A European lady worshipping the sun, ascribed to Madhu, Mughal, circa 1595

gouache with gold on paper, inscribed "Madhu" in Persian and Devanagari in the lower border, numbered 4 in Hindi in upper border, ownership notes and seals on verso

Central image in good condition, colours and gold bright, minor hairline creases to surrounding background, external plain borders with tears to external edges, reverse with seals and impressions, some rubbed, mounted to one side, 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.
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This important painting of a female European figure praying towards the sun is ascribed in the margin to the Mughal royal artist Madhu. It is based on a European print, many of which arrived in India from the 1570s onwards through the activities of Jesuit missionaries, Portuguese and other European traders, diplomats and travellers.

Another version of the same figure features on a page of the Gulshan Album, attributed by John Seyller to Basawan circa 1590-95 (see Seyller 2011b, p.122, no.23, p.129, fig.10). In his discussion of the Gulshan page, Seyller suggests the figure of the woman may be adapted from a figure of St. John in one of Durer's versions of the Crucifixion, probably the 1508 version, with the male figure of St. John changed to a female in voluminous robes and a striking red shawl (see fig.1). As Seyller also notes, the practice of praying towards the sun was approved by Emperor Akbar as he saw the sun as a symbol of life and religious unity.

The artist Madhu was a leading painter in the royal atelier of Akbar and contributed to the Jaipur Razmnama, the Keir Collection Khamsa, the British Library (Dyson Perrins) Khamsa, the Bodleian Library Baharistan, the Baburnama, the Victoria and Albert Museum Akbarnama, the Chester Beatty Library/British Museum version of the same text and the British Library Nafahat al-Uns. Signed works by Madhu are not known after Jahangir's accession, but Verma notes that he was recorded as being in the employ of Abd al-Rahim Khan-e Khanan in 1614 and suggests that he moved from the imperial atelier to that of the Khan-e Khanan's some time after 1605 (see Verma 1994, pp.234-238). Three other artists who used the name Mahdu (Madhu Kalan, Madhu Khurd and Madhu Gujarati) are considered by Verma to be separate artists (ibid, pp.234-240).

There are a large number of librarians' notes and seal inscriptions on the reverse, the earliest of which is 1598 (see below). It is one of four works in this catalogue that have similar library notes and seals on their versos and all seem to have been transferred to the Mewar collection in the late seventeenth century (see lots 10, 11 and 12). Three other works from the same group have been sold in these rooms in the past (23 April 1996, lot 5, 8 October 2008, lot 44, and 20 April 2016, lot 49). The inscriptions and seal impressions on the reverse contain the following information:

The earliest note is dated regnal year 43 of Akbar's reign (1598).

Under Jahangir, it was inspected in regnal year 8 (1613).
Inspected in regnal year 10 (1615), accompanied by the oval seal of Abd al-Latif.

Under Shah Jahan, it was registered as property of Asaf Khan Khan-e Khanan (brother of Nur Jahan, thus Jahangir's brother-in-law, and father of Mumtaz Mahal, thus father-in-law of Shah Jahan), and was entrusted to Muhammad Sharif in regnal year 15 (1642).
Entrusted to Muzaffar in regnal year 17 (1644).
Entrusted to Shams in regnal year 18 (1645).
Entrusted to La’l Chilah (?) in regnal year 29 (1656).

The grading for this piece was given as ‘third’.

Under Alamgir it was inspected in 1069 AH (1659), accompanied by the seal of Azizullah (still using the Shah Jahani epithet).
Seal impression of Sayyid Ali al-Husayni dated 1075 AH (1664-5).

Other notes are descriptions of the painting: ‘Image of a woman who is praying to the Lordly Sun’; attribution of the painting to ‘Madhu’. Graded 'avval' ('first [class]') at upper left in a later hand and numbered '31' at the lower edge.

Mewari inventory numbers 17/ and a clerical note dated 1111 AH (1699-1700).

For the importance of Mughal Library inspection notes and valuations, see John Seyller 1997, pp. 243-349. For information about Mewari inventory inscriptions see Topsfield 1995.