Polychrome Iznik Dish

An Iznik dish standing on a short foot-ring, decorated with floral ornamentation in red bole, cobalt blue, and viridian green outlined in black. The rim is decorated with a border of green leaves arranged in a zig-zag pattern, with half blossoms with white petals and red centres on a blue ground. The central decoration, which spans cavetto and well, consists of a large sprig of blue hyacinths, blue tulips, red roses, and red prunus blossoms growing from a grassy tuft. This combination of flowers is sometimes known as the ‘quatre fleurs’ motif. A dish with similar rim and the quatre fleurs motif at the centre is held in the British Museum, London (accession no. 1878,1230.498) and is dated to 1625-30. Another comparable dish is in the Musée national de la Renaissance at Château d’Écouen (accession no. E. Cl. 9602).¹ A very similar rim, with leaf-shaped zigzags, is held in the Louvre (accession on. AD 10136) and dated to the 17th century. 

¹ See Mireille, Jacotin and Hitzel, Frédéric. Iznik l'aventure d'une collection : Les céramiques ottomanes du musée national de la Renaissance Château d'Ecouen. Paris: Réunion des musées nationaux, 2005. Cat. 254, p. 191.