Artwork
Untitled
Untitled is a watercolor painting. It dates from 1610 and is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
- Accession no.
- 1978.535
- Credit line
- Gift of Steven Kossak, The Kronos Collections, 1978
About this work
Subject & Meaning
The figure is identified only as a male subject, and the presence of the sword constitutes the primary iconographic element.
The painting is a 1610 portrait rendered in ink and opaque watercolor on paper, classified within the portrait genre. The source records indicate that it depicts a man accompanied by a sword. The figure is identified only as a male subject, and the presence of the sword constitutes the primary iconographic element.
The work was created in India and is held in the Metropolitan Museum of Art collection. No further symbolic interpretation is documented in the available sources.
Technique & Style
Created in India around 1610, this portrait uses ink and opaque watercolor applied to a paper support. The work depicts a male figure holding a sword and is by an anonymous artist. As a painting classified within the portrait genre, the piece demonstrates the material handling characteristic of early seventeenth-century Indian production, relying on the opacity of the watercolor pigments to define form against the paper ground.
The combination of ink for linear definition and opaque colors for volume represents the primary technical approach employed in this composition.
History & Provenance
The work was created in 1610 in India, executed in ink and opaque watercolor on paper, and is classified as a portrait depicting a man with a sword. It is attributed to an anonymous artist, with no documented commission or patron recorded. The painting is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
No intermediate ownership history or chain of custody preceding its acquisition is documented in the available sources, and no specific accession number or exhibition history is recorded.
Overview
This untitled painting, executed with ink and opaque watercolor on paper, depicts two robed figures. Originating from Bikaner, a desert kingdom in Rajasthan, the work showcases the distinctive artistic practices of the region. Its creation involved a meticulous layering of thin washes to achieve vibrant hues, a technique characteristic of royal workshops where artists produced works efficiently for their patrons. The specific artist remains unidentified.
Artist & collection
Untitled
Shiva Intercedes for Vanasura: Scene from the Aniruddha Usha Section of Krishna Lila
Untitled
Untitled
Suramananda Raga
Chand Bibi playing Polo
Abduction of Rukmini: Krishna Tied the Hands of Rukma, from a Bhagavata Purana
Krishna vanquishing King Bana, from an Usha-Aniruddha
Chand Bibi, with two court ladies
Kali and Devi attack, from a Devi Mahatmya
Akbar- Shiva intercedes for King Bana, from an Usha-Aniruddha
