A DIAMOND AND RUBY SET WHITE NEPHRITE JADE PENDANT, MUGHAL INDIA, LATE 18TH-EARLY 19TH CENTURY

A DIAMOND AND RUBY SET WHITE NEPHRITE JADE PENDANT, MUGHAL INDIA, LATE 18TH-EARLY 19TH CENTURY

Of flattened, broadly bell-shaped form, finely fashioned from white nephrite and smoothly polished. The reverse is left plain, while the front is deeply recessed and delicately embellished with a symmetrical floral design of scrolling leaves and blossoms, the cut recesses inlaid with gold wire and inset with diamonds, accented by a single ruby.

Provenance: From a noted private collection in the United Kingdom.
Condition: Good condition with expected wear and manufacturing irregularities. Minuscule nibbling and small losses to edges, small nicks, few minute losses to inlays, some possibly renewed. The stone with natural inclusions and fissures, few of which have developed into fine hairlines.

Weight: 19 g
Dimensions: Height 5.1 cm, Length 6.2 cm

Literature comparison:
Compare a closely related partially reticulated jade mirror frame, India, dated c. 1700, and exhibited in the National War Museum, Edinburgh Castle, Legacies of Empire, 27 November 2020 to 29 January 2023. Compare a related jade pendant, Mughal empire, dated to the late 18th-early 19th century, in the Victoria & Albert Museum, accession number 684-1874.

Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Christie's New York, 15 September 2017, lot 1047
Price: USD 6,250 or approx. EUR 7,300 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A Mughal diamond and gemstone-inset white jade pendant, 18th-19th century
Expert remark: Compare the related form and decoration. Note the size (5.1 cm).

Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Sotheby's London, 25 April 2012, lot 592
Mid-estimate: USD 6,000 or approx. EUR 7,500 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A Mughal or Deccan gem-set jade pendant, India, circa 18th century
Expert remark: Compare the related form and decoration.