A Maiden Composing a Letter

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Possibly from a Rasikapriya series
Punjab Hills, Himachal Pradesh, Kangra or Guler, North India, circa 1830
Ink, opaque watercolour and gold on paper
25cm high, 19cm wide (42cm x 36cm including frame)
Stock no.: A4296

The maiden is seated in a pavilion and rests against a brightly coloured orange and green bolster composing a love letter. She is elaborately dressed with pearls and gold jewellery; her dress and veil are finely painted with details of gold patterns on her white dress. Her attendant is garbed in a green and gold dress and leans in from the window holding a pale yellow fan for the maiden. The miniature is framed with white and yellow alternating flowers on a dark blue border with orange stripes. See a similar Rasikapriya work in Dehejia, Rasikapriya: Ritikavya of Keshavdas in Ateleirs of Love, DK Printworld, 2013, p. 187, pl. 5.14.