The game of wolf-running in Tabriz, from an Akbar-nama (Book of Akbar)

Description

After four years of traveling in exile, fleeing Afghan forces, Humayun reached Tabriz, the glittering capital of the Safavid dynasty in northwestern Iran, here imaginatively rendered by the Indian artist. There the second Mughal emperor enjoyed warm hospitality extended by the shah of Iran, who called for a game of wolf-running for which the city was famous. Artists painting during the time of Akbar, late in his reign when historical subjects dominated, speculated as to how the game was played, based on eyewitness accounts. They gave the figures lively emotive expressions and gestures, and the dense crowding successfully conveys the pandemonium of the scene.

Provenance

Private Collection, London

The game of wolf-running in Tabriz, from an Akbar-nama (Book of Akbar)

Banavari 1

c. 1595–1600

Accession Number

2003.38

Medium

Gum tempera, ink, and gold on paper

Dimensions

Page: 35.2 x 23.8 cm (13 7/8 x 9 3/8 in.)

Classification

Painting

Museum

The Cleveland Museum of Art

Cleveland, United States

Credit Line

Alma Kroeger Fund