Incense Burner in the Form of an Elephant

Location: eastern Iran or northern India

Materials: copper alloy, cast, pierced and engraved

Dimensions: 19.5 x 16 x 9cm

Accession Number: MTW 1041

Other Notes:

The elephant’s head is hinged, giving access to the coal box, which is simply its belly. The construction and pierced decoration are rather different from the animal-shaped incense burners of pre-Mongol Iran, and, like the Indian theme of its decoration, may suggest that it was made in one of the sultanate states of northern India.

Bibliography:

J.M. Rogers, The Arts of Islam. Masterpieces from the Khalili Collection, London 2010, cat.99, p.95.