{"product_id":"shamsa-with-portrait-of-aurangzeb-canvas-cloth-print-c-1645","title":"'Shamsa with Portrait of Aurangzeb' Canvas Cloth Print, c.1645","description":"\u003ch5\u003eProvenance\u003c\/h5\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe sunburst — shamsa — closes the album: a dense field of gold and lapis lazuli, worked with floral and geometric precision by hand, its light radiating outward in concentric rings. The gold was tooled with pinpricks to catch more light. At the centre, where a plain disc once stood as an emblem of divine sanction for Shah Jahan's rule, a small portrait of Aurangzeb was later inserted. He holds prayer beads. His father is now under house arrest.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe illumination was made between 1640 and 1655, probably by Bichitr, one of the most accomplished painters of Shah Jahan's court. The original design embodied the Mughal concept of the king as the earthly reflection of divine light. The shamsa was the traditional closing ornament of imperial albums, and its visual language was mathematical: geometric perfection as an image of the divine order.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe addition of Aurangzeb's portrait after 1658 rewrites the page's meaning. What was a symbol of his father's legitimacy became, through a single small intervention, a claim to his own. The album passed into the imperial library under new ownership. The light remained; the centre changed.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003chr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eDisclaimer: \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eThe frames shown are for display purposes only and are \u003cstrong\u003enot included\u003c\/strong\u003e with the artwork.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eAs these are made-to-order designer pieces, expect minor \u003cstrong\u003ecolour variations\u003c\/strong\u003e from the displayed artwork.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e","brand":"Brahm","offers":[{"title":"24 x 35 in","offer_id":45151602999319,"sku":null,"price":105.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"28 x 41 in","offer_id":45151603032087,"sku":null,"price":140.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"32 x 47 in","offer_id":45151603064855,"sku":null,"price":179.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0704\/7711\/9511\/files\/ShamsawithPortraitofAurangzeb.png?v=1781457755","url":"https:\/\/www.brahmcollection.com\/products\/shamsa-with-portrait-of-aurangzeb-canvas-cloth-print-c-1645","provider":"Brahm Collection","version":"1.0","type":"link"}