While the property of important historical figures isn't necessarily rare on the auction market, swords are. These weapons, or ceremonial tools, don't often show up for sale, but when they do, they can command great performances on the auction floor, such as when Bonham's sold Tipu Sultan's sword in 2023 for over £14 million (around US$18.6 million), the standing record. Sotheby's will soon bring to market a sword from the same corner of the world and from the collection of a Mughal Emperor.
On 29 April, Sotheby’s London will hold the Splendour: The Philippe Missillier Collection of Islamic & Indian Arms and Armour sale. Leading this sale is the 17th-century “World-Capturer” Sword, once owned by Shah Jahan, one of the most famed and important of the Mughal Emperors who ruled much of the Indian subcontinent and commissioned some of its greatest buildings. Its importance has afforded it an estimate of £600,000-800,000 (around US$770,000-1 million).
Totalling 128 lots, the sale is the collection of antique arms dealer Philippe Gilles René Missillier (1949-2022), a collector who didn’t just collect what looked flashy or was expensive, but ones with deep historical value.
Lot 36 | The ‘World-Capturer’ Sword of Shah Jahan, Blade: North India
Circa 17th Century
89.5 cm
Provenance:
- Shah Jahan I (r.1628-58)
- Aurangzeb (r.1658-1707)
- Charles John Canning, 1st Earl Canning, Governor-General and 1st Viceroy of India (1812-62)
- Hubert George de Burgh-Canning, 2nd Marquess of Clanricarde (1833-1916)
- George Charles Lascelles, 6th Earl of Harewood (1882-1947)
- George Henry Hubert Lascelles, 7th Earl of Harewood (1923-2011)
- Christie’s London, 30 April 1986, lot 39
- Philippe Missillier Collection no.118C
Estimate: £600,000-800,000 (Around US$ 786,288-1 million)
Auction House: Sotheby's London
Sale: Splendour: The Philippe Missillier Collection of Islamic & Indian Arms and Armour
Date: 29 April 2025 | 10:30 am (London Local Time)
In 1592, Mirza Shahab-ud-Din Muhammad Khurram was born in Lahore, modern-day Pakistan, as the third son of the future Mughal Emperor. He fought numerous military campaigns in his youth, including against his younger brother, which, after winning, saw him crowned as the fifth Mughal Emperor. From then on, he became known as Shah Jahan, translatable into King of the World.
Shah Jahan would go on to become one of the most important Mughal emperors. He oversaw various successful military conflicts against rebels and invading Europeans. He also pushed the empire further to the south and the west, annexing swaths of land.
Shah Jahan would, in keeping with his achievements, have many titles, including Shihab ud-Din ("Star of the Faith”), Hazrat Zill-i-Ilahi ("His Majesty the Shadow of God"), and Shah Jahan itself, meaning "King of the World." This was an allusion to his heritage as coming from the Timurid Empire of Central Asia, who themselves were descended from the Mongol Empire. For this and his military exploits, he could be regarded as a “warrior king,” and the name of this very sword that was presented to him fit that description: the “World-Capturer.”
The sword itself gets that name from an inscription on the spine that reads hast in shamshir-i khass-i thani sahib-i qiran shah ghazi padishah bahr wa barr shah jahan ismuhu ‘alam-i sitan, meaning “This is the personal sword of the Second Lord of the Conjunction, the warrior king, the emperor of sea and land, Shah Jahan, its name is ‘World-Capturer.”
Bichtir (fl. 17th century) | Jujhar Singh Bundela Kneels in Submission to Shah Jahan (1630) | Cheaster Beatty Library, Dublin Ireland
The hilt of the pommel of the sword is richly detailed, crafted with turquoise enamel, and featuring floral patterns
The kind of sword this is is a shamshir. The word comes from Persian and is a combination of the words sham (fang) and shri (lion). There are numerous types of shamshir, but all are considered scimitars, a kind of single-edged blade that is between 75 and 90 cm long, which is curved and must originate from the Middle East or Central Asia.
The shamshir has some influence from the Khorasan area of Central Asia, which includes Northern Iran, whose people are known to have been using curved blades in their swords starting in the 9th century. Further influences came from the Turkish Seljuk Khanate and the Mongols, with the start of the 16th century seeing the shamshir come into its own as a unique weapon to the region that could be better defined.
