Elongated, rectangular stucco and glass window with an Arabic inscription, representing the phrase al-ḥamdu li-llāh. The panel shows the main characteristics of Arabic inscriptions integrated in qamariyyāt: the framing cartouche, the use of yellow glass for the letters, and the perforated background.
al-ḥamdu li-llāh (praise be to God)
Gypsum plaster; colourless glass; coloured glass (green, three shades of blue, turquoise, yellow); red flashed glass
Latticework carved into a rectangular stucco panel and inlaid with colourless and coloured sheet glass. The pieces of glass are fixed on the back of the lattice with a thin layer of gypsum plaster. This layer is 2–3mm thick. Traces of a shiny, brown glue-like substance indicate that an adhesive was used to hold the pieces of glass in place when pouring the embedding plaster. The average thickness of the stucco panel is 20mm. The stucco panel was cast in a wooden frame measuring 55 × 55 × 30mm. The frame is stained dark brown.
The design of the latticework has two levels: the main motif (level 0) has been carved out of the stucco panel with sharp, knife-like tools following a template incised in the surface of the panel. Traces of the incisions are still visible in some places on the front. The second level (level –1), which lies 10–15mm below level 0, shows irregularly spaced, perforations. The holes were pierced with a metal or wooden pin in the stucco before it was fully set. They are 10–12mm in diameter. The distance between the holes is 5–15mm. All holes are backed with colourless glass. The main design and the perforations have been worked in such a way that the incident light is directed slightly downwards into the room.
The glass is either colourless or coloured in the mass. The large colourless pieces of glass in particular show elongated, parallel bubbles; some pieces of the coloured glass show uneven surfaces. The pieces of glass were cut according to the design of the latticework. Scratch marks along the edges of some pieces of glass testify to the use of a glass-cutter.
The front of the latticework shows a few small cracks and very minor losses. There is no loss of glass.
This stucco and glass panel shows all the characteristic features of Arabic inscriptions integrated in qamariyyāt: the use of yellow glass for the letters, the framing cartouche, and the perforated background.
The words al-ḥamdu li-’llāh can be translated as ‘praise be to God’. They form a phrase called taḥmīd, meaning ‘praising’, also known as ḥamdala. The second āyah (verse) of the first chapter (Sura) of the Qurʾan consists of a longer version of it (al-ḥamdu li-’llāhi rabbi l-ʿālamīn, ‘praise be to God, Lord of the worlds’). Besides the phrase’s central importance for Muslims, it is also commonly used by speakers of Arabic in general.
Most of the inscriptions preserved in museum collections today (see for instance IG_174, IG_493, IG_494, IG_495, IG_496) were originally part of composite stucco and glass windows consisting of several individual panels. This may also have been the case with the panel discussed here. Inscriptions made of glass and stucco and integrated into large-format windows were documented by 19th-century architects and archaeologists, among them Pascal Coste (IG_130, IG_294), James William Wild (IG_436), Jules Bourgoin (IG_461, IG_462), and Melchior de Vogüé (IG_71–73).
The window discussed here forms part of a lot of six qamariyyāt (IG_288–293) acquired by the Glasgow Museums in London in 1896 from the Pre-Raphaelite painter, writer, and collector Henry Wallis (1830–1916). Wallis was an expert in Islamic art and especially ceramics, as several of his publications attest (see for instance Wallis 1885, Wallis 1893, Wallis 1894, Wallis 1899). Due to the lack of documentation, it is not possible to clarify where Wallis acquired the windows. However, the motif, the stylistic features and the manufacturing technique suggest that the window was probably made in Egypt.
According to the museum records, this stucco and glass window dates to the 19th century. The structure of the glass and a statement by the Hungarian architect Max Herz (1856–1819) provide clues that indirectly support this dating: the glass shows the characteristics of cylinder-blown sheet glass, commonly known as broad sheet. This technique was uncommon in the Islamic world, but widely used in Europe to produce window glass. European glassworks were among the largest producers of broad sheet in the 19th century. According to Herz, European flat glass was exported to Egypt from the 19th century onwards, as the glass industry there had come to a standstill (Herz, 1902, p. 53).
Herz, M. (1902). Le musée national du Caire. Gazette des Beaux-Arts, 3. Pér. 28, 45–59, 497–505.
Wallis, H. (1885). Catalogue of specimens illustrative of Persian and Arab art exhibited in 1885 (Burlington Fine Arts Club), London.
Wallis, H. (1893). Typical examples of Persian and Oriental ceramic art, London.
Wallis, H. (1894). The Godman collection. Persian ceramic art belonging to Mr. F. DuCane Godman, F.R.S.; with examples from other collections. The thirteenth century lustred wall-tiles, London.
Wallis, H. (1899). Persian lustre vases, London.