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Lot Essay
This lively, convivial scene of noblewomen enjoying a kite battle on a terrace against a glowing evening sky is a highly accomplished example of the Farrukhabad style of the third quarter of the 18th century.
A variety of entertainments were enjoyed by women in the seclusion of the zenana, and many were portrayed in paintings. One of these pastimes was flying kites (patang), which was popular among the Mughal nobility, especially in the 18th century. According to Abdul Halim Sharar, Shah Alam I (1707-1712) greatly boosted its popularity in courtly circles, and a tradition attributed to Nawab Asaf al-Dawla (r. 1775-1797) involved stitching fringes of gold and silver coins to the kites, and whoever retrieved one of the nawab’s lost kites was rewarded with the coins. There were terms for different types of kites – patang, tukkal, guddi and chang, and the relative strengths of these different designs was fiercely contested. It remained a popular pastime into the 19th century and later blended with the celebration of popular festivals. For additional information on kite flying in India see Sharar 1975, pp.129-31; Desai 2010, pp.1-24, where further illustrations can also be found.
The scene is skilfully portrayed, with a palpable sense of excitement and enjoyment clearly conveyed through the animated movements of the women, children and infant, some clapping, some pointing up at the kites in the sky, and one bending down to untangle a string on the ground. On the lower level, two teams wait their turn, one holding her kite in her arms, the other over her shoulder. The rich and brightly coloured garments and diaphanous gilt-edged robes stand out in elegant contrast against the grey terrace, and the rich jewellery worn by the women is depicted in great detail. Only the upper parts of the trees beyond the terrace are visible, the rest is sky. This conveys the sense that the activity is taking place on the roof of a building, a feature that reflects historical reality (see Lal in Quintanilla et al. 2017, pp.294-5).
The palette, figure type and the distinctive flat-cheeked smooth faces with aquiline nose are all very similar to other Farrukhabad works of the period, such as examples in the British Library (IOL, Johnson Album 66, nos.4-9, see Falk ad Archer 1981, nos.362 i-vi, pp.190, 469, pl.11), the Chester Beatty Library, Dublin (73.4, see Leach 1995, vol.2, p.706); the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (2001.421, see Topsfield 2004, no.151, pp.342–43), the Cleveland Museum of Art (2013.341 and 2013.342, see Quintanilla et al, nos.82 and 83, pp.178, 262); the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (M.2005.159 and M.87.278.9, see Markel and Gude 2010, p.73), and the San Diego Museum of Art (Binney Collection, 1990.422 and 1990.425, see Binney 1973, pp.120, 124, 128, figs.99, 105). Further related examples have been sold in these rooms, 12 June 2014, lot 26, and at Bonhams, London, 21 April 2015, lot 200. A later Farrukhabad version of the present composition, in mirror-image, was exhibited by Francesca Galloway Ltd, London, 2008.
The style has been associated with the artist Muhammad Faqirullah Khan, who was based at nearby Lucknow and whose style was closely followed in Farrukhabad. Of the comparable examples in museums cited above, several, including those in the British Library, one of the examples in LACMA and one of the examples in San Diego, have inner blue and outer gold-flecked borders extremely similar to those of the present painting. Although this was a popular design for albums of the period, the concurrence is notable.
The city of Farrukhabad was founded in 1714 by the Muhammad Khan Bangash (1665-1743), a powerful Mughal commander and governor, and named in honour of his patron and reigning Mughal emperor of the time, Farrukhsiyar (r. 1713-19). Under the rule of Ahmad Khan Bangash (r. 1750-1771), it became a prosperous regional centre with strong local cultural patronage, influenced by and competing with the larger city of Lucknow nearby (Markel and Gude 2010, p.72; Bazmee Ansari 1991).
A variety of entertainments were enjoyed by women in the seclusion of the zenana, and many were portrayed in paintings. One of these pastimes was flying kites (patang), which was popular among the Mughal nobility, especially in the 18th century. According to Abdul Halim Sharar, Shah Alam I (1707-1712) greatly boosted its popularity in courtly circles, and a tradition attributed to Nawab Asaf al-Dawla (r. 1775-1797) involved stitching fringes of gold and silver coins to the kites, and whoever retrieved one of the nawab’s lost kites was rewarded with the coins. There were terms for different types of kites – patang, tukkal, guddi and chang, and the relative strengths of these different designs was fiercely contested. It remained a popular pastime into the 19th century and later blended with the celebration of popular festivals. For additional information on kite flying in India see Sharar 1975, pp.129-31; Desai 2010, pp.1-24, where further illustrations can also be found.
The scene is skilfully portrayed, with a palpable sense of excitement and enjoyment clearly conveyed through the animated movements of the women, children and infant, some clapping, some pointing up at the kites in the sky, and one bending down to untangle a string on the ground. On the lower level, two teams wait their turn, one holding her kite in her arms, the other over her shoulder. The rich and brightly coloured garments and diaphanous gilt-edged robes stand out in elegant contrast against the grey terrace, and the rich jewellery worn by the women is depicted in great detail. Only the upper parts of the trees beyond the terrace are visible, the rest is sky. This conveys the sense that the activity is taking place on the roof of a building, a feature that reflects historical reality (see Lal in Quintanilla et al. 2017, pp.294-5).
The palette, figure type and the distinctive flat-cheeked smooth faces with aquiline nose are all very similar to other Farrukhabad works of the period, such as examples in the British Library (IOL, Johnson Album 66, nos.4-9, see Falk ad Archer 1981, nos.362 i-vi, pp.190, 469, pl.11), the Chester Beatty Library, Dublin (73.4, see Leach 1995, vol.2, p.706); the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (2001.421, see Topsfield 2004, no.151, pp.342–43), the Cleveland Museum of Art (2013.341 and 2013.342, see Quintanilla et al, nos.82 and 83, pp.178, 262); the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (M.2005.159 and M.87.278.9, see Markel and Gude 2010, p.73), and the San Diego Museum of Art (Binney Collection, 1990.422 and 1990.425, see Binney 1973, pp.120, 124, 128, figs.99, 105). Further related examples have been sold in these rooms, 12 June 2014, lot 26, and at Bonhams, London, 21 April 2015, lot 200. A later Farrukhabad version of the present composition, in mirror-image, was exhibited by Francesca Galloway Ltd, London, 2008.
The style has been associated with the artist Muhammad Faqirullah Khan, who was based at nearby Lucknow and whose style was closely followed in Farrukhabad. Of the comparable examples in museums cited above, several, including those in the British Library, one of the examples in LACMA and one of the examples in San Diego, have inner blue and outer gold-flecked borders extremely similar to those of the present painting. Although this was a popular design for albums of the period, the concurrence is notable.
The city of Farrukhabad was founded in 1714 by the Muhammad Khan Bangash (1665-1743), a powerful Mughal commander and governor, and named in honour of his patron and reigning Mughal emperor of the time, Farrukhsiyar (r. 1713-19). Under the rule of Ahmad Khan Bangash (r. 1750-1771), it became a prosperous regional centre with strong local cultural patronage, influenced by and competing with the larger city of Lucknow nearby (Markel and Gude 2010, p.72; Bazmee Ansari 1991).