A GREEN-GLAZED MOULDED KUTAHYA POTTERY FLASK WITH ST. GEORGE AND THE DRAGON
Ottoman Turkey, 18th - 19th century

Of rectangular shape, resting on a slightly raised oval base, rising to narrow stepped shoulders decorated with acanthus leaves, with two cylindrical openings at the top, and pierced and curved edges, the moulded decoration featuring on the front and back the icon of St. George (Kevorkian) slaying the dragon, both images set against a dotted background, the sides with two vertical decorative bands imitating braid works on leather flasks similarly to the cylindrical openings at the top, 17.5cm x 9cm x 4cm.

The motif on this bottle is a common one, dear to the Armenian community living in both the Western Anatolian and Caucasian territories. In the 18th century, the Armenian potters at Kutahya flourished, producing a wide range of vessels as well as pictorial and decorative tiles for the Armenian Cathedral of St. James in Jerusalem, dating to the first half of the 18th century. Several of these tiles depict the motif of St. George slaying the dragon and one, in particular, is dated 1168 AH (1718) (John Carswell, Kütahya Tiles and Pottery from the Armenian Cathedral of St. James, Jerusalem, vol. I, Oxford, 1972, tile CI, pl.10). It is likely to believe that as the potters' skill increased, they started moving from flat to three-dimensional figural representations with the help of metal moulds. An example of a Kutahya pottery flask with moulded panels depicting St. George similar to ours was successfully sold at Christie's London, 25 April 2013, lot 254.