ID 1306497
Lot 17 | A NIELLO-INLAID BRASS INKWELL
Estimate value
£ 40 000 – 60 000
EGYPT OR THE LEVANT, 12TH/13TH CENTURY
The cylindrical brass body overlaid with niello, the main register with thuluth inscription with scrolling vines above and below, the top with a hinged compartment and two lobed openings, the base plain
4 3/8in. (11.1cm.) diam.; 3in. (7.7cm.) high
Provenance
With Middle Eastern trade by 1995
Exhibited
Inscribed in Arabic verses, iftah dawat sa‘ada bi-taraqi, wa-‘uluww martaba wa-‘izz baqi, aqlamuha idh tastamiddu madadaha, samm al-‘udwa fa-fatih al-arzaq[i], ‘Open the inkwell of happiness in advancement, And elevation of rank and lasting glory. If, in writing, you draw upon its ink, Its pens are poison against hostility and the conqueror of riches.’
| Applied technique: | Metalwork |
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| Medium: | Bronze |
| Historical era: | Seljuk dynasty |
| Place of origin: | Iran, Asia |
| Auction house category: | All other types of objects |
| Applied technique: | Metalwork |
|---|---|
| Medium: | Bronze |
| Historical era: | Seljuk dynasty |
| Place of origin: | Iran, Asia |
| Auction house category: | All other types of objects |
| Address of auction |
CHRISTIE'S 8 King Street, St. James's SW1Y 6QT London United Kingdom | |
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| Phone | +44 (0)20 7839 9060 | |
| Buyer Premium | see on Website | |
| Conditions of purchase | Conditions of purchase |







