Silver Bowl Research Articles

A Malay Queen’s Siamese Silver Bowl at the V&A

This notice examines a nielloware silver bowl at the V&A Museum, originally from southern Thailand. Using Jawi inscriptions, the notice unravels the bowl’s significance as a royal Malay heirloom. The bowl’s intricate scenes depict Hindu–Buddhist mythical creatures and celestial beings. The royal seal found on the base is attributed to Queen Tengku Ambung Fatimah (r. 1883‒?). Another Jawi inscription traces a lineage, identifying two other royal women, Engku Besar and Engku Lebar as previous owners. The bowl was eventually dispersed from the Riau–Lingga court, likely after the sultanate was dissolved in 1911, before reaching Singapore and London. This artifact serves as a symbol of lineage, power, and transnational movement in a 19th-century maritime court.

Dating of Three Sasanian Bowls from the National Museum of Iran

Three Sasanian Silver Bowls at the National Museum of Iran, known collectively as the “dancer-musician scenes,” have been considered as one of the museum’s most iconic works for the past 70 years. Only bowl No. 1 has been examined by numerous Western and Iranian scholars. Based on the catalog of the exhibition “7000 Years of Iranian Art Exhibition” in Vienna (2001-2002), these dishes have been tentatively dated to 8-9th centuries CE. All subsequent exhibitions have followed the same pattern. In addition, the dark heart-shaped decorations on two dishes have been called minā (enameling) in most of the previous publications. The importance of these three bowls (and also the famous Sasanian silver cup) has been the main reason for their selection for technical analysis, X-Ray fluorescence (XRF), and spectroscopy. However, a well-known Sasanian cup (called also “a silver musician-dancer” piece) was only subjected to a semi-quantitative investigation using XRF analysis. The XRF has been extremely helpful in determining a more exact dating for the three bowls indicated above, but it has also raised serious concerns about the dark heartshaped embellishments. Moreover, the dating of the artifacts has been called into doubt by an XRF study of Arabo-Sasanian coins (early Islamic periods) and a comparison of the metal compounds of these objects with those of the three dishes. Additionally, the authors of the present article have proposed niello for the dark ornamentation on the bowls based on these two technical evaluations. Indeed, spectroscopy was not able to answer the main question about the heart-shaped decorations on bowls No. 1 & No. 2, but it has opened a new venue to challenge the term minā, which was widely used in printed works. However, these two chemical analyses expose the possibility that the items may have been created in a workshop of the same artist (or a group of artists).

The Van Dorn Silver Bowl Fashioned in 1699 by Jesse Kip of New York: A Racing Trophy from Monmouth County, New Jersey, or a Dutch Brandywine Bowl?

In the study of early silver owned by Monmouth County families, one piece stands out. It is a silver bowl with two handles and six panels that is monogrammed “VD / I M” for Jacob and Maritje Van Dorn and dated 1699. Of a form made in New York City between 1690 and 1720, a legend, first recorded in the early 20th century, accompanies the bowl. Descendants believed that it was a racing trophy awarded for winning a horse race held on King’s Highway in Middletown Village. This article discusses the bowl, its form and function, descent in the Van Dorn and Conover families, early horse racing in America, an antiques dealer named Edna M. Netter who once handled it, acquisition by the Henry Ford Museum, and finally, the legend itself.

The Cocreation of the Songkran Festival in Thailand And the Codestruction of Its Cultural Significance

This article investigated the codestruction of cultural significance through the cocreation and evolution of a hallmark cultural event, using the Songkran Festival, Thailand, as a case study. The Songkran Festival began within an agricultural society rooted in Buddhist cultural inheritance. Traditionally, Thai people cocreated the celebration by offering food to monks ( Puñña ), and releasing fish or birds on Maha Songkran (i. e., the last day of the previous year) in April. They built sand pagodas or Chedi Sai at Buddhist temples to compensate for sand that was removed under their feet over the previous year. They also reunited with family by traveling back to their hometowns to pay respects to family elders and ancestors. After that, they would pour water from a silver bowl onto each other's shoulders as a sign of blessing, and the water represented wishes for good rainfall for the New Year's harvest. The cocreation between tourism sectors, local businesses, and the festival stakeholders transformed festivities into foam parties, special events, and leisure activities to stimulate tourism demand and to generate economic benefit. Consequently, these new celebrating practices codestructed the cultural significance and core values of the Songkran Festival. Therefore, this study sought to understand the evolution and cocreation phenomena in the festival that leads to codestruction of its cultural significance and core values through document analysis and semistructured interviews. The findings were thematically reported into four crucial themes that present key characteristics of codestructed cultural significance in the Songkran Festival: social change, public participation, the proliferation of leisure activities for economic gain, and commercialization of the Songkran Festival. The implications of this study contribute to expanding the understanding of the coexistence between cocreation and codestruction phenomena in cultural events.

