id:			170848
accession number:	2013.331
share license status:	CC0
url:			https://clevelandart.org/art/2013.331
updated:		2023-08-24 00:59:48.921000

Shamsa (sunburst) with portrait of Aurangzeb (1618–1707), from the Emperor's Album (the Kevorkian Album), illumination 1640–55; original portrait c. 1640–50; altered after 1658. Probably by Bichitr (Indian, active c. 1615–50). Gum tempera and gold on paper; page: 40 x 27.7 cm (15 3/4 x 10 7/8 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, 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 2013.331

title:				Shamsa (sunburst) with portrait of Aurangzeb (1618–1707), from the Emperor's Album (the Kevorkian Album)
title in original language:	
series:				
series in original language:	
creation date:			illumination 1640–55; original portrait c. 1640–50; altered after 1658
creation date earliest:		1640
creation date latest:		1663
current location:		
creditline:			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
copyright:			

---

culture:	
technique:	Gum tempera and gold on paper
department:	Indian and Southeast Asian Art
collection:	Indian Art
type:		Painting
find spot:	
catalogue raisonne: 

---

CREATORS

* Bichitr (Indian, active c. 1615–50)  - artist

---

measurements: Page: 40 x 27.7 cm (15 3/4 x 10 7/8 in.)
state of the work:	
edition of the work: 	

support materials:


inscriptions:

	inscription:	inscribed below Shamsa: Padshah Jahan; inscribed below portrait : 'amal-i Bichitr
	translation:	
	remark:		

	inscription:	Persian inscription below shamsa (sunburst), in nasta‘liq script: 
Great King Shah Jahan
	translation:	
	remark:		

	inscription:	Persian inscription below portrait, in nasta‘liq script: 
the work of Bichitr
	translation:	
	remark:		

---

CURRENT EXHIBITIONS

	title:		Art and Stories from Mughal India
	opening date:   2016-07-31T04:00:00
	<i>Art and Stories from Mughal India</i>. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (July 31-October 23, 2016).

---

LEGACY EXHIBITIONS

* Main Asian Rotation (Gallery 245); December 31, 2013 - June 30, 2014.

* The Cleveland Museum of Art (7/31/2016-10/23/2016); Art and Stories from Mughal India, cat. 58, p. 237-38.

---

PROVENANCE

---

fun fact:
Tooling the gold cloud motif with pinpricks makes it catch more light and shimmer.

digital description:


wall description:
This closing page of an imperial Mughal album originally had the <em>shamsa</em>, or sunburst, with a plain gold disc in the center, referencing the light of God as divine sanction for Emperor Shah Jahan’s rule. The depiction of divine light by means of floral and geometric patterns was painted by hand with mathematical precision in gold and lapis lazuli. The portrait of Aurangzeb was probably added when he took over the imperial library after seizing the throne from his father, Shah Jahan, in 1658 and adopting the name Alamgir, which means “Seizer of the Universe.” The string of prayer beads in his right hand points to his extreme religious orthodoxy, which dramatically altered the culture of the Mughal court from what had previously been an openly ecumenical center.
---

RELATED WORKS

---

CITATIONS

---

IMAGES

web:	https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/2013.331/2013.331_web.jpg
print:	https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/2013.331/2013.331_print.jpg
full:	https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/2013.331/2013.331_full.tif