Asian and African studies blog

In the late 18th century British and Scottish botanists and surgeons led a movement to document the natural history of the subcontinent. The East India Company, initially established as the British trading company and eventually a major governing power over parts of the subcontinent, recognised the need for this scientific research. Its practice was therefore adopted as official policy and resulted in the collection of rare species of flora and fauna. The specimens were preserved in the newly established Royal Botanic Garden in Calcutta and the Barrackpore Menagerie.

As part of the documentation process, Indian artists were hired to illustrate the scientific specimens. Sets of the watercolours and drawings remained in archives in India, while duplicates were sent to the East India Company’s Library in London. Natural history enthusiasts including Marquis Wellesley, Governor-General of Bengal (1798-1805) and Lord Clive, Governor of Madras (1798-1803) also amassed personal collections of such works.

A selection of watercolours and drawings are currently on display in the British Library's Treasure's Gallery.  Every few months, the display will be rotated.  A few that are currently on view include:

Himalayan porcupine
Unknown Indian artist
Calcutta, c. 1798-1805
Watercolour on paper
British Library, NHD 32/37

This species of porcupine (Hystrix brachyura hodgsoni) is also known as Hodgson’s short tailed porcupine. These mammals live in forests and grasslands of northeastern India, eastern Nepal, Bhutan, and Bangladesh. Porcupine can grow up to 90 cm in length, they are predominantly nocturnal and survive on fruit and grains. This drawing is part of a series assembled by Marquis Wellesley, Governor-General of Bengal (1798-1805).

Indian flapshell turtle  
Unknown Chinese artist, c. 1798-1803
Watercolour on paper
British Library, NHD 44/15

This species of turtle (Lissemys punctata) is indigenous to the North Indian River Plain and parts of Burma and Thailand. They can be found in shallow and stagnant bodies of water, surviving on a diet of frogs, aquatic snails and fishes. The domed shell of the turtle can measure up to 37 cm. This drawing is by a Chinese painter working for the British in Malaysia and acquired by Lord Clive, later 1^st Earl of Powis.

Rhododendron
Unknown Indian artist
Calcutta, c. 1798 – 1805
British Library, NHD 16/24

This woody tree (Rhododendron arboreum) is indigenous to north-central India and can grow up to 25 m in height. In full bloom, the scarlet flowers are a spectacular sight. This drawing was copied from an original in the collection of Major-General Thomas Hardwicke, who served in the Bengal Artillery and was a great collector of natural history drawings. Hardwicke’s discovery of this species in 1796 is the basis for the earliest description and identification of this species.

Several items from Hardwicke’s collection, including this drawing, were acquired by Marquis Wellesley, Governor-General of Bengal (1798-1805). The correct identification of this rhododendron was provided by Dr. Henry Noltie of the Royal Botanic Gardens at Edinburgh.

Further reading:

Mildred Archer, Natural History Drawings in the India Office Library, Her Majesty's Stationery Office, 1962

H.J. Noltie, Indian Botanical Drawings, 1793-1868, from the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh. Edinburgh: Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, 1999

H.J. Noltie, Raffles' Ark Redrawn: Natural History Drawings from the Collection of Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles. London & Edinburgh: The British Library & Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh in association with Bernard Quaritch Ltd, 1999.

Malini Roy, Visual Arts Curator

Malini Roy, Visual Arts Curator - See more at: http://britishlibrary.typepad.co.uk/asian-and-african/2013/07/book-of-affairs-of-love.html#sthash.VnZbEnLH.dpuf

Following from my last post about the recently digitised copy of Shah Tahmasp’s Khamsah of Nizami, we are pleased to announce that the British Library has now completed digitisation of another of its most famous and important Persian illustrated manuscripts: Add.18113, containing three of the five poems from the Khamsah of Khvaju Kirmani (1290-1349?). Partially modelled on Nizami’s earlier work, Khvaju drew extensively on traditional Iranian folklore. This manuscript, notable for its early calligraphy and illustrations, contains the story of Humay and Humayun, the Kamālnāmah (‘Book of Perfection’) and the Rawżat al-anvār (‘Garden of Lights’).

