This base for a water pipe (huqqa) belongs to a class of Indian metalwork known as bidri and was made in the 19th century. The technique takes its name from the city of Bidar, in present day Karnataka, where it is thought to have originated and this piece was probably made there, though in the 19th century there were other centres. The technique consists of casting objects from a high-zinc alloy and then inlaying them with silver or brass, or a combination of both. The decoration, particularly in the later periods, could also be done by hammering silver or brass wire onto a cross-hatched ground. When the surface ornamentation has been completed, the craftsman briefly covers the object with a mud paste contining salt, ammonium chloride and unrefined potassium nitrate. When the paste is removed, the natural dull grey of the zinc alloy has changed colour to a deep, matt black which enhances, without altering, the brightness of the inlay. The earliest pieces of bidri date from the early 17th century, when production is thought to have been only in centres such as Bidar and Hyderadabad in the Deccan sultanates. These independent Muslim kingdoms in the south of India were conquered by the Mughal emperor Alamgir (r. 1658-1707) in the second half of the 17th century. Their independent artistic styles then became heavily influenced by Mughal art, and techniques such as bidri spread beyond the Deccan. This piece was exhibited at the Great Exhibition of 1851 in London.