FOUR MOTHER-OF-PEARL PLATES

The establishment of the Portuguese trading empire throughout Asia from the early sixteenth century brought an unprecedented flow of exotic goods to Europe. Costly garnitures were commissioned by the Portuguese as magnificent display pieces and were dispatched throughout the Portuguese Empire. Jesuit missionaries also played a significant political and artistic role in the Portuguese settlements throughout India and Asia. Mother-of-pearl was extracted from the inner layer of the shell of some molluscs and made into objects in Gujurat, western India, to Portuguese order for export to Europe, where they were often given European mounts. For further information see B. Wills, S. La Niece, B. McLeod and C. Cartwright, 'A shell garniture from Gujurat, India in the British Museum', The British Museum Technical Research Bulletin, vol. 1, 2007, pp. 1-8.