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An Indo-Portuguese ivory-inlaid table Probably Goa, late 17th Century image 1
An Indo-Portuguese ivory-inlaid table Probably Goa, late 17th Century image 2
An Indo-Portuguese ivory-inlaid table Probably Goa, late 17th Century image 3
An Indo-Portuguese ivory-inlaid table Probably Goa, late 17th Century image 4
An Indo-Portuguese ivory-inlaid table Probably Goa, late 17th Century image 5
An Indo-Portuguese ivory-inlaid table Probably Goa, late 17th Century image 6
An Indo-Portuguese ivory-inlaid table Probably Goa, late 17th Century image 7
An Indo-Portuguese ivory-inlaid table Probably Goa, late 17th Century image 8
Lot 127Ф,W,Y

An Indo-Portuguese ivory-inlaid table
Probably Goa, late 17th Century

Islamic and Indian Art
12 November 2024, 11:00 GMT
London, New Bond Street

Sold for £38,400 inc. premium

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An Indo-Portuguese ivory-inlaid table
Probably Goa, late 17th Century

of rectangular form on four legs in the form of swans, the swans each resting on a pedestal block and connected by a curving stretcher, with ivory beaks and inlaid in ivory and stained wood, the upper section with cusped hanging panels and two drawers with openwork brass lock fittings, with studded decoration and inlaid in ivory and stained wood with floral and foliate scrollwork and stylised creatures
103.5 x 62.8 x 81.3 cm.

Footnotes

The form and decoration of the present lot features elements that are characteristic of a group of furniture produced in India under Portuguese patronage which combine both European and Asian influences. The form of the table, rectangular on four legs with an overhanging top and two drawers, is typically European. The 'seaweed' marquetry is also reminiscent of High-Style European furniture of the period, and is comparable to the designs found on a contador, or cabinet on a stand, in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London (Accession No. 781&A-1865), also likely to have been produced in Goa (A. Jaffer, Luxury Goods in India, London, 2002, p. 56-57). The attribution of the Victoria and Albert Museum example is partly based on the similarity of the inlay and mounts to those found on purpose-built furniture within the Sacristy of the Basilica of Bom Jesus in Old Goa, which were probably installed in the second half of the 17th Century (Jaffer, p. 57).

Despite the possible European influences, as Amin Jaffer notes, these types of furniture also incorporate distinct design elements and decorative motifs that have 'no precedent in any one European or Indian tradition' (Jaffer, p. 57). These include abstracted animal designs, such as the stylised creatures featured on the sides of the present lot. Similar motifs can been seen on the drawers of the Victoria and Albert example and in a further contador from the same museum (Accession No. 782&A-1865), featuring stylised zoomorphic feet. The present table also incorporates zoomorphic feet, though with a far more sculptural treatment of the swans, comparable to the four winged birds found on an Indo-Portuguese cabinet sold at Christie's, Peter Petrou: Tales of the Unexpected, 30 Jan 2019, lot 25. Sculptural zoomorphic feet are also found on a 17th century contador in the Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga, Lisbon (no. 1312).

The item within this lot containing ivory has been registered in accordance with the Ivory Act (Section 10), reference no. 2ZQ8LNNG.

Additional information