Maharana Sangram Singh Riding a Prize Stallion

Stipple Master

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Presented within a long-standing tradition of imperial portraiture, Maharana Sangram Singh sits on rearing horse flanked by attendants holding fly whisks. A radiant halo further aggrandizes the king and references his dynastic descent from the sun god. The premier artist who executed this work used a stippling technique that is otherwise unknown in Rajput painting, though it does have Mughal and Deccan precedents. This distinctive approach coupled with a sparse use of color allows the paper substrate to show through, giving the painting a dreamlike quality seen in works from the period only by this artist.

Asian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Met's collection of Asian art—more than 35,000 objects, ranging in date from the third millennium B.C. to the twenty-first century—is one of the largest and most comprehensive in the world. Each of the many civilizations of Asia is represented by outstanding works, providing an unrivaled experience of the artistic traditions of nearly half the world.

Metropolitan Museum of Art