A Mughal red sandstone panel, North India, 17th century

previously in the collection of Niall Hobhouse since the mid-1980s
acquired by the current owners in 2011, London

Sam Fogg and Francesca Galloway, Red Stone: Indian Stone Carving from Sultanate and Mughal India, London, 2012, pp. 84-5, no.17. 

The design of this slab suggests that it may have once formed part of a larger architectural panel known as Chini Khana. These comprised a series of sandstone walls that were carved with recessed niches of varied forms on which oil lamps or floral vases could be placed (the term 'Chini Khana' itself can be translated as 'China Cabinet'). These were often used in Mughal garden design; the irrigation system would be set up so that a waterfall could flow in front of these walls, cooling the atmosphere within and creating an ambiance of sensory delight. In the present example, the bottle-vase is already carved into the piece itself, integrating these elements.