Lovingly hand crafted, this 19th century enameled pot was made in Damascus or Aleppo Syria using a Cuerda Seca style of enamelling.
Cuerda Seca enamelling is done in the following manner: The design is stamped or carved into the surface after which colored glazes are applied. The contours of the designs are detailedt with a mixture of beeswax or vegetable fat and manganese oxide. During the firing, the wax or fat burns away producing contours of red or black that also prevent the differently-colored glazes from running into one another. This technique was created during the Seljuk (14th-15th C.) period in Persia, (modern Iran and Iraq) and eventually made it's way via Syria, Turkey, Greece, and Italy to Spain where it is used extensively in tile and pottery making even today.
There are some minor enamel losses, but considering the size of the inlays, the age of the pot, and the fact that this was made to be used as a planter, it has survived remarkably well.
Measuring 3.75" by 4.25", and weighing 10 ounces, this piece is quite solid. This piece is estimated to be 100-150 years old
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