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A PINK SANDSTONE MAKARA
Possibly Gwalior or Mathura, North India, 10th - 11th century
Of rectangular format, the makara naturalistically carved in the round, with bulging eyes, fierce fangs, and a crocodile snout, the body emerging from an intricately pierced and worked vegetal tendril, roundels with vegetal and floral motifs on the body and snout, mounted on a black stand, approximately 56.5cm x 54.8cm with the stand.
£1,400-£1,600
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A PAINTED WOODEN YALI
Tamil Nadu, 18th - 19th century
The face of the yali carved in the round on three sides, showing bulging eyes and sharp fangs, painted in red and yellow pigments, on a rectangular piece of wood possibly part of a lintel, 19cm long.
£200-£300
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A CARVED SOAPSTONE FEMALE FIGURINE
India, 18th - 19th century
Anthropomorphically shaped, representing a maiden wearing a long pleated skirt, the shawl covering her breast and shoulders, fully bejewelled with strings of pearls, heavy earrings and a forehead ornament, an embroidered headscarf, in a dancing pose, 11.5cm high.
£100-£200
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AN ANTHROPOMORPHIC BRASS WATER VESSEL
Bengal, India, 19th century
Of pyriform shape, on a circular stepped splayed foot in the shape of a flower collar, the body and neck worked in high relief to represent a female figure, heavily bejewelled with multiple strings of necklaces, heavy earrings and a lobed headdress with four lateral spikes, the nose pierced on both ends and possibly once adorned with nose earrings, a likely representation of a goddess or semi-divine creature, possibly used for ceremonies and for gathering water from the Ganges, 23.1cm high.
£300-£500
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A PINK SANDSTONE DOORWAY ARCH
North India, late 18th - early 19th century
Of rectangular format, set within a frame with concentric bands, the arch carved as two lotus buds generating a stylised vegetal band, an acanthus leaf in the centre and two vegetal volutes in the spandrels, 107.5cm x 57.5cm.
Provenance: Bonhams London, 2 April 2009, lot 223.
£600-£800
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AN INDIAN MARBLE FOUNTAIN BASIN
North India, 19th century
Of square shape, with everted rim, the base, the inner and outer corners and the central jet decorated with leaves and lush vegetal motifs, 101cm x 41.5cm x 99cm.
£1,500-£2,000
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A MARBLE TABLE
North India, 20th century
Of typical shape, the shaft carved in the round with vegetal motifs, palmettes and floral petals, the foot with vegetal volutes and leaves, the table top plain, approximately 50cm diam, and 65cm high.
£200-£300
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A CARVED AND PIERCED MARBLE JALI
North India, 20th century
Within a rectangular frame, with open work lobed arch, the spandrels with iris flowers, mounted on stand, approximately 116cm x 47.5cm.
For a similar though earlier example, please see Christie's London, 26 May 2016, lot 15.
£1,000-£1,200
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λ TWELVE OVAL INDIAN MINIATURES
Company School, Delhi, North India, late 19th century
Opaque pigments on oval ivory medallions, comprising a set of twelve architectural miniatures mounted on board and contained within metal frames, depicting renowned Indian monuments, such as the Moti Masjid and several views of the Lal Qila in Delhi, Qutb Minar, I'timad-ud-Daulah mausoleum, Taj Mahal, Amritsar Temple, Salim Chishti's Dargah and the main entrance to Fatehpur Sikri, each individually mounted, glazed and framed, 47.5cm x 32.5cm including mount.
