Treasury of the World: Jeweled Arts of India in the Age of the Mughals (The al-Sabah Collection)

Jewelry as an art form in Mughal India has probably never been surpassed by any other civilization in the history of the world.

This full-color presentation of its fabulously varied achievements, with over 300 specially taken photographs, accompanies the major international exhibition of the same title. The pieces range from rings, necklaces, and other body ornaments to astonishingly detailed jeweled work on objects as diverse as boxes, flasks, bowls, and daggers. They are presented and analyzed here in themes ranging from creative variations in stone settings, precious-metal inlay in hardstones, and minutely detailed relief decoration in hammered metals to engraved gold-backed jewels, enameling, gold-embellished steel, relief-carved ornament, and inscribed royal gemstones. The result is a visual feast of almost unbelievable richness, gathered together in this book for the first time. Over 300 full-color photographs