Moor's Heads in Sicilian Ceramic 26cm

Caltagirone ceramic Moor’s Heads with jewels on the turban, entirely handmade and decorated by master Sicilian artisans. Height 26 cm. The Moor’s Heads depict a man and a woman, the protagonists of a legend that for almost a thousand years has enchanted lovers of history and Sicilian culture.

The legend tells of a beautiful young woman who lived in the early 1100s and devoted herself to tending her plants on the balcony of her home in the Kalsa district of Palermo. She fell madly in love with a Moorish soldier, who was also overwhelmed by his passion for the beautiful lady.

According to one version of the legend, the girl was deceived by the soldier: in reality, he was married and had children, and was ready to abandon her to return to his native land. The discovery of this betrayal drove the young woman to kill her lover in his sleep, behead him, and use his head as a pot for basil, which she then proudly displayed on her home balcony. According to the tragic legend, the basil grew so lushly that it aroused the envy of all the neighbors, who began to have artisans make head-shaped pots, namely the current Moor’s Heads (also called Turkish Heads by some), a symbol of passion and love that must not be betrayed.  According to another version of the legend, the two lovers were both killed and beheaded by her family, who disapproved of their love story, and their heads were displayed as a warning against illicit unions. From this story, the depiction of Moor’s Heads as a couple is a symbol of passion and love that transcends time.