Mother of pearl came from Turbo marmoratus , a marine snail from the West Pacific. The goods were often made in India, their gilt mounts being added when they arrived in Europe.

Such exotic shells, either in their natural state or worked by a craftsman, were often found in so-called 'cabinets of curiosities' that contained the small treasures of a princely collection. From about 1530 vessels made from mother-of-pearl also ranked highly in the hierarchy of the royal 'jewel house'. The courts of Francis I of France (reigned 1515-1547) and Henry VIII of England demonstrated a passion for goods from 'the Indies', and mother-of-pearl objects featured frequently in New Year gift exchanges.

In the early 16th century mother-of-pearl was unusual outside court circles. By the mid-17th century, however, it had become a regular item of trade from East Asia and was more common down the social scale. Mother-of-pearl was favoured for display ewers and basins, but also for accessories such as caskets, spoons and sweetmeat boxes. This comparatively modest bowl is an example of such a piece.

Sir Arthur and Rosalinde Gilbert began collecting in the 1960s and over a period of 40 years formed one of the world’s great private collections of decorative arts. The collection consists of over 800 objects from the fields of European gold and silver, Italian mosaics and hardstone, portrait enamels and gold boxes. Sir Arthur Gilbert donated his extraordinary collection to Britain in 1996 to be housed at Somerset House, London, having previously been displayed at Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA). In 2008 the collection was moved to dedicated galleries in the V&A, where a selection has been on permanent display ever since.