The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of December 20, 2025

Luster Bowl with Ibex

1000s

Egypt, Fustat

(Old Cairo), Fatimid period (909–1171)
earthenware with luster-painted design
Overall: 9.6 x 24.7 cm (3 3/4 x 9 3/4 in.)
Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund 1944.477
Location: Not on view

Did You Know?

Lusterware seems to have been a secret process, confined to a small number of craftsmen.

Description

The expensive and unpredictable luster technique was transmitted by Iraqi potters to the more prosperous Fatimid court in Cairo where it flourished from around 1000 until about 1171.
  • ?–1944
    (Dikran G. Kelekian [1867–1951], New York, NY, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art)
    1944–
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • Cox, Warren E. The Book of Pottery and Porcelain. New York: L. Lee and Shepard Co.; distributed by Crown Publishers, 1944. Reproduced: pl. 96
    Hollis, Howard. “Two Fusṭāṭ Bowls.” The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art, vol. 32, no. 6, 1945, pp. 92, 94–95. Reproduced: p. 92; Mentioned: pp. 94–95 www.jstor.org
    Graves Margaret S. "Matter Transformed: The Wondrous Arts of Fire and Earth." In Wonders of Creation: Art, Science, and Innovation in the Islamic World, edited by Ladan Akbarnia, 167–183. San Diego: The San Diego Museum of Art, 2025. Mentioned and Reproduced: pp. 180–181, cat. 120
  • Wonders of Creation: Art, Science, and Innovation in the Islamic World. San Diego Museum of Art, San Diego, CA (organizer) (September 7, 2024-January 5, 2025) https://www.sdmart.org/exhibition/wonders-of-creation-art-science-and-innovation-in-the-islamic-world/; McMullen Museum of Art, Chestnut Hill, MA (February 1-June 1, 2025).
    Islamic Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (November 3, 1944-February 2, 1945).
  • {{cite web|title=Luster Bowl with Ibex|url=false|author=|year=1000s|access-date=20 December 2025|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1944.477