Pen case, wood inlaid with mother-of-pearl in black lacquer, painted inside in red, black, and gold
India, Gujarat; beginning of 17th century
H: 8; L: 30; D: 8 cm
Inventory number 35/1976
The pen case is one of the finest examples of inlaying from Gujarat. This local technique, in which mother-of-pearl was inlaid in black lacquer, was used on both large pieces (for example the chest 22/1976) and smaller ones. The very fine yet regular patterns of the latter are especially amazing.
This pen case is embellished with minutely inlaid mother-of-pearl split-leaf arabesques. The lid moreover holds the first part of the Muslim profession of faith written in elegant Thuluth: “In the name of God, the merciful, the compassionate.”
Details in the ornamentation and the painted decoration on the inside indicate that the pen case was made for export to the Ottoman Empire.
This pen case is embellished with minutely inlaid mother-of-pearl split-leaf arabesques. The lid moreover holds the first part of the Muslim profession of faith written in elegant Thuluth: “In the name of God, the merciful, the compassionate.”
Details in the ornamentation and the painted decoration on the inside indicate that the pen case was made for export to the Ottoman Empire.
Published in
Published in
Kjeld von Folsach: Islamic art. The David Collection, Copenhagen 1990, cat. 298;
Kjeld von Folsach, Torben Lundbæk and Peder Mortensen (eds.): Sultan, Shah and Great Mughal: the history and culture of the Islamic world, The National Museum, Copenhagen 1996, cat. 111;
Jessica Hallett, Conceicao Amaral (eds.): Cultures of the Indian Ocean, Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga, Lissabon 1998, cat. 82, p. 216;
Kjeld von Folsach: Art from the World of Islam in The David Collection, Copenhagen 2001, cat. 442;
Sheila S. Blair and Jonathan M. Bloom (eds.): Cosmophilia. Islamic Art from the David Collection, Copenhagen, McMullen Museum of Art, Boston College, Boston 2006, cat. 70;
Joachim Meyer, Rasmus Bech Olsen and Peter Wandel: Beyond words: calligraphy from the World of Islam, The David Collection, Copenhagen 2024, cat. 37, p. 173;
Kjeld von Folsach, Torben Lundbæk and Peder Mortensen (eds.): Sultan, Shah and Great Mughal: the history and culture of the Islamic world, The National Museum, Copenhagen 1996, cat. 111;
Jessica Hallett, Conceicao Amaral (eds.): Cultures of the Indian Ocean, Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga, Lissabon 1998, cat. 82, p. 216;
Kjeld von Folsach: Art from the World of Islam in The David Collection, Copenhagen 2001, cat. 442;
Sheila S. Blair and Jonathan M. Bloom (eds.): Cosmophilia. Islamic Art from the David Collection, Copenhagen, McMullen Museum of Art, Boston College, Boston 2006, cat. 70;
Joachim Meyer, Rasmus Bech Olsen and Peter Wandel: Beyond words: calligraphy from the World of Islam, The David Collection, Copenhagen 2024, cat. 37, p. 173;
