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Water-Pipe Reservoir (Huqqa) and Stand
Water-Pipe Reservoir (Huqqa) and Stand
LNS 2174 Ja, b
Raised from gold sheet; hammered in relief, chased and punched, ground ringmatted, some motifs matted with textured chisels
Height of reservoir 175 mm; diameter `166 mm; height of stand 62 mm; diameter of stand 165 mm; height of reservoir on stand 207 mm
India, probably Deccan or Western India, later 16th-early 17th century AD
Photography by Bruce M. White

Relief in Hammered Precious Metal

Since ancient times, man has understood and exploited the highly controllable and pleasantly responsive nature of precious metals. The qualities of malleability and ductility invest these metals (for present purposes, gold and silver) with exceptional potential for assuming and retaining forms. One of the main embodiments of this partnership between man and metal has been decorative relief produced by hammering or other pressure applied at room temperature.

Given the Indian subcontinent's strong sculptural tradition, it is only natural that the artists of this culture would distinguish themselves in the disciplines of hammered metal relief, as they did in all other branches of the metal arts. Too little survives of ancient and medieval Indian work in this field to give an adequate sense of these artists' accomplishments, but it is clear that they were significant. The quality and finesse of more recent work in precious metals shows that it is one of the most characteristic of all Indian artistic expressions.

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