Combination lock box
Muhammad ibn Hamid al-Asturlabi al-Isfahani
(Late 12th century)
1197 A.D./ 593 A.H.
Object PlaceKhurasan or Isfahan, Iran
Medium/TechniqueLeaded brass over wood with silver, gold, and copper inlay, with applied gilt leaded brass figures
DimensionsExterior: 18 x 22 x 16.7 cm (7 1/16 x 8 11/16 x 6 9/16 in.)
Credit LineGift of Mrs. Edward Jackson Holmes
Accession number55.1113
On View
Not on viewClassificationsMetalwork
Collections
This small box combines functionality with beauty. The top bears four dials arranged in a row to create the eight-number code of an early “combination lock” as well as silver, gold, and copper inlays that form an intricate interlace pattern and provide the date of the box’s production in the late twelfth century. Large portions of the sides and bottom of the box are modern reconstructions, but the set of three gilded brass figures applied to its front face may be original. While it is not uncommon to see human figures bronzes from Iran, these are usually inlaid rather than applied. If the figures on the box are genuine, they may represent guards watching over whatever was held inside.
InscriptionsInscribed with date H.H. 593 (A.D. 1197)
Provenance1931, M. & R. Stora, Paris [see note]. 1950, Mrs. Edward Jackson (Mary Stacy Beaman) Holmes (b. 1875), Topsfield, MA; 1955, gift of Mrs. Edward Jackson Holmes to the MFA. (Accession Date: January 12, 1956)
NOTE: Lent to the International Exhibition of Persian Art (Royal Academy of Arts, London, January 7 - February 28, 1931), cat. no. 77e.
NOTE: Lent to the International Exhibition of Persian Art (Royal Academy of Arts, London, January 7 - February 28, 1931), cat. no. 77e.
mid 6th–7th century
Late 19th century
8th–9th century
late 15th century (?)
Early 19th century
before A.D. 907
about 1220–30
7th - 9th century
5th–6th century
early 6th century (?)
second half of 15th century (?)
12th century