ASSIGNMENT 2

A Study on a Mughal
Miniature Painting

BICHITR

Shah-Jahan receives his three eldest sons

and Asaf Khan during his accession
ceremonies (8 March 1628), 1656-57

A Project by

Pratap Vishnu Bhagat

Roll no: BD/20/1223
Foundation Programme-Batch A
Fashion Communication Dept.
Padshahnama plate 10: Shah-Jahan receives his three eldest sons and Asaf Khan during his accession
ceremonies is a Mughal watercolour, ink and gold leaf painting created by Bichitr between 1630 and 1657. It lives at the
Royal Collection in London.

Details

Title: Padshahnama plate 10 : Shah-Jahan receives his three eldest sons and Asaf Khan during his accession
ceremonies (8 March 1628)
Creator: Bichitr
Date Created: 1630 - 1657
Physical Dimensions: h586 mm
Type: Books & Manuscripts
Rights: Supplied by Royal Collection Trust / (c) HM Queen Elizabeth II 2012
External Link: http://www.rct.uk/collection/1005025
Medium: Manuscript on paper with gold decorated borders; miniatures in gold and body colour
Provenance: Commissioned by Shah-Jahan; by descent; bought by Asafuddawla, Nawab of Oudh, by 1776; presented
(via Lord Teignmouth, Governor-General of India) to George III, 1797
Description

From the left- Asaf Khan, Wakil or the Prime Minister, father of her Majesty Mahd-i-Ulya [Mumtaz Mahal] thus
father-in-law of the Emperor Shah-Jahan; Prince Aurangzeb (Shah-Jahan’s successor) and Prince Shah-
Shuja; the eldest son, Prince Dara-Shikoh, kneeling before his father; Emperor Shah Jahan (detail); the
youngest son, Prince Muradbakhsh standing behind his father.

In this beautiful miniature painting by Bichitr, the Mughal Emperor Shah-Jahan

welcomes his three sons and his father-in-law Asaf Khan. This miniature is part
of the Padshahnama, a collection of 22 single and 11 double-page miniature
paintings by 14 of the finest artists of the Mughal courts.

The Padshahnama, also known as the "Chronicle of the King of the World"
describes the reign of Emperor Shah-Jahan in rich colour and gold leaf.

58.6 cm

36.8cm
Composition

Bichitr has brought a symmetry and balance to the composition. The eye is
immediately drawn to the Emperor and below him to the surface of a large
globe, on which two lions and a lamb are seated. For the Mughals, lions
symbolized power and when accompanied by a lamb or calf signified the
existence of peace and justice.

The painting seems to be divided into three flights: the topmost flight consisting
of the Royal Family and Asaf Khan, the Prime Minister for the emperor. The
second flight consists two Pukah Wallah, the noble men along with the golden
platform. A golden Jali (grill) of 8 pointed stars (Rub el Hizb in Arabic) separates
the second and the third section.
The third flight consists of A’zam Khan (man in brown robes, holding the a piece
of paper). A’zam Khan was Asaf Khan’s brother and great commander. The
man in black and white robes was Ja’far khan, nephew and son-in-law of Asaf
Khan.

The lions and a lamb, signifying existence

of justice and peace. The two Sufi Shaikhs
in their white turbans and robes.

From top to bottom- A’zam Khan in his

brown jama and Ja’far Khan in black and
white jama
People & Costumes

Throughout the miniature, people are painted with extensive embroidered

clothing though not as much as the Emperor and his sons. The Royal Party’s
attire is extensively decorated with fine details. The robes for the Emperor and
his children has been embellished with arabesque floral designs; this being one
for the characteristic feature of Mughal/ Islamic attire, adds more beauty to the
painting. The clothes of the royal family are embroidered with gold.

Emperor Shah Jahan and his sons, the Royal Party

The headgear or the crowns of the Royal party each consists of a feather.
Even though each headgear is extensively decorated with pearls and rubies,
there is much more emphasis on decoration when Shah Jahan’s crown is
considered.

Shah Jahan’s Crown

The courtiers are dressed in different types of jamas: some are solid coloured
while some are decorated with floral prints. There are some courtiers who are
wearing stripped robes, Ja’far Khan himself is in a black and white striped jama.

Different types of jamas paired with different type

of headgears

Different examples of prints on the robes of the courtiers.

Among the predominant number of costumes of arabesque patterns, there are

some examples of clothing that stand out. These attires, even though similar to
the Mughal attire but stand out thanks to their prints and way of wearing.

A Rajput man can be seen amongst other courtiers. His headgear and his
yellow robes, printed with different figures, makes him identifiable to his
Rajasthani origin. This also explains that there were also Hindus serving in
Mughal courts.

A Rajput Courtier in his yellow jama and turban

Man with the white turban also has a different style of attire than that of the orthodox Mughal jamas.
A piece of cloth around his neck makes him look different even if he’s not from a foreign land.

Another example of different clothing.

