Shah Jawen's Sword To Rare Zirah Will Be Exhibited In Dubai Ahead Of The Auction

The sword belonging to Emperor Mughal Shah Lihn will be auctioned off. (Source: Sothebys)

JAKARTA - A significant collection of weapons and weapons from the Islamic dynasty will be exhibited by Sotheby's Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE) next week.

The collection, which consists of more than 100 items, belongs to the late scholar Philippe Gilles Rene Missillier, who spent 50 years collecting rare and important items that span 500 years of Islamic culture.

Sotheby's Dubai has announced visitors will be able to see part of the collection between April 7 and 11 ahead of the auction in London, England on April 29, quoted from The National News April 4.

The collection represents the tradition of many Islamic dynasties, from Indonesia to Spain. Each item is chosen by Missillier because of its artistic and cultural significance.

Tracking the evolution of weaponry from the fighting on horses to the discovery ofAD powder and to a more modern era, swords, mandates to helmets decorated with Arabic motifs.

The highlight of this collection is a sword once owned by Mughal Emperor Shah Majen, who is famous for building the Taj Mahal in India.

Shah's administration between 1629 and 1658 is considered an extraordinary period of culture, when Persian and Indian sensitivities unite to create new artistic, visual, and architectural language.

Mughal's tradition of dictating that the sword be given the name and sword is written under the name 'World Capturer' as a tribute to Shah Machan's skills as military leader.

Sotheby's has registered it for sale for between 600,000 pounds and 800,000 pounds.

There is also a mandate from the 18th century that date back to the Mughal era also has a jade handle engraved into a horse. The selling price is estimated at between 50,000 to 70,000 pounds.

Other carvings in this collection are shaped like camels and anenvelopes, which demonstrate the expertise of the craftsmen who design weapons.

Not only that, there were rare objects from the Sultanate of Mamluk who ruled in Egypt, Levant and Hejaz in the 13th to 16th centuries, as well as objects from the Safavid, Ottoman to Aq Qoyunlu empires.

This collection includes the extremely rare 17th-century shield of the Ottoman Empire. Made of wovenness, this shield has a complicated design, with a protective metal dome in its center.

It is known, the wovenness is widely used throughout the Islamic world for shields because of its large amount and light weight, but relatively few survive. This shield is estimated to be worth between 60,000 and 80.000.

Meanwhile, the empire of Aq Qoyunlu created Helm Soraban, from East Anatolia or Northwest Persia in the late 15th century. A masterpiece of functionality and beauty, the price is estimated at 150,000 to 200,000.

The private sword of a French army officer and a person with a lot of knowledge, Claude Martin, also participated in the auction. Martin, who was born in France, traveled to India as a teenager and eventually joined the Bengal Army owned by the British East Indies Company, and was promoted to major general.

After settling in experience, Martin helped design parts of the city. He is a collector, connoisseur, banker, and air balloon pilot. The sword, which was awarded to him in the late 18th century, became his trademark in Sotheby's auction. The sword is estimated to cost up to 500,000 pounds.

It is known, many works from the Missillier collection were part of the Splendour des Armes Orientales exhibition in Paris in 1988.

The late-month auction will be the first time most of the collection has been seen in public for more than 40 years.