INDIA, DATIA, 1760

• Inscribed in Nagari (Braj) on the recto: [Left Border] Nagari numeral ‘185’; on the recto [Top border]: tīja parava sautini saje bhūṣana vasana sarīra || sabai margaje muh kare bahe maragajaiṁ cīra || ukti sakhī kī sakhī sau || nāikā prema garvitā alaṁkāra asaṁgati || (Translated: On the festival day of Tij (Monsoon Festival), the co-wives adorn their bodies with ornaments and fine garments; yet before her their faces appear sullied, even though she herself is clad in a soiled, crumpled sari. Spoken by one sakhi to another. The heroine is prema-garvita (proud through love). The poetic device is asamgati (incongruity)). Inscribed in Nagari (Braj) on the verso: Oṁ Hariḥ Oṁ || Tīja paraba sotina saje bhūṣana Vasana śarīra || sabai margaje muh kare bahe maragaje cīra || sakhī prati sakhyokti asaṁgati alaṁkāra || nāikā prema garvitā || nambar || 185||(Translated: Invocation to Hari. On the festival day of Tij (Monsoon Festival), the co-wives adorn their bodies with ornaments and fine garments; yet before her their faces appear sullied, even though she herself is clad in a soiled, crumpled sari. Spoken by one sakhi to another. The poetic device is asamgati (incongruity). The heroine is prema-garvita (proud through love))
• 20,3 x17,8 cm (8,0 x7,0in)