A fine Mughal style gem-set gold powder flask
India
of slightly curved tapering form terminating in an antelope head, the mouth with circular stopper, the eyes set with agates, the wider end with lid in the form of a convex rosette with raised central boss set with a ruby, profusely engraved and inlaid with rubies, emeralds, white sapphires and paste with a repeat design of flowerheads interspersed by foliate motifs all on a ground of floral interlace, two suspension loops to top, gold tested as 21-23 carat, in fitted box
18.5 cm. long; 456 g.
Footnotes:
Provenance
The Al Thani Collection.

Published
Amin Jaffer and Amina Taha-Hussein Okada, From the Great Mughals to the Maharajahs, Paris, 2017, p. 217, no. 203.
Tesori dei Moghul e Maharaja. La Collezione Al Thani, exh. cat., The Doge's Palace, Venice, 2018, p. 286, no. 198.
Amin Jaffer (ed.), Treasures from the Al Thani Collection, vol. 1, Beijing, 2018, p. 302, no. 202.

Exhibited
From the Great Mughals to the Maharajahs, Grand Palais, Paris, 29 March - 5 June, 2017.
Treasures of the Mughals and the Maharajahs, The Doge's Palace, Venice, 9 September 2017 - 3 January 2018.
Treasures from the Al Thani Collection, The Palace Museum, Beijing 2018, 17 April 2018 - 18 June 2018.

Powder flasks were made to hold the fire powder used to prime the flash-pan and touchhole of a musket. The antelope headed shape of the present lot follows the Mughal tradition of incorporating animal scenes and shapes within such vessels, a subject appropriate for an object associated with armed combat or hunting expeditions. Our flask is an opulent iteration of these traditional forms, intricately and profusely decorated with engraving and precious stones.

For an example of a theriomorphic powder flask sold at Christie's, see Maharajas and Mughal Magnificence, 19 June 2019, lot 50. A further example of a gold theriomorphic powder flask, featuring gem-set elements, can be seen in Robert Hales, Islamic and Oriental Arms and Armour, Farnham, 2013, p. 253, cat. 616.
Lot to be sold without reserve.