A GROUP OF FIFTEEN FOLIOS FROM A KALPA SUTRA MANUSCRIPTGUJARAT, 15TH CENTURY Opaque watercolor and ink on paper; each folio is double-sided with Prakrit text in Jain nagari script; 1 folio has text only, 13 folios are illustrated on one side, 1 folio is illustrated on both sides, for a total of 15 illustrations. Folios: 4 3/8 x 10 3/8 in. (11.2 x 26.4 cm) approx Displaying an excellent array of illustrated subjects from the major canonical text of the Jain religion, these folios are fine and characteristic examples of Jain miniature painting. The Kalpa Sutra ('Book of Ritual'), ascribed to Bhadrabahu (d. 385 BCE), describes the life of the 24 Jinas: beings liberated from rebirth. The last of these is Mahavira, who lived in the 6th century BCE and was the founder of the Jain religion, while the others are predominantly his mythical precursors. Among the subjects illustrated within this group of folios are robed Jinas, crowned Jinas, celestial Jina assembly halls, a Jina-mandala, Jina mothers, Jain mother goddesses, a nativity scene, and narrative scenes with kings and queens. Four leaves, possibly from the same manuscript, were sold at , New York, 18 March 2013, lot 66, and 23 September, 2020, lot 651. Another with a similar arrangement of a celestial assembly hall was sold at , London, 10 April 2008, lot 75. Also see Pal, The Classical Tradition in Rajput Painting , 1978, p.48, no.1. Provenance: Rudi Oriental Arts, New York Private Californian Collection, acquired from the above 1970s/80s