also apply. Please include caption information from this page and credit the Brooklyn Museum. If you need a high resolution file, please fill out our online application form (charges apply). For further information about copyright, we recommend resources at the United States Library of Congress, Cornell University, Copyright and Cultural Institutions: Guidelines for U.S. Libraries, Archives, and Museums, and Copyright Watch. For more information about the Museum's rights project, including how rights types are assigned, please see our blog posts on copyright. If you have any information regarding this work and rights to it, please contact copyright@brooklynmuseum.org.
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