Cleveland Museum of Art

Princely ascetic in the forest visited by ladies

Date: c. 1760
Medium: Gum tempera and gold on paper
Department: Indian and Southeast Asian Art
Institution: Cleveland Museum of Art

At first glance a group of court women has gathered to visit a prince who abandoned the palace to practice yoga, as indicated by the strap around the knees of the figure seated at the right. Upon close inspection, however, the prince is being “played” by a woman dressed for the part. All the components of a pleasurable courtly Mughal gathering are present. A sumptuous carpet, bottles of alcohol, fruit, a hookah, breath-freshening paan , and a woman playing a vina have been set up in the forest as if in the palace. Hennaed fingers and jeweled anklets confirm that this prince is a woman.

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