A Exceptionally Rare Deccani Enamelled and Gem-Set Gold Thumb ring, South India, 17th-18th century

of duck-bill form, decorated with red, white, yellow, turquoise and blue enamels, with gold inlaid stems set with turquoise flowerheads and buds against a red enamelled ground, the reverse with turquoise and yellow enamelled flowers issuing from dark blue stems against a white ground 

in good condition, minor loss and rubbing to red enamellling, 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."

Decorated by the best lapidaries and jewellers, thumb rings of this quality were highly prized possessions at the Mughal and Deccani courts. Often depicted in Mughal and Deccani miniatures these beautifully decorated rings were either worn on the thumb or suspended from a cummerband (Paris 2007b, p.398, no.3856). Examples with similar quality of enamelling are in the al-Sabah Collection, Kuwait National Museum (see Keene 2001, pp.63-65).

A late sixteenth-/ early seventeenth-century Deccani thumb ring in the al-Sabah collection (ibid. p.63, no.6.3) is also decorated with set turquoise flowerheads on a solid enamelled ground and has the distinctive Deccani palette of white, pale blue and yellow enamels to its interior. This palette appeared on a number of Deccani decorative arts during the late-sixteenth and early-seventeenth century. A mosaic panel in the Ashurkhana in Hyderabad dated to the early-seventeenth century (A.D. 1611) has a central vase issuing flowers of pale blue and mango yellow against a white ground. Other rings with this Deccani palette are discussed further by Manuel Keene in his article in Jewellery Studies, 2000, vol. 10, p.109, fig 14.

The duck-bill lip of the current lot is often associated with rings from the sub-continent; related examples are in the al-Sabah collection; see ibid., p.82, no.6.47, and Stone 1961, p.14, no.22 for illustrations of the type.