Indian Table Top

Mother of pearl laid out like a maze that wants to be solved from the middle.

This table top comes from Rajasthan, India, and is contemporary, in mother of pearl. Shell inlay of this kind is cut from the iridescent inner layer of mollusk shells and has been used in Indian decorative arts for centuries. Hundreds of small rectangular pieces are fitted together in nested squares, with mitered lines meeting at the corners. The colors run from milky white to warm caramel and smoky brown, each tile catching light at a slightly different angle. It is 21 inches long, 21 deep and 0.75 high.

Every piece of shell here has a different opinion about the light.