Rare Spanish Moorish bronze incense burner, 10th to 12th Century
£85,000
This remarkable and important object is an openwork bronze incense burner, produced in Spain during the height of Islamic power on the Iberian Peninsula.
This superb and rare item is an incense burner, wrought from openwork bronze and produced in Islamic Spain sometime between the 10th and 12th Century. The burner is comprised of two parts: a base and a lid. The base is of cylindrical form, adorned with a raised band along the top and bottom edges and set on three paw-foot legs. The domed openwork lid is surmounted by an ornate flared cylindrical crest, which in turn is topped by a perched bird set with a chain. The lid is adorned with openwork of a variety of forms: the lowest tier features interlaced circles, the dome is decorated with circles interlaced with palmettes, the crest is finished with latticework, while the top features the form of a rosette.