Aspersoir

India, 19th century In silver and silver-gilt, the screw neck in the form of a winged female deity (peri), the flattened pear-shaped body decorated on each side with a lion attacking an elephant, the spout in the form of a large bouquet of flowers. Condition: good. Silver 800 thousandths. P. B. 879 gr. Size : 35.5 x 12 cm Provenance : Former collection of M. & B. Posner, New York. Indian silverware was exported to Europe as early as the establishment of the British East India Company in 1615, but reached its apogee during the British Raj (1858-1947). The present aspersor is close to the production of the city of Lucknow, in northern India, which in the 2nd half of the 19th century adopted motifs from other regions, imitating and sometimes mixing styles from Cutch, Madras, Calcutta and Kashmir. However, the theme of hunting, particularly with elephants, is recurrent. Lucknow silversmiths rarely sign their silver pieces. A silver gilt rose water sprinkler embossed with elephant, lions, blooms with a winged female figurine on the top, North India, 19th century