Page 31 - Bonhams, Indian and Himalayan Art New York July 23, 2020

832
LAYLA AND MAJNUN IN THE WILDERNESS The face and heavy shading around the flat, narrow eye of Layla is
LUCKNOW, LATE 18TH CENTURY characteristic of Ghulam Reza and his followers in Lucknow at the end
Transparent and opaque pigments on paper; with a plain border. of the 18th century (Archer, Indian Miniatures, London, 1981, p.457,
Image: 8 3/4 x 6 1/2 in. (22.3 x 16.5 cm); no.350v), and the technique of stippling the leaves of the tree in the
Folio: 10 3/8 x 8 1/8 in. (26.4 x 20.7 cm) foreground compares favorably with a ragamala page in the British
Library (Markel & Gude, Lucknow, Los Angeles, 2010, p.183, no.140).
$20,000 - 30,000
Provenance
Below the boughs of a gnarled tree, Layla cradles Majnun—her ashen, Ex-Collection Jane Davis Doggett, Florida
apolline lover—surrounded by birds and beasts that have grown akin
to him fading away in the wilderness. A grey langur tugs at her light
gauze. The tree is brimming with pairs of palm squirrels, golden orioles,
scops owls, and cuckoos. But for the dromedaries that Layla and her
guard have ridden to find Majnun, the remaining fauna consists of
native and introduced species to India while the tale itself is an ancient
Arab one that was popular in India in the 17th and 18th centuries.

INDIAN, HIMALAYAN & SOUTHEAST ASIAN ART | 29