Text, The dawn of new art

With the spreading of Islam in the 7th century ancient cultural regions such as Mesopotamia, Syria or Iran became fertile grounds for the development of new Islamic art forms. The Arab conquerors constituted the new elite, ruling over the local population. At that time, the inhabitants of cities such as Jerusalem and Damascus were still in the large part Christians. Both ivory boxes present a rich decoration of vine scrolls coming out of a vase. Such ornamental motive had been popular for centuries. The box on the right shows a cross, thus pointing to a Christian context of use. The box on the left bears instead no religious symbols and most probably belonged to a Muslim owner. However, a Jew or Christian ownership could also have been possible. In Islamic art it is often difficult to ascertain the religious, ethnic, or social background master craftsmen and customers. Inv. Nos. 2977 and 11531, loan from the Sculpture Collection and Museum of Byzantine Art