A Youth Reading, from the Nasiruddin Shah Album

Object Details

• Artist

  Muhammad Ali

• Court

  Mughal Court

• School/Tradition

  Mughal school

• Provenance

  Ca. 1610

  Jahangir (1569-1627, reign 1605-1627), commissioned the painting from the artist, Muhammad Ali [1]

  Ca. 1610-1739

  Mughal Library, Delhi, India, under Muhammad Shah (1702-1748; reign 1719-1748) [2]

  1739-?

  Imperial Library, Tehran, under Nadir Shah (1688-1747; reign 1736-1747) and subsequent rulers of Iran, Nadir Shah had paintings and manuscripts taken from the Mughal library during his invasion of Delhi, India [3]

  ?-at least 1826-1827

  Ownership information unknown

  At least 1826-1827-possibly 1844-1845

  Khusraw Khan Na-Kam, method of acquisition unknown [4]

  1844-1845-?

  Persian Imperial Library, Tehran, Iran, possibly acquired from Khusraw Khan Na-Kam [5]

  ?-?

  Ownership information unknown

  ? -1953

  Heeramaneck Galleries (active 1928-1964), New York, NY, method of acquisition unknown [6]

  From 1953

  Freer Gallery of Art, purchased from Heeramaneck Galleries [7]

  Notes:

  [1] See the inscription below the painting. See also Milo Beach, “The Imperial Image: Paintings for the Mughal Court,” (Washington, DC and Ahmedabad, India: Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery and Mapin International Inc., 2012), cat. 23, p. 141, 212. The inscription below the painting identifying the artist as Muhammad Ali, who is known to have painted in the workshop of the Mughal emperor Jahangir. The floral border indicates that the painting was bound into an album during the reign of Jahangir's son, Shah Jahan (1592-1666; reign 1628-1658).

  [2] See note 1.

  [3] See Yedda Godard, “Un Album de Portraits des Princes Timurides de l’Inde” [journal article], from “Athar-e-Iran,” Vol. 2, (Haarlem: J. Enschedé, 1937), pp. 179-277. See also Elaine Wight, “The Nasir al-Din Shah Album, c. 1627-1645,” from “Muraqqaʻ Imperial Mughal Albums from the Chester Beatty Library, Dublin” [exhibition catalogue], (Alexandria, VA: Art Services International, 2008), p. 141. The provenance of this album was first published by Yedda Godard in 1937. Godard publication states that according to the staff of the Golestan Palace Library, this album was compiled by Naser al-Din Shah from folios that had been taken from the Mughal library during Nadir Shah’s invasion of Delhi, India in 1739 . Citing Godard, Wright states, “In support of this is a portrait of Nadir Shah’s successor, Ali Shah Afshar [(d. 1749)] , who ruled as Adil Shah (r. 1747-1748), which was presumably added to the album in Iran during the emperor’s reign. However, in 1826-1827 (AH 1242) the album was in the possession of Khusraw Khan Na-Kam of the Ardalan family, hereditary rulers of the semi-independent Kurdish province of Ardalan in northwestern Iran, and then, in 1844-1845 (AH 1260), it was registered as part of the Gulistan [Golestan] Palace Library.”

  [4] See note 3.

  [5] See note 3. See also Wright, p. 147, footnote 5. Wight suggests that the Ardalan family might have given the album to Naser al-din Shah's predecessor, Muhammad Shah (1808-1848; reign 1834-1848), since the album was registered during his reign.

  [6] See object file for copy of the Heeramaneck Galleries invoice to Freer Gallery of Art, dated August 11, 1953, and marked approved on July 7, 1953. Object is described as, “Indian miniature painting of A Prince reading in a landscape Mughal School early 17th century.”

  Heeramaneck Galleries in New York, NY owned and operated by Nasli M. (1902-1971) and Alice N. Heeramaneck (née Arvine) (1910-1993). The Heeramaneck’s were dealers and collectors of Pre-Columbian and Asian art. Nasli Heeramaneck began his career as a dealer in Paris during the 1920s and relocated to New York, NY in 1927. In 1939, Nasli married Alice Arvine, an American portrait painter from New Haven, CT. Nasli founded Heeramaneck Galleries in New York, NY by 1928. He began to retire in 1964 and liquidated some of the gallery’s stock at auction at Parke-Barnet, New York in 1964 and 1965. Many objects from the Heeramaneck collection were either purchased or donated to American museums. Items from their collection may be found in The British Museum; the Cleveland Museum of Art; Los Angeles County Museum; The Metropolitan Museum of Art; Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; National Museum of New Delhi; Virginia Museum of Fine Arts; and Yale University.

  [7] See note 6.

  Research updated November 28, 2023

• Collection

  Freer Gallery of Art Collection

• Exhibition History

  Falcons: The Art of the Hunt (January 15 to July 17, 2022)

  East of Eden: Gardens in Asian Art (February 24 to May 13, 2007)

  Masterworks of Indian Painting (December 13, 1997 to June 13, 1998)

  South and South East Asian Art (May 9, 1993 to February 7, 2000)

  The Arts of South Asia (May 13, 1985 to December 2, 1985)

  The Imperial Image: Painting for the Mughal Court (September 25, 1981 to 30 March 1982)

  Indian Art (January 1, 1963 to January 28, 1981)

  Untitled Exhibition, South Asian Art, Gallery 8 (July 15, 1958 to January 1, 1963)

  Special Exhibition, Near Eastern Art (September 15, 1953 to February 9, 1954)

• Previous custodian or owner

  Jahangir جهانگیر (1569-1627)

  Muhammad Shah (1702-1748; reign 1719-1748)

  Mughal Library

  Nadir Shah (1688-1747; reign 1736-1747)

  Adel Shah (d. 1749; reign 1747-1748)

  Khusraw Khan Na-kam

  Imperial Library (Tehran)

  Naser al-Din Shah (1831-1896; reign 1848-1896)

  Heeramaneck Galleries (active 1928-1964)

• Origin

  India

• Credit Line

  Purchase — Charles Lang Freer Endowment

• Type

  Painting

• Restrictions and Rights

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Keep Exploring

• Related Resources

  collections.si.edu

• Date

  1610s, 1600s

• Name

  Shah, Nadir, Shah, Adel, Jahangir, Khusraw Khan Na-kam, Imperial Library (Tehran), Heeramaneck Galleries, Muhammad Shah, Shah, Naser al-Din, Mughal Library

• Place

  India

• Topic

  South Asian and Himalayan Art, Landscapes, Reading, Art, Reign of Jahangir (1605 - 1627), Falcon

• Culture

  Himalayan peoples, South Asians

• Language

  Naskh script

• Object Type

  Paintings