MUGHAL INDIA, SECOND QUARTER OF THE 17TH CENTURY

The present portrait compares very closely to a portrait of a Royal Lady by the painter Balchand in the Royal Collection Trust (RCIN 1005068; E. Hannam, Eastern Encounters: Four Centuries of Painting and Manuscripts from the Indian Subcontinent, London, 2018, cover). That painting is thought to be of Farzana Begum, the sister of Shah Jahan’s wife Mumtaz Mahal, which may well also be the identity of the lady here. The single word 'Balchand' is written in a cursive hand just below the painting, and in a note on the reverse of the album page by Robert Skelton he attributes the portrait also to Balchand. However, some differences in the execution of the facial features and details of clothing seem inconsistent with Balchand’s style and would suggest another hand. Nonetheless the quality of the painting, in particular the excellent handling of the odhani, is clearly the work of a expert painter.

The late Oscar-winning costume designer Antony Powell studied at the Central School of Arts in London and worked, in his early career, with both Cecil Beaton and Oliver Messel. He won three Academy Awards for his costume designs; and his stage and opera designs included Sunset Boulevard in 1993 and My Fair Lady in 2010.