Constant Splendor

This expansive book considers twelve centuries of Persian ceramics through the lens of the extraordinary Hossein Afshar Collection

With works spanning more than a millennium, the Hossein Afshar Collection includes examples from nearly every major development in the ceramic arts of the eastern Islamic world. Constant Splendor: Persian Ceramics from the Hossein Afshar Collection highlights 240 of these works, the vast majority of which are published here for the first time.

This lavishly illustrated publication offers new insights into the aesthetic, cultural, and technical aspects of Persian ceramics, contextualizing individual works with essays that trace important developments and stylistic trends represented by the collection. Including writing on global trade and the history of ceramics, a discussion of the conservation of Islamic ceramics, reflections on inscriptions, and an illustrated glossary elucidating the diverse techniques demonstrated by the Hossein Afshar Collection, Constant Splendor offers an engaging overview of an extraordinary array of Persian ceramics.

Distributed for the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston