Islamic ceramics of the site of Suse

Suse is the one of most important archeological sites Iran iens, at the border between world mésopotamien and Persan world. Inhabited very old times since (4500 years front J. - C.), there remained occupied until the middle of the 15th century. Its excavations, carried out by French teams, allowed the discovery of many objects, including one important ceramic production of dating from the Islamic period , currently preserved for a great part (more than 2000 indexed objects) the Musée of Louvre (their number of inventory is composed of the letters MAO S. and a figure).

Problems involved in the study of the site of Suse

Several problems arise at the time of the study of ceramics of Suse.

Some are related to the conditions of excavations: Islamic archeology is nowadays completely disaster victim. At the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century, the diggers practiced biblical archeology, seeking information on the old cities, which led them to destroy the majority of the Islamic levels, saving certain parts but destroying the archaeological Stratigraphie S and contexts. Suse, from which the excavations began in 1897, does not have escaped with the rule. A French mission, in the Years 1970, nevertheless allowed the establishment by Monique Kervran of a very complete stratigraphic table for each type of ceramics.

Other problems are related to the objects themselves: indeed, the evolution of the production of ceramics is not very fast. The relatively easy conquest of the Moslem armies in first half of the 7th century allowed that the production continues without too many clashes, and the models of the productions seem to pass from one generation to the other without undergoing large changes. It is thus difficult, for certain parts, to determine if they are or not Islamic, or to propose a reduced dating of it.

Statute of ceramics on the site of Suse

The production of terra cotta in the city seems rather probable, being given the abundance of the material and the discovery of material of potter like Pernette S, sticks of charging and moulds. In the same way, certain parts were designed in relation to the activities of the site, as the sugar loaf moulds, one of the dominant activities of Suse at the Islamic period. Nevertheless, it is possible that part of the found elements were imported, though this question remains, according to the specialists, difficult to slice parts in detail. The presence of Suse in the center of a network of exchanges developed (trade of the Sucre and Soie in particular) is proven, which induces necessarily the arrival on the site of potteries being used as container, and the departure of others.

Stratigraphy of the site for the Islamic period

In the excavations the most recent, where a stratigraphy was established, five periods could be distinguished:

IIIa level: datable of the end of the {{Life}} in the middle of the 7th centuries
IIIb level: datable of the medium of the {{VIIe}} at the end of the 8th centuries
IIa level: datable of the end of the {{VIIIe}} with first half of the 9th centuries, this layer contains the pottery known as “pre Samarra”
IIb level: datable of the middle of the 9th century at the end of this one, this level is contemporary level II of the site of Al-Hira and occupation of that of Samarra.
level I: datable of first half of the 10th century at the end of the site.

Materials and techniques

All ceramics of Suse is carried out in argillaceous paste, a rather plastic matter, which can sometimes lead to extremely sophisticated productions, like that of the egg-Shell or “cockles egg”, of which the thickness of the walls is reduced to a few millimetres. The color of clay varies according to its impurities and the grease-remover (matter which facilitates work, like pieces of straw, grog, grains) which is added to him. Nevertheless, it is generally very clear, a little dew or chamois.

Various types of ceramics

One classifies ceramics according to their technique of decoration and their form.

Not glaçurées ceramics

Many production, varied as well from the point of view of the forms as of the decorations and quality, not glaçurée ceramics is produced for all the period. One finds Cruche S, Pichet S (first not comprising a neck pourer, unlike the seconds), Jarre S, their supports and their lids, open forms (pots, bowls, vases), lamps.

Sometimes the forms make it possible to distinguish the periods. Thus it for the jugs and jugs, the most important group preserved are: the first are placed in the lines of the forms Sassanides (paunch pyriforme, slim, narrow collar marked at the base by a projection, etc); they disappear at the 8th century with the profit from a pyriforme type of jug, whose surface is treated in a new way, with veinules carried out by application of a wet linen or hands before cooking. A jug, inspired of the models sassanides, appears at the same time - end of the VIIe-beginning of VIIIe century. Its decoration is gouged (dug with the Gouge) and is incised, its paste of great quality translates the refinement of this series, which disappears at the beginning of the 9th century. Another jug, whose origins go back to Mediterranean metal, is built at this period, in two moulded parts at share and assemblies with barbotine. Like other Abbasid parts , it presents a ducted profile. In the middle of the 8th century, the parts egg-Shell , with extremely fine paste, start to be produced. Inspired by metal prototypes, they are of two types, with profile with double hull or globular paunch decorated with fine incisions. The egg-Shell , are produced until the middle of the 10th century, but the forms are weighed down little by little.

