Jahangir in a garden
Painting
ca. 1610 - ca. 1615 (painted)
ca. 1610 - ca. 1615 (painted)
Artist/Maker | |
Place of origin |
This painting depicts the Mughal emperor Jahangir (r. 1605-1627) seated in a garden, surrounded by leading members of his court, and receiving his son Prince Parviz. Most of the characters are identified by minute inscriptions in Persian, the administrative and cultural language of the court. It is ascribed to the artist Manohar, who was the son of Basawan, a renowned artist of the reign of Jahangir's father, Akbar. Manohar was therefore a "khan-e zad", one of those born into the service of the court, probably in the late 1560s. He came to prominence during the 1580s and 1590s working as a junior artist, sometimes in collaboration with his father. By the reign of Jahangir he was one of the most important artists of the Mughal studio, and produced some of the most famous portraits of the time. The slight imbalance in scale between the different figures in this scene is due to each figure having been traced from a single study of the individual concerned, and then transferred into the composition, a common feature of court scenes of the period.
The painting was once part of a royal Mughal album, and is part of a group of detached miscellaneous leaves now divided between the V&A and the Chester Beatty Library in Dublin, and known as the "Minto Album", named after a former owner. Two Earls of Minto were appointed Governor-General of India, and it is not known which of them originally acquired the pages.
The painting was once part of a royal Mughal album, and is part of a group of detached miscellaneous leaves now divided between the V&A and the Chester Beatty Library in Dublin, and known as the "Minto Album", named after a former owner. Two Earls of Minto were appointed Governor-General of India, and it is not known which of them originally acquired the pages.
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Object details
Categories | |
Object type | |
Title | Jahangir in a garden (generic title) |
Materials and techniques | Painted in opaque watercolour and gold on paper |
Brief description | Painting by Manohar, depicting Jahangir receiving his son Prince Parviz in a garden in the presence of courtiers, opaque watercolour and gold on paper, Mughal, ca. 1610-1615 |
Physical description | Painting, in opaque watercolour and gold on paper, of Jahangir seated cross-legged on a dais depicted with his face in strict profile. He faces left, gesturing towards his son Parviz, who stands, as do all the other figures in the picture. There are 11 courtiers to Jahangir's right, and 4 others to his left, with two servants standing behind him, one carrying his dagger and the other a flywhisk. They are gathered in front of a pavilion in a garden enclosed by a high wall in which is an opening looking out over a cypress tree with a rocky landscape in the background. A small pool with a fountain is in the foreground. The painting is surrounded by a double row of Persian verses reserved against a gold ground filled with floral scrolls and has borders filled with flowering plants painted in gold. Some of the individuals are identified by minute descriptions. On the top row, from left to right are: Khan 'Alam, Mirza Ghazi, Khan 'Azam and Mirza Rustam. Prince Parviz stands before his fatehr in a pink jama; immediately below him in the composition, resting on a stick, is Jahangir's father-in-law Itimad ad-daula, and behind the prince is Jahangir's brother-in-law, Asaf Khan. The individual portrait that was the template for Mirza Ghazi is in the V&A, museum number IM.118-1921. |
Dimensions |
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Content description | Jahangir seated cross-legged on a dais depicted with his face in strict profile. He faces left, gesturing towards his son Parviz, who stands, as do all the other figures in the picture. |
Style | |
Object history | The folio is from a group of paintings acquired at auction in 1925 where they were sold as "The Minto Album" and subsequently divided between the Chester Beatty Library, Dublin and the V&A. |
Subjects depicted | |
Summary | This painting depicts the Mughal emperor Jahangir (r. 1605-1627) seated in a garden, surrounded by leading members of his court, and receiving his son Prince Parviz. Most of the characters are identified by minute inscriptions in Persian, the administrative and cultural language of the court. It is ascribed to the artist Manohar, who was the son of Basawan, a renowned artist of the reign of Jahangir's father, Akbar. Manohar was therefore a "khan-e zad", one of those born into the service of the court, probably in the late 1560s. He came to prominence during the 1580s and 1590s working as a junior artist, sometimes in collaboration with his father. By the reign of Jahangir he was one of the most important artists of the Mughal studio, and produced some of the most famous portraits of the time. The slight imbalance in scale between the different figures in this scene is due to each figure having been traced from a single study of the individual concerned, and then transferred into the composition, a common feature of court scenes of the period. The painting was once part of a royal Mughal album, and is part of a group of detached miscellaneous leaves now divided between the V&A and the Chester Beatty Library in Dublin, and known as the "Minto Album", named after a former owner. Two Earls of Minto were appointed Governor-General of India, and it is not known which of them originally acquired the pages. |
Associated object | IM.9A-1925 (Verso) |
Bibliographic references |
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Collection | |
Accession number | IM.9-1925 |
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Record created | December 22, 1999 |
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