20th May, 2026 11:00
Live Sale: Indian, Islamic, Himalayan and South-East Asian Art 2026
96
AN OTTOMAN CALLIGRAPHIC TILE PROBABLY FROM THE DOME OF THE ROCK, JERUSALEM, MID-16TH CENTURY
underglaze painted fritware, decorated in reserved white and turquoise on cobalt blue ground, depicting part of an arabic inscription superimposed on a leafy tendril, a plain white band at the top, three sides with drillings for fixing, the reverse painted with three rows of black dots, 17.5 x 19.5cm
Provenance: Acquired by the vendor directly from a British private collector about 30 years ago.
The drilled holes on the edges of this tile are characteristic of the revetments on the Dome of the Rock, reflecting the difficulties the Ottomans faced with ensuring adhesion with the extremes of weather conditions in the city. For two closely related tiles, one in the Louvre, Paris, the other sold a few years ago in London, see inv. no. AFI 2317 ; OA 3919/2 -251.5, & Sotheby's, lot 164, 9 April 2014. For a similar tile, also attributed to the Dome of the Rock, but decorated on black ground, see Millner 2025, fig. 6.145, p.307.
Sold for £2,200
underglaze painted fritware, decorated in reserved white and turquoise on cobalt blue ground, depicting part of an arabic inscription superimposed on a leafy tendril, a plain white band at the top, three sides with drillings for fixing, the reverse painted with three rows of black dots, 17.5 x 19.5cm
Provenance: Acquired by the vendor directly from a British private collector about 30 years ago.
The drilled holes on the edges of this tile are characteristic of the revetments on the Dome of the Rock, reflecting the difficulties the Ottomans faced with ensuring adhesion with the extremes of weather conditions in the city. For two closely related tiles, one in the Louvre, Paris, the other sold a few years ago in London, see inv. no. AFI 2317 ; OA 3919/2 -251.5, & Sotheby's, lot 164, 9 April 2014. For a similar tile, also attributed to the Dome of the Rock, but decorated on black ground, see Millner 2025, fig. 6.145, p.307.
Auction: Live Sale: Indian, Islamic, Himalayan and South-East Asian Art 2026, 20th May, 2026
The sale includes the collection of Robert Skelton OBE, curator of Indian Art at the Victoria and Albert Museum. It comprises some exquisite 18th and 19th century Indian paintings and drawings as well as a fine group of modern Indian paintings with works by Shiavax Chavda (1914 - 1990), Francis Newton Souza (1924 - 2002), K Laxma Goud (B. 1940) and Jayashree Chakravarty (B. 1956). Tiles, Indian bronzes, thewa boxes, a silver gilt ewer, a ‘Koftgari’ pen box and a Mughal carved black jade dagger are also among the lots in this collection.
Also in the same sale is 10th -12th century Persian pottery, a monumental pair of 19th century doors, Persian and Syrian ceramics including tiles, also Iznic tiles from Ottoman Anatolia. Other lots include Indian bronze figures, small furniture, textiles and rugs.
Auction Location: London, UK
Monday 18th May: 10am to 5:30pm
Tuesday 19th May: 10am to 5pm
Viewing
PUBLIC EXHIBITION:
Sunday 17th May: 12pm to 4pm
Monday 18th May: 10am to 5:30pm
Tuesday 19th May: 10am to 5pm
CONTACT
indianandislamic@olympiaauctions.com + 44 (0)20 7806 5545
