A PORTRAIT OF MAHARAJA RAI SINGH OF BIKANER (R. 1574 - 1612)
PROPERTY FROM A PRIVATE SCOTTISH ESTATE
Possibly Jaipur, Rajasthan, North-Western India, ca. 1880 - 1890

Opaque pigments heightened with gold on paper, the vertical composition depicting a white-clad Maharaja with a golden halo, most probably Rai Singh of Bikaner, leaning on a cane, wearing a bright orange sash around his waist and gold-embroidered red pajama trousers, the portrait set on a palatial terrace with lush vegetation in the background, set within black and polychrome rules, the back stamped with the mark of Bikaner Maharaja's personal collection, last checked 4th June 1964 and with inventory number 4745, 24cm x 17.8cm.

In the collection of the V&A Museum, there is an almost identical standing portrait of Maharaja Rai Singh (inv. no. IS.45-1989), similarly attributed to the Jaipur School and dating ca. 1890. The Museum record confirms this painting was created after a Bikaner original, most probably drawn by the master artists Nur Muhammad (active 1570s–1630s), who settled in Bikaner by the mid-1500s and worked at the Mughal court, notably for the mother of Emperor Akbar. The Cleveland Museum of Art hosts in its collection one of the original late 16th-century drawings of this Bikaner ruler painted by Nur Muhammad (acc. no. 1987.1100) and the overall style of the composition, including the gently rounded bodily shapes, attentive facial shading, and thin lines in the clothing, seems to be the unequivocal source of inspiration for both the V&A Museum portrait and ours.