Oliver White
Head of Department
Lot 160Y
A fine Mughal gem-set ivory hilted Horse Head Dagger (khanjar) Northern India, 17th Century, the blade dated AH 1206/ AD 1791-92
Amended
8 April 2014, 10:30 BST
London, New Bond StreetSold for £22,500 inc. premium
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A fine Mughal gem-set ivory hilted Horse Head Dagger (khanjar)
Northern India, 17th Century, the blade dated AH 1206/ AD 1791-92
Northern India, 17th Century, the blade dated AH 1206/ AD 1791-92
the pommel carved in the form of a horse head with flowing mane to one side of handle, the eyes inlaid with rubies in gold mounts, the top of the head with turquoise inset, the quillons with two interlocking flowers on a ground of cross-hatched design surmounted by acanthus frieze, the curved tapering double-edged steel blade embossed to one side with two cartouches containing inscription in nasta'liq and nagari, the forte with cartouche of mihrab form overlaid with gold
39 cm. long
39 cm. long
Footnotes
Inscriptions: on the blade in the square cartouche, "Surapur AH 1206 (AD 1792)"; and in the teardrop cartouche, Shri Gopal.
Stuart Cary Welch noted that of the many figures in the Padshahnama, the small number of daggers were reserved for the use of princes such as Dara Shikoh and Shah Shuja (Stuart Cary Welch, India: Art and Culture 1300-1900, New York, 1985, pp. 257-58). While the number of daggers with animal hilts increased during the late 17th and early 18th Centuries, these continued to function as indicators of the highest rank and position at the court.
For a dagger with a similar hilt see Robert Hales, Islamic and Oriental Arms and Armour, London, 2013, p. 39.
Saleroom notices
This lot contains or is made of ivory and in February 2014 the United States Government announced the intention to ban the import of any ivory into the USA.