JSAI 9, 1987

VIVAS VITA
M. Rosen-Ayalon

Throughout the history of Islamic Art the usage of writing is encountered

in practically every field of the crafts as an integral part of the objects and
of their decoration.
Indeed, the particular role assigned to the letters and to the Arabic
language, the extraordinary virtuosity achieved in this field, provided the
writing of Arabic with a role surpassing that of writing in any other
civilization. 1
The contents of the inscriptions vary. Some are historical, others
contain merely technical information; there is of couse a large amount of
Koranic quotations, as well as a wide range of blessings. It is to a very
special group of such inscriptions that this study will be devoted.
As we shall see, we are able to follow a major theme, which may be
subjected to several variations. The basic formula is ~/ ~ J5 (instead
of ~..r y ), which can be translated as "Eat in an enjoyable way",
and which may be regarded as the equivalent of "bon appetit".
One of the earliest examples on which we find this wish expressed is
a glazed bowl of ceramic, belonging to the family of objects having a cobalt blue decoration over white tin-glaze. The bowl was found in Susa
(Iran), and can be attributed to the IXth century. 2 It is partly damaged,
but the inscription that runs across its center can be easily deciphered (fig.
1). The Kufic writing is, to some extent, still archaic, with th~ lower
straight line from which the letters rise perpendicularly; their ends are
adorned with triangular enlargements, indicating a tendency that will
develop later into the bifid end. But in this early group of IXth-century
ceramics decorated with cobalt blue on white, we do not seem to have
many examples of this kind of inscription.
1

E.C. Dodd, "The Image of the Word", Berytus, 18, 1969, pp. 35-62; A.-M. Schimmel,
Islamic Ccdligraphy, Le::iden, 1970; Kha((, in EF.
M. Rosen-Aya1on, La Poterie Islamique, Paris, 1974, p. 230, fig. 542.

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M. Rosen-Ayalon

Fig. 1.

On the other hand, we can find the same formula repeatedly decorating a somewhat different group of ceramics. Interestingly enough, this is a
family of pottery that seems to belong to another cultural center within
Iran. If the first example cited above originates from the area of Susa,
which is part of the South-Western cultural region of Iran and its Mesopotamian prolongation (probably as far as Samarra), 3 the second group
we shall examine belongs to the area at the other extreme, the NorthEastern part of Iran, more precisely the cultural environment of
Samarkand-Nishapur. In that area the emphasis of the artistic pottery lies
in a somewhat different scheme and only little is known of the cobalt blue
3

F. Sarre. Die Keramik von Samarra, Berlin, 1925, pp. 46-50, pl. XVIII-XX.

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359

over-white tin-glazed pottery. 4 A very typical family of pottery which prevails there has - with an ivory white background and dark brown slip
decoration, or later the opposite combination - a dark brown slip with
the white decoration on it. 5 Most of these finds are assigned to the end of
the IXth century, or the beginning of the Xth century. We shall concentrate on some of the objects bearing decorative inscriptions of the kind
mentioned above, in this new family of ceramics.
The first in this group is a plate that belongs to the L.A. Mayer
collection (pl. XIII). It reads the same inscription as on the Susa plate,
Kul Haniyyan Mariyyan, though in a more stylized script. Contrary to the
Susa plate where the inscription is written across the plate, here the
inscription runs around the border as in a large number of Nishapur
plates. 6
Very similar to the L.A. Mayer plate is a small bowl belonging to the
Fouroughi collection. 7 The inscription there is identical, and so is also the
central decoration, which looks like a quatrefoil motive, on both plates.
The plate was published without, however, giving the reading of the inscription (pl. XIII). The sentence is the same on both plates, and paleographically there is little difference between them. We can notice the same
distance between the "h" and the "n" in the word Haniyyan, just as we
can see a similar contraction of the "k" in kul; however, the long letters
a/if and lam are not straight in the Fouroughi bowl as they are on the
L.A. Mayer plate.
The Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto has in its collection a similar
plate on which the inscription introduces a variation. 8 Typologically, it
resembles very much the plate of the L.A. Mayer collection. It is a deen
plate, with a wide rim, the inscription is evenly distributed around it (pl.
M. Rosen-Ayalon, Ibid., Appendix VI; in the final publication of the excavations of
Nishapur, there is no room for the pottery with cobalt blue decoration; Charles K.
Wilkinson, Nishapur, Pottery of the Early Islamic Period, New York, 1976.
s A. Lane, Early Islamic Pottery, London, 1953, pp. 17-19.
6 There are some cases where we find decorative inscriptions across the Nishapur or
Samarkand type of pottery, but most plates or bowls have their inscriptions around the
rim.
7 Published first in the catalogue of the Iranian exhibition held in Paris, 7000 Ans d'Art
en Iran, Paris, 1961, no. 912, and later iil. Washington, 7000 Years of Iranian Art,
Washinj!;ton, 1964, no. 573, pi. 158.
s I wish to thank Dr. Lisa Golombek who was kind enough to inform me of the existence of this plate, and to provide me with the print.
4

