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Rawat Gokul Das at the Singh Sagar

Bakhta/ Bagta
1806
Not on view
This unique composition records a hunting excursion by Rawat Gokul Das (r. 1786–1821) and his court to Singh Sagar Lake Palace in July 1806. The palace, a private retreat, was secluded from the wider world and afforded rich hunting. The ruler is depicted four times, including firing his musket at waterfowl in flight. He is accompanied, according to the inscription, by his uncle Gyan Singh and the courtier Amarji. Although the silvered lake has tarnished to a dark gray, in its original condition the water must have shimmered with reflected light. Massive rock formations dominate the lower landscape, while the detailed woodlands are populated with birds, monkeys, crocodiles, and tortoise, all deftly rendered. The unusual aerial perspective was informed partly by European cartography and topographic depictions that had recently begun circulating in India

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Rawat Gokul Das at the Singh Sagar
  • Artist: Bakhta/ Bagta (active ca. 1761–1814)
  • Date: 1806
  • Culture: India, Rajasthan, Deogarh
  • Medium: Opaque watercolor, gold, and silver on paper
  • Dimensions: Image: 21 5/8 × 31 1/2 in. (55 × 80 cm)
    Framed: 27 3/8 × 37 1/4 × 1 1/8 in. (69.5 × 94.6 × 2.9 cm)
  • Classification: Paintings
  • Credit Line: Howard Hodgkin Collection, Purchase, Gift of Florence and Herbert Irving, by exchange, 2022
  • Object Number: 2022.234
  • Rights and Reproduction: Image © Ashmolean Museum, University of Oxford
  • Curatorial Department: Asian Art

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Fortified City of Ranthambhor, Bagta, Opaque watercolor and ink on paper, India (Jaipur, Rajasthan)
Fortified City of Ranthambhor
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Rawat Gokul Das at a Hunting Party, Bagta, Opaque watercolor on paper, India (Devgarh, Mewar, Rajasthan)
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Rawat Gokul Das at a Hunting Party
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dated 1808
Kunvar Anop Singh Hawking, Bagta, Opaque watercolor on paper, India (Devgarh, Mewar, Rajasthan)
Returned to lender
Kunvar Anop Singh Hawking
Bagta
ca. 1777
Darbar of Rawat Jaswant Singh with Kunvar Ragho Das, Bagta, Opaque watercolor on paper, India (Devgarh, Mewar, Rajasthan)
Returned to lender
Darbar of Rawat Jaswant Singh with Kunvar Ragho Das
Bagta
ca. 1776
Rawat Gokul Das II Hunting Tigers, Bagta, Opaque watercolor, ink, and gold on paper, Western India, Rajasthan, Devgarh
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Rawat Gokul Das II Hunting Tigers
Bagta
ca. 1800

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