watercolour on J. Whatman paper, watermarked 1794, depicting the pietra dura work on the top of the cenotaph of Shah Jahan in the Taj Mahal, inscribed in ink: Upon the Top of the King's Cenotaph above..., 36.7 x 36.2cm (image); 48.5 x 65cm (folio)

Provenance: Edward Strachey (1774-1832), thence by descent; Private collection, London, 1975-2023.

Published: Four Rivers from Eden: Works of Art and Paintings from the Islamic and Indian World, Oliver Forge and Brendan Lynch 2023, no.73

This painting is thought to have been commissioned or purchased during Edward Strachey's tour of Northern India, from Calcutta to Poona in 1798. Strachey was the second son of Sir Henry Strachey, private secretary to Robert Clive, and was a noted scholar in India until 1810, when he came to England where he remained until his death in 1832. This painting is one of a group from his collection, depicting the inlay work on the Taj Mahal, nine others of which were sold in London in 1975 (Christie's, 4 December 1975).