id:			159533
accession number:	1996.296
share license status:	CC0
url:			https://clevelandart.org/art/1996.296
updated:		2023-03-15 15:46:26.215000

A Ruler Presents a Document to Visiting Nobles, c. 1700–20. Southern India, Deccan. Opaque watercolor and gold on paper; overall: 22 x 32.7 cm (8 11/16 x 12 7/8 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Leonard C. Hanna, Jr. Fund 1996.296

title:				A Ruler Presents a Document to Visiting Nobles
title in original language:	
series:				
series in original language:	
creation date:			c. 1700–20
creation date earliest:		1700
creation date latest:		1720
current location:		
creditline:			Leonard C. Hanna, Jr. Fund
copyright:			

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culture:	Southern India, Deccan
technique:	Opaque watercolor and gold on paper
department:	Indian and Southeast Asian Art
collection:	Indian Art
type:		Painting
find spot:	
catalogue raisonne: 

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CREATORS

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measurements: Overall: 22 x 32.7 cm (8 11/16 x 12 7/8 in.)
state of the work:	
edition of the work: 	

support materials:


inscriptions:

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CURRENT EXHIBITIONS

	title:		Indian Gallery 242 Rotation – April-November 2018
	opening date:   2018-04-02T04:00:00
	<i>Indian Gallery 242 Rotation – April-November 2018</i>. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (April 2-November 18, 2018).

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LEGACY EXHIBITIONS

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PROVENANCE

	(Mr. Kalesan Natesan, London, UK, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art)
	date: ?-1996
	footnotes: 	
	citations: 	


	The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
	date: 1996-
	footnotes: 	
	citations: 	


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fun fact:
The figure in white has his mouth open, indicating that he is singing, accompanied by the musician behind him.

digital description:


wall description:
This large and rare painting represents a southern Indian genre of portraiture influenced by works from the imperial Mughal court based in northern India. Each of the three rajas (kings), seated on the carpet in the center of an open terrace, is depicted as an individual portrait, as are the figures of the other eight participants who form this courtly retinue. The artist carefully observed the facial features that served to define their various personalities.<br><br>The occasion appears to be a diplomatic mission in which the visitor reads a letter to the two figures at the right, whose importance is indicated by their larger size. Other attendants or courtiers of lesser status are smaller in size, despite their location in the foreground.
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RELATED WORKS

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CITATIONS

	Cleveland Museum of Art, “Renaissance Armor, Early Islamic Ceramic, French Vase, Gleitsman Painting Added to Museum Collection,” December 13, 1996, Cleveland Museum of Art Archives.
	page number: 	
	url:		https://archive.org/details/cmapr4085

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IMAGES

web:	https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1996.296/1996.296_web.jpg
print:	https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1996.296/1996.296_print.jpg
full:	https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1996.296/1996.296_full.tif