Dish with Splashes of Green (830–900): Art, History and Details

Dish with Splashes of Green (830–900) is in the Cleveland Museum of Art collection.

The work and its context

The museum's open-access catalogue describes the work:

This dish displays two great technological advances of the 800s: the invention of opaque white glaze made with tin (imitating Chinese porcelain) and painting in cobalt blue. The blue paint was sometimes used to decorate the center of the bowl with floral and geometric designs, as seen here, or to write Arabic inscriptions offering blessings and well wishes. The green splashes around the rim reflect a popular color choice at the time. The splash effect was made by placing green glaze at the edge of the rim and then allowing it to run toward the center of the dish.

Object facts

• Title: Dish with Splashes of Green
• Date: 830–900
• Culture: Iraq, Basra, Abbasid period (750–1258)
• Type: Ceramic
• Technique: Earthenware with overglaze design
• Dimensions: Diameter: 30.2 cm (11 7/8 in.); Overall: 1.3 cm (1/2 in.)
• Collection: Islamic Art
• Department: Islamic Art
• Accession number: 1915.304

Collection credit

The Worcester R. Warner Collection

View the collection record

See the museum's photographs and full catalogue entry. Catalogue text is reproduced from the Cleveland Museum of Art's open-access data, with HTML formatting removed. This object and its supplied image are designated CC0.