Christie's will auction 95 Indian and Persian paintings from the collection of Prince and Princess Sadruddin Aga Khan in London on 28 October, with estimates ranging from £2,000 to £1m and a total expected sale price exceeding £8m. The collection, formed between the 1960s and 1980s, includes Ottoman, Mughal, Deccani, and Rajput works, as well as pieces by artists such as Reza Abbasi, Ghulam Ali Khan, and Sheikh Muhammad Amir of Karraya, dating from the 16th to 19th centuries. Highlights include a page from the Fraser Album and an early Mughal painting of cheetahs attributed to Basawan.
The sale matters because it represents a rare opportunity to acquire works from a distinguished collection assembled by a prominent UN diplomat and his wife, with many pieces having been exhibited at major institutions like the British Museum and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Christie's describes it as a "once in a generation" event, comparable to the 2023 Toby Falk sale but with higher-profile works that have been widely published and exhibited, offering significant historical and artistic value to collectors and institutions.