A copper alloy tray in the State Hermitage Museum and the spread of cross-mediality in Early Islamic material culture

The article centres around the study of a monumental copper alloy tray kept at the Hermitage Museum (acc. no. ИР-2321). The object has been discussed several times and attributed to 9th–11th century Iran, although no specific study has appeared yet. In general, the tray seems to belong to, and at the same time deviate from, a peculiar production of large copper alloy trays, characterised by a large central medallion surrounded by concentric rings. Peculiarities of the tray under study include the absence of figurative elements and the profusion of plant compositions, transfigured into highly standardised and repetitive forms. These vegetal motifs are nonetheless decidedly unmistakable in stylistic terms: they are closely related to similar ornamentations found on 8th- and early-9th-century artefacts in other materials. Through a detailed analysis, an attempt will be made to propose a narrower attribution for this object, as well as to contextualise it in the broader artistic framework of early-Islamic Mesopotamia and Iran.