Ceremonial Jacket of the Last Sikh Maharajah of The Punjab Set For Auction
Edinburgh - Nov 30, 2009 (PRN):
A ceremonial jacket, valued at £60,000, belonging to Duleep Singh the youngest son of the legendary Ranjit Singh the ‘Lion-of-the-Punjab’, and the last Maharajah of the Punjab, will be sold at auction by Lyon & Turnbull in Edinburgh, Scotland on the 9th December 2009.
Duleep Singh was born on the 4th September 1838 during the zenith of the illustrious Sikh Kingdom. He ruled the Kingdom from the age of five by the power of his sword and with the fear of his name, after two wars with the British he finally surrendered his kingdom and the famed Koh-i-Noor diamond, which his family owned, to the East India Company.
He was exiled to Britain, where he became an instant favourite of Queen Victoria. He passed his time with the crème de la crème of Victorian high society; shooting regular game with the Prince of Wales at his numerous Highland and English estates, and led a most extravagant and lavish lifestyle often above his means.
Duleep Singh in the height of his days as a Suffolk Squire, was an untouchable shooter, and a fashionable gent with a taste for the finer things in life, be it canvases, sculptures, gems, or women. His appearance in dazzling jewels and semi-European dress were an essential part of him being the eye-turner at every event of its day. Invitations would flood from all over Britain and in some cases Europe too, to bring a touch of exoticness to the functions.
The jacket is also accompanied by a pair of shoes belonging to the Maharajah, and are estimated at £15,000, both are the property of a lady, and are fine examples of the richly embroidered velvets worn by the Maharajah for his formal court events, showing the high quality workmanship fit only for an Indian Prince. The shoes and the jacket were purchased from the Maharajah's English estate Elveden Hall in the 1950's
After trying his hand at writing a West End play, standing for Parliament, playing the field, the deposed Sovereign became disillusioned by his surroundings and sought to make a stand against the tyrannical establishment under the watchful eye and encouragement of the French underworld, and Tsarist Russia. His plans for resurrecting himself failed and he was tragically struck down with a stroke, dying alone and penniless in a Paris hotel room on the 22nd October 1893 far from the riches of the Punjab.
Also under the hammer will be an early painting of the legendry MAHARAJAH RANJIT SINGH, valued at £8,000, whose lasting legacy was the beautification of the Golden Temple, the holiest shrine of the Sikhs.
This portrait is a very accurate representation of Ranjit Singh, the French botanist Victor Jacquemont, a traveller in the Punjab from 1829 to 1832 wrote:
'He is a thin little man with an attractive face, though he has lost an eye from small-pox which has otherwise disfigured him little. His right eye, which remains very large, his nose is fine and slightly turned up, his mouth firm, his teeth excellent. His expression shows nobility of thought, shrewdness and penetration.'
Early depictions of the Maharajah are very scarce, the earliest known painting was discovered by a research assistant at the British Museum. The painting is currently being exhibited at the Victoria and Albert museum in 'The Splendour of India's Royal Courts Exhibition' (10 October 2009 - 17 January 2010)
The sale will also offer a host of Indian artefacts including an 18th Century enamelled belt buckle reputedly worn by Saadat Khan, the founder of the Oudh dynasty of Nawabs, a painting of Mahrajah Jagat Singh II of Mewar and several other Indian miniature paintings.
For more information, contact:
Philip Gregory
Press Office
Lyon & Turnbull
33 Broughton Place,
Edinburgh, EH1 3RR
Tel +44 (0)131 557 8844
Fax +44 (0)131 557 8668
Mobile 07767 668400
Email: philip.gregory@lyonandturnbull.com
Website: http://www.lyonandturnbull.com
