Circa 1000AD Excavated 1935 by Metropolitan Museum researchers Joseph Upton & Walter Hauser from Sabz Pushan Northern Iran / Persia, Nishapur, ca.

A stunning pottery bowl meticulously hand-painted with stylized Kufic script, scrolling phytomorphic designs, and geometric motifs resembling the star of David.

Nishapur ware used a white slip on a terracotta body with designs painted in slips of bright colors - mixing the colors with slip prevented them from running, leading to the crisp iconography like on this example. Size:
8.7" Diameter x 3.6" H (22.1 cm x 9.1 cm)
The inscriptions on bowls like this one are Arabic proverbs - in fact, some of the first extant examples that appear in the Islamic world. Each inscription is read by turning the bowl counterclockwise. Some of these inscriptions are a hadith of the Prophet Muhammad, and others are referencing social codes from the Samanids, who deeply valued hospitality and generosity.