A PORTRAIT OF A PRINCE, INDIA, DECCAN, EARLY 17TH CENTURY |

gouache heightened with gold on paper, the borders with 10 lines of fine diagonal nasta’liq, bold nasta’liq couplets above and below the portrait

H.K. Monif (d.1968), New York, 1940s, thence by descent.

In fairly good condition, the portrait with minor repainting and staining, the face though maintains its delicacy, the borders with creases probably caused by humidity, the text with minor smudges, the reverse with remains of tape and old identification in English in pencil, as viewed.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

The sitter of this portrait is unidentified, although an inscription above reads 'Huzuri', who could be possibly be identified with a sayyid from Qom who studied in Najaf (d.1591-92 AD). The verses around this delicate portrait are ghazals and by Ahi Torshizi Jaghata’i, a sixteenth-century poet who moved to Herat and was a companion to Gharib Mirza, a son of the Timurid Sultan Husayn Bayqara (see F. Mojtaba’i, ‘Ahi Torshizi’, The Great Islamic Encyclopaedia, edited by K. Musavi Bojnurdi, vol.ii, Tehran, 1990, p.252). Two portraits from the same album were sold at Christie’s, London, 26 October 2017, lot 186.