THE ARRIVAL OF AN ESTEEMED ARCHER AT COURT
PROPERTY FROM A PRIVATE SCOTTISH ESTATE
Guler artist in Kangra, Pahari Hills, Northern India, ca. 1820 - 1840

Opaque pigments heightened with gold on paper, the vertical composition depicting the arrival at court of an esteemed archer wearing an encrusted golden crown similar to the ones usually worn by Rama and Lakshmana in Ramayana illustrations, holding his golden bow under his right arm whilst conversing with a courtly maiden, the discussion observed and followed from a distance by the local ruler and his group of advisers and attendants seated under a marble pavilion in a lush garden next to a fountain, the scene framed within typical Kangra school borders with white and gold flowers against a dark blue background, red rules and red-speckled pink borders, the recto with a Devanagari inscription in pencil reading Vidya Kanyas (the Daughter of Knowledge?), 29.5cm x 25cm.

In the late 18th and first half of the 19th centuries, Guler and Kangra became two of the most prominent centres of Pahari paintings, and to this day their productions are very sought-after and collected all around the world. Guler fell under the Sikh administration in 1813. Following the Second Anglo-Sikh War in 1849, it then became officially part of the British district of Kangra. It was specifically during this later period that accomplished Guler artists were commissioned by wealthy Sikh patrons to paint in a special Sikh style, which developed further in Adinangar, Lahore, and Amritsar's productions. Productions from this period usually feature the use of bright colours; the predilection for crowded scenes with multiple events condensed in a single composition often connected to specific narratives; and the introduction of local characters and rulers as subjects of the illustrated story. For further reference, please see W. G. Archer, Paintings of the Sikhs, 1966 and W. G. Archer, Indian Paintings from the Punjab Hills, 1973, Vol. 1, pp. 129 - 133.

In 2021, two examples from a similar series were successfully sold in these Rooms, please see 27 April 2021, lot 369; and 22 July 2021, lot 73. It is worth noting that the first example shared the exact same measurements as the present lot. For other paintings of analogous series recently sold at auction, please also see Sotheby's New York, 22 March 2018, lot 1001; and Bonhams London, 18 October 2016, lot 323.