A COUPLE OBSERVING WHITE DOVES ON A PALATIAL TERRACE
PROPERTY FROM A PRIVATE AMERICAN COLLECTION
Bikaner, Rajasthan, North-Western India, mid to late 18th century

Opaque pigments and gold on paper, the vertical composition depicting a night scene with two lovers on a palatial terrace hugging each other, the maiden distracted by two white doves perched on a tree nearby, the golden ewers on the carpet suggesting a night of merry drinking and intoxication for the two lovers, set within black and golden rules, pasted onto a later, thicker paper album page with a band of illuminated vegetal trellis and gold-speckled buff borders, 32.8cm x 25.8cm.

Provenance: Private Maryland Collection.