Mogul miniature

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Indo-Islamic miniature painting of court life or the natural world, produced in northern India in the ateliers (workshops) of the Mogul emperors Akbar, Jahangir, and Shah Jahan (16th–17th centuries). Persian Safavid artists introduced the traditions of miniature painting from Persian art, but the atelier then developed its own unique style, combining Persian and European techniques as well as Hindu and Islamic traditions. Exquisite and meticulously detailed miniatures were painted with great realism in glowing, jewel-like colours. Many paintings were worked on by more than one artist, often both Hindu and Muslim – perhaps one doing the outline, while the other coloured.

Islam arrived in India in the late 10th century, and subsequent waves of zealous and increasingly strong Muslim armies destroyed all Hindu and Buddhist temples between the 11th and 13th centuries. Little remains of India's original Hindu and Buddhist art, although Persian painters employed in the Muslim courts adopted some of the characteristics of Hindu art. The first atelier was set up by the third Mogul emperor Akbar (reigned 1556–1605) under Safavid printers. He aimed to decrease friction between India's Islamic, Hindu, and Buddhist communities by producing beautifully illustrated histories and mythologies of the various cultures to encourage understanding and toleration. However, the emperor's atelier soon became more celebrated for its miniatures. Realistic royal portraits were produced, and albums of birds, animals, and flowers were painted for Jehangir, who took over Akbar's atelier when he died. Mogul miniatures remained popular during Jehangir's reign, but began to decline under Shah Jahan (reigned 1628–1666), as many of the artists began to move to different courts in Rajput and Deccani.

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