Harvard Art Museums > 2009.202.254: Portrait of a Mughal Nobleman, folio from the Salim Album Albums Collections Search Exit Deep Zoom Mode Zoom Out Zoom In Reset Zoom Full Screen Add to Collection Order Image Copy Link Copy Citation Citation"Portrait of a Mughal Nobleman, folio from the Salim Album , 2009.202.254,” Harvard Art Museums collections online, Apr 19, 2024, https://hvrd.art/o/216681. Reuse via IIIF Toggle Deep Zoom Mode Download This object does not yet have a description. Identification and Creation Object Number 2009.202.254 Title Portrait of a Mughal Nobleman, folio from the Salim Album Classification Albums Work Type album folio Date c. 1580-85 Places Creation Place: South Asia, India Period Mughal period Culture Indian Persistent Link https://hvrd.art/o/216681 Physical Descriptions Medium Ink, opaque watercolor, and gold on paper Dimensions image with border: 23.3 x 15 cm (9 3/16 x 5 7/8 in.) Provenance Recorded Ownership History Stuart Cary Welch (by 1969 - 2008,) by descent; to his estate (2008-2009,) gift; to Harvard Art Museum. Notes: Object was part of temporary loan to Museum in 1969. Acquisition and Rights Credit Line Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, The Stuart Cary Welch Collection, Gift of Edith I. Welch in memory of Stuart Cary Welch Accession Year 2009 Object Number 2009.202.254 Division Asian and Mediterranean Art Contact am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu Permissions The Harvard Art Museums encourage the use of images found on this website for personal, noncommercial use, including educational and scholarly purposes. To request a higher resolution file of this image, please submit an online request. Descriptions Description Against a minimally-suggested landscape is a Mughal nobleman, distinguished by his pearl earring and fine dress. He wears a green turban, a white robe (jama), a waist sash (patka), a translucent white shawl with a decorated border around one shoulder, and green slippers. Tucked into his waist sash is a large punch dagger (katar) with a blue sheath. The nobleman has a large mustache. On his right thumb he wears an archer’s ring. Archer’s rings were worn to protect the inside of the thumb in Indian archery, as the thumb hooks around the bowstring. However, archer’s rings that were made of precious materials, like jade, were worn to denote one’s status. Pasted above and below the painting are two blocks, each consisting of Persian calligraphy written in nasta‘liq script. The pasted inner border is a blue-dyed paper decorated with gold flowers, which is followed by another border of cream-colored paper decorated with large gold floral and geometric shapes. Publication History Stuart Cary Welch, Imperial Mughal Painting, George Braziller (New York, 1978), pp. 21 - 23; p. 24, fig. IV; p. 38 Elaine Wright, Muraqqa': Imperial Mughal Albums from the Chester Beatty Library, Dublin, exh. cat., Art Services International (Alexandria, VA, 2008), p. 58, fig. 22; p. 61; p. 62; p. 457 no. 21 Exhibition History Portraiture in Iran and India, Fogg Art Museum, Cambridge, 12/09/1983 - 02/01/1984 32Q: 2590 South and Southeast Asia, Harvard Art Museums, Cambridge, 04/26/2016 - 11/02/2016 Verification Level This record has been reviewed by the curatorial staff but may be incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of Asian and Mediterranean Art at am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu
