Late Byzantine Bowl with Harpy on Interior (DO BZ.1958.103)
The fascinating creature in the center of this ceramic bowl is known as a Harpy, a human-headed bird. Despite the Harpy on this bowl being made in Christian, Medieval Byzantium, it was likely influenced by Islamic imagery. The Byzantine area in which this bowl was made was significant to the beginnings of the crusades. Seljuk armies fought and conquered Byzantine controlled areas which inspired Byzantine to call on their Christian neighbors in Europe, initiating the first crusade in 1096. The area this harpy bowl was made was not only opened to Seljuk Turks, but also Iranians and people from central Asia who were primarily Muslim. Soon Byzantine potters would take on Islamic motifs and designs and implement them in their own work as seen on this green bowl. The ancient port city Chersonese where this bowl was likely made, (modern day Ukraine) was significant in production and exportation of impactful portable objects. This bowl serves as a reminder of the crusade’s role in merging the worlds of different cultures, like Byzantine and Islam, which ultimately visually influenced medieval European art and Design.