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Combination lock box

Muhammad ibn Hamid al-Asturlabi al-Isfahani (Late 12th century)

1197 A.D./ 593 A.H.

Object PlaceKhurasan or Isfahan, Iran

Medium/TechniqueLeaded brass over wood with silver, gold, and copper inlay, with applied gilt leaded brass figures

DimensionsExterior: 18 x 22 x 16.7 cm (7 1/16 x 8 11/16 x 6 9/16 in.)

Credit LineGift of Mrs. Edward Jackson Holmes

Accession number55.1113

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ClassificationsMetalwork

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Description

This small box combines functionality with beauty. The top bears four dials arranged in a row to create the eight-number code of an early “combination lock” as well as silver, gold, and copper inlays that form an intricate interlace pattern and provide the date of the box’s production in the late twelfth century. Large portions of the sides and bottom of the box are modern reconstructions, but the set of three gilded brass figures applied to its front face may be original. While it is not uncommon to see human figures bronzes from Iran, these are usually inlaid rather than applied. If the figures on the box are genuine, they may represent guards watching over whatever was held inside.

InscriptionsInscribed with date H.H. 593 (A.D. 1197) Provenance1931, M. & R. Stora, Paris [see note]. 1950, Mrs. Edward Jackson (Mary Stacy Beaman) Holmes (b. 1875), Topsfield, MA; 1955, gift of Mrs. Edward Jackson Holmes to the MFA. (Accession Date: January 12, 1956)

NOTE: Lent to the International Exhibition of Persian Art (Royal Academy of Arts, London, January 7 - February 28, 1931), cat. no. 77e.