Portrait of Badan Singh of Rampur

Accession Number
1980/2.248

Title
Portrait of Badan Singh of Rampur

Artist(s)
Indian

Artist Nationality
Indian (South Asian)

Object Creation Date
circa 1780

Medium & Support
ink, watercolor and gold on paper

Dimensions
9 3/4 in x 7 1/4 in (24.77 cm x 18.41 cm);19 3/8 in x 14 3/8 in (49.21 cm x 36.51 cm)

Credit Line
Gift of Professor Walter M. and Nesta R. Spink for the James Marshall Plumer Memorial Collection

Label copy
In this formal portrait, the ruler of one of the states of Rajasthan is shown seated outdoors, and the very earth seems arranged as his canopy. He is dressed in a flowered yellow dhoti, over which he wears a diaphanous gown and pearl jewelry. One hand rests on his ankle, while the other is extended in welcome. His attendant is more simply dressed, and fans the air with peacock feathers. The artist has lavished painstaking detail on the textiles and foliage, which are effectively contrasted against large areas of flat color.
The sitter is identified as “Raoji Badan Singh of Rampur” by a Hindi inscription, but the precise identity of the sitter is unknown. The style of the portrait—particularly the shape of the sitter’s profile and his turban—suggests a principality within the sphere of Bundi/Kotah.
Exhibited in "Divine Encounters, Earthly Pleasures: Twenty Centuries of Indian Art" at UMMA, 12/12/03–2/22/04.

Subject matter
In this formal portrait, the ruler of one of the states of Rajasthan is shown seated outdoors, and the very earth seems arranged as his canopy. He is dressed in a flowered yellow dhoti, over which he wears a diaphanous gown and pearl jewelry. One hand rests on his ankle, while the other is extended in welcome. His attendant is more simply dressed, and fans the air with peacock feathers. The artist has lavished painstaking detail on the textiles and foliage, which are effectively contrasted against large areas of flat color.

The sitter is identified as “Raoji Badan Singh of Rampur” by a Hindi inscription, the founder of the state of Bharatpur, but the precise identity of the sitter is unknown. The style of the portrait—particularly the shape of the sitter’s profile and his turban—suggests a principality within the sphere of Bundi/Kotah. 

Physical Description
The central figure in the foreground is seated outdoors on an orange carpet with a green border, which is itself on a white carpet decorated in a floral pattern.  He reclines against a pillow. He is dressed in a sheer white shirt and yellow dhoti with a headdress. He is wearing a pearl necklace and has pearls in his headdress. His right hand rests on a foot while the other hand is extended outward. Behind him to the left is an attendant who is holding a fan over the central figure's head. The attendant is dressed more simply in white with a red headdress. A large hill looms in the background against a dark blue sky. An inscription is placed in the red border of the painting.

Primary Object Classification
Painting

Collection Area
Asian

Rights
If you are interested in using an image for a publication, please visit http://umma.umich.edu/request-image for more information and to fill out the online Image Rights and Reproductions Request Form. Keywords
calligraphy
carpets
cushions

& Author Notes

Web Use Permitted