1

Islamic Objects and Manuscripts – IAA 631

Instructor: M. Tarek Swelim, Ph.D.
Student: Aymen Aiblu

“Types of Islamic Ceramics”

Introduction
The era of Islamic Ceramics started around 622. From 633, Muslim armies moved rapidly
towards Persia, Byzantium, Mesopotamia, Anatolia, Egypt, and later Andalusia. The Muslim
world inherited significant pottery industries in Mesopotamia, Persia, Egypt, North Africa (African
Red Slip) and later other regions. Indeed, the origin of glazed pottery has been traced to Egypt
where it was first introduced during the fourth millennium BCE. However, most of these traditions
made heavy use of figurative decoration, which was reduced, though not entirely removed, under
Islam. Instead, Islamic Ceramic developed geometric and plant-based decoration to a very high
level and made more use of decorative schemes made up of many tiles than any previous culture.1
Islamic art has notable achievements in ceramics which reached heights unmatched by
other cultures. The aim of this paper is to discuss through history how developments such as
glazing and stone-paste ceramics made Islamic ceramics some of the most advanced of its time.
Key points:
 The first Islamic opaque glazes date to around the 8th century and another significant
contribution was the development of stone-paste ceramics in 9th century Iraq.
 Lusterwares with iridescent colors were either invented or developed in Persia and Syria
from the 9th century onward.
 Techniques, shapes, and decorative motifs of Chinese ceramics were admired and emulated
by Islamic potters, especially after the Mongol and Timurid invasions.
 The Hispano-Moresque style emerged in the 8th century, with more refined production
happening later, by Muslim potters working in areas reconquered by Christian kingdoms.

1. Baramki, D.C., "The pottery from Khirbet El-Mefjer", The Quarterly of the Department of Antiquities in Palestine (QDAP
1942), vol. 10, pp.65-103.

Terms/Glossary:
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Ceramics Inorganic, nonmetallic solids prepared by the action of heat and subsequent
cooling. Most common ceramics are crystalline and the earliest uses of ceramics
were in pottery.
Hispano- A style of Islamic pottery created in Al-Andalus, or Muslim Spain, which
Moresque continued to be produced under Christian rule in styles that blended Islamic and
style European elements.
Glaze The vitreous coating of pottery or porcelain, or a transparent or semi-transparent
layer of paint.
Lusterware A type of pottery or porcelain having an iridescent metallic glaze.
Alkaline A glaze fluxed with alkali e.g. soda or potash.
glaze
Earthenware A ceramic body made from clay maturing at c. 850-1200 C.

Flux A substance which determines melting and fusion point of a glaze e.g. lead
oxide.
Frit A pulverized, insoluble glass formed by the fusion (or fritting) of the various
materials being used.
Kufic Geometric form of Arabic script.
Lead glaze A glaze fluxed with lead oxide.
Luster A metallic sheen on the surface of a glaze used for its decorative effect (see no.
3 [EA1956.66].
Maiolica Tin-glazed earthenware in the tradition of the Italian Renaissance.
Minai Pottery decorated in over glaze colors (see nos. 13-14 [EAX.3102 &
Technique EA1956.36]).
Porcelain a ceramic body made of clay maturing at c. 1350-1400 C.
Sgraffito Ceramics decorated with incised designs under the glaze (see no. 5
ware [EA1978.1759]).
Slip A semi-fluid colored clay used either for coating a pot or decorating it before
glazing.
Stone-paste An artificial ceramic body made, according to the medieval Persian potter
Abu'l-Qasim Kashani, from ten parts of ground quartz, one part of ground glass
(alkaline) frit and one part of fine white clay. The stone-paste body of sixteenth
century Iznik pottery also contained lead-rich frit.
Stoneware a ceramic body made from clay, harder and heavier that earthenware, maturing
at c. 1200-1300 C.
Tin glaze a glaze (lead- or alkaline-fluxed) opacified with tin oxide.

