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Not currently on display at the V&A

Painting

ca. 1590-95 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

This illustration to the Akbarnama depicts Muhammad Amin Diwan escorting the widow of Bairam Khan and her four-year old son Abdur Rahim to Ahmadabad in 1561, following the assassination of Bairam Khan shown in illustration IS.2:5-1896. Bairam Khan, a close companion of Akbar's father Humayun, had been the guardian (ataliq) of the young emperor after his accession at the age of 13. He also guided him in many military victories, thus increasing the territory under Mughal control. However, as Akbar grew older, tensions between the two increased and in 1560 Bairam Khan had rebelled against him. The emperor forgave Bairam Khan, but it was agreed that he would leave Hindustan to make the pilgrimage to Mecca and Medina. On his way to the pilgrim port of Surat, he was assassinated by an Afghan whose father had been killed in battle by Mughal forces led by Bairam Khan.
His widow and her son Abd ur-Rahim stayed in Ahmedabad before being taken to the protection of Akbar's household.The boy grew up to reach the highest rank in the Mughal hierarchy and was a renowned scholar, a poet in several languages including Persian and Hindavi, and a translator.

The Akbarnama was commissioned by the emperor Akbar as the official chronicle of his reign. It was written by his court historian and biographer Abu'l Fazl between 1590 and 1596 and illustrataed concurrently by at least forty-nine different artists from Akbar's studio. After Akbar's death in 1605, this manuscript remained in the library of his son, Jahangir (r. 1605-27) and later Shah Jahan (r. 1628-58). The Victoria and Albert Museum purchased it in 1896 from the widow of Major General John Clarke, Commissioner of Oudh, India, between 1858 and 1862. This partial manuscript is thought to be the earliest illustrated copy of the Akbarnama. It drew upon the expertise of some of the best royal painters of the time, many of whom receive special mention by Abu'l Fazl in the third volume of the Akbarnama, the A'in-i Akbari. The inscriptions in red ink on the bottom of the paintings refer to the artists and indicate that this was a royal copy.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Painted in opaque watercolour and gold on paper
Brief description
Painting, Akbarnama, Bairam Khan's widow and child escorted to Ahmedabad, by Mukund, opaque watercolour and gold on paper, Mughal, ca. 1590-95
Physical description
Painting, in opaque watercolour and gold on paper, depicting Muhammad Amin Diwan escorting the widow of Bairam Khan and her infant son Abdur Rahim to Ahmadabad in 1561. The image is overlaid by a band of Persian text (two lines), extending from the right-hand side of the picture.
Dimensions
  • Height: 32.1cm
  • Width: 19cm
Content description
Muhammad Amin Diwan escorting the widow of Bairam Khan and her infant son Abdur Rahim to Ahmadabad in 1561.
Styles
Marks and inscriptions
(Contemporary notes in ink at the bottom of the page in Persian identify the artist)
Translation
'Work of Mukund'
Transliteration
'amal-e Mukund'
Credit line
Purchased from Mrs. Clarke, The Dingle, Sydenham Hill, S. E
Object history
The Akbarnama was commissioned by the emperor Akbar in 1589 as the official chronicle of his reign. It was written by his court historian and biographer Abu'l Fazl between 1590 and 1596, and illustrated concurrently by the court artists. After Akbar's death, the manuscript remained in the library of his son, Jahangir. The Victoria and Albert Museum purchased a partial manuscript it in 1896 from Mrs Frances Clarke, the widow of Major General Clarke, an official who served as the Commissioner of Oudh province and was said to have acquired it in Lucknow, presumably during the Siege of Lucknow when the city was looted by the British.

Historical significance: It is thought to be the first illustrated copy of the Akbarnama. It drew upon the expertise of some of the best royal painters of the time, many of whom receive special mention by Abu'l Fazl in the A'in-i-Akbari. The inscriptions in red ink on the bottom of the paintings refer to the artists and indicate that this was a royal copy.
Production
No indication of role. Attribution place is likely to be Lahore.
Subjects depicted
Association
Literary referenceAkbarnama
Summary
This illustration to the Akbarnama depicts Muhammad Amin Diwan escorting the widow of Bairam Khan and her four-year old son Abdur Rahim to Ahmadabad in 1561, following the assassination of Bairam Khan shown in illustration IS.2:5-1896. Bairam Khan, a close companion of Akbar's father Humayun, had been the guardian (ataliq) of the young emperor after his accession at the age of 13. He also guided him in many military victories, thus increasing the territory under Mughal control. However, as Akbar grew older, tensions between the two increased and in 1560 Bairam Khan had rebelled against him. The emperor forgave Bairam Khan, but it was agreed that he would leave Hindustan to make the pilgrimage to Mecca and Medina. On his way to the pilgrim port of Surat, he was assassinated by an Afghan whose father had been killed in battle by Mughal forces led by Bairam Khan.
His widow and her son Abd ur-Rahim stayed in Ahmedabad before being taken to the protection of Akbar's household.The boy grew up to reach the highest rank in the Mughal hierarchy and was a renowned scholar, a poet in several languages including Persian and Hindavi, and a translator.

The Akbarnama was commissioned by the emperor Akbar as the official chronicle of his reign. It was written by his court historian and biographer Abu'l Fazl between 1590 and 1596 and illustrataed concurrently by at least forty-nine different artists from Akbar's studio. After Akbar's death in 1605, this manuscript remained in the library of his son, Jahangir (r. 1605-27) and later Shah Jahan (r. 1628-58). The Victoria and Albert Museum purchased it in 1896 from the widow of Major General John Clarke, Commissioner of Oudh, India, between 1858 and 1862. This partial manuscript is thought to be the earliest illustrated copy of the Akbarnama. It drew upon the expertise of some of the best royal painters of the time, many of whom receive special mention by Abu'l Fazl in the third volume of the Akbarnama, the A'in-i Akbari. The inscriptions in red ink on the bottom of the paintings refer to the artists and indicate that this was a royal copy.
Associated object
Bibliographic references
  • p. 63, pl. 40 Susan Stronge, Painting for the Mughal Emperor. The Art of the Book 1560-1650, V&A Publications, 2002 Shakeel Hossain and Deeti Ray, Celebrating Abdur Rahim Khan-i-khanan, Interglobe Foundation/Aga Khan Trust for Culture in association with Mapin Publishing, Ahmedabad, 2017, illustrated p. 15.
  • Guy, J., and Swallow, D., (eds). ‘Arts of India: 1550-1900’. London : Victoria and Albert Museum, 1990. ISBN 1851770224.pp.64/65, no.44.
Other number
86 - Inscription/original number
Collection
Accession number
IS.2:6-1896

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Record createdOctober 7, 1998
Record URL
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