Anonymous Indian Artist (7 results)

Condition: Good. Painting on manuscript leaf (ca. 270 x 160 mm), hinged on plexiglas so that the verso is visible, matted (matte size: 367 x 250 mm, some spotting on the matte). Manuscript leaf with some damage outside painted area; a very attractive ornithological painting. A delicate Indian painting of a Western Yellow Wagtail, likely made for the tourist trade, painted on a manuscript leaf that has nothing to do with the images. The Arabic text above the painting is an excerpt from a commentary on M?jiz al-Q?n?n by Ibn Nafis. The bird and the decorative yellow "cloudbands" that appear between the lines of text were added later. The text on the verso is unidentified, but judging from the red overlining we are inclined to believe it is a commentary. In our Western Yellow Wagtail we admire the extremely naturalistic color and fine modelling of the feathers, as well as the restrained depiction of the tree branch and leaves. Suitable for exhibition and study. We are grateful to Kelley Tuttle for her characteristically excellent cataloguing assistance.…

Condition: Very good. Three matted paintings (matte size: 323 x 266; leaf size: 215 x 145 mm; visible image: 170 x 115 mm), hinged to clear Plexiglas so that the manuscript texts on the versos are perfectly legible. Leaves with some soiling, edges slightly frayed along inner gutter margins. A remarkable assemblage of three erotic Indian paintings, all of have been executed on the same unidentified Urdu manuscript. The settings are intriguing, and the subjects are set within brooding, fantastical landscapes, alongside a stream (or lake) festooned with lily pads and lotus flowers. They depict: 1. A woman holding a large ejaculating phallus; 2. A flying phallus carrying a basket of four phalluses, accompanied by a winged vagina; 3. A man holding a bowl couples with a four-armed goddess, presumably a devotee of Kali: in her hands she holds a sword, a spear, and an ax, in the fourth a lotus flower. All three paintings were finely rendered by an artist of considerable skill. This are are very high quality pieces. THE MANUSCRIPT one which the paintings appear was written in Urdu and has resisted identification. As always, we are grateful to Kelly Tuttle for her scholarly generosity. MUST BE SEEN TO BE FULLY APPRECIATED.…

Condition: Very good. Painting with extensive gold, applied on a partially printed leaf with some manuscript annotations (ca. 354 x 164 mm), mounted on card, matted (matte size: 460 x 278 mm). Each painting has a scratch to the surface area (SEE IMAGES), overall in very good condition. In these delicately rendered Indian processional paintings are depicted no less than 43 people, three elephants, four bulls, two carriages, and two horses. Alongside a waterfront, one party leaves from (while the other party returns to) a walled courtyard. The sky above appears to darken what is left of a fading sunset. Suitable for exhibition and study. We are grateful to Kelley Tuttle for her characteristically excellent cataloguing assistance.…

Condition: Good. Painting with extensive gold, applied on a partially printed leaf with some manuscript annotations (ca. 358 x 260 mm), hinged on plexiglas so that the verso is visible, matted (matte size: 475 x 327 mm). Minor staining to the paper, but the painting is in excellent condition. An intriguing Indian painting with extensive gilding which mimics Persian dynastic or genealogical manuscripts but was in fact written in a fake language. Likely created for the tourist trade, the painting was applied on a completely unrelated, partially printed leaf (lithographed?) which has been annotated in manuscript. The words which appear in the circular portraits are written in a fake language. Clearly the artist did not know Persian (or Urdu since the two languages utilize almost the same alphabet), and thus resorted to writing letters that looked similar. In fact, they are mere squiggles. Suitable for exhibition and study. We are grateful to Kelley Tuttle for her characteristically excellent cataloguing assistance.…

Condition: Very good. Large painting on a manuscript leaf (in Arabic) from the "Sharh al-Wiqayah" by Burhan al-Shariah, Mahmud ibn Ubayd Allah (SEE BELOW), 353 x 216 mm, hinged onto plexiglas mount with clear tape so that the text of the manuscript is visible from the back; matted (matte size: 500 x 360). A remarkable erotic Indian painting of an uncommon type, which we describe as "zoomorphic erotica." The painting depicts a camel within a frame, surrounded by an antilope, a lion, a horse, a gazelle, and a bull; within each animal is a depiction of an orgy comprised of six (or in the case of the camel) seven men and women, all finely rendered by an artist of considerable skill. This is a very high quality piece. THE MANUSCRIPT on which the painting was applied belongs to a rare text: is an excerpt from the "Shar? al-Wiq?yah," a commentary on a work of Hanafi fiqh (law) by Burh?n al-Shar??ah, Ma?m?d ibn ?Ubayd All?h (d. 1274 or 1275), specifically from the chapter about PREPARING BODIES FOR FUNERALS. We are grateful to Kelly Tuttle for her scholarly generosity in identifying this text, and for dating it to the early 20th century. MUST BE SEEN TO BE FULLY APPRECIATED.…

Two illuminations on thin India paper some vertical creasing, professionally matted and framed. Ad 1 (priapus): 300 x 250 mm (frame size), 198 x 140 mm (visible), 147 x 93 mm (size of illumination). Ad 2 (she-devil): 306 x 231 mm (frame size), 205 x 140 mm (visible), 150 x 83 mm (size of illumination). Sold as a pair. TWO WEIRD EROTIC INDIAN ILLUMINATIONS, THE LIKES OF WHICH WE HAVE NEVER BEFORE ENCOUNTERED, AND ARE UNLIKELY TO ENCOUNTER AGAIN. Popular in Roman decorative art, the winged priapus is uncommon in Indian iconography. Our illumination is of particularly high quality, and depicts a beautiful Indian woman riding a reined priapus perhas twice her size. The priapus is depicted with avain feet and giant wings. The environment is like a strange dream: in the foreground a grey pool with pink flowers; behind are dark green hills with eerie trees and vegetation. In the sky at sunset are what appear to be rain clouds, touched in white. We have been unable to transcribe the text, but there is writing on the verso. The second illumination depicts a grotesque she-devil with fangs, horns, and a long tongue, naked save for pearls around her wrists, ankles, and biceps. Above her waist her speckled skin is light purple, and below dark green. The monster clutches to a strange tree on which four priapus grow, and with it engages in sexual relations. She reaches toward a basket of several other priapus which are positioned on an upper branch. As with the accompanying illumination, in the foreground we find a watery pool and pink flowers, and dark green hills studded by surreal trees. The setting is at twilight. HIGHLY CURIOUS, AND MUST BE SEEN TO BE FULLY APPRECIATED.…

Erotic painting of a couple copulating. Tantra position from the Kama Sutra. 10 3/4 x 7. Framed.