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Akbar supervising the capture of wild elephants at Malwa in 1564, painting 90 from an Akbar-nama (Book of Akbar) of Abu’l Fazl (Indian 1551–1602)
Farukh Chela (Indian), Govardhan (Indian, active c.1596-1645), and Dhanraj (Indian)c. 1602–3; borders added c. 1700s
The Cleveland Museum of Art
Cleveland, United States
This painting is from a biography of Akbar made shortly before his death. It depicts a historical event from early in his reign when he encountered a herd of wild elephants and captured many of them for his royal stables. Akbar rides horseback in the upper left, directing his men as two trained elephants give chase in the foreground. The Mughals caught wild elephants by chasing them with tame elephants, then tethering them together and feeding them their favorite food. European prints had made their way into Akbar’s collection, and they provided the visual source for distant cityscapes, rolling hills, and less densely colored paintings.
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- Title: Akbar supervising the capture of wild elephants at Malwa in 1564, painting 90 from an Akbar-nama (Book of Akbar) of Abu’l Fazl (Indian 1551–1602)
- Creator: Farukh Chela (Indian), Govardhan (Indian, active c.1596-1645), Dhanraj (Indian)
- Date Created: c. 1602–3; borders added c. 1700s
- Physical Dimensions: Page: 37.5 x 25.4 cm (14 3/4 x 10 in.)
- Provenance: Hagop Kevorkian [1872–1962], New York, NY, (Sotheby’s, London, Highly Important Oriental Manuscripts and Miniatures: The Property of Kevorkian Foundation, 1 December 1969, lot 120, sold to Ralph Benkaim), Ralph Benkaim [1914-2001] and Catherine Glynn Benkaim [b. 1946], Beverly Hills, CA, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art, The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
- Type: Painting
- Rights: CC0
- External Link: https://clevelandart.org/art/2013.309
- Medium: ink with use of colors and gold on paper, mounted on an album page with borders of gold-decorated buff and blue paper (recto); calligraphy by Faqir Ali (verso)
- Inscriptions: recto: Folio 229, painting 97 from the so-called Chester Beatty Akbarnama verso: calligraphy in nast'aliq script by Faqir Ali, Verso: From a ghazal of Badr al-Din Hilali Jaghata’i (Persian, active c. 1500) c. 1550; borders added c. 1700s and mounted upside down Faqir Ali (Persian, active c. 1550–1610) Probably Safavid Calligraphy, Persian verses in nasta‘liq script: He is Venerable! I am the dust on the path of the messenger to my beloved’s hallowed sanctuary; Perchance I may reach the destination in his footsteps. On the burn in my branded heart, do not place any soothing balm, So that the comfort that I draw from my pain and sorrow for my beloved does not abate.
- Fun Fact: A yak-tail flywhisk, ancient Indian symbol of sovereignty, is held up for Akbar.
- Department: Indian and Southeast Asian Art
- Culture: Mughal India; made for Akbar (reigned 1556–1605)
- Credit Line: Gift in honor of Madeline Neves Clapp; Gift of Mrs. Henry White Cannon by exchange; Bequest of Louise T. Cooper; Leonard C. Hanna Jr. Fund; From the Catherine and Ralph Benkaim Collection
- Collection: Indian Art - Mughal
- Accession Number: 2013.309
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