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Identification and Creation

Object Number
2009.202.249
People
Unknown Artist
Title
Portrait of Maharaja Uthram Thirunal Marthanda Varma of Travancore
Classification
Paintings
Work Type
painting
Date
mid 19th century
Places
Creation Place: South Asia, India, Southern India
Culture
Indian
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/217078

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Opaque watercolor on paper
Dimensions
35 x 25 cm (13 3/4 x 9 13/16 in.)

Provenance

Recorded Ownership History
Stuart Cary Welch (by 1983 - 2008,) by descent; to his estate (2008-2009,) gift; to Harvard Art Museum.

Notes:
Object was part of long-term loan to Museum in 1983.

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, The Stuart Cary Welch Collection, Gift of Edith I. Welch in memory of Stuart Cary Welch
Accession Year
2009
Object Number
2009.202.249
Division
Asian and Mediterranean Art
Contact
am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu
Permissions

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Descriptions

Description
This painting depicts a portrait of Uthram Thirunal Marthanda Varma, the Maharaja of Travancore (r. 1846-1860).
Commentary
Label text from exhibition “Company to Crown: Perceptions and Reactions in British India,” April 8–October 15, 2011, curated by Maliha Noorani, 2009–11 Norma Jean Calderwood Curatorial Fellow, Division of Asian and Mediterranean Art, Harvard Art Museums:

The Zamorin of Calicut
Southern India, mid-19th century
Opaque watercolor on paper
Arthur M. Sackler Museum, The Stuart Cary Welch Collection, Gift of Edith I. Welch in memory of Stuart Cary Welch, 2009.202.249

One of the earliest Indian seaports, Calicut cultivated its wealth from the trade in spices, textiles, and hardwood. By the nineteenth century, the chiefs of the city’s ruling house of Tampuran were key players in East Indian trade networks. In this full-figure portrait, the Tampuran ruler Zamorin asserts his affluence and elevated status by surrounding himself with opulent adornments such as the heavily carved marble-mounted chair, velvet drapery, and fine carpets. His gaze extends beyond the viewer. The painting shows a confluence of styles; the artist used both the opaque watercolor that is a traditional Indian medium and the translucent washes favored by Europeans. The variation between thin silks and heavy velvets conveys dimensionality, with an attention to volume and perspective that situates the work within the Crown Era, with its increasing appropriation of European style.

Publication History

  • Stuart Cary Welch, Room for Wonder : Indian Painting During the British Period, 1760-1880, exh. cat., American Federation of Arts (New York, NY, 1978), Page 174-175/Figure 77
  • Manu S. Pillai, False Allies: India's Maharajahs in the Age of Ravi Varma (New Delhi, 2021), opposite p. 276

Exhibition History

  • Re-View: S231 (Islamic rotation: 7) Company to Crown, Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Cambridge, 04/08/2011 - 10/15/2011

Verification Level

This record has been reviewed by the curatorial staff but may be incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of Asian and Mediterranean Art at am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu