Ladjvardina pottery jug, Late 13th - early 14th century, Ilkhanid Iran, Kashan

11 mars 2024

Ladjvardina pottery jug, Late 13th - early 14th century, Ilkhanid Iran, Kashan

Ladjvardina wares are named after the word ‘ladjvard’ which means lapis lazuli in Farsi, as a result of the resemblance of their deep blue glaze with the color of the precious stone.

As Abu'l-Qasim wrote in his famous treatise on Kashan ceramics, this production flourished under the Ilkhanid dynasty, from the late 13th century, continuing the Seljuk tradition of 'mina'i' or 'haft rang' ceramics, whose complex technique, created in the late 12th century, was gradually abandoned at the beginning of the 13th century.

This type of pottery was probably produced in the city of Kashan where prestigious artisans and wealthy patrons lived during the Medieval period. Cobalt blue, too expensive or and unobtainable in smaller cities, was highly valued there.

Although primarily associated with vessels covered with an intense cobalt blue glaze and adorned with enamels, the term 'ladjvard' is also applied to a group of turquoise glazed vessels and tiles and to even rarer examples of ceramics, such as this jug, decorated on a white background. The white glaze gives the ceramic an exceptional and more delicate appearance. A fragment of a bowl featuring the same rare palette of red and black motifs on a white glaze is kept at the Louvre Museum in Paris (MAO 936/1304).

The intricate decoration of this jug, with its rosettes enclosed in circles, its lozenge designs, and their dotted outlines, are traditional motifs characteristic of ‘ladjvard’ production.

On the other hand, the baluster shape of the body with its bulging shoulder and its bent handle finds very few comparisons.

The originality of its particularly elaborated form and of its refined palette makes this jug a unique example within the luxurious ‘ladjvardina’ production.