History
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Early-medieval (622–1200)
A Muslim style in pottery was established in
the 9th century in Iraq (formerly Mesopotamia), Syria
and Persia. During this period pieces mainly used
white tin-glaze. In the East, evidence shows that a
production center was set up in Samarkand under the
Samanid dynasty who ruled this region and parts of
Persia between 874 and 999 A.D. The most highly
regarded technique of this center is the use of
calligraphy in the decoration of vessels. East Persian
pottery from the 9th to 11th centuries decorated only
with highly stylized inscriptions, called "epigraphic
Dish with epigraphic decoration. The Kufic inscription
ware", has been described as "probably the most refined reads: "Magnanimity has first a bitter taste, but at the
and sensitive of all Persian pottery".2 end it tastes sweeter than honey. Good health [to the
owner]." Terracotta, white slip ground and slip
underglaze decoration, Khurasan (Iran), 11th–12th
Chinese Influence century.

During the Abbasid dynasty pottery production gained momentum, largely using tin glazes
mostly in the form of opaque white glaze. The rise of such industry is a result of the Chinese
influence. The governor of Khurasan, ‘Ali ibn ‘Isa, sent as a present to the Caliph Harun al-Rashid
(786-809), “twenty pieces of Chinese Imperial porcelain (Chini faghfuri), the like of which had
never been seen at a Caliph’s court before, in addition to 2,000 other pieces of porcelain”.3
The influence of Chinese pottery progressed in two main phases. The first contact with
China took place in 751 when the Arabs defeated the Chinese at the Battle of Talas. It has been
argued that imprisoned Chinese potters and paper makers could have taught the Muslims the art
of pottery and paper-making. In the 800s Chinese stoneware and porcelain reached the Abbasids.
The second phase took place in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, a period noted for the decline
of pottery industry following the fall of the Seljuk dynasty. This period also saw the invasion of
the Mongols who brought Chinese pottery traditions. The influence of ceramics from the Tang
Dynasty can be seen on lusterwares, produced by Mesopotamian potters, and on some early white
wares excavated at Samarra (in modern-day Iraq). Ceramics from this period were excavated at
Nishapur (in modern-day Iran) and Samarkand (in modern-day Uzbekistan).4

2. Sauer, J.A., "Umayyad pottery from sites in East Jordan2, Jordan, Vol.4, 1975, pp.25-32.
3. Akhbar al-Sin wa al-Hind (circa 851), and Ibn Kurdadhbih's Book of Roads and Provinces (846-885).
4. Vainker, Ch. 5, pp. 134, 140–141.

Islamic Innovations
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From between the eighth and eighteenth centuries, the use of glazed ceramics was prevalent
in Islamic art, usually assuming the form of elaborate pottery. Tin-opacified glazing, for the
production of tin-glazed pottery, was one of the earliest modern technologies developed by the
Islamic potters. The first Islamic opaque glazes can be found as blue-painted ware in Basra, dating
to around the 8th century. Another significant contribution was the development of stoneware
originating in 9th-century Iraq. It was a vitreous or semivitreous ceramic ware of fine texture,
made primarily from non-refactory fire clay.5 Other centers for innovative pottery in the Islamic
world included Fustat (from 975 to 1075), Damascus (from 1100 to around 1600) and Tabriz (from
1470 to 1550). Lusterware was produced in Mesopotamia in the 9th century; the technique soon
became popular in Persia and Syria.6 Lusterware was later produced in Egypt during the Fatimid
caliphate in the 10th-12th centuries. While some production of lusterware continued in the Middle
East, it spread to Europe—first in the Hispano-Moresque ware of Al-Andalus at Málaga, and then
Valencia, then later to Italy, where it was used to enhance maiolica.

Middle-medieval (1200–1400)
By this period, the distinctive Islamic tradition of decorated
wall tiles had emerged, and continued to develop together with
vessel pottery in a way unique to Islamic art. In the account of Ibn
Naji (circa 1016) the Caliph sent, in addition to tiles, “a man from
Baghdad” to Kairouan to produce luster tiles for the mihrab of the
Great Mosque (still well preserved). Georges Marçais suggested
that Iraqi potters indeed came to Kairouan. The arrival of this
Baghdadi potter must have led to the establishment of a satellite
center for the production of ceramics in Kairouan.7
After the collapse of the Fatimid reign in 1171, the ceramic
production had to move out to new centers. As a result, Persia
became a center of revival under the Seljuk rule (1038–1327). This Bowlfrom with hunters, Persian pottery
12th–13th century.
is not coincidental as the Seljuks expanded their rule over Persia,
Iraq, Syria, and Palestine, as well as Anatolia and Muslim Asia Minor. All of these had been, for
some considerable time, centers of old pottery. The Seljuks brought new and fresh inspiration to
the Muslim world, attracting artists, craftsmen and potters from all regions including Egypt. In
addition to continuing the production of similar (although more refined) tin and luster glaze
ceramics, the Seljuks (in Persia) were credited for the introduction of a new type sometimes known
as "Faience". This is made from a hard white frit paste coated with transparent alkaline glaze.