Humāy u Humāyūn was completed in 1331 in response to a request to enchant Muslim audiences with a Magian theme. Prince Humay, while hunting, is led by a ruby-lipped onager to the Queen of the Fairies who shows him a portrait of Humayun, daughter of the Emperor of China. He falls deeply in love and sets off to find her. His quest led him through many adventures but eventually he won her and became ruler of the Chinese empire. For a summary of the plot see Bürgel (below).


Prince Humay and Azar Afruz find Bihzad drunk, sleeping under a cypress tree (Add.18113, f.3v)

 

Humay at the court of the Emperor (Faghfūr) of China (Add.18113, f. 12r)



Humay arrives at the gate of Humayun’s castle (Add.18113, f. 18v)

Humayun (in disguise) has challenged Humay to a duel. Defeated she removes her helmet before making up the quarrel (Add.18113, f. 23r)



Humay and Humayun feasting in a garden and listening to musicians (Add.18113, f.40v)



Humay on the day after their wedding has gold coins poured over him as he leaves Humayun’s room. The name of the artist, Junayd, is inscribed in the arch above Humayun's head (Add.18113, f. 45v)

The second poem, the Kamālnāmah (‘Book of Perfection’), completed in 1343, is a description of an allegorical journey describing moral and religious topics interspersed with anecdotes about kings and mystics. In the episode illustrated below. ʻAli ibn Abi Talib was travelling to a staging post when he was attacked by an oncoming horseman. His defeated assailant, at the point of death, lamented that he would end his life without achieving his heart’s desire, namely to fulfill his beloved’s request for ʻAli’s head.  On hearing this ʻAli spared his life: “If your affairs would indeed be settled by such an act, then I am ʻAli and this is my head, but do cease repining and pull yourself together. Take your sword and do as you will.” (Fitzherbert, p. 148). The story ends with the attacker’s conversion and their triumphal return together.
 

ʻAli threatens his attacker with a sword (Add.18113. f. 64v)


The third work — which may, on account of the position of the shamsah (see below), have originally been placed at the beginning of the volume — is the Rawżat al-anvār (‘Garden of Lights’), a Sufi masnavi completed in 1342, consisting of 20 discourses on the requirements for a mystical life and the ethics of kingship.


Sultan Malikshah ibn Arslan is here accosted by an old woman who reproaches him for allowing his soldiers to hunt her cow, the sole provider of sustenance for herself and her four fatherless children. The king repented and was thus saved, the moral being that one should always help the needy and can only be saved by good deeds (Add.18113, f. 85r)

In this final illustration the Sasanian ruler Nushirvan (Khusraw I Anushirvan, r. 531-78) discourses with his minister Buzurjmihr, epitomising the concept of the just ruler and the wise counsellor (Add.11813, f. 91r)


The volume itself has a complex history. The poems were copied by the famous calligrapher Mir ʻAli ibn Ilyas al-Tabrizi al-Bavarchi (میر علی بن الیاس التبریزی الباورچی) in 798 (1396) at the Jalayirid capital Baghdad[1]. The paintings may have belonged with the original copy or have been added separately. The artist’s name, Junayd, a pupil of Shams al-Din who worked under the Jalayirid sultan Uways I (r. 1356-74), is inscribed on an arch on folio 45v (Junayd naqqāsh-i sulṭānī). The volume was subsequently refurbished for the Safavid prince Bahram Mirza (1517–49), the youngest of the four sons of Shah Ismaʻil (r. 1501–24) who founded the Safavid dynasty, at which time a page was detached and mounted in an album compiled for him by Dust Muhammad (Istanbul, Topkapı Pal. Lib., H 2154, fol. 20v). As the manuscript stands today, the pages are out of sequence and it is not certain exactly what the original order was. Scholars are currently studying the codicology, especially in relation to the illustrations.


