Illustrative model — an approximation, not a scan of the original object.
c. 1000 – 1050
Fatimid Rock Crystal Ewer
Date given by the Victoria and Albert Museum.
- Material
- Carved rock crystal (quartz)
- Dimensions
- Height 19.5 cm
- Findspot
- Made in Egypt, probably Cairo; its whereabouts before reaching Europe are unknown
- Discovery
- Acquired by the museum in 1862; it was at first thought to be Byzantine.
- Held by
- Victoria and Albert Museum, London
- Inventory number
- 7904-1862
A ewer carved from a single piece of rock crystal, with a bird of prey attacking a horned animal on each side, framed by plant scrolls.
One of a small group of Fatimid ewers, most of which ended up in European church treasuries; one in Venice bears the name of the caliph al-ʿAziz.
Certainty: Probable
The museum links the ewer to the luxury crystal vessels made for the Fatimid caliphs in Cairo.
Scholarly note: This ewer has no inscription; the attribution rests on comparison with the inscribed Venice ewer.
- Victoria and Albert Museum, London “Rock crystal ewer, 7904-1862” collections.vam.ac.uk