Back cover of a bookbinding
Mughal Empire, India, 17th century AD
Stamped leather cover and paper filigree doublure
A series of long cartouches is cut out of the leather surface of
the outer cover of the binding. This forms a frame around the
central panel. Each cartouche contains embossed decoration of roses
and saz or lancet leaves, against a gold-painted background. The
central scene is also formed from stamped decoration, of flowering
plants, beetles, dragonflies and a frog.
The close study of nature is a common feature in the art of
Mughal India. Most of the scene has been painted in a thin gold
wash, while small details are in black. The choice of colours may
have been influenced by Islamic lacquer bookbindings. These in turn
imitated black 'true lacquer' items with incised gold decoration,
imported from China during the fifteenth century.
The inner cover has more refined decoration, as is typical of
Islamic bookbindings. As on the outside cover a leather frame with
cutout lobed cartouches surrounds the central panel. The cartouches
and the central panel are filled with interlocking medallions of
gilt paper filigree, superimposed on areas of blue, orange, green
and black. Some of the paper filigree has been lost, due to its
extreme fragility.
The spine and front cover of the book binding are missing.
D. Haldane, Islamic bookbindings in the Vi (London, The World of Islam Festival Trust, 1983)