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Attendants at an Imperial Durbar

Hunhar Indian
ca. 1645
Not on view
The painting is a fragment of the right-hand side of a double-page composition related to the prestigious Padshahnama (Chronicle of the Emperor), the imperial illustrated chronicle of the Shah Jahan period. Here grandees and court attendants are assembled facing left towards the missing left-hand page where the emperor would have been receiving the Persian ambassador in full durbar assembly. Seen in the present painting are several Persian figures from the ambassador’s retinue, identifiable by their large turbans, Mughal courtiers, and grooms and attendants while magnificently painted horses and elephants are also included. An animated group of musicians welcome the party from the naqqarkhana (drum house) above the gate, an important feature of Mughal court ritual.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Attendants at an Imperial Durbar
  • Artist: Hunhar (Indian)
  • Date: ca. 1645
  • Geography: Country of Origin India
  • Medium: Opaque color and gold on paper
  • Dimensions: Image: 14 1/2 × 10 9/16 in. (36.8 × 26.9 cm)
    Frame: 19 7/8 × 15 7/8 × 3/4 in. (50.5 × 40.3 × 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: 2022.180
  • Curatorial Department: Islamic Art

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"Shah Jahan on a Terrace, Holding a Pendant Set With His Portrait", Folio from the Shah Jahan Album, Chitarman Indian, Ink, opaque watercolor, and gold on paper
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