Talismanic symbols?

Jens Nordlunde · 3rd April 2008, 03:49 PM

Hi Michael,

It is an interesting thread, and I hope others will join in. Stephan Markel, at Los Angeles County Museum of Art, published an article in Jewellery Studies, vol. 10, 2004, where he writes ‘ The motif, shown in the centre and neck of the Taipei pot [shown in the article], is a round, broad leafed plant form with generally five, but sometimes three, four, or six petals terminating in a jagged edge. It is clearly different in botanical structure from the poppy flower portrayed frequently in Mughal art’.

The interesting thing is that when it comes to floral decoration, it seems as if the artist had a lot of artistic freedom, but the same, surely would not count for religious or talismanic decorations. The attached shows what I believe to be the Mughal inspired poppies, looking quite different from the poppies he describes on the Taipei pot.

3rd April 2008, 03:49 PM	#23
Jens Nordlunde Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Europe Posts: 2,718	Hi Michael, It is an interesting thread, and I hope others will join in. Stephan Markel, at Los Angeles County Museum of Art, published an article in Jewellery Studies, vol. 10, 2004, where he writes ‘ The motif, shown in the centre and neck of the Taipei pot [shown in the article], is a round, broad leafed plant form with generally five, but sometimes three, four, or six petals terminating in a jagged edge. It is clearly different in botanical structure from the poppy flower portrayed frequently in Mughal art’. The interesting thing is that when it comes to floral decoration, it seems as if the artist had a lot of artistic freedom, but the same, surely would not count for religious or talismanic decorations. The attached shows what I believe to be the Mughal inspired poppies, looking quite different from the poppies he describes on the Taipei pot. Attached Images