£1,000-£1,500
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TWO COMPANY SCHOOL DRAWINGS
Possibly Delhi, North India, late 19th century
A pair of architectural renderings of Mumtaz and Shah Jahan's tombs from an album, opaque pigments and black ink on paper, depicting the intricate and colourful pietra dura decoration of the white marble sarcophagi, with geometric patterns beneath rows of Mughal botanical motifs, Mumtaz Mahal's tomb with Quranic inscriptions, the one of Shah Jahan marked with 'T' to the bottom left, 24cm x 35cm, 33cm x 43cm including frame, Mumtaz's drawing 23cm x 34cm, 32cm x 42cm including frame.£600-£800
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A TINTED DRAWING OF THE QUTB MINAR AND A PAINTED LITHOGRAPH OF A HINDU TEMPLE
Company School style, Delhi, India and London, England, 19th century
Opaque pigments and black ink on paper, comprising a tinted drawing of the Qutb Minar in Delhi, within red and black rules, an inscription on the left of the minaret, pasted on plain paper, mounted on cream white cardboard, 30cm x 21.6cm including mount; and a tinted lithograph of a sandstone pavilion part of a Hindu templar complex, published by T, and W. Daniell, no. 9, Cleveland Street, Fitzroy Square, London, May 1815, 26cm x 15.8cm.
£200-£300
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TWO MARBLE FOUNTAIN BASINS
North India, late 19th - early 20th century
Comprising a square basin, the centre carved in the shape of petals opening to a central rosette, four rosettes on each corner, 45.5cm x 20.5cm; and a similar one, of octagonal shape, the rim with a lobed motif, otherwise plain, 13.5cm x 59.cm.
£600-£800
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AN ALBUM WITH ELEVEN DRAWING PLATES
Company school style, India, late 19th - early 20th century
An album of watercolours on paper, 11 extant drawings mounted on grey board, images including the Tomb of Mumtaz, and Sarcophagus of Shah Jahan, both the interior and the exterior of the Taj Mahal; the index listing 39 items, inscribed Baron Liechtenstein, with blue moire end papers, green calf binding, a brass lock, and protective maroon calf outer binding, 20cm x 28.5cm folios, 26.2cm x 36.7cm including mount.
£200-£300
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A RED SANDSTONE ARCHITECTURAL PANEL
Mathura, Northern India, 18th century
Of typical square format, the central panel carved and pierced in the style of a large blooming iris in a baluster-shaped vase supported by a row of smaller irises, flanked by two detached tall square columns, their pinnacles carved as lotus buds, 59cm x 69cm at the tallest point.
£600-£800
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A RED SANDSTONE WINDOW WITH ORNAMENTAL FRIEZE
Mathura, Northern India, 18th century
Of rectangular format, the sides carved in the shape of a window, the top edge carved with an ornamental frieze in the shape of two peacocks bowing in front of a tiered hemispherical structure, possibly a linga or a stylised stupa, 72cm x 69cm.
£400-£600
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A MARBLE BASIN WITH STYLISED ACANTHUS LEAVES
India, 20th century
Of square shape, the exterior carved with a double row of stylised acanthus leaves, the interior plain, 58.5cm x 44.5cm.
£400-£600
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AN ALL-STEEL CURVED-BLADE DAGGER (CHILANUM)
Deccan, Central India, 17th - 18th century
Of typical shape, with curved double-edged steel blade with central ridge, the steel handle X-shaped opening at the top like a flower, the pommel with concentric circular elements, the forte engraved with two makara heads, 38.5cm long.
For a very similar example, please see The Metropolitan Museum of Art Collection, inv. no. 36.25.751.
£600-£800
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A SIKH SILVER-FOILED SADDLE AXE (TABARZIN)
Possibly Lahore, Punjab, early 19th century
Of typical shape, with a long shaft ending in a circular pommel, the single-edged blade of curved shape, with square peen and crescentic cutting edge, the shaft and both sides of the axe engraved with vegetal cartouches filled with blossoming rosettes, 54.5cm long.
A similar saddle axe is now kept in the Royal Armouries, Leeds, and is illustrated in T. Richardson and N. Bennett, Indian Arms and Armour, Leeds, 2015, inv. XXVIC.33, p. 34.
£1,400-£1,600
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A BIDRI SILVER AND BRASS-INLAID TRAY
Bidar, Deccan, Central India, 18th century
Of circular shape, with raised and reinforced rim, the inlaid decoration with concentric rows of repeating clover-like motifs arranged around a central medallion with leafy scrollwork, rosette tendrils and a brass-inlaid four-leaf clover in the very centre, 29cm diam.
