This painting depicts Sultan Muhammad ‘Adil Shah of Bijapur, and his prime minister, Ikhlas Khan. They sit together on a striding elephant, with Ikhlas Khan riding behind the Sultan, positioned in an emblematic display of the real power behind the throne. The double portrait of these two eminent figures from the Deccan is enhanced by the signature of the two artists who completed the work—Haidar ‘Ali and Ibrahim Khan, who signed their names at left.
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Credit Line:Howard Hodgkin Collection, Purchase, Florence and Herbert Irving Acquisitions, Harris Brisbane Dick, and 2020 Benefit Funds; Howard S. and Nancy Marks, Lila Acheson Wallace, and Friends of Islamic Art Gifts; Louis V. Bell, Harris Brisbane Dick, Fletcher, and Rogers Funds and Joseph Pulitzer Bequest; and funds from various donors, 2022
Accession Number:2022.198
Sultan Muhammad 'Adil Shah and Ikhlas Khan Riding an Elephant
Muhammad 'Adil Shah (reigned 1627–56) inherited the splendid and diverse ruling traditions of his father, Ibrahim 'Adil Shah II (reigned 1580–1627) and himself oversaw a strong and distinguished period of Bijanpur history. However, in the background was the forceful and ambitious African prime minister Ikhlas Khan (died 1656), shown here together with the sultan on the royal elephant, in an emblematic display of the actual power behind the throne.[1] Many portraits of both men exist from the period. Muhammad is often shown in a more effete mode holding a flower or a mango, whereas images of Ikhlas Khan invariably hint at his unyielding power.
Under Muhammad's patronage Mughal influence was manifested in painting through a degree of naturalism and a growing interest in observation. Therefore the elephant is as much the subject of the painting as its commanding riders. The large number of bells worn on its legs, neck, and body would have ensured both a visual and an aural impact. Opulent gold and areas of bold, flat color are confidently applied by the artists Haidar 'Ali and Ibrahim Khan.[2] The blue background seen here became a preferred one for the late eighteenth-century Hyderabad painter Rai Venkatchallam, whose royal elephant processions preserved much of the splendor and power seen here.[3]
Navina Haidar in [Haidar and Sardar 2015]
Footnotes:
1. See John R. Alderman, "Paintings of Africans in the Deccan." In Kenneth Robbins and John McLeod, eds. African Elites in India: Habshi Amarat. Ahmedabad: Mapin Publishing; Ocean Township, N.J.: Grantha Corporation, 2006, pp. 106–23.
2. Gahlin, Sven. The Courts of India: Indian Miniatures from the Collection of the Fondation Custodia, Paris. Exh. cat. Rijksprintenkabinet, Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam. Paris: Fondation Custodia; Zwolle; Waanders, 1991, p. 43, no. 41, pl. 40.
3. See for example, Venkatchallam's Three Noblemen in Procession on an Elephant, 18th century, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (2008.561).
Inscription: Inscribed: ‘amal-i haidar ‘ali va ibrahim khan (Work of Haidar ‘Ali and Ibrahim Khan)
Prince Stanisław Albrecht Radziwiłł, Paris and Poland (until 1961); Sotheby's, London, 1961 (to Hodgkin); Howard Hodgkin, London (1961–d. 2017); Howard Hodgkin Indian Collection Trust, London (2017–2022; sold to MMA)
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Sultans of Deccan India, 1500–1700: Opulence and Fantasy," April 20–July 26, 2015.
Zebrowski, Marc. "Transformations in Seventeenth Century Deccani Painting at Bijapur." In Chhavi 2. Benares, 1981. p. 177, ill. fig. 429 (b/w).
Pinder-Wilson, Ralph, Douglas Barrett, and Ellen Smart. Paintings from the Muslim Courts of India, Prints and Drawings. London: World of Islam Festival Publishing Company Ltd, 1976. no. 179, p. 92.
Zebrowski, Mark. Deccani Painting. Berkeley, CA: Sotheby Publications, 1983. pp. 131–33, ill. fig. 100.
Topsfield, Andrew. An Introduction to Indian Court Painting. London: H.M.S.O., 1984. p. 25, ill. pl. 17.
Welch, Stuart Cary. India: Art and Culture 1300–1900. New York: Holt, Rinehart, and Winston, 1985. no. 200, pp. 300–1, ill. (color).
Michell, George, and Marc Zebrowski. "Art and Architecture of the Deccan Sultanates." In The New Cambridge History of India. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999. p. 180, ill. fig. 132.
Topsfield, Andrew, and Milo C. Beach. "Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C., 15 Sept. 1991–12 Jan. 1992." In Indian Paintings and Drawings from the Collection of Howard Hodgkin. New York: Thames and Hudson Inc., 1991. no. 10, pp. 38–41, ill.
McLeod, John, and Kenneth Robbins, ed. African Elites in India : Habshi Amarat. Ahmedabad: Mapin Publishing, 2006. no. 101, pp. 114–15.
Filippi, Gian Giuseppe, ed. "Museo di Castelvecchio, Verona, April 30–Aug. 3, 1997." In Indian Miniatures and Paintings from the 16th to the 19th century : The Collection of Howard Hodgkin. Milano, 1997. no. 54, ill. p. 103, ill and front cover.
Michell, George, and Mark Zebrowski. The Architecture and Art of the Deccan Sultanates. The New Cambridge History of India. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1999. p. 180, ill. fig. 132.
Crill, Rosemary, and Kapil Jariwala. The Indian Portrait, 1560–1860. London: National Portrait Gallery, London, 2010. no. 32, pp. 112–13, ill.
Topsfield, Andrew. "The Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, February 2-–April 22, 2012." In Visions of Mughal India: The Collection of Howard Hodgkin. Oxford: Ashmolean Museum, 2012. no. 36, pp. 94–95, ill.
Guy, John, and Navina Haidar. Indian Skies : The Howard Hodgkin Collection of Indian Court Painting (Winter 2024). pp. 21–22, ill. fig. 22.
Haidar, Navina, and Marika Sardar. "Opulence and Fantasy." In Sultans of Deccan India 1500–1700. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2015. no. 59, pp. 139–40, ill.
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