Lot 106
A COURTLY GATHERING POSSIBLY DEPICTING RAI PITHORA OF AJMER (C. 1166-1192)
INDIA, RAJASTHAN, AJMER, SECOND HALF OF 18TH CENTURY
Auction: 09 December 2026 from 14:00 GMT
Description
ink and coloured wash on paper, large fragment, depicting a courtly gathering, possibly Rai Pithora of Ajmer (c. 1166-1192), the ruler seated on a terrace against a bolster, smoking a hookah, rows of pearls about his neck, his turban decorated with a jewelled aigrette, surrounded by lords and chieftans displaying full military armour with shields, daggers and swords, torn at edges
Dimensions
32cm x 51cm
Provenance
Prominent North London collection.
Footnote
Rai Pithora was a powerful and courageous twelfth century Rajasthani ruler of the Chauhan dynasty and inherited a kingdom stretching from Thanesar in the north to present day Udaipur, in the south, with Ajmer and Delhi as the kingdom's capitals. This drawing shows the strong influence of Jodhpur painting with the detail of the elaborate turbans. The strength of the drawing also reflects well the power of Rajasthan and its rulers.
For comparison, see: R. Crill, Marwar Painting, A history of the Jodhpur style, Jodhpur and Mumbai, 1999; M.C. Beach and Rawat Nahar Singh II, Rajasthani Painters Bagta and Chokha Master Artists at Devgarh, Zurich, 2007, p.11; R. Crill and K. Jariwala, The Indian Portrait 1560-1860, London, 2010, no. 36, and; J. Seyller (ed.) Rajasthani Paintings in the Jagdish and Kamla Mittal Museum of Indian Art, Hyderabad, 2015.