The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of December 18, 2025

Posthumous portrait of Raja Chhatar Singh of Chamba smoking a hookah

c. 1700

Northern India, Pahari kingdoms

Gum tempera and ink on paper
Page: 19.7 x 16.4 cm (7 3/4 x 6 7/16 in.); Image: 15.3 x 12.6 cm (6 x 4 15/16 in.)
Purchase and partial gift from the Catherine and Ralph Benkaim Collection; Severance and Greta Millikin Purchase Fund 2018.109
Location: Not on view

Did You Know?

The Raja wears a Central Asian robe instead of the popular Mughal jama.

Description

Raja Chattar Singh’s reign is considered a period of prosperity for Chamba which resulted in the expansion of boundaries and economic prosperity. He is best known for defying Aurangzeb’s orders to demolish all the Hindu temples in his realm, and instead installed copper gilts on the temples which exist to this day.
  • ?–1968
    Unknown
    ?–2012
    Doris Wiener, New York, NY
    2012–2018
    Catherine and Ralph Benkaim Collection, Los Angeles
    2018–
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • {{cite web|title=Posthumous portrait of Raja Chhatar Singh of Chamba smoking a hookah|url=false|author=|year=c. 1700|access-date=18 December 2025|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/2018.109