Rosewood Brass Studded ‘Zanzibar’ Chest – 19th Century

This Indian rosewood chest dates to the 19th century and is an excellent example of a ‘Zanzibar chest’. These chests were made in The Rann of Kutch and used as dhow trade chests for transporting spices like pepper and cloves, Indian cottons, gemstones. The main trade hubs were Diu, Surat, Basra, Zanzibar & Bombay. 

The chest is decorated with brass studs and corners. It has brass lifting handles on the sides as well as an interior candle box. This style of Zanzibar chest is referred to as a Shisham chest in Shiela Unwin’s seminal book The Arab Chest 

References:

A nearly identical example can be found on page 90 of ‘The Arab Chest’ by Shiela Unwin. 

From India

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