Damodarlalji of Nathdwara (1897-1936)

Place of OriginRajasthan state, India; Rajasthan state, former kingdom of Mewar, former kingdom of Mewar

Dateapprox. 1925-1930

MaterialsOpaque watercolors on paper

DimensionsImage: H. 26 in × W. 20 1/2 in (66 cm × 52.1 cm)
Framed: H. 41 in × W. 31 in × D. 2 in (104.1 cm × 78.7 cm × 5.1 cm)

Credit LineFrom the Collection of William K. Ehrenfeld, M.D.

Object number2005.64.173

DepartmentSouth Asian Art

ClassificationsPainting

On View

Not on view

Text Entries

Object Label

In this portrait, Damodarlalji, the son of a famous chief priest at the Rajasthani pilgrimage temple of Nathadwara, appears as a cosmopolitan man of his time with elegant tastes. While priests often came from elite families, they were always simply attired, but here Damodarlalji stands confidently dressed as befits a prince in a brocaded silk robe, with jewelry and ornamented turban, Western-style shoes, and a walking stick. Nothing about his appearance indicates his long-standing family connections with the Nathadwara shrine, although he was expected to succeed his father (but did not take the position) as the temple’s keeper and overseer of its religious ceremonies. The portrait’s naturalism initially suggests that this is a painted photograph, but x-ray analysis reveals only a hand-rendered underdrawing on the paper. Presumably the artist was using a photograph as the basis for his painting.