A Family of Tartars

Description

This painting depicts men of Turkic descent migrating into India from western Asia. No longer with the ambition to conquer, like the Turko-Mongol rulers Timur (d. 1405) and Babur (c. 1530), the first Mughal emperor, these migrants are seeking new lands in which to settle as immigrants. The highly detailed subjects are placed against a plain background, as if the figures were designed for objective study and categorization. Indian artists made works such as this for the British in India, who were interested in collecting accurate visual records of flora, fauna, and ethnic groups who inhabited the land they colonized in 1858.

Provenance

(Sam Fogg, London, UK, sold to John and Maxeen Flower) (?-November 2000); Dr. John and Maxeen Stone Flower [1928-2010], Shaker Heights, OH, bequest to the Cleveland Museum of Art (November 2000-2011); The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (2011-)

A Family of Tartars

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c. 1885

Accession Number

2011.137

Medium

Gum tempera, ink, and gold on paper

Dimensions

Overall: 25.3 x 33.8 cm (9 15/16 x 13 5/16 in.)

Classification

Painting

Museum

The Cleveland Museum of Art

Cleveland, United States

Credit Line

Gift of Maxeen and John Flower in honor of Dr. Stanislaw Czuma