The mystery of the lamp

As a documentation assistant, there are few pleasures so great as managing to positively identify an object.  Some may find this sad - however, it's a valid lifestyle choice!  So, indulge me a little as I tell you a tale of a lamp...

Green glazed pottery lamp:
Hull and East Riding Museum

I was working my way through a box of miscellaneous pottery objects, documenting each diligently and making each accessible on the Hull Museums collections database (feel free to tangentially explore and return to this ramble when you're ready) when I came across this lovely little lamp.

The lamp had no labels, no information with it and had nothing written on it.  There were no clues... apart from the object itself.

It's covered in a green glaze - normally for an archaeologist working in Britain, this sets off alarm bells that it's medieval.  However, the lamp's form suggests somewhere a little further afield.

After a little research (thanks, British Museum database) I managed to find some direct parallels (objects which look the same).  When finding parallels, you have to be vary careful as you have to ensure every aspect of the objects is similar such as the material, shape and any decoration.  You also might have to use a little imagination - our lamp is missing its long nozzle.  It was broken in antiquity (a long time ago) but fortunately you can still notice some characteristic features of the object.

So this lamp went from being completely unprovenanced (which means, 'no idea where it is from') to a brilliant discovery!  It is from Egypt in Africa and can be dated to the 11th Century AD.  It can even be pinned down to the Fatimid dynasty (909AD - 1171AD).

This dynasty claimed to be descended from Fatimah, daughter of the prophet Muhammad (founder of Islam).  They originally ruled North Africa, taking over Egypt they made Cairo their capital and Egypt became the centre of their empire.

It's likely that this lamp was buried for while and excavated - at the moment we do not know.  But it's still amazing to think that this lamp has managed to survive a thousand years and make its way to Hull.  Even though it's a little worn and broken, it still looks magnificent to me.