LATE 18TH-EARLY 19TH CENTURY 

ANTIQUE MUGHAL (INDIA) ILLUMINATED 

MINIATURE FIGURATIVE MANUSCRIPT OPAQUE 

WATERCOLOR PAINTING OF ROYAL COURT, 

W/SEATED QUEEN, KING, FEMALE ATTENDANTS 

& MUSICIAN

(Circa 1795-1845)

Antique Mughal miniature manuscript painting

DIMENSIONS:

Paper matting: 11" Height x 7 ½" Width

Manuscript: 7 ¼" Height x 4 ¼" Width 

DESCRIPTION:

This very colorful and incredibly rich late 18th-early 19th century antique Mughal (India) illuminated miniature manuscript opaque watercolor figurative painting, is one of a pair of similarly matted paintings removed from presumably the same antique Mughal manuscript volume, containing this pair of watercolors and many others. This of course, is how we acquired the work, in untouched, absolutely 'as-found,' undisturbed original condition and out-of-frame. The framing system is actually a paper one, consisting of red dyed paper that's hand-lined and would've acted as a kind of matting for the watercolor painting. There's three bands of Islamic text in cursive script, horizontally formatted along the top margin of the pictorial field. The red matting paper is this time curiously hinged to the bottom of the watercolor painting along the bottom margin from the back, with what appears to be two blue labels of some sort. Everything was left 'as-is' and in the same condition it was found. Exceptional color and detail makes this antique late 18th to early 19th century Mughal illuminated miniature manuscript, figurative and architectural opaque watercolor painting an exceptional and memorable one. Extraordinarily beautiful. Simply gorgeous.

FURTHER INFORMATION:

Tales of earthly and spiritual love were recounted and reinterpreted by Persian poets from the 11th century onwards. Stories of lovers such as Yusuf and Zulaykha, Khusrau and Shirin and Layla and Majnun were embraced not only in Iran but also in the neighboring Mughal and Ottoman empires. In courtly settings versified epics and lyrical couplets were copied into illustrated manuscripts for elite patrons in the eastern Islamic world, for whom poetry was a key component of cultural life from the 14th to the 18th centuries. Parallels and echoes of these timeless tales and the masterful words of poets such as Sa'di, 'Attar, Hafiz and Rumi intersect with European literature from the time of Dante and Shakespeare up to the present day.

CONDITION:

There are some pinhole-sized perforations on the surface of the paper. Three of these very small, tiny perforations are somewhat noticeable but the other three are even tinier pinholes that can only be noticeable when you examine and look at the surface of the painting while held up to light. The good thing is, all the figures especially their faces have no pinholes on them. Only the woman on the left side of the painting has a tiny pinhole in her leg. Aside from these very small and barely noticeable, small perforations in the paper's surface, the antique illuminated miniature manuscript opaque figurative watercolor painting is still in quite well preserved overall antique condition, with no water damage, unsightly and depreciating tears, creases or folds. One of a pair of original, authentic Mughal antique watercolor paintings from a single manuscript volume of miniature opaque watercolor paintings.