Maharao Ram Singh II of Kota in procession with a delegation of British officers, Kota, circa 1850

gouache with gold on paper, British officers identified with nagari inscriptions in gold, red border with inner yellow rule

Sotheby's London, 23 April 1997, lot 15.
P & D Colnaghi and Co. Ltd., London, 1983.

Damp-stain at upper left, some flaking in lower portion due to creasing with some minor retouching (overpainting), one particular large flake to bottom left-hand, and a little around the halo of Maharao Ram Singh II, (Not viewed outside of its frame), please consult a professional restorer for advice on restoration and conservation, as viewed.
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Maharao Ram Singh II of Kota (r.1826-66) commissioned large-scale paintings of court scenes, processions and hunting scenes in a distinctive style, and the present work is an important example of high-quality court painting at Kota in the mid-nineteenth century. Other examples include a procession scene in the Victoria and Albert Museum (IS.564-1952) and a polo scene in the Rao Madho Singh Trust Museum, Kota Fort (see Welch 1997, no.63, pp.202-3). Many of these paintings verge on the eccentric, he himself having a reputation for eccentricity, and it seems certain that he took a personal interest in what his artists depicted.

This particular picture is an interesting example since it shows the interaction of the ruler of Kota with British political and military authority. Turning to face the Maharao is the Political Agent for Kota, Capt. W. H. Benyon. Immediately behind Ram Singh is the Bara Sahib - the Agent to the Governor-General of Rajputana, who is Major-General (later Sir) George St. P. Lawrence. Behind him is the Political Agent for Jaipur, Major J. C. Brooke, behind him is the officer called Skinner (or Alexander - perhaps Sikander Sahib), and finally another officer, apparently an ADC to Lawrence. Along the top in the green landscape runs an inscription naming the Maharao himself with the usual honorifics.