A Personal Seal of Tipu Sultan

Triton XXI, Lot: 1069. Estimate $30000. Sold for $27500. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

INDIA, Independent States. Mysore. Tipu Sultan. AH 1197-1202 / AD 1782-1799. AV Seal with Carnelian Matrix. Rectangular carnelian seal engraved ‘umdat al-mulk mubarak al-dawla tipu sultan ‘ali khan bahadur hazbar jang 1197 (Pillar of the Kingdom, Blessed of the State, Tipu Sultan ‘Ali Khan, the Valiant Lion of Battle, 1197 [after the Hijra]), set in ornately-decorated gold pyramidal-shaped mounting with hole for suspension. Dimensions: overall length, 7mm; 21x18 mm at face of seal, 25x22 mm at widest point of base. Total weight: 33.14 g. As made, small crack on carnelian matrix, red silk-covered hemp cord attached. Includes letter from by W(illiam). Hoey, Daneholme, 137 Banbury Road, Oxford, dated 12 May 1913, describing the piece, as well as including a translation of the seal by Charles John Shore, 3rd Baron Teignmouth.

From the H.W. Collection. The consignor states that he purchased this item in a London auction in the late 1970s or early 1980s..

This seal was used sometime after 7 December 1782 by Tipu when he succeeded his father Hyder Ali. Known as the “Tiger of Mysore”, Tipu expanded Mysore’s power in southern India through a series of enlightened reforms and successful wars against his neighbors. The wealth of his court made it a great source of patronage for the arts. Tipu’s abilities attracted the eye of the French, who hoped to employ him as a diversion against the British. Seeking an alliance with the Sultan, the French supplied him with arms and advisors. During the Third Anglo-Mysore War (1789-1792), Tipu, after initial success, was defeated by forces of the East India Company under the command of Charles, Lord Cornwallis, who had been appointed the Governor-General of India several years after his defeat against the Franco-American forces at Yorktown. Tipu was allowed to remain on the throne but he was forced to cede territory and hand over two of his sons as hostages, as well as pay a cash indemnity. Napoleon’s invasion of Egypt prompted a new alliance between the French and Tipu, leading to the Fourth Anglo-Mysore War (1799). The war culminated in the storming of Tipu’s island stronghold Seringapatnam by the British, led by Colonel Arthur Wellesley (later the Duke of Wellington). Tipu Sultan died in the battle and many of his treasures were brought back to England by the victors.