Preparations for a Hunt

Unknown

ca. 1680 · Opaque watercolor on paper · Islamic Art

The painting depicts preparations for a royal hunt. A group of four nilgais, or blue bulls, are feeding in scrubland near a pond, while four imperial huntsmen dressed in green take shelter behind camouflage screens. In the far horizon, on the right, a distant hunting party approaches with elephants, horses, and flags. The reverse of the album page on which the painting was originally mounted had a European engraving depicting the story of Cain and Abel.

Artist

Unknown

Date

ca. 1680

Medium

Opaque watercolor on paper

Department

Islamic Art

Credit line

Purchase, Friends of Islamic Art Gifts, 2005