PUNJAB HILLS, INDIA, LATE 18TH CENTURY

The enigmatic nature of this scene, in which a woman holding a skull in one hand and a flag in the other appears to fly over a deity in a sepulchral landscape of skulls and funeral pyres, does little to help in its attribution. Stylistically, the serene faces of the figures, the curving horizon, and the variegated sky suggests an origin in the Punjab Hills, as does the indigo floral border. A painting in the Cleveland Museum of Art attributed to Kangra (acc.no.1997.118), and depicting a similarly puzzling scene of a divine couple embracing inside a large lotus flower, has a similar style and colouring to our painting, which may hint at a shared origin.