What does this tell us about the Crusades?
By: Mary Powell '24
After the crusades, many Europeans became familiar with Rayy/Tehran due to that city's production of fine ceramics and silks. It is likely that this bowl was traded, which seems to have been the most common way that ceramics traveled in the Middle Ages. Trade was most common with ceramics, rather than movement due to gifting or war loot, because ceramics were not as highly sought after as gold or silk. However, the beauty of these bowls allowed for them to serve as gifts that European crusaders might bring home.
Presumably, if the bowl was traded or otherwise acquired during the crusades, it could have functioned not just as a bowl for feasts, but also a piece of art that could have been displayed for its visual qualities and its association with faraway lands.