Medieval Silver Bowl from the Lower Tobol Region (Based on Materials from the Vak-Kur Burial Ground)

Medieval Silver Bowl from the Lower Tobol Region (Based on Materials from the Vak-Kur Burial Ground)

On an Enigmatic Deity with a Dragon on a Chorasmian Silver Bowl from Dagestan

At least five specimens constituting the small group of Chorasmian silver vessels present an image of the Mesopotamian goddess Nana who was very popular in pre-Islamic Central Asia. One silver bowl found in Dagestan at present kept in the State Hermitage Museum is embellished with the image of a deity sitting on a dragon whose identity is not clear. Scholars considered this deity to be a woman because of her clean-shaven face, long hair and garments. However, Kushan rulers had been representing on their coins one Zoroastrian god as a woman since the 2nd century A.D. He was Tir, the god of the planet Mercury who had connections to the Avestan rain god Tishtrya. Despite the problematic associations between Tir and Tishtrya, Central Asian peoples had superimposed this Zoroastrian god to Mesopotamian Nabu who was the patron of scribes and the original “husband” of Nana. Nabu’s symbolic animal was a dragon that is very similar to the one on the Chorasmian bowl from Dagestan. Most likely, Chorasmian artists kept reproducing on their metalwork iconographic elements that originated in Mesopotamia after adapting them to their own religious and cultural sphere.

Oedipus and Jocasta on a 'Bactrian' Silver Bowl in the Hermitage, c. 350-500

Oedipus and Jocasta on a 'Bactrian' Silver Bowl in the Hermitage, c. 350-500

Another pre-Sasanian Middle Persian inscription

Abstract A pre-Sasanian Middle Persian inscription on a silver bowl is published here for the first time and compared with a similar inscription published by P. O. Skjærvø in 2000 and identified by him as naming members of the dynasty which ruled Persis (Fārs) in the 1st century bce. The commentary concentrates on the word šʾtḥw, apparently a name for this type of bowl, and on the importance of these inscriptions for the history of the Pahlavi script.

Combat Knife with Eagle-Headed Handle from Cimmerian Bosporos

In the Romano-Germanic Museum in Cologne (Diergardt collection) there is a combat knife originating from Cimmerian Bosporos. Its hilt is decorated with a bronze image of eagle’s head. The purpose of this publication is to call attention to this artifact almost not known to Eastern European archaeologists. The handles of swords decorated with eagle’s heads from the Roman Period are well known primarily from iconographic data. Noteworthy is the image on a silver bowl from Avignon (the so-called “Briseis Cup”) dated to the fourth century. It depicts a weapon with a rather short blade and a U-shaped chape; all these features resemble the Bosporan combat knife. In the Late Roman Period, swords with eagle-headed hilts were well represented in the images of the persons of status, probably indicating their prominent role of a symbol of power. Generally, eagle is well represented among the symbols of power of the Late Empire, for example, on consular rods or shields with the emblems of military units mentioned in the Notitia Dignitatum. In the Late Roman Period, sword hilts featuring bird’s head also occurred outside the Empire. This is evidenced by the image of the Sassanian Shah Shapur II on a plate from Turusheva. In the “chieftain” culture of the Eastern and Central European Barbaricum and the Northern Black Sea Area from the Great Migration Period, the inlaid patterns showing eagle or bird’s heads is well known on weapons, including swords and horse trappings. In the Barbaricum, there probably appeared the well-known phenomenon of imitatio imperii.

Parthian Imports in Asian Sarmatia (2nd-1st Centuries BC)

Abstract The paper dwells on the objects of Parthian origin (silver-gilt phalerae and gold- and silverware, glazed pottery) dated to the 2nd-early 1st centuries BC and found in the nomadic burials of Asian Sarmatia. It is noteworthy that a considerable part of them originate from the later, 1st century AD burials. Also remarkable are signs of deliberate damage on phalerae and one of the silver bowls, which probably testify to the fact that these artefacts were acquired by the nomads as booty. The author suggests that these objects appeared in the graves as results of contacts of the nomads and Parthia in the second half of the 2nd century BC known from the written sources.

