INDIA, PROVINCIAL MUGHAL, FARRUKHABAD, CIRCA 1750

A princess grasps an overhead tree branch and sips wine as she is entertained by a group of musicians and maid servants in an idyllic and isolated landscape. The present painting is reminiscent of the style of the leading Awadhi painter Mohammed Faqirullah Khan (active circa 1720-1770), often recognizable by the distinctive elongated figural style and compositions involving the pleasures and pastimes of royal ladies. Compare, for example, with a painting attributed to the artist at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (acc. no. M.2005.159), with similarly rendered figures and bright greens used in the color palette. The verso of this painting is inscribed with a calligraphic panel signed by Mohammed Sadiq.