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The story of Armenian ceramics would
have been told so differently had it not been for the
"Pro-Jerusalem Society". This committee, founded by Sir
Ronald Storrs, the first military governor and his advisor
Charles Robert Ashbee, undertook the restoration and
preservation of Jerusalem's historic sites during the
British mandate. For the restoration of the centuries old
glazed tiles decorating the Dome of the Rock, the "Society"
located David Ohannessian of Kutahya, a master ceramist
whose works enhanced the splendour of palaces in Turkey,
Syria and Egypt, and were much in demand in Europe and the
Middle East. David Ohannessian established Jerusalem's first
Armenian ceramic workshop in 1919. The workshop never
accomplished the restoration project of the Dome of the Rock
tiles. However, it was not long before it started catering
for Jerusalem's big international as well as the elite of
its local communities. In spite of its short lived
production, (1919-1948), the grace and beauty of
Ohannessian's tiles changed the face of the city by
decorating its mansions, institutions and public places, and
influenced Jerusalem's arts and crafts till this present day
and time. |
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