"IRAN" Line (2)

The main motif for the décor of this set is the elegant tracery from the glazed tiles ornamenting the magnificent dome of the famous Shah Mosque in the city of Ispahan. The tea-pot and sugar bowl are decorated on one side with the picture of this mosque and on the other side with the medallions showing the Friday Mosque.

The Shah Mosque erected in the XVIIth century by the order of Shah Abbas I the Great is one of the everlasting masterpieces of architecture in Iran and all over the world with its glorious size and décor and is registered Jahan Square as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Moreover, The Shah Mosque is one of the treasures featured on Around the World in 80 Treasures presented by the famous architecture historian Dan Cruickshank. All the walls of the mosque (both inside and outside), including four slender minarets and the massive dome are coated with glazed tiles with floral and geometrical ornaments sparkling in the sun with their radiant colors. Since Shah Abbas wanted to complete the construction as soon as possible new technique of Haft Rangi (seven colors) tiling was applied in which a number of colors were combined on one tile in a single firing, instead of the slower and more expensive single color mosaic faience of earlier buildings, where pieces of single-color tiling were cut and individually fitted according to the overall design.. The acoustic property of the mosque amazes modern scientists and numerous visitors.

The construction of the Friday Mosque was begun in the 11^th century during the rule of the great Seljuk sultan Malik Shah. It is one of Iran's oldest mosques. The Friday Mosque as it stands now is the result of continual construction, reconstruction, additions and renovations on the site. Safavid ceramic with the addition of muqarnas, glazed tilework, are highly decorative. The combination of styles in the Mosque is unique and varied. That is why it presents a sort of concise history of the Iranian Architecture.

The key feature of this set are stylized arabesques covering practically the entire surface of the items leaving a little space for the white background that is typical of Islamic Art. It is not accidental that the elaborate and fine lacing of the tracery is shown against azure background as this tint of Heaven is characteristic of the decorations on Iranian mosques, especially in the tiles that often ornament their walls and minarets. Golden décor makes the set especially exquisite.

This collection is produced in a limited number of copies (500 sets).