Page 74 - 2021 April 1, ART OF THE ISLAMIC AND Indian Worlds Including Oriental Rugs, Christie's London

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A JADE-HILTED DAGGER (KARD)
MUGHAL INDIA, 17TH CENTURY
With watered-steel single-edged blade, the jade hilt delicately carved in the
form of the head of a nilgai, overall good condition
10¿in. (25.7cm.) long
£7,000-10,000 US$9,700-14,000
€8,100-11,000
Dress daggers were among the most treasured objects of the Mughal prince
or courtier. Cary Welch’s examination of courtly figures in the Windsor
Padshanama demonstrated that the small number of daggers with animal
hilts were reserved for the use of princes, such as Dara Shikoh and Shah
Shuja, as well as a few senior dignitaries (Stuart Cary Welch et. al., The
Emperors’ Album. Images of Mughal India, New York, 1987, pp.132-3, no.26).
Bashir Mohamed writes that the tradition of hilts of jade, rock crystal or
ivory in the in the form of rams, deer, lions or stallions is a testimony to a
former pastoral existence (The Arts of the Muslim Knight. The Furusiyya Art
Foundation Collection, Milan, 2007, p.142). A related dagger, also with a hilt in
the form of a nilgai, was sold in these Rooms, 25 April 2013, lot 169.

PROPERTY OF A GENTLEMAN
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A GILT-COPPER FISH STANDARD (MAHI-MARATIB)
MUGHAL INDIA, CIRCA 1700
The surface engraved with fish scales, applied with three fins and a knop finial,
the mouth with iron teeth and a red fabric covered cushion serving as a tongue,
the underside with engraved arabesques and a conical pole mount, with later
purple painted wooden pole and metal base, minor losses to gilding, a small
loss to the lower rim
24º x 28æin. (62 x 73cm.) excluding stand
£25,000-35,000 US$36,000-49,000
€29,000-40,000
Similar Mahi-maratib are proudly displayed in the royal treasuries in the
palaces in Bikaner, Jodhpur, Kota and Jaisalmer as part of the heirlooms of
the royal family in each case. It is noted as being the chief insignia awarded
by the Mughal Emperor to give recognition to important allied rulers, those
who could bring 6000 mounted soldiers with them when they joined the
emperor on campaign. The first in Bikaner to have been awarded this honour
was Maharaja Rao Anup Singh (r.1669-1698); that in Jodhpur was awarded in
1719 to maharaja Ajit Singh, the example in Kota is recorded as having been
awarded in 1720; while that in Jaisalmer (acc.no.2001-A-24-6) is dated to
the 14th century which this seems highly improbable. One from Gwalior was
in the Maharaja exhibition at the V (cat.no.76), and a further example
from the Furusiyya Foundation was included in the Deccan exhibition at the
Metropolitan Museum of Art (Sultans of Deccan India, 1500–1700: Opulence
and Fantasy, exhibition catalogue, New York, April 20, 2015–July 26, 2015,
cat. no 180, p.303).
It was carried in procession ahead of the ruler, flanked by two discs or
spheres with which it was associated. The fish body behind the head is now
invariably made of red cloth, streaming out behind. A painting in Jodhpur
however shows a more naturalistic silver fish body behind the golden head as
it is being carried in procession on an elephant, and this may well be a better
indication of the original presentation (Peacock in the Desert: The Royal Arts
of Jodhpur, India, exhibition catalogue, Houston, 2018). An earlier depiction,
in the Procession of `Abdallah Qutb Shah which dates from the mid-17th
century shows the whole emblem as red (CSMVS, Mumbai, Sir Akbar
Haydari Collection, 43.50). The fact that it is being used this early in the
Deccan indicates that the reputed origin of the Mughal mahi-maratib, going
back at least to the Tuhgluq Sultans of Delhi, is correct.
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