Raja Mandhata as a musical mode

Object Details

• School/Tradition

  Nurpur school

• Label

  The musical mode Himal is embodied as Raja Mandhata, this manuscript’s patron. Shown splendidly dressed and seated in a grove with two birds perched on his hand, the king is an emblem of refinement.

  The painting’s superbly controlled line, luminous palette, and precisely calculated composition identify it as part of one of the greatest ragamala series. The vivid yellow background was produced with a pigment made from the urine of cows fed on mangos; the recipe for this color (peori) has been lost to history.

• Provenance

  Prior to 1960s

  Mandi Royal Collection

  From ca. 1980s

  Unknown German dealer [1]

  To 2003

  Terence McInerney Fine Arts Ltd., New York, New York [2]

  From 2003 to 2017

  Catherine Glynn Benkaim, Beverly Hills, California, purchased from Terence McInerney Fine Arts Ltd., New York, New York in March 2003 [3]

  From 2017

  Freer Gallery of Art, partial gift and purchase from Catherine Glynn Benkaim [4]

  Notes:

  [1] According to conversation with Catherine Glynn Benkaim from June 14, 2016, Ms. Benkaim mentioned that this folio and numerous others from the series were with a German dealer in the 1980s.

  [2] Catherine Glynn Benkaim purchased this painting from Terence McInerney Fine Arts Ltd. in March 2003.

  [3] See note 2.

  [4] See Acquisition Consideration Form, object file, Collections Management Office.

• Collection

  Freer Gallery of Art Collection

• Exhibition History

  Body Image (October 14, 2017 - ongoing)

• Previous custodian or owner

  Mandi Royal Collection

  Unknown

  Terence McInerney Fine Arts, Ltd. (active 1990-2013)

  Ralph and Catherine Benkaim

  Catherine Glynn Benkaim

• Origin

  Nurpur, Himachal Pradesh state, India

• Credit Line

  Purchase from the Catherine and Ralph Benkaim Collection — Charles Lang Freer Endowment

• Type

  Painting

• Restrictions and Rights

  CC0 - Creative Commons (CC0 1.0)

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Keep Exploring

• Related Resources

  collections.si.edu

• Date

  1700s, 1680s

• Name

  Benkaim, Ralph and Catherine, Mandi Royal Collection, Benkaim, Catherine Glynn, McInerney, Terence

• Place

  Nurpur, Himachal Pradesh state, India

• Topic

  South Asian and Himalayan Art, Art, Animals, Catherine and Ralph Benkaim Collection, Men, Portraits, Birds

• Culture

  Himalayan peoples, South Asians

• Usage Flag

  Unknown

• Object Type

  Paintings