{"product_id":"ceremonial-solid-silver-kutch-water-vessel-gangajali-1910","title":"Ceremonial Solid Silver Kutch Water Vessel Gangajali 1910","description":"\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"\u003eThis Ceremonial Solid Silver Kutch Water Vessel (Gangajali) was commissioned for the court of the Nawab of Sachin, Gujarat, in the Bombay Presidency, Western India, Circa 1910, Repoussé and chased silver.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"\u003eThis monumental Silver Kutch Water Vessel exemplifies the extraordinary craftsmanship of western Indian silversmiths during the late princely era of British India. The vessel is densely ornamented with intricate scrolling floral arabesques, foliate bands, and narrative figural friezes executed in high repoussé and fine chasing techniques. The elaborate surface decoration reflects the luxury aesthetic favoured by princely courts in Gujarat during the early twentieth century.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"\u003eTraditionally associated with the Nawab of Sachin, the Solid Silver Kutch Water Vessel may have been produced for ceremonial court use, palace display, or diplomatic presentation. The princely State of Sachin, located near Surat in present-day Gujarat, was ruled by the Nawabs of the Siddi dynasty, an elite Muslim lineage of African origin that maintained close political and cultural ties with the British Raj while patronizing regional artistic traditions.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"\u003eThe State of Sachin was founded in 1791 by Sidi Abdul Karim Muhammad Yakut Khan I, a member of the Siddi community — people of East African (Habshi\/Abyssinian) origin who had risen to military and political prominence in western India.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"\u003eThe Siddis originally arrived in India through Indian Ocean trade networks, military service, and royal courts. Over centuries, some became admirals, generals, governors, and rulers in the Deccan and Gujarat.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"\u003eAfter political struggles in Janjira, Sidi Abdul Karim entered into an agreement with the Maratha Peshwa and received the territory of Sachin near Surat, creating a new princely state.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003eThis image shows an ornate Gangajali, which is a container used to hold water from the Ganges River for Hindu purification purposes. Specifically, based on the craftsmanship and historical context, it appears to be a princely solid silver Gangajali.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"\u003eObjects of this type were often commissioned from master workshops in Gujarat, Kutch, and Bombay between 1890 and 1915, a period marked by increasing demand for presentation silver among Indian princely states and colonial elites. The exceptional density of ornament and technical refinement suggest manufacture by a highly skilled court or metropolitan workshop.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"\u003eThe Ceremonial Solid Silver Water Vessel Gangajali is connected to the “Nawab of Sachin” and dated 1910, the ruler at that time was:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"\u003eSidi Ibrahim Muhammad Yakut Khan III\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"\u003eHe became Nawab as a child in 1887 and ruled during the height of the British Raj. He was educated in the British imperial system, served with honorary military rank in the British Army, and acted as Honorary Aide-de-Camp to the Governors of Bombay between 1906 and 1910.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"\u003eThis was exactly the period when luxury silver objects, presentation vases, ceremonial vessels, and palace decorative arts flourished among Indian princely courts.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"\u003eThe Nawabs of Sachin became known for:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul type=\"disc\"\u003e\n\u003cli class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list 36.0pt;\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';\"\u003epatronage of luxury arts, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list 36.0pt;\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';\"\u003eIndo-Islamic court culture, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list 36.0pt;\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';\"\u003ehorse racing, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list 36.0pt;\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';\"\u003earchitecture, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list 36.0pt;\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';\"\u003emusic, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list 36.0pt;\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';\"\u003eand cosmopolitan lifestyles blending Indian, African, and British influences. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"\u003eThe family also became connected to early Indian cinema through: Fatima Begum and her daughter’s Sultana and Zubeida.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"\u003eFatima Begum is widely believed to have been married to Nawab Ibrahim Muhammad Yakut Khan III, though aspects of the relationship remain debated in historical records.