Themes and features

The essentials

Mughal painting covered a wide range of subjects, from illustrated books to single portraits and nature studies. Its main aim was to record and celebrate the world of the emperor with accuracy and refinement.

Key points

• Manuscript illustration: epics, histories, fables and memoirs, e.g. Hamzanama, Tutinama, Razmnama, Akbarnama, Baburnama, Padshahnama.
• Historical paintings: events of the emperor's reign, battles, sieges, births and celebrations.
• Portraits: usually in profile, showing the emperor, nobles, saints and courtiers with accurate likeness; emperors sometimes with a halo.
• Court scenes (durbar): the emperor on a throne with courtiers arranged by rank.
• Nature studies: birds, animals and flowers drawn with scientific accuracy, especially under Jahangir.
• Allegorical paintings: symbolic images expressing the emperor's ideas of power and spirituality.

Features

• Fine, delicate brushwork and smooth surfaces.
• Natural colours with subtle shading; gold and lapis lazuli for richness.
• Realistic portraiture and attention to costume, textiles and jewellery.
• Decorated borders (hashiya) with floral patterns and calligraphy.
• Secular and courtly focus, unlike the mainly devotional Rajput painting.

Exam tips

• Remember that Mughal portraits are usually in profile.
• Contrast: Mughal = realism and record; Rajput = emotion and devotion.

Common mistakes

• Thinking Mughal painting avoided Indian or Hindu themes; Akbar's atelier illustrated the Mahabharata and Ramayana.