The shamsah at the beginning of the Rawżat al-anvār, inscribed in the centre: ‘For the library of Prince Abu’l-Fath Bahram, mighty as Jam’ (ba-rasm-i kutub khānah-i Shahriyār Abū’l-Fatḥ Bahrām jam iqtidār) (Add.18113, f. 79r)

The manuscript was acquired by the British Museum 16 March 1850 from the sale of Major-General Thomas Gordon (1788-1841), known primarily for his role in the Greek War of Independence in the 1820s and 1830s. Its digitisation was sponsored by the Iran Heritage Foundation as part of our collaborative Persian Manuscripts Digital Project.

-----------------------------------

[1] There were two calligraphers called Mir ʻAli Tabrizi active in the late 14th century: Mir ‛Ali ibn Ilyas, the calligrapher of this manuscript, and Mir ‛Ali ibn Hasan al-Sultani, who is credited with having invented the nastaʼliq script.

Ursula Sims-Williams, Asian and African Studies

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Further reading

Teresa Fitzherbert, “Khwājū Kirmānī (689-753/1290-1352): An Éminence Grise of Fourteenth Century Persian Painting”, Iran 29 (1991): pp.137-151
J. T. P. de Bruijn, “ḴᵛĀJU KERMĀNI” in Encyclopædia Iranica online
J. C. Bürgel, “Humāy and Humayūn: a Medieval Persian Romance”, in Proceedings of the First European Conference of Iranian Studies, Turin 1987, vol 2 (1990): pp. 347-57
The Grove Encyclopedia of Islamic Art and Architecture online, edited by Jonathan M. Bloom and Sheila S. Blair, with entries on Junayd and  Mir ʻAli Tabrizi (by Sheila Canby)

Researchers who make use of the Asian & African Studies Reading Room on the third floor of the Library will be aware that it contains a small but impressive display of works of art. Readers showing their passes to the security officer on duty at the entrance may not be aware that they are almost literally turning their backs on a portrait by Royal Academician Thomas Phillips of the early nineteenth century oriental scholar and bibliophile Claudius James Rich. 
 

Portrait of Claudius James Rich, ca. 1803, by Thomas Phillips R.A.
Donated in 1825 by his widow Mary Rich
Oil painting on loan from the Trustees of the British Museum (Foster 886) Images Online


However, walking past two of the three model ships in glass cases donated to the India Office by shipping companies in the Victorian period, they will discover most seats in the Room allow a view of nine portraits high on the east wall. These range  from Richard Greenbury’s 1626 painting of Naqd ‘Ali Beg, Persian envoy to the court of King Charles I (see our recent post ‘Stitched up in Silk’, but note that the painting has been temporarily removed for repair), through the full length portrait of one of the mid-nineteenth century Prime Ministers of Nepal by Bhaujuman Citrakar in its ornate gilt frame, to the pair of north Indian worthies painted by the German-born artist Johann Zoffany and shown in last year’s exhibition of his work at the Royal Academy.
 

H.E. General Sir Jang Bahadur Kunwar Rana (1817-77), Prime Minister and
Commander-in-Chief of Nepal.
Oil painting by Bhaujaman Citrakar, 1849 (Foster 36) Images Online


On the way out readers will no doubt notice the ca. 1730 painted and gilded East India Company coat-of-arms; there is also a specially-designed niche in the far corner where stands a handsome bust of Warren Hastings, the famous late eighteenth century Governor-General of Bengal who played a major role in the establishment of British power in India; and on top of the oriental language card catalogues two (empty) manuscript boxes from Southeast Asia. Two much larger examples from Burma and Thailand can be seen in glass cases out on the third floor landing; those with long memories will recall that this space was formerly occupied by three fine eighteenth century chairs from the Company’s Court Room.


