49 / 76
1 7 /1 9 7 0 M o s k é la m p e
17/1970 Mosque lamp
P e rs ie n , M e s o p o ta m ie n ? 10. å r h u n d re d e
Persia, Mesopotamia (?) 10th century
B ro n z e . H ø jd e u d e n k æ d e :2 6 , D ia m . fo r o v e n 4 0
Bronze. Height without chain:26, Diam. at top 40
D e n ty p is k e m o s k é e r e t s to r t, å b e n t r u m u d e n
m e g e t in v e n ta r o g m e d e t tæ p p e b e la g t g u lv , h v o r
p å d e tr o e n d e sa m le s i b ø n fe m g a n g e o m d a g e n .
D e ly s k ild e r, d e r e r b r u g fo r u d o v e r d e n n a tu r lig e ,
n e d h æ n g e s d e r fo r fra lo f te r o g n ic h e r.
M o s k é la m p e r fin d e s i fle re fo rs k e llig e u d f o r m
n in g e r , m e n d e n k la s sisk e b e s tå r a f e t m e r e e lle r
m in d r e k u g le f o r m e t k o r p u s f o r s y n e t m e d o p
h æ n g , e n u d a d s k r å n e n d e k ra v e f o r o v e n o g e n fo d
e lle r b u n d a f v a r ie re n d e h ø jd e . M a te r ia le t k a n v æ
re m e ta l, g las o g e n d d a k e r a m ik . D e n a fb ild e d e
la m p e h a r in d e h o ld t e n g la s b e h o ld e r m e d o lie o g
v æ g e , o g ly s e t e r s tr ø m m e t u d g e n n e m d e p e r fo
r e re d e v æ g g e e fte rla d e n d e d e n e n k le k u f i- s k r if t i
s ilh o u e t:
»Bism Allah - I Guds navn«.
D a te r in g o g g e o g ra fis k p la c e rin g a f m u s e e ts
la m p e e r i n o g e n g r a d u s ik k e r. D e n m in d e r m e s t i
u d f o r m n in g o m e t la m p e f r a g m e n t i A r t In s titu te ,
C h ic a g o , s o m s k ø n s m æ s s ig t d a te re s til 9. -1 0 . å r
h u n d r e d e , m e n e n n o g e t se n e re d a te rin g k a n ik k e
a fv ise s i v o r t tilfæ ld e . P e rs ie n e r e t m u lig t o p h a v s
la n d , id e t m a n h a r u d g r a v e t e n r æ k k e la m p e fr a g
m e n te r a f lig n e n d e ty p e n æ r R a y y . D e tre k æ d e
o p h æ n g e r ik k e til n o g e n u m id d e lb a r h jæ lp , d a d e
n o k e r n o g e n lu n d e s a m tid ig e m e d la m p e n , m e n
ik k e o p r in d e lig t s a m h ø r e n d e m e d d e n n e .
U s ik k e r h e d e n tiltr o d s e r la m p e n v e l d e n b e d s t
b e v a r e d e a f d e n h e lt tid lig e ty p e , s o m s id e n sk u lle
b liv e b e r ø m t g e n n e m M a m lu k k e r n e s e m a lje re d e
g la s a m p le r.
The typical mosque is a large, open room with little
furnishing and a carpeted floor on which the believers
gather in prayer five times a day. The sources of light
that are necessary apart from natural ones are therefore
suspended from ceilings and niches.
Mosque lamps are to be found in many different
forms, but the classical type consists of a more or less
spherical shape provided with a means ofsuspension, an
outward sloping collar at the top and a foot or base of
varying height. The material can be metal, glass and
even ceramics. The lamp illustrated has had an oil-well
ofglass and the light has shoneforth through the pierced
walls leaving the simple Kufic lettering in silhouette:
“Bism Allah” (In God’s Name).
The dating and geographical placing of the Museum’s
lamp are to a certain extent uncertain. The design is
very similar to afragment of a lamp in the Art Institute
in Chicago that can be roughly dated to the 9th or 10th
century, but in our case a somewhat later dating cannot
be dismissed. Persia is possibly the country of origin,
because a number of lamp fragments ofsimilar type have
been excavated near Rayy. The three suspensory chains
are not of any immediate help. Although more or less
contemporary with the lamp, they did not originally
belong to it.
Despite elements of uncertainty this lamp is probably
the best preserved of the very early type that later was to
becomefamous through the enamelled glass lamps of the
Mamelukes.
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