Johnson 5,4

Designs for cards for a game of the ganjifa type.

Commissioned by Richard Johnson, Lucknow, c.1780-82.

Richard Johnson Collection. Purchased 1807.

Inscribed in red with the titles of the suits in Persian characters, each prefixed with the word ‘bazi’ (play):’ taj’ (crown), ‘qimash’ (furnishing), ‘barat’ (letter), ‘sefid’ (white), ‘ghulam’ (slave),’ surkh’ (red), ‘chanak’ (harp), ‘shamshir’ (sword).

Drawing with gold; circular; on paper.

59 mm diameter; page 610 by 790 mm.

The total of ninety-six circular illustrations form a series very similar to J.5, 3, and are arranged in eight rows of twelve for the eight suits: Crowns, Furnishings, Letters, Whites, Slaves, Reds, Harps and Swords. Each suit has ten cards with the respective objects from one to ten, plus two royalty (‘mir’ and ‘vazir’) making twelve in all.

Note: The order in which the suits are arranged is not standard, the normal order being that of J.5, 3. Rudi von Leyden has pointed out that the numeral cards are related to the Douce cards (Bodleian Library, set 3, Box II) in composition though not in style. The Douce cards are in the Hyderabad style, and it would seem that as with the ‘ragamala’ designs for Album 66, Johnson took these designs with him to Hyderabad where the cards were made. It is possible that some of the Douce cards originally belonged to Johnson, although there is no record in the Douce papers of a gift or purchase from Johnson.