AN INDIAN MINIATURE PAINTING OF KRISHNA AS SHRINATHJI, RAJASTHAN, NATHDWARA, LATE 18TH - 19TH CENTURYInk, gilt, and watercolors on paper. Depicting a night scene with Krishna as Shrinathji, dancing and playing his flute, followed by four elaborately dressed gopis holding hands and dancing to the music, surrounded by wild birds, monkeys, goats, cows, and white cranes, with a lotus pond in the foreground.Provenance: Old private collection, Philadelphia, USA, acquired in India during the 1960s, and thence by descent in the same family. The backside with inscription ‘Krishna playing the flute and Gopis enchanted - Nathdwara school, 18th cent.’.Condition: Good condition with some wear, the edges with small losses, few water stains, and minuscule tears.Dimensions: Image size 32.3 x 24 cm, Size incl. mounting 42 x 34.2 cmWith a wood frame. (2)Shrinathji is a form of Krishna, manifested as a seven-year-old child (Balak). The principal shrine of Shrinathji is the Shrinathji Temple in the temple city of Nathdwara, 48 kilometers northeast of Udaipur city in Rajasthan, India. Shrinathji is the central presiding deity of the Vaishnava sect known as Pushtimarg (the way of grace) or the Vallabha Sampradaya, established by Vallabhacharya. Shrinathji is worped mainly by the followers of Bhakti Yoga and the Vaishnavas in Gujarat and Rajasthan, and Bhatias, amongst others.Literatureparison:Compare a related miniature painting depicting Krishna as Shrinathji, 31.5 x 21.1 cm, attributed to Nathdwara and dated to the late 18th century, in the British Museum, registration number 1940,0713,0.67.pare a related miniature painting depicting the discovery of the image of Shrinathji, 25.6 x 34 cm, attributed to Nathdwara and dated to the 19th century, in the British Museum, registration number 1938,0108,0.3.Auction resultparison:Type: RelatedAuction: New York, 23 September 2020, lot 656Price: USD 6,325 or approx.EUR 6,600 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writingDescription: Tilkayat Dauji II celebrating Annakut before Shri Nathji, Nathdwara, circa 1810Expert remark: Note the smaller size (24 x 17.2 cm)