Tile decorated with saz leaves and tchi clouds, Ottoman Turk - Lot 197

Tile decorated with saz leaves and tchi clouds, Ottoman Turkey, Iznik, last quarter of 16th century Square siliceous ceramic tile with underglaze polychrome painted decoration of foliage scrolls embellished with composite flowers and two saz leaves arranged in opposite directions in the center of the composition. The foliage is crossed by ribbons of red tchi clouds. Wooden frame. Sight size: 24.8 x 24.5 cm Small chips, cracks in the glaze, irregular edges on the back. Provenance : Former collection of Michael Pacha Portakalian (1842-1897), high-ranking official at the court of Sultan Abdulhamid II, then by descent. This tchi cloud decoration is repeated on the walls of Murad III's bedroom in Istanbul's Topkapi Palace. This room, located in the private part of the palace, was renovated in the years following the sultan's seizure of power in 1574, prompting a major order for wall tiles from the imperial workshops, then at the height of their production. The quality of these tiles, featuring a Chinese motif treated with a brilliant red glaze that contrasts with the purity of the white background, bears witness to this prosperous period in Ottoman ceramics. The presence of this decorative poncifice on the walls of Hajji Hüsrev's mosque in Istanbul, as well as the numerous other examples in international museum collections (Musée du Louvre, Paris, Metropolitan Museum UCAD 77, New York, no. 02,5.91 and 1971.235.2, Brooklyn Museum of Art, 11.497.1), suggest the importance of the commission and the use of the surplus for other purposes. DENNY, W. and ERTUG, A., Gardens of Paradise, Ertug & Kocabiyik, 1998, pl. 80 pp. 146 - 147. EKHTIAR, M., SOUCEK, P., CANBY, S., HAIDAR, N., Masterpieces from the Department of Islamic Art in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, MET, New York: 2011, p 309.