Arts of the Islamic World
Arts of the Islamic World
A MAMLUK GOLD AND SILVER-INLAID BRASS INKWELL, EGYPT OR SYRIA, FIRST HALF 14TH CENTURY
Auction Closed
October 23, 04:16 PM GMT
Estimate
15,000 - 20,000 GBP
Lot Details
Description
A MAMLUK GOLD AND SILVER-INLAID BRASS INKWELL, EGYPT OR SYRIA, FIRST HALF 14TH CENTURY
of cylindrical form, the exterior walls inlaid with gold and silver with bold band of thuluth bearing the names and titles of a Mamluk emir on a ground of foliate scrolls between minor bands of chain ornament
4.5 by 3.8cm.
Ex-collection Frances Artuner, Belgium, acquired in the 1960s.
Offered in these rooms, 13 October 2004, lot 112.
Ex-private collection, east coast, USA.
inscriptions
'One of what was made for His Excellency, the High, the 'Ala'i, 'Ala' al-Din 'Ali son of the deceased Malik (?)'
There are many Mamluks with the name 'Ala' al-Din. A glass lamp made for the mausoleum of 'Ala' al-Din 'Ali, son of the deceased Baktamur, is dated by Mayer to post 1329 AD, the date of Baktamur's death (see L. Mayer, Saracenic Heraldry, Oxford, reprint 1999, p.260). The similarity of certain terms on the inkwell and the glass invites comparison. The term walad is usually used to refer to the eldest son, although it could just mean the 'son'.