Treasury of the World: Jewelled arts of India in the age of the Mughals

Thames & Hudson Ltd, London, 2001 Book. Very Good. Soft cover. 1st Edition. English text; Paperback; 22.3 x 27.8 cm; 0.776 Kg; 160 pages with 300 iillustrations in colour; Minor signs of wear in the cover, spine and back cover. Edgeworn. The interior is in very good condition; Includes loose page from the International Herald Tribune, dated May 26-27, 2001 with the review of the exhibition.; The jewelled arts have been more highly developed in the Indian Subcontinent than anywhere else in the world, reaching their peak in the period of the Mughals. This full-colour presentation of its fabulously varied achievements, with over 300 specially taken photographs, accompanies the major international exhibition of the same title.The pieces range from rings, necklaces and other personal adornment to astonishingly detailed jewelled work on objects as diverse as boxes, flasks, bowls and daggers. They are presented and analysed here in thirteen thematic groups, beginning with unique and highly effective varieties of stone settings, and continuing with precious-metal inlay in hardstones; hammered relief decoration in precious metals; jewels with engraved gold backs; stones set in an elaborately engraved gold floral ground; enamelling; gold-embellished steel; three-dimensional sculptural expressions; relief-carved ornament; carved set gems; characteristic gemstone forms; inscribed royal gemstones; and concluding with a selection of exuberant pieces in which the jewery artist combines his powers to create an explosion of splendid jewelled magnificence. The material in this book constitutes a visual feast of almost unbelievable richness, gathered together here for the first time. Manuel Keene, a foremost authority on Islamic and Indian jewelled arts, is Curator of the al-Sabah Collection in Kuwait, one of the world's most important collections of Islamic art, and of unparalleled richness in Islamic and Indian jewelry. His publications include the article on jewelry in the Encyclopaedia of Islam and the catalogue Islamic Jewelry in the Metropolitan Museum of Art..