During the medieval centuries in the east Mediterranean and west Asian territories between the Byzantine and Islamic cultures, images and styles were often shared and adapted. It is at times difficult to determine the route and the medium of exchange from one culture to another, making the origin of a motif problematic. In this case, however, the harpy was known to be popular in Islamic art, and the elaborate headdress, the pointed curlicues of the drawing, and the series of spirals on the outside of the bowl point to Islamic sources of inspiration transferred into a Byzantine environment, very likely in the Black Sea area.