A SEATED PORTRAIT OF AN INDIAN RULER
PROPERTY FROM A PRIVATE AMERICAN COLLECTION
Possibly Chamba, Himachal Pradesh, Northern India, 19th century

Opaque pigments heightened with gold on thin wasli paper, the vertical composition portraying a green-clad ruler seated in a plain interior, his turban matching his long-sleeved robe and featuring a white feather aigrette, a push dagger (katar) tucked in his belt and a long tulwar sword lying in the foreground, set within black and white rules, and bright red borders, a black ink Takri inscription at the back, identifying the sitter as Maharaja Dalel Singh of Ramgarh (r. 1677 - 1724) and a pencil inscription in English reading Maharaja Ajit Singh of Marwar (r. 19 February 1679 – 24 June 1724), 21cm x 16.5cm.

Provenance: originally purchased from Maggs Brothers Ltd, London, in the 1970s and in a private Scottish collection thereafter.