Description
In contrast to imperial Mughal painting and Western portraiture, native or Rajput Indian portraits are simpler and more monumental in design, standing essentially as symbols of general ideas. Here the Rajput ruler sits unaffected by the gallop of his mount, with the trappings of a warrior and the devotional marks of a follower of the Hindu god Vishnu on his forehead. He is depicted as an ideal warrior king, pious, in full control, gazing ahead abstractly as though seeing an immutable truth.
Provenance
Ananda K. Coomaraswamy [1877-1947] sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art (?-1925); The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (1925-)
Accession Number
1925.1337
Medium
Gum tempera and ink on paper
Dimensions
Overall: 10 x 14.3 cm (3 15/16 x 5 5/8 in.)
Classification
Painting
Credit Line
Gift of J. H. Wade