INDIA, RAJASTHAN, JAIPUR, ATTRIBUTED TO RAMJI, CIRCA 1760

This distinctive portrait represent the bulky Maharaja Sawai Madho Singh (r. 1750-1758). The maharaja's distinctive face with upturned curling mustache, stippled ax-shaped sideburns and under-chin shading is immediately recognizable. He stands in profile, the view generally associated with the elite status and Mughal portraiture. His portly figure is scantily clad, shirtless and in short pants, yet splendidly bejeweled.
Similar portraits of Maharaja Madho Singh have been attributed to his court artists Ramji and Sahib Ram, who, during the reign of Madho Singh I, carried similar artistic styles. Ramji was, however, the most prolific artist of Madho Singh's court. Compare the present painting to a portrait of Madho Singh ascribed to Ramji in the National Gallery of Victoria (see A. Topsfield, Paintings from Rajasthan in the National Gallery of Victoria, 1980, p. 41, cat. 27), closely resembling the style and execution demonstrated here. Another a portrait of Madho Singh in the collection of the National Gallery of Victoria (acc. no. AS44-1980) attributed to Ramji Das, circa 1760, draws close comparison as well.