Royal hunt

Hunting was a popular pastime of India’s rulers, and representations of such pursuits form a significant genre in Indian court art. The Rajput and Mughal courts included ateliers of painters, part of whose role was to document the exploits of rulers and, thereby, their power and importance. This painting from the Punjab Hills shows aristocrats on horseback surrounding deer and a tiger by a pond. A large retinue of attendants supports the hunters, and their significant encampment can be seen in the distance.