£500-£700
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A PARCEL-GILT SILVER ROSEWATER SPRINKLER (GULAB PASH)
Lucknow, North India, 19th century
Of zoomorphic shape, realistically modelled as a stork with a long neck, the eyes inset with red hard stones, holding in its beak a blooming lotus flower, pierced to let the water out, on the back an unscrewed lid to refill the water, the paws screwed onto a circular stepped base, 28.3cm high.
For a very similar, though earlier in date, example, please see C. Terlinden, Mughal Silver Magnificence 16th - 19th century, Brussels, 1987, tab. 24, p. 51. The Victoria and Albert Museum in London also has another example, dated to 19th century as ours, and it's been attributed to the Jhallawar silverware production (inv. no. VAM.4-1887).
£500-£700
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A SILVER HANDLE IN THE FORM OF A YALI
Tamil Nadu, South India, 19th century
Of zoomorphic shape, the curved handle ending in a mythical beast's head with bulging eyes and sharp fangs, realistically cast and engraved, with red hard stones inlaid eyes, Tamil inscriptions at the end of the beast's neck and below the bend, 14.5cm high.
£150-£180
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A BIDRI SILVER-INLAID LIDDED SPICE TRAY (PANDAN)
Bidar, Deccan, Central India, early 19th century
The lid of domed shape, resting on a circular tray inlaid with central floral motif, rising to a tapering lotus bud-shaped knob, the exterior inlaid with interlocking vegetal tendrils with chinar leaves, the floral decorative bands above and below with stylised lotus scrolls and palmettes, 13cm diam, and 13.5cm high.
£500-£700
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A GOLD-DAMASCENED (KOFTGARI) HILTED WATERED-STEEL PESHKABZ
North Western India, 19th century
With long straight single-edged blade, the ricasso plain, the handle inlaid with dense foliated scrollwork, on the drop-shaped end of the handle a circular pommel with pierced decoration, the interior of the handle with an unscrewed small dagger and a small stiletto, 29.8cm long.
£800-£1,000
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A CARVED AND BEJEWELLED JADE HILT
North India, 19th century
Of typical oblong form, with a flared drop-shaped end, the lateral sides carved in relief with circular rosettes interspersed with tiny golden spirals, the flat upper border and pommel encrusted in the kundan technique with coloured glass, residues of lacquer on the graft, 11.5cm long.
£600-£800
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A BIDRI SILVER-INLAID LIDDED 'MAGIC' BOWL
Bidar, Deccan, Central India, 18th century
Of circular shape with slightly everted rim, on a small circular foot, the interior with three concentric registers of calligraphic bands mentioning the verse of the Throne (ayat al-Kursi, Qur'an II, v. 255), around an inscribed central medallion with the bismillah, a band of drop-shaped decorative elements on the rim and foot, the exterior and lid with a central band of repeating rosettes with stems, the lid topped by a lotus bud-shaped knob, 10.8cm diam.
A similar Bidri calligraphic divination bowl was successfully sold in these rooms, 27 April 2018, lot 282. It belonged once to the Late Simon Digby, showing a recurrent interest among Indian art scholars for these Deccani 'magic' bowls.
£800-£1,000
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AN OCTAGONAL GILT-BRASS LIDDED SPICE BOX (PANDAN)
North Western India, 19th century
Of octagonal shape, on flat base, the lid unhinged, the openwork decoration consisting of rosettes within a tight lattice grid, tall cypress trees on each corner, two decorative bands around the rim and lid with curled palmettes, the central medallion on the lid with a flowerhead in the middle surrounded by stylised lotuses, 14.3cm across.
£400-£600
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AN IRON-INLAID BRASS VASE
North Western India, 19th century
Of pyriform shape, resting on a circular splayed foot, rising to a tapering neck with wider, slightly splayed rim, the exterior engraved with repeating large floral sprays within polylobed cusped arches, drop-shaped decorative band on the foot and around the neck, 28cm high.
£400-£600
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A SILVER HUQQA BASE
North India, 19th century
Of globular shape, on plain base, rising to a flared neck, chased in high relief with vegetal cartouches filled with birds perched on floral stems, above and below the main decorative band scrolling tendrils with rosettes, a row of tall palmettes on the neck, an inscription on the shoulder with date 1215 AH (1801) and the name Mirza Khajib Khan, 17.6cm high.
