India & Punjab – Rare and Scarce ‘The Rajah of Benares (Kumar Sri Ishwari Prasad Nasayan Singh 1822-1889) 19th Century Indian Miniature Painting appears on Ivory, in a blacked glass surround, measures 55x60mm with provenance written on the reverse, ‘Rajah of Benares Taken from the Palace of Lucknow by one of Mr Venables Officers’. Mr Venables (1818-1858) was an Indigo planter of Azimghur who raised a troop of volunteers’ and went with General Franks 4th Division to Lucknow which took part in the attack on the Begum Kothi and [Qasiar Bagh] (Kaiserbagh) Palace. It seems one of his officers looted this as well as the lot previous, associated miniature of Begum Hazrat Mahal. Provenance: The information to the reverse of this item indicates it was taken from the Palace of Lucknow, this could have only happened during the Indian Mutiny in March 1858 when the city was captured and subsequently looted. The Palace could either be the Begum Kothi or the [Qasiar Bagh] (Kaiserbagh), both of which saw heavy fighting and much looting.