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Lot Essay
Timur is depicted resplendent seated on a raised dais with a bearer to his left holding the sword of the ruler wrapped in red velvet. This miniature depicts a thronging crowd of richly dressed international dignitaries who can be differentiated by their varied headgear and have come to pay homage to the great leader Timur. A man standing next to the left-hand margin in a red coat with a fluted conical shaped hat or kalpak, can be identified as a Turk from Central Asia. Other members of the crowd wear large polychrome rounded turbans typical of the Marwar region of Rajasthan contrasting with a man wearing a yellow robe standing on the right of Timur with a smaller flattened red turban typical of the Mewar region of Rajasthan. In the foreground of the miniature two figures conversing are shown in European style hats, one with a rounded top hat with a wide yellow rim, and the other with a curved black hat. By emphasizing the international origins of the crowd paying homage to Timur, the artist successfully elevates the Emperor's status to that of a world leader.
The theme of paying homage to the leader is paralleled extensively in Mughal painting. There is a miniature in the Khalili Collection from an Akbarnama, (mss.872), depicting Bayram Khan doing obeisance before the Mughal Emperor Humayun dated to circa 1595-1600, (Linda York Leach, Paintings from India, London, 1998, no.10, p.52). The composition of both scenes and the detail of the scrolling floral textiles surrounding the thrones on both miniatures is very similar. In addition, the composition of the raised dais in each with its curved legs and geometric patterned side-panels are both very comparable. This near replication of scene expresses continuity between the courts of Timur and that of Humayun, and thus emphasizes their common lineage and right to kingship.
The theme of paying homage to the leader is paralleled extensively in Mughal painting. There is a miniature in the Khalili Collection from an Akbarnama, (mss.872), depicting Bayram Khan doing obeisance before the Mughal Emperor Humayun dated to circa 1595-1600, (Linda York Leach, Paintings from India, London, 1998, no.10, p.52). The composition of both scenes and the detail of the scrolling floral textiles surrounding the thrones on both miniatures is very similar. In addition, the composition of the raised dais in each with its curved legs and geometric patterned side-panels are both very comparable. This near replication of scene expresses continuity between the courts of Timur and that of Humayun, and thus emphasizes their common lineage and right to kingship.