Painting thumbnail 1
Painting thumbnail 2
Not currently on display at the V&A

Painting

first half 17th century (made)
Artist/Maker
Mir 'Ali (maker)
Place of origin
Mughal Empire (made)

The Mughal emperors keenly collected European paintings and engravings, many of which were brought to the court in the late 16th and early 17th century by successive Jesuit missions who travelled to Delhi, Agra and Lahore from Portuguese Goa. The artists employed by the emperor Akbar (r. 1556-1605) often copied these exotic works of art.This painting of the Martyrdom of Saint Cecilia is a close copy of an engraving by Jerome [Hieronymus] Wierix. The painting is mounted on a decorated page formerly bound in an album compiled for Shah Jahan.


Object details

Categories
Paintings
Calligraphy
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, calligraphy panel, by Mir 'Ali of Herat, floral border, opaque watercolour and gold on paper, border and decoration Mughal, first half 17th century
Physical description
Painting, opaque watercolour and gold on paper, calligraphy panel within a floral border, by Mir 'Ali of Herat.
Dimensions
  • Painting height: 13.5cm
  • Painting width: 10.4cm
  • Page height: 38.3cm
  • Page width: 25.8cm
Content description
Calligraphy panel within a floral border.
Style
Mughal
Marks and inscriptions
  • amal-e Nini (The Persian inscription giving the name of the artist is written in black ink in the border below the painting.)
    Translation
    Work of [ie painted by] Nini
  • Nandaram Pandit 1161 [?] (This seal stamp in black ink appears to provide the name of an 18th century owner. The date seems to be 1161 of the Islamic era, corresponding to 1748 AD, but is slightly smudged.)
    Translation
    Nandaram Pandit 1161[=1748 AD]
Credit line
Bequeathed by Lady Wantage
Object history
The painting is mounted on a page with decorated borders from an album made for the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan.
Subjects depicted
Martyrdom
Calligraphy
Flowers
Cecilia (Saint)
Jesus Christ
Summary
The Mughal emperors keenly collected European paintings and engravings, many of which were brought to the court in the late 16th and early 17th century by successive Jesuit missions who travelled to Delhi, Agra and Lahore from Portuguese Goa. The artists employed by the emperor Akbar (r. 1556-1605) often copied these exotic works of art.This painting of the Martyrdom of Saint Cecilia is a close copy of an engraving by Jerome [Hieronymus] Wierix. The painting is mounted on a decorated page formerly bound in an album compiled for Shah Jahan.
Bibliographic references
  • Susan Stronge, Painting for the Mughal Emperor. The art of the book 1560-1660, V&A Publications, 2002, pl. 70, p. 104.
  • 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. 30
Collection
South & South East Asia Collection
Accession number
IM.139A-1921

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Record createdMarch 10, 2004
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O96514/painting-mir-ali/
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