Lot 78
A GODDESS RISING FROM THE WAVES
INDIA, DECCAN, BIJAPUR, CIRCA 1625-1650
Auction: 09 December 2026 from 14:00 GMT
Description
gouache on marbled paper heightened by gold, depicting a goddess rising from the waves of an ocean against a marbled background
Dimensions
20.5cm x 14cm
Footnote
In 1912, F.R. Martin published three drawings on marbled paper attributing them to sixteenth century Ottoman Turkey, suggesting that the techniques used first came from Tabriz, perhaps as early as the fifteenth century before being introduced into Turkey. Moving onto the Deccan, it is likely that there was more than one patron or artist at Bijapur in c. 1625-1650 who was fascinated by the complicated technique of producing marbled paper. To begin, the artist would have chosen an absorbent paper treated with a mordant to fix a strong adhesion of the colours needed. Using brushes, the artist then floated pigments mixed with ox gall. After the marbling had dried, the artist drew in the outlines. The painting of this goddess is a fine example of such a rare painting at this particular time in Bijapur.
For further discussion and comparables, see: E, Binney, Indian Miniature Painting from the Collection of Edwin Binney, 3rd., Portland, 1973, nos. 128-129; M. Zebrowski, Deccani Painting, London, 1983, pp. 135-138; S.C. Welch (ed.), J. Mittal, India, New York, 1985, pp. 296-299, no. 198; Bonhams, Islamic and Indian Art, 5 April 2011, lots 235-236, and; A.Topsfield, Visions of Mughal India, The Collection of Howard Hodgkin, Oxford, 2012, nos. 40-42.