LACMA

ShopMembershipMyLACMATickets
LACMA
Los Angeles County Museum of Art
5905 Wilshire Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90036
info@lacma.org
(323) 857-6000
Sign up to receive emails
Subscribe
© Museum Associates 2026
  • About LACMA
  • Jobs
  • Building LACMA
  • Host An Event
  • Unframed
  • Press
  • FAQs
  • Log in to MyLACMA
  • Privacy Policy
© Museum Associates 2026
Collections

Unknown
Maharaja Kalyan Singh of Kishangarh (r. 1798-1839)1808

Not on view
Indian miniature painting depicting five court figures in Mughal-era dress gathered outdoors, the central haloed figure holding a falcon, set against dramatic pale cliffs and dark green trees

Unknown, Maharaja Kalyan Singh of Kishangarh (r. 1798-1839), 1808, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Purchased with funds provided by Dr. and Mrs. J. Pollock, photo © Museum Associates/LACMA

Artist or Maker
Unknown
Title
Maharaja Kalyan Singh of Kishangarh (r. 1798-1839)
Place Made
India, Rajasthan, Kishangarh
Date Made
1808
Medium
Opaque watercolor and gold on paper
Dimensions
Image: 10 1/4 x 7 1/4 in. (26.03 x 18.41 cm); Sheet: 11 5/8 x 8 5/8 in. (29.51 x 22 cm)
Credit Line
Purchased with funds provided by Dr. and Mrs. J. Pollock
Accession Number
M.85.36
Classification
Drawings
Collecting Area
South and Southeast Asian Art
Curatorial Notes

Maharaja Kalyan Singh (r. 1798-1839) was born in 1794. He ascended the throne in 1798 and reigned under a Council of Regency until he came of age and assumed full ruling powers in 1818. He resigned his administrative powers in 1832 in favor of his son, Prince Mokkam Singh (1817-1841; r.1839-1841), and died in 1839. A devanagari inscription on the reverse states that the nimbate Kalyan Singh was fourteen years old at the time of this royal portrait, hence it was executed in 1808. A portrait of Kalyan Singh painted in 1830 is in the British Library, London (Add. 27254, f.63v).

The nimbate Kalyan Singh is depicted seated on an orange carpet with a falcon perched on his gloved right hand. He is conferring with two Rajput nobles seated in front of him with an attendant behind them. Kalyan Singh is accompanied by two armed attendants, one of whom carries an honorific peacock feather fly whisk (morchal) signifying royalty. The meeting is being held on a small island in a pool below a waterfall in a Kishangarh-style landscape with waterfowl in the foreground.