20th May, 2026 11:00
Live Sale: Indian, Islamic, Himalayan and South-East Asian Art 2026
41
A SAFAVID DRAWING OF A HORSEMEN, IN THE STYLE OF REZA-I-ABBASI, PERSIA, CIRCA 1600
in ink and wash on paper, the horsemen gallops away from a masked assailant holding a sword and another wielding a spear, both emerging from behind a rocky outcrop, image 3.8 x 13.8cm., framed and glazed
Provenance:
Collection of Robert Skelton, O.B.E. (1929-2022).
Spink and Son, exhibition of Islamic and Indian Art, 1977, cat. no. 25/1
Robert noted that this drawing came from the 'famous Riza Abbasi album' and that it was in "Spink exhibition at the time of Festival of Islam. There were two of them. When I saw them in the exhibition I didn't have any thought of buying it."..."I went there with Linda Leach who wanted to buy things, and the drawings were 200 pounds or so. She said "shall we buy them together?" So we split them. We owned them jointly for a while'...'In the end I bought them both. (Of which this is one).'
Sold for £3,000
in ink and wash on paper, the horsemen gallops away from a masked assailant holding a sword and another wielding a spear, both emerging from behind a rocky outcrop, image 3.8 x 13.8cm., framed and glazed
Provenance:
Collection of Robert Skelton, O.B.E. (1929-2022).
Spink and Son, exhibition of Islamic and Indian Art, 1977, cat. no. 25/1
Robert noted that this drawing came from the 'famous Riza Abbasi album' and that it was in "Spink exhibition at the time of Festival of Islam. There were two of them. When I saw them in the exhibition I didn't have any thought of buying it."..."I went there with Linda Leach who wanted to buy things, and the drawings were 200 pounds or so. She said "shall we buy them together?" So we split them. We owned them jointly for a while'...'In the end I bought them both. (Of which this is one).'
Auction: Live Sale: Indian, Islamic, Himalayan and South-East Asian Art 2026, 20th May, 2026
The sale includes the collection of Robert Skelton OBE, curator of Indian Art at the Victoria and Albert Museum. It comprises some exquisite 18th and 19th century Indian paintings and drawings as well as a fine group of modern Indian paintings with works by Shiavax Chavda (1914 - 1990), Francis Newton Souza (1924 - 2002), K Laxma Goud (B. 1940) and Jayashree Chakravarty (B. 1956). Tiles, Indian bronzes, thewa boxes, a silver gilt ewer, a ‘Koftgari’ pen box and a Mughal carved black jade dagger are also among the lots in this collection.
Also in the same sale is 10th -12th century Persian pottery, a monumental pair of 19th century doors, Persian and Syrian ceramics including tiles, also Iznic tiles from Ottoman Anatolia. Other lots include Indian bronze figures, small furniture, textiles and rugs.
Auction Location: London, UK
Monday 18th May: 10am to 5:30pm
Tuesday 19th May: 10am to 5pm
Viewing
PUBLIC EXHIBITION:
Sunday 17th May: 12pm to 4pm
Monday 18th May: 10am to 5:30pm
Tuesday 19th May: 10am to 5pm
CONTACT
indianandislamic@olympiaauctions.com + 44 (0)20 7806 5545
