Name of Object:Plaster graffito Location:Tunis, Tunisia Holding Museum:Bardo Museum Date of Object:Hegira, second half of the 4th–first half of the 5th centuries / AD 10th–11th centuries Material(s) / Technique(s):Incised stucco. Dimensions:Length 30 cm, width 29 cm, thickness 3 cm Period / Dynasty:Fatimid–Zirid Provenance:Sabra al-Mansuriyya (Kairouan). Description:This is an engraving of a stylised horse of majestic demeanour. A rider holds the reins with his left hand and seems to be about to mount. The carefully drawn animal is seen depicted in profile. Its mane is indicated with a few short lines projecting from the neck. The left back leg is slightly raised and the left forearm and cannon-bone are elevated to form an inverted V-shape. The fetlock and hoof have been completely effaced. View Short DescriptionThis is a hand-carved engraving of a majestic Arab horse, whose rider is barely visible, and is a drawing unique in Ifriqiyan art. The carefully drawn animal is seen in profile, with its mane rendered using oblique and radiating strokes. How date and origin were established:This piece comes from the excavations at Sabra al-Mansuriyya, a place which survived for around a century (from 337 to 444 / 948 to 1053). This allows us to date it from the second half of the 4th / 10th century to the first half of the 5th / 11th century. No more precise dating is possible owing to the lack of published information from the excavations but the object's similarity to the Umayyad goblet (mid-4th / 10th century) suggests that we can limit the period to the end of the 4th / 10th century. How Object was obtained:After the discovery of this piece in the Sabra al-Mansuriyya excavations between 1952 and 1956, it was stored and later displayed at the Bardo Museum. How provenance was established:Excavated object. Selected bibliography:De Carthage à Kairouan (exhibition catalogue), Paris, 1982, p.221. Citation of this web page:Mourad Rammah "Plaster graffito" in Discover Islamic Art, Museum With No Frontiers, 2024. https://islamicart.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=object;ISL;tn;Mus01_A;37;en Prepared by: Mourad Rammah
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