Enamel hilt - age and place

Jens Nordlunde · 30th March 2006, 02:06 PM

Hi Brian,
Interesting what you write about the drawings although it would be more interesting had they been from the 17th century – but still interesting.
T.H. Hendley’s ‘Damascening on Steel and Iron, as Practised in India, London 1892, also shows drawing of different types of hilts, but is does not show a hilt of this form. Hendley also mentions leaf ‘book’s of great ancients showing, not hilt forms, but decorations. The drawings you refer to could have had the use you describe, or maybe another, it is hard to say to day. If you hear more about the drawings, please let me know.
None of those who has written about enamel decoration has done it in such detail when it comes to the design or to the colours, that we can be sure of, from where a piece origins. They have however given some indications as which colours some of the centres were famous for using, and I agree that Lucknow is a possibility, but so is Jodhpur, Udaipur and Bhuj just to mention a few of them. Bhuj was famous for the way they faded the colours on petals, although they could not make the colours as deep and transparent as they could in Jodhpur (Watt). Another thing we must keep in mind, and which makes it more difficult to tell from where a piece origins is, that it may have been made in Lucknow but sold in Jodhpur. This would mean that if a museum has hilt labelled ‘Jodhpur’ we can’t be sure that it was also made there. To me this suggests that the most reliable source we have are books like Hendley’s, Watt’s and others written at the time, and for good measure, the pieces the museums have should be used for comparison.

30th March 2006, 02:06 PM	#11
Jens Nordlunde Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Europe Posts: 2,718	Hi Brian, Interesting what you write about the drawings although it would be more interesting had they been from the 17th century – but still interesting. T.H. Hendley’s ‘Damascening on Steel and Iron, as Practised in India, London 1892, also shows drawing of different types of hilts, but is does not show a hilt of this form. Hendley also mentions leaf ‘book’s of great ancients showing, not hilt forms, but decorations. The drawings you refer to could have had the use you describe, or maybe another, it is hard to say to day. If you hear more about the drawings, please let me know. None of those who has written about enamel decoration has done it in such detail when it comes to the design or to the colours, that we can be sure of, from where a piece origins. They have however given some indications as which colours some of the centres were famous for using, and I agree that Lucknow is a possibility, but so is Jodhpur, Udaipur and Bhuj just to mention a few of them. Bhuj was famous for the way they faded the colours on petals, although they could not make the colours as deep and transparent as they could in Jodhpur (Watt). Another thing we must keep in mind, and which makes it more difficult to tell from where a piece origins is, that it may have been made in Lucknow but sold in Jodhpur. This would mean that if a museum has hilt labelled ‘Jodhpur’ we can’t be sure that it was also made there. To me this suggests that the most reliable source we have are books like Hendley’s, Watt’s and others written at the time, and for good measure, the pieces the museums have should be used for comparison.