A CARVED WOOD PANEL
of rectangular form, carved in deep relief with a band of trefoils containing and surrounded by pine cones and foliate interlace, with traces of red pigment
71 x 26.5 cm
The pinecone, a popular motif in Sassanian art, continued to play a role in early Islamic ornament. A wood panel in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, dated to the 9th/ 10th Century depicts winged pinecones, palmettes and pomegranates (Accession Number: 30.112.5). The design of the present lot is also comparable to a marble basin in the National Archaeological Museum, Madrid, dated 988 AD, whose sides bear trefoils and pinecones with foliate interlace (Inv. No. 50428). The traces of red pigment remaining on the panel indicate that it was originally painted
Provenance: Formerly in a private French collection, Chartres, since the late 1990s
