A MUGHAL-STYLE ‘HORSE HEAD’ DAGGER HILT India, 18^th century. The handle is finely carved from pale-green aventurine, naturalistically rendered in the form of a horse’s head with the ears facing back, the nostrils flared and the mouth slightly open. The intricately incised mane falls gracefully down on one side of the neck.

Provenance: From a private collection in New York, USA.
Condition: Good condition with old wear and minuscule nicks. The horse head with several natural fissures, some of which have developed into small hairline cracks over time. Naturally grown patina overall, the polish of a fine, silky-matt feel.

Weight: 208 g
Dimensions: Height 13 cm, width 7 cm

Fitted box with the initial ‘A’, finely carved in high relief and openwork from white jade, dating to the first half of the 20^th century. (2)

Horse-head dagger hilts were first depicted in paintings of the Padshahnama (Chronicle of the King of the World), about 1635, a manuscript documenting the reign of the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan (r. 1628–58). As horses were highly prized in Mughal culture, it is not surprising that horse-head daggers were the most popular subject for zoomorphic hilts for several centuries.

Expert’s note: While many of these hilts are carved from Jade, Aventurine was both a highly prized and extremely rare material at the time, and a hilt carved from this fine material must consequently be regarded as rare. Also note the distinct glimmer within the translucent stone, which makes this mineral unique.

Auction result comparison: Compare a Mughal ‘horse head’ dagger hilt, also dated to the 18^th century, at Sotheby’s London in Art of the Islamic World on 19^th October 2016, Lot 253, bought in at an estimate of GBP 18,000-25,000.

懞兀兒風格馬頭匕首柄
印度，十八世紀。手柄由淡青色砂金石精雕而成，馬頭形狀，耳朵朝後，鼻孔張開，嘴巴微微張開。 鬃毛細節生動，在脖子的一側。

來源：紐約私人收藏。
品相：狀況良好，有舊磨損和微小的劃痕。馬頭有幾條天然裂痕，其中一些隨著時間的推移已經發展成細小的裂縫。包漿自然生長，細膩光潤。

重量：208克
尺寸：高13 厘米，寬7 厘米

帶首字母“A”的裝盒，鑲嵌精美雕刻的白玉，可追溯至 20 世紀上半葉。(2)

專家注釋：雖然此類劍柄中有許多是翡翠雕刻而成，但砂金石在當時既是一種極為珍貴又極為稀有的材料，因此用這種優質材料雕刻而成的劍柄非常稀有。另外，注意半透明砂金石內的獨特微光，這使得這種石料獨一無二。

拍賣結果比較: 比較一件十八世紀懞兀兒馬頭匕首柄，十八世紀，見倫敦蘇富比Art of the Islamic World 2016年10月19日 Lot 253, 估價GBP 18,000-25,000。