Tipu Sultan:-

The recent auction of Tipu Sultan’s sword brings to notice the controversial past it encompasses.

History of The Magnificent Sword

On May 4, 1799, when the invading troops of the East India Company captured Srirangapatnam, the capital of Tipu Sultan, they obtained various items, including one of his ceremonial swords. This sword was gifted to Major General David Baird, for his brave final assault that helped the army in breaching the walls of Srirangapatnam. The significance of this gesture was due to the fact that Baird was imprisoned by Tipu Sultan for three years. During his years in captivity, he was thrown into a dungeon and was treated miserably.

What Brought The Sword To Everybody’s Attention?

In a recent auction on May 23 of this year, the 'Bedchamber Sword of Tipu Sultan' was sold by the UK-based auction house Bonhams. The historic sword caught the attention of an undisclosed buyer in London who bought it for a staggering amount of Rs 143 crore (£14 million). Interestingly, Bonhams has provided the English inscription on the sword on its website, which states, “The sword was presented to Major General David Baird, by the army ‘as a token of their high esteem of his courage and conduct in the assault which he commanded and in which Tippoo Sultaun was slain’.”

The Controversial Part

Bonhams' official website makes no mention of how it acquired the sword,  nor is there any mention of the 2003 Noonans auction on their official website. This points toward the fact that there might be multiple swords associated with Tipu Sultan. Coincidentally, the sword could be traced back to Major General David Baird in both instances, the recent Bonhams auction and the earlier sale at Noonans in 2003. This means that either one of them is fake or that Baird was presented with two of Tipu Sultan's swords following the capture of Srirangapatnam. 

According to The Art Newspaper's recent report,  a UK-based media outlet, the swords sold by Noonans and Bonhams are one and the same. The report informs that the ‘Bedchamber Sword’, “remained in Baird’s family until 2003, when it was auctioned at Dix Noonan Webb in London for £150,000”. 

Public historian Nidhin Olikara, who strongly believes that the sword sold by Bonhams in Tuesday's auction is the same sword owned by Vijay Mallya, stated, “Newspaper reports of that time attested to Mallya acquiring a sword of Tipu presented to David Baird, matching all features of the bedchamber sword, including the type of the blade as well as the invocations on the hilt and the parasol mark on the blade.”

The sword was last talked about in 2018 when Indian news outlets reported that the sword was given away by Vijay Mallya, who claimed that it brought him bad luck, and ever since then it went gone missing. However, the recent sale has sparked speculation within art circles that Bonhams may have obtained the sword directly from Mallya. 

The UK-based auction house has chosen not to disclose the identity of the sword's buyer. They are yet to provide answers to inquiries regarding Vijay Mallya's connection to the sword.

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