Ranjit Singh

This is a conventional portrait of the first Sikh maharaja of the Panjab, Ranjit Singh (r.1801–1839). He is shown according to conventions derived from Mughal painting, with a halo and with a parasol held over his head by a bearer, indicating his royal status. He is shown from his right profile to conceal his blind eye, the result of childhood smallpox that also disfigured his skin. The portrait was probably painted in about 1838, when its former owner, Lord Auckland, visited the Sikh court. Lord Auckland was Governor-General of India from 1836 to 1842, and brought the painting back to England. The portrait was presented to the V&A by Lord Auckland’s great-nephew, O.E. Dickinson, in 1953.