Painting thumbnail 1
Painting thumbnail 2
Not currently on display at the V&A

Painting

ca. 1760 (painted)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

The silvery palette and restrained mood of this painting are typical of the Murshidabad style of painting in the mid 18th century.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Painted in opaque watercolour and gold on paper
Brief description
Painting, princess and maids listening to music on terrace, opaque watercolour and gold on paper, Murshidabad, ca. 1760
Physical description
Painting, in opaque watercolour and gold on paper, depicting a princess seated on a gold-embroidered white carpet smoking an enamelled huqqa, in her right hand she holds a garland of flowers. Three of her servants are behind her, whilst two sit in front of her playing the sitar and drum. In the foreground is a water tank, in the background the upper storey of the palace, beyond which is a river, silver under moonlight.
Dimensions
  • Height: 10 3/4in
  • Width: 7 3/4in
The painting has border on all sides.
Content description
A princess seated on a gold-embroidered white carpet smoking an enamelled huqqa, in her right hand she holds a garland of flowers. Three of her servants are behind her, whilst two sit in front of her playing the sitar and drum. In the foreground is a water tank, in the background the upper storey of the palace, beyond which is a river, silver under moonlight.
Styles
Credit line
Purchased from Arhur Churchill, Esq., 10 Dover Street, W
Object history
Purchased from Arthur Churchill, Esq. of London W1 in 1922.
Production
Provincial Mughal - Murshidabad .
Subjects depicted
Summary
The silvery palette and restrained mood of this painting are typical of the Murshidabad style of painting in the mid 18th century.
Bibliographic reference
Arts of Bengal : the heritage of Bangladesh and eastern India : an exhibition organized by the Whitechapel Art Gallery in collaboration with the Victoria and Albert Museum : 9 November-30 December 1979, Whitechapel Art Gallery ..., 12 January-17 February 1980, Manchester City Art Gallery ... . [London]: Whitechapel Art Gallery, [1979] Number: 085488047X (pbk.) : p.46 Ekaterina Schcherbina, ed., India: Jewels That Enchanted the World. Moscow Kremlin Museums, 2014, cat. 101, p. 182
Collection
Accession number
IM.99-1922

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Record createdDecember 19, 2003
Record URL
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