5. Standard Terminology of Ceramic Whiteware and Related Products. ASTM Standard C242.
6. Marcais G., Les faiences a reflets metalliques de la grande Mosquee de Kairouan, Paris, 1928, pp.10-11.
7. W. J. Allan,The History of So-Called Egyptian Faience in Islamic Persia..
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There is a complete description of how faience production was carried out. Frit was made
of ten parts of powdered quartz, one part of clay and one part of glaze mixture. The addition of
greater amounts of clay made wheel throwing of the faience easier, and allowed a better quality of
work, because otherwise the material had little plasticity.8 The glaze itself is “formed of a roughly
equal mixture of ground quartz and the ashes of desert plants which contain a very high proportion
of alkaline salts. These act as a flux and cause the quartz to vitrify at a manageable temperature.
The two alone will produce a transparent glaze.”9 This body material and the new glaze offered
the potter a greater handling and manipulation ability. This allows the potter to improve the quality
and appearance of the vessel, including more refined decorative designs and patterns. The result
was a substantial variety of products such as bowls of different size and shapes, jugs, incense
burners, lamps, candlesticks, trays, tiles and so on. These advantages also allowed greater control
of carved decoration, the use of which the Seljuks refined and extended during the twelfth
century.10

Post-medieval (1400–onward)
The influence of Blue and white porcelain of the
Yuan and Ming dynasties is evident in many ceramics made
by Muslim potters. İznik pottery from around İznik in
Anatolia produced the finest Ottoman work in pottery and
panels of tiles, using the same vocabulary of bold and
elegant floral designs derived from Chinese decoration. A
characteristic bold red was developed. İznik ware had a
major influence on European decorative arts: for example,
on Italian Maiolica. The pottery was produced in as early as
the 15th century AD, and was preceded by Miletus ware
from the same region.11 Its best period lasted until the late İznik Pottery Candlesticks,Ottoman Turkey
16th century. It consists of a body, slip, and glaze, where the
body and glaze are “quartz-frit.” The “frits” in both cases “are unusual in that they contain lead
oxide as well as soda”; the lead oxide would help reduce the thermal expansion coefficient of the
ceramic. Microscopic analysis reveals that the material that has been labeled “frit” is “interstitial
glass” which serves to connect the quartz particles.12
The 15th century saw the finest period of the Hispano-Moresque ware of Valencia,
produced by Muslim potters in a Christian kingdom, though the southern industry centered on
Málaga had ended by the mid-century. Persian pottery under the Safavid dynasty (from 1502) was
also heavily influenced by Chinese blue and white porcelain, which to a large extent replaced it in
court circles; fine 16th-century Persian pieces are very rare.13

8. Watson, O., Persian Lustre Ware, London 1985, .p.32. Cited in Febervari Gesa (2000), op., cit, .p.96.
9. Lane, A. (1947) Early Islamic Pottery, Faber and Faber, London.
10. M.S. Tite 1989, İznik Pottery: An Investigation of the Methods of Production, Archaeometry 31.2: 115.
11. M.S. Tite 1989, İznik Pottery: An Investigation of the Methods of Production, Archaeometry 31.2: 129.
12. Jones and Mitchell, p. 262, no. 395.
13. J.W. Allan, Medieval Middle Eastern Pottery, Ashmolean Museum 1971.
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Photos
NO Photo Details
1

1. Mortar-shaped bowl with

vegetal decoration
(EA1978.2137), Gift of Gerald
Reitlinger, 1978.

2. Bowl with blue and green

decoration (EA1978.2141), Gift of
Gerald Reitlinger, 1978.

3. Bowl with seated figure

(EA1956.66), Presented by Sir
Alan Barlow, 1956.

4. Dish with polychrome glazing

(EA1974.48), Presented by the
American Research Center in
Egypt, 1974.
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5. Bowl with sgraffito decoration

(EA1978.1759), Gift of Gerald
Reitlinger, 1978.

