76 CHATAR SINGH AT WORSHIP CHAMBA, NORTH <strong>INDIA</strong>, CIRCA 1690 Opaque pigments heightened with gold on paper, the ruler standing left worshiping a large foral linga rising from a lotus leaf, wearing a white pajama and red turban, hands held together, a priest holding prayer beads sitting under a blossoming tree, a white domed pavilion in the background, in thin red margins 10Ω x 10æin. (26.7 x 27.3cm.) £20,000-30,000 $29,000-43,000 €25,000-37,000 The reign of Chatar Singh of Chamba (r. 1664-90) saw greater independence from Mughal rule. In 1678, the Raja is known to have defed an order from Aurangzeb to demolish all Hindu temples and this depiction of him worshiping a lingam may suggest that he was keen to encourage Hindu faith through royal portraiture. Chatar Singh ordered gilt pinnacles be placed atop each Hindu shrine, three of which are visible on the present painting (Rose Hutchison, Gazeeter of the Chamba State, New Delhi, 1996, p.94). Two portraits of Chatar Singh, recognizable by his distinctive black beard, show him attended by courtiers (circa 1680, National Museum, Delhi) and visiting a shrine of Rama (circa 1680, Private Collection, Chamba). Both paintings are published in W.G. Archer, Indian Paintings from the Punjab Hills, 1973, vol.I, p.65 and vol.II, fg.1, 2, p.50. In the second painting, Chatar Singh wears the same attire of a devotee as in the present work: white pajamas secured with a string ending in two tassels, with bare chest and his shoulders covered with a black shawl with foral borders, a corner of which the raja keeps tight under his arm. The shrine in that painting is very similar to the present pavilion, with a large fat dome fanked by two smaller ones, each with simple foral decoration. 77 KRISHNA LIFTS MOUNT GOVARDHAN PROBABLY KANGRA, NORTH <strong>INDIA</strong>, LATE 18TH CENTURY Opaque pigments heightened with gold on paper, Krishna standing on a golden platform lifts the mountain to protect the villagers and cowherds from the torrential rains sent by Indra, mount Erawan above, in foral margins, mounted 11Ω x 9Ωin. (29.2 x 24.2cm.) £4,000-6,000 $5,700-8,500 €5,000-7,500 Visit www.christies.com for additional information on this lot 50
VOTIVE TEXTILES FROM NORTH WEST <strong>INDIA</strong>