A Mughal mother-of-pearl dish, Gujarat, India, circa 1600

of shallow rounded form on a short brass foot with narrow bracketed rim, constructed of a double-wall of lobed and rectangular plaques of mother-of-pearl secured by metal pins with a central radiating lotus flower

overall in good condition, minor losses to underside of rim, two replacement parts to reverse of base, as viewed
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Records from the Grünes Gewölbe (Green Vault) in Dresden indicate that Gujarati mother-of-pearl wares were being imported to Europe from as early as the second quarter of the sixteenth century.  The commissioning of such wares was particularly associated with the Portuguese.  These precious objects would have reached Britain via merchants during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries as high-value gifts and luxury imports.  Mother-of-pearl articles are listed in sixteenth-century English royal inventories, for example, in 1534 Thomas Cromwell presented Henry VIII with a mother-of-pearl ewer set in gold as a New Year's present (see Jaffer 2002, p.39, no. 11). 

A comparable basin, with a date of 1568 engraved into a central medallion, is in the collection of Dr. Sequiera Pinto (Lisbon 1996, p133, no. 13), and another in the V&A, inv. 4282-1857(see Jaffer, 2002, pp.38-9).  Further dating evidence is provided by a work in situ in India: the cenotaph of the tomb of Shaikh Salim ad-Din Chishti, at Fatehpur-Sikri, 1570-1584 (see Hambly 1977, fig. 37), which has similar mother-of-pearl revetment.