Mamluk Perfume Sprinkler (Qumqum)

Perfume sprinklers or "qamaqim" (plural of "qumqum") with a globular body and a thin elongated neck with enamelled and gilded decoration were characteristic of Mamluk glass production.
This free-blown glass sprinkler (qumqum) is of globular shape with a flattened body on two sides and a well-defined, kicked-in base. Its long neck is wide above the body and ends in a pinprick-size opening. The body of this sprinkler is decorated in blue enamel and gilding outlined in red with an inscription band written in typical naskh script of the early Mamluk period. It is reserved on a blue ground interrupted by two roundels enclosing quatrefoil motifs. The inscription is a repetition of العالم which could be the shortened version of a number of different titles. The 'fleur-de-lys' motif, a stylised emblem of Persian or Byzantine origin, is drawn on two sides of the sprinkler’s shoulder and became very popular in Mamluk Egypt during the late 6th century AH/late 12th century CE. These long-necked glass sprinklers were probably used as perfume or rose water containers.