NAVINA HAIDAR: This box-shaped object is called a ‘brazier’. To use it, a flat pan would be put inside, and the pan would be filled with charcoal. The charcoal would be lit to burn slowly, like a small personal heater, or a portable grill. Braziers can be simple or fancy; this one was made for a sultan, so it’s very fancy! Pointing up from the top of each side are decorations that look like twisted snakes, or dragons, facing each other. Do you see their scaly, silvery skin? Sticking out from the sides of the brazier there are more animal heads, pointing down. Hanging from their mouths are little rings. Those are for putting long rods through the holes to carry the brazier when it’s hot. The brazier is mostly made out of a golden shiny metal called brass. All the lighter-colored areas on the surface were first carved out of the brass. Then they were filled with thin pieces of silver. It’s quite an amazing example of metalwork! All the decorations look so lively. Look carefully around the top band: there’s a row of little animals, chasing each other. And did you notice the legs of the brazier? They look a little bit like animal legs, with hooves. It’s as if the brazier itself is about to come alive and walk away.