"Portrait of Mulla Muhammad Khan Vali of Bijapur", Folio from the Shah Jahan Album
recto: ca. 1620; verso: 1537–47
Medium
Ink, opaque watercolor, and gold on paper
Dimensions
H. 15 5/16 in. (38.9 cm) W. 10 3/16 in. (25.9 cm)
Classification
Codices
Department
Islamic Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Purchase, Rogers Fund and The Kevorkian Foundation Gift, 1955
Accession Number
55.121.10.34
Tags
Art Historical Context
This exquisite folio from the Shah Jahan Album a striking portrait of Mulla Muhammad Khan Vali, a noble from the Bijapur sultanate in the Deccan region of India, on the recto side, painted by the renowned Mughal artist Hashim around 1620. The verso elegant calligraphy by Mir 'Aliavi, dated 1537–47, showcasing the album's role as a curated treasury of art from the Safavid and Mughal courts. Compiled during Emperor Shah Jahan's reign (1628–58), such albums were prized possessions that blended portraits, poetry, and illumination, reflecting the emperor's patronage of the arts. Rendered in ink, o...