£500-£700
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A BIDRI SILVER-INLAID QUR'AN STAND
Possibly Deccan, Central India, late 19th century
Of typical folding X-shape, the two upper ends polylobed and inlaid with a calligraphic composition on a busy floral ground with rosettes and stylised lotus flowers, the lower legs arched and polylobed, the inlay repeating the same floral tendril pattern of the above stands, little spirals motif at the end of the horizontal band holding the stand open, 29.5cm x 14.5cm when folded.
Inscription: Nasr min Allah fateh qarib (With the help of God, the victory is near).
£300-£500
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AN INDIAN PARCEL-GILT SILVER REPOUSSÉ FRAME
Possibly Calcutta (Kolkata), India, mid-19th century
Of uneven rectangular form, the borders hammered in the shape of a lush jungle-like landscape, the trees animated by a variety of birds perched on their branches, on the left a lion about to attack a lady holding up her right hand to protect herself and her left hand raised to the chest to emphasise her fear, nearby a child washing himself in the river in the company of two birds, on the right a hunter ready to shoot the lion with a rifle, below him a snake, in the back a supporting long leg ending in a volute, 33cm x 28.5cm.
£240-£260
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AN INDIAN REPOUSSÉ FAN-SHAPED SILVER TRAY
Calcutta (Kolkata), India, c.1890
Of triangular shape, stepped to the rim, the central decoration with an Indian village scene, the houses with thatched roofs, the women in their traditional clothes, the flat rim decorated with more village scenes, people carrying logs on their heads, a man climbing a palm to get its fruits, farmers caught in their daily activities, the composition on a ring-punched ground, 50.5cm x 35.5cm at its longest ends.
For a strikingly similar example, please see Wynyard R. T. Wilkinson, Indian Silver 1858 - 1947, London, 1999, p. 59, tab. 82. Its shape, stylistic and decorative techniques, and composition are perfectly matching our example.
£200-£300
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A SILVER-OVERLAID DISH WITH FISHES
Lucknow, North India, 19th century
Of circular shape, on a plain circular base, with short cavetto and flat everted rim, the decoration typical of Lucknow with pairs of silver-overlaid and incised fishes, the nawabi insignia for the mahi-ye maratib (Fish of Dignity), interspersed with lush leaves and vegetal motifs, 24.5cm diam.
£300-£400
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AN ARTICULATED INDIAN SILVER BELT (ARAPATTI)
Tamil Nadu, South India, circa 1900
Made of twenty-four squared silver panels hold together through silver nails, each panel decorated in high relief with mythical animals such as Brahmi duck and centaur-looking creatures, lions, parrots, peacocks and flower heads, the central buckle with a stepped lotus decorative motif, 33cm long when closed.
£240-£260
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A PAIR OF SILVER-INLAID BIRD-SHAPED SCISSORS
India, 19th century
Zoomorphically-shaped to represent a bird standing on its legs, the body and beak decorated with scrolling vegetal tendrils and lush foliage, 18cm long.
For an almost identical example, see the one in the Benaki Museum Collection, inventory number 13227.
£400-£600
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A BRASS HOLI SYRINGE (ABIR KI PICHKARI)
Deccan, Central India, late 18th - early 19th century
Of typical cylindrical shape, the body engraved with concentric plain bands, the upper end of the syringe worked as a mythical creature, on one side an elephant and on the latter a makara, engraved with fur, scales and realistic elements to enhance their appearance, the end of the trunk a blossomed lotus flower, the lower end with a piston to push the coloured water out, 53.5cm long.
During Holi, to celebrate the Spring Equinox, people would either throw coloured powders or spray water mixed with essences and colours at each other. Syringes such as this would have been instrumental around this time of the year and they can be seen in several miniatures of the time. For another example in silver filigree but with the same shape and use, please see C. Terlinden, Mughal Silver Magnificence, Brussels, 1987, p. 87, fig. 99.
