Ceremonial knife with sheath

anoniem, c. 1750 - c. 1800

Richly worked knives are some of the best-known collectors’ pieces from Ceylon (modern-day Sri Lanka). The finest of these were produced by members of the Four Workshops, a guild to which only the leading craftsmen belonged; these craftsmen worked almost exclusively for the court. Such knives formed part of the costumes of the aristocracy and were virtually never used.

Artwork typemachete
Object numberAK-MAK-195
Dimensionslength 30 cm x width 5 cm, length 34.5 cm

Identification

Title(s)
Ceremonial knife with sheath
Object type
Object number
AK-MAK-195
Description
Siermes, lemmet rijk bewerkt, incrustaties met verguld brons, met edelstenen ingelegde ivoren greep, vergulde rozetten.
Catalogue reference
- Rose Schubert, Rukada : Puppenspiel in Sri Lanka : das Ähälepola Nadagama, das Spiel vom Sturz des letzten Königs von Kandy, 1816 : Ausstellung des Puppentheatermuseums und des Staatlichen Museums für Völkerkunde vom 7. Februar bis 28. Juni 1986, München 1986, cat. nr. 80.
- Pauline Lunsingh Scheurleer, 'Een pronkmes uit Ceylon', Aziatische Kunst 26/1 (1996), pp. 52-58.

Creation

Creation
anoniem, Sri Lanka
Dating
c. 1750 - c. 1800
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Material and technique

Material
Technique
Dimensions
- length 30 cm x width 5 cm
- length 34.5 cm

Acquisition and rights

Credit line
On loan from the Royal Asian Art Society in The Netherlands (purchase auction collection Wurfbain, 1937)
Copyright
Public domain
Provenance
…; collection J.G. Wurfbain;{Note RMA.} his sale, 16 November 1937, no. 798, fl. 198.10, to the Vereniging van Vrienden der Aziatische Kunst;{Note RMA.} from whom on loan to the museum, 1972

Documentation

- Rose Schubert, Rukada : Puppenspiel in Sri Lanka : das Ähälepola Nadagama, das Spiel vom Sturz des letzten Königs von Kandy, 1816 : Ausstellung des Puppentheatermuseums und des Staatlichen Museums für Völkerkunde vom 7. Februar bis 28. Juni 1986, München 1986, cat. nr. 80.
- Pauline Lunsingh Scheurleer, 'Een pronkmes uit Ceylon', Aziatische Kunst 26/1 (1996), pp. 52-58.

Related objects

Parts

Persistent URL

To refer to this object, please use the following persistent URL:
https://id.rijksmuseum.nl/200106853