A Dervish crutch with gilding and inscription, North India, probably Punjab, 19th century, metal overlaid with gold, on metal stand, 52cm. long, shaft 1.2-1.6cm. wide Provenance: Private Collection France. Brought back to France by the vendor's...

A Dervish crutch with gilding and inscription, North India, probably Punjab, 19th century, metal overlaid with gold, on metal stand, 52cm. long, shaft 1.2-1.6cm. wide Provenance: Private Collection France. Brought back to France by the vendor's ancestor who was a doctor in the Punjab in the late 19th century Inscriptions: 'Bismillah-i rahman-i rahim' (In the name of Allah, the Compassionate, the Merciful) and 'La illah illa Allah wa Muhammad rasul Allah' (There is no god but Allah, and Muhammad is his Prophet). Though Muslim and Hindu holy-men traditionally lead a life of poverty and renunciation, the staffs on which they rested were frequently gifts from the powerful and wealthy, and consequently were often objects of splendour. This crutch, made from metal overlaid with gold is both robust and elegant. The top of the staff ends in a flowering bud of the sort found on contemporary luxury objects, while the pious invocations along the shaft and the sturdiness of the object are reminders that this was meant to be an aid to a life of mendicancy and devotion. We know from paintings that both Muslim and Hindu mendicants used such crutches; judging by the Islamic inscriptions on this one, however, its owner was clearly a Muslim.