Incense Burner in the Form of an Elephant

Image credit: The Khalili Collections

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The elephant's head is hinged, giving access to the coal box, which is simply its belly. The construction and pierced decoration are rather different from the animal-shaped incense burners of pre-Mongol Iran, and, like the Indian theme of its decoration, may suggest that it was made in one of the sultanate states of northern India.

The Khalili Collections

London

Title

Incense Burner in the Form of an Elephant

Date

late 12th C or early 13th C

Medium

copper alloy, cast, pierced & engraved

Accession number

307

Work type

Sculpture

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The Khalili Collections

London, Greater London England

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