Basin
Mother-of-pearl, with metal pins
Gujarat
16th or early 17th century
4282.1857

Articles fashioned with mother-of-pearl plaques were made in Gujarat for local use as well as for export to foreign markets. In Europe, the rarity of the material and the distinctive craftsmanship of such objects made them much sought after for Wunderkammern or cabinets of curiosities. They featured in Renaissance princely collections as well as in church treasuries, and were frequently embellished with rich mounts. Mother-of-pearl basins such as these are often accompanied by matching ewers based on contemporary European silver models.