Glazed ceramics with epigraphical ornament from Kutaisi Historical Museum

Research objectives: An analysis of vessels decorated with epigraphic motifs preserved in the glazed ceramics collection of the Kutaisi Historical Museum and, based on the analysis of similar material, determining the collection’s origins. Research materials: The artifacts found during the 1984–2010 archeological research of the medieval city of Kutaisi, which are preserved in the archeological fund of the museum, were used. Results and novelty of the research: The tradition of ornamenting ceramics with Arabic calligraphic inscriptions was widespread in the Eastern world since the 10th century. Arabic letters were considered a sacred image in the Middle Ages and had a semantic meaning. The inscriptions were aphoristic in content (religious sayings from the Qur’an, admonitions), blessed and benevolent (blessings, wishes for success), or consisted only of words (names of God and prophets), syllables, or single letters. Later, the epigraphic ornament developed in two directions. First, the letters were transformed into plant flowers and flo­wers as a result of stylization; that is, the process of floriation developed. Secondly, the epigraphic ornament turned into a stylized pseudo-epigraphical motif imitating the Arabic script. As a result of the comparison of the Kutaisi samples with their foreign counterparts and the analysis of the inscription, it was determined that one of the bowls is decorated with a pseudo-epigraphical ornament, in particular, with separate letters and signs of the word “ikbal” (success) made in imitation of Kufic calligraphy. It may be either an imported product or a local imitation. The second bowl is undoubtedly an oriental-style Kashan ware imported from the Muslim world, the epigraphic ornament of which represents the Arabic word “ikbal” written in Kufic letters. The question of its origin is still controversial (Lower Volga Region, Khorezm, Nishapur) and requires additional research. It is a novelty that, for the first time, an imported item of glazed ceramics decorated with an epigraphic ornament from the Kutaisi collection was brought into scientific circulation.