The “Kubachi Problem” and the Isfahan Workshop

The name "Kubachi" is familiar to most students of Islamic art as well as to ethnographers dealing with the complex demographics of Daghestan in the Caucasus. Kubachi lies some 60 km southwest of the Caspian town of Derbent in the north Caucasus, in the autonomous republic of Daghestan, formerly within the Soviet Union. Kubachi seems to be the only source for whole vessels from the Tabriz workshop, while vessels with Nishapur and Mashhad petrofabric have been found in Iran. The earliest evidence for pottery production at Qumisheh comes from a series of underglaze-painted blue-and-white tiles; most are inscribed as grave markers, but the earliest example bears a foundation inscription for a mosque. The evidence seems to confirm that Qumisheh was the site of the Isfahan workshop, it is possible that elsewhere in the Isfahan region potters using the same mineral sources as those of Qumisheh were making similar wares.Keywords: Kubachi; Caucasus; Isfahan workshop; Islamic art; Mashhad; Nishapur; Qumisheh; Soviet Union; Tabriz workshop