The design of this stucco and glass window consists of a vase with flowers arranged symmetrically along the central axis. Despite their stylized depiction, carnations, roses, and lilies are recognizable. The flower stem in the middle of the bouquet – holding red carnations, roses, and five-petalled flowers – is flanked by lilies and five-petalled flowers of various colours. The green flowers next to the neck of the vase curl downwards. There are two red lilies on either side of the vase’s foot. The motif is framed by a trilobed arch with a knot at its apex. Two three-petalled flowers adorn the spandrels above the arch. The vase and all the flowers are worked out in relief against a perforated background (see Technique).

The window is preserved in its original wooden frame. The frame consists of wooden slats that are joined together at the corners. Metal brackets attached to the back of the frame reinforce its structure. There are remnants of red paint along the front edges of the stucco lattice and the frame. At an unspecified date, two eyebolts were screwed into the wood at the top left and right edges of the frame.

Coarse-grained gypsum plaster; colourless glass; coloured glass (green, blue, yellow, and red flashed glass); wood; metal; red paint

The stucco and glass window is preserved in its original wooden frame consisting of four wooden slats held together with nails. The wood is brittle, and the nails are rusty.

The latticework of the window is largely intact. There are some fissures and smaller losses, mainly along the edges. The cracks and the spalling are probably due to the corrosion of the nails. The reddish paint on the frame and latticework (front) is only partially preserved. A small number of pieces of glass are missing.

The back of the window shows traces of earlier repairs. The measures include the replacement of missing pieces of glass (c.10%) with coloured and colourless plastic film, reattaching loose pieces of glass and detached pieces of stucco layer with an adhesive, and filling losses with filler material. This material differs slightly in colour and texture from the original plaster layer, whose surface is dusty and therefore greyish brown in colour.

At an unknown date, the frame was reinforced with metal brackets, which were attached to the corners at the back. It is also unknown at what stage the two wooden strips on the back of the panel, which also serve as reinforcements, were attached. They run horizontally and are fixed to the frame with screws. The two strips are additionally attached to the grille with string at two points. The strings were fed through the grille openings from behind and then connected at the back. They are therefore also visible at the front.

In 2021, a further restoration was carried out, during which loose stucco fragments were secured with Paraloid B-72 dissolved in acetone and loose pieces of glass were reattached.

From a technical and iconographic point of view, this stucco and glass window corresponds to one of the standard types of qamariyya widespread in Egypt during the Ottoman period. Similar windows can be found in several of the collections studied (see for instance IG_7, IG_166, IG_178, IG_255, IG_356). The representation of flowers in a vase is a widespread motif in Islamic arts. It can be found in numerous other media, such as ceramics, wood panelling, wall paintings, and textiles, over a long period of time, and in both sacred and profane contexts. Depending on the quality of the design, the type of flower cannot always be identified.

Among the most sophisticated examples of stucco and glass windows with the vase motif are those in the apartments of the Crown Prince at the Topkapı Sarayı (early 17th century, date of the windows uncertain) and those in the Sultan’s Lodge (Hünkâr Kasrı) of the Yeni Cami (1661–1663, date of the windows uncertain), both in Istanbul.

Stucco and glass windows with flowers in a vase also aroused the interest of Western artists and architects, as is attested by the significant number of book illustrations, sketches, and paintings (see for instance IG_43, IG_118, IG_149, IG_153, IG_437, IG_443, IG_461), as well as by the replicas of such windows installed in Arab-style interiors across Europe (IG_48, IG_49, IG_57–_59, IG_64, IG_91, IG_431).

The window discussed here shows an elaborate design, which recalls a window from the Museum of Arab Art (now the Museum of Islamic Art) in Cairo illustrated by Max Herz (Herz, 1902, p. 53), especially regarding the design of the central flower stem, the downwards curl of the two lowest (outer-most) flowers, and the vase. The window forms a pair with IG_498, which is also held at the Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe Hamburg (MK&G). Both widows are largely identical in terms of form, motif, technical characteristics, and dimensions. It can therefore be assumed that they were made in the same workshop, most likely in Egypt (see Technique), and that they possibly come from the same architectural context.

According to the museum records, this window dates to the 19th century. This date is supported by the technical characteristics of the pieces of glass, which show the material features of cylinder-blown sheet glass. The technique was uncommon in the Islamic world at that time and more commonly used in Europe. Interestingly, the Hungarian architect Max Herz (1856–1819) states in 1902 that sheet glass was imported to Egypt from Europe from the 19th century, because local sheet-glass production had come to a standstill (Herz, 1902, p. 53).

The window was added to the museum’s inventory in 1989 and is registered as part of the MK&G’s ‘old collection’ (alter Bestand). Its exact provenance and possible previous owners are unknown.