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Pen Box
- Accession Number:AKM609
- Place:Western Iran
- Dimensions:19.4 x 4.5 cm
- Date:late 13th century
- Materials and Technique:Brass inlaid with gold and silver
Historians of the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries considered pen boxes and inkwells as part of the insignia of high-ranking government officials. They are also associated with men of knowledge and wisdom in poetry and in painted manuscripts. It is no wonder then that the Aga Khan Museum pen box, seen here, is so intricately and richly decorated. The overall design is outlined with silver wire hammered into the brass box, forming discreet areas mostly filled with floral and geometric silver inlay. As the most visible part of the pen box, the lid is decorated with larger pieces of silver in three elaborate roundels, with intricate rosettes and an inscription inlaid in gold running between them.
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