AN ILLUSTRATED LOOSE INDIAN ALBUM FOLIO: TODI RAGINI AND POETRY
PROPERTY FROM A CANADIAN COLLECTION
Provincial Mughal School, possibly Delhi or Awadh (Oudh), Northern India, late 17th - 18th century

Opaque pigments and grey pencil heightened with gold on paper, the illustrated recto of the album folio depicting an Indian maiden in the wilderness, holding over her right shoulder a vina, a traditional Indian stringed musical instrument, and in her left hand a Mughal-style pearl and ruby necklace, standing behind her a wild black buck deer and two light-haired female deer, approaching the nayika (female heroine) cautiously, the hilly landscape featuring a small boat in the river and architectural complexes in the background, inscribed in gold ink Urdu at the top 'Ragini Todi Wafat Behradz(?)' in the centre and 'بالکل' (bilkul) or 'بالكوس' (Bal Kush?) in the upper left corner, likely later-added owner's commentaries, the illustration set within concentric polychrome rules and finely illuminated borders with gold rosette scrolls on cobalt blue ground and typical Mughal wild flowers on cream ground highlighted in gold; the verso with 8ll. of black ink Urdu nasta'liq script set in red-highlighted cloudbands, mentioning Banu Musa Ibn Mahadar Sun Lal Lal in the semi-final line, the style of the poetry following typical Persian sabk-e Hendi (Indian style) standards, set within polychrome rules and illuminated borders with gold split palmette scrolls on burgundy ground and gold speckles on cream ground.

32.3cm x 26cm

According to the traditional Rajasthani system of Ragamala musical classification, the Todi Ragini, the second wife of Hindola Raga, is a tender early morning melody associated with winter. It is believed to have its origins in tunes sung by village girls guarding the fields from foraging wild deer. The melody is usually personified as a woman carrying a vina and walking with deer and/or gazelles next to her, as depicted in the present illustration.