£500-£700
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TWO ENAMELLED INDIAN STATUETTES
North India, late 19th - early 20th century
Comprising a green parrot on a log, the body painted in different shades of green, aubergine, pink and white enamel and heightened with gold pigment, on the wings drop-shaped decorations of coloured and transparent glass in kundan settings, the base plain, 15.5cm high; and a similar statuette of an owl, on a stepped hexagonal base caparisoned with beads, the base engraved with a floral mandala, 10.5cm high.
£600-£800
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A SILVER REPOUSSÉ LIDDED EWER
Possibly Ladakh or Kashmir, North India, late 19th - early 20th century
The bulbous body resting on a tall splayed foot and rising to an hourglass-shaped neck, topped by a compressed hemispherical lid with a diamond-shaped knob, the handle and the spout shaped with zoomorphic designs imitating makara and mythical creatures, the rest of the body decorated with scrolling vegetal tendrils and polylobed palmettes, 27.8cm high.
£400-£600
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FIVE INDIAN ZOOMORPHIC DOOR KNOCKERS
Deccan and Southern India, 18th - 19th century and later
Each of different size and shape, two door knockers with mythical lions, one with peacocks, the larger one with yalis and the oval knocker hold by a hand, and a plain one, the largest 21cm x 14cm.
£600-£800
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THREE INDIAN HUQQA BASES
India, 19th century
Comprising two bell-shaped huqqas, one of copper, the latter of brass, both engraved with a band with the typical butis motif, peacocks feather and rosettes on the base and neck, the tallest 16.5cm; and the third one of globular shape, made of brass and enamelled in black, the body with oval cartouches filled with floral bouquets, more rosettes and floral tendrils on the neck and shoulders, 15cm high.
£600-£800
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AN INDIAN LIDDED REPOUSSÉ BRASS EWER
India, 20th century
The globular body resting on a circular splayed foot, rising to a flared neck and with a pinched, beak-shaped spout, the lid knob in the shape of a flower, the sinuous handle worked as a snake, the central body chased in relief with ten medallions filled with representations (avatars) of gods and goddesses of the Hindu pantheon, from Ganesha and Hanuman, to Vishnu, Durga and Shiva, above and below it bands of floral tendrils and acanthus leaves, 36.7cm high.
£500-£700
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A SMALL ENAMELLED COFFEE POT
Kashmir, North India, 19th century
Of typical shape, the compressed globular body resting on a pierced splayed foot and rising to a flaring neck, the hemispherical lid decorated with a bird finial and attached to the body with a chain, the sinuous handle reminiscent of earlier dragon handles, the blue and green champlevé enamelled decoration consisting of floral sprays and palmettes, a round of peacocks on the neck, 15.5cm high.
As Wynyard Wilkinson explains, Mughal pieces produced in this exact shape and decoration in the 1720s became the main prototypes and inspiration for the later, 19th-century examples, such as this. For a strikingly similar Kashmiri enamelled coffee pot, please see Wynyard R. T. Wilkinson, Indian Silver 1858 - 1947, London, 1999, p. 120, tab. 204.
£500-£700
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A PERSIAN-STYLE BRASS EWER
Deccan, Central India, 18th century
Of tear-drop shape with dome-shaped lid, on circular splayed foot, rising to long flaring neck, with curved spout ending in a stylised dragon-head, the body engraved with bands of three-lobed flowers within drop-shaped medallions, dotted motifs and punched lines on neck, lid and spout, 34.5cm high.
Provenance: Christie's South Kensington, 6 October 2011, lot 425.
£300-£500
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A LARGE CARVED WOODEN PANEL WITH A ZOOMORPHIC CALLIGRAPHIC COMPOSITION
Possibly Deccan, India, 20th century
Of rectangular shape, the recessed centre carved in relief with an undeciphered calligraphic composition in the form of a horse, the frame with carved stylised flower heads and palmettes, 104.5cm x 129.5cm including the frame.
For an almost identical panel, please see Bonhams London, 24 April 2018, lot 316.
