ANTIQUE ARMS, ARMOR AND MILITARY DECORATIONS

AN INDIAN CEREMONIAL SHIELD WITH BRASS AND STEEL OVERLAY

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Start price: $500

Estimated price: $1,000 - $1,500

Buyer's premium:

Shield dhal, North India, Rajasthan. Early 19th century. This circular-shaped shield is made of steel. Over this pattern and at the center, it displays a serpent forming, with its body, four large knots alternating with four petals as it circles the corresponding number of protuberances of the shield. Closer to the edge, it displays an indented decoration of flowers and foliage, in a continuous band, held by rivets. The rim displays a relief freeze of teeth. On the inside, there are four rings for fixing the hilt. The dhal is a type of shield found in the Indian subcontinent. They are nearly always geometrically round and yet they vary in diameter from about eight inches to twenty-four inches. Some are nearly flat while others are strongly convex or curved. The edges may be flat or rolled back in the reverse direction to that of the curvature of the shield. Dhal shields were either made from metal or hide.

Dimensions: D: 14 in., (35.6 cm.)

Condition: Very good, small dents on the domes.