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Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Art, Honolulu, Hawai‘i. (Photo: David Franzen, 2017.)
Cobalt Blue Blown-Glass Ewer with Applied Decoration
Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Art, Honolulu, Hawai‘i. (Photo: David Franzen, 2017.)
Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Art, Honolulu, Hawai‘i. (Photo: David Franzen, 2017.)
Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Art, Honolulu, Hawai‘i. (Photo: David Franzen, 2017.)

Cobalt Blue Blown-Glass Ewer with Applied Decoration

Date19th century
PeriodQajar
MediumColored glass
DimensionsOverall: 6 3/4 x 5 1/2 in. (17.1 x 14cm)
ClassificationsGlass
Object number47.10.1
DescriptionIn Qajar Iran, proper etiquette was essential when hosting a meal. Before partaking in a meal, a ewer called an āftāba, was used to clean the hands of the guests, poured over their hands into a basin, or lagan. The ewer and basin was brought to guests following the meal to wash their right hand with which they had used to eat.

This blue glass āftāba was created in Iran in the 1800s. Although this ewer served a utilitarian purpose, it takes on a decorative shape; the handle is formed with applied glass in a wave-like pattern, and the end of its long, graceful spout ends in a butterfly-like embellishment.
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