The East India Company coat of arms, originally hung above the chairman's seat in the Directors Court Room at East India House, Leadenhall Street.
Wood. Originally published/produced in c.1730 (Foster 887) Images Online


Needless to say the Library possesses far more works of art than it can hope to display at any one time. They are described in detail in our India Office Select Materials, and some can be traced and admired in the Images Online database. High resolution digital images of all 286 of the Library's oil paintings can also be seen on the BBC's 'Your Paintings'. A list with details of the works of art on display in the Reading Room can be downloaded from the following link: Download Works of art in AAS Reading Room.

Looking at original prints and drawings can be arranged for registered readers via a weekday afternoon (14.00-17.00) appointments system by contacting [email protected]. Obtaining copies is the province of Imaging Services. Don’t forget too that the two Sunday tours include a look inside the Reading Room on the one day of the week it is closed to readers.

Hedley Sutton, Reference Team Leader

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Karnama-i ‘Ishq (Book of affairs of love) by the Hindu poet Rai Anand Ram Mukhlis (d. 1751) is a romance in Persian on the afflictions of a young man’s heart and the challenges he faces for eternal love. The poetical narrative is derived from an existing Hindi literary work, the exact source for which Mukhlis omitted to mention. Mukhlis, a disciple of the eminent poet Mirza Bedil, was attached to the Mughal court in Delhi, acting as a vakil (representative) for governors including Vazir I’timad al-Daula Qamar al-Din Khan (d. 1748). Based in the capital, he was a key witness of the events that led to the eventual decline of the empire including the invasion of Nadir Shah in 1739.

This presentation copy of the Karnama-i ‘Ishq was copied by the scribe Harkulall and is dated 25 Safar 1148/17 July 1735. The text is accompanied by thirty-eight illustrations by the artist Govardhan II along with a note on the flyleaf dated 1151/1738–9, recording that it took Govardhan five years to complete these miniatures.

The story unfolds with King Shahryar praying for the birth of a son. He hears from fakirs news of a young woman whom he will marry and who will conceive a child, although he is warned that at a mature age the son will fall in love and consequentially become mentally unsound.

Prince Gauhar on a hunting expedition
By Govardhan II, 1734-9
British Library, Johnson Album 38, f.29v

At the age of 14 Prince Gauhar, the son of King Shahryar, takes a detour during a hunting expedition. In the distance he observes a graceful gazelle that has the head of a beautiful woman. He chases after her. Instead of catching up with the gazelle, he encounters a young man named Khiradmand.

Prince Gauhar and his companion Khiradmand surviving the storm
By Govardhan II, 1734-9
British Library, Johnson Album 38, f.42v

The hand of the beautiful gazelle, who is really Princess Malika-i Zamani, can only be won by securing fruit from a mythical tree of emerald leaves and ruby flowers. Gauhar accompanied by Khiradmand embark on their journey faced by challenges including a storm at sea, imprisonment, and the island of the Fairy Queen Lal. In this illustration, adminst the chaos and a sea monster, Gauhar and Khiradmand appear calm as they drift on a plank of wood.

Prince Gauhar and Khiradmand rescued by the simurgh
By Govardhan II, 1734-9
British Library, Johnson Album 38, f.51r

Marriage procession of Prince Gauhar
By Govardhan II, 1734-9
British Library, Johnson Album 38, f.105v

After finding the mythical tree and securing the fruit, Gauhar asks the neighbouring king for the hand of Malika-i Zamani. This scene features the elaborate marriage procession of Prince Gauhar, on horseback, on his way to his wedding. In the final scenes of this manuscript, Gauhar and Malika-i Zamani are married and of course live happily ever after!

Govardhan II, the sole artist of this manuscript, was one of the pre-eminent artists affiliated to Muhammad Shah’s atelier and predominantly painted scenes of princes and princesses languishing on terraces. His style is consistent and distinct from the work of his contemporaries. Female characters are always drawn as a specific type with heavy stippling, petal-shaped eyes (as characterized by Smart and Walker) and trim figures. The manner in which their transparent veils (odhani) are pictured displays his exceptional talent: these sheer pieces of cloth with gold trim fall in delicate waves over their heads. Of the eighteenth-century artists affiliated to emperor Muhammad Shah’s court, he is the only known artist to collaborate with a scribe to produce an imperial-quality manuscript. In addition to scenes of the romance, this manuscript also features a portrait of Muhammad Shah (ruled 1719-48) bestowing a turban jewel on Qamar al-Din Khan.

