Lot 123. Chinese porcelain Charger for the Islamic Market, Swatow, late Ming, 16th-17th Century, 35.5 cm. diam. Estimate £6,000 - 8,000 (€7,000 - 9,400). Photo: Bonhams.

of shallow rounded form on a short foot, decorated in green and red enamel, the well with concentric bands of inscription surrounded by eight roundels containing inscription, the rim with a further band of inscription 

Inscriptions: including Qur'an, chapter XXXVI (Yasin),verses 1 to part of 9; CXII (al-ikhlas); the shahadah;, corrupt bits of Qur'an, chapter II (al-baqarah), part of verse 255 and the nada 'ali quatrain and the repeat of the names 'God and 'Muhammad' (one part undeciphered).

Note: Porcelain magic-bowls inscribed in Arabic were produced in China for export to the Muslim communities principally in South-east Asia and India. Two main groups can be identified, one whose manufacture began in the late 16th Century or early 17th Century, the other in the late 18th Century. The inscriptions on those produced earlier testify to their talismanic function while those produced later contain magic squares.

Bonhams. ISLAMIC AND INDIAN ART, 25 Apr 2017, 11:00 BST, LONDON, NEW BOND STREET