Bird printed vase and plate

Fascinated by the culture and mythology of the East, Toumanian paid special attention to objects of Eastern origin among his personal belongings.

This collection with Persian ornaments consists of a plate and 2 vases.

The height of the vases is 19 cm, the diameter of the base is 6.3 cm, and the mouth is 4.8 cm. The whole surface is divided into 10 spiral layers, on which are depicted colorful flowers, floral patterns, butterflies and a peacock eye. The upper and the inner edges of the vase are crowned with blue geometric patterns, and the edges are black and reddish. They depict a simurgh bird with mirror reflection.

The diameter of the plate is 25 cm. The edges are decorated with 6 medallions with 3 round ribbons (feston). The whole surface is covered with multicolored floral patterns, butterflies with oriental ornaments, harmonious color combination. In the center, in a separate frame, the simurgh bird is depicted again.

Simurgh (Persian: سیمرغ) is a supernatural bird in Persian-Islamic tradition, often compared to the phoenix.

According to Persian myth, Simurgh lives on a tree of life, on the branches of which all the seeds of the world grow. When it flies from a tree, the vibrations caused by its power scatter those seeds all over the world, bringing healing plants and prosperity to mankind. Later the bird nests on the Persian holy mountain Elburs, which is inaccessible to any climber.

Simurgh is such an old creature that he managed to survive the end of the world three times. In time he was able to learn so much that he possessed all kinds of knowledge of all times. According to one of the legends, the simurgh lives for 1700 years, after which it throws itself into the fire and burns like a phoenix.

The image of Simurgh is found in Persian art and literature of all times. It is also found in the Byzantine Empire, in the Armenian and Georgian cultures. Simurgh transformed to the word peacock (siramarg սիրամարգ) in Armenian language. In Persian and in Armenian it is used as a girl's name.

The simurgh was depicted with a peacock tail, a dog's head, and with fish scales, as a birth, symbolizing its connection to the three elements of nature: water, air, and earth.

The collection owned by Toumanian is made of copper, enameled with the technology of minakari (Persian: میناکاری). It is an ancient art of enameling metal in Iran. It is mainly made of copper, but in some cases – gold or silver too. The center is considered the city of Isfahan.

Mina is a type of painting on metal, made with special shiny colors, which cannot be cleaned after processing at high temperatures.

In the past, vegetative and mineral-based paints were used to illustrate vessels, but today they have been replaced by chemical ones.

The plate was donated to the museum by the poet's wife in 1952. The registration number is TTGG 122 / WB 88.

The family presented vases to Toumanianologist Aram Inchikyan in gratitude for his great work dedicated to Toumanian's literary heritage.

Years later, the museum acquired them in 2008. The registration number is TTGG 1689/1, 2.

Article by Vardanoush Nalbandyan 

Translated by Anahit Sringyan