The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of March 29, 2024

Mosque Lamp

Mosque Lamp

1585–95
Overall: 28.4 x 19.5 cm (11 3/16 x 7 11/16 in.); Diameter of rim: 17 cm (6 11/16 in.)
Location: 116 Islamic

Did You Know?

Fritware is made of ground quartz, glass frit, and a small proportion of fine white clay to approximate the light color and weight of Chinese porcelain.

Description

Mosque lamps typically functioned as a lampshade, containing an oil lamp inside. Due to the opacity of this Ottoman lamp, it is likely that its primary function was not illumination. Instead, it would have been hung from chains in a mosque or mausoleum to add to the beauty of the space. This lamp is decorated with bright red carnations and blue hyacinths with additional floral and vegetal elements. The turquoise loops would have served for suspension from the ceiling. It is also possible that lamps like this were used as acoustic devices, softening the echo of prayer and discussion within the mosque’s halls.
  • ?-1944
    (Heeramaneck Galleries, New York, NY, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art)
    1944-
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • "Part II. Annual Report Issue for the Year 1944." The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 32, no. 6 (1945): 103-30. Mentioned: p. 107 www.jstor.org
    Neils, Jenifer. The World of Ceramics: Masterpieces from the Cleveland Museum of Art. Cleveland, OH: The Museum in cooperation with Indiana University Press, 1982. Mentioned and reproduced: p. 32, fig. 34
  • Art of the Islamic World (Islamic art rotation). The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (May 21, 2021-May 31, 2022).
    Islamic Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (November 3, 1944-February 2, 1945).
  • {{cite web|title=Mosque Lamp|url=false|author=|year=1585–95|access-date=29 March 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1944.236