Indian Painting under the Mughals, A.D. 1550 to A.D. 1750 c14.46.1

c14.46.1

In drawing attention to the foreign artists at the Mughal court, it should be emphasized that those only are named of whom definite records are available. It is more than probable that there were others, of lesser repute, who were attracted thither by the emperor’s unbounded patronage, although of these no accounts have been preserved. But apart from the personal element from Persia in the school, there was another and equally important source in the country, also of foreign origin, from which the Indian artists undoubtedly drew some of their inspiration. This was the imperial library of the Mughals. By the time Akbar’s empire in India was an accomplished fact, this institution already contained manuscripts and illuminated books of unparalleled value, so that it claimed to be not only a library but a picture gallery. The Mughals, like all the Timurids, were great bibliophiles. Babur set the example, and began by acquiring historic volumes whenever his unsettled circumstances would permit. It is related that on the fall of the Timurid dynasty, after the plunder of Herat by the Turkomans, and the destruction of Samarqand by the uncouth Uzbegs, such was his affection for books and pictures that amid the wreck of these cities he managed to rescue many priceless manuscripts from the ruined habitations of his ancestors. These he took with him to Hindustan, there to form the nucleus of a library that, under his successors, was to expand into magnificent proportions.