Reflections

The glass body of this tall Mamluk cup -- much too large ever to be drunk from -- it is part of the Gulbenkian collection of Mamluk glass -- appears to be yellow tinged; the brightly enameled birds -- ducks on the wing, hopoes, hawks capturing pigeons, herons -- have been enameled on both the outside and inside surfaces of the cup. One sees clearly the ones on the front but also, in vague outlines, as if through fog or water or sheets of rain, those on the opposite side of the vessel.

Look again: in the back, on the left, an Iznik bowl, seen right through the glass cabinet and into the next room; on the right, behind and barely visible, an Iznik wall panel. At the top, reflection of the window and the world outside.

It is reasonable to say that the artist who made this glass would have been happy with its setting.