Model of an Ivory inlay craftsman

Wood and ivory inlay craftsmen were concentrated around Ahmedabad, Mumbai, Vadodara and Surat. This craft is known as Sadeli, a geometric micro-mosaic composed of various woods, metals and ivory, arranged in patterns as a veneer over wood. Popular in and around Mumbai for crafting boxes of all kinds- vanity cases, cash boxes, envelope boxes, these objects came to be known as ‘Bombay Boxes’.