Venus Star Bowl

The bowl has a bronze(ish) patina on the outside and a polished golden inside.

Is this  bowl from the 16th century,  the 1960s, the '80s, or  perchance, is it from the future?   Is it a bath bowl? a medicinal bowl?  A magic bowl? An alms bowl? Is it from India? Iraq? Iran?  Pakistan?Afghanistan? Mexico? China? Some Greek island or some village perched on a Himalayan mountain?

Studying this  repoussé brass bowl has taken me on a journey back through time--all the way to a consideration of the ancient goddesses and  then  through some other strange, meandering,  circular terrain--In my research I viewed  other similarly shaped bowls, but with the antithesis of design--meager lines and waves, rather than the rich and exotic wonders that embellish this bowl

There are myriad pictures of bowls in the Metropolitan Museum of Art that are somehow lacking, in comparison to this bowl. Those bowls do not have the deft charm that this bowl has. They do not have the stirring, mysterious piquancy that lingers into one's dreams, that this brass bowl has.  ;-)

The number 8 is mirrored from the star within the circle,  to the waves of vines. There are four animals and four flowers.

As a former philosophy professor, Pierre Grimes, used to say, “what do you know?”

Although I have examined it closely with my hands and eyes, under various lighting conditions. And I am intrigued by what I feel and see...

After all my research (and I must say here that my research, although relatively extensive, has not extended to consulting experts, nor has it included trips to university libraries), I have come to the conclusion that I don’t know much about this bowl.

Is this a lion? A lemur? A bear?  It is the only animal facing forward.

 I know that the animals on the bowl are not animals that I am familiar with and they don’t resemble  any animal figures  decorating objects from anywhere that I have ever seen. But then, oddly, they do somehow look familiar. Do I know them from dreams? I note that only one animal seems to be viewing the viewer.

Doesn't seem to be the usual Islamic star, although the script would suggest that it could be.............? If it were of religious significance and it were Islamic, the bowl would not have depictions of animals, from what I understand.

Of the  four flowers  placed between the animals, three are  open and one is  just beginning to bloom. (lower right corner).

The script on the sides of the bowl might be Farsi. It might be Thuluth. Maybe it’s Indian. What does it say? I wish I knew.  Is it nonsense,  magic runes, prayers, or poetry? Or is it something more prosaic?

Vines with finely etched leaves snake around and through  the writing.

  As  to what the symbols on it actually  mean or where it might be from...I am still in the dark. How ironic, for although the  eight-pointed star does not seem to be the classic eight-pointed star of Islam. It  does, however, seem to  resemble the Ishtar star--  "Ishtar the Bringer of Light.” The bringer of wisdom?  Or does the star symbolize Venus, who may be the original goddess, whose guises include,Inanna/Ishtar/Astarte?....This is a very confusing and  weighty subject.

It is said that the number eight signifies the infinite. The ever repeating patterns of life renewal. And from what I've read, this is  partly the tale that Venus has to tell.

I found this  bowl in a pile of dusty things that seemed to be the dregs of a garage sale that ended up at some thrift store. Was it my imagination that it seemed to call out to me? I felt shocked to find it in such a place.

Everything on the outside is in low relief on the golden inside.

 I seem to remember that when I took it to the cashier, she remarked that it was  interesting, but very dirty.  I took it home and washed it with a little mild detergent and began to seek answers. I haven’t found anything conclusive. But I will continue to keep my eyes and  ears open. If you the reader, wish to offer any pertinent comments,   I  thank you.

In my wandering I  did find one interesting website about Venus and many other interesting topics. I will include the link here.

    http://www.maverickscience.com/venus-aphrodite.htm