This painting is part of a folio from Waqiat-i Baburi, the Memoirs of Babur. He composed verses in Turkish and wrote in his waqai (occurrence, chronicles) which remained untranslated for years only until Akbar, Babur’s grandson, decided to translate it to Persian. This decision was led by the increasing number of Iranian scholars who joined the court and did not have the knowledge of Turkish language. He wanted to preserve the legacy of Babur and thus the work was translated which took around fifty-nine years. The charm of the poems reached a larger section of society post its translation.
The painting depicts a style of Persian and Mughal manuscripts. It has Persian writing in a golden box at the top left. This helps to tell a story with pictures and words. There is a trail of something that seems like a brook that runs diagonally across the picture. This line takes the viewer’s eye from the right, where you see colorful rocks and trees to the middle right.
On the right you see Emperor Babur wearing a deep purple shirt. He is sitting on a horse. Holding a bow. Someone is standing next to him in bright orange clothes.
The attention keeps moving down to the bottom left where one can see a rhinoceros that has been shot with an arrow. The rhinoceros is near a stream and a big tree. This is the part of the story.
The picture uses a lot of colors. The colors are bright and fun. They make the people and horses stand out. The rhinoceros is colored in a way that makes it look heavy and real. The background of the picture is calm and quiet.
Around the edges of the picture you see gold flowers and lines. These are painted in blue, red and gold. They make the picture look nice and fancy. The Persian and Mughal manuscript style is really beautiful.
This folio from the Baburnama captures far more than a simple hunting expedition; it serves as a powerful visual assertion of imperial authority, courage, and naturalistic observation.
In Mughal royal iconography, hunting exotic and formidable beasts—such as the Indian rhinoceros—symbolizes the emperor’s role as a conqueror capable of taming wild, unpredictable wilderness and establishing order within his realm. Emperor Babur, positioned stoically on horseback with his bow ready, embodies calm discipline contrasted against the raw power of the wounded rhinoceros below.
