Description:

Lot 150. INDO-CHINESE SCHOOL, ATTRIBUTED TO THE BEGUM’S BOOKS OF BIRDS, WATERCOLOUR ON PAPER

A refined and naturalistic study of a falcon perched on a slender, leafless branch. The artist achieves a delicate balance between precision and grace, capturing the bird’s composed stance and keen gaze with remarkable subtlety. Its plumage is rendered in gentle gradations of brown and grey, with soft speckling across the chest and fine brushwork defining each feather.

Executed in watercolour on paper, this work reflects the distinct aesthetic of the Begum’s Books of Birds tradition — a school of painting that flourished in India and Southeast Asia during the late 18th to early 19th centuries. These works combined the naturalistic discipline of European ornithological studies with the elegance and sensitivity of Indian miniature technique.

The result is a composition that is both scientifically observant and artistically lyrical, embodying the refined beauty of early colonial-period natural history illustration.

Length x Width: 43 x 38.5cm

Folio: 33 x 28cm

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November 4, 2025 1:00 PM GMT
London, United Kingdom

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