Parsi silver shops in Bombay and Gujarat supplied the Parsi community with ritual articles. In addition, silver items were imported from southern China as well. This box comprises four silver panels lined with an aromatic wood and a silver hinged cover; the silver is repoussed and chased with scenes relating to the Zoroastrian Parsis. Depicted here are the deity Ahura Mazda and priests attending the sacred fire as well as a king-like figure shown sheltered under an umbrella accompanied by attendants carrying flywhisks. The use of the umbrella to denote kingship and the presence of the flywhisk is an Indian practice rather than a Persian one. Inside, the box is split into two compartments by a silver partition. The base is plain, hammered silver.
