European Fortune Teller Feeding Pet Birds

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European Fortune Teller Feeding Pet Birds

India, Rajasthan, Mewar, Udaipur, 1700-1725
Drawings; watercolors
Opaque watercolor and ink on paper
Image: 7 3/4 x 6 in. (19.68 x 15.24 cm); Sheet: 11 x 8 5/8 in. (27.94 x 21.9 cm)
Purchased with funds provided by Harry and Yvonne Lenart (M.85.139.1)
Not currently on public view

Curator Notes

The Indian fascination with exotic foreigners is evident in this representation of a European fortune teller bestowed with a topknot, mustache, and goatee....
The Indian fascination with exotic foreigners is evident in this representation of a European fortune teller bestowed with a topknot, mustache, and goatee. He sports a floral sprig in his hair and on his chest. He wears a loose shawl over a shirt with a lace collar and folded cuffs, both features alien to Indian fashion. The fortune tellers’ birds would pick a playing card to tell the customer’s future or fortune, thus making his occupation seem equally outlandish to his audience. Here, he is feeding his birds a spoonful of seeds. An almost identical representation in the British Museum (1956,0714,0.28) omits the mustache and goatee; hence, it has been misinterpreted as female despite the vaguely rendered nipples and chest hair. The inscription in devanagari script in the upper border, probably added later, misidentifies the figure as an “oliya” (Arabic: auliya) or Muslim saint.
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Bibliography

  • Markel, Stephen. "The Enigmatic Image: Curious Subjects in Indian Art." Asianart.com, July 28, 2015. http://asianart.com/articles/enigmatic.

     

  • Blondet, José Luis. Six Scripts for Not I: Throwing Voices (1500 BCE-2020 CE). Los Angeles: Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 2020.