Babur receives a courtier

Object Details

• Artist

  Farrukh Beg (active early 1580s–1619)

• School/Tradition

  Mughal school

• Description

  Detached folio from a dispersed copy of Baburnama (Tuzuk-i Baburi) by Zahir-al-Din Muhammad Babur; Babur receives a courtier; one of a group of three folios.

  Border: The painting is set in gold, red, and blue rulings in a border with gold landscape, bird and animal motifs, mounted within borders of a Rawdat al-safa page.

• Inscriptions

  Mounting board back: 206, written in pencil

  Mounting board back: illegible numbers and V, written in black ink

  Old matting, backing exterior: Vever 206, written in pencil

  Old matting, backing exterior: Vever, written in blue pencil

  Old matting, backing exterior: par Farruckh Beg, written in blue pencil and black ink, and

  (Turc), written in pencil

  Old matting, backing exterior: fur XVI ͤ, written in blue pencil

  Old matting, backing exterior: Souverain sur son trône entouré de seigneurs et de personnages, donnant audience dans son palais -- (Musiciens, pastèques, etc.), written in black ink,

  Old matting, backing exterior: 21 V, written in pencil

  Old matting, backing exterior: hasxx, written in pencil

  Old matting, backing exteroir: round white sticker, printed in blue Henri Vever, No 21

  Farruck-Beg, written in black ink, hasxx, apxxx, written in pencil

  Old matting, backing exterior: 4, circled, written in blue pencil

  Old matting, front interior: Marge toile de soie claire (underlined twice) unie de

  5 centimètres dans chaque sens. cadre habituel written in blue pencil

  Old matting, front exterior: Vever 206, written in pencil

  Old matting, front exterior: Vever 206, written in pencil

• Provenance

  ?-1913

  Georges Demotte (1877-1923), method of acquisition unknown [1]

  1913-1942

  Henri Vever (1854-1942), acquired as partial gift/exchange from Georges Demotte [2]

  1942-1947

  Jeanne Louise Monthiers (1861-1947), bequest of Henri Vever [3]

  1947-1986

  Francois Mautin (1907-2003), bequest of Jeanne Louise Monthiers and Henri Vever [4]

  From 1986

  Arthur M. Sackler Gallery purchased from Francois Mautin [5]

  Notes:

  [1] This work is likely one of the two credited to Farrukh Beg that Henri Vever acquired from the dealer George Demotte as a gift and/or exchange in February 1913. See Henri Vever Account Ledger, November 1912, annotation at bottom of page, FSA A1988.042.2, from Henri Vever Papers. Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives. Vever describes this work and another (S1986.231) as "2 miniatures Persanes fin XVI ? par Farrugh [sic] Beg (Février 1913)." Georges Demotte was a collector and dealer of Islamic and medieval European art. He had galleries in Paris and New York City.

  [2] An accomplished French jeweler and collector, Henri Vever (1854-1942) amassed a large and impressive collection of works of art during his lifetime. His holdings in Japanese prints and Islamic arts of the books, especially from Iran and India, were among the most important assembled in the early twentieth century. This object was in Vever's collection at the time of his death in 1942. Vever acquired these through George Demotte as a gift and/or exchange, replacing works he had purchased from the dealer in November 1912. See annotations in Henri Vever Ledger cited in note 1.

  [3] Upon Henri Vever's death on September 25, 1942, his wife, Jeanne Louise Monthiers inherited the object. See exhibits F and G of Agreement of Purchase and Sale of the Henri Vever Collection, January 9, 1986, copy in object file.

  [4] Upon the death of Jeanne Louise Monthiers, as stipulated in the will of Henri Vever, the family's assets were divided evenly between his two grandchildren. His only grandson, Francois Mautin inherited the collection known as "The Henri Vever Collection of Oriental Art and Manuscripts Including Persian and Indian Art and Manuscripts." This object is part of that collection. See exhibits F and G as cited in note 3.

  [5] The Arthur M. Sackler Gallery purchased the entirety of the collection from Francois Mautin on January 9, 1986. See purchase agreement, copy in object file.

  Research updated on March 28, 2023.

• Collection

  Arthur M. Sackler Collection

• Exhibition History

  Worlds within Worlds: Imperial Paintings from India and Iran (July 28 to September 16, 2012)

  Arts of Mughal India (2004) (August 21, 2004 to February 6, 2005)

  Arts of Mughal India (1992) (May 24 to December 6, 1992)

  A Jeweler's Eye: Islamic Arts of the Book from the Vever Collection (November 20, 1988 to April 30, 1989)

  Persian and Indian Painting - Selections from a Recent Acquisition (September 28, 1987 to February 28, 1988)

• Previous custodian or owner

  Francois Mautin (1907-2003)

  Jeanne Louise Monthiers (1861-1947)

  Henri Vever (1854-1942)

  Georges Demotte (1877-1923)

• Origin

  Lahore, Pakistan

• Credit Line

  Purchase — Smithsonian Unrestricted Trust Funds, Smithsonian Collections Acquisition Program, and Dr. Arthur M. Sackler

• Type

  Manuscript

• Restrictions and Rights

  Usage Conditions Apply

  There are restrictions for re-using this media. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page.

  The information presented on this website may be revised and updated at any time as ongoing research progresses or as otherwise warranted. Pending any such revisions and updates, information on this site may be incomplete or inaccurate or may contain typographical errors. Neither the Smithsonian nor its regents, officers, employees, or agents make any representations about the accuracy, reliability, completeness, or timeliness of the information on the site. Use this site and the information provided on it subject to your own judgment. The National Museum of Asian Art welcomes information that would augment or clarify the ownership history of objects in their collections.

Keep Exploring

• Related Resources

  collections.si.edu

• Date

  1590s, 1570s

• Name

  Mautin, Francois Albert, Monthiers, Jeanne Louise, Demotte, Georges, Vever, Henri

• Place

  Pakistan, Lahore

• Topic

  Pavilion, Art, Henri Vever collection, Mughal dynasty (1526 - 1858), Arts of the Islamic World, Tambourine, Kings and rulers, Courtier, Baburnama, Lute, Musicians

• Culture

  Muslims

• Object Type

  Manuscripts