The white ground painted in bole-red, cobalt blue, green and black, the centre decorated with a a cypress tree surrounded by roses and hyacinths, the cusped rim with stylised 'wave and rock' motif, the reverse with alternating blue rosette and tulip design, two old collection stickers on the base, one crack running from rim into the bowl.

Note: A dish similarly decorated with a central cypress tree surrounded by broken branches of carnations is in the Ömer Koç collection attributed to 1570-75 (Hülya Bilgi, The Ömer Koç Iznik Collection, Istanbul, 2015, pp.130-31, no.23). Like ours that has a cusped wave and rock design rim. Ours is however much larger and painted in a softer shade of green.

Lot 123. A blue and white  Iznik pottery tile, Ottoman Turkey, circa 1530; 27.1 x 18.2cm. Price realised GBP 5,040 (Estimate GBP 5,000 – GBP 7,000). © Christie's Images Ltd 2023

Of rectangular form, the white ground painted in cobalt-blue and turquoise with a design based around a quatrefoil motif issuing four flowerheads alternating with split palmettes, the spandrels with elegant arabesque reserved against cobalt-blue ground.

Provenance: Anon sale, Sotheby's, London, 11 February 1964, lot 14.

Note: A tile of identical design is in the British Museum (Venetia Porter, Islamic Tiles, London, 1995, no.94, p.105).

Lot 124. A blue and white Iznik pottery tile, Ottoman Turkey, circa 1530; 27.6 x 21cm. Price realised GBP 8,820 (Estimate GBP 5,000 – GBP 7,000). © Christie's Images Ltd 2023

Of rectangular form, the white ground painted with cobalt-blue and turquoise, decorated with a central cartouche containing flowerheads and palmettes, surrounded by further flowerheads and vines, a foliate border on each long side.

Provenance: Artcurial, Paris, 11 April 2013, lot 191.

Lot 126. A pair of Iznik pottery tiles, Ottoman Turkey, circa 1590; 26 x 26cm. Price realised GBP 7,560 (Estimate GBP 5,000 – GBP 7,000). © Christie's Images Ltd 2023

Each square form, the white ground painted with cobalt-blue, bole-red, turquoise and black, decorated with swirling saz leaves on vines issuing fleshy palmettes and flowerheads.

Provenance: Anon. sale., Sotheby's, London, 9 October 2008, lot 324.

Lot 127. An Iznik pottery tile, Ottoman Turkey, circa 1580; 29.2 x 33.8cm. Price realised GBP 12,600 (Estimate GBP 5,000 – GBP 7,000). © Christie's Images Ltd 2023

The white ground finely decorated with two confronted cobalt-blue palmettes linked by tendrils issuing green saz leaves with bole-red spines, three sides with a border of green palmettes between red bands, chips to edges, intact.

Provenance: Anon sale, Christie's, London, 29 April 2003, lot 169.

Note: This tile shows an interesting feature in the use of black outlines. Two different tones are used, one of which is softer, paler and definitely under the glaze. The other appears to relate to the black which is used in the cuerda seca tiles, but which appears almost to have been painted on top of the glaze before it was fired. The heavy outlines of the border palmettes show this second thicker black very clearly.

A tile with a very similar design of a lattice formed of curling saz leaves, small blue rosettes and fleshy palmettes sold in these Rooms, 6 October 2011, lot 315 (now in the Sadberk Hanim Museum). Whilst the palmette borders there were slightly different, the finesse of the drawing is absolutely the same.

Lot 128. A large Iznik pottery tankard, Ottoman Turkey, circa 1580; 19.2cm high. Price realised GBP 32,760 (Estimate GBP 25,000 – GBP 35,000). © Christie's Images Ltd 2023

Of typical form with angular handle, the white ground decorated in turquoise, cobalt-blue and bole-red with repeating bands of small turquoise clouds alternated with cobalt-blue dots, bands of red and white strapwork above and below, the handle with cobalt-blue accents, rim chips with small areas of restoration.

Provenance: Dr. Josef Kranz, Vienna,
Sold Rudolph Lepke's Kunst-Auction-Haus, Berlin, 8 November 1927, lot 21
Anon. sale, Sotheby's, New York, 30 May 1986, lot 115
Anon. sale, Christie's, London, 9th October 2014, lot 90.

Exhibited: Ottoman Treasures: Rugs and Ceramics from the Collection of Dr. and Mrs. William T. Price, Birmingham Museum of Art, Alabama, 2004, no.43.

Note: An Iznik jug also decorated entirely with clouds, although there white reserved against a dark green ground, is in the collection of Ömer Koç (published Hülya Bilgi, Iznik. The Ömer Koç Collection, Istanbul, 2015, no.194, p.434). That is attributed to circa 1580-85.

Lot 134. An Iznik pottery dish, Ottoman Turkey, circa 1590; 30.6 cm.) diam. Price realised GBP 79,380 (Estimate GBP 30,000 – GBP 50,000). © Christie's Images Ltd 2023

Rimless on short foot, the interior with a central red roundel containing small flowerheads around a cental rosette, the cavetto with radiating cusped panels, a red ground band of meandering leaves around the rim, the exterior with rosettes alternating with paired tulips.

Provenance: Fernand Jeuniette (d.1918), sold Paris, 1919,
Lagonico Collection, Jean Lagonico no.6, thence by descent until
sold Sotheby's Monaco, 7 December 1991, lot 7.

The white ground decorated in cobalt-blue, bole-red, green and black with a depiction of a spotted trotting horse with bridle surrounded by scrolling vine, the rim with alternating floral spray and blue rosette motifs between black rings, the exterior with alternating blue and green motifs, chips to rim, drill hole, the exterior with four blue decorative motifs.

Note: A similar Iznik dish depicting a spotted blue horse is in the Kiraç Collection (Laure Soustiel, Splendeurs de la Ceramique Ottomane, Paris, 2000, no.57, p.96) and another, plain blue, is in the Ömer Koç Collection, published in Hülya Bilgi, Dance of Fire, Istanbul, 2009, no.312, p.476. For similarly decorated Iznik dishes in auction see Christie’s London, 26 April 2005, lot 7 and Bonhams London, 24 April 2012, lot 129.

Christie's. ART OF THE ISLAMIC AND INDIAN WORLDS INCLUDING ORIENTAL RUGS AND CARPETS, London, 27.04.2023