Incense burner

Egypt or Syria, Ottoman period, late 19th–early 20th century

Hammered, engraved cast brass with openwork, inlaid with copper and silver. The bowl and lid are decorated with foliated and calligraphic ornamentation.

H: 21 cm, Diameter: 10.1 cm

UMP 4576

This type of small incense burner is a typical product of the Ottoman world of the eastern Mediterranean. They were produced with or without lids. The incense burner is believed to come from Syria, where the production of brass objects inlaid with silver and copper flourished particularly in the second half of the nineteenth century. The use of this technique built on traditions dating from the Middle Ages.  But by the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, these items tended to be sold as tourist souvenirs. The objects displayed not only traditional geometric and foliated motifs imitating the original range of ornamentation, but also tourist attractions evoking the lands the visitors had just seen – such as the pyramids, sphinxes, or dromedaries.