Fireplace from palace of Fuat Pasha
1731
Museum number (703-1891)

This fireplace, made in Istanbul, gives us a glimpse into what the living quarters of an Ottoman official must have been like. Much of the decoration is in a traditional Ottoman style, but the large-scale scrollwork at the top on either side of the hood is in a Europeanized style. The names of a famous group from Christian and Muslim legend (the 'Seven Sleepers' and their dog) are written on tiles around the base of the hood, a practice thought to ward off evil.