Hussain Ali Sheikh
The Glasgow School of Art
HVis | SimVis | PGDS 22
Against a green background, two dark blue elephants can be seen in combat.
The elephants have their trunks interlocked and their tusks brutally thrust against each other.
Each elephant has a bell around its neck and belly with their mahawats (handlers), holding a goad with one hand are prompting their beasts to jostle the other harder.
The mahawat on the right side leaning backwards for balance shows the strength of the left hand elephant who appears to be charging ahead with greater ferocity.
A dark blue background with yellow flowers scattered all over, appears to denote a star-spangled midnight sky
Each prince wears a plumed turban, a long yellow robe with dark blue waistband and burnt orange shoes
Each white horse, having a blue saddle and yellow reins, appears to be in motion excited at the spectacle in front of it
This performance looks like a wrestling match where each pehelvan (wrestler) is ready to beat his opponent and push him to the ground. The two pehelvans are dressed in yellow turbans, short white tunics with full sleeves with green waistbands and green short pants.
Set against a turquoise blue background, a yellow single-humped camel plods at a leisurely pace behind his shutr-ban (cameleer)
The shutr-ban (cameleer), holding a rope attached to the camel’s muzzle is dressed in a yellow turban, short sleeved white tunic with a green waistband, dark blue short pants and yellow shoes
The sumptuously caparisoned camel with bells dangling from its body has a parrot perched on its hump
Two winged creatures or paris holding saibans (sun-shades)
Floating in midair, the figures are attired in similar costumes holding two lambs. For the Mughals, lamb or calf signified the existence of peace and justice
A beast-like creature’s bust can be seen at the apex.
The wings are depicted in blue, saffron green and white. The yellow background has several Chinese cloud forms in different sizes and each has been rendered with a slight swirl in the center
This is an animated composition where the horse rider is charging at a lion that is also ready to pounce back. This hunting scene takes place in a jungle-like environment since yellow flowers and plants fill in most of the negative space
The rider appears to be a prince as his outfit is different from equestrian figures seen in other panels. Surprisingly, the weapons used for this hunt is neither a rifle nor a sword but a bow and arrow
The prince seems to be perfectly balanced on his mount as he aims at the lion with his bow and arrow despite the horse galloping midair
This oblong panel at the base of the large arch shows a procession that includes an elephant, men on foot, as well as some equestrian figures
The procession is led by a dark blue elephant, richly caparisoned with different fabrics and gold bells hung on a chain, carrying its mahawat (handler) and the keeper
Six men of different descriptions, holding objects like pennants and swords walking in a row follow it. The most prominent among them is the last pedestrian who has his head turned back. A large green bird, possibly a parrot, hovers above these men
And there is a dog walking in the corner
This panel is set on a white background with plants in the foreground
The horse rider on a galloping horse harnessed with a yellow saddle is attacking the elephant with a spear as it stands vulnerable
The mahawat (handler) standing in the right corner appears to have abandoned his mount leaving it to its fate
This panel is set on a yellow background with flowery plants in the foreground. A mahawat and a keeper are mounted on each elephant
The mahawats hold goads while the keepers at the back have plants
Although the goads are larger in size, there is much less action as the two beasts approach each other to engage in a fight.
The spandrel is in a damaged state and have lost most of its yellow tiles as background
The surviving left dragon has its head turned backwards with a wide open eye and outstretched wings. Large parts of its wings and its body are damaged
However thin serpent-like tails dangling in the lower corners are almost intact. The underside of its body is shown in light blue while the scaly back is rendered in dark blue
An enraged elephant with its trunk outstretched is shown running after a horse rider to capture him
The mahawat with the blade of his goad against the beast’s head is either urging it to stop or to run faster
The horse is galloping westwards while the unarmed equestrian turns back to assess the danger
The equestrian holds the reins with one hand while his left arm is in the air. He wears a dark blue turban and a short-sleeved turquoise blue robe that falls down to his knees with a white waistband
