- Title
- Panel
- Date Made
- second half 7th century - first half 8th century
- Medium
- Bone, carved
- Dimensions
- 4 1/4 x 2 1/2 in. (10.79 x 6.35 cm)
- Accession Number
- M.2002.1.521
- Collecting Area
- Art of the Middle East: Islamic
- Curatorial Notes
The Late Antique desire for luxury objects carved from ivory or bone carried on after the Muslim conquest, and this small bone plaque is one example of the continuing craft. Ivory and bone were used to make containers, frames, and other portable objects, but a smaller carved piece like this one may have been used as embellishment on furniture or a box. Its subtle single-level relief carving and trefoil vine decoration are typical of the early Islamic period in Egypt, where artisans continued to ply their craft but perhaps for new Muslim patrons.
