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A blindfolded suitor is brought before a princess; verso: scrolling floral vines

Faizullah

1755

unspecified

From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art

Mughal Painting Romanticism 18th Century Allegory Lucknow Mughal

Dominant colour

A blindfolded suitor is brought before a princess; verso: scrolling floral vines is a 1755 unspecified by Faizullah, a Mughal Painting work, depicting Lucknow, held at Cleveland Museum of Art.

Who painted this?: Faizullah
When & what style?: 1755 · Mughal Painting
Where can I see it?: Cleveland Museum of Art

About this work

The painting shows a blindfolded prince being led to a princess. He's guided by an older woman from the harem. The scene is set on a carpeted terrace, which was a common setting in Mughal palaces. The artist likely included this detail to show the prince's vulnerability and the princess's power. You can learn more about this style by looking at the work of artist Fayzullah.

The story of this work

Overview

In a scene set on a carpeted terrace in the women’s palace quarters, an older woman of the harem drags a young prince with a white blindfold over his eyes before a princess grasping a document. Such a scene evokes a literary allusion of a princess who selects her suitor, but it also resonates with circumstances at the Mughal court. Signed and dated by the artist, this painting was completed at a time when powerful women wielded control over the emperor, and Ahmad Shah Bahadur (reigned 1748–54), son and successor of Muhammad Shah, had been blinded and deposed less than one year before.

Read the full account in the museum source.