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Karl Khandalavala, Amrita Sher-Gil, Bombay: New Book Co., 1945 [Title page says 1944/ back of title-page reads 'First Published in 1945']

pp 71; frontispiece portrait; 20 full-page tipped-in colour plates at the end; 3 tipped-in colour plates in the text; 5 tipped-in monochrome plates in the text; 8 monochrome plates at the end and numerous line drawings in the text, including some full-page; Red elephant based on the last incomplete painting by Sher-Gil on cover boards; Beige full-cloth binding with dust jacket.
14.9 x 11 x 0.6 in (38 x 28 x 1.7 cm)

An exceptionally rare and emotionally resonant presentation copy, inscribed by Umrao Singh Sher-Gil on the front endpaper to a personal acquaintance shortly after the tragic loss of both his wife and daughter.

That reads: "To my old but distant friend Marjorie Helena Newfield with best wishes, in memory of his late wife Antoinette, and their daughter Amrita Sher-Gil (in sorrow for them). From: Umrao Singh Sher-Gil. 9th October 1948. The Holme, Simla. W."

Also, there are the original postal documents measuring 7.5 x 10.25 in (19.5 x 26 cm) from the 1948 registered parcel containing this book:
• Typed mailing label addressed to Mrs Majorie Newfield in Essex, England, sent from “U. Sher-Gil, The Holme, Summer Hill, Simla.W”, and dated “Posted 9th October 1948”
• Original Indian postage stamps affixed: 1 Rupee x2 (George VI) and 3½ Annas (Gandhi), with cancellation marks
• A Simla-W.37 green registration label
• Handwritten library notations (likely in postal or archival ink)

FROM FATHER TO FRIEND: UMRAO SINGH’S PRIVATE MEMORIAL TO AMRITA SHER-GIL — A UNIQUE INSCRIBED COPY

This exceptional presentation, rich in ephemera and sentiment, establishes a direct familial provenance, further enhanced by the deeply personal note from Umrao Singh Sher-Gil reflecting on the loss of both his wife and daughter.

The inscription, composed in delicate and melancholic longhand, is dated barely seven years after Amrita Sher-Gil’s untimely death at the age of 28. The volume thus carries a profound biographical charge, offering a window into the private mourning of Umrao Singh Sher-Gil, a reclusive scholar and photographer, and a key influence on Amrita’s early artistic sensibility.

This volume is among the earliest posthumous tributes to the artist, published by the Lalit Kala Akademi and likely distributed only to close family, friends, and members of the artistic and intellectual community. The printed text includes one of Amrita’s most quoted reflections:

"It was the vision of a winter in India—desolate, yet strangely beautiful..." – Amrita Sher-Gil

The presence of this inscription elevates the book from a commemorative publication to a unique personal relic of India’s most iconic modernist woman artist. Inscribed copies of this tribute volume are exceedingly rare; those bearing such deeply personal inscriptions from Umrao Singh Sher-Gil are virtually unknown in the market. The combination of emotive significance, and association with one of India’s most important 20th-century artists makes this a cornerstone artifact of Indian modernism.