Silver Three-Footed Bowl with Poetry and Scenes from Lucknow
Primary TitleSilver bowl with poetry and scenes of Lucknow on three feet
CultureIndian
Dateca. 1880
MediumSilver
DimensionsOverall: 9 1/4 × 11 3/4 inches (23.5 × 29.85 cm)
Credit LinePurchase: through the generosity of Dr. Roopa Bansal in honor of Dr. Satish Bansal and the 70th Anniversary of India's Independence
Object number2016.50.1
On View
Not on viewCollections
DescriptionA large silver bowl with three feet. The bowl is hexagonal at the rim, with the body formed by six pierced lobes chased with angels beneath which are banners chased with text in Hindustani and Urdu forming a ghazal. The bowl has a pierced fish border at the rim and feet formed as entwined figures. The decoration on the bowl features scenes from Lucknow, including a depiction of the famous is the Rumi Darwaza in Lucknow, also known as the Turkish Gate to the palace. This is a splendid gateway at the northwest end of the great Bara Imambara quadrangle. The complex was commissioned in 1784 by Nawab Asaf ud-Daula ruler of Awadh (r.1775-97) who instructed architect Kifayat-ullah to design the it for the purpose of celebrating the Muslim festival of Muharram in commemoration of the imams Ali, Hasan, and Hussein. The west façade of the edifice (shown here) is an elaborate affair dominated by a colossal cuspated arch topped with a cupola.
Interestingly, the chased image shows two domes at the extreme ends of the three story construction. By 1890, these domes had been demolished, so the bowl probably predates this.
The poetry inscribed in Urdu (Persian script) and Hindi on the vessel translates as follows: H yoṣue karo ye, mehara ye isak ke bīmāra par
U hai bhārosā [āp]kā mālik mire parvardgāra sa[=pa]r
nahīṁ bbūlūṁ [ki/kab]se tā kama rabarā tirā
[You only trust your lord, my nourisher]
H āra koī hai davā us ke nahī ājāra para
U [baś keśaraṣ] bā’iṣ-i śukr kaise ḵẖāt̤ir meṁ vah lāyā nahīṁ hai faqat muśtāq vah `āśiq tirī asrār par
[How is it that he did not remember that cause of gratitude; that lover is desirous only of your secrets]
H hai bharosā āpakā malika mere parvardagār
U hasā kiyā ye mehar ye [?be]`iśq ke bīmār par
aur koī hai darā[=vā] uske nahīṁ ajāra para[m]
[had compassion for this person sick with love; his disease does not have any other remedy]
Exhibition History
Unexpected Encounters, The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, Missouri, June 2–August 12, 2018, no cat.
With Wynyard Wilkinson, London, by 2015;
Purchased from Wilkinson by The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, MO, 2016.
No additional published references known at this time.
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