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360

XIV), spreading on the full width with its long lettering. Both scripts are
also closely related even though a impressive variety of scripts can be
found on this group of pottery. 9 In the center there is a little patch that is
reminiscent of the quatrefoil we saw on figures on pl. XITI. The major
difference here is primarily in the inscription that reads ~-.r' ~ ~ J5
introducing the word fihii that did not occur in the former examples.
Another variation is provided by some diacritical signs: one dot on the "f'
and two dots under the tii', but in Haniyyan only. This may imply that
the usage of the diacritical signs is not systematic.
The same inscription can be seen on another plate, on which the
decorative scheme is more elaborate (pl. XIV). Basically the distribution is
equally made around the wide rim, as if the four words create a radiating
decoration. Here the letters are thicker, painted in dark brown on white
background, but above each of the words an intricate palmette, in tomato
red, is added. 10
In following the quest of the variety of inscriptions related to our
original wish, we go a step further when we look at a completely different
object - a ceramic jug (pl. XV).
It is a very impressive piece, also belonging to the L.A. Mayer collection, made of unglazed moulded pottery. All the upper parts- handle,
neck and spout - are restored. But the body, which concerns us directly,
seems to be intact. It is made of two moulded halves, both apparently in
the same mould, and joined in the manner of a pilgrim's flask; the whole
piece is mounted on a high rimmed foot. Most of the decoration is macte:
up of a successive series of concentric rows of floral motives, alternating
flat areas and concave ones. Towards the central part, which bulges and is
made of rows of rosettes around a central one, there is a beautiful Kufic
inscription (pl. XV).
The inscription reads:
j~ I l..i..l. ":-""' L,J ..r.:>J ;;s.r.
wl:-?. },~ _pi.~> j.w:. L... L:.::.\:. ( \) j)b. ~.r ~ ":"_,.!I

A stylized rosette, similar to many of its kind decorating both sides of the

Lisa Volov,

~Plaited

Kufic on Samanid Epigraphic Pottery", AO, vol. VI, 1966, pp.

107-133.
10

Published in the catalogue of Spink and Son Gallery, Octagon, London, Catalogue no.
40, p. 21, no. 51.

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361

jug, separates the end of the inscription from its beginning. All diacritical
points are rendered in a decorative way, using a tiny little circle (instead
of a simple dot!). This container, which is meant for liquids - while the
former bowls should be associated preferably with solids - has an appropriate wish, referring to beverages, and using the equivalent of "drink to
satiety".
Our inscription is followed by the signature of the artist which at the
same time contains a reference to the origin of this artist - Gurgan.
Some parallels to this kind of ceramic vessels are known to have come
from Iran. 11 As to its date, it may belong to the IX-Xth centuries, especially with reference to the stylistic elements, including the paleographic
data, but there is no definite information about it.
The shorter version of this blessing, with only the wish ~ ":-'__,..;;I can
be read on a waster that is assigned to the IXth century from the Northern area of Iran-Baylakan in the Caucasus. 12 This type of vessel, which
has been known already for a long time, had been usually connected with
"hand grenades" or "aeolipiles", and can be here assigned, for the first
time, for drinking purposes. 13
In the various finds of Syrian pottery, vessels such as pilgrims' flasks,
or even sherds, can be found carrying inscriptions referring to blessings to
the drinker. Such are the inscriptions on finds from Hama, 14 dated to the
XIII-XIVth centuries, or the Syrian-Mesopotamian potteries assigned to
the XIVth century, 15 but they do not really relate to the family of our
inscriptions. The usual inscriptions there are:

The basic wish of Kulf!aniyyan can also be found on a completely different group of items. These are clay bread-stamps all of them known to

14

A.U. Pope, SPA, Oxford, 1939, vol. IV, pl. 193, B.

L. Guzalian, "Materiaux paleo-tpigraphiques des fouilles d'Oren-Kala", Srednevekovie
pamiatniki Azarbaidjana, t. Ill, Moscou-Leningrad, 1965, p. 89.
J.M. Rogers, "Aeolipiles Again", Forschungen zur Kunst Asiens, Istanbul, 1969, p. 149.
P.J. Riss, Vagn Poulsen, E. Hammershaimb, Hama, fouilles et recherches, 1931-1938,

15

vol. IV/2, Copenhague, 1957, p. 295.

