QAJAR IRAN OR POSSIBLY AWADH, EARLY 19TH CENTURY

This case is likely to have housed a miniature Qur'an of the same shape. The hanging loops suggest that it was probably carried as an amulet around the belt. An almost identical box, although in gold, is published in Spirit & Life, Masterpieces of Islamic Art from the Aga Khan Museum Collection, Geneva, 2007, cat.18, p.44. Although catalogued as Qajar, the pierced hole in the underside of the box, delicately designed as a blossoming flower is reminiscent of Lucknow metalwork. The Nawabs of Awadh were shi'i muslims and the presence of the names of the Shi'a Ahl al-Bayt on the case would make perfect sense in the Awadhi context.