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Table

Table

  • Place of origin:

    Punjab, India (made)

  • Date:

    early 20th century (made)

  • Artist/Maker:

    unknown (production)

  • Materials and Techniques:

    Shisham wood, carved and inlaid with shaped pieces of brass, copper and ebony

  • Museum number:

    IM.37:1-1922

  • Gallery location:

    In Storage

  • Image in copyright

In the late 19th century, octagonal tables of this form were made in a number of wood-working centres in India. They were made in large numbers, but the design itself is not Indian, for it derives from Middle Eastern furniture. Original examples of this form were brought from Cairo in Egypt to India, specifically with the aim of copying them and exporting the copies to Europe, where there was then a great taste for 'Moorish' and 'Arab' furnishings. This example was made in the Punjab, a region in north-west India known for its traditions of pinjra (lattice-work), metal and wood inlay.

Physical description

Eight legged octagonal shaped table of shisham-wood, carved and inlaid with shaped pieces of brass, copper and ebony-wood. The center of the table top depicts an eight-pointed star with a circular floral design. The octagonal base is hinged for folding. The upper portion of the eight sides has square panels of interlaced octagons creating an ornamental screen and the lower portion imitates the typical window of a Panjabi house.

Place of Origin

Punjab, India (made)

Date

early 20th century (made)

Artist/maker

unknown (production)

Materials and Techniques

Shisham wood, carved and inlaid with shaped pieces of brass, copper and ebony

Dimensions

Height: 61.5 cm, Diameter: 66 cm of table top

Descriptive line

Octagonal eight legged table; wood inlaid with copper, brass and ebony. Punjab, Early 20th Century.

Bibliographic References (Citation, Note/Abstract, NAL no)

Jaffer, Amin Furniture from British India and Ceylon: A Catalogue of the Collections in the Victoria and Albert Museum and the Peabody Essex Museum. London : V&A Publications, 2001. 416 p., ill. ISBN 1851773185, p.293, pl.115..

Materials

Brass; Copper; Ebony; Shisham wood

Subjects depicted

Floral pattern; Leaf; Star; Quatrefoil; Geometric pattern; Lattices; Octagon; Cusped arch

Categories

Furniture

Collection code

SSEA

Qr_O67404
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