MUGHAL INDIA OR DECCAN, FIRST HALF 17TH CENTURY

Details

An enamelled gold perfume flask in the form of a mango
Mughal India or Deccan, first half 17th century
Each side of the bottle covered in dark red enamel with a spray of white flowers with green leaves, divided by a band of pale green and emerald green enamel squares, the screw top stopper in the form of a stalk with a single leaf, the cap with a poppy bloom surrounded by a further band, minor losses to enamel
2¼ in. (5.6 cm.) high

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Lot Essay

This small perfume flask represents a supreme example of the art of the enameller in the early 17th century. A parallel for a vessel in this form with fine white flowers against a ruby red ground is unknown. A diamond and ruby pendant in the Dar al-Athar in Kuwait has the reverse worked with a similar motif where the individual petals of the flower are defined by the champlevé technique against a rich red ground. The piece is dated to the 2nd quarter of the 17th century and from the Deccan or Mughal in origin (LNS 956 J). A similar treatment of the poppy bloom is found on a ring used to stablise a huqqa in the same collection (LNS 2J) dated to circa 1730-40.
Lidded vessels of this period are rare, and the delightful blend of abstraction and naturalism recall a lidded cup and saucer of gold and enamel sold in these rooms, 3 July 1996, now in the Dar al-Athar (LNS 2191J).
(Keane, M: Treasury of the World, London 2001, nos. 6.30; 6.14; 6.38.)

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