Women enjoying the river at the forest’s edge (recto) and flowering marigold (verso) India, Murshidabad or Lucknow, Mughal, 18th century

Women enjoying the river at the forest’s edge (recto) and flowering marigold (verso)

c. 1765

style of Hunhar II

(Indian, active mid-1700s)

India, Murshidabad or Lucknow, Mughal, 18th century

Page: 33.1 x 24.9 cm (13 1/16 x 9 13/16 in.)

Gift in honor of Madeline Neves Clapp; Gift of Mrs. Henry White Cannon by exchange; Bequest of Louise T. Cooper; Leonard C. Hanna Jr. Fund; From the Catherine and Ralph Benkaim Collection 2013.351

Location: not on view

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Did You Know?

Mangoes are in varying stages of ripeness, from green to bright orange-yellow.

Description

The image of young women at play, in association with water and the fruiting of trees, such as this mango, has been used in Indian art to signal the idea of prosperity and abundance. Rain clouds approach that will nourish the land. The pairs of women on the banks sample perfumes, and in front of them bowls made of leaves appear to hold jasmine flowers for adorning the hair. One woman smokes a hookah and looks on as two companions frolic in the rivulet. The palace’s white marble buildings are barely indicated in the far distance.