Album folio of poetry, c. 1725
Unknown artist, Indiaexpand_more
Opaque watercolor and gold on paperexpand_more
Anonymous Gift of fundsexpand_more 84.44a
Not on Viewexpand_more
Album pages combining fine calligraphy with borders richly illuminated with floral and animal motifs were a favorite Mughal art form as early as Jahangir (1569-1627). During this time, the precious albums assembled from various sources (muraqqa), became popular at court and somewhat supplanted the illustrated book. The taste and expertise of its compiler, rather than the talent of a single artist, determined the range of theme, artistic quality, and coherency of an assembled album. This page shows four lines of graceful nasta'liq script set against a minutely rendered, scrolled floral background of gold and blue, approximating the Persian manner. The white borders, however, punctuated with carefully painted poppies, reflect Mughal court taste of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.
Details
- Title
- Album folio of poetry
- Role
- Artist
- Accession Number
- 84.44a
- Curator Approved
This record has been reviewed by our curatorial staff but may be incomplete. These records are frequently revised and enhanced. If you notice a mistake or have additional information about this object, please email collectionsdata@artsmia.org.
Does something look wrong with this image? Let us know
Zoom in on the left to the detail you'd like to save. Click 'Save detail' and wait until the image updates. Right click the image to 'save image as' or copy link, or click the image to open in a new tab.