Page:The Industrial Arts of India.djvu/129

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presented to the Prince of Wales, by a “ penny subscription n among the priests of Madura* It is a striking object, and its orna- mentation is reproduced directly from the architectural details of the celebrated temples of that city. The whole art of the Madras Presidency has been in this way influenced by its ecclesiastical architecture, in the same way as the arts of Cashmere have been influenced by the characteristic temple architecture of the valley* A state palan queen was also presented to the Prince by the Princess Bobili, of Vizagapatam work in ebony and ivory* Although the details of the decoration are European, consisting of scrolls of con- volvuluses and fuchsias, etched in black on the ivory, the general effect is most pleasing - and it is very richly and prettily furnished inside. Mr, Wentworth Beaumont, M,l, possesses a deep-seated white marble throne, which is a superb example of the stone-carved work of Jaipur, The golden throne of Ranjit Sing [“the lion of the Pan jab/’ 1798-1839] in the India Museum, is an object of great artistic as well as historical interest It is of pure Hindu form, like that of the hour-glass shaped cane morahs , already noticed, and the lotus thrones on which the gods are represented in Indian paintings and sculptures.

The famous ** peacock ” throne of Delhi has long since disap- peared, It was made for the fourth Mogol Emperor, Shah Jahan, a.d, 1627 — 1658, at a cost of over ^6,000,000, and took its name from the peacock with spread tail, represented in all the glory of nature’s coloring, by sapphires, emeralds, rubies, topazes, and enamel, which formed its chief decoration. The body of the throne also was a mass of diamonds and precious stones. It was carried off by Nadir Shah when he sacked Delhi, a.d* 1738-9.

Bombay Inlaid Work , and Akmedabad Mother of Pearl Work .

A good deal of ornamental furniture is also made in “ Bombay inlaid work,” so familiar now in the ubiquitous glove-boxes, blot- tin g-cases, bo ok -stands, work-boxes, desks, and card cases, which