A GILT BRONZE MAGIC BOWL, 13TH-14TH CENTURY A GILT BRONZE MAGIC BOWL, 13TH-14TH CENTURY A GILT BRONZE MAGIC BOWL, 13TH-14TH CENTURY A GILT BRONZE MAGIC BOWL, 13TH-14TH CENTURY A GILT BRONZE MAGIC BOWL, 13TH-14TH CENTURY

A GILT BRONZE MAGIC BOWL, 13TH-14TH CENTURY

Reference: ART3004487

Of shallow rounded form engraved to the interior with talismanic diagrams and inscriptions, stars and images of a dog, snake, scorpion and two-headed dragon, the exterior with a band of inscriptions to the rim.
Diameter: 10.5 cm.

Inscriptions
The outer band contains the names of various ailments that would be cured if drunk from this bowl, to the inner bowl quotes from the Quran, talismanic, magic texts and numbers.

PROVENANCE
Private collection, Germany

CATALOGUE NOTE
The present lot is typical of the group of talismanic bowls known as 'poison cups'. Poison cups are never dated and are all attributed to Syria . They are characterised by representations of a scorpion, serpent, a dog-like animal and two intertwined dragons along with magical symbols, squares and words. For further reading see Francis Maddison and Emilie Savage-Smith, Science, Tools & Magic, London, 1997, pp. 73-74. For a very similar example sold, see Bonhams, Islamic & Indian Art, 4 October 2011, lot 137. Another similar brass bowl was sold at Sotheby's, Arts of the Islamic World, 1 April 2009, lot 60.