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The Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya (CSMVS) houses one of India’s largest collections of European paintings, dating from the sixteenth to the early twentieth century. A small selection highlights the diverse artistic traditions of the Flemish and Dutch schools, represented on both panel and canvas. These include an Imaginary Interior of a Monument to the Habsburg family by Wilhelm Schubert van Ehrenberg and Gerard Hoet’s Salome Dancing Before Herod. Other artists represented are Theodoor Rombouts, Jacob de Backer, Bernard de Hoog, and Erasmus Quellinus II, along with several of their contemporaries. The display is further enriched by decorative art objects from the Low Countries. These works, acquired through the generous bequests of Sir Ratan Tata and Sir Dorabji Tata, are exhibited in the galleries that bear their names and are among the museum’s earliest holdings.
Divya Pawathinal, Assistant Curator of Non-Indian Art (August 2025)