{"meta":{"version":"2.1","_links":{"self":{"href":"https://api.vam.ac.uk/v2/object/O9612"},"collection_page":{"href":"https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O9612/"}},"images":{"_primary_thumbnail":"https://framemark.vam.ac.uk/collections/2009BX3689/full/!100,100/0/default.jpg","_iiif_image":"https://framemark.vam.ac.uk/collections/2009BX3689/","_alt_iiif_image":[],"imageResolution":"high","_images_meta":[{"assetRef":"2009BX3689","copyright":"© Victoria and Albert Museum, London","sensitiveImage":false},{"assetRef":"2006AU9185","copyright":"© Victoria and Albert Museum, London","sensitiveImage":false},{"assetRef":"2017KB3641","copyright":"©Victoria and Albert Museum, London","sensitiveImage":false}]},"see_also":{"_iiif_pres":"https://iiif.vam.ac.uk/collections/O9612/manifest.json","_alt_iiif_pres":[]}},"record":{"systemNumber":"O9612","accessionNumber":"IS.2:71-1896","objectType":"Painting","titles":[{"title":"Akbar hunting at Palam, near Delhi","type":"generic title"}],"summaryDescription":"The scene in this double-page composition depicts Akbar hunting. It takes place after the great Mughal victory over the seemingly impregnable Rajput fortress of Chitor in February 1568. The Hindu forces defending Chitor had put up fierce resistance, for which Akbar made them pay a heavy price: on his orders nearly 30,000 men were killed, and many prisoners were taken. No other campaign would be concluded in the same way, and these extremely harsh reprisals made other rulers capitulate quickly in subsequent conflicts. Later that year, the emperor set out from Agra to attack the similarly daunting fort at Ranthambhor, but paused en route at Delhi. Here, he visited holy shrines and hunted at nearby Palam. Abu'l Fazl, the author of the Akbarnama, describes the different purposes served by hunting. A primary aim was to provide an opportunity for the emperor to assess the qualities of his men when under pressure and in danger, which allowed him to deploy them to best advantage in battle. Hunting provided a pretext for Akbar to arrive without warning in different parts of his domains to see for himself that they were being administered fairly. It also allowed him to move large numbers of armed men into areas of potential rebellion as a silent threat, which was often enough to avoid a military confrontation.  Abu'l Fazl mentions this particular hunt only briefly in his text, but records that it took the elaborate form of a 'qamargah' in which beaters were sent out over a huge area and then moved back towards its centre, trapping the animals within a circular space. It was the emperor’s prerogative to hunt them, and the elite of the court could only participate at his invitation. The qamargah was a Timurid form of hunting, and it may be significant that Akbar chose to follow this ancestral model just before the major campaign against Ranthambhor. In the painting, the emperor’s pre-eminence is emphasised not only by his central place in the composition but also by emblems of royalty such as his turban plume and jewels, and the wrapped weapons carried by servants. A second figure, not identified in the text, must also be a royal personage, as his turban plume indicates.\r\nThe artist Mukund was included by Abu'l Fazl in the historian’s list of the greatest painters of the age; his junior colleague, Manohar, became one of the most important figures in the royal ketabkhana, or 'House of Books', under Jahangir.\r\nThe Akbarnama</i> was commissioned by the emperor as the official chronicle of his reign. It was written by  Abu'l Fazl between 1590 and 1596. The paintings were being completed as he wrote his text. 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 Victoria and Albert Museum purchased it in 1896 from Mrs Frances Clarke, the widow of Major-General John Clarke, who acquired it in India while serving as Commissioner of Oudh between 1858 and 1862.","physicalDescription":"Painting, in opaque watercolour and gold on paper, right side of a double composition with  IS.2:70-1896. On this side, Akbar on horseback is at the centre, shooting at animals. Courtiers and bearers surround the animals. The canopies of tents are visible at top right. There is a panel of text at upper left.","artistMakerPerson":[{"name":{"text":"Mukund","id":"A1583"},"association":{"text":"maker","id":"AAT251917"},"note":"artist, outline"},{"name":{"text":"Manohar","id":"A1652"},"association":{"text":"maker","id":"AAT251917"},"note":"artist, colours and details"}],"artistMakerOrganisations":[],"artistMakerPeople":[],"materials":[{"text":"paper","id":"AAT14109"},{"text":"opaque watercolour","id":"x35013"},{"text":"paint","id":"AAT15029"}],"techniques":[{"text":"painted","id":"AAT54216"},{"text":"drawing","id":"x32498"}],"materialsAndTechniques":"Painted in opaque watercolour and gold on paper","categories":[{"text":"Paintings","id":"THES48917"},{"text":"Images Online","id":"THES48937"},{"text":"Animals and Wildlife","id":"THES250852"},{"text":"Illustration","id":"THES48938"},{"text":"Hunting","id":"THES253059"},{"text":"Bonita Trust Indian Paintings Cataloguing