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Expert’s note
Used as an indicator of high rank, such a monumental fish head standard would have been mounted on a pole and exhibited during important processions, carried either by hand or mounted on an elephant or camel. It is rare to find intact models of such standards and the present example presents a unique opportunity to acquire a symbol of high Mughal honor.
Mahi-maratib is noted as being the chief insignia awarded by the Mughal Emperor to give recognition to important allied rulers, those who could bring 6000 zat sawars (horsemen) with them when they joined the emperor on campaign. It was carried in procession ahead of the ruler, flanked by two discs or spheres with which it was associated.
The fish’s body, extending from the head, is now invariably fashioned from red cloth that streams out behind it. A painting from Jodhpur, however, depicts the emblem carried in procession on an elephant with a more naturalistically rendered silver fish body attached to the golden head, perhaps providing a closer indication of its original appearance (fig. 1). An earlier depiction in the Procession of Abdallah Qutb Shah, dating to the mid-17th century, shows the entire emblem in red (fig. 2). Its presence in the Deccan by this date supports the traditional account of the Mughal mahi-maratib as deriving from an earlier insignia whose origins can be traced back at least to the Tughluq Sultans of Delhi (1320-1414).
Inscriptions: The palm and fingers of the hand-form finial incised in Devanagari with the Gayatri mantra, arranged according to the ritual sequences of kara-nyasa and anga-nyasa.
The Gayatri mantra, first recorded in the Rigveda, is among the oldest and most sacred invocations of the Hindu tradition. Addressed to Savitr, the divine power of the sun, it asks that his radiant light illuminate and inspire the human intellect. The name Gayatri originally refers to the verse’s meter, composed of twenty-four syllables arranged in three lines, although the mantra was later personified as the goddess Gayatri, Mother of the Vedas. In ritual practice, it is commonly preceded by o? bhur bhuva? sva?, invoking earth, the atmosphere, and heaven. On the present figure, the mantra is divided between the fingers and palm according to the rites of kara-nyasa and anga-nyasa, symbolically installing its sacred power within the hands and body.
Nyasa literally means “placing,” “depositing,” or “installing.” In ritual practice, portions of a mantra are symbolically installed in the practitioner’s body by reciting them while touching designated places. Kara-nyasa means “installation upon the hands” (kara, hand). Sections of the mantra are assigned successively to the thumbs, index fingers, middle fingers, ring fingers, little fingers, and finally the palms and backs of the hands. This consecrates the hands before they perform worship, offerings, or ritual gestures. Anga-nyasa means “installation upon the limbs or parts of the body” (anga, limb or bodily member). The mantra is assigned to the heart, head, crown, protective armor, three eyes, and ritual weapon. The purpose is to transform the practitioner’s ordinary body into a ritually purified and divine body. The mantra is no longer merely spoken: it is understood to inhabit the hands and body. On this object, the concept is made unusually literal. The Gayatri mantra’s kara-nyasa formula is engraved directly upon the fingers and palm, while its anga-nyasa formula occupies the central palm. Thus, the inscription is a ritual diagram of the mantra’s placement, rather than a dedication or ordinary prayer.
Finely constructed from gilt-copper sheets, the fish head modeled with a broad rounded cranium, elongated upturned snout, and a wide gaping mouth lined with two rows of sharply pointed teeth. The face with large almond-shaped eyes and boldly articulated contours lending the creature a dramatic, almost fantastical expression. The mouth encloses a movable red fabric-covered cushion forming the protruding tongue, while the rear of the head is fitted with the remains of the traditional textile body, intended to stream behind the standard when carried.
The crown is surmounted by an upright hand-form finial engraved with inscriptions across the palm and fingers, while the underside is fitted with a cylindrical iron socket for attachment to a carrying pole.
Provenance: Karen Beagle, London, circa 1990. Collection of Carlos Crua?as Dalmau, Barcelona, Spain, acquired from the above. Karen Beagle (1960-2021), born in Patna, Bihar, was a highly respected dealer and connoisseur of Asian art, renowned for her discerning eye and specialist knowledge. After moving to England in 1983, she and her husband Allan established the Beagle Gallery in Notting Hill, London, where she specialized in Buddhist art from India, Nepal, Tibet, and China; she eventually relocated to Hong Kong in 2010. Works handled by her have since entered important institutional collections, including the Museum Rietberg in Zurich, Switzerland.
Condition: Very good condition with expected wear, manufacturing irregularities, traces of use, small dings, few nicks, tiny losses, minor touchups to polychrome pigments, light warping, rubbing to gilding. The accompanying fabric body with minor soiling, small holes, and tears as expected. At least some of the textiles are of a more recent date than the actual standard.
Weight: 38.8 kg
Dimensions: Length 65 cm, Height 184 cm (incl. stand)
With an associated metal stand. (2)
The mahi-maratib was modeled after the Labeo rohita, commonly known as the rohu or rui, a freshwater fish prized as a delicacy in the Gangetic plain and Bengal. A recipe for fried rohu is even recorded in the Manasollasa, a Sanskrit encyclopedia that also contains an extensive section on food and cookery, compiled in the 12th century. The insignia consisted of an oversized fish head, complete with scales and teeth, mounted on a tall pole. A long length of fabric representing the fish’s body was attached behind the head and billowed as air passed through the fish’s open mouth. Carried in procession, the fish emblem was accompanied by two golden spheres mounted on poles, one on either side. Together, these insignia were known as the mahi-o-maratib, or “Fish and the Two Dignities.”
Several mahi forms are known from surviving examples and depictions in painting. They include whole metal fish in a naturalistic style, rigid fish profiles with symbols such as crescents attached (see literature comparison below), fish banners made entirely of cloth, and metal fish heads, like the present lot, with billowing cloth bodies. The latter variety became especially prevalent at the Rajput courts, and several eighteenth-century examples are known from royal collections in Rajasthan.
Literature comparison:
Compare a closely related Mahi Marat's in 8 pieces (flag-set) with crescent attached, Deccan, 58 cm long, in the Salar Jung Museum, Hyderabad, accession number ACQ-67-11. Compare a closely related mahi-maratib (fish standard), Northern Deccan, dated c. 1700, 66 cm long, in the Furusiyya Art Foundation, and exhibited in Sultans of Deccan India, 1500–1700: Opulence and Fantasy, 2015, cat. no. 180, p .303. Compare a closely related mahi maratib preserved at the Junagarh Palace and Museum, Bikaner, Rajasthan. Compare a closely related mahi maratib preserved at the Darbar Hall, Jai Vilas Palace, Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh.
Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Christie’s London, 1 April 2021, lot 54
Price: GBP 47,500 or approx. EUR 91,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A gilt-copper fish standard (Mahi-Maratib), Mughal India, circa 1700
Expert remark: Compare the closely related form, modeling, and gilding, showing a similarly stylized fish head with an upturned snout. Note the size (62 x 73 cm).
Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Sotheby’s London, 5 October 2011, lot 289
Mid-Estimate: GBP 50,000 or approx. EUR 89,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A rare monumental gilt copper fish standard (mahi maratib), India, 18th/19th century
Expert remark: Compare the closely related form, modeling, and gilding, showing a similarly stylized fish head with an upturned snout.
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