Featured Inlaid Indian bone kohl bottle, help please.

Does anyone know in which part of India this type of inlay was made?

It is an antique bone kohl bottle. When I bought it, I thought the green decorations were painted, but they turn out to be inlaid.
Some of the inlay is missing, and the cavities filled with traces of kohl through use. You can feel the difference between the body of the bottle, the inlay, and the cavities.

If it is any help, the general style resembles some South Indian kohl bottles I have, from Madras/Chennai and Kerala.

Total height: 65 mm, just over 2.5"
The colour of the stopper is much lighter, it could be a replacement.

Thank you for looking.

 

I would say Madras, however I've seen similar (stone) bottles attributed to Agra.

 

Thanks, I also thought Madras, but haven't been able to find something similar that had an attribution. Do you have a link for those bottles, by any chance?

 

Pinterest but I think its for sale on Etsy.
Also, whilst I was in Nepal, I see similar bottles being produced from Yak bone. They are generally referred to as being 'snuff bottles' however some were/are used by Buddhist Monks for holding medicinal powders. Cameo glass bottles were also used in much the same way, and not for holding snuff, which of course Monks do not use. I have quite a collection of the Cameo glass examples myself.

 

Yes, the Nepali make a lot of bone 'snuff' bottles. They are different from this one though. Many of my kohl bottles were also sold as snuff bottles, and some as perfume bottles.
Kohl bottles are pretty niche collector's items, so not many people recognize them as such. The very first book on kohl bottles was only published last year, so you can imagine I sometimes have trouble getting the right information.

Lovely.

 

I was going to say North India, like Agra etc. I have seen most stone inlay work in the north where the Mughals ruled, I guess it is a part of that culture/heritage from where the inlay work comes in.
Honestly I would not have guessed south India for inlay work - that is not to say it cannot happen or does not happen but only that its not the top choice from where inlay work is prominent.

 

Thanks Roshan. Obviously I value your opinion, with you being closer to the source.
Although the general style reminded me of Madras work (Chennai), I haven't seen any stone or bone inlay from the south either.
The ones ritzy posted seem to be cut and painted, rather than inlaid. I think I saw those listed on etsy some time ago, and don't remember inlay being mentioned.

Roshan, do you have an idea where I could get more information on Indian bone inlay?

And tagging @808 raver , do you have any idea where this kind of bone inlay was made?

 

dear AJ
I really use this awesome forum for all the information i get and have. The wealth of information and knowledge and willingness to share is unsurpassable any where else.

I really dont know where else to look for bone inlay work in India. But i will keep my eyes open if I come across some info on this. I also am surprised how far indian Kohl bottles travel.

 

Thank you, Roshan.

I have quite a few from India. I bought this one in The Netherlands, where the seller sold it as an antique vial, no origin mentioned.

Dutch people generally don't know what they are, so I can usually buy them for a nice price. I have a small collection of kohl bottles, ranging from Mauritania in the west, to Indonesia in the east.

 

Thanks inh, that is how I usually find my kohl bottles. When they are listed as kohl bottles, the price suddenly triples.

But now I am looking for the inlay technique rather than kohl bottles. I suspect they also used that inlay on boxes etc, but I haven't been able to find anything.
The two bottles in the link look painted rather than inlaid to me, just like the ones ritzy posted. And they look Indian. Due to the Mughal period there can be a slight overlap in styles, but not in this case, imo.
The inlay on mine looks a bit gritty, as if it is made of dyed bone grit.

I love nice chess pieces.

 

Sorry it's been awhile The truth is I don't know, often this type of decoration was done with carving out a recess in the bone or ivory and lac filling the design. As for a region? I don't know, sorry

 

Thanks raver. I guess it will have to be a mystery for now.

 

Could the mystery have been solved?
During my recent 'sick leave', I came across a similar bottle which was attributed to Gujarat, NW India. Of course I didn't bookmark the site, and I have no idea where my googling took me.
Anyway, for now it is Gujarati, until someone has a better idea.

Thank you for looking, and for all your kind help everyone.

 

@Any Jewelry , Oh my goodness , I fell down that rabbit hole in Gujarat last week for 5 days sadly lamenting about the Narrow Gauge Western Railway I will never get to visit ...... all because of the Late actress / dancer Laxmi Chhaya and the 1963 Bollywood Movie "Royal Mail" that was filmed in the Northern part of .....

https://indianexpress.com/article/india/end-of-the-line-for-107-year-old-train-service/

 

Hi @Any Jewelry How do you tell it's a kohl bottle rather than scent bottle? Is it the size or shape of the dauber? I don't think I've ever seen one in real life so I am curious

 

Many bottles can be used for both, although bone and perfume don't really mix well.
In most cases it is the general style, which has been documented (museum and private collections). Giveaways are black residue on the applicator and the screw thread or kohl powder dropping out of the bottle.

 

I am brand new to this site and have a question about an engraving on a silver piece I believe is written in Gujarati. I could not find out how to create a new post - so please tell me if I should ask here or please tell me how to create a new post. Thanks and apologies.