Ragamala Miniatures in the Collection of the State Museum of Oriental Art: An Attempt at Attribution

Abstract

The article is devoted to nine Indian miniatures from the collection of the State Museum of Oriental Art (Moscow). The aim of this study is to provide an academic description of these items, and to clarify their attributions. All the works in question have been thoroughly studied: the author conducted an iconographic, textological and stylistic analysis of the objects. He also looked for compositional and stylistic analogues among the miniature paintings (mainly from foreign collections), published in catalogues, monographs, articles, and on the Internet (on the websites of museums and libraries); the items identified were carefully analysed. On the basis of the abovementioned study, the author identifies nine sheets in the collection as miniatures of Ragamala series; in some cases it is also possible to clarify the time and place of their creation. Ragamala is a unique phenomenon of medieval painting of Hindustan, representing a visualisation of Indian musical modes. The musical material is embodied by the depiction of scenes that may contain motifs similar to those found in Baramasa ( Twelve Months ), Nayaka-Nayika (types of the heroes and heroines of classical drama), and other series of Indian miniature painting. This fact leads to closer attention to iconographic schemes and signatures of the items discussed. This article summarises a five-year study of the authentication of Ragamala miniatures in the collection of the State Museum of Oriental Art.