Description:

AN INDIAN FIRMAN WITH IMPERIAL SEALS, 19TH CENTURY
India, 19th century

Description:
A rare and well-preserved imperial firman on paper, written in elegant Persian script, bearing multiple finely stamped royal seals of Mughal or post-Mughal authority. The text, in black ink, is carefully laid out in a vertical format, characteristic of official decrees and grants issued under royal patronage.

Several large and ornate imperial seals—round and almond-shaped—are affixed in black ink along the right and left margins, testifying to its authentication and bureaucratic processing. Such documents were typically issued by rulers or high-ranking nobles to convey administrative orders, land grants, or privileges, and they represent a critical genre of Islamic-Indian archival history.

Dimensions:
58 x 22 cm

Provenance:
Private European collection

Comparable examples:

  • A Mughal firman issued under Shah Alam II sold at Bonhams, Islamic and Indian Art, 29 October 2019, Lot 18, for £5,312.

  • A Deccan Sultanate firman with multiple seals achieved £6,000 at Christie’s, Art of the Islamic and Indian Worlds, 26 October 2017, Lot 109.

  • An Indian firman with royal seals and marginal illuminations sold at Sotheby’s, London, 20 April 2016, Lot 141, for £4,750.

Note:
Firmans from 19th-century India serve as invaluable records of governance, diplomacy, and social structure. The presence of numerous imperial seals and the crisp preservation of this piece elevate its historical and collectible significance.

 

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May 6, 2025 1:00 PM BST
London, United Kingdom

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