Bani Thani Bathing at Pholl Sagar Palace

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Artist: Kishangarh school (Indian)
Medium: Opaque watercolors and gold on paper
Size: 6 13/16 x 10 13/16 in. (17.3 x 27.46 cm)
Museum: Minneapolis Institute of Art
Rights: Public Domain Mark

This finely detailed miniature is a later version of a classic mid-eighteenth-century Kishangarh painting. Popular themes and pictorial styles were perpetuated and specific works meticulously copied well after their historic period. The minute detail and exacting craftsmanship of this copy confirm that the technical abilities of miniature painters did not necessarily decrease with time.

Hindu devotional poetry and the polished eighteenth-century Mughal painting style melded at Kishangarh during the reign of Savant Singh (1748-57). As in this painting, the love sports of Radha and Krishna were allegorized in palace and lakeside settings. The real basis for this work is Savant Singh's love for the court dancer Bani Thani, shown being bathed in the middle foreground as Savant Singh rides around the palace grounds in the distance.

Text: Minneapolis Institute of Art (Mia), CC BY 4.0.