Returned to lender The Met accepts temporary loans of art both for short-term exhibitions and for long-term display in its galleries.
Muhammad Osman Khan
Claude-André Deseine French
Not on view
In his portrait of the Mysore ambassador, Deseine lends the figure a sense of autonomy and dignity. The artist, who signed this work "deaf and mute," faithfully recorded the delicate folds of Osman Khan’s fine muslin jama (robe), complete with decorative tie closures, asymmetrical neckline, and sash. The stylized chain of flowers encircling his turban, neckline, and sword belt recalls the painter Elisabeth Vigée Le Brun’s account of another Mysore ambassador’s gold-embroidered robe.