A rare early 20^th century Iraqi silver and niello tray, probably Nasiriyah circa 1920

of rectangular form with rounded corners with a moulded edge, the field with a nielloed scene of a three-funnel steamship, possibly the German SS Imperator, with dhow sailing boats in the foreground and two bi-planes in the air, all edged with a dense band of foliage and birds with shaped corner arabesques decorated the same. The outer rim with a simpler band of trailing foliage. Unsinged.

Length – 35 cm / 13.75 inches

Weight – 752 grams / 24.18 ozt

This interesting and rare tray is an interesting addition to the desirable category of Iraqi silver that features planes or other modes of transport. While unsigned there is a distinct comparison to be made between the dense foliage border interspersed with birds that edges the field to other signed pieces from Nasiriyah. This style of decoration is quite directly lifted from Armenian niellowork of the late 19^th / early 20^th century, in particular cigarette cases made in Van. An Iraqi cigarette case sold these rooms 20 Oct 2021, lot 351 (£750 incl. prem) signed Abed, Nasriya, nielloed with the crossed flags for the Kingdom of Iraq (1924-59) demonstrates this dense foliage.