Jar

Object Details

• Description

  Jar: inverted pear shape, with cylindrical neck, and pronounced, beveled foot. Restoration at lip.

  Clay: soft, white.

  Glaze: brilliant green-blue, with small areas of iridescence. Thin greenish wash on the base. Decoration: painted in black under glaze.

• Label

  Before the devastating Mongol invasion in the mid-thirteenth century, the city of Raqqa in northern Syria became an important ceramic center.

  This elegant jar is characteristic of one type of ware associated with Raqqa. It is decorated with bold black designs under a transparent turquoise glaze that is often quite thickly applied and appears almost in relief.

• Provenance

  To 1908

  Vincenzo Marcopoli, Aleppo, Syria, to 1908 [1]

  From 1908 to 1919

  Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919), purchased from Vincenzo Marcopoli in 1908 [2]

  From 1920

  Freer Gallery of Art, gift of Charles Lang Freer in 1920 [3]

  Notes:

  [1] See Original Pottery List, L. 1790, as well as Journal Voucher No. 2, December 1908, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives.

  [2] See note 1.

  [3] The original deed of Charles Lang Freer's gift was signed in 1906. The collection was received in 1920 upon the completion of the Freer Gallery.

• Collection

  Freer Gallery of Art Collection

• Exhibition History

  Engaging the Senses (October 14, 2017 - ongoing)

  Arts of the Islamic World (May 3, 1998 to January 3, 2016)

  Art of the Arab World (August 15, 1980 to May 13, 1981)

  Art of the Arab World (May 8, 1975 to August 20, 1977)

• Previous custodian or owner

  Vincenzo Marcopoli (C.L. Freer source)

  Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919)

• Origin

  Raqqa, Syria

• Credit Line

  Gift of Charles Lang Freer

• Type

  Vessel

• On View

  Freer Gallery 04: Engaging the Senses

• Restrictions and Rights

  Usage Conditions Apply

  There are restrictions for re-using this media. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page.

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Keep Exploring

• Related Resources

  collections.si.edu

• Date

  1100s, 1200s

• Name

  Freer, Charles Lang, Marcopoli, Vincenzo

• Place

  Raqqa

• Topic

  Charles Lang Freer collection, Raqqa ware, Art, Arts of the Islamic World, Stone-paste, Iridescence, Ceramics

• Culture

  Muslims, Syrians

• Object Type

  Vessels (containers)

• On View

  Yes