Matthew Thomas
Senior Specialist
Lot 125
A large silver seal of Colonel Vere Warner Hussey (d. 1823) North India, dated AH 1205/AD 1790-91
6 October 2015, 14:00 BST
London, New Bond Street£2,000 - £3,000
Looking for a similar item?
Our Islamic and Indian Art specialists can help you find a similar item at an auction or via a private sale.
Find your local specialistAsk about this lot
A large silver seal of Colonel Vere Warner Hussey (d. 1823)
North India, dated AH 1205/AD 1790-91
North India, dated AH 1205/AD 1790-91
of multifaceted domed form with compressed spherical finial, engraved to each facet with foliate vines, the circular face with five lines of inscription in nasta'liq script, the border with a band of circle motifs
11.7 cm. long
11.7 cm. long
Footnotes
Inscriptions: 'The brilliance of the government (lami' al-dawlah), the thunder of kingdom (ra'd al-mulk), Colonel Vere Warner Henry Bahadur, the lightening at war (barq jang), the devotee of the Warrior King, Shah 'Alam, 1205 [regnal year] 33 (1790-91)'.
Lieutenant-Colonel Vere Warner Hussey embarked for Bengal in 1770 having been appointed to the artillery. Following a severe wound, received in the Carnatic under the command of General Sir Eyre Coote, he was appointed by Warren Hastings as commissary of ordnance and stores to the Artillery in the province of Benares. He was also put in charge of the garrison at Chunar, where all military boats were placed under his charge. In 1785 he returned to Europe on furlough where he was promoted to Major in 1786. He returned to India in 1788 and became Lieutenant-Colonel in 1790, the same year in which this seal was made. In 1797 he succeeded to the command of the Bengal artillery, but returned to England in 1799 where he was transferred to the retired list in 1803. He died in 1823.
It is possible that the name Henry was used on the seal instead of Hussey because the engraver who made the it was more familiar with transliterating the former into Persian.