Zebregs&Röell

Northern India or Deccan, late 19th century L. approx. 82 cm (excl. stand) Provenance: Private collection, United Kingdom This remarkable gilt-silver soonta (ceremonial sceptre) also known as choba (ceremonial mace) with a tiger's head stands out as an unparalleled example. It has a wooden base, clad with thick sheet part-gilt silver and has fine details such as teeth and a curling tongue. Especially with the inlaid glass eyes, in combination with the grand sculptural design, it would have been integral to an Indian maharaja’s attire, known as lawajama in North India and biruthus in South India, as referenced by Jackson & Jaffer. They would symbolise authority, power, and sometimes an attribute of various deities, particularly those associated with strength or combat. For instance, the Hindu god Hanuman, known for his immense strength, is often depicted holding a mace (*chob* or gada in Sanskrit). Similarly, the god Vishnu and his avatar Krishna are also frequently depicted with a mace among their other attributes. Courtiers would raise these sceptres wrapped in rich brocades, with the head visible, during processions, signalling their association with the monarch. Alongside fly-whisks and standards, they were indispensable in ceremonial parades, underscoring the ruler's prestige. Terlinden notes that a soonta berdar was tasked with carrying the sceptre. These individuals, proficient in courtly manners, played key roles during audiences, from managing entrances to introducing guests. Their esteemed position often earned them generous rewards, including land grants. See for a depiction of sceptres in use the top right of a painting in the collection of the V&A, titled Processional scene with Amar Singh, ruler of Thanjavur (Tanjore), and Sarabhoji, from circa 1797. For a very comparable piece, but with an elephant’s head, see the collection of the Indian Museum, Kolkata. For other less similar examples, see the V&A Museum London. Sources: A. Jackson & A. Jaffer, Maharaja: The Splendour of India’s Royal Courts, London, V&A Publishing, 1999 Christiane Terlinden Serra, Mughal Silver...

Viceroyalty of Peru, Lima, 18th century, circa 1720-1760 Each with a moulded giltwood cornice and on a foliate carved giltwood base, possibly later and English. The cabinets, with s...

Batavia (Jakarta), or Sri Lanka, circa 1680-1720 The document or money box is densely carved with fine scrolling vines and lotus flowers. It has a charming heart- shapes silver lock...

Jakarta (Batavia), 18th century, apparently unmarked L. 14 x W. 9.5 x H. 4.7 cm Before settling down to business in the former Dutch East Indies, sirih had to be offered in the mos...

Probably Sri Lanka, 2nd half 17th century H. 55 x W. 40.5 x D. 40.5 cm Seat height 27.5 cm The chair is overall densely carved with a scrolling flower motif on four connected turne...

A Dutch colonial ebony cabinet with brass mounts on contemporary black steel frame Batavia (Jakarta), 2nd half 17th century The cabinet has two ...

Late Momoyama period, late 16th century The coffer is decorated in black lacquer, urushi, on cedar wood, decorated with gold dust and silver, maki-e, and nashiji, mother-of-pearl, r...

Canton, late 18th century In original hardwood frame with ruyi-shaped metal mount for suspension. H. 38.7 x W. 44.3 cm (incl. frame) H. 31.8 x W. 37.5 cm (image) Chinese reverse glass paintings for export are known since mid 18th century. By the 1780's the copying of European, mainly English, engravings came into vogue in Chinese paintings on glass...

A Dutch-colonial ebony two-door cabinet with silver mounts Coromandel Coast, probably Masulipatnam, circa 1650-1680, the silver later H. 64.5 x W. 75 x D. 46 cm The present cabinet...

Batavia (Jakarta), 19th century, apparently unmarked H. 5 x W. 18 x D. 13 cm Before settling down to business in the former Dutch East Indies, sirih had to be offered in the most e...

Indonesia, Nias, 19th century H. 37.5 x W. 10 cm Sculptures like the one present are not only decorative items but are believed to be vessels that house the spirits of ancestors and are used to communicate with them. After the death of a person a wooden image or Adu Zatua was made to mediate between the human world and the spiritual realm. These kinds of figures were commissioned by noble Nias families, whereas simple and lesser quality carvings generally were found among lower class families. In this particularly fine example, the sculptor has paid careful attention to the proportions of the different parts of the body, dividing it into three main sections – the head, the torso, and the legs. The shapes are sometimes flat, round, or have notches, but all are perfectly in balance creating a certain divine tranquillity. This Adua Zatua’s ears are decorated with earrings, and it is wearing a headdress, pointing towards a chiefly provenance. In 1914 the Dutch gained complete control of the island of Nias and started spreading Protestant Christianity. Many ancestor statues...

Published by Bunkindõ han, circa 1801 Colour woodblock print, H. 32.5 x W. 48 cm Under this view of Nagasaki Bay, the text states that the first Dutch ships arrived in Nagasaki in ...