A BRASS WIRE-INLAID CARVED WOOD WRITING BOX BELONGING TO THE MINISTER OF THE JAIPUR STATE
Chiniot, Punjab (modern-day Pakistan), ca. 1880s - 1900s

Of rectangular shape, the large Anglo-Indian portable writing set fitted with a morocco leather-lined writing slope, stationary compartments and document holders, the exterior finely inlaid in brass wire with scrolling split palmettes and floral meanders, the top of the hinged lid bearing an oval ownership cartouche in the centre with an inscription reading “Nawab Mumtaz ud-Dolah, Sir Muhammad Faiyaz Ali Khan Bahadur, K.C.I.E., K.C.V.O., C.S.I., Minister Jaipur State”, referring to Nawab Faiyaz Ali Khan Bahadur, the Nawab of Pahasu and Rampur in Uttar Pradesh, as well as a high-ranking administrator and minister of the princely state of Jaipur during British rule, honoured with titles including Knightly Companion of the Indian Empire (K.C.I.E.), Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order (K.C.V.O.), and Companion of the Star of India (C.S.I.), the sides similarly inlaid and fitted with brass campaign-style carrying handles and lock, the lock with the maker’s mark “DHANI RAM & SONS”, a known Indian maker of colonial luxury and stationery goods, originally manufactured by Moti Lal Chhaju Lal.

45cm x 30cm x 19cm

This Anglo-Indian box sheds light on the characteristic craftsmanship of brass wire-inlaid furniture in Punjab. Acting as a diplomatic presentation piece or personal writing desk for official correspondence, this box must be part of a larger artistic tradition focused to supply the Western export market, spearheaded not only by foreign diplomats travelling to India, Pakistan and Punjab, but also by the many International Exhibitions fairs of the late 19th century. Our box presents striking similarities with other writing boxes and cabinets produced in Chiniot, modern-day Pakistan (John Lockwood Kipling, Arts & Crafts in the Punjab and London, 2017, pp. 239 and 244), some of which were featured in the Punjab Court of the Calcutta International Exhibition in 1883 - 84.