A chukar partridge

Object Details

Court

Mughal Court

School/Tradition

Mughal school

Description

Detached folio from a dispersed manuscript; text panels in Persian black nasta'liq script; A chukar partridge.

Border: The painting is set in red and blue rulings surrounded by a brown color inner frame and a purple outer frame mounted on paperboard with knotwork motifs.

Marks

Verso of Matting: octagonal sticker, blue border, 144 is—, written in black ink

Verso of Matting: octagonal sticker, blue border, 144 is—, written in black ink

Inscriptions

On the top and bottom text panels, the partridge walked in a cheerful gait/ proud and self-satisfied it came forth/ red beaked and robed in black/ causing blood to boil from its sight.

Label

The chukar partridge appears continually in paintings from both Iran and India, being especially prominent during the sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries. The appearance of seemingly individualized animal studies such as this has long been taken as evidence of Mughal interest in the immediate observation of nature. In fact, such illustrations were frequently derived from specific motifs in earlier paintings.

Provenance

By 1929-1942

Henri Vever (1854-1942), method of acquisition unknown [1]

1942-1947

Jeanne Louise Monthiers (1861-1947), bequest of Henri Vever [2]

1947-1986

Francois Mautin (1907-2003), bequest of Jeanne Louise Monthiers and Henri Vever [3]

From 1986

Arthur M. Sackler Gallery purchased from Francois Mautin [4]

Notes:

[1] An accomplished French jeweler and collector, Henri Vever (1854-1942) amassed a large and impressive collection of works of art during his lifetime. His holdings in Japanese prints and Islamic arts of the books, especially from Iran and India, were among the most important assembled in the early twentieth century. Its unclear when and from where Vever acquired this work, but it was in his collection by 1929 when it was published in Ivan Stchoukine, “La Peinture Indienne a l’époque des Grands Moghols,” (Paris: Librairie Ernest Leroux, 1929), 205 and figure XXVI.

[2] Upon Henri Vever’s death on September 25, 1942, his wife, Jeanne Louise Monthiers inherited the work. See exhibits F and G of Agreement of Purchase and Sale of the Henri Vever Collection, January 9, 1986, copy in object file.

[3] Upon the death of Jeanne Louise Monthiers, as stipulated in the will of Henri Vever, the family’s assets were divided evenly between his two grandchildren. His only grandson, Francois Mautin inherited the collection known as “The Henri Vever Collection of Oriental Art and Manuscripts Including Persian and Indian Art and Manuscripts.” This work is part of that collection. See exhibits F and G as cited in note 2.

[4] The Arthur M. Sackler Gallery purchased the entirety of the collection from Francois Mautin on January 9, 1986. See purchase agreement, copy in object file.

Research updated August 22, 2023.

Collection

Arthur M. Sackler Collection

Exhibition History

Akbar The Great Emperor of India (October 23, 2012 to February 3, 2013)

L'Age d'or des sciences arabes (October 25, 2005 to March 19, 2006)

Arts of Mughal India (1992) (May 24 to December 6, 1992)

A Jeweler's Eye: Islamic Arts of the Book from the Vever Collection (November 20, 1988 to April 30, 1989)

Previous custodian or owner

Henri Vever (1854-1942)

Jeanne Louise Monthiers (1861-1947)

Francois Mautin (1907-2003)

Credit Line

Purchase — Smithsonian Unrestricted Trust Funds, Smithsonian Collections Acquisition Program, and Dr. Arthur M. Sackler

late 16th century

Period

Mughal dynasty

Accession Number

S1986.413

Restrictions & Rights

Usage conditions apply

Type

Painting

Medium

Opaque watercolor and ink on cloth

Dimensions

H x W (overall): 29.3 x 19.9 cm (11 9/16 x 7 13/16 in)

H x W (image): 17 x 10.2 cm (6 11/16 x 4 in)

Origin

India

Related Online Resources

Google Cultural Institute

See more items in

Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Collection

Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery

Topic

flower

Mughal dynasty (1526 - 1858)

quail

India

South Asian and Himalayan Art

Henri Vever collection

Record ID

fsg_S1986.413

Metadata Usage (text)

Not determined

GUID (Link to Original Record)

http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ye3f08e01d5-5ece-4818-a9f5-8947e4f0d5ff