"Akbar With Lion and Calf", Folio from the Shah Jahan Album

Govardhan|Mir 'Ali Haravi

verso: ca. 1630; recto: ca. 1530–50 · Ink, opaque watercolor, and gold on paper · Islamic Art

This posthumous portrait of Akbar incorporates the Elizabethan-derived motif of a lion and calf living in peace under the emperor’s benign rule. Govardhan, a master of psychological portraiture, has given the calf an air of meek nervousness, as expressed in its sideways glance and lowered ears, due no doubt to the proximity of the lion’s visible teeth. Cherubs above and a Netherlandish background add cosmopolitan touches in vogue at the time.

Artist

Govardhan|Mir 'Ali Haravi

Date

verso: ca. 1630; recto: ca. 1530–50

Medium

Ink, opaque watercolor, and gold on paper

Department

Islamic Art

Credit line

Purchase, Rogers Fund and The Kevorkian Foundation Gift, 1955