Painting thumbnail 1
Not currently on display at the V&A

Painting

c.1610-25 (made)
Artist/Maker
Mansur (maker)
Place of origin
Mughal Empire (made)

This depiction of a Blue-throated Barbet was done for the Mughal emperor Jahangir (r.1605-1627) by one of the greatest artists of his reign, Mansur according to the later attribution in black ink in the border below the painting. It notes that it is the work of the Wonder of the Age, Ustad Mansur Naqqash'. Mansur was in service to Jahangir's father, the emperor Akbar (r. 1556-1605), and continued as a royal artist after Akbar's death.
The Blue-throated Barbet (Megalaima asiatica) is found in the Himalayan foothills, including Kashmir which Jahangir visited several times during his reign, taking artists including Mansur with him.


Object details

Categories
Animals and Wildlife
Paintings
Bonita Trust Indian Paintings Cataloguing Project
Object type
Painting
Materials and techniques
Painted in opaque watercolour and gold on paper
Paint
Opaque Watercolour
Paper
Gold
Painted
Brief description
Painting, Himalayan blue-throated barbet, opaque watercolour and gold on paper, by Mansur, Mughal, c.1610-25
Physical description
Painting in opaque watercolour and gold on paper depicting a Himalayan blue-throated barbet perched on a branch.
Dimensions
  • Painting without borders height: 14.3cm
  • Painting without borders width: 7.7cm
  • Page height: 38.9cm
  • Page width: 26.3cm
Half Imperial Mount (Portrait)
Content description
A Himalayan blue-throated barbet perched on a branch.
Styles
Mughal Court
Mughal
Marks and inscriptions
amal-e nader al-asr Ostad Mansur naqqash (In black ink immediately beneath the painting, on the border)
Translation
Work of Wonder of the Age Ostad Mansur
Credit line
Bequeathed by Lady Wantage
Object history
Bequeathed by Lady Wantage.
Subjects depicted
Bird
Branch
Summary
This depiction of a Blue-throated Barbet was done for the Mughal emperor Jahangir (r.1605-1627) by one of the greatest artists of his reign, Mansur according to the later attribution in black ink in the border below the painting. It notes that it is the work of the Wonder of the Age, Ustad Mansur Naqqash'. Mansur was in service to Jahangir's father, the emperor Akbar (r. 1556-1605), and continued as a royal artist after Akbar's death.
The Blue-throated Barbet (Megalaima asiatica) is found in the Himalayan foothills, including Kashmir which Jahangir visited several times during his reign, taking artists including Mansur with him.
Bibliographic references
  • Susan Stronge, Painting for the Mughal Emperor. The art of the book 1560-1650, V&A Publications, London 2002, plate 101, p. 136. Asok Kumar Das, Wonders of Nature. Ustad Mansur at the Mughal Court. The Marg Foundation, Mumbai 2012, fig. V.46 and commentary pp. 118-119.
  • Clarke, C. Stanley; Indian Drawings: Thirty Mogul Paintings of the School of Jehangir and Four Panels of Calligraphy ini the Wantage Bequest. London 1922 No. 22, pl. 15
Collection
South & South East Asia Collection
Accession number
IM.137-1921

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Record createdJuly 15, 2005
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O114116/painting-mansur/
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