Akbar
Painting
ca. 1590-95 (made)
ca. 1590-95 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
This illustration from the Akbarnama is the left-hand side of a double page composition (the other half is IS.2:55-1896) depicting Akbar taking part in a qamargah. This is a spectacular hunt whereby the game is driven towards the centre of a ten mile circular area so that the emperor and his entourage could hunt and kill the animals. It is one of the finest hunting scenes in the V&A Akbarnama paintings and features the early work of the artist Mansur, who became one of the greatest Mughal artists. The naturalist Divyabhanusinh notes that the painting sheds light on the fauna of the Lahore regino at the time of Akbar: there is a dead Pir Panjal markhor (Capra falconeri cashmiriensis) and several Punjab urial (Ovis orientalis punjabiensis). He notes that the presence of these animals is not surprising as Lahore is close to the Salt Range and urial are found there even today, while the markhor could have come down to the Muree Hills. A blackbuck is being skinned whole, and the carcass hung up. The severed head of a blackbuck with a symmetrically circular deformed right horn, lying on the ground, can only have been reproduced by an artist who had actually seen such deformities. Three cheetahs are all coursing after fully grown male blackbucks, as they were chained to do, with two unhooded cheetahs about to be released by their keepers. Among the prey species identified by Divyabhanusinh are nilgai, hare and chital, dead jackals (Canis aureus), many small Indian civets (Viverricula indica), possibly foxes (Vulpes bengalensis) and a dead hyena (Hyaena hyaena) as well as animals that are less naturalistically painted.
The Akbarnama (Book of Akbar) 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 (Book of Akbar) 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 | Akbar (generic title) |
| Materials and techniques | Painted in opaque watercolour and gold on paper |
| Brief description | Painting, Akbarnama, Akbar hunting in enclosure, outline by Miskina, painting by Mansur, opaque watercolour and gold on paper, Mughal, ca. 1590-95 |
| Physical description | Painting, in opaque watercolour and gold on paper, left side of a double picture, the right side being IS.2:55-1896. Depicts Akbar on horseback, hunting animals within an enclosure with the help of trained cheetahs. Bearers crowd round outside the enclosure. |
| Dimensions |
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| Content description | Akbar on horseback, hunting animals within an enclosure with the help of trained cheetahs. Bearers crowd round outside the enclosure. |
| Styles | |
| Marks and inscriptions | (These are contemporary attributions written in Persian in red ink beneath the painting.)
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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 | Outline composed by Miskina, colours and details painted by Mansur. |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Association | |
| Literary reference | Akbarnama |
| Summary | This illustration from the Akbarnama is the left-hand side of a double page composition (the other half is IS.2:55-1896) depicting Akbar taking part in a qamargah. This is a spectacular hunt whereby the game is driven towards the centre of a ten mile circular area so that the emperor and his entourage could hunt and kill the animals. It is one of the finest hunting scenes in the V&A Akbarnama paintings and features the early work of the artist Mansur, who became one of the greatest Mughal artists. The naturalist Divyabhanusinh notes that the painting sheds light on the fauna of the Lahore regino at the time of Akbar: there is a dead Pir Panjal markhor (Capra falconeri cashmiriensis) and several Punjab urial (Ovis orientalis punjabiensis). He notes that the presence of these animals is not surprising as Lahore is close to the Salt Range and urial are found there even today, while the markhor could have come down to the Muree Hills. A blackbuck is being skinned whole, and the carcass hung up. The severed head of a blackbuck with a symmetrically circular deformed right horn, lying on the ground, can only have been reproduced by an artist who had actually seen such deformities. Three cheetahs are all coursing after fully grown male blackbucks, as they were chained to do, with two unhooded cheetahs about to be released by their keepers. Among the prey species identified by Divyabhanusinh are nilgai, hare and chital, dead jackals (Canis aureus), many small Indian civets (Viverricula indica), possibly foxes (Vulpes bengalensis) and a dead hyena (Hyaena hyaena) as well as animals that are less naturalistically painted. The Akbarnama (Book of Akbar) 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. |
| Associated object | |
| Bibliographic references |
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| Other number | 136 - inscription/original number |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | IS.2:56-1896 |
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| Record created | November 13, 1998 |
| Record URL |
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