Karnama-i 'Ishq can be viewed by appointment in the British Library's Print Room, located in the Asian and African Studies Reading Room.

Further reading:

J.P. Losty and M. Roy, Mughal India: Art, Culture and Empire, British Library, 2012

E. Smart and D. Walker, Pride of the Princes: Indian Art of the Mughal era in the Cincinnati Art Museum, 1985

T. Falk and M. Archer, Indian Miniatures in the India Office Library, Sotheby Parke Barnet, 1981

Malini Roy, Visual Arts Curator

Perhaps the best known of all the British Library’s Persian manuscripts is Or. 2265, a copy of the Khamsah (‘Five Poems’) by the 12th century poet Nizami, copied and illustrated for the Safavid ruler Shah Tahmasp (ruled 1524-76). In a recent codicological study of this manuscript Priscilla Soucek and Muhammad Isa Waley (see Soucek and Waley below) have convincingly argued that the copy is in fact a composite volume: initially copied by the royal scribe Shah Mahmud al-Nishapuri in 1539-43, and subsequently augmented by the addition of 14 full page illustrations by some of the most famous court artists of the mid-16th century. Further pages were inserted probably during the 17th century, and again at a later stage, perhaps when the manuscript was rebound in the early 19th century at the court of Fath ʻAli Shah Qajar.

It was possibly during this last refurbishment that three paintings by the artist Muhammad Zaman were added to illustrate Nizami’s poem the Haft paykar (‘Seven Beauties’). Damage to the upper part of these folios suggests that that they were most probably removed from an album or from another copy of the same poem (Soucek and Waley, pp. 199-200; 208).


Painting by Muhammad Zaman dated Mazandaran, 1086 (1675/76). The servant girl Fitnah impresses Bahram Gur with her strength by carrying an ox on her shoulders (Or.2265, f. 213r)


Not much is known about the painter Muhammad Zaman ibn Hajji Yusuf Qummi (fl. 1649-1704), famous for his figures in European dress and use of night scenes and shadows. He has often been confused with Muhammad Paolo Zaman, a Persian Christian whom Niccolo Manucci met in India ca. 1660 (Storia do Mogor, pp. 17-18). This person had been sent to Rome by Shah ʻAbbas to study theology with a view to being able to counter Christian missionaries. Converting to Christianity, he fled, after his return, to the court of Shah Jahan. However, there is nothing in Manucci’s account to suggest that this Muhammad Zaman was an artist. Moreover, as demonstrated in a recent article (Landau, 2011), there is no need to place our painter Muhammad Zaman in Rome: his inspiration was clearly derived from European paintings and prints, of which there were plenty circulating in Iran at the time.


Episode from the Indian Princess’s story: King Turktazi’s visit to the magical garden of Turktaz, Queen of the Faeries. Signed by Muhammad Zaman at Ashraf (Mazandaran) and dated 1086 (1675/76) (Or. 2265, f. 221v)


This painting was previously thought to represent Bahram Gur with the Indian Princess. However, Amy Landau (see below) has convincingly identified it as depicting King Turktazi with the Queen of the Faeries, Turktaz. King Turktazi, she suggests, may represent the Safavid ruler Shah Sulayman (ruled 1666–94) while Queen Turktaz is modelled on a European queen or princess.

Detail: Turktaz Queen of the Faeries

Thanks to the Iran Heritage Foundation’s partnership in our Digital Persian Manuscripts Project this manuscript has recently been digitised and can be now be viewed on our Digital Manuscripts website. Another 48 manuscripts are to be digitised and put online in the coming months, so watch this space to find out more!

