Akali Sikhs on the March

Object Details

• School/Tradition

  Company school

• Provenance

  ca. 1850-?

  Unidentified individual, probably British, by commission or purchase from an unidentified artist in Pakistan or Lahore, India [1]

  ?-?

  Ownership information unknown

  At least 1978-at least mid-1980s

  Mark Zebrowski (1945-1999) and John Robert Alderman (owned jointly), method of acquisition unknown [2]

  At least mid-1980s-1991

  John Lawrence Fine Arts, Inc. (active mid-1980s-1990s), London, England, method of acquisition unknown [3]

  From 1991

  National Museum of Asian Art, Smithsonian Institution, purchased from John Lawrence Fine Arts, Inc. [4]

  Notes:

  [1] This work was probably produced for a British individual, and it was most likely taken to the United Kingdom during the nineteenth century

  .

  [2] See Stuart Cary Welch, “Room for Wonder: Indian Painting During the British Period 1760-1880” [exhibition catalogue], (New York, NY: American Federation of Arts, 1978), pp. 128-129, pl. 57. The lender is identified as “Lent by Messrs. John Robert Alderman and Mark Zebrowski.”

  Mark Zebrowski (1945-1999) was an American scholar, dealer, and collector living in London since the 1970s. As a scholar, Zebrowski specialized in Deccani metalwork and manuscript painting.

  John Robert Alderman is an independent scholar, dealer, and collector living in London.

  [3] See incoming receipt, undated (ca. May 28, 1991), copy in object file. The object was transferred from John Lawrence Fine Arts, Inc., to the Freer Gallery of Art for acquisition consideration by May 28, 1991.

  See also invoice from John Lawrence Fine Arts, Inc., to the Freer Gallery of Art, dated October 1, 1991, copy in object file. Object is described as, “An Indian Drawing: Seikh Akalies (Religious Warriors) on the March. [/] Lahore, Punjab. [/] Gouache on paper. [/] 19 x 24 cm.”

  John Lawrence Fine Arts, Ltd. was a gallery in London, England that specialized in the sale of Indian and Islamic art. Mark Zebrowski (1945-1999) and John Robert Alderman, who were American dealers and collectors, formed the company in the 1980s. John Lawrence Fine Arts was active in the mid-1980s through the 1990s and successfully placed works in the collections of the British Museum; Los Angeles County Museum of Art; The Metropolitan Museum of Art; Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; and San Diego Museum of Art.

  [4] See Freer Gallery of Art, “Acquisition Consideration Form,” approved on December 19, 1991, copy in object file. The work is part of the Museum’s Freer Gallery of Art Collection.

  Research updated May 31, 2024

• Collection

  Freer Gallery of Art Collection

• Exhibition History

  South and South East Asian Art (May 9, 1993 to February 7, 2000)

• Previous custodian or owner

  Mark Zebrowski (1945-1999)

  John Robert Alderman

  John Lawrence Fine Arts, Inc. (active mid-1980s-1990s)

• Origin

  Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan or North India

• Credit Line

  Purchase — Charles Lang Freer Endowment

• Type

  Drawing

• Restrictions and Rights

  Usage Conditions Apply

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Keep Exploring

• Related Resources

  collections.si.edu

• Date

  1840s, 1850s

• Name

  Zebrowski, Mark, Alderman, John Robert, John Lawrence Fine Arts, Inc.

• Place

  Lahore, Punjab, India

• Topic

  South Asian and Himalayan Art, Warrior, Art, Animals, Sikhism, Horses

• Culture

  Himalayan peoples, South Asians

• Object Type

  Drawings