The striped robes of punkah wallahs

Jewellery

Jewellery, at the time of the Mughals, was symbolic of power and wealth.
Members of the royal family displayed their status by wearing heavy gold
jewellery such as a bejewelled turban, toe rings, necklaces etc. and the same
can be seen in the painting. Various ornaments of gold, pearls and other
precious stones can be seen adorning the bodies of the royal family.
Shah Jahan, being the Emperor can be seen with the most amount of jewellery.

Emperor Shah Jahan adorned by pearl necklaces with rubies and emeralds,
golden bracelets and armband embellished with rubies

Princes Aurangzeb and Shuja, similarly adorned by jewellery as their father

Prince Muradbakhsh wearing pearl earrings

 Courtiers wearing gold and pearl earrings.

A sudden contrast can be seen between the royal family and the courtiers.
Against the dazzling pearls and gold of the royal family, a lack of jewellery can be
seen in the courtiers, indicating divide in the social status and the power.
Motifs

During the time of Emperor Jahangir, the use of motifs was popularized and by
the time of emperor Shah Jahan, motifs were regularly being used in the
paintings, handicrafts and architecture. The motifs on Taj Mahal is the greatest
example of motif work during the period Shah Jahan.

Common Islamic geometric pattern.

Floral motifs

Since the Mughals were deeply influenced by the Persians in terms of the
culture, one of the most characteristic feature of the Mughal motifs is the
Buta (flower). Various Mughal paintings and architecture can be seen adorned
by the these arabesque floral designs .

Buta, (Hindi-Urdu: “flower”), one of the most important ornamental motifs of Mughal Indian art, consisting of a floral
spray with stylized leaves and flowers. It is used in architecture and painting and in textiles, enamels, and almost
all other decorative arts.

Carpets of arabesque floral designs as these are popular even today

The intricate work on the grills is one of the other feature of Mughal/ Islamic
architecture. A series of complicated pattern, motif is carved onto the grill in
order to give feel of a net. Hence, it is called jali.

Examples of jali from the miniature:

Concentric polygons and hexagonal jalis are one of the most common
types in the Mughal architecture

Rub el Hizb jali. The Rub el Hizb (Arabic: ‫ ربع الحزب‬rubʿ al-ḥizb) is an Islamic symbol in the
shape of an octagram, represented as two overlapping squares, which is found on a number
of emblems and flags. In Arabic, Rubʻ means "one fourth, quarter", while Hizb means a group.
Colours

When it come the mood of a painting, the choice of colours used in it is probably
the most important thing that an artist has to do.

Mineral pigments, organic inks and dyes, and earth tone pigments are all
important components of the miniature painter's palette. To maximize the
versatility of the available materials, painters frequently mixed their pure colours
in order to obtain all sorts of secondary and tertiary colours. To these coloured
pigments was added the gleam of metallic gold and silver leaf, commonly used
in Persian, Mughal, and later Indian miniatures. In this miniature too, one can
see the extensive use of gold.

Along with the golden borders, extensive use of gold has been done
in bordering small sections and painting the halo around the Emperor.

Worn out patches of gold can be seen in the grill.

Gold leaf was used frequently in text illumination, in

paintings, and in decoration for the borders of
manuscript leaves.
Since the topic of this miniature painting is festive, the colours used in this piece
are mostly warm colours. Several shades of yellow and red are used to create a
pleasing festive picture. With the help of gold, Bichitr has put an extra emphasis
on details, for instance the design on the carpets, prints on the emperor’s
clothes, also the halo around Shah Jahan’s head is easily recognizable due the
lustre of gold.
With the hints of black, brown and violet, the artist has added a depth to the
painting. Due to this, black was one of the most important colours for all
miniature painters. It was used to prepare sketches and underdrawings for
finished leaves and to provide a depth of tone within paintings themselves.
Carbon was one of the most used source of the colour black.
Use of whites acts as a balancer in this plethora of colours. Whites in this
miniature are soothing to look at and perfectly balance the heat of the warm
colours.
Green, though not used extensively here was one of the most important colour
for the Mughal miniature artists. Since green is the colour of heaven itself, it
holds a special place in Mughal art. Here, green is used in the floral design
against the white background.
Red and yellow are the most important colours of this piece. Since red has
warm appeal towards it, it becomes a very ideal colour in this piece. Along with
gold, yellow adds a sense of happiness and festivity in the painting.
Violet/Lavender is another important colour in this painting because here, it is
used to depict the royalty and has been chosen as the colour of the attire of
Shah Jahan himself.,
Research and work board

References

Affect, Emotion, and Subjectivity in Early Modern Muslim by Prof. Kishwar Rizvi
https://library.brown.edu/cds/minassian/essay_production.html

https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/ap-art-history/south-east-se-
asia/india-art/a/bichtir-jahangir-preferring-a-sufi-shaikh-to-kings

https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/453259

https://www.britannica.com/art/buta

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https://www.rct.uk/collection/1005025-k/shah-jahan-receives-his-three-eldest-
sons-and-asaf-khan-during-his-
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ahan's%20successor).

https://www.britannica.com/art/buta

https://arthistoryproject.com/artists/bichitr/

https://jstor.org/stable/882258?seq=1