Kalima Candy Jars (Pair)

About this piece

Kalima Candy Jars (Pair) — A pair of lidded jars written with the Kalima. Made by hand from sheesham (rosewood) and coloured lac and painted by hand, in the Sillanwali Handicrafts workshop in Sillanwali, Sargodha, Punjab, Pakistan. It costs PKR 9,000 for the pair — two matching pieces. It is ready to ship and delivered within 3 to 4 days anywhere in Pakistan, paid in cash on delivery.

A pair of lidded jars in deep blue lac with the Kalima written around the body in white by hand. The lettering is drawn, not transferred. The jar is turned on the khraad and given its blue ground, and the words are then written on with a fine brush around a curved surface — which is harder than it sounds, because the line has to hold its weight as the body swells and narrows and the spacing has to close exactly where it began. That is why the letterforms sit a little differently on every jar and why the two in a pair are worked in the same session by the same hand. They are sold as a pair because that is how they are used: either side of a shelf, a console, or the top of a prayer cabinet, holding sweets or dry fruit or nothing at all. The blue is dark enough to read as navy against a pale wall and the white lettering carries across a room. Made in Sillanwali, Sargodha. Dust with a soft dry cloth, keep water and polish sprays off the lac, and keep them out of direct sunlight so the blue stays deep. A name, a date or a different ayat can be written instead on request — we confirm the spelling and the layout with you before the brush touches the jar.

Every piece is made by hand, so the wood grain, carving and colour vary a little from the photo. That variation is normal and is what makes each one its own.