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A Nobleman Reading

ca. 1750–75
Not on view
This unfinished painting depicts a seated figure who appears to be floating in space, as his chair has not yet been painted. The stippled modeling of his face and hands, together with the carefully folded drapery of his clothing, reflects a keen attention to detail on the part of the artist. Created after the high point of Mughal portraiture, this study nonetheless demonstrates a continuation of this artistic tradition into the late eighteenth century. While Mughal portraits typically show the sitters surrounded by their prized possessions, the subject of this painting is depicted with only a blank book in his hand.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: A Nobleman Reading
  • Date: ca. 1750–75
  • Geography: Country of Origin India
  • Medium: Opaque watercolor on paper
  • Dimensions: Painting: H. 8 11/16 in. (22 cm)
    W. 6 1/2 in. (16.5 cm)
    Frame: H. 16 3/4 in. (42.5 cm)
    W.. 13 3/4 in. (34.9 cm)
  • Classification: Codices
  • Credit Line: Purchase, Friends of Islamic Art Gifts, 2009
  • Object Number: 2009.319a, b
  • Curatorial Department: Islamic Art

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Folio from a Mu'nis al-ahrar fi daqa'iq al-ash'ar (The Free Man's Companion to the Subtleties of Poems) of Jajarmi
Author Muhammad ibn Badr al-Din Jajarmi
dated 741 AH/1340–41 CE
Dagger (Katar) with Sheath, Steel, gold, wood, velvet, Indian
Dagger (Katar) with Sheath
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"The Feast of Sada", Folio 22v from the Shahnama (Book of Kings) of Shah Tahmasp, Abu'l Qasim Firdausi Iranian, Opaque watercolor, ink, silver, and gold on paper
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Crutch Dagger (Zafar Takieh, "Cushion of Victory"), Ivory, steel, Hilt, South Indian; blade, European
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