Indian Monumental Urli or Offering Vessel

Forty-nine inches across. That is a lot of offering.

This monumental urli, or offering vessel, is bronze, from India, 19th century. Urlis are wide, shallow basins associated especially with southern India, used to hold water, flowers or offerings. The exterior has a deep dark patina, with a paler gold tone showing inside the bowl. Two small elephants in relief raise their trunks toward a central motif on the belly, and shaped handles project from the rim. Fourteen inches high and 49 in diameter.

A handful of petals will not make much of a dent.