Inkstand
c. 1850 (made)
| Place of origin |
This pen-holder and its stand were produced in Ahmedabad in Western India in the mid- to late 19th century. The city has long been associated with the production of decorative and/or utilitarian wares from local quartz hardstones and to this day it continues to be a major gem cutting and trade centre. The pen-holder has a shaft constructed from sixteen short, tubular sections of various agates, chalcedonies and jaspers as well as opaque blue glass, mounted around an internal metal support. It has an orange carnelian tip, shaped for attaching a nib, and an opaque blue glass, feather-shaped terminal. They were acquired by the Indian Museum in London and transferred to the South Kensington Museum, later renamed the Victoria and Albert Museum, in 1879.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Parts | This object consists of 3 parts. (Some alternative part names are also shown below)
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| Materials and techniques | Agates, jaspers including bloodstone, carnelian & opaque blue glass, cut & polished using abrasives with the holes most probably made using a bow-driven drill. |
| Brief description | A trio consisting of a pen rest/ink well stand, ink well and a pen holder, fashioned from red jasper/bloodstone and other materials, Ahmedabad India, 19th century |
| Physical description | A trio consisting of a pen rest/ink well stand, an ink well (lid absent) and a multi-sectioned pen nib holder. The pen rest/ink well stand has a rear section that is elongated rectangular in shape but with rounded ends and it has a similarly shaped depression carved into the top. On the front side of the central section, there is a rounded lobe that has a circular blind hole cut into the surface. It is supported on five attached round feet and has been fashioned in red jasper/bloodstone. There are hairline cracks at one end. The red jasper/bloodstone ink well is cylindrical with a flat base and a deep, rounded interior and it has a recessed lip for a lid which is absent. The pen holder has a shaft constructed from sixteen short, tubular sections of various agates, chalcedonies and jaspers as well as opaque blue glass, mounted around an internal metal support. It has an orange carnelian tip, shaped for attaching a nib and an opaque blue glass, feather-shaped terminal. |
| Dimensions |
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| Object history | These objects were formerly in the Indian Museum in London and were then transferred to the South Kensington Museum (later renamed The Victoria & Albert Museum) in 1879. They were valued at £1-4s in 1855. 1880 Register Entry: [Room 8. Case .] '01,387. PEN TRAY, with inkwell and pen holder. Bloodstone. 12,787' |
| Summary | This pen-holder and its stand were produced in Ahmedabad in Western India in the mid- to late 19th century. The city has long been associated with the production of decorative and/or utilitarian wares from local quartz hardstones and to this day it continues to be a major gem cutting and trade centre. The pen-holder has a shaft constructed from sixteen short, tubular sections of various agates, chalcedonies and jaspers as well as opaque blue glass, mounted around an internal metal support. It has an orange carnelian tip, shaped for attaching a nib, and an opaque blue glass, feather-shaped terminal. They were acquired by the Indian Museum in London and transferred to the South Kensington Museum, later renamed the Victoria and Albert Museum, in 1879. |
| Other number | 12787 - India Museum Slip Book |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | 01387(IS) to 01387B/(IS) |
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| Record created | June 25, 2009 |
| Record URL |
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