COBALT AND GOLD: RE-EXAMINING LAJVARDINA WARES AND LINKS TO PERSIAN MANUSCRIPT PAINTING
This lecture draws on some of the key themes explored in my recently completed monograph on lajvardina wares. There are significantly more tiles than vessels, and they have been subject to far less restoration an overpainting in most cases and will be the main focus. Striking as the tiles are, they are almost all decontextualised. By looking at some of the motifs seen not only on other tiles, but also on lajvardina vessels and other types of glazed ceramics, as well as other media, it can be possible to get a clearer idea of how lajvardina wares fit into the wider Ilkhanid aesthetic. In addition, a series of manuscript paintings will be examined in order to understand how the tiles may have appeared in their original architectural context, and to investigate if the ceramics and manuscripts can be used to better understand both media.
Dr Richard Piran McClary
Dr Richard Piran McClary is a Senior Lecturer in Islamic Art and Architecture at the University of York. He received his doctorate from the University of Edinburgh in 2015. He has lectured extensively on a range of subjects related to medieval Islamic art and architecture, and has conducted fieldwork in India, Iran, Turkey, Central Asia and across the Middle East. He has published three monographs with EUP; Rum Seljuq Architecture 1170-1220. The Patronage of Sultans (2017) and Medieval Monuments of Central Asia. Qarakhanid Architecture of the 11th and 12th Centuries (2020), and Mina’i Ware: A Reassessment and Comprehensive Study of Iranian Polychrome Overglaze Wares through Sherds (2024). He has published articles in numerous journals, including: Muqarnas, Iran, and the Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society. He has served as a trustee and the Research Director for the British Institute of Persian Studies, and is managing editor of the Journal of Islamic Art and Architecture.
When
23 January 2025, 5 – 7 pm
Where
SWLT, Paul Webley Building, SOAS University of London
Event Type
In-person