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Lot Essay
This superbly preserved folio is from the celebrated Razmnama (“Book of War”), the Persian translation of the Mahabharata commissioned by the Mughal emperor Akbar (r. 1556–1605), one of the most ambitious cultural enterprises of the Mughal court. The present painting belongs to the second illustrated recension of the Razmnama, executed circa 1598–1599, a manuscript distinguished by its experimental character and its conscious departure from earlier imperial pictorial norms.
Produced at a moment of remarkable artistic openness, this version of the Razmnama reveals the extent to which Mughal painting had evolved into a cosmopolitan idiom, shaped by Persian, Central Asian, Indian, and European sources. The manuscript stands at the threshold of a new visual language, embracing spatial complexity, narrative clarity, and stylistic hybridity. The scene depicts the gods in search of the sacred fire, assembled beneath a fruiting tree set within a rocky Mughal landscape. A group of richly attired figures, some crowned, converse with dignified restraint, while an elephant enters from the right, lending movement and narrative momentum to the composition. The artist masterfully balances ceremonial stillness with dynamic incident, a hallmark of mature Mughal narrative painting.
The folio exemplifies the synthesis of pictorial traditions fostered in Akbar’s atelier. The finely observed fruiting tree, naturalistic flora, and jewel-like ornamentation reflect Indian artistic sensibilities and Hindu iconography. In contrast, the stylized rocky outcrops, almond-shaped eyes, and carefully framed composition derive from Persian miniature conventions. Subtle modelling of drapery, the three-quarter rendering of the elephant, and a nuanced sense of spatial recession reveal the influence of European engravings circulating at the Mughal court. These elements combine to produce a work of striking visual coherence and sophistication.
The painting is signed by Narayan, son of Khem Karan, a leading artist active in Akbar’s imperial atelier. Narayan contributed to many of the most important Mughal manuscripts of the late sixteenth century, including the Darabnama (c. 1580, British Library), the Razmnama (c. 1582–1586, City Palace Museum, Jaipur), the Timurnama (c. 1584, Khuda Baksh Public Library, Bankipore), and the Baburnama (c. 1590–1593, dispersed). His work is distinguished by a refined palette, assured figural groupings, and a precise handling of landscape, qualities fully evident in the present folio. The Razmnama project itself stands as a visual and intellectual expression of Akbar’s policy of cultural synthesis, in which translation, artistic collaboration, and shared aesthetic values were actively promoted. As such, this folio is not only a work of exceptional artistic quality, but also a potent symbol of Mughal imperial pluralism at its zenith.
This folio is from the Razmnama manuscript formerly in the collection of Gerald Reitlinger, sold at Sotheby’s, London, 24–25 October 1921. The sale included the final portion of this manuscript comprising twenty-four miniatures and is now preserved in the British Museum (Or. 12076) and dated 1007 A.H./1598 A.D. Other folios from this celebrated copy are dispersed among major public and private collections, including the Free Library of Philadelphia, the Chester Beatty Library, the India Office Library, and the Keir Collection (see Welch, “Early Mughal Miniature Paintings from Two Private Collections Shown at the Fogg Art Museum,” Ars Orientalis, II, 1959, pp. 137–138, note 26 R; see also, Skelton, Islamic Painting and the Arts of the Book: The Keir Collection, 1976, pp. 250–251, nos. V.45–V.46, pl. 119).
Produced at a moment of remarkable artistic openness, this version of the Razmnama reveals the extent to which Mughal painting had evolved into a cosmopolitan idiom, shaped by Persian, Central Asian, Indian, and European sources. The manuscript stands at the threshold of a new visual language, embracing spatial complexity, narrative clarity, and stylistic hybridity. The scene depicts the gods in search of the sacred fire, assembled beneath a fruiting tree set within a rocky Mughal landscape. A group of richly attired figures, some crowned, converse with dignified restraint, while an elephant enters from the right, lending movement and narrative momentum to the composition. The artist masterfully balances ceremonial stillness with dynamic incident, a hallmark of mature Mughal narrative painting.
The folio exemplifies the synthesis of pictorial traditions fostered in Akbar’s atelier. The finely observed fruiting tree, naturalistic flora, and jewel-like ornamentation reflect Indian artistic sensibilities and Hindu iconography. In contrast, the stylized rocky outcrops, almond-shaped eyes, and carefully framed composition derive from Persian miniature conventions. Subtle modelling of drapery, the three-quarter rendering of the elephant, and a nuanced sense of spatial recession reveal the influence of European engravings circulating at the Mughal court. These elements combine to produce a work of striking visual coherence and sophistication.
The painting is signed by Narayan, son of Khem Karan, a leading artist active in Akbar’s imperial atelier. Narayan contributed to many of the most important Mughal manuscripts of the late sixteenth century, including the Darabnama (c. 1580, British Library), the Razmnama (c. 1582–1586, City Palace Museum, Jaipur), the Timurnama (c. 1584, Khuda Baksh Public Library, Bankipore), and the Baburnama (c. 1590–1593, dispersed). His work is distinguished by a refined palette, assured figural groupings, and a precise handling of landscape, qualities fully evident in the present folio. The Razmnama project itself stands as a visual and intellectual expression of Akbar’s policy of cultural synthesis, in which translation, artistic collaboration, and shared aesthetic values were actively promoted. As such, this folio is not only a work of exceptional artistic quality, but also a potent symbol of Mughal imperial pluralism at its zenith.
This folio is from the Razmnama manuscript formerly in the collection of Gerald Reitlinger, sold at Sotheby’s, London, 24–25 October 1921. The sale included the final portion of this manuscript comprising twenty-four miniatures and is now preserved in the British Museum (Or. 12076) and dated 1007 A.H./1598 A.D. Other folios from this celebrated copy are dispersed among major public and private collections, including the Free Library of Philadelphia, the Chester Beatty Library, the India Office Library, and the Keir Collection (see Welch, “Early Mughal Miniature Paintings from Two Private Collections Shown at the Fogg Art Museum,” Ars Orientalis, II, 1959, pp. 137–138, note 26 R; see also, Skelton, Islamic Painting and the Arts of the Book: The Keir Collection, 1976, pp. 250–251, nos. V.45–V.46, pl. 119).