£600-£800
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A GOLD-DAMASCENED (KOFTGARI) RECTANGULAR BOX
India, 19th century
Of rectangular shape, the lid hinged onto the body, the decoration consisting of a central arabesque filled with gilt leafy tendrils, split arabesques on the sides, the background with long vegetal tendrils and rosettes, the sides with cusped cartouches with gilt floral and vegetal sprouts, the underside with a geometric, hatched motif, 17.8cm x 5.5cm.
£400-£600
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λ A HEXAGONAL HOSHIARPUR EBONY, BRASS, AND BONE-INLAID TEAK OCCASIONAL TABLE
India, late 19th century
The top profusely inlaid with bone in a concentric lobed starburst within a meandering vine border, with chevron black and white inlaid edges, the concertina legs in eight joint sections with lobed arches, 51cm diameter of top, 60cm high.
£1,400-£1,600
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AN INDIAN SILVER FOOTED BASIN
India, late 19th century
Of Western-inspired hemispherical shape, resting on a tall, stepped, splayed foot with a compressed decorative disc just below the joint, with everted rim, chased in low relief, the exterior with a continuous band of rosette sprays and a scrolling floral tendril on the rim, the base and foot with plain ridged vertical bands, around the base, foot and on a disc-shaped decorative element oxidised bands of lush full palmettes, unmarked, 28cm diam, and 28cm high.
£600-£800
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A CARVED SANDALWOOD BOX
Southern India, late 19th century - early 20th century
Of rectangular shape, resting on four lion paws-shaped feet, the body and lid deeply carved with figural decoration, the God Shiva standing in the centre of the lid composition, with two faces and six arms, holding his trisula, a mala, a water pot, a cup and possibly a fruit, the bull Nandi and several other animals in his presence, two makaras sprouting a vegetal festoon framing the scene, angels and monkeys in the corners all set against intricate vegetal tendrils, the sides with animals against a dense vegetal background, the interior of the lid lined in dark purple velvet with an engraved silver plaque 'Presented to Dr. J. R. Henderson by his Students Past & Present on the 18th Day of March 1911', 11cm x 14.5cm x 30cm.
£400-£600
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THREE MUGHAL GILT MOLD-BLOWN GLASS BOTTLES
Possibly Gujarat, West India, mid to late 18th century
Each of vertical square format, with recessing shoulders and cylindrical tall neck, the iron and cork stoppers a later addition, the body tooled to create a concave grid pattern and gilded, the shoulders with gold-painted floral tendrils with rosettes and stylised split palmettes, hatched motif on the neck, one bottle with dark brown residues inside, the tallest 14.8cm high.
For further information on this lot please see the catalogue online.
£800-£1,200
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A LONG KASHMIRI SHAWL
PROPERTY FROM LADY CONSTANCE STEWART RICHARDSON COLLECTION
India, late 19th century
The oblong format elegantly woven in twill tapestry technique in coloured wools with sweeping long butis in scrolling designs infilled with delicate flora around a square black centre invaded by scrolling foliage and stylised cypresses, workshop mark and '991' embroidered in white, the border predominantly in greens, the harlequin horizontal borders in fine pashmina, 340cm x 136cm.
Provenance: With Lady Constance Stewart Richardson since her trip to Kashmir in 1902, then by descent in the family.
Lady Constance Stewart-Richardson (1883-1932), noblewoman and controversial British dancer and author, incurred the displeasure of Edward VII with her semi-clad dancing and was barred from court. The free-spirited Lady Constance favoured the present shawl as a souvenir of her time in India and Kashmir, and the time she kept warm by sharing a room with her yak on her distant journeys. The shawl has been with her family ever since and quintessentially embodies the fascination that countries like India would have cast on Western visitors at the turn of the century.
£500-£700
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λ A HEXAGONAL HOSHIARPUR EBONY, IVORY AND BONE-INLAID TEAK OCCASIONAL TABLE
India, late 19th century
Of circular shape, the top of the table profusely inlaid with ivory and bone with a concentric lobed starburst within a meandering vine border, the chevron black and white inlaid edges, the concertina legs in eight joint sections with lobed arches, 51cm diameter of top, 60cm high.
£800-£1,200
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