A rare 22ct gold Burmese bowl with royal provenance

24th March 2025

According to family history, this 22ct gold Burmese bowl was gifted by King Thibaw Min of Burma to the Wallace family in the latter half of the 19th century and has remained in the family ever since, first passing to Alexander Wallace (1831–1925).

Originally from Scotland, the Wallaces became prominent East India merchants, trading in cotton, tea, and coffee throughout the 19th century. Their investments in Burma led them to become the world’s leading exporters of teak. Highly regarded in both India and Burma, Alexander Wallace was appointed Chairman of the Commercial Bank of India in 1864, while three of his brothers served as directors.

This lot will be featured in our Asian & Tribal Auction on Tuesday, 15 April.

Estimate: £12,000–15,000

Specifications:
- Height: Approx. 8.2cm
- Diameter: Approx. 10.5cm
- Weight: 162.99g
- Gold Purity: Confirmed as 22ct gold by Niton XL2 thermo testing