This item has been added to the Database within the Explore Islamic Art Collections project. Information is available in: English, Arabic.

Name of Object:

Pilgrim flask

Location:

Los Angeles, United States of America

Holding Museum:

Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA)

About Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), Los Angeles

Date of Object:

Hegira mid-6th century / AD mid-12th century

Museum Inventory Number:

M.2002.1.140

Material(s) / Technique(s):

Fritware, carved and glazed, with applied neck and handle

Dimensions:

Height: 16.5cm

Period / Dynasty:

Zangid

Provenance:

Syria

Description:

The basic form of the canteen, which is still in use today, may be traced to Roman times; it has changed little over the centuries. While medieval Islamic canteens are sometimes referred to as pilgrim flasks, most seem to have played a more quotidian role as water vessels. There are large numbers of such unglazed canteens, mainly ranging in date from Hegira 6th–8th centuries / AD 12th–14th centuries and attributable to Iran, Syria, and Anatolia. A few canteens are glazed as well, such as this example; all have applied handles, which would allow for suspension.

How date and origin were established:

The carved relief decoration, a central rosette surrounded by a leafy scroll on one face and a rabbit circumscribed by the same leafy scroll on the other, is related to similar designs on ceramic wares from Syria, which are generally dated to the 12th century.

How Object was obtained:

Collection of Maan Z. Madina (1926-2013), New York, until 2002 (sold to); LACMA, The Madina Collection of Islamic Art, gift of Camilla Chandler Frost.

How provenance was established:

The canteen’s carved relief decoration is related to similar designs on ceramic wares from Syria.

Selected bibliography:

Komaroff, Linda, Lo Terrenal y lo divino: Arte islámico siglos VII al XIX Colección del Museo de Arte del Condado de Los Angeles, Santiago, Chile: Centro Cultural La Moneda, 2015: 133, 136.
Komaroff, Linda, Beauty and Identity: Islamic Art from the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles: Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 2016: 102.

Citation of this web page:

LACMA Staff "Pilgrim flask" in Explore Islamic Art Collections. Museum With No Frontiers, 2024. https://islamicart.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=object;EPM;us;Mus21;4;en

Prepared by: LACMA Staff

MWNF Working Number: US1 04