Qazaqstan aımaǵyndaǵy kúlbіzіk jazba eskertkіshterі

Since the middle of the XIX century, ancient inscriptions written on silver bowls, bracelets, and bronze mirrors have been found in large numbers on the territory of Kazakhstan from the surface of the earth and archaeological excavations. Currently, the number of such Turkic runic inscriptions is increasing every year. The first Kazakh scientist who found and tried to reveal their meanings was A. Amanzholov. He named such inscriptions found from Kazakhstan, summarizing them by local values as Irtysh, ili, Syrdarya and Ural. The most valuable was the inscription on the silver bowl, found as a result of archaeological excavations from the Issyk mound. Linguists who came from the Academy of Sciences of the former Soviet Union made a categorical conclusion, without presenting any arguments, that the Issyk inscription is in the Iranian language, and cannot be read in the Turkic languages. But Kazakh researchers, not agreeing with this conclusion, began to read this inscription in the ancient Turkic language. Comparing and analyzing these studies, we published our reading in 1993. After that, until 2009, we updated and supplemented our readings three times. One of the Irtysh inscriptions tells about the danger of vodka and wine for human life. And the second tells about the coolness inside the mountain gorge. In the inscriptions found in the Zhetysu area, special attention was paid to hunting. They describe the sensitivity and extreme caution of the mountain goat. The Talgar inscription speaks of yarn and the spinning profession. In one of the aulieatinsky inscriptions, on the seal is written the phrase «my word», and on a large stone about the immensity of the country of the Karakhanids. And the Syrdarya inscription mentions the greatness of the Syrdarya river.

ҚАЗАҚСТАНДАҒЫ ЕРТІС ЖӘНЕ ЖЕТІСУ ЖАЗБА ЕСКЕРТКІШТЕРІ

From the middle of the XIX century, on the territory of Kazakhstan, from the surface of the earth and archaeological excavations, ancient inscriptions written in silver bowls, bracelets, bronze mirrors in large numbers began to be found. Currently, the number of such Turkic runic inscriptions is increasing every year. The first of Kazakhstan scientists who found and tried to reveal their meanings was A.Amanzholov. He named such inscriptions found from Kazakhstan, summarizing them according to local values, such as the Irtysh, Ili, Syrdarya and Ural. One of the Irtysh inscriptions tells about the dangers of vodka and wine for human life. And the second tells about the coolness inside the mountain gorge. In the inscriptions found from the Zhetysu region, attention was paid to hunting. They describe the sensitivity and highest caution of a mountain goat. On the Talgar inscription the words are written about yarn and spinning profession. In one of the Aulie-Ata inscriptions, the phrase “my word” is written on the seal, and on a large stone about the enormity of the country of Karakhanids. And in the Syrdarya inscription the greatness of the Syr Darya river is mentioned. Key words: Issyk letter, Irtysh, ancient inscriptions, seal, jug cover

Was Lacquer the Key Ingredient for Luxurious Jinyin Pingtuo Products in the Tang Dynasty of China (AD 618–907)?

Jinyin pingtuo is one of the most sumptuous decorative methods applied on ‘lacquered' objects described in Tang dynasty literatures. Two Tang dynasty objects, a silver bowl and a bronze mirror, in the British Museum collection said to be made by this technique, were scientifically examined to confirm the application of the technique. Although the metal décors levelled with the rest of the surfaces on these objects suggested the application of the pingtuo method, lacquer, a major ingredient of this technique, was not identified by Py (HMDS)‐GC–MS in any of the four samples analysed. The results question the use of lacquer in the pingtuo technique as usually described. The detection of shellac and oil in the bronze mirror aligns with other studies on similar objects, whereas proteinaceous materials as main ingredient of the decorative layers of the silver bowl, appear less usual. Further comparative study by scientific analysis of similar objects in other museum collections or from excavations is required to help better understand the use of lacquer in ancient China.

Archaeological Evidence, Cultural Imagination and Image of the Mediaeval World: New Perspectives on Treasures from Qiuci (Kucha)

The Kingdom of Qiuci (now Kucha in Xinjiang) was a key city along the central east-west route of the Silk Road, providing many unusual treasures. This paper analyses five of these treasures: the Quzhi pot, Qiuci board, golden glass, the silver bowl known as Polou (patrōδ) and the Youxian (immortals' land) pillow. This study of foreign cultures in the medieval Chinese imagination stands at the intersection of philology, material culture studies and art history, utilising a range of sources, such as historical records, literary anecdotes, excavated documents, archeological finds and Chinese rare books. Treasures from Qiuci constitute one case study of a larger topic that the author has been grappling with, namely what can be considered as Chinese “natural history” and concerning China's mediaeval understanding of the world. The treasures are valuable because they show how foreign treasures, both in material objects unearthed through modern archaeology, and in the lore and symbolism of the objects circulating in the medieval Chinese imagination, are a synthesis of history and myth, of the known and the mysterious.

