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Noblewoman at a Jharokha Window Holding a Rose, from a Portraits of Women series
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art. Free to download, adapt and use — no permission needed.
About this work
A royal woman stands on a palace balcony under a cusped arch. The carpet draped over the railing in front of her indicates to viewers that the person is a member of the royal family. The rulers of small kingdoms adopted the Mughal practice of locating the emperor in the jharokha window and expanded it to include other members of the royal household. They also adopted the Mughal taste for scalloped arches, swirling arabesque flowering-vine motifs, and images of flowering plants on the carpet. Her oversized eye emphasizes the importance of seeing and being seen.
Cleveland Museum of Art’s own descriptionCredit lineNoblewoman at a Jharokha Window Holding a Rose, from a Portraits of Women series, c. 1730. Northwestern India, Rajasthan, Rajput Kingdom of Sawar. Gum tempera and gold on paper; page: 28 x 25.2 cm (11 x 9 15/16 in.); miniature: 24.8 x 21.6 cm (9 3/4 x 8 1/2 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Purchase and partial gift from the Catherine and Ralph Benkaim Collection; Severance and Greta Millikin Purchase Fund, 2018.182
