Iznik, Ottoman Turkey, second half 16th century - Lot 74

Iznik, Ottoman Turkey, second half 16th century Panel of two tiles with composite flowers and flowering stars Siliceous ceramic with polychrome decoration in red, cobalt and turquoise on a white ground under a transparent colorless glaze, finely painted with beautiful colors, in a later frame. (Areas of repainting associated with reattached breaks). Old collection number "32". Dimensions: 24.3 x 16.2 cm and 24.3 x 18 cm (each tile); 30 x 41 cm (with frame) This motif of four flowers around a central star is found in the decoration of the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem, and seems to have appeared in Iznik ceramics as early as the first half of the 16th century, judging by a tile in the Musée de Cluny dated circa 1530 (E.CI.15439e). At that time, the palette of Iznik potters had not yet been enriched by the superb red and emerald green visible on our tile. Another tile with the same motif is in the Ömer M. Koç collection, dating from the second half of the 16th century (Hülya Bilgi, Dance of Fire, Iznik tiles and ceramics in the Sadberk Hanim Museum, Istanbul, 2009, p. 313, cat. 185). Two others are in the Louvre (AD 27759 and AD 27760) and a third in the British Museum, London (G. 140).