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Lot Essay
The ruler depicted in our painting appears to be Raja Amar Singh Bhonsle, the younger son of the Maratha ruler of Tanjore, Raja Pratap Singh. He served as regent for five years after the death of his elder brother, Tuljaji (r.1765-68) and then ruled in the name of his nephew Sarabhoji (also known as Serfoji II) from 1787 to 1793. He finally usurped the throne after deposing Sarabhoji and ruled absolutely from 1793 to 1798. For a comparable portrait of Amar Singh by a British artist, circa 1797, see Sotheby’s, London, 4 December 2008, lot 105.
The format and composition of the present painting finds comparison with three known large processional scenes from Tanjore from the late eighteenth to the early nineteenth century. The first painting dating to circa 1770 depicts Amar Singh’s elder brother, Raja Tuljaaji, seated on horseback accompanied by numerous attendants on foot. The painting is now in the Victoria & Albert Museum, London (IM.319-1921; ill. A. Topsfield, An introduction to Indian Court Painting, London, 1984, no.20, p.28). The second is a grander scene, circa 1797, depicting Amar Singh himself seated in a large gilded carriage and his nephew Sarabhoji in a notably smaller carriage in the front of the procession, with elephants, horses, soldiers and attendants. This painting is also in the Victoria and Albert Museum (IM.10-1938; ill. M. Archer, Company Paintings: Indian Paintings of the British Period, London, 1992, pl.41, p.44). The third processional scene, more elaborate and crowded than the last, dates from around 1820, and depicts Raja Sarabhoji seated on a large caparisoned horse with his army of attendants. (British Library, Add.Or.2594).
The format and composition of the present painting finds comparison with three known large processional scenes from Tanjore from the late eighteenth to the early nineteenth century. The first painting dating to circa 1770 depicts Amar Singh’s elder brother, Raja Tuljaaji, seated on horseback accompanied by numerous attendants on foot. The painting is now in the Victoria & Albert Museum, London (IM.319-1921; ill. A. Topsfield, An introduction to Indian Court Painting, London, 1984, no.20, p.28). The second is a grander scene, circa 1797, depicting Amar Singh himself seated in a large gilded carriage and his nephew Sarabhoji in a notably smaller carriage in the front of the procession, with elephants, horses, soldiers and attendants. This painting is also in the Victoria and Albert Museum (IM.10-1938; ill. M. Archer, Company Paintings: Indian Paintings of the British Period, London, 1992, pl.41, p.44). The third processional scene, more elaborate and crowded than the last, dates from around 1820, and depicts Raja Sarabhoji seated on a large caparisoned horse with his army of attendants. (British Library, Add.Or.2594).