This solid silver condiment set was made in the 1930's by the Marsh Arabs who lived in the south & east of Iraq along the Persian border. They specialised in Niello art, in which designs are incised into silver, then filled with niello, a black enamel-like alloy. The set is comprised of a pepper pot, a salt cellar with spoon & a blue-glass lined lidded mustard pot with spoon. I think they were very little used; as I recall they were kept in a display cabinet.
The pictures are very finely drawn. There are traditional pictures of dhows, fishing coracles and reeded islands with palm trees and camels. And scenes of mosques and minarets. Reflecting the Marsh Arabs' homeland.
There is also a picture on the mosque-shaped pepper pot of the Taq Kasra, the only remaining structure of the ancient city of Ctesiphon built in the 3rd century AD with its world renouned archway, considered to be the largest man-made free-standing vault constructed until modern times. The item "1930's Persian Iraqi Marsh Arab Silver Niello Condiment Set, salt pepper. Mustard" is in sale since Wednesday, May 23, 2018. This item is in the category "Antiques\Silver\Solid Silver\Cigarette/Vesta Cases". The seller is "margaret5809" and is located in beccles suffolk. This item can be shipped to United Kingdom, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Australia, United States, Russian federation, Canada, Brazil, Japan, New Zealand, China, Israel, Hong Kong, Norway, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mexico, Singapore, Chile.