Islamic rock crystal work
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Rock crystal is the colorless form of the mineral quartz . Because of its glass-like transparency, great hardness and the ease with which it can be cut and polished, the mineral is processed into gemstones in many cultures . Some particularly beautiful objects made of rock crystal are in the Keir Collection Edmund de Ungers .
Simply designed objects made of rock crystal are known from the Persian Empire and Iraq . During the Fatimid period , outstanding objects were made from rock crystal in Egypt. A few of these vessels made it to Europe, where - like other products of Islamic art - they were kept in church treasures because of their preciousness. The crystal clear transparency of the material made it particularly suitable for storing relics .
Manufacturing
The technique of stone cutting or grinding has been known since the 5th to 3rd millennium BC. Cut gemstones made of quartz are known in the form of cylinder seals of the Assyrians , gems and cameos from ancient Egypt , ancient Greece and the art of ancient Rome . The highly developed stone-cutting technique was spread in the Mediterranean world through the Phoenicians and reached in the 5th and 4th centuries BC. A climax.
The pre-formed rock crystal was attached to a base and turned and turned on a rotating pointer so that cuts and depressions were created. The spherical, conical or wheel-shaped hands were made of relatively soft iron and were made in different sizes, shapes and thicknesses and dipped in oil and stone dust as an abrasive. Details were worked out with finer tools. Finally, the crystal surface was polished to a glossy finish. The same technique was used to make cut glassware .
to form
Particularly large and pure crystals were rare and precious, which is why it is now assumed that the rock crystal objects were made exclusively as commissioned work for the Fatimid rulers and members of their court. Miniature bottles have been preserved as well as larger vessels of various shapes and even large, particularly elaborately designed jugs. Many of the objects bear inscriptions and occasionally mention the name of the ruler so that they can be dated. Preserved palace inventories give an impression of the diversity and wealth of the precious objects collected at the Fatimid's court, which were lost when the palace treasury was plundered by unpaid mercenaries in 1067-1069.
Islamic rock crystal objects in Europe
Rock crystal vessels from the Fatimid era kept in European church treasures were valued for their preciousness and symbolic transparency: the light that passed through the crystal almost unhindered was a symbol of the purity of original sin , so vessels made from this material were particularly suitable for reliquaries . Most of the time, the objects were artistically recast in precious metal and decorated with precious stones or enamel . Several rock crystal vessels from the Fatimid period have been preserved in the foundations, for example the dome of Halberstadt and Quedlinburg.
literature
- Kurt Erdmann : Islamic rock crystal works , in: Yearbook of the Prussian Art Collections 61, 1940, pp. 125–146
- Kurt Erdmann: The rock crystal works of the Islamic Department , in: Berliner Museen 63/1, 1942, pp. 7-10
- Kurt Erdmann: New Islamic rock crystals , in: Ars Orientalis 3, 1959, pp. 200-205
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c Claus-Peter Haase (Ed.): Collector's luck - Islamic art from the Edmund de Unger collection . Staatliche Museen zu Berlin - Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation and Hirmer Verlag, Munich 2007, ISBN 978-3-7774-4075-0 , p. 64-69 .