The miniature painting has set a new world record for the most expensive classical Indian artwork. The work, attributed to Basawan, one of Mughal Emperor Akbar’s favorite artists, was sold at Christie’s London auction on October 28.
The painting depicts a family of cheetahs. It lies on a patch of fresh grass in a rocky landscape. A bubbling stream rolls towards the lower left corner. A large tree with a twisted trunk stands prominently in the upper left, providing shade for the cheetahs. The male cheetah watches contentedly while the female nurses one cub and cleans the other.
Loading images 14 times original estimate
An artwork entitled ‘A Family of Cheetahs in a Rocky Landscape’ (c. 1575–80) sold for £10,245,000 (approx ₹119.49 million crowns). That price was a staggering 14 times its original estimate. The work is from Christie’s auction “Extraordinary Paintings from the Personal Collection of Prince and Princess Sadruddin Aga Khan”.
This “very important work” in the history of early Mughal art almost broke the all-time record for an Indian painting. The record is currently held by MF Husain’s 1954 Untitled (Gram Yatra), which sold for $13.75 million at Christie’s in New York in March.
According to the accompanying essay, this study of a family of cheetahs is hailed as “one of the most striking and memorable of early Mughal paintings”.
“Excellently observed and rendered with an evocative and highly expressive naturalism, it has been firmly attributed by many leading scholars to the great master of the period, Akbar Basawan, one of the emperor’s favorite artists,” it says.
“The auction results of exceptional paintings from the personal collection of Prince and Princess Sadruddin Aga Khan illustrate the enduring appeal of artworks of this caliber with such remarkable provenance, many of which are considered ‘icons’ in the field of Indian and Persian painting,” said Christie’s.
“The public tour of the collection was exceptionally well attended and the energy and enthusiasm in the auction room is reflected in the outstanding prices achieved, including a world auction record for a classical Indian or Islamic painting. This is a landmark for the Indian and Islamic art market and a testament to the keen eye of Prince and Princess Sadruddin Aga Khan,” said Sara Plumbly, Christie’s Head of Indian Islamic Art.
Christie’s London auction featured 95 works from the princely collection of Prince and Princess Sadruddin Aga Khan, including pieces from the Indian, Persian and Ottoman schools by famous artists such as Dust Muhammad, Basawan, Ghulam Ali Khan, Bishan Singh, Reza Abbasi and Levni. It also included paintings from key collections such as the St. Petersburg Muraqqa’, the Fraser Album, and the Polier Albums.
The sale was a complete sell-out, raising a total of £45,760,485 (approx ₹533.79 million crowns). The event attracted registered participants from 20 different countries on four continents.
