A gem-set jade and rock crystal Back Scratcher, India, 18th-19th Century. Estimate £8,000 - 12,000 (€11,000 - 17,000). Photo Bonhams.

in the form of a hand made of spinach jade bearing gem-set rings on thumb and the little finger and a gem-set flower on the back, tapering to a long cylindrical shaft, the top jade section with carved leaves and gem-set bands, the central section of rock crystal carved with a repetitive lattice pattern, the lower section of jade with a similar lattice pattern with gem-set borders terminating in a bud-shaped finial - 38 cm. length, 1.5 cm. diam. of shaft

Provenance: Private UK collection. Acquired by owner's family in India in the 1860s-70s, thence by descent.

Note: A comparable jewelled back scratcher from the 19th century, composed of two different kinds of jade, is in the collections of the Victoria and Albert Museum, London (no.1268-1874). Comparisons can also be drawn with a gem-set rock crystal back scratcher which sold at Christie's South Kensington, Islamic and Indian Works of Art and Textiles, 27 April 2012, lot 653.

Bonhams. ISLAMIC AND INDIAN ART, 21 Apr 2015 10:30 BST - LONDON, NEW BOND STREET