Painting, Small Clive Album p. 104, a marigold plant, opaque watercolour and gold on paper, Mughal, probaly Avadh, late 17th to early 18th century

Painting, in opaque watercolour on paper, the marigold plant is painted on the plain buff ground of the paper. It is shown as a plant growing out of miniature tufts of grass with branching leaf stems, two buds and three yellow blooms on slender stems. The detailing of the stems, leaves and flowers are rendered by hatching and outlining in darker tones. The painting has an inner border of strips of beige paper outlined in black lines at the outer edge and lines in gold and green on its inner side, picked out with a red innermost ruled line. The main border is of a plain buff colour with strips of grey paper and black rulings at its outer margins and a beige-coloured strip on the inner edge which acts as a gutter for the binding of the album.

Gift of Mr. John Goelet

This miniature painting is part of the Small Clive Album of Indian miniatures which is thought to have been given by Shuja ud-Daula, the Nawab of Avadh, to Lord Clive during his last visit to India in 1765-67. It contains 56 leaves on which are Mughal miniature paintings, drawing and flower studies on both sides. The binding is covered with an Indian brocade silk that may have been cut from lengths brought home by the 2nd Lord Clive, who served as Governor of Madras, 1799 to 1803. The album was sold from Powis Castle at Sotheby's sale, 16 to 18 January 1956, lot 332A.

This flower study is included in the "Small Clive Album", a volume of Indian paintings which is thought to have been given by Shuja ad-Daula, the Nawab of Avadh, to Lord Clive during his last visit to India in 1765-67. It contains 56 folios on which are Mughal paintings, drawings and flower studies dating to the 17th and 18th centuries. The binding is covered with an Indian brocade.

IS.48:52/B-1956