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Portrait of Raja Ram Singh of Amber (r. 1667-1688) with a Deccan Sword (recto); Calligraphy (verso)

Unknown

1682

unspecified

From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art

Baroque Mughal Painting Baroque Portrait Mughal Court

Dominant colour

Portrait of Raja Ram Singh of Amber (r. 1667-1688) with a Deccan Sword (recto); Calligraphy (verso) is a 1682 unspecified by Unknown, a Baroque work, depicting Mughal Court, held at Cleveland Museum of Art.

Who painted this?: Unknown
When & what style?: 1682 · Baroque
Where can I see it?: Cleveland Museum of Art

About this work

You see a man in a turban and jewels holding a curved sword, his face tired but calm. This is Raja Ram Singh, a Hindu ruler who spent his life serving Mughal emperors. The artist shows his weariness—no fancy clothes can hide it. The sword hints at battles fought for a court that wasn’t his own. If you like this quiet power, look up Mughal court next.

The story of this work

Overview

The sensitive, naturalistic rendering of weariness and forbearance in the face belies the trappings of favor bestowed on Ram Singh by the Mughal emperors Shah Jahan and Alamgir, whom he served as courtier and general between 1643 and 1688. He was a Hindu ruler from the kingdom of Amber in Rajasthan, under the control of the Mughal empire. Spending most of his life at the imperial court or leading military expeditions for the Mughals, this portrait was included in a Mughal album and inscribed with an Urdu verse indicating his value to the empire: "wherever he has led an expedition, victory is…

Read the full account in the museum source.