One can in the same way establish a typology of each type of objects: the lids of jug and earthenware jars, which are used to protect food from the insects and dust, first of all follow the traditions Parthes, before affecting the shape of cups for some, without decoration (medium 8th-10th century), or a form ciculaire and punt, with a button in strong relief and a decoration incised or combed for others (starting from the middle of the 8th century).

For the earthenware jars, it is starting from the decoration that one manages to classify works, the form Sassanide remaining until the 13th century. Thus, the bands moulded and applied to barbotine, with plank S of lions busy, which derive from the model sassanide, are typical beginning of the period (7th-8th century) and area of the site, the Khuzistan. The decoration in relief, plant or animal, applied to barbotine and finely incised, though born before the Islamic period, is mainly carried out at the beginning of the Abbasid period. Perhaps as for the decoration moulded and applied, it appears as of the end of the 8th century (stylized palmettes, florets, incised ribbons). At the 11th century, one finds ribbons intermingled and animalist reasons applied to earthenware jars to very coarse yellow paste.

Several parts are detached from the others. Thus, of the anthropomorphic figurines, of which little was found intact, form a homogeneous and original group. Moulded in a clear paste chamois, they present sometimes traces of polychromy. They carry sometimes ornaments, like trifoliate crowns derived from those from the sassanides or Torque S, above a full tunic to the flared sleeves. The feet togethers on a pedestal, they present all the same type of face chubby-checked fellow. Their function is unknown, but some think perhaps that they were used as headstocks. One dates them from the 11th-13th century, in spite of the absence of precise archaeological context.

One also found in Suse of the drums, the dice, modellings, like a pretty harnessed horse, moulds and astonishing parts, like a cage with Mangouste, this animal which was used to drive out the snakes, and is still used nowadays with this use.

A last particular group deserves to be mentioned: that of the parts registered with black ink. On the “bowls mandéens”, these inscriptions, which one also finds in fact on lamps or lids are in Araméen. They are then magic formulas, intended to act when the object is broken. But one finds also inscriptions in Arabic and pehlevi (means-Iranian), which is then used to make accounts, to transcribe Sourate S of the Coran or to write any kinds of lists related to the daily life. On jugs egg-Shell , one even found letters. Georges Marçais thus deciphered a whole correspondence in love (lovers answering itself on the object) on a broken jug preserved at Louvre.

Glaçurées ceramics

Parts of transition and parts to decoration from simple glaze

The Glaçure already exists before the Islamic period, in particular in the Iranian field. It uses an alkaline flux then.

The production of ceramics with glaze does not stop abruptly with the arrival of Islam, but on the contrary continues during a certain time. Thus, one knows earthenware jars and Amphore S probably produced after the conquest, but which preserve the old models.

From a decorative point of view, these parts are covered with a monochromic glaze, generally yellow or green. Small the jug with the palm tree , as for him, is rather single since it is decorated with the yellow and green glazes enclosed in black features which prevent it from melting, which precedes the technique of the Cuerda seca . Parts with decoration moulded under glaze, in particular of the shuttles, forms which translates the sassanide example, were also found. Sometimes, the moulding makes it possible to create a partition between the glazes, which thus do not found. A last technique employed with the glaze is the use of this one to create reasons, like the pseudoones in particular.

