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Akbar's victorious return to Fathepur Sikri
Kesav Kalan - Enlarge image
Akbar's victorious return to Fathepur Sikri
- Object:
Painting
- Place of origin:
India (possibly, made)
Pakistan (possibly, made) - Date:
1590-1595 (painted)
- Artist/Maker:
Kesav Kalan (artist)
Jagjivan (artist) - Materials and Techniques:
Opaque watercolour and gold on paper
- Museum number:
IS.2:111-1896
- Gallery location:
In Storage
This painting by Kesav Kalan and Jagjivan is an illustration to the Akbarnama, and is the left side of a double page composition (the right half is IS.2:110-1896). It depicts the rejoicings at Akbar's return to Fatehpur Sikri following his victory in the Gujarat.
The Akbarnama (Book of Akbar) was commissioned by the emperor as the official chronicle of his reign. It was written by his court historian and biographer Abu'l Fazl between 1590 and 1596 and is thought to have been illustrated between c. 1592 and 1594 by at least forty-nine different artists from Akbar's studio. After Akbar's death in 1605, the manuscript remained in the library of his son, Jahangir (r. 1605-27) and later Shah Jahan (r. 1628-58). The Museum purchased it in 1896 from the widow of Major General John Clarke. He had been Commissioner of Oudh, India, between 1858 and 1862. It 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 name the artists.
