Indian Raja in State Dress, Antique Hand-Colored Costume Print, Berghaus, 1854

Indian Raja in State Dress, an original antique hand colored print of 1854 from the second volume of Heinrich Berghaus's work on the peoples of the world in its Dutch edition. The plate is captioned in Dutch RAJA (VORST DER HINDO'S)., which reads in English as Raja (prince of the Hindus). The figure is a seated prince, shown smoking a water pipe. The coloring is applied by hand over a printed outline.

He sits cross-legged on a mat against a large blue cushion, facing the viewer, with a full moustache under a red turban set with a jewel, a feather plume and strings of pearls hanging at the side. He holds the mouthpiece of a long flexible pipe to his lips; the pipe runs to a tall water pipe standing at the right, smoke rising from its bowl. He wears a yellow robe sprigged with small red and green flowers, many strings of pearls and a jeweled pendant at his chest, and light blue trousers, with yellow slippers before him. A large fan of peacock feathers rests against his left shoulder.

Apart from the caption the sheet carries no lettering: no artist, lithographer or printer is named, and there is no plate number above or below the image. The scene is vignetted on the plain paper of the page with no frame line around it.

The plate comes from the second volume of De Volken van den Aardbodem, the Dutch edition of Heinrich Berghaus's illustrated work on the peoples of the world, translated from the German by M. J. van Oven and published at Gorinchem by J. Noorduyn en Zoon in 1854. The title page of the volume announces 120 extra fine plates colored after nature. Berghaus was a German geographer, best known for his Physikalischer Atlas.

Light uneven toning, browner towards the edges. Marked handling soiling along all four edges. Scattered light foxing in the margin. Slight wear at the bottom right corner. Several larger brown marks.

This is an original antique print, not a modern reproduction. This item is sold unframed.