Maharaja Raghuraj Singh of Rewa
Maharaja Raghuraj Singh of Rewa (r.1854-1880) Lucknow, 1860 Opaque pigments with gold on ivory Image: 11.4 x 7.1 cm In this rare portrait of Raghuraj Singh of Rewa (1854-1880), we see the imposing Raja seated in a European chair, holding a muhnal (hookah pipe) and a sword. He wears a fine red brocade jama with […]
Lakshmibai
Lakshmibai (1828-1858) Central India, Perhaps Jhansi, 1860 Opaque pigments with gold on paper Image: 30.5 x 25.4 cm Lakshmibai, the Rani of Jhansi, was born in Varanasi in 1828. As the daughter of a high-ranking official, she was well educated and practiced in shooting and horsemanship. She married Raja Gangadhar Newalkar of Jhansi in 1842 […]
Ayodhyaprasadji Maharaj
Ayodhyaprasadji Maharaj (1809-1868) Gujarat, 1860 Brush drawing with pigment on paper Image: 31.5 x 27.9 cm This exquisite drawing depicts the highly revered Acharya of the Ahmedabad seat of the Swaminarayan sect, Ayodhyaprasadji Maharaj. His father, Rampratapji was the elder brother of Shri Sahejanand Swami, founder of Swaminarayan sect. Ayodhyapradji is shown seated, legs crossed, […]
Kamatchi Bai Saheb
Kamatchi Bai Saheb (d. 1892) Thanjavur, 1852-60 Opaque pigments with gold on paper Image: 17 x 11.2 cm Inscription: (back of the frame in English) Kamatchi Rai, the first of eighteen wives of Sivaji Raja The direct European impact on Tanjore painting began with the stationing of a British garrison in Thanjavur in 1773, during […]
Jung Bahadur Rana
Jung Bahadur Rana (1817-1877) Kathmandu, 1850 Opaque pigments with gold on paper Image: 35.5 x 26.4 cm Folio: 41.4 x 32.5 cm Inscription: (front) Swasti Shrimad Tipraj sube rajetyadi Shri Shri Shri Maharaj Jung Bahadur Rana…..G.C.B. Prime Minister Rajya Commandar in Chief. Entering the Nepalese military at the age of 16 and naturally ambitious, Jung […]
Raja Man Singh
Raja Man Singh (r. 1635-1660) Nurpur, 1850 Opaque pigments with gold on paper Image: 15.5 x 9 cm Folio: 19.3 x 12.2 cm Inscription: (back) Shri Raja Man Singh Guleraya Raja Man Singh of Guler is often said to have been a man of great courage. When summoned to the Mughal court, he bravely refused […]
Equestrian Portrait of a Maratha Noble
Equestrian Portrait of a Maratha Noble Gwalior, 1850 Opaque pigments with gold on paper Image: 36 x 26 cm Folio: 39.9 x 29.7 cm It is difficult to identify the subject of this exquisite portrait in the absence of an inscription. The man depicted, judging from his distinctive turban, is a Maratha. He is shown […]
Maharaja Duleep Singh
Maharaja Duleep Singh (1838-1893) Punjab, 1845 or later Opaque pigments with gold on paper Image: 14.5 x 10.8 cm The young boy that’s shown here, rifle in hand, is easily recognized as the last Maharaja of the Sikh Empire, Duleep Singh. After the assassination of his older brother, Maharaja Sher Singh, he was crowned in […]
Maharao Raja Binay Singh
Maharao Raja Binay Singh (1808, r. 1815-1857) Attributed to Baldev Alwar, 1840 Opaque pigments with gold on paper Image: 18.3 x 12.4 cm Folio: 27.5 x 19 cm Binay Singh was a great patron of the arts and encouraged fine architecture in Alwar, including palaces, gardens, buildings, and roads. In 1815, he built the Moosi […]
Rao Desalji II
Rao Desalji II (1816, r. 1819-1860) Kutch, 1840 Opaque pigments with gold on paper Image: 27.4 x 21.1 cm If we compare this striking portrait of Rao Desalji II with one of his father, Bharmal II1, we see that much had changed in the two or three decades that had passed between the production of […]