AN INDIAN ROSEWATER SPRINKLER
UNMARKED, EARLY 20TH CENTURY
Estimate: £400 - £600
Auction: The Fiona Buchanan Indian Silver Collection | Wednesday 4th March at 10am
Description
Of typical bulbous shape, panels to the body with train depiction, for possibly the Nilgiri Mountain Railway (NMR), resting on a gently stepped, splayed foot rising to a tall neck, the screw-off tapering neck with everted rim surmounted by a hemispherical pierced sprinkler top
Dimensions
27cm high, 7.5oz
Footnote
Colloquially called the "Toy Train", the Nilgiri Moutain Railway is now a UNESCO World Heritage site. The railway was built during the British Raj in 1908 and covers 46km and takes nearly five hours to reach the top at Ooty.
Adopted from the Mughal culture, rosewater sprinklers were often used as diplomatic gifts and this one would have illustrated their accomplishments.