Untitled

Stipple Master|Jai Ram

ca. 1712 · Ink, opaque watercolor, gold, and Basra pearls on paper · Asian Art

Presented within a long-standing tradition of imperial portraiture, Maharana Sangram Singh sits on rearing horse flanked by attendants holding fly whisks. A radiant halo further aggrandizes the king and references his dynastic descent from the sun god. The premier artist who executed this work used a stippling technique that is otherwise unknown in Rajput painting, though it does have Mughal and Deccan precedents. This distinctive approach coupled with a sparse use of color allows the paper substrate to show through, giving the painting a dreamlike quality seen in works from the period only by this artist.

Artist

Stipple Master|Jai Ram

Date

ca. 1712

Medium

Ink, opaque watercolor, gold, and Basra pearls on paper

Culture

India (Rajasthan, Mewar)

Department

Asian Art

Credit line

Cynthia Hazen Polsky and Leon B. Polsky Fund, 2004