6. Bowl with petalled decoration

(EA1956.91), Presented by Sir
Alan Barlow, 1956.

7. Bowl with paired sphinxes and

horsemen (EAX.1206), Purchased,
1934.
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8. Jug with epigraphic decoration

(EAX.3110), Bequeathed by
Professor A. H. Sayce, 1935.

9. Footed dish with palmettes

(EA1956.130), Presented by Sir
Alan Barlow, 1956.

10

10. Bowl with central sun

(EA1978.2311), Gift of Gerald
Reitlinger, 1978.

11

11. Bowl with blue stripes

(EA1978.2341), Gift of Gerald
Reitlinger, 1978.
 9

12

12. Tankard with blue stripes

(EA1978.2347), Gift of Gerald
Reitlinger, 1978.

13

13. Bowl with central geometric

design and calligraphy
(EAX.3102), Bequeathed by
Professor A. H. Sayce, 1935.

14

14. Bowl with paired riders

inscribed with good wishes
(EA1956.36), Presented by Sir
Alan Barlow, 1956.

15

15. Bowl with seated figures by a

stream (EA1956.33), Presented by
Sir Alan Barlow, 1956.

16

16. Jar with epigraphic band and

roundels enclosing the signs of the
zodiac (EA1956.58), Presented by
Sir Alan Barlow, 1956.
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17

17. Bowl with radial design and

drop-shaped cartouches
(EA1978.1638), Gift of Gerald
Reitlinger, 1978.

18

18. Bowl with vegetal decoration

in radial panels (EA1978.1595),
Gift of Gerald Reitlinger, 1978.

19

19. Jug with human-headed spout

(EA1978.1675), Gift of Gerald
Reitlinger, 1978.

20

20. Albarello, or storage jar, with

vegetal and epigraphic decoration
(EA1978.1683), Gift of Gerald
Reitlinger, 1978.
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Bibliography
 Baramki, D.C., "The pottery from Khirbet El-Mefjer", The Quarterly of the Department
of Antiquities in Palestine (QDAP 1942), vol. 10, pp.65-103.
 Sauer, J.A., "Umayyad pottery from sites in East Jordan2, Jordan, Vol.4, 1975, pp.25-
32.
 Arts, p. 223. see nos. 278-290.
 Akhbar al-Sin wa al-Hind (circa 851), and Ibn Kurdadhbih's Book of Roads and
Provinces (846-885).
 Vainker, Ch. 5, pp. 134, 140–141.
 Standard Terminology of Ceramic Whiteware and Related Products. ASTM Standard
C242.
 Marcais G., Les faiences a reflets metalliques de la grande Mosquee de Kairouan, Paris,
1928, pp.10-11.
 W. J. Allan,The History of So-Called Egyptian Faience in Islamic Persia.
 Watson, O., Persian Lustre Ware, London 1985, .p.32. Cited in Febervari Gesa (2000),
op., cit, .p.96.
 Lane, A. (1947) Early Islamic Pottery, Faber and Faber, London.
 M.S. Tite 1989, İznik Pottery: An Investigation of the Methods of Production,
Archaeometry 31.2: 115.
 M.S. Tite 1989, İznik Pottery: An Investigation of the Methods of Production,
Archaeometry 31.2: 129.
 Jones and Mitchell, p. 262, no. 395.
 J.W. Allan, Medieval Middle Eastern Pottery, Ashmolean Museum 1971.
 J.W. Allan, Abu'l-Qasim's treatise on ceramics, Iran Vol. 11 (1973) pp. 111-120.
 A. Caiger-Smith, Tin-Glaze Pottery, London 1973.
 A. Caiger-Smith, Lustre Pottery, London 1985.
 Eastern Ceramics and other works of art from the collection of Gerald Reitlinger;
Ashmolean Museum 1981.
 G. Fehérvári, Islamic Pottery. A comprehensive study based on the Barlow Collection,
London 1973.
 A. Lane, Early Islamic Pottery, London 1947.
 A. Lane, Later Islamic Pottery, London 1957.
 V. Porter, Medieval Syrian Pottery, Ashmolean Museum 1981.
 J. Soustiel, La céramique islamique, Paris 1985.
 Oliver Watson, Persian Lustre Ware, London 1985.