PRINCE AND PRINCESS CELEBRATING HOLI

Project Details

PRINCE AND PRINCESS CELEBRATING HOLI

Painting: Mughal India, Awadh, Late 18^th Century

Calligraphy (on the back): Mughal India, 17^th century, with inscribed attribution to Abd al-Rashid Daylami (active between 1631-1661).

Painting: 28.3 x 20.3 cm. Calligraphy with Floral Borders: 27 x 19 cm.
Folio: 48.3 x 32.9 cm.

Gouache on paper heightened with gold. The present miniature painting portrays the joyous and affectionate spirit of the spring festival of Holi. At the centre of the composition, a walking royal couple shares a warm embrace and an intimate look. They are surrounded primarily by women who either observe the central couple with familiar warmth or show affection toward one another. Bright pinks and oranges dominate the scene, mirroring the magenta powder covering the courtyard and the turmeric-tinted bath in the foreground.

Historically, Holi celebrations were common in both Mughal and Rajput royal courts. Artists from diverse schools recorded these shared Hindu and Muslim cultural traditions in highly detailed miniatures. While some artworks focusing on this theme highlight the dynamic energy of throwing tinted water and powders, others choose to emphasize moments of quiet tenderness and shared love amid the colourful event.

On the back there is a Persian quatrain in nasta’liq by the famous Persian poet Farid al-Din ‘Attar (d. 1221) in black ink, set over a gold ground with floral borders. The attribution at the bottom, on the gold-sprinkled border reads “bila-shabih khatt ahsan al-mutaqaddimin afdal al-mutaakhkhirin Aqa Rashid aba al-yaqin” (undoubtedly the hand of, the most accomplished of the ancients and the best of the laters, Aqa Rashid). The Aqa Rashid mentioned here is Abd al-Rashid Daylami (active between 1631-1661) who held high office in the court of Shah Jahan. (r. 1628-1658). He was appointed calligraphy instructor to Prince Dara Shikoh and later promoted royal librarian. The calligraphy’s floral border also connects the piece to imperial albums dating to Shah Jahan’s reign. The colours and structure of the border closely mirror the border decoration of the so-called ‘Minto Album’ compiled under the patronage of Jahangir and Shah Jahan. For comparable folios from the Minto Album see, Muraqqa’ – Imperial Mughal Albums from the Chester Beatty Library, Elaine Wright et al, Art Services International, Virginia, 2008, pp. 290, 291, 321, 325, 343. For paintings sharing the same theme, in the Cleveland Museum of Art (2018.104) see, https://www.clevelandart.org/art/2018.104 and in the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (M.81.280.2) see, https://collections.lacma.org/object/44271?q=M.81.280.2

Provenance

Natesan, New York.
The Parson Family Collection, acquired from the above in 1995.

Categories: Calligraphy & Miniatures

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PRINCE AND PRINCESS CELEBRATING HOLI

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