Painting by Muhammad Zaman dated 1086 (1675/76). Bahram Gur proves his worthiness by killing a dragon and recovering treasure from a cave. (Or.2265, f.203v)

Ursula Sims-Williams, Asian and African Studies


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Further reading

Priscilla Soucek and Muhammad Isa Waley, “The Nizāmī manuscript of Shāh Tahmāsp: a reconstructed history.” In J.-C. Bürgel and C. van Ruymbeke (eds.), A Key to the Treasure of the Hakim: artistic and humanistic aspects of Nizāmī Ganjavī’s Khamsa (Leiden 2011), pp. 195-210.

Amy Landau, “From Poet to Painter: Allegory and Metaphor in a Seventeenth-Century Persian Painting by Muhammad Zaman, Master of Farangi-Sazi”, Muqarnas 28 (2011), pp. 101-131.

Eleanor Sims, “Muhammad Zaman [Muḥammad Zamān ibn Ḥājjī Yūsuf Qumī]”, in Oxford Art Online.

— “Toward a Monograph on the 17th-century Iranian Painter Muhammad Zamān ibn Ḥājī Yūsuf”, Islamic Art 5 (2001), pp. 183-194, plates vi-viii; with an appendix containing a provisional list of Muhammad Zaman's paintings.

A. A. Ivanov, “The Life of Muḥammed Zamān: a Reconsideration”, Iran 17 (1979), pp. 65-70.

As an American living in London, each year I feel a slight bit of nostalgia on the 4th of July for fireworks, enjoying a barbeque and of course having the day off. Instead of watching the fireworks, today I write about my favourite scenes relating to fireworks painted in South Asia from the Visual Arts collection. 

 
The night of Shab-i-barāt. Style of Govardhan, Mughal (Delhi) c.1735-40. 
Opaque watercolour and gold on paper.
British Library, Johnson Album 20,2

The night of Shab-i-barāt, the fourteenth day of the month of Sha‘bān of the Islamic calendar, is an auspicious occasion. The evening is celebrated with fireworks, feasting and prayers in the names of ancestors. On this evening, the affairs of the living for the forthcoming year are arranged by God. In this scene, a Mughal lady standing on a terrace lets off a firework. In the background, the distant river bank is illuminated by burning fireworks. 

The Mughal Emperor Jahangir describes the celebration of Shab-i-barāt in August 1617:  'In the end of Thursday, the 26th, corresponding with the 14th Sha‘bān, which is the Shab-i-barāt, I held a meeting in one of the houses of the palace of Nūr-Jahān Begam, which was situated in the midst of large tanks, and summoning the Amirs and courtiers to the feast which had been prepared by the Begam, I ordered them to give the people cups and all kinds of intoxicating drinks according to the desire of each. Many asked for cups, and I ordered that whoever drank a cup should sit according to his mansab and condition. All sorts of roast meats, and fruits by way of relish, were ordered to be placed before everyone. It was a wonderful assembly. In the beginning of the evening they lighted lanterns and lamps all round the tanks and buildings, and a lighting up was carried out the like of which has perhaps never been arranged in any place. The lanterns and lamps cast their reflection on the water, and it appeared as if the whole surface of the tank was a plain of fire. A grand entertainment took place, and the drinkers of cups took more cups than they could carry.'

A drawing of a ‘Maker of Fireworks’ by an anonymous Calcutta artist, c.1794-1804
Watercolour on paper
British Library, Add.Or.1115

This scene of a firework maker is from a series depicting trades and occupations produced for the Marquis Wellesley when he was the Governor-General of India. The style of this painting and the rest of the series are painted in the Company style, referring to the hybrid style that emerged in India during the 18th and 19th centuries as a result of European influence and patronage. Wellesley, an active collector and patron of Indian art, also commissioned series of Natural History drawings as well. This watercolour is part of an album that was purchased by the India Office Library on 16 August 1866.

