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A JAIN INVITATION SCROLL (VIJNAPTIPATRA)
Udaipur, circa 1800
Opaque watercolor, ink and gold on paper; the long sheet with illustrations, including
auspicious symbols, palace scenes with kings and gurus, and text at the bottom and verso.
605 x 10 3/4 in. (1536.7 x 27.3 cm) approx.
$15,000 - 20,000

Vijnaptipatra invite monks to local Jain communities. They are generally written in both Sanskrit
and vernacular languages and are often lavishly illustrated. This example depicts the life of Udaipur,
where the monk is invited to stay during the rainy season. The text is full of different styles, including
poems describing Mewar, the towns of Udaipur and Bhavnagar. Some parts are written in Sanskrit,
others in old Gujarati/Rajasthani. An extensive translation accompanies the lot.

For a closely related example, with a similar sequence of paintings, see Pal et al., Dancing
to the Flute, Sydney, 1997, p. 127 & 138-9, no. 86. Also see Sam Fogg Ltd., The Coloured
Cosmos: Jain Painting 1450-1850, London, 2005.

Exhibited
Museum fuer Voelkerkunde, Hamburg, 2013

Published
Jain Spirit Magazine, 2003, p.38f
Ludwig Habighorst, Blumen, Baeume, Goettergaerten, Ragaputra Edition, Koblenz, 2011, fig.
6 & 46

Provenance
Private Collection, Germany