A POLYCHROME-PAINTED SKETCH OF AN INDIAN GEM-SET SARPECH TURBAN ORNAMENT
Possibly Faizabad, Awadh (Oudh) or Jaipur, Rajasthan, Northern India, 19th century

A POLYCHROME-PAINTED SKETCH OF AN INDIAN GEM-SET SARPECH TURBAN ORNAMENT
Possibly Faizabad, Awadh (Oudh) or Jaipur, Rajasthan, Northern India, 19th century

Opaque pigments heightened with gold on wove paper, presenting a horizontal-format study of an Indian sarpech turban ornament encrusted with red, green, and white gems, possibly rubies, emeralds, and diamonds respectively, a large drop-shaped carved emerald pendant and a stylised rosette stem embellishing the central section, mounted, glazed and framed, the study 14.7cm x 22.8cm, 28.5cm x 35cm including the frame.

Similar sketches became very sought-after among foreign visitors and European officials stationed in India in the 18th and 19th centuries. One of the best examples of this craze for Indian jewellery drawings is embodied by the 58-page album of Company School paintings faithfully recording the traditional styles of Mughal jewellery, compiled by Jean Baptiste Gentil, a French adventurer and collector, when he was stationed at the Faizabad court of Shuja ud-Dawla from 1763 to 1775. For further reference and comparison, please see O. Untracht, Traditional Jewelry of India, 2008, pp. 345 - 346, cats. 767 - 769.

Dimensions: the study 14.7cm x 22.8cm, 28.5cm x 35cm including the frame