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So-Called Crusader's Bowl (HUAM 1975.41.143)

39447
By Gracyn Benck '23

This vessel seems to have been made in Fatimid Egypt for a Christian patron, because of the inclusion of the row of crosses toward the bottom of the vessel. Above the row of crosses is a pseudo-Arabic inscription. These forms look like Arabic letters but do not have any actual meaning. This type of ornament could evoke legible Arabic as a recognition as to how important Arabic writing was, even for a Christian audience.  This object could have been brought home by a Crusader as a souvenir; the Seventh Crusade (1248–1254) went to Egypt. On the other hand, it could have been kept in a Christian (either Crusader or local Christian) community in the eastern Mediterranean. In Syria and Egypt, for example, there were large local Christian populations. Objects like the Crusader’s Bowl did not need to travel far to be valued. 

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