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: 19.2pt; background: white; vertical-align: baseline;\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;\"\u003eSachin state was established on 6 June 1791 with over 85% of its population being Hindus, while the other parts, mostly their rulers, being Sunni Muslims of the Sidi dynasty of Danfa-Rajpuri and Janjira State. The Sidi dynasty is of Habesha origin, people culturally and ancestrally related to the ethnic groups in the Ethiopian highlands in Africa.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: 19.2pt; background: white; vertical-align: baseline;\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;\"\u003eSachin state, before it came under the British protectorate, was under the protection of the Maratha Peshwa (likened to a modern-day prime minister). In 1829, the state became bankrupt; this brought the state under British civil administration between 1835 and 1864. It had its own currency, Calvary, and stamped paper, including a state band with Africans inclusive.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: 19.2pt; background: white; vertical-align: baseline;\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;\"\u003eOne of India’s cinemas earliest superstars, Fatima Begum (1892- 1983), who was also India’s first female film director, was said to have been allegedly married to Nawab Sidi Ibrahim Muhammad Yakut Khan III of Sachin state. But sources from the Sachin royal family throw a veil over this, and they claim no record of the marriage or contract between the Fatima Begum and the Nawab. They also claim no record of the Nawab recognizing her children, Sultana, Zubeida and Shehzadi as his own. The Nawab at that time had a daughter called \"Sultana\" born in 1910.\u003cspan style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\"\u003e  \u003c\/span\u003eIt is plausible, though not definitively established, that this vessel was presented to her father to commemorate the birth of his daughter, Sultana. Fatima Begnum’s daughter, Sultana, became a key figure in early Indian movies. Zubeida, Sultana’s younger sister, became a leading actress in Indian’s first talkie film Alam Ara in 1931. Nawab Sidi Ibrahim Muhammad Yakut Khan III, the last ruler of Sachin state, signed the agreement to join the Indian union on 8 March 1948 and the state became part of Surat district in Bombay Province.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: 19.2pt; background: white; vertical-align: baseline;\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;\"\u003eZubaida stayed in India after the partition, while her sister moved to Pakistan where she got married and gave birth to a girl child, Jamila Razzaq, who eventually became a prominent actress in Pakistan between the mid-1950s and the mid-1960s.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"\u003eThe repoussé figural panels on the vase depict Hindu deities rendered in a stylized western Indian courtly manner, likely inspired by late 19th–early 20th century Gujarati temple and manuscript imagery.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: 19.2pt; background: white; vertical-align: baseline;\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;\"\u003eThe simplified anatomy and symmetrical framing suggest these were not intended as strict religious icons, but as decorative sacred imagery integrated into luxury court silverwork.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"\u003eThis monumental silver ceremonial Solid Silver Kutch Water Vessel is richly decorated with densely worked floral arabesques and repoussé figural panels depicting Hindu deities, including Shiva and the goddess Durga. Executed in high relief within cusped architectural niches, the figures reflect the hybrid artistic vocabulary of western Indian court silver produced during the late princely era of British India.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"\u003eThe iconography combines sacred Hindu imagery with the luxuriant ornamental style favoured by elite patrons in Gujarat and Bombay workshops around the turn of the twentieth century. Shiva, represented as an ascetic deity holding ritual attributes, appears alongside Durga, the warrior goddess shown triumphing above her animal mount. Their inclusion suggests an artistic synthesis intended to evoke divine protection, prosperity, and royal authority.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"\u003eShiva iconography combines ascetic, cosmic, and royal symbolism. Distinguished by the third eye, trident, serpent, crescent moon, and matted locks bearing the Ganges, Shiva appears as yogi, cosmic dancer, and supreme deity. His imagery—especially the Nataraja and linga forms—became central to Hindu religious art and is widely represented in Indian sculpture, painting, silverwork, and temple architecture.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"\u003eDurga iconography embodies divine feminine power and martial protection. Typically represented with multiple arms bearing the weapons of the gods, mounted upon a lion or tiger, Durga appears most famously as Mahishasuramardini, the slayer of the buffalo demon Mahishasura. Her imagery symbolizes the triumph of cosmic order over chaos and became one of the central themes of Hindu religious art, sculpture, painting, and ritual traditions.