Name of Object:

Equestrian figurine

Also known as:

Horseman of Raqqa

Location:

Damascus, Syria

Holding Museum:

National Museum of Damascus

About National Museum of Damascus, Damascus

Date of Object:

Hegira 6th century / AD 12th century

Museum Inventory Number:

ع/5819

Material(s) / Technique(s):

Earthenware, polychrome painted.

Dimensions:

Height 46.5 cm

Period / Dynasty:

Ayyubid

Provenance:

Possibly Raqqa region, Syria.

Description:

A figurine of a bearded horseman with Asian Turkoman facial features, long braided hair and a helmet. Around the right front hoof of the horse is a snake that is climbing towards the rider from his left. The snake is shown opening its mouth to bite the rider through his armour, but he repels it with his shield. He carries a straight sword lifted into the air, ready to strike. There is a grooved cylindrical column coming out of the stomach of the horse that probably supported the statue, keeping it upright. The horse wears blue reins that are executed in relief. The reins continue around the horse's mouth and hang in front of its neck, then, like a harness, run across the sides of the horse's body down to the lower part of its hind legs.
The object is glazed in off-white and blue and, therefore, can be compared to the laqabi-style ware of Persia, also known to have been produced in Raqqa. Laqabi ware','en');" style="text-decoration: underline;">Laqabi ware is often seen as luxury bowls and dishes with moulded decorations. Production probably centred on the city of Kashan in Persia. Raised areas were often coloured in bright- blue, yellow, green, purple and pink to differentiate them from the white or off-white background.

Known as the 'Horseman of Raqqa', this masterpiece of Syrian polychrome underglaze sculptural ceramics clearly displays the influence of the Central Asian military elite on artistic taste and local production.

How date and origin were established:

The object is similar to wares produced in Persia during the Seljuq period in the 12th century; a period that saw significant trade activity and migration between Abbasid domains and those of the Seljuq and other Turkoman peoples.

How Object was obtained:

Salim ‘Adil ‘Abd al-Haqq, Director General of Antiquities and Museums in the 1950s, referred to this figurine as the “Horseman of Raqqa” in the Syrian Archaeological Annals. It was found along with two others in a man-made pond during archaeological excavations in Raqqa. The pieces were then sold and taken to Paris where this figurine was deposited in a French bank. In 1949, after negotiations with the French government, the Horseman was returned to Syria and the National Museum of Damascus.

How provenance was established:

The provenance of this object is difficult to determine because there was substantial trade activity in ceramics between various centres of production and wealthy consumers. Therefore, it is impossible to determine whether it was made in Persia and imported to Raqqa, or made in Raqqa after exposure to wares from Seljuq Persia. Its “Eastern” features and its similarity to the laqabi wares reveals a strong Persian influence in either case.

Selected bibliography:

Abu al-Faraj al-Ush, M., A Concise Guide to the National Museum of Damascus, Damascus, 1969, p.161.
Delpont, E. (ed), L'Orient de Saladin: l'art des Ayyoubides, Paris, 2001, pp.56–8; fig. 53.
Papadopoulo, A., Islam and Muslim Art, New York, 1979, p.429; fig. 413.
Rice, D. T., Islamic Art, London, 1965, p.131; fig. 131.
Watson, O., Ceramics from Islamic Lands, London, 2004, pp.56–9.

Citation of this web page:

Mona al-Moadin "Equestrian figurine" in Discover Islamic Art, Museum With No Frontiers, 2024. https://islamicart.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=object;ISL;sy;Mus01;30;en

Prepared by: Mona Al-Moadin
Translation by: Hilary Kalmbach (from the Arabic)
Translation copyedited by: Mandi GomezMandi Gomez

Amanda Gomez is a freelance copy-editor and proofreader working in London. She studied Art History and Literature at Essex University (1986–89) and received her MA (Area Studies Africa: Art, Literature, African Thought) from SOAS in 1990. She worked as an editorial assistant for the independent publisher Bellew Publishing (1991–94) and studied at Bookhouse and the London College of Printing on day release. She was publications officer at the Museum of London until 2000 and then took a role at Art Books International, where she worked on projects for independent publishers and arts institutions that included MWNF’s English-language editions of the books series Islamic Art in the Mediterranean. She was part of the editorial team for further MWNF iterations: Discover Islamic Art in the Mediterranean Virtual Museum and the illustrated volume Discover Islamic Art in the Mediterranean.

True to its ethos of connecting people through the arts, MWNF has provided Amanda with valuable opportunities for discovery and learning, increased her editorial experience, and connected her with publishers and institutions all over the world. More recently, the projects she has worked on include MWNF’s Sharing History Virtual Museum and Exhibition series, Vitra Design Museum’s Victor Papanek and Objects of Desire, and Haus der Kulturen der Welt’s online publication 2 or 3 Tigers and its volume Race, Nation, Class.

MWNF Working Number: SY 41