A PALANQUIN FINIAL IN THE FORM OF A YALI RIDING A MAKARA, INDIA, GOLCONDA, CIRCA 1650-80 |

carved metal in the shape of a makara, with a yali riding on its back, punched and engraved details, traces of polychromy

Sultans of Deccan India, 1500-1700: Opulence and Fantasy, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 20 April - 26 July 2015.

Sultans of Deccan India, 1500-1700: Opulence and Fantasy, ed. N.N. Haidar and M. Sardar, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 20 April - 26 July 2015, pp.246-8, no.142.

The metal body with some patches of oxidisation and abrasion, notably visible to interior, two protruding components to the chest and under the chin appear to have been broken, traces of polychromy throughout, some general wear as consistent with age and use, as viewed.
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It can be surmised that this palanquin finial, carved as a makara with a creature resembling the mythical yali riding on its back, would have been used in the procession of a nobleman rather than woman, whose processional palanquins seem to be adorned with floral finials rather than figural (see Haidar and Sardar 2015, p.24-28, figs.77 and 78).