Enrica Medugno
Senior Sale Coordinator
Lot 114
A Mamluk Revival silver-inlaid brass tray and wood turned legs presented to W. Lawrence Balls by Prince Hussein Pacha Kamil (1853-1917) in December 1913 Egypt, early 20th Century(2)
12 November 2024, 11:00 GMT
London, New Bond StreetSold for £2,048 inc. premium
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Oliver White
Head of Department
A Mamluk Revival silver-inlaid brass tray and wood turned legs presented to W. Lawrence Balls by Prince Hussein Pacha Kamil (1853-1917) in December 1913
Egypt, early 20th Century
Egypt, early 20th Century
the tray of shallow circular form with flattened rim, profusely engraved and inlaid in silver with a central octagon containing an inscription in a lobed cartouche surrounded by foliate scrollwork and split-palmette interlace, the central octagon surrounded by inscriptions on a ground of split-palmette interlace, interspersed by intertwining fish, all surrounded by further octagonal cartouches variously containing inscriptions, foliate scrollwork, split palmettes and geometric interlace, interspersed by inscription-filled lobed cartouches and further interlacing designs, the rim with cartouches variously containing further inscriptions, geometric interlace and foliate scrollwork, the reverse inscribed 'Presented to Mr W. Lawrence Balls by H. H. Prince Hussein Pacha Kamil and his colleagues in Egypt in recognition of his valuable services in the application of science to the cultivation of cotton, Cairo, Dec. 1913', with folding turned wood stand
the tray 70.6 cm. diam.(2)
the tray 70.6 cm. diam.(2)
Footnotes
Provenance
William Lawrence Balls (1882-1969).
Inscriptions:
To the rim, the basmala; and 'izz li-mawlana al-sultan al-salihi (?) al-'a [di]li al-malik [a]l-nasir/ .... al-mujahid ... al-mu'ayyad/ al-sultan ... qalaun al-salihi 'azza narahu/, 'Glory to our lord, the Sultan al-Salihi, the Just, the Victorious king ... the Holy warrior ... Helped (by God), al-Sultan .... Qalaun al-Salihi, may (God) glorify his victory'.
To the centre, hadha min fadl rabbi, 'This is from my God's grace'.
To the small cartouches, Invocations to God, including, ya rahim, 'O The Merciful!'; ya hannan, 'O The Compassionate!'; ya sattar, 'O The Coverer (of sins)!'; ya rahman, 'O The Most Compassionate!'; ya mannan, 'O the Bestowing One!'; ya wahhab, 'O The Giver!'; ya razzaq, 'O The Provider One!'; ya jabbar, 'O The Compeller One!'; ya rahim, 'O The Most Merciful!'.
William Lawrence Balls (1882-1960) was a British botanist specialising in cotton technology and was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1923. He wrote extensively on the subject of cotton and Egypt, including The Cotton Plant in Egypt, published in 1912, and Egypt of the Egyptians, published in 1915, which provided an overview of ancient Egyptian culture and society.