A SEATED PORTRAIT OF NIZAMUDDIN AULIYA, MAJOR SUFI SAINT OF THE CHISHTI ORDER
Hyderabad, Deccan, Central India, mid to late 19th century

Opaque pigments heightened with gold on paper, the vertical composition depicting Nizamuddin Auliya, an Indian Sunni Muslim scholar, Sufi saint of the Chishti Order, and one of the most famous Sufis from the Indian Subcontinent, crouched on a hexagonal throne, resting against a large floral bolster, wearing a plain cream tunic and white turban, keeping his eyes closed suggesting he may be meditating, the plainness of his attire in clear contrast with the vibrant and colourful foreground featuring a floral summer floor spread, and blue and red flower panels on the fences of the terrace, the scene set within white rules, and concentric bright red and applied gold leaf borders, the recto with a black inscription in Urdu at the top reading Nizam Ad-din Awliya, 30cm x 20.5cm.

This painting is almost identical to a portrait of the Sufi shaykh sold at Christie's London, 26 October 2007, lot 94, attributed to Mughal India and dating to the 18th century, suggesting that similar images of the saint would have been widely popular and in constant circulation throughout the 18th, 19th and possibly 20th centuries. Their function was likely devotional and they were probably commissioned by members of the Chishti order and tariqa (Sufi congregation).