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"\u003eGaruda is the divine eagle-like being who serves as the mount (\u003ci\u003evahana\u003c\/i\u003e) of Vishnu. The snake represents the \u003cb\u003enagas\u003c\/b\u003e, serpent beings associated with the underworld, hidden power, water, and immortality.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"\u003eThe image of Garuda holding a snake symbolizes:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul type=\"disc\"\u003e\n\u003cli class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; tab-stops: list 36.0pt;\"\u003evictory of light over darkness,\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; tab-stops: list 36.0pt;\"\u003edivine order overcoming chaos,\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; tab-stops: list 36.0pt;\"\u003eprotection from evil,\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; tab-stops: list 36.0pt;\"\u003etriumph over poison and danger,\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; tab-stops: list 36.0pt;\"\u003espiritual liberation.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"\u003eAnother episode of Krishna slaying Bakasura derives from the \u003ci\u003eBhagavata Purana\u003c\/i\u003e, in which the child Krishna defeats the crane-demon Bakasura, sent by King Kamsa to destroy him. After being swallowed whole, Krishna tears apart the demon’s massive beak, symbolizing the triumph of divine purity and protection over deceit and destructive forces.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"\u003eThe next episode of Krishna playing the flute is among the most celebrated themes of Hindu devotional art. As the divine cowherd of Vrindavan, Krishna enchants nature and the cowherd maidens with the music of his bamboo flute, drawing souls toward divine love and spiritual union. The motif became central to Bhakti traditions and is widely represented in Indian painting, sculpture, silverwork, and temple arts.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"\u003eAn additional episode the association of Krishna with the peacock derives from devotional traditions describing the forests of Vrindavan, where peacocks danced ecstatically to the sound of Krishna’s flute. The birds are said to have offered him their feathers, which Krishna placed in his crown. In Indian art, the peacock symbolizes divine beauty, joy, and harmony between nature and the sacred, becoming one of the most recognizable attributes of Krishna iconography.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"\u003eKrishna iconography combines pastoral, royal, and cosmic symbolism. Distinguished by blue skin, the peacock feather, and the flute, Krishna is represented as divine child, cowherd lover, heroic prince, and spiritual teacher. His imagery—especially scenes with Radha, cows, and the flute—became central to Hindu devotional art and is widely represented in Indian painting, sculpture, silverwork, and temple traditions.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"\u003eThe motif of Garuda grasping a serpent derives from ancient Hindu mythology, in which Garuda—the eagle mount of Vishnu—became the eternal adversary of the naga serpents after obtaining the nectar of immortality to free his mother from bondage. In Indian and Southeast Asian art, the image symbolizes divine protection, royal authority, and the triumph of cosmic order over chaos.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"\u003eTraditionally associated with the Court of the Nawab of Sachin and reportedly dated 1910, the vase reflects the cosmopolitan culture of the princely state of Sachin near Surat in present-day Gujarat. Although ruled by a Muslim Siddi dynasty of African origin, the court patronized regional artistic traditions that frequently incorporated Hindu mythological imagery into luxury decorative arts.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"\u003eThe vessel’s broad baluster form, flared neck, and exceptionally dense repoussé decoration are characteristic of prestigious presentation silver produced in western India between 1890 and 1915. Such objects were commissioned for palace interiors, ceremonial display, diplomatic gifts, and elite patronage networks during the height of the British Raj.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eMaterials and Techniques\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSilver; repoussé, chasing, engraving, and hand finishing.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"\u003eDimensions: -\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;\"\u003eWidth: 35 cm\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003eHeight: 36 cm\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003eTotal Weight: 3704 grams\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Joseph Cohen Antiques","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46397060087958,"sku":"JC-07227","price":18500.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0124\/1507\/4394\/files\/Vaze2.jpg?v=1779892052","url":"https:\/\/www.josephcohenantiques.com\/products\/ceremonial-solid-silver-kutch-water-vessel-gangajali-1910","provider":"Joseph Cohen Antiques","version":"1.0","type":"link"}