Antelope and deer hunt

Also known as: Hunting Scene

About the Artwork

The Mughals used trained cheetahs, such as this one wearing a red collar, to capture prey during hunting expeditions in the wilderness. The metaphor of the hunt was also a potent image in Persian literature, in which the protagonist finally achieves a desired goal. The central image of the cheetah catching the black buck—a frequently repeated visual trope—resonates with the desire of Prince Salim (who was passionate about hunting) to capture the throne of the Mughal Empire from Akbar, his father. Between 1600 and 1605, when Prince Salim set up his own royal court in defiance of his father, he convinced some imperial artists to join him. The young Govardhan, a Hindu who would go on to achieve high stature in the atelier of the next two emperors, was one of them.

Inscriptions

recto, lower right: Govardhan

Exhibition history

East Indian Art. The Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit, MI (organizer) (February 10-March 29, 1942). Art and Stories from Mughal India. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (July 31-October 23, 2016).

Quick Overview

Artist: Govardhan (Indian, active c.1596–1645)
Date: c. 1602–4
Medium: Gum tempera and gold on paper
Dimensions: Image: 20 x 11.8 cm (7 7/8 x 4 5/8 in.); Overall: 37 x 25.3 cm (14 9/16 x 9 15/16 in.)
Type: Painting
Classification: Painting
Department: Indian and Southeast Asian Art
Credit line: Dudley P. Allen Fund
Accession no.: 1939.66

Provenance

?–1939: (Wells Objects of Art, Inc., New York, NY, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art) 1939–: The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH

Data retrieved from the Cleveland Museum of Art on October 8, 2026. The museum may have updated its record since.