Shah Jahan holding a spinel and a long Deccan sword, from the Late Shah Jahan Album
Medium
Gum tempera and gold on paper
Dimensions
painting only: 22.9 × 14.4 cm · page: 36.7 × 25.4 cm
Classification
Painting
Department
Indian and Southeast Asian Art
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
Gift in honor of Madeline Neves Clapp; Gift of Mrs. Henry White Cannon by exchange; Bequest of Louise T. Cooper; Leonard C. Hanna Jr. Fund; From the Catherine and Ralph Benkaim Collection
Accession Number
2013.328
Tags
About this artwork
This page came from an imperial album assembled for Shah Jahan toward the end of his reign. Only portraits of the emperors have angels hovering with a crown in the top border along with the predator peacefully paired with his prey below. Shah Jahan chose to link these symbols of peace and justice with divine sanction for his rule, as indicated by the light of the sun and moon behind his head. Royal retainers carry emblems of sovereignty in the left border. Imperial Mughal painting reached a pinn...