PROBABLY NORTH INDIA, LATE 16TH OR EARLY 17TH CENTURY

This portrait is an attractive example of the strong cultural links between Iran and India in late 16th century. As the detailed folds of the tunic and the shading suggest, the artist who produced this work was probably trained in Iran. Other notable artists who are known to have made this journey include Farrukh Beg who was born in Iran in circa 1545 and worked for Mughal Emperor Akbar in Lahore from around 1590-1605 and later travelled to Bijapur in the Deccan. A portrait of Mirza Muhammad-Hakim as a mendicant seated under a tree is a good comparable example of a mixture of Iranian and Indian iconography, (Milo C. Beach, ‘Farrukh Beg’, in Milo C. Beach, Eberhard Fischer and B.N. Goswamy (ed.), Masters of Indian Painting, Zurich, 2011, fig.1, p.191). A follower of Farrukh Beg, Muhammad ‘Ali, who was also probably born in Iran and later travelled to Bijapur, painted a standing lady with flowing robes on a background decorated with gold outlined stylised clouds, very similar to our portrait, (John Seyller, ‘Muhammad ‘Ali’, in Beach, Fischer and Goswamy (ed.), op.cit., fig.2, p.281). The face of our dervish is not rounded in the form typical of Bijapur style portraits. This suggests it was produced in Northern rather than Central India. A depiction of a dancing girl in the Los Angeles County Museum of Art that is attributed to the Deccan circa 1650 illustrates the figure in similarly flowing robes. Unlike our figure however, it has a more stylised rounded Deccani face, (Pratapaditya Pal, Indian Painting: A Catalogue of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art Collection, Los Angeles, 1993, no.105, p.342). A portrait of a seated Tartar warrior that is closely related to our portrait was sold at Sotheby’s, London, 20 November 1986, lot 187.