Samanid Slip-painted Wares

[Audio] Hello, my name is Kye Mitchell, and this is my ceramic style report..

[Audio] For my assignment on Islam and South Asia, I've focused on giving a detailed look into a rare form of slipware called Samanid slip-painted wares. This style of ceramic slipware originated in the ancient kingdom of Persia or what's now known as present-day Iran. Like other slipware, Samanid slip-painted wares can be identified by its primary decorating process where slip is placed onto the leather-hard clay body surface before firing by dipping, painting, or splashing. The difference however is that the Samanid people were believed to be the innovative originators that introduced and perfected slip painting in pottery decoration. Samanid slip-painted wares have been acclaimed by art historians as one of the finest artistic achievements of Islamic art..

[Audio] These particular slip-painted wares were made by the Samanid people during the short-lived Samanid Dynasty. The Samanid Dynasty ( 819– 999 ce) was a Persianate Sunni Muslim empire, of Iranian dehqan origin, founded and ruled by Sāmān-Khodā. The Samanid Dynasty is known for being the first dynasty to rise in Iran following the Muslim Arab conquest. It was renowned for the impulse that it gave to Iranian national sentiment and learning. With the possession of such large and productive silver mines, the Samanid were known to have flourishing trade with the commercial centers. During this time of the 9th and 10th centuries, the Samanid realm was also a major center for the production of pottery. Although the Samanid slip-painted wared were very sought after in Iran, that seemed to be the extent of its popularity however as these wares were rarely found outside Iran..

[Audio] To make this type of pottery, there was a several-step process involved. First, they gathered their first material, which was clay, typically red and most likely from local deposits. The clay would then be refined to remove particles from it before then being thrown on a wheel to be shaped by the potter. The result was usually a flat plate or a bowl with flaring straight sides, but the wares aren't only limited to this form. After being shaped, the vessel had to dry and harden until it was like leather. From there, it would return to the wheel once again to be shaped with a knife or sharp object to give it a more precise shaping. Once again, the clay would be left to dry. After becoming bone-dry, the vessel was coated with a white slip. The white slip used was made of a diluted liquid clay containing a white pigment. On top of the dried white slip, the vessel would then be decorated with colored slips. The most common colors of colored slip included a purplish or brownish manganese black, as well as iron red. There are also times when a white decoration is placed on a black background instead. To be able to add detailed incisions into an impasto as thick as colored slip, the painter would often use a technique known as sgraffito which involved using a sharp tool to remove excess slip. When the decoration was completed, the bowl was covered with a transparent lead glaze and fired in a kiln, probably at a temperature of around 850 to 950℃..

[Audio] As the first native Persian empire to arise after the Muslim Arab conquest, the Samanid Dynasty represented a renaissance of early Iranian culture. As previously mentioned, they were even thought to be the originators behind slip painting in pottery decoration. I believe this to be the most important and impactful advancement they made during their time. They cultivated a decorative technique that would continue to be prevalent and progressed by other innovative artists in pottery. Even during their own time, the Samanid people were very creative and imaginative. By using ground slip and slip pigments, Samanid potters could prevent the designs from running in the kiln when heated as they used to with the fluid glazes used back then. This allowed for a variety of surface decorations that the ceramic style is known for today..