Akbarnama Mines exploding during the siege of Chitor
| Support Type: | Paper |
| Paint Type: | Watercolor |
| Current Location: | V&A South Kensington |
| Location History: | The painting by Miskina was originally created in the royal Mughal court during Emperor Akbar’s reign, most likely in Lahore or another important artistic center of the Mughal Empire. Like many Mughal miniatures, it was once part of an illustrated manuscript before being separated and circulated through collectors and art dealers during the colonial period. Over time, the artwork became part of British museum collections and is now preserved at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, where it remains an important example of Mughal miniature painting and courtly history. |
This is a 16th-century Mughal miniature painting from the Akbarnama (c. 1590–1595) designed by Miskina and painted by Bhura and dynamically captures the chaotic 1567 Siege of Chittorgarh. The composition is divided diagonally, with the fortified Rajput fort on the upper right and the Mughal army below, preparing for an assault. Soldiers fight in the midst of rocky grounds, under rolling, dark smoke. The upper left is the dramatic focal point, where a massive, fiery premature mine explosion, laid by Mughal engineers, rains down and accidentally kills hundreds of their own advancing forces. At the bottom, Emperor Akbar, in a striped military tent, calmly gestures with composed authority to direct the aftermath.