Shell More Asian Art, Objects and Furniture

We have taken the flat bottom section of a cone shaped shell and added teak wood for beautiful one of a kind door knobs. We have a collection. Great installed in bathrooms, kitchens ...

An exceptional Indo-Portuguese colonial mother-of-pearl veneered casket with silver mounts India, Gujarat, 2nd half of the 16th century, the silver mounts Goa or probably Lisbon Measures: H. 16 x W. 24.6 x D. 16.1 cm An exceptional Gujarati casket with a rectangular box and truncated pyramidal lid (with slopes on each side and a flat top) made from exotic wood, probably teak (Tectona grandis), covered with a mother-of-pearl mosaic. The tesserae, cut from the shell of the green turban sea snail (Turbo marmoratus, a marine gastropod) in the shape of fish scales, are pinned to the wooden structure with silver ball-headed nails. The casket is set on bracket feet on the corners. The masterfully engraved decoration of the silver mounts follows the most refined and erudite Mannerist repertoire of rinceaux and ferroneries dating from the mid-16th century. The high quality and refinement of the silver mounts and, likewise, the silver nails that replaced the original brass pins used to hold the mother-of-pearl tesserae in place indicate the work of a silversmith probably working in Lisbon in the second half of the 16th century. The Indian origin of this production, namely from Cambay (Khambhat) and Surat in the present state of Gujarat in north India, is, as for the last three decades, consensual and fully demonstrated, not only by documentary and literary evidence - such as descriptions, travelogues and contemporary archival documentation - but also by the survival in situ of 16th-century wooden structures covered in mother-of-pearl tesserae. A fine example is a canopy decorating the tomb (dargah) of the Sufi saint, Sheik Salim Chisti (1478-1572) in Fatehpur Sikri in Agra district in the state of Uttar Pradesh, north India. This is an artistic production, geometric in character and Islamic in nature, where usually the mother-of-pearl tesserae form complex designs of fish scales or, similar to the dishes also made using the same technique, with the thin brass sheets and pins, stylized lotus flowers. The truncated pyramidal shape corresponds, like their contemporary tortoiseshell counterparts also made in Gujarat, to a piece of furniture used in the Indian subcontinent within the Islamic world prior to the arrival of the first Portuguese. This shape, in fact, is very old and peculiar to East-Asian caskets, chests or boxes used to contain and protect Buddhist texts, the sutras. A similar chest is the famous and large reliquary chest from Lisbon cathedral that once contained the relics of the city's patron saint, Saint Vincent. Both match in shape, having the same kind of socle or pedestal and bracket feet, and in their engraved silver mountings, featuring the same type of refined, erudite decoration. Their differences lie in the silver borders that frame the entire length of the edges of the chest (both the box and the lid), pinned with silver nails, and on the lock plate, shaped like a coat of arms in the Lisbon example. Given the exceptional dimensions of the reliquary casket...

Exquisite handcrafted Middle Eastern Lebanese mosaic marquetry wood box. Small octagonal walnut Syrian style box intricately decorated with Moorish...

This handled box is a Japanese tabako-bon, or 'tobacco tray,' used to store tobacco and smoking accessories. Believed to have evolved from the traditional...

Exquisite handcrafted Middle Eastern Lebanese mosaic marquetry wood box. Small vintage walnut Syrian style box intricately decorated with Moorish m...

Exquisite handcrafted vintage Middle Eastern style mosaic marquetry inlaid walnut wood footed music box. Handcrafted in Spain in the Moorish Syrian style with red velvet lined and a mirror. Decorative Spanish inlaid Marquetry trinket box intricately and finely inlaid in Islamic geometric designs with marquetry of precious wood decorated with Moorish motif designs which have been painstakingly inlaid with fruitwoods.. Handcrafted in Granada Spain...

Exquisite handcrafted Middle Eastern Lebanese, Egyptian mosaic marquetry wood box inlaid. Small vintage walnut Syrian style box intricately decorated with Moorish motif designs which have been painstakingly inlaid with mosaic shell and marquetry. Great craftsmanship handmade by artisans in the Middle East, Lebanon or Egypt. Dimensions Height: 2.25 in. Width: 6 in. Depth: 4 in. Circa 1950. Great Middle Eastern Islamic Mosaic...

Exquisite handcrafted white mother of pearl inlaid and hand carved lidded box. Small octagonal Anglo Indian decorative box intricately decorated with Moorish motif designs which hav...

A rare and magnificent silver, gold & jeweled palace mirror, certainly made for an Indian Maharaja, circa 1900. A special commission for an Indian palace from the late Victorian era, likely produced in Thailand. This palace size hand-hammered Indian mirror is made from pure silver. A truly exceptional work of art with floral design topped with miniatures structures...

A round wood Japanese brazier / hibachi with an inlaid nature scene in copper and mother-of-pearl, circa 1890. Copper insert with natural patina.

Handcrafted Middle Eastern Lebanese mosaic marquetry wood box. Small octagonal walnut Syrian style box intricately decorated with Moorish motif desi...

Exquisite handcrafted Middle Eastern Lebanese mosaic marquetry wood box. Small octagonal walnut Syrian style box intricately decorated with Moorish...

18th century Chinese lacquer mother of pearl inlay pewter teapot, height to handle top 8 inch, floral decoration as expected for age an...

18th century black lacquer mother of pearl inlay plate, decoration as expected for age and use. Very beautiful and hard to find li...

Monumental pair of Chinese carved wood brush pots adorned with mother of pearl and white bone details. Late 18th century. Brush pots were used by Chines...

Japanese Edo period single panel table screen finely ornate with gold, mother of pearl and coral, lacquered. The scene depicts birds and flowers and is executed on Paloma wood, place...

A unique wooden ladle with a half coconut shell attached, originally used for serving soup. We added the shell inlay to the long wooden handles. Perfect p...

Beautiful object made of Shell, probably a bracelet Ban Chiang period, South East Asia great old patina.

A unique wooden ladle with a half coconut shell attached, originally used for serving soup.The handle is a statue of a tribal man. Perfect perhaps to remo...

Exceptional, Beautiful set of 3 Chinese Bronze Han Vases, great patina and warm and worn color, exceptional to have a collection of 3 of these vases  

Beautiful aged teak wood container originally used to store rice. We have added the shell inlay by hand to the top section. A multiple of uses such as storing towels, magazines, firewood etc etc This antique container...

Hand cut bone antique bracelet from Sumatra with 31 finely cut bracelets sewn together and set on a stand. Rare. Andrianna Shamaris, Inc. The Leader In Modern Organic Design™

A pair of original teak wood column bases found in Sumatra. We added the shell inlay. Glass or Lucite can be added to the top for a small side table. Also great as a candle base. Pai...