Sword Hilt with Design of Lion Heads, Arabesque Scrollwork, and Arabic Inscription
- Culture
- Persian
- Date
- early 13th century
- Material
- Gold with niello
- made in
- Hamadan, Hamadan province, Iran, Asia
- excavated in
- Hamadan, Hamadan province, Iran, Asia
- Classification
- Arms & armor, metalwork
- Collection
- Islamic Art
- Current Location
- On View, Gallery 120
- Dimensions
- height: 3 1/2 in. (8.9 cm)
width: 4 7/8 in. (12.4 cm)
depth: 1 1/8 in. (2.9 cm) - Credit Line
- Museum Purchase
- Rights
- Public Domain
- Object Number
- 45:1924
NOTES
This sword hilt includes an elegant Arabic inscription that encircles its base. The inscription has been translated by the scholar Will Kwiatkowski as “The glorified lord, the greatest Khaqan, prince of the horizons, Shams al-Dawla wa’l-Din, aid of Islam and Muslims, greatest Ghazi Beg Aydughmish." These words are inlaid with niello, a black metallic mixture used on engraved metal to provide a visual contrast with the polished gold or silver.
This hilt was discovered before 1912 in Hamadān in western Iran. The owner of the sword to which this hilt was affixed, Shams al-Din Aydughmish, was ruler of the Jibal region in western Iran, including Hamadān, Isfahān, and Rayy, for a period in the beginning of the 13th century. Nominally a vassal of Abu Bakr ibn Pahlawān, he acted for all intents and purposes as an independent ruler. In 1212, he was forced to flee to Baghdad, where he was apparently well received by the Abbasid caliph. On trying to regain Hamadān with caliphal support, he was seized and killed by his enemies in 1213.
Provenance
before 1912
Hagop Kevorkian (1872–1962), discovered at Hamadān, Persia (in present-day Hamadān province, Iran) [1]
by 1920 or earlier
Friedrich Ludwig von Gans (1833–1920), Frankfurt am Main, Germany [2]
by 1921 - 1924
Kunsthandel K. W. Bachstitz (Bachstitz Gallery N.V.) [Kurt Walter Bachstitz (1882–1949)], The Hague, The Netherlands, acquired from Friedrich Ludwig von Gans [3]
1924 -
Saint Louis Art Museum, purchased from Bachstitz Gallery [4]
Notes:
[1] This object was listed as being discovered at Hamadān under the supervision of the Armenian archaeologist and collector Hagop Kevorkian before 1912 [Folsom Galleries, Catalogue of Mohammedan Art Comprising a Collection of Early Objects, Excavated under the Supervision of H. Kevorkian; exhibited from January 17th to February 10th, 1912 inclusive at the Folsom Galleries, 396 Fifth Avenue, New York [title on front cover: Exhibition of Mohammedan Art from the Caliphatre Epoch to the XVIII Century, Organized by The Persian Galleries, London] (New York: Folsom Galleries, 1912), cat. no. 124 (frontispiece; halftone illustration)].
[2] A statement from Bachstitz Gallery dated April 2, 1924 lists von Gans as the former owner [SLAM document files].
[3] See note [2].
[4] Minutes of the Administrative Board of Control of the City Art Museum, March 27, 1924.
Hagop Kevorkian (1872–1962), discovered at Hamadān, Persia (in present-day Hamadān province, Iran) [1]
by 1920 or earlier
Friedrich Ludwig von Gans (1833–1920), Frankfurt am Main, Germany [2]
by 1921 - 1924
Kunsthandel K. W. Bachstitz (Bachstitz Gallery N.V.) [Kurt Walter Bachstitz (1882–1949)], The Hague, The Netherlands, acquired from Friedrich Ludwig von Gans [3]
1924 -
Saint Louis Art Museum, purchased from Bachstitz Gallery [4]
Notes:
[1] This object was listed as being discovered at Hamadān under the supervision of the Armenian archaeologist and collector Hagop Kevorkian before 1912 [Folsom Galleries, Catalogue of Mohammedan Art Comprising a Collection of Early Objects, Excavated under the Supervision of H. Kevorkian; exhibited from January 17th to February 10th, 1912 inclusive at the Folsom Galleries, 396 Fifth Avenue, New York [title on front cover: Exhibition of Mohammedan Art from the Caliphatre Epoch to the XVIII Century, Organized by The Persian Galleries, London] (New York: Folsom Galleries, 1912), cat. no. 124 (frontispiece; halftone illustration)].
[2] A statement from Bachstitz Gallery dated April 2, 1924 lists von Gans as the former owner [SLAM document files].
[3] See note [2].
[4] Minutes of the Administrative Board of Control of the City Art Museum, March 27, 1924.
We regularly update records, which may be incomplete. If you have additional information, please contact us at provenance@slam.org.