Page 231 - March 23 2022 Boinghams NYC Indian and Himalayan Art

PROPERTY FROM A DISTINGUISHED WEST COAST COLLECTION
495
AN ILLUSTRATION TO A SHIVA RAHASYA SERIES: SHIVA
PLAYING SPORTS IN THE SACRED MOUNTAINS
INDIA, RAJASTHAN, JODHPUR, CIRCA 1827
Folio 17Ω x 17Ω in. (44.5 x 44.5 cm.)
Image 17 x 17 in. (43.2 x 43.2 cm.)
$10,000-15,000
PROVENANCE:
Collection of Evelyn and Peter Kraus, by repute.
Bonhams London, 19 April 2016, lot 253.
Simon Ray Ltd., London, November 2016, no. 65

The present painting from a Shiva Rahasya series depicts the abode of Shiva
on the summit of Mount Kailash, where he meditates, engages in the sport
of hunting, hosts a teaching session and confers with Brahma. This painting
exemplifies the work of the court artists of Maharaja Man Singh of Jodhpur
(r. 1803-1843), who commissioned very large scale series of texts such as the
Ramayana, Durga Charitra and the Shiva Rahasya. The present painting relates
closely to a 101 folio series in the collection of the Mehrangarh Fort, Jodhpur
(see D. Diamond, C. Glynn, and K. Singh Jasol, Garden and Cosmos: the Royal
Paintings of Jodhpur, London 2008, pp. 238-239, no. 54). Despite its large
scale on its own, the layout of the Mehrangarh folios imply the present painting
is possibly only one-third lengthwise of a complete folio. Other pages from this
series sold at Bonhams London, 24 April 2012, lot 280 and Christie’s London
3 October 2012, lot 210.

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