The sweet-sharp heroine, folio from a Rasikapriya

Historical period(s)
Sisodia dynasty, Reign of Raj Singh, ca. 1660
Movement
Mewar Court
School
Rajput School
Medium
Opaque watercolor and gold on paper
Dimensions
H x W (Sheet): 29 × 23.5 cm (11 7/16 × 9 1/4 in) H x W x D (exhibition frame): 53.3 × 43.2 × 4.4 cm (21 × 17 × 1 3/4 in)
Geography
India, Mewar, Rajasthan state, Udaipur
Credit Line
Purchase from the Catherine and Ralph Benkaim Collection — Charles Lang Freer Endowment
Collection
Freer Gallery of Art Collection
Accession Number
F2011.5
On View Location
Sackler Gallery 28a: A Splendid Land: Paintings from Royal Udaipur
Classification(s)
Painting
Type

Manuscript folio

Keywords
garden, India, Ralph and Catherine Benkaim collection, Sisodia dynasty (861 - 1947)
Provenance

Maharaja of Bikaner, Sangram Singh

From 1970 to 1984
Toby Falk (1942-1997), London, purchased in 1970

From 1984 to 2011
Catherine Glynn Benkaim, Los Angeles, purchased from Toby Falk in 1984 [1]

From 2011
Freer Gallery of Art, purchased from Cathy Glynn Benkaim

Notes:

[1] According to information from Catherine Glynn Benkaim.

Previous Owner(s) and Custodian(s)

Maharaja of Bikaner Singram Singh
Toby Falk 1942-1997
Catherine Glynn Benkaim

Label

Here, a palace garden with domed kiosk and fountains is integrated into a larger landscape of fertile farmlands beneath a radiant sun. This richly detailed folio illustrates a verse from the Rasikapriya, a court poem that describes the Hindu god Krishna as the ideal hero and lover. The garden's pastoral yet princely setting provides an appropriate locale for Krishna's romance with his beloved Radha.

The pavilion-with an open porch, fountain, and raised walkways, through which water channels run-is a typical feature of seventeenth-century Indian princely gardens, cultivated by both Hindu and Muslim nobility. The bold palette of primary colors, as well as the smiling sun, indicates that the painting was produced for the court of Mewar in Rajasthan.

Published References
  • Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery. A Splendid Land: Paintings from Royal Udaipur. Exh. cat. Munich, 2022. cat. 3, pp. 76, 320.
Collection Area(s)
South Asian and Himalayan Art
Web Resources
Google Cultural Institute
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