Eros and Psyche on the Medallions of Silver Bowls from Sadovy Kurgan: New Data

The set of eight silver bowls excavated in Sadovy kurgan at the urban outskirts of Novocherkassk in 1962 includes a pair of bowls with medallions depicting scenes with Eros and Psyche. The detailed analysis of the element of the feathery pattern that covers the entire inner surface of the bowls reveals that it was applied by different craftsmen, though the bowls themselves were no doubt made in the same workshop. The central figures of the scenes on both medallions are tied to the columns decorated with garlands, on which one can see vessels. Both vessels have a spherical shape; each has a low stand and conical cover, and are the type of turibulum. One of the vessels bears a figure detail soldered to the right upper part of the vessel’s body. The second figure, soldered to the left side, is visible less clearly (fig. 2,2). The described figures look like protomes of griffins on a turibulum. A similar vessel was found in Khokhlach kurgan, and belongs to the objects produced in the 2nd – 1st centuries BC. We conclude that the identified similarity on manufacturing medallions on the bowls from Sadovy kurgan and the turibulum from Khokhlach kurgan most likely relates the finds to the workshops of the same region, probably the Eastern Mediterranean.

The Early Sarmatian Sites of the Orel-Samara Interfluve

The paper critically analyzes the burials of the Orel-Samara interfluve published as the early Sarmatian assemblages. Due to wrongly determined ceramics and confusion in numbering of barrows and other subjective reasons they were interpreted and dated incorrectly. The paper offers the objective analysis of the sites under discussion and their real dating. The collection of Dr. Kostenko presents two burials (Spasskoye-Verkhnyaya Maevka, Pereshchepino) belonging to Belozerka culture, one (Novo-Podkryazh) belonging to Catacomb culture, several Sarmatian burials (Podgorodnoye, Aleksandrovka, Sokolovo), which were dated incorrectly (they belong to the later period in fact). In general, only 10 burials of the region can be dated to the 2nd – 1st centuries BC out of 22, which are considered early Sarmatian. These are the burials with Middle La Tиne fibulae (Zhemchuzhnoe, Bogdanovka, Lychkovo), mirrors of early types (Sokolovo, Proletarskoe) and the swords with crescent pommel (Zhemchuzhnoe, Terny, Preobrazhenka), with early Sarmatian ceramics (Kolpakovka). The “hoard” from Bulakhivka with silver bowls of the “real cone” type, phalerae and the cauldron of early shape also belongs to this time. According to the funeral rite and burial goods they indeed do not differ from the whole massif of the North Pontic region burials. These are inserted burials oriented mainly in the northern sector. The Orel-Samara interfluve was the north-western periphery of the Rhoxolans lands.

My Mother's Interiority

My Mother's Interiority Jennifer Militello (bio) China cups shudder, brittle as fists;breakfronts wire glass to wood.The pious mood of each relic fitsthe beckoning with which we lift it out. The cabinet housescloisonné eggs, a bride and groom,the lean of a globe, lopsided plate.The grate through which we look shines crystal to glaze, brownsmonogrammed lace. The clock handof the tarnished spoon tiltsto degrees signaling evening; its silver bowl clips our gaze.The music box no longer plays,though, wound, it will pluckthrough its tines. The days pose like heirlooms, the daysantique, and no one knows the weekshave ended, the ladle has bent.The gilt trim of the vase lip mends a fracture and chink.The woman who once held itas the gold cooled wore a corset,a pocket watch, a casket, a mask. [End Page 186] Jennifer Militello Jennifer Militello is the author, most recently, of A Camouflage of Specimens and Garments (Tupelo Press, 2016) and Body Thesaurus (Tupelo Press, 2013). Her poems have appeared in Best New Poets, American Poetry Review, The Kenyon Review, The New Republic, The Paris Review, Poetry, Ploughshares, and Tin House. She teaches in the MFA program at New England College. Copyright © 2019 Pleiades and Pleiades Press

The Silver Bowl with Human Figures Unearthed from Tomb M1 in Ih Nur Town

The Silver Bowl with Human Figures Unearthed from Tomb M1 in Ih Nur Town

Protection and salvation: an eleventh-century silver vessel, its imagery, and its function

A small silver bowl, discovered in Russia and usually attributed to eleventh-century Byzantium, displays a range of unusual imagery that has complicated its interpretation. The role of the saint and prayer on the vessel and the emphasis placed on intercession as well as on protection, this paper will suggest, was to protect the vessel's owner both on earth and in his afterlife. The vessel, which makes visible contemporary ideas about punishment, Last Things, and salvation, presents a fragmentary image of the Last Judgement designed to stress the importance of heavenly justice and to remind its viewer to remain virtuous.

A silver bowl with an inscription of Nebuchadnezzar II

Cet article présente une coupe en argent gravée d’une inscription de Nabuchodonosor II et de l’image d’un lion en marche. L’article examine plusieurs objets comparables et suggère que cette pièce vient du palais de Nabuchodonosor II.