AN INDIAN MINIATURE PAINTING OF MAHARAJA GULAB SINGH (1792-1857) WORSHIPPING RAMA AND SITA
India, Punjab Hills, 19th century. Watercolors and gold on paper. The ruler bowing with clasped hands in front of Rama and Sita seated on a bejeweled throne in a palace terrace, three attendants standing behind them. Rama's animal army is represented by the king of the bears, Jambavan, and the monkeys, Hanuman.

Provenance: From an English private estate.
Condition: Very good condition with minor wear, soiling, and creasing, few minuscule losses, possibly microscopic touchups.

Dimensions: Image size 30.5 x 24 cm, total size 43 x 32.5 cm (including frame). Mounted and framed behind glass.

Maharaja Gulab Singh (1792-1857) was the founder of the Dogra dynasty and the first Maharaja of the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir, which was created after the defeat of the Sikh Empire in the First Anglo-Sikh War. During the war, Gulab Singh stayed aloof which helped the British victory, and even became prime minister of the Sikh Empire for the last 38 days of conflict. The Treaty of Amritsar (1846) formalized the sale of all the lands in Kashmir by the British to Gulab Singh for 7,500,000 Rupees.

Auction result comparison: Compare a closely related Indian miniature painting, dated c. 1790, depicting Raja Jagat Prakash worshipping Rama and Sita, at Christie's London in Art of the Islamic and Indian Worlds on 28 October 2020, lot 81, sold for GBP 7,500. Compare also a related Indian miniature painting of Rama and Sita enthroned with Lakshmana and Hanuman, dated circa 1800-1815, at Sotheby's London in Art of Imperial India on 9 October 2013, lot 282, sold for GBP 43,750.