Ceremonial knife with sheath

anonymous, 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 34.5 cm, length 30 cm x width 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.

Creation

  • Creation

    anonymous, Sri Lanka

  • Dating

    c. 1750 - c. 1800

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Material and technique

  • Dimensions

    • length 34.5 cm
    • length 30 cm x width 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

    • Pauline Lunsingh Scheurleer, 'Een pronkmes uit Ceylon', Aziatische Kunst 26/1 (1996), pp. 52-58.
    • 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.

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  • Ceremonial knife with sheath
  • Ceremonial knife with sheath
  • Ceremonial knife with sheath
  • Ceremonial knife with sheath