Name of Object:

Tympanum made of 16 tiles from the palace of the grand vizier Piale Pasha (c. 1515-1578)

Location:

Vienna, Austria

Holding Institution:

MAK – Austrian Museum of Applied Arts / Contemporary Art

 About MAK – Austrian Museum of Applied Arts / Contemporary Art, Vienna

Date of Object:

1573; acquired in 1885

Inventory Number:

Ke 3381

Material(s) / Technique(s):

Frit ceramic with transparent enamel over white background with floral decoration in the colours darkblue, blue, turquoise and red (tomato red) with black contours

Provenance:

Turkey, Iznik

Description:

These tiles decorated the palace of the Ottoman Grand Vizier Piale Pasha, or possibly the mosque the Vizier commissioned. Both buildings were completed in 1573 and richly decorated with tile panels. The palace and the mosque were restored after an earthquake in 1890, and the tile panels were sold all over the world. At least nine identical tympanums are now in American and European museums.

Type of Object

Ceramic tile; tilework

Citation of this web page:

"Tympanum made of 16 tiles from the palace of the grand vizier Piale Pasha (c. 1515-1578)" in "Sharing History", Museum With No Frontiers, 2026.
https://sharinghistory.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=object;AWE;at;117;en

Copyedited by: Daniel de la VegaDaniel de la Vega

Daniel de la Vega is a copy editor based in Portland, Oregon. He obtained his bachelor’s degree in linguistics from the University of California at Santa Cruz in 2014 and has since done editing and localization work on everything from college applications to magazines to video game dialogue.

MWNF Working Number: AT 119