PRINCE DANYAL RIDING A HORSE, ATTRIBUTABLE TO MUHAMMAD ALI, INDIA, DECCAN, AHMADNAGAR OR BIJAPUR, LATE 16TH CENTURY

Ink heightened with colour and gold on paper mounted on an album page with inner blue border and outer gold-flecked cream border

Welch 1994, fig.1, pp.407-428

Generally in good condition. Some small patches of discolouration and minor staining. Slight surface soiling in places. Horizontal crease across drawing at the level of horse's upper legs. One small loss of paper and associated repair at mid right edge. Horizontal strip of extension paper at upper edge of drawing. Right edge of borders somewhat discoloured (where the page was bound into the spine of an album). As viewed.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

This exquisite drawing of a prince on horseback is an example of Deccani-Mughal work at its refined best; the quality of the rendering of the detail is breathtaking and under high magnification loses none of its crisp precision.

The inscriptions at the lower left identify the subject of the stylized portrait as Prince Danyal (1571-1605), the third son of Emperor Akbar. The drawing has been attributed by Cary Welch to the artist Muhammad Ali, who was active at the Mughal atelier of Emperor Jahangir, but who may have worked in the Deccan before moving to the Mughal court. Cary Welch and Robert Skelton have suggested that he worked in the Deccan, but Welch himself acknowledged that he was a "mysterious figure" (Welch 1985, p.231).

Aspects of the drawing relate closely to a painting of a princely hunter on horseback in the Aga Khan Museum Collection (formerly in the Prince Sadruddin Aga Khan Collection, see Welch 1985, no.151, pp.229-231; Welch and Welch 1982, cat.65; Canby 1998, no.102, p.138, and cover illustration), especially the head and eye of the horse, the exquisitely rendered mane and tail, the delicate dappling of the horse's coat, the facial features of the prince and the gold hawker's drum. Other Deccani motifs present here are the attenuation of the figure, the manner in which the folds of clothing are gathered at the wrists and ankles, and the fluttering ends of the sash and jama behind the figure's right leg.

Beach describes Muhammad Ali as exhibiting "an extreme refinement of technique and sensibility..." (Beach 1978, p.144) and succinctly describes the debate concerning Muhammad Ali (and Farukh Beg, another Mughal artist showing Deccani tendencies): "Both show a general disinterest in Mughal trends towards naturalism; they use similar brilliant, strongly contrasting colors, ornamentally arranged floral forms, and flat backgrounds. Works by both men have strong affinities with paintings made at the Muslim courts in the Deccan, but whether this is due to similarity of temperament and interest, or actual contact, had not been firmly established." (ibid.) Canby notes that Muhammad Ali's distinctive palette and "hyperreal treatment of flowers and vegetation relate to Deccani painting of Bijapur", and that he "strikes a pictorial balance between the Persian, Deccani and Mughal styles, producing ideal men and women who inhabit a world of flowers and fragrant zephyrs." (Canby 1998, pp.138-9).

It is worth noting that, while this drawing is an idealized portrait of a young, probably teenage, princely figure, Prince Danyal himself was in the Deccan on military campaign in the last years of the 16th century with Akbar's general Abd al-Rahim Khanakhanan (who was a great bibliophile and patron, and maintained an active atelier while on campaign see lot 104 in this sale for more information). Prince Danyal was appointed viceroy of the Deccan in 1599, he conquered the city of Ahmadnagar in 1601 and died at Burhanpur in 1605.

Cary Welch's handwritten notes on the backboard of the frame are as follows:

"attributable to Muhammad Ali, Ahmadnagar, c.1585"
"By the same hand as: (1) Sultan Ibrahim Adil Shah Riding through an Enchanted Landscape - Institute for the Peoples of Asia, Leningrad
(2) Prince Riding - Pr. Sadruddin Aga Khan, attributable to Muhammad Ali"
"Neeta Premchand says "Deccani Paper" "
"Slightly amused, contemplative horse, stressing inner characteristics - crisp, undulating outline - velvety softness, achieved by a fine "fur" , near(?) outlines - flying, fluttering, pulling out of forms - knotted tail etc- "
"Exaggeration of convexities and concavities - belly of horse, youth's supple figure"