The game of wolf-running in Tabriz, from an Akbar-nama (Book of Akbar)

About the Artwork

After four years of traveling in exile, fleeing Afghan forces, Humayun reached Tabriz, the glittering capital of the Safavid dynasty in northwestern Iran, here imaginatively rendered by the Indian artist. There the second Mughal emperor enjoyed warm hospitality extended by the shah of Iran, who called for a game of wolf-running for which the city was famous. Artists painting during the time of Akbar, late in his reign when historical subjects dominated, speculated as to how the game was played, based on eyewitness accounts. They gave the figures lively emotive expressions and gestures, and the dense crowding successfully conveys the pandemonium of the scene.

Inscriptions

signed by Banwari

Provenance

Private Collection, London

Exhibition history

Art and Stories from Mughal India. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (July 31-October 23, 2016).

Quick Overview

Artist: Banavari 1 (Indian, active 1550s-1590s)
Date: c. 1595–1600
Medium: Gum tempera, ink, and gold on paper
Dimensions: Page: 35.2 x 23.8 cm (13 7/8 x 9 3/8 in.)
Type: Painting
Classification: Painting
Department: Indian and Southeast Asian Art
Credit line: Alma Kroeger Fund
Accession no.: 2003.38

More by Banavari 1 in museum collections

The astrologer predicts a calamity for the newly born prince in his thirteenth year, but one which he would be able to overcome, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Eighth Night
Banavari 1
c. 1560 · Painting
Public collection via the Cleveland Museum of ArtAT-00009804

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