Indian Painting under the Mughals, A.D. 1550 to A.D. 1750 c22.36

c22.36

In the preparation of his materials the Mughal painter displayed great care, the proof of which is observable in the fresh appearance of his pictures after the lapse of three hundred years. Most of these materials were the productions of his own hands, or manufactured under his direct supervision by his pupils. The paper on which he painted his miniature received particular attention, and was selected and adapted to the purpose with considerable knowledge and skill. At first this commodity was imported from Persia, but before long a factory was established at Sialkot in the Punjab, and paper named after that place became common, being still known as *Sialkoti* at the present time. But although serviceable for writing, for artistic purposes the Persian product was preferred, and papers designated *Irani* and *Ispahani* were mainly used by the early painters of the Mughal school. Good paper of a size suitable for painting was not easily obtained in Akbar’s time, as we find artists were often forced to join several pieces together before even the small dimension required for their miniatures was attained. This joining was very skilfully performed, pieces being added at the sides or ends, thus avoiding any awkward juncture across the middle of the picture. The subsequent burnishing and priming of the surface prevented any of these joints being seen in the finished miniature. After a time other kinds of paper began to find favour with the artists, as the manufacture of this article became more general. These were prepared from three products: bamboo, from which a paper called *basāhā* or *bhansī* was obtained; jute, called *tāt*, hence the kind known as *tatahā*, and a quality made from cotton, *tāt*, which went by the name of *tūlat* paper. There was also a small quantity made from flax, which was referred to as *sannī*, while a few artists executed their work on a silk paper, *harīrī*, occasionally alluded to as *reshmī*, but this had the defect of cracking in the course of time. Pictures on silk itself are very rare indeed, and there exist only a few Mughal miniatures painted on vellum. Religious prejudices may partly account for the scarcity of the former, as some Muhammadans have an objection to being brought into contact with the products of the silkworm; and vellum, being prepared from the skin of calves, would on somewhat similar grounds not be acceptable to the Hindus. In the Hanna collection at Washington, U.S.A., however, there are a few Mughal miniatures painted on vellum, but few others are known. As the painters’ art extended and the demand for paper increased, other kinds came into use for pictures, and several places in India began to manufacture it. Daulatabad in the Deccan was one of these, and on the paper from this source paintings in the Deccani style were executed. Still farther south, and at a later date, what was called *Mughali* paper was preferred, evidently imported from Hindustan, but that used by the Mysore artists was a local production known as *kardey*. No one of these papers was white, most of them being a light buff tint.