Study III · Records
Specialists read the documents surrounding a work with the same attention they give the object. Five records stand behind The Vase.
In embroidery, makers are frequently anonymous and histories are lost. A work that can be connected to a named artist, a place, a period and a continuous line of ownership can be researched, compared and understood with far greater confidence.
The work is embroidered at its base with the words Shams, Agra, India.
The artist is listed in the Government of India's Padma Awards notification for 1989, for zari embroidery.
The family archive holds a photograph identified as the artist receiving recognition from Indira Gandhi.
A signed declaration of 23 February 2026 by Faizan Uddin, the artist's grandson, records authorship, completion in the 1970s, approximate making time, materials and ownership.
According to the declaration, the work was commissioned and acquired by a private collector, passed to his son, and has never been publicly traded or auctioned.
The limits of the record
The material descriptions and the estimated carat weight derive from the family and have not been independently tested. The declaration's figure of £5 to 10 million is a personal opinion, not a formal valuation or auction estimate.
Examination by a specialist would be the natural next step towards any formal appraisal.
