Artwork Page for Powder horn

Details / Information for Powder horn

Powder horn

1600s-1700s

India, Mughal, 17th-18th century

Medium
Jadeite, iron inlaid with brass
Measurements
Overall: 12 cm (4 3/4 in.)
Credit Line
Bequest of Mrs. Severance A. Millikin 1989.351
Public Domain
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Location
Not on view
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Description

Like the firearms themselves, powder horns were made as courtly accessories to be worn as objects of beauty. Most Mughal nobles also served as military commanders, and accouterments of war would be worn as part of their formal attire. For this reason, artisans used precious materials such as white jade, which in this example has been carved with leaf and petal patterns, its natural black inclusions treated as ornament. Pressing down on the simple mechanism opens the hollow inner chamber from which small amounts of gunpowder were administered into the pan of a matchlock musket.
A translucent jadeite powder horn, featuring dark gray mottling, is carved with leaf patterns at both ends. Centered atop the polished body, an iron mechanism is inlaid with yellow brass floral designs. Dark metal arms extend horizontally; the arm to the right curves over the tapered tip, while a jadeite cap covers the wide left end. The ornate metalwork contrasts with the stone's smooth surface.

Powder horn

1600s-1700s

India, Mughal, 17th-18th century

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