PaintingsIndian18th-19th century

Todi Ragini

late 18th-early 19th century

Description

Contained within a border of lotus blossoms is a scene in which a young female figure, the Todi Ragini, sits in the fork of a tree. She wears a gold skirt, cropped top, and a shawl that is draped over her head, her long black hair peeking out from underneath. She extends her right hand proper to a male black buck, which approaches with three female black bucks. Two female attendants stand near the tree, one of whom carries a "veena", a South Asian stringed instrument. A narrow, silvery stream runs across the foreground. The background is composed of bands of landscape in several shades of green, treetops, and a large, silvery band of river. At the top left are the rooftops of small buildings, and at the right is a fortified wall encircling a white palatial structure. Written twice on the reverse in Arabic script are the words “ragini todi.” Rajput, Rajasthani.

Classification

Paintings

Medium

Opaque watercolor and gold on paper

Culture

Indian

Century

18th-19th century

Division

Asian and Mediterranean Art

Department

Department of Islamic & Later Indian Art

Dimensions

H. 31 × W. 23 cm (12 3/16 × 9 1/16 in.)

Provenance

[Charles D. Kelekian, New York (by 1952-1982)], by descent; to [Kelekian Associates, New York (1982-1992)], by descent; to Nanette Rodney Kelekian, New York (1992-2021), bequest; to the Harvard Art Museums. NOTE: "Kelekian Associates" was formed at the death of Charles D. Kelekian by Nanette Rodney Kelekian and her mother Beatrice Kelekian. Upon Beatrice Kelekian’s death in 1992, ownership passed to Nanette Rodney Kelekian.