Islamic design

There appears to be some kind of cross-like design that is repeated all throughout the main part of the artifact. While it is interesting to speculate that this design could be related to a letter or even contain some religious symbolism, the parallels do not match up exactly, meaning this could also be a purely aesthetic motif.

There is, however, a similarity between this object and many Middle-Eastern or Islamic metal-work pieces. Metal-work occupies a central role in Islam due to its inclusion in the Qur'an which relates that the blessed in paradise will enjoy vessels in silver and gold.Betsy Williams, Jane and Morgan Whitney Fellow “Islamic Metalwork”, Metropolitan Museum of Art. 2012.

As such, not only was it a status symbol like it would become in Europe, but it was also a posthumous reward and sign that one had led an honorable life. Many parallels can be drawn between this 1580 pomander and the centuries of Islamic metalwork tradition.

The shape of the pomander as a whole is reminiscent of spherical perfume burners in the early Islamic context wherein incense burners had a low cylindrical body, traditionally supported by three feet, with a domed cover and a long handle. As such, burners with square bodies were very rare. These artifacts were widely used in various regions such as Egypt or Syria during the 14th and 15th centuries, where they were hung or rolled along the floor.“Metalwork.” In The Grove Encyclopedia of Islamic Art and Architecture. , edited by Jonathan M. Bloom, Sheila S. Blair. Oxford Islamic Studies Online. Similarly, oil lamps had the same globular bodies. As for the decorative patterns, starting in the 12th century, particularly in modern-day Iran, the most popular ones were those based on hexagons. Coincidentally, this English pomander’s repetitive decorations are made up of what could be two hexagons meeting and crossing each other.

Furthermore, the pomander folds out into eight wedges, thus having an octagonal core. The regular octagon was a crucial component of Islamic art design and was widely used as an arithmetic object in metric algebra.Jeanam Park, “Cultural and Mathematical Meanings of Regular Octagons in Mesopotamia: Examining Islamic Art Designs,” Journal of History Culture and Art Research, 7(1), (2018): 301.

Another similarity has to do with the decorative technique. The Boston Museum of Fine Arts describes the technique as wriggle-work, a skill close to the art of ‘repoussé’ or ‘chasing’, two metalworking techniques also close to the Islamic tradition.According to Oxford Islamic Studies Online, ‘repoussé’ technique is used for rough features of a design and ‘chasing’, for refining the surface texture of the ornament and sharpening its contours.

Lastly, more of a symbolic and perhaps stereotypical link is that the pomander and the perfuming of spaces is strongly associated with the ‘Orient’. Of course, while there is some truth to this claim, Orientalist works exploited this belief as seen in harem paintings with burning incense balls. This is obvious in the painting down below where the burning incense ball is a dynamic part of the sensual scene unfolding. Seen as a sign of hospitality and as a way to strengthen the mind and body, these were passed on to guests to welcome them into the home, perfuming the home along with the clothes and the belongings of all those near it. According to Islamic scholar Imam Bukhari, the Prophet said to treat oneself “with Indian incense for it has healing for seven diseases; it is to be sniffed by one having throat problems and put in the mouth for one suffering from pleurisy.” Once again, this meshed religion with medicine. One particular substance delivered healing properties, as we will see in this next part.