J. Sauvaget, Poteries syro-mesopotamiennes du XIV-e siecle, Paris, 1932, p. 17, 20.

11
12

13

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M. Rosen-Ayalon

have originated in Egypt, and for which the date given is the X-Xlth
centuries, 16 though in a somewhat later publication, the same author
assigns them to the XI-XIIth centuries. 17
Out of a great number of such bread stamps, several bear Kufic inscriptions, including samples with the wish ~ JS (pl. XVI). A curious
detail should be mentioned with regard to these bread stamps: some of
these pieces are decorated in a negative way, just as a stamp is expected
to be, but there are also some examples which have their decoration in
positive, and that would imply that when stamped, the ornament and its
inscription will appear in negative, which is rather surprising. 18
The last example illustrating the usage of our blessing appears on a
beautiful silver spoon, partly guilded, with a niello decoration (pi. XVI). It
belongs to the former Harrari Collection, and is now in the L.A. Mayer
Memorial. Along the handle, runs an inscription of blessings to the owner
(of the spoon), while on the flat bowl, can be clearly read ~..r ~ JS The
back of the spoon is also richly decorated with peacocks, and other fowls
and animals, but the inscription occurs only on the front of the spoon.
The origin suggested for this piece, which has been discovered in an
unearthed vessel, is Iran and its date is placed around the Xlth century. 19
Traditionally, a study of art history and research on cultural and
material civilization looks around for origins, or forerunners, that could
be linked with the subject under scrutiny. So, it is indeed rewarding to
find an abundance of examples of inscriptions of the kind studied here in
the Roman world.
Several pieces of ceramic, particularly within the Terra Sigillata ware,
bear similar inscriptions, such as BIBE, VIVAS or VITA. 20 Inscriptions

16

17

18

19

20

E. Kiihnel, "Islamische Brotstempel aus Agypten", Berichte aus den Preussischen Kunstsammlungen, Berliner Museum, 1939, p. 51.
The English edition, E. Kiihnel, Islamic Arts, London, 1970, p. 125, fig. 91.
In Islamische Brotstempel, op. cit. The group of clay bread stamps, reproduced in our
fig. 8, belongs to the collection of the Berlin Museum. But, interesting enough, the
Victorian and Albert Museum possesses in its collection a stamp identical to the one
of the Berlin Museum (b on our fig. 8), and its Museum Number is C906-1921. I wish
to thank Mr. D.M. Archer, Deputy Keeper of the Department of Ceramics- of the
Victorian and Aibert Museum, who kindly provided me with this information.
A.U. Pope, SPA, vol. ill, pi. 2501, vol. IV, pi. 1351, C.
H.B. Waiters, Catalogue of the Roman Pottery of the Department of Antiquities of the
British Museum, London, 1908, p, 51, 75, 76.

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363

that are very close to these, were also written on Roman glass. 21 No doubt
such wishes come very close to our Kul Haniyyan. It is true that in the
case of some of the gold glasses, where figures are associated with the
inscriptions, they were interpreted as referring to the funerary feast - the
refrigerium, celebrated on the tomb of the dead. 22 But the inscriptions on
the Terra Sigillata pieces may very well be just common wishes, on common dishes.
As to the clay bread stamps, for them too we encounter examples in
pre-Islamic times. These objects, which seem to have been known in
various parts of the Mediterranean basin, originate, in their overwhelming
majority, from Coptic Egypt. 23 In this connection it is also most interesting to note the evidence related to a rather extraordinary case of usage of
bread stamps. It is found in an account containing a detailed description
of what are called in that case "communion wafers seals", and listing their
distribution among Byzantine (Greek), Syrian (Jacobite), Coptic, Ethiopian, Nestorian, Armenian and Maronite denominations. While enumerating all these communities, there is a reference that such a stamp was
found in a village of mixed Bedouin-Christian population, on the Lebanese border. 24 The author specifically states that such seals were used
simultaneously for the Muslim Ramadan feast and for the Christian
Easter. Regretfully, there is no mention of any of our inscriptions to be
found on the Egyptian seals, but the fact that these were used for manufacturing bread (or wafers) for Muslim feasts relates these objects to the
realm of food and eating.
Finally, the examination of inscribed pre-Islamic spoons illustrates a
very similar process. Indeed, there are several .spoons from the Roman
period that bear inscriptions and ~eattributed to the II-IIIrd centuries. 25
One of those spoons, has an inscription that reads POTENS VIVAS (pl.
XVI). The blessing runs in a very similar way to that of the inscription on
our Islamic spoon (pl. XVI) namely across the bowl; it is dated to the IIIrd

