Composite Album Page with Standing Figure of Jahangir

Unknown

early 17th century · Opaque watercolor, gold silver paint on paper · Islamic Art

This folio from an album contains three separate compositions of the seventeenth century. On the upper part is a standing portrait of the Mughal emperor Jahangir and an unidentified Mughal courtier. Below is a composition which captures the interaction between the elephant family. While the exacting observation of individuals elephants was the hallmark of Mughal painting, Deccan artists were much more interested in their behavior and emotions. The calf reaches its trunk up to its father, while its mother gently caresses its back with hers, the three elephants thus interlocked in a circle of familial care and connection to which any human family can relate.

Artist

Unknown

Date

early 17th century

Medium

Opaque watercolor, gold silver paint on paper

Department

Islamic Art

Credit line

Howard Hodgkin Collection, Purchase, Florence and Herbert Irving Acquisitions, 2020 Benefit, and Dodge Funds; Howard S. and Nancy Marks Gift; Louis V. Bell, Harris Brisbane Dick, Fletcher, and Rogers Funds and Joseph Pulitzer Bequest; and funds from various donors, 2022