Pen Case and Inkwell
Hindu, 1700-1899
Scroll
Pen Case and Inkwell
Hindu, 1700-1899
Physical Qualities
Metal alloy, 10 3/4 in. (27.3 cm.) H
Credit Line
Lockwood de Forest Collection
Object Number
1922.2.86
Calligraphers in East and parts of Southeast Asia historically used brushes to write. In other parts of Asia, including Turkiye, Iran, and India, calligraphers used reed pens. This portable writing case has a domed inkwell in the form of a Hindu temple and a double pen case for storing pens. The ink would have been made from the soot of oil lamps, a binding agent like Arabic gum, and water.
The Baltimore Museum of Art by purchase, 1922; American Art Galleries, New York; Lockwood de Forest purchased in India, probably 1914
BMA, "Diamonds in the Rough: Seldom Seen Objects from the BMA's Collection," June 20-August 13, 1989.
Collection installation, "Asia.The Art & Business of Writing", Levy Gallery, Baltimore Museum of Art, October 5, 2023-
Collection installation, "Asia.The Art & Business of Writing", Levy Gallery, Baltimore Museum of Art, October 5, 2023-
Catalogue of the Rare and Valuable Examples of East Indian Persian and Syro-Damascan Art and Curios forming the private collection of the widely known artist and connoisseur Lockwood De Forest, Esq. of New York City, NY: American Art Association, 1922, no. 378.
On View at the BMA
