An Elephant and Keeper

ca. 1650–60
Not on view
This splendid image of an imperial elephant shows the animal tethered in open grassland, close to a Mughal army encampment. He waits patiently as his keeper strips cane and prepares other greens for his meal. Tiny groups of foot soldiers and cavalry may be seen in the distance as well as elephants, camels and a noblewoman’s purdah carriage drawn by bullocks. The now flaked inscription below the image has the impression of being written by emperor Shah Jahan himself and has been speculatively read as giving the name of the elephant as Firuz Jang ("Victorious in war").

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: An Elephant and Keeper
  • Date: ca. 1650–60
  • Geography: Country of Origin India
  • Medium: Opaque color and gold on paper
  • Dimensions: Image: 7 1/16 × 8 11/16 in. (18 × 22 cm)
    Frame: 11 1/2 × 13 1/4 × 3/4 in. (29.2 × 33.7 × 1.9 cm)
  • Classification: Codices
  • 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
  • Object Number: 2022.187
  • Curatorial Department: Islamic Art

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