Indian Carved Hardwood Ash Box with Iron Mounts, Karnataka

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Hand-carved throughout with traditional foliate and geometric motifs, this rectangular hardwood vessel is designed with a tiered, hipped cover and … Read more Hand-carved throughout with traditional foliate and geometric motifs, this rectangular hardwood vessel is designed with a tiered, hipped cover and heavy wrought-iron hardware. The tapering lid panels are bordered by chevron-tooled friezes and carved with stylized upright leaf sprays, while the main body carries running scrollwork framed by repeating notched borders on all four exterior faces. The iron fittings include two tapered strap hinges across the rear seam, a pointed hasp plate to the front, and a stout twisted-bar handle fixed with forged eyelets to the flat top of the lid. An attached iron hook swings freely from the handle to latch into the forward loop, allowing the container to be carried or fastened shut securely. Containers of this type were traditionally produced in southern India, specifically the Karnataka region, for holding ceremonial materials such as sacred ash (vibhuti) or household offerings. The dense, close-grained timber, described in period collecting records as solid rosewood, has softened to a warm nut-brown tone, with lighter deposits remaining in the deeper recesses of the chisel marks. A traditional attribution places its manufacture in the eighteenth century. It stands approximately 13.7 cm high without the uppermost loop, measuring 19 cm across the front and 13 cm deep. The underside remains flat and unadorned, retaining two paper collection labels noting its regional Indian origin and timber. See less