Early Mughal Painting

Milo Cleveland Beach

Published by Harvard University Press 1987

Early Mughal Painting

Milo Cleveland Beach

In the series John M. Prather Lecture Series in Biology

Volume 1 in the series Polsky Lectures in Indian and Southeast Asian Art and Archaeology

https://doi.org/10.4159/harvard.9780674729940

Overview
Contents

About this book

One of the minor miracles of art history is the extraordinary flowering of Indian painting that began in the mid-sixteenth century under the early Mughal emperors of Indian, notably Akbar the Great.

Only in recent decades has the consummate artistry of early Mughal painting come to be widely appreciated in the West. Scholars have noted the innovations--departures from both Islamic and native Indian tradition--of the new, highly distinctive school of painting, among them natural history studies, a concern for portraiture, and the documentation of contemporary court events.

Milo Beach traces, with an abundance of captivating illustrations, the evolution of the Mughal style. While acknowledging the influence of Akbar's interests and changing tastes (related in turn to historical and biographical circumstances), he shows that many of the new tendencies were evident during the short reign of Akbar's father, the Emperor Humayun, whose role as patron of the arts is thereby reassessed. Beach also stresses the traditionalism of the individual painters, who only gradually changed their concepts and compositions in response to foreign influences and to imperial taste. Mughal art, he affirms, can no longer be regarded as simply a reflection of its imperial patrons.

The book takes account of recently discovered material and reproduces for the first time important paintings from unpublished manuscripts and albums. It will appeal to the general reader as well as the scholar.

Author information

BeachMilo Cleveland:

Milo Cleveland Beach is Assistant Director of the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution.

Topics

Frontmatter Publicly Available Download PDF	i
Preface Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	ix
Contents Publicly Available Download PDF	xi
Introduction Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	1
I Humayun and the Young Akbar SOURCES FOR THE MUGHAL STYLE Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	5
II Akbar as Patron IMAGES FOR THE KING OF KINGS Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	51
III Akbar and the Past TRADITION AND INNOVATION AT LAHORE Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	97
Abbreviations Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	138
Notes Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	139
Selected Bibliography Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	147
Illustrations Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	151
Index Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	159

(Deutsch)

Language: English
Publisher: Harvard University Press
Edition: Reprint 2013
Audience: Professional and scholarly;
Pages
- Front matter: 8
- Main content: 164
Illustrations
- Illustrations: 92
- Other: 93 halftones, 1 color halftone, 1 map
Keywords: History / Asia / India & South Asia; Design / Graphic Arts / Commercial & Corporate

eBook

Published: October 1, 2013
ISBN: 9780674729940

Hardcover

Published: December 11, 2013
ISBN: 9780674729933