Illuminations and fireworks round the lake at Constantia by Sita Ram, 1814-15 
Watercolour on paper, 37 x 48 cm
British Library, Add.Or.4752

This watercolours and the following are from the Hastings Albums, a collection of ten albums of watercolours primarily painted by the Indian artist Sita Ram. The artist accompanied Lord Moira (afterwards Marquess Hastings), the Governor-General of Bengal and the Commander-in-Chief (1813-23) on a journey from Calcutta to Delhi in the period 1814-15. This series includes scenes of elaborate illuminations and firework displays lit on important occasions.

Constantia or La Martinière was built by Claude Martin in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, during the late 18th century. Martin, originally from Lyon, France enlisted with the British East India Company. In Lucknow, his services as an architect were in great demand and he designed several notable buildings including Constantia. Originally intended to be used as a private residence, it is now used as a school for boys. This scene features the ground with a column, a memorial to Claude Martin, which was still under construction when he died in 1800. Inscribed below: 'Illumination at Constantia on the receiving news of Peace in Europe' (2nd November 1814).

 
The grounds of the palace of Farhat Baksh in Lucknow lit by innumerable coloured lamps by Sita Ram, 1814-15 
Watercolour on paper, 38 x 50 cm
British Library, Add.Or.4760

Claude Martin’s villa, Farhat Baksh, also in Lucknow, was designed by the Frenchman in 1781. Martin applied a hybrid of classical, neo-Palladian and the Nawabi styles to create his villa.  After Martin's death, the local governor Nawab Saadat Ali Khan of Awadh (ruled 1798-1814) purchased the villa, renaming it Farhat Baksh and constructed several additions to transform it into a palace. This view shows the grounds of the palace of Farhat Bakhsh in Lucknow lit by innumerable coloured lamps, with transparencies of female figures attached to the pavilions and railings and illuminated behind, and with fireworks. On the terrace of the palace of Farhat Bakhsh, the Nawab and his guests stand admiring the illuminations, while crowds of onlookers stand in front. Inscribed below: 'View of the Illuminations at the palace of Furruh Bukhsh, 1814'. The rows of figures and the elephants facing away from the viewer adds to the drama of the sky lit up at night.

Malini Roy, Visual Arts Curator 
  

Follow on Twitter @BL_VisualArts

Further reading:

T. Falk and M. Archer, Indian Miniatures in the India Office Library, Sotheby Parke Bernet, 1981

Jahangir, Henry Beveridge, and Alexander Rogers. The Tuzuk-I-Jahangiri; Or, Memoirs of Jahangir. Translated by Alexander Rogers. Edited by Henry Beveridge. London: Royal Asiatic Society, 1909. p.385

J.P. Losty, "The Great Gun at Agra", 'British Library Journal', v. 15, 1989, pp.35-58

J.P. Losty and M. Roy, Mughal India: Art, Culture and Empire, British Library, 2012

Past blog entries have highlighted our recent acquisitions in the Visual Arts department. Two of the most recent paintings we have acquired include a portrait of Ikhlas Khan and scene featuring a reluctant maiden by the artist Faizallah. 

I am pleased to announce that earlier this year we also added this striking study of Rao Arjun Singh of Kotah (ruled 1720-23) worshipping Sri Brijnathji in a rose garden. Painted at the court of Kotah during the period 1720-25, this is the only identified portrait of Arjun Singh in a national collection in the United Kingdom. This work can be attributed to one the master painters of Kotah of the early eighteenth century. 