21

22

23

24
25

R. Pillinger, "Romische Goldgliiser", Antike Welt, 1979, 1 p. 12.

M. Simon, La Civilisation de l'Antiquite et le Christianisme, Paris, Arthaud, 1972, p.
528, fig. 175.
G. Galavaris, Bread and the Liturgy, Madison-London, 1970, passim.
Waclaw Korabiewicz, "Communion Wafers and their Seals", Lud, t. 54, 1970.
D.E. Strong, Greek and Roman Goid and Silver Plate, Glasgow, 1966, p. 178.

364

M. Rosen-Ayalon

century. 26 Some spoons of the same type are known to have belonged to
domestic tableware, used as eating implements. 27 Others are known to
have been connected with religious events. Ultimately, they would be
used for Christian purposes down to the VIth century, but then the in~
scriptions differ.
Having established that these utensils and other kinds of objects.
known to us in Islamic times have their antecedents in the pre-Muslim
period, we may now revert to the examination of the Islamic context of
this type of artistic expression. For it is not sufficient to prove the
existence of earlier traditions. We still have to explain their ocurrence
within the Islamic framework. It is quite relevant therefore to find some
cases, in the Koran itself, where the combination of some of the words
referred to in our study appear. Surat al-Nisa' (the Women), no. 4, verse
4, ... Ku/Uhu Hani'an Martan ... the relevant words being translated as
"enjoy it with satisfaction and advantage". 28 This is incidently the only
time where in the Koran this expression includes the word Mari'an. In
Surat al-Tilr (the Mountain), no. 52, verse 18, we find " ... Eat and drink
with easy digestion". 29 In Sllrat al-Hagga (the Infallible), no. 69, verse 23,
we read exactly the same formula, translated in the same way as the
former one; Sllrat al-Mursalat (Those who are sent), no. 77 verse 43, repeats the last two.
Each one of these Koranic quotations was expressed in connection
with a different religious message. In the first case Ku/Uhu Hani'an
Marf'an, the invocation refers to instructions connected with dowry. In
the second case, the aim of the prophecy has to do with Paradise. The
third case refers to the Day of Judgement, and the last one warns against
prophets who are impostors.
It is obvious that this was regarded as a well-known formula that
could easily be used, regardless of specific circumstances. The connotation
could thus be naturally traced back to its Koranic origin, implying a
familiar group of words, which could be introduced into daily life, and
admitted just as well in connection with functional activities, and not
26

27

28
29

Andrew Oliver Jr. and Kurt T. Luckner, Silver for the Gods, The Toledo Museum of
Art, 1977, no. 107.
D. Sherlock, uAn Early Christian Spoon", Rivista di Archeologia Cristiana, 1974, Anno
L, no. 1-4, p. 376.
The Koran, translation G. Sale.
Ibid.

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365

necessarily religious, purposes. The existence of a tradition in pre-Islamic

times, using very similar blessings, probably paved the way for the adoption of such an artistic expression. Bearing in mind that the phenomenon
is a similar one, i.e. both a religious and a common context for the preIslamic objects with inscriptions that correspond to our Kul Haniyyan
Mariyyan, those objects reflect repeatedly the later Islamic interpretation.
It is probably the combination of the existing pre-Islamic trend and the
evidence of a Koranic association that fully justified the artistic fashion
which was adopted for some time in Islamic Art.

List of Figures
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.,

Plate from Susa.

Plate from Nishapur. Courtesy of the L.A. Mayer Memorial.
Plate from Nishapur. Collection Mr. Fourouhi.
Plate from Nishapur. Courtesy of the Royal Ontario Museum,
Toronto.
Plate from Nishapur. After Octagon.
Jug from Gurgan. Courtesy of the L.A. Mayer Memorial.
Detail of the same.
Clay Bread-Stamps. Courtesy of the Islamic Museum in Berlin.
Silver Spoon. Courtesy of the' L.A. Mayer Memorial.
Roman Silver Spoon. Courtesy of the Petit Palais, Paris.

Recently while visiting the Islamic Museum in Cairo, I discovered another bowl,
belonging to this family with the same inscription. In this case there are diacritical signs
which did not exist in the first example from Susa. Its origin is undoubtedly Mesopotamian.