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Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Art, Honolulu, Hawai‘i. (Photo: David Franzen, 2008.)
Mina'i Bowl with Enthroned Ruler Surrounded by Attendants and Sphinxes
Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Art, Honolulu, Hawai‘i. (Photo: David Franzen, 2008.)
Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Art, Honolulu, Hawai‘i. (Photo: David Franzen, 2008.)
Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Art, Honolulu, Hawai‘i. (Photo: David Franzen, 2008.)

Mina'i Bowl with Enthroned Ruler Surrounded by Attendants and Sphinxes

Date12th - 13th century
PeriodSeljuq Legacy
MediumStonepaste, polychrome pigments, gilding
DimensionsDiameter: 6 15/16 in. (17.6 cm)
Classifications(not assigned)
Credit LineCourtesy of the Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Art
Object number48.333
DescriptionThis mina'i (Persian: "enameled") bowl depicts a central, enthroned ruler orbited by four birds of prey, four standing courtiers, and four seated attendants. Two confronted sphinxes - female-headed lions with the wings of eagles - perch above his head, offering protection. Note the richly-patterned costume of each courtly personnage, elaborately painted to echo the sumptuous silks of the Seljuq élite. Mina'i ceramics - created during a narrow window of time, most probably in the city of Kashan - often show the luxurious pleasures of royal life, a topic of fascination for the mostly middle-class clientele who purchased the bowls.
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