Rao Arjun Singh worshipping Sri Brijnathji in a rose garden  (BL Add.Or.5722)
Kotah (India), 1720-25
Opaque watercolour and gold on paper
Painting: 30.5 x 32.5 cm

In this lavish scene, Rao Arjun Singh is featured worshipping Sri Brijnathji. Sri Brijnathji, the tutelary deity of the state of Kotah, is enthroned under a rose-bedecked chhatri. The setting is a garden which is divided by water channels into quarters that are filled with rosebushes. Standing directly behind Sri Brijnathji is an attendant. The painting reveals how Hindu rulers in Rajasthan treated deities not as idols but as living deities. More importantly, this work demonstrates how the ruler instructed the artist to personify the deity using his own physiognomy. Rao Arjun Singh’s distinctive sharp-nosed profile is the model for Shri Brijnathji (deity), the worshipper, as well as attendant. Arjun Singh features both the worshipper as well as the subservient attendant holding a peacock feather flywhisk. In regards to its research potential, this complex painting casts light on the intricate relationship between state and religion in one of the important Rajput kingdoms. Of course artists did also paint straighforward portraits of Rao Arjun Singh as well. For a study of Rao Arjun Singh of Kotah admiring a horse, see this study at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.

On the reverse it is inscribed in Rajasthani in nagari:  Sri Braijainathai ji gulabai bagai ma birajai cha (which can be interpreted as 'Sri Brijnath Ji is in the Rose Garden in Braj').

Material held in the Visual Arts department at the British Library can be viewed by appointment in the Print Room. Please email [email protected] for an appointment.

Malini Roy, Visual Arts Curator 
Follow us on Twitter @BL_Visual Arts

Further reading:

W.G. Archer, Bundi and Kotah Painting, 1959

M.C. Beach, 'Masters of Early Kota Painting' in Beach, M.C., Fischer, E., and Goswamy, B.N., Masters of Indian Painting, Artibus Asiae, Zurich, 2011, pp. 459-78

S.C. Welch, et. al., Gods, Kings and Tigers: the Art of Kotah, Prestel, Munich, New York, 1997.

Abiola Olanipekun, an intern for the Social Sciences department at the British Library, recently spent some time researching British patrons of Indian art in response to the exhibition Mughal India: Art, Culture and Empire (ended April 2013).

Although the Mughal exhibition has ended, I was interested in exploring some of the key British figures that played pivotal roles behind some of the Mughal happenings. The English East India Company was founded in 1600, while Emperor Akbar (ruled 1556-1605) was still in power. Initally, the British were only interested in trading. However, as the Mughal empire weakened, the British gained substantial strength and exerted political control over the northern subcontinent.

Researching the East India Company, I was surprised to discover that notable characters such as  Richard Johnson, Warren Hastings, General Carnac and Sir Elijah Impey had strong associations and even (undeniable) lifelong linkages with the East India Company through their work and reputations. Some of the characters were very colourful, interesting and quite scandalous! The controversy, bravery of exploiting the law and the supposed reasoning behind these actions make this history all the more exciting!

My starting point was Sir Elijah Impey who born 13 June 1732 into a relatively poor family. Impey attended the Westminster School with Warren Hastings; the two became and remained intimate friends throughout his life. He attended Trinity College, Cambridge. Elijah was called to the bar in 1756. For a portrait of Impey, see the National Portrait Gallery's collection.

In 1773, Impey was appointed as the first Chief Justice of the new Supreme Court in Calcutta. His wife Mary set up their household in Calcutta and established a private menagerie. Mary also commissioned local artists to produce drawings of the rare animals she collected, including one of a pangolin, or a Chinese anteater. This spectacular drawing featured in the exhibition.

Pangolin or scaly anteater by Shaikh Zain al-Di, Calcutta, 1779 (BL Add.Or.4667)

In 1775, Elijah presided at the trial of Maharaja Nandakumar, who was accused of forging a bond in an attempt to deprive a widow of more than half her inheritance. The results of this trial ensured that he went down in history and in 1789; both he and Warren Hastings were subjected to impeachment, for their handling of this case. In 1790, Elijah returned to parliament as the member for New Romney; he spent the next seven years as an MP before retiring to Newick Park. He died on 1 October 1809.

Abiola Olanipekun

You can follow Abiola @Ola_Ola1

Further reading:

T. H. Bowyer, ‘Impey, Sir Elijah (1732–1809)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004