ca. 1100 AD. Seljuk. Gorgeous bronze bowl. The bowl comprises an out-turned rim and hemispherical body. The interior is decorated with an intricate geometrical pattern comprising a central rondel filled with vegetal motifs surrounded by several registers of further repeating geometrical pattern. The rim is stamped with a dot-in-circle motif, while the exterior is undecorated. This beautiful object may have been used in the kitchen for serving food during banquets. The Seljuks were a Turkic dynasty who swept out of Central Asia in the early 10th century and conquered an enormous expanse, covering most or all of present-day Turkmenistan, Iran, Iraq, Turkey and beyond. After inflicting crushing military defeats on a host of rivals, the most famous of which was perhaps that against the Byzantines at the Battle of Manzikert in 1071, the Seljuk sultans became major patrons of art and architecture. Excellent condition; beautiful patina. Size: L:70mm / W:285mm ; 1.3kg. Provenance: From the important collection of a London doctor A.R; passed by descent to his son; formerly acquired between 1970-2000. Big parts of the collection were studied/published by professor Lambert in the early 1990s.