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Lot 248

A scene from the legend of the sacred tank of immortality (amrit sarovar) told through the story of a Sikh woman, Rajni, and her leper-husband who experienced the miraculous powers of the Dukh Bhanjani ('Destroyer of Pain') ber tree
Punjab, probably Amritsar, attributed to Gian Singh 'Naqqash' (1883–1953), early 20th Century

22 May 2025, 11:00 BST
London, New Bond Street

Sold for £7,040 inc. premium

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A scene from the legend of the sacred tank of immortality (amrit sarovar) told through the story of a Sikh woman, Rajni, and her leper-husband who experienced the miraculous powers of the Dukh Bhanjani ('Destroyer of Pain') ber tree
Punjab, probably Amritsar, attributed to Gian Singh 'Naqqash' (1883–1953), early 20th Century

gouache and gold on paper, identifying inscriptions, black and orange border
255 x 350 mm.

Footnotes

Provenance
Formerly in a private collection, Glasgow, Scotland, until 2022.

The painting is captioned at different points in Gurmukhi to narrate the unfolding story:

dukh bhanjani ber, 'The 'Destroyer of Pain' jujube tree'.
pind mangan chali hai, 'She [Rajani] goes to beg in the village'.
naoun laga hai pingala, 'The leper begins to bathe'.
pingala raji hogia hai, 'The leper is cured'.
jhagarr di hai, 'She is arguing'.
jhagarra gura pas aia, 'The argument is taken to the Guru'.
sri guru arjan sahib ji jhagarra naberrde han, 'The respected master Guru Arjan resolves the argument'.

The two figures seated to the left (and below) the Guru are also identified in Gurmukhi captions as Baba Buddha ji and Bhai Gurdas ji.

The legend normally refers to the couple seeking the advice of Guru Ram Das, who went on to dig a large tank that became amritsarovar, rather than his son and successor, Guru Arjan.

See the previous lot for the attribution to the artist Gian Singh.

Additional information