Project","id":"THES263148"}],"styles":[{"text":"Mughal","id":"AAT18939"},{"text":"Akbar","id":""}],"collectionCode":{"text":"SSEA","id":"THES48598"},"images":["2009BX3689","2006AU9185","2017KB3641"],"imageResolution":"high","galleryLocations":[{"current":{"text":"002","id":"THES403517"},"free":"","case":"","shelf":"","box":""}],"partTypes":[[{"text":"painting","id":"AAT33618"}]],"contentWarnings":[{"apprise":"","note":""}],"placesOfOrigin":[{"place":{"text":"Mughal Empire","id":"THES262021"},"association":{"text":"made","id":"x28654"},"note":""}],"productionDates":[{"date":{"text":"ca. 1590-95","earliest":"1585-01-01","latest":"1595-12-31"},"association":{"text":"made","id":"x28654"},"note":""}],"associatedObjects":[{"object":{"text":"IS.2:70-1896","id":"O9613"},"association":""}],"creditLine":"Purchased from Mrs. Clarke, The Dingle, Sydenham Hill, S. E","dimensions":[{"dimension":"Height","value":"34.6","unit":"cm","qualifier":"","date":{"text":"","earliest":null,"latest":null},"part":"painting","note":""},{"dimension":"Width","value":"20","unit":"cm","qualifier":"","date":{"text":"","earliest":null,"latest":null},"part":"painting","note":""},{"dimension":"Height","value":"38.1","unit":"cm","qualifier":"","date":{"text":"","earliest":null,"latest":null},"part":"page","note":""},{"dimension":"Width","value":"22.4","unit":"cm","qualifier":"","date":{"text":"","earliest":null,"latest":null},"part":"page","note":""}],"dimensionsNote":"","marksAndInscriptions":[{"content":"","inscriber":{"name":{"text":"","id":""},"association":{"text":"","id":""}},"date":{"text":"","earliest":null,"latest":null},"description":"","interpretation":"","language":"Persian","medium":"ink","method":"","position":"","script":"Persian","translation":"'Composition Mukund/Work [ie painting] by Manohar'","transliteration":"'Tarh Mukund/amal Manohar'","type":"Maker's identification","note":"Maker's identification by contemporary librarian in Persian, written in red ink"}],"objectHistory":"The Akbarnama, or \"Book of Akbar\", was commissioned by the emperor Akbar as the official chronicle of his reign. It was written by 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 Shah Jahan (r.1628-1658). The Victoria and Albert Museum purchased it in 1896 from Mrs. Frances Clarke, the widow of Major General John Clarke, an official who had been the Commissioner in Oudh province between 1858 and 1862.\r\n\r\nHistorical 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 third volume of the Akbarnama. The inscriptions in red ink on the bottom of the paintings refer to the artists and indicate that this was a royal copy.\r\n\r\nPurchased from Mrs. Clarke, The Dingle, Sydenham Hill, S. E. This acquisition information reflects that found in the Museum records (Asia Department registers and/or Central Inventory) as part of a 2023 provenance research project.\r\n\r\nRegistered Papers: 85488/95","historicalContext":"","briefDescription":"Painting, <i>Akbarnama</i>, Akbar hunting at Palam, outline by Mukund, painting by Manohar, opaque watercolour and gold on paper, Mughal, ca. 1590-95","bibliographicReferences":[{"reference":{"text":"","id":""},"details":"","free":"Susan Stronge, Painting for the Mughal Emperor. The Art of the Book 1560-1650, V&A Publications, 2002, pl. 38, p. 57.\r\nShaha Parpia, “Mughal Hunting Grounds: Landscape Manipulation and ‘Garden’ Association”, in Garden History, Journal of The Gardens Trust, vol. 44:2(2016), 171-190.Illustrated Fig. 2."}],"production":"Composition by Mukund, colours and details painted by Manohar.\r\nAttribution place is likely to be Delhi, Agra or Fatehpur Sikri.","productionType":{"text":"","id":""},"contentDescription":"Akbar on horseback is at the centre, shooting at animals. Courtiers and bearers surround the animals. The canopies of tents are visible at top right. ","contentPlaces":[],"associatedPlaces":[],"contentPerson":[{"text":"Akbar","id":"N107"}],"associatedPerson":[{"text":"Fazl, Abu'l","id":"N104"},{"text":"Akbar","id":"N107"}],"contentOrganisations":[],"associatedOrganisations":[],"contentPeople":[],"associatedPeople":[],"contentEvents":[],"associatedEvents":[],"contentOthers":[{"text":"animals","id":"x30274"},{"text":"people","id":"AAT24979"},{"text":"spears (weapons)","id":"AAT37038"},{"text":"natural landscapes","id":"AAT132294"},{"text":"swords","id":"AAT37105"},{"text":"horses","id":"AAT162082"}],"contentConcepts":[],"contentLiteraryRefs":["Akbarnama"],"galleryLabels":[{"text":"AKBAR HUNTING AT PALAM, NEAR DELHI\r\nIllustration to the Akbarnama\r\nOpaque watercolour and gold on paper\r\nMughal, composition designed by Mukund,\r\npainted by Manohar\r\nc. 1590-95\r\nIS.2:71-1896\n\r\nAkbar is depicted on the right, riding a horse within the circle of beaters. He can be recognised by his turban plume, an emblem of royalty.","date":{"text":"27/9/2013","earliest":"2013-09-27","latest":"2013-09-27"}}],"partNumbers":["IS.2:71-1896"],"accessionNumberNum":"2","accessionNumberPrefix":"IS","accessionYear":1896,"otherNumbers":[{"type":{"text":"inscription/original number","id":"THES51028"},"number":"155"}],"copyNumber":"","aspects":["WHOLE"],"assets":[],"recordModificationDate":"2025-04-30","recordCreationDate":"1998-11-11","availableToBook":true}}