Shamshir are all curved blades that lack a taper until the very tip of the point. Its pommel is usually offset, but this appears not to be the case with this lot, which has a fairly uniform pommel at the bottom of its grip. Also, unlike other shamshirs, this one lacked the typical tang. The tang is part of the sword’s hilt, and more commonly on a shamshir, it would be fastened with pins or rivets, then decorated with bone, ivory, or wood. Here, there are no visible fasteners, and it is covered with enamel.
What can be observed on the sword is the high-quality steel, which could be wootz steel, a type of metal with a large amount of carbon that produces this watering effect on the blade. A close observation of this sword showcases a slight wavy effect, not dissimilar to that of wootz steel, which has been further modified by flower motifs and other patterns carved onto it. The pattern seen on this one is called a Chattari, or parasol marking. These were found on blades in the Middle East and India and signified a royal provenance and ownership, usually with some sort of divine implication.
The sword also comes with a scabbard. Traditionally, the shamshir would have been worn with the hilt and tip facing upwards in a horizontal fashion, since this sword was not used for thrusting attacks but instead for slashing unarmored opponents on foot or horseback, as the position of the tip made stabbing motions difficult. The wood scabbard is covered in red silk, green silk for the flowers, and some gold as well.
The water-like pattern in the steel of the blade, along with its Chattari or parasol marking
The sword rested over the red silk and wood scabbard, with its gold and green thread
The practice of naming swords after the owner was a rather common practice in the Mughal Empire. Recorded as early as the mid-16th century during the reign of Shah Jahan’s grandfather, who had around thirty named swords, each assigned a rank. Furthermore, many of these swords were worn and used by the emperors, not just for ceremony or decoration, and were used as gifts to award and honor particular nobles.
As for other swords that Shah Jahan owned, they included “Rare,” “Key of Victory,” and “Bestower of Victory,” some of which were given to him after major successful military campaigns. However, while a great leader and warrior, Shah Jahan’s greatest legacy is perhaps the architecture he commissioned while he was the emperor, which included two of India’s most famous buildings: the Taj Mahal and the Red Fort.
When Shah Jahan’s wife, Mumtaz Mahal, passed away in 1631, the court’s chroniclers recorded that Shah Jahan was inconsolable with grief, going into seclusion and mourning for a whole year. That same year, Shah Jahan ordered the construction of a mausoleum for his wife, and the building that would become the Taj Mahal was completed in its entirety in 1653. Located in the city of Agra in northern India, it’s considered the greatest piece of Islamic art in India and a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Another UNESCO World Heritage Site that Shah Jahan is responsible for is the Red Fort located in Delhi. In 1639, Shah Jahan decided to move his capital from Agra to Delhi and required a palace to be built as part of a large complex for his new seat of government. The Red Fort came from that and was a blend of Persian and Indian architecture and a symbol of the country, alongside the Taj Mahal, where independence is celebrated.
The Taj Mahal in Agra, where both Shah Jahan and his wife are buried
The Red Fort in Delhi, which was occupied by a Mughal Emperor until 1857
As for the provenance behind this lot, it is equally rich as its first owner. According to a Venetian traveler, the sword was either inherited or presented to Shah Jahan’s son, Aurangzeb, the sixth Mughal Emperor. Of the 27 named swords owned by Aurangzeb, the “world-capturer” appeared as one of them in the records. However, interestingly, Aurangzeb broke with the tradition of presenting these prestigious swords as gifts to nobles, refusing to do so and instead giving out newly made swords.
After Aurangzeb, it gets a bit murky, but the sword is believed to have ended up in the hands of Charles Canning, 1st Earl Canning, the Governor-General of India during the period of Company rule and its first Viceroy after the 1857 Rebellion and implementation of direct British rule. He most likely acquired the sword while in India, passing it on through his family before it ended up in the hands of George Charles Lascelles, King George V’s son-in-law.
Lascelles' son later put the lot up for consignment with Christie’s London, where it was sold to Missillier on 30 April 1986.