An ornately embellished silver vase presented to Sir Mancherjee Merwanjee Bhownaggree on his election to the British Parliament will go under the hammer by Todywalla Auctions as part of their 3rd Classical Art Sale in April 2024.
Weighing 2.68 kg and 16.5” in height, it was presented to the Conservative party candidate by the Bhavnagar Club to commemorate his election to Parliament from the constituency of Bethnal Green North East on July 16, 1895. "Much like the two distinct phases of Bhownaggree’s life… this vase is in dual aspects, with one side depicting his British life and Zoroastrian heritage and the other his native Bhavnagar,” wrote Marzbeen Jila who chanced upon this rare collectible 90 years after the parliamentarian’s demise.
Above: Silver vase presented to Sir Mancherjee Bhownaggree (top)
Providing a detailed narrative of the commemorative antique, Jila referred to his Zoroastrian heritage reflected in "the quintessential Asho Farohar on the top panel and the Zoroastrian angels, similar in style to that found from the Sasanian times on Taq-i Bustan relief in Iran. Comparing the similarities of function between the angels, the concept seems to be the auspiciousness of entrance into a special place through the ornately embellished arched entrance.” On the same side is prominently depicted the Palace of Westminster with the scales of justice carried by a cherub in the clouds to indicate Bhownaggree’s legal background.
On the other side is a view of the Takhteshwar Temple in Bhavnagar under a garlanded arch carried by a pair of gandharvas (celestial beings). The Bhavnagar coat of arms is also visible. "Glimpsing out of the clouds is the Indian Sun with the traditional mark on its forehead depicting the ruling family of Bhavnagar — the Suryavanshis,” adds Jila. Also seen is a figure with a bow and arrow, elaborate and varied flora and fauna, including a deer being hunted by a tiger. A fort atop a hill is probably in the vicinity of the Talaja Caves.
"Perhaps the most endearing symbolism on this vase is the firm handshake between two people and directly under it is what looks like the traditional Parsi styled jewelry pattern called chhero with elements of the Farohar.” Bhownaggree’s initials MMB are graphically depicted with the alphabet M twice placed within the bowls of the alphabet B.
The second member of Parsi origin in the British Parliament (first being Dr Dadabhai Naoroji in 1892 from the Liberal Party) Bhownaggree as a Conservative candidate won the seat in the Liberal constituency with a comfortable majority in his first attempt! Originally from Bhavnagar, he had first travelled to the UK in 1882 to study law and became a lawyer from the prestigious Lincoln’s Inn. In 1887 he returned to India at the invitation of the Maharaja of Bhavnagar to draw up a radical State Constitution. While in India, Bhownaggree, a social reformer, was associated with many causes like female education, the need for technical and vocational education alongside literary education, the inclusion of more natives in the Indian administration…
Even after he settled in the UK in 1891 he continued to champion Indian causes and businesses. He was made Knight Commander of the Most Eminent Order of the Indian Empire on the occasion of Queen Victoria’s diamond jubilee in 1897. When Bhownaggree ended his career in the British parliament in 1905, Mahatma Gandhi wrote, "It deprives us in South Africa of our greatest champion in the House of Commons.” The parliamentarian passed away in London in 1933 at the age of 82 years, noted Jila.
She was excited that the memento, expected to fetch between Rs 6.5 lakh to Rs 8.5 lakh will go to the highest bidder. Her father Farokh and brothers Malcolm and Kaizad comprise Team Todywalla that runs the country’s first and largest numismatic auction house (www.todywallaauctions.com; +91 8169542596).