Earthenware

The Faïence is one of the two great innovations developped at the point in the Islamic world. They are parts in argillaceous paste, covered with a white lead glazing (thus white and opaque), which, after the first cooking, receive a decoration of large fire on the glaze and are reheated. The colors which resist these high temperatures and thus exist on the parts of Suse are blue (cobalt oxide), the green (copper oxide), the brown one (oxide of manganese) and the yellow (antimony oxide), these two last colors being much less frequent than the first. The decoration in blue on white zone besides is very appreciated; blue, while penetrating in the glaze, blurs a little contours of the drawing, which appears a little cloudy and not Net.

Some parts imitate earthenware, by painting a decoration on a white Engobe. Others employ Cassitérite in the place of the tin in the glaze, which involves deteriorations, that the ground of Suse, rather acid, supports: the glazes become gray after a prolonged hiding.

Several alternatives exist as for earthenware. One among it, called “splashware”, or “marbled decoration”, consists in making run glazes of colors varied in order to obtain marblings. One thinks that this technique derives from an influence of Chinese parts sensai (3 colors), which one found some examples on the site even of Suse, in company of sandstone greenish grey and white sandstones. Notwithstanding the small quantity of these lucky finds, it seems well that these are the ceramics which gave the impulse to earthenware.

The shapes of parts vary much, pulled about between influences Chinese, sassanide and Mediterranean. The metal of the close relation-Eastern area is often used as model, as show it the careened forms, which take again these examples.

Metal glosses

Second great technique developed by the Islamic potters, the metal, polychrome or monochromic gloss, constitutes an important whole of found ceramics with Suse. As for earthenware, the part is cooked twice, the first for the paste and the glaze opacified with the tin, the second for the decoration. It is this second cooking, carried out partly in a reducing way, i.e. without oxygen contribution, which makes it possible to convert the paste containing oxides of Argent and Cuivre posed on the part into a brilliant decoration. The decorations vary much with the wire of time, which makes it possible to classify the parts rather easily.

The first glosses create are polychrome: one can find three, four tons different sometimes, which is a technical feat of ingenuity since the decorator does not see his work when it poses his paste. The esthetics which dominates in these first parts is that of a swarming decoration, with a surface very encumbered of decorative reasons like Ocelle S, rafter S, etc Among this series, an small group is distinguished, that of the glosses ruby, whose dominant color is the dark red.

As from the 10th century, the gloss, in Suse as in other sites, seems to change orientation, while passing from polychromy to the monochromy. The exact date of this change, fundamental for all the history of Islamic ceramics, remains very fuzzy, for lack of a precise chronological marker. One can nevertheless emit several remarks concerning the stylistic evolution of the decoration. One thus attends the appearance of a figurative, animalist and anthropomorphic decoration, very stylized, geometrized and without regravure. The decorative, geometrical and vegetable representations, do not miss nevertheless, but do not form any more the plentiful compositions of the 9th century. Quite to the contrary, it seems that the horror of the vacuum makes place little by little to a géométrisée, oragnized and aired design decoration, which prgressivement evacuates the reasons for filling like the ocelles ones. One also frequently finds inscriptions or pseudo-inscriptions, in a very particular and illegible style.

The glossed parts are most of the time open (bowls, dishes, cuts, etc), like besides a good part of the other glaçurées parts, and contrary to those non-glaçurées, more often closed (jugs, jugs, earthenware jars, etc). This irrefutable fact puts the question of the report/ratio which these parts maintain the ones with the others: were they produced in the same workshops? Intended for the same people?

Comparison between Suse and other sites and objects

The work of study of the ceramics of Suse required, for the establishment of a valid chronology, many steppings with sites of the same time (Samarra, Siraf, Al-Hira, Nichapur, Ramla, etc) and parts preserved in museum, without context. These comparisons made it possible to better include/understand at the same time the characteristic of the site, but also the Islamic ceramics of the beginnings as a whole. Suse indeed is not an isolated case, and many its productions can be put in connection with others and thus make it possible to draw up a more complete panorama of the production of ceramics in Islam. Moreover, ceramics being a chronological marker, it made it possible to go back to other objects found on the site (metals, glasses), and thus by comparison, some decontextualized present in museums.

An example is particularly speaking: at the time of the excavations of Ramla, in Jordan, the scientists discovered a lantern, which they could identify thanks to those already known discovered in Suse and Nichappur.

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