Iznik Tile with Cloud-band Motif

Iznik pottery is named after the town of Iznik, in western Anatolia (modern day Turkey), where it was initially made. The earliest evidence of Iznik production occurred during the reign of the Ottoman Sultan Mehmed II (r. 854-886 AH/1451-81 CE), whose appreciation for fine blue and white Chinese Ming porcelains inspired potters to start making similar ceramics. This rectangular tile dates to the 10th-11th century AH/16th century CE, a period when Iznik pottery was revitalised under Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent (r. 926-974 AH/1520-66 CE). This period is often considered to be the height of Iznik pottery, when new colours, patterns and forms were introduced, such as fire-red, a technological innovation developed by Iznik potters around the 960s AH/1560s CE. The tile is decorated with a dense pattern of white cloud-bands, themselves a continuation of earlier Chinese influences, against a fire-red ground.