The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of December 19, 2025

Page of disasters, from the Tarikh-i Alfi (History of a Thousand Years)

c. 1595

India, Mughal school, 16th century

Gum tempera, ink, and gold on paper
Overall: 41 x 22.6 cm (16 1/8 x 8 7/8 in.)
Dudley P. Allen Fund 1932.36.b
Location: Not on view

Description

A distinctive feature of this manuscript is the descriptive painting surrounding the blocks of text. At the top of this page is a depiction of the sacred center of Islam, the black stone structure called the Ka‘ba in Mecca that the Prophet Muhammad cleansed of pre-Muslim idols. The Ka‘ba is the endpoint of the Islamic pilgrimage that all Muslims are enjoined to make at least once during their lifetime. Remarkably, Akbar’s name appears on the page of the book held by a devotee, where only prayers or Qur'anic passages should be found. During the time of the caliph who persecuted Shi‘ites, Mecca experienced a drought. Fountains of water now were dry, and pilgrims had to buy water that was carried there.
  • ?-1932
    (Ajit Ghose, Calcutta, India, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art)
    1932-
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • "A Mughal Miniature." The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 19, no. 6 (June 1932): 95-97. Reproduced: front cover; Mentioned: p. 95-97 25137481
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art Handbook. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1958. Mentioned: cat. no. 776 archive.org
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1966. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1966. Reproduced: p. 237 archive.org
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1969. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1969. Reproduced: p. 237 archive.org
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1978. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1978. Reproduced: p. 304 archive.org
  • Art and Stories from Mughal India. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (July 31-October 23, 2016).
  • {{cite web|title=Page of disasters, from the Tarikh-i Alfi (History of a Thousand Years)|url=false|author=|year=c. 1595|access-date=19 December 2025|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1932.36.b