Mir Muizzu'l Mulk and Bahadur Khan
Painting
ca. 1590-95 (made)
ca. 1590-95 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
This image from the Akbarnama depicts an interview between the royal Mughal emissary Mir Muiz al-Mulk and the rebel Bahadur Khan. Seated figures are shown in a tiled royal pavilion under a chenar tree.
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 is thought to have been illustrated between about 1592 and 1594 by at least 49 different artists from Akbar's studio. After Akbar's death in 1605, the manuscript remained in the library of his son, Jahangir (r. 1605-1627) and later Shah Jahan (r.1628-1658). The Victoria and Albert Museum purchased it in 1896 from Mrs Frances Clarke, the widow of Major-General John Clarke, who bought it in India while serving as Commissioner of Oudh between 1858 and 1862.
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 is thought to have been illustrated between about 1592 and 1594 by at least 49 different artists from Akbar's studio. After Akbar's death in 1605, the manuscript remained in the library of his son, Jahangir (r. 1605-1627) and later Shah Jahan (r.1628-1658). The Victoria and Albert Museum purchased it in 1896 from Mrs Frances Clarke, the widow of Major-General John Clarke, who bought it in India while serving as Commissioner of Oudh between 1858 and 1862.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | Mir Muizzu'l Mulk and Bahadur Khan (generic title) |
| Materials and techniques | Painted in opaque watercolour and gold on paper |
| Brief description | Painting, Akbarnama, interview between Mir Muizzu'l Mulk and Bahadur Khan, by Farrokh Beg, opaque watercolour and gold on paper, Mughal, ca. 1590-95 |
| Physical description | Painting, in opaque watercolour and gold on paper, an interview between the royal emissary Mir Muiz al-Mulk and the rebel Bahadur Khan. Seated figures are shown in a tiled royal pavilion under a chenar tree. |
| Dimensions |
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| Content description | An interview between the royal emissary Mir Muiz al-Mulk and the rebel Bahadur Khan. Seated figures are shown in a tiled royal pavilion under a chenar tree. |
| Styles | |
| Marks and inscriptions | (This is a contemporary attribution written in Persian in red ink below the painting in the margin.)
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| Credit line | Purchased from Mrs. Clarke, The Dingle, Sydenham Hill, S. E |
| Object history | The Akbarnama, or "Book of Akbar", was commissioned by the emperor Akbar as the official chronicle of his reign. It was written by 1590 and 1596 and is thought to have been illustrated between ca. 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.1605-1627) and later Shah Jahan (r.1628-1658). The Victoria and Albert Museum purchased it in 1896 from Mrs. Frances Clarke, the widow of Major General John Clarke, an official who had been the Commissioner in Oudh province between 1858 and 1862. 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 third volume of the Akbarnama. The inscriptions in red ink on the bottom of the paintings refer to the artists and indicate that this was a royal copy. Purchased from Mrs. Clarke, The Dingle, Sydenham Hill, S. E. This acquisition information reflects that found in the Museum records (Asia Department registers and/or Central Inventory) as part of a 2023 provenance research project. Registered Papers: 85488/95 |
| Production | Composed and painted by Farrokh Beg. Attribution place is likely to be Delhi, Agra or Fatehpur Sikri. |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Association | |
| Literary reference | Akbarnama |
| Summary | This image from the Akbarnama depicts an interview between the royal Mughal emissary Mir Muiz al-Mulk and the rebel Bahadur Khan. Seated figures are shown in a tiled royal pavilion under a chenar tree. 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 is thought to have been illustrated between about 1592 and 1594 by at least 49 different artists from Akbar's studio. After Akbar's death in 1605, the manuscript remained in the library of his son, Jahangir (r. 1605-1627) and later Shah Jahan (r.1628-1658). The Victoria and Albert Museum purchased it in 1896 from Mrs Frances Clarke, the widow of Major-General John Clarke, who bought it in India while serving as Commissioner of Oudh between 1858 and 1862. |
| Bibliographic reference | Susan Stronge, Painting for the Mughal Emperor. The Art of the Book 1560-1650, V&A Publications, 2002, pl. 28, p. 44.
Susan Stronge. ‘Collecting Mughal Art at the Victoria and Albert Museum’, in Stephen Vernoit, ed. Discovering Islamic Art. Scholars, Collectors and Collections, 1850-1950. I.B. Tauris, London, 2000, pp. 85-95 (fig. 17, p. 90). |
| Other number | 133 - inscription/original number |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | IS.2:96-1896 |
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| Record created | November 5, 1998 |
| Record URL |
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