'Nur Jahan Holding a Portrait of Emperor Jahangir' Canvas Cloth Print, c.1627

Provenance

Nur Jahan stands at the jharokha window — the imperial balcony of formal presence — holding a miniature portrait of her husband Jahangir. He appears behind the window carpet, aged, his hair grey. She stands in her idealised youth; she would have been fifty at the time of his death. The painting holds that gap deliberately, the gap between power and time.

Nur Jahan was the most powerful woman in the history of the Mughal empire. She effectively governed the state during Jahangir's final years and had every reason to think carefully about what came next. This painting is understood as a political act as much as a devotional one — modelled perhaps on images of Jahangir himself holding a portrait of his own father, asserting legitimacy through the act of holding.

The attribution to Bishandas, one of the great portraitists of the Mughal court, gives the work particular weight. His portraits are known for psychological precision and sensitivity to interior states. In this painting, that precision is directed at a moment of studied composure in a court on the edge of succession.

Disclaimer:

• The frames shown are for display purposes only and are not included with the artwork.
• As these are made-to-order designer pieces, expect minor colour variations from the displayed artwork.