5. The Shahnameh in India: 15th – 18th
centuries
Copies of the Shahnameh illustrated in
Persian style are
attributed to India from as early as the 1420s, in the late
‘Sultanate’ period marked by political fragmentation of Muslim
power after the sack of Delhi by Timur in 1398, and the influx of
Afghan chiefs and their followers. Having lost control over Central
Asia, the Timurids turned their attention to northern India where one
of Timur’s descendants, Babur (1526–1530), from his base in
Kabul, defeated the Lodi sultans and founded the Mughal dynasty
(1526–1858). The Mughal rulers were avid bibliophiles, Persian
culture was dominant at their court and deluxe copies of the
Shahnameh were preserved in their libraries.
Following the
loss and reconquest of northern India under Babur’s son Homayun, an
astonishing production of illustrated manuscripts was undertaken for
the third Mughal ruler, Akbar (1556–1605). The Akbari style
combined major artistic traditions: Safavid from Tabriz, Hindu from
Vijayanagar and European styles brought by Jesuit missions and
diplomats to the Mughal courts. By the seventeenth century, the
western presence was dominant, especially in the treatment of
landscapes, and in the eighteenth century its influence extended to
portraiture.
The Shahnameh endured as a princely manual
on wise and just
kingship. It offered splendid opportunities for the portrayal of
Mughal rulers and courtiers engaged in hunting, fighting, diplomatic
ceremonies, feasts and amorous affairs. It also continued to provide
a topical commentary on contemporary events and individuals,
extending its relevance to the recent past and the present. Above
all, its lasting appeal points to a core of meaning — the eternal
strife between good and evil — that transcends specific time and
place.
The following is a selection of manuscripts included in this section of the exhibition. The numbers correspond to the order of the display and the entries in the catalogue.
 No. 91 |  No. 93 |  No. 94 |
 No. 97 |  No. 98 |  No. 99 |
 No. 101 |  No. 102 |  No. 103 |
 No. 104 |
Previous • Section 5 of 5
