LONDON – One of MaharajaRanjit Singh’s most significantheirlooms will be sold to thehighest bidder when it is auctionedlater this month in theEnglish county of Shropshire.The inscription in Gurmukhi onthe blade of early19th centurysword is dated and says. ‘RanjitSingh Lahore.’ Mullock’sAuctioneers, who are organisingthe sale, says the sword has untilnow been in the possession ofan English family of militarydescent.“The sword was brought forinclusion in our regular sales ofimportant Indian documentsand artefacts and it was originallythought to be an Islamicsword belonging to a MoghulPrince,” said RichardWestwood-Brookes ofMullock’s who will sell thesword on March 18.“However, once we hadresearched the design it becameobvious to us that it was apotentially unique piece, withhistoric connections to the mostfamous of all the rulers of thePunjab.”Mullock’s have been told thatthe sword or ‘talwar’ could possiblyhave been a gift to theMaharaja or presented by him toa fellow noble at his court inLahore. It is expected to fetch aminimum of £10,000-£15,000(Rs 10 lakh to 15 lakh)“The fine craftsmanship on thesword indicates that it was certainlyof a very high status, andthere are also indications thatwhen it was first made, the hiltwas covered in gold and as suchat the time of the Maharaja itmust have been a most spectacularpiece,” added RichardWestwood-Brookes.“Items which date from thetime of the Maharaja and bearindications of a direct link tohim are obviously of the greatestrarity, and we are expectinggreat interest from around theworld.”Other features of the forthcomingauction include a militarybugle with a letter from thebandmaster of the KashmirState, saying that it was used inthe army of Maharaja RanjitSingh. Also in the sale is a rarecopy of the Chronicles of theLahore Durbar, the TravelMemoir of Godfrey Vigne tothe Court of Ranjit Singh and atwo volume set of ‘A Year onthe Punjab Frontier’ by HerbertEdwardes which belonged to SirJohn Lawrence, Viceroy ofIndia from 1864-69, and containinghandwritten notes by theauthor’s wife.Other items include photographsand documents of thePunjab States, and importantdocuments, including a memorandumon the widow and sonof Maharaja Sher Singh and arare first-hand account of theIndian freedom fighter BhagatSingh written by his colleague.Maharaja’s rare heirloomThe sword could possibly havebeen a gift to the Maharaja orpresented by him to a fellownoble at his court in LahoreThe inscription in Gurmukhion the blade of early 19th centurysword says: ‘Ranjit SinghLahore’The organisers, Mullock’sAuctioneers, say the sword hasuntil now been in the possessionof an English family of militarydescentIt is expected to fetch at least£10,000-£15,000 (Rs 10 lakh to15 lakh)
