JOHAN ZOFFANY, CIRCA 1784-6

ZOFFANY, Johan (1733-1810). Colonel Mordaunt’s Cock Match, At Lucknow in the Province of Oude in the Year 1786 at which were present several High and Distinguished Personages.

Zoffany, a German neoclassical painter, was primarily active in England, Italy and India. This painting was created for Governor General Warren Hastings in Lucknow between 1784 and 1788 and is widely regarded as one of the most iconic images by a European artist from 18^th-century-India. It represents the pinnacle of Zoffany’s five years in India and evocatively captures Asaf-ud-Daula’s Lucknow – cosmopolitan, brilliantly colourful, lively and disorderly.
The painting depicts an encounter between the Nawab and his close friend Colonel Mordaunt, both of whom were passionately fond of cock fighting, a pastime as popular in India as it was in all levels of society in England at the time. The scenes includes Indians from various backgrounds – court members, Hindus jostling with Muslims – as well as members of the European community in Lucknow, including Zoffany’s friends: Colonel Claude Martin, John Wombwell and fellow artist Osias Humphrey. Few other paintings capture so precisely the close relationship that then existed between Indians and Europeans, a relationship that would change significantly within a few years.
A second version of the Cock Match was created by the Lucknow School in the 1790s for the Nawab himself. This painting was sold at Christie’s London on 29 October 2019, lot 90, at £43,750.