Akbar's Adventures with the Elephant Hawa'i in 1561
- Object:
- Place of origin:
India (possibly, made)
Pakistan (possibly, made)
- Date:
- Artist/Maker:
- Materials and Techniques:
Opaque watercolour and gold on paper
- Museum number:
- Gallery location:
- Order this image
This illustration to the Akbarnama (Book of Akbar) is the left half of a double-page composition (the right half is Museum no. IS.2:21-1896). The composition depicts a famous incident in the life of the Mughal emperor Akbar (r.1556–1605) outside the fort of Agra in north-west India in 1561. According to Akbar’s court historian and biographer Abu’l Fazl, the royal elephant Hawa’i was reputed to be one of the strongest and most difficult of all those owned by the emperor, yet Akbar mounted him with ease and pitted him against an equally fierce elephant named Ran Bagha. The illustration shows Akbar, mounted on Hawa’i, pursuing Ran Bagha across a bridge of boats over the River Jumna, which collapses under the weight of the elephants. A number of Akbar’s servants have jumped into the water to escape.
The Akbarnama was commissioned by Akbar as the official chronicle of his reign. It was written in Persian by Abu’l Fazl between 1590 and 1596, and the V&A’s partial copy of the manuscript is thought to have been illustrated between about 1592 and 1595. This is thought to be the earliest illustrated version of the text, and drew upon the expertise of some of the best royal artists of the time. Many of these are listed by Abu’l Fazl in the third volume of the text, the A’in-i Akbari, and some of these names appear in the V&A illustrations, written in red ink beneath the pictures, showing that this was a royal copy made for Akbar himself. After his death, the manuscript remained in the library of his son Jahangir, from whom it was inherited by Shah Jahan.
The V&A purchased the manuscript in 1896 from Frances Clarke, the widow of Major General John Clarke, who bought it in India while serving as Commissioner of Oudh between 1858 and 1862.
Physical description
Left half of a double page composition (right half being IS.2:21-1896). Depicts Akbar's adventure on his elephant Hawai outside the fort of Agra in 1561. According to Abu'l Fazl, Hawai was reputed to be one of the strongest and most difficult elephants to handle, yet Akbar mounted him with ease and pitted him against an equally fierce elephant named Ran Bagha. The illustration shows Akbar, mounted on Hawai, pursuing the elephant Ran Bagha across a collapsing bridge of boats over the river Jumna. The bridge is collapsing under the weight of the elephants and a number of Akbar's servants have jumped into the water to follow the chase.
Place of Origin
India (possibly, made)
Pakistan (possibly, made)
Date
1590-1595 (painted)
Artist/maker
Unknown
Materials and Techniques
Opaque watercolour and gold on paper
Marks and inscriptions
Tarh Basawan
Amal Chitra Composition by Basawan
Work [=painting] by Chitra Contemporary librarian's attributions in Persian, in red ink in the margin below the painting.
Dimensions
Height: 33 cm
Width: 20 cm
Object history note
The Akbarnama was commissioned by the emperor Akbar as the official chronicle of his reign. It was written by Abu'l Fazl between 1590 and 1596 and is thought to have been illustrated between ca.1592 and 1594 by at least forty-nine different artists from Akbar's studio. After Akbar's death in 1605, the manuscript remained in the library of his son, Jahangir (r. 1605-1627) and later that of Shah Jahan (r. 1628-1658). The Museum purchased it in 1896 from Frances Clarke the widow of Major General Clarke, an official who had been the Commissioner in Oudh province between 1858 and 1862.
Descriptive line
Akbar's adventures with the elephant Hawa'i in 1561. Painting from the Akbarnama, 1590-1595.
Bibliographic References (Citation, Note/Abstract, NAL no)
Sen, Geeti, Paintings from the Akbar Nama, Lustre Press, 1984, p. 72.
T.Koezuka,ed; RC,TK,SS; catalogue;intro DS&TK; The Arts of THe Indian Courts. Osaka.1993. No.8
Historical significance
It is thought to be the first illustrated copy of the Akbarnama. It drew upon the expertise of some of the best royal painters of the time, many of whom receive special mention by Abu'l Fazl in the A'in-i-Akbari. The inscriptions in red ink on the bottom of the paintings name the artists.
Materials
Paper; Gold
Techniques
Painting (image-making); Contour drawing
Subjects depicted
Elephants; Akbarnama; Akbar; Agra; Pontoon bridges
Categories
Paintings
Collection code
IND
