The Prince’s visit to Benares ended with a trip down the River Ganges on one of the Maharaja’s elaborate state barges. As a memento of the visit, the Prince was presented with this inkstand, modelled on one of the barges. It comes apart into nineteen separate components. The stern is shaped as the head of a makara (a mythical sea creature), and the prow is modelled on a fanning peacock inset with sapphires and diamonds.