Fluted cup and cover, carved and polished rock crystal, engraved floral design, intended for gold and set gems, now missing, Delhi India, 18th century

An 8-fluted cup and cover, fashioned in rock crystal and polished, with an incised/engraved floral design and shallow drill holes on the exterior, intended for setting with gold and gems.
The cup is slightly flared at the rim with an undulating profile leading down to a short foot with rim and a concave recess. The interior is smooth and polished and there are a few cracks present.
The cover is domed with a centrally located, integral finial that has also been incised and drilled. The interior is smooth and polished, and there is a raised inner ring at the rim for locating the cover onto the bowl. There is a crack present.

Purchased from Imre Schwaiger, Esq.

In 1914, this cup and cover were bought together with a rock crystal bowl [object no. IM.384-1914] from Mr. Imre Schwaiger for the sum of £65-0-0.
Imre Leonard Schwaiger was a well-respected dealer in gems, jewellery and eastern works of art. He was of Hungarian descent and, as a young man, he travelled to India where he became expert in appraising them, later becoming the foremost dealer and agent in such objects.
He built up a list of important clients and was friends with Jacques Cartier, looking after Cartier's interests in Delhi and acting as the company's agent in the purchase of gems, jewellery and objets d'art. Schwaiger was also responsible for introducing Cartier to all of the maharajas and other royals during his visit to India for the Dehi Durbar in 1911.
Imre Schwaiger developed a close working relationship with both the Victoria & Albert Museum and the British Museum, assisting them with a number of acquisitions. He also generously donated a number of valuable objects to both institutions.;;

Purchased from the dealer Imre Schwaiger, Esq., 39, Brook Street, Grosvenor Square, W. This acquisition information reflects that found in the Museum records (Asia Department registers and/or Central Inventory) as part of a 2023 provenance research project.

R.P. 1914-2839M and R.P. 1913-2907M

The cup and cover were said on acquisition to have been made in Delhi, and probably date to the 18th century. Both have been fashioned out of single pieces of clear, colourless quartz crystal. Rock crystal is a hard and durable material which requires patience and skill to fashion objects of this quality, especially when using rudimentary equipment such as bow-driven lathes and wheels. To carve the recesses for this design and the subsequent intended setting of the gems and gold would have required very skilled craftsmen. Even today, reproducing such work would still provide a major challenge to the modern lapidary. The cup and cover were bought by the museum from the noted dealer Imre Schwaiger, who was based in Delhi and London and who was a friend and business associate of Jacques Cartier in the early 20th century.

IM.383&A-1914