An underglazed ceramic tile, Iznik, Ottoman Empire, 17th century.
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Decorated with cobalt blue, green, and turquoise underglaze with a central vase from which carnations and tulips with cloud-banded stems radiate, between two cypress trees. C. 24 x 24 cm
Repairs.
Provenance
Art historian Hans Eklund (1921–2018), Stockholm.
Private collection.
More information
Iznik tiles from the mid-16th to early 17th century represent the pinnacle of Ottoman ceramic artistry. Created for imperial mosques and palaces, they combine a refined quartz-frit body with the celebrated Iznik palette—cobalt blue, turquoise, emerald green and the sought-after sealing-wax red.
Their flowing tulips, carnations and serrated saz leaves encapsulate the elegance of the Ottoman court at the height of Sinan’s architectural era. Highly prized today, each surviving tile stands as a vibrant fragment of one of the Islamic world’s most admired artistic traditions.