Tile in the Form of the Letter ‘Waw’

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Tile in the Form of the Letter ‘Waw’

Iran, Islamic, 12th century
Ceramics
Fritware, molded and glazed
7 5/8 x 4 3/4 x 1 7/8 in. (19.37 x 12.07 x 4.82 cm)
Purchased with funds provided by the Joan Palevsky Bequest (M.2006.138.1)
Art of the Middle East: Islamic and Contemporary
Not currently on public view

Curator Notes

Inscriptions formed from three-dimensional letter-shaped tiles such as this one adorned buildings in Iran and Central Asia in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries....
Inscriptions formed from three-dimensional letter-shaped tiles such as this one adorned buildings in Iran and Central Asia in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. This striking turquoise-glazed tile is the letter waw, which is both a consonant (W) and vowel (ū) in Arabic (the former pronounced as V in Persian). It is impossible to reconstruct the original text from this single tile, but such inscriptions typically included blessings and information about the building’s commissioner.
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Bibliography

  • Lo Terrenal y lo Divino: Arte Islámico siglos VII al XIX Colección del Museo de Arte del Condado de Los Ángeles. Santiago: Centro Cultural La Moneda, 2015.