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A black, circular painted shield that is decorated with a gold floral pattern and four gold lions. Three of the lions are eating their prey.

A black, circular painted shield shown flat on a grey background. It is decorated with a gold floral pattern and four gold lions that encircle around the center. Three of the lions are eating their prey while the fourth sits. In between the lion images are painted trees and engraved detailed circles. Along the outer edge of the shield is a band of a smaller gold floral pattern.

Gallery Text

Four tawny lions stretch across this beautifully painted shield. One sits up and flexes its claws, while the others lunge at a goat, a boar, and a winged monster. The painter delighted in minute details, depicting individual hairs, carefully shading musculature and flower petals, and inflecting the eyes of predator and prey with piercing intensity. The scenes of animal combat are set in a luxuriant landscape among trees and dense vegetation inhabited by small birds. Elaborately painted shields such as this were probably used only for display. In India, a ruler was often described as a lion, lord of the wilderness.

Identification and Creation

Object Number
1995.96
Title
Shield with scenes of hunting lions
Classification
Armor
Work Type
armor
Date
c. 1800
Places
Creation Place: South Asia, India, Rajasthan, Kota
Culture
Indian
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/215525

Location

Location
Level 2, Room 2590, South Asian Art, South Asia in the Medieval and Early Modern Eras
View this object's location on our interactive map

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Rhinoceros hide, opaque watercolor, lacquer, and gold with silver gilt bosses
Dimensions
Diam: 59.7 x Depth: 7.8 cm (23 1/2 x 3 1/16 in.)

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Gift in gratitude to John Coolidge, Gift of Leslie Cheek, Jr., Anonymous Fund in memory of Henry Berg, Louise Haskell Daly, Alpheus Hyatt, Richard Norton Memorial Funds and through the generosity of Albert H. Gordon and Emily Rauh Pulitzer; formerly in the collection of Stuart Cary Welch, Jr.
Accession Year
1995
Object Number
1995.96
Division
Asian and Mediterranean Art
Contact
am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu
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Descriptions

Description
The shield, made of lacquered rhinoceros hide, is painted with four vignettes featuring large golden lions: one attacks a rhinoceros-like creature; one attacks a goat; one attacks a boar; and the final one sits with its paw up. The rest of the shield is decorated with flowers, plants, and a large tree filled with monkeys. At the center of the shield is a large, painted medallion that is flanked by four silvered bosses. The bosses are faceted to give the impression of being set with diamonds. The back of the shield features a marbled pattern made of red and black lacquer. The shield is missing the four rings that would have secured the bosses into place, as well as the cushion that protected the forearm.

Publication History

  • Stuart Cary Welch, India, Art and Culture, 1300-1900, exh. cat., Holt, Rinehart & Winston (New York, NY, 1985), Page 387/Figure 263

Exhibition History

  • Birds, Beasts and Calligraphies, Fogg Art Museum, Cambridge, 06/11/1981 - 09/29/1981
  • From India's Hills and Plains: Rajput Painting from the Punjab and Rajasthan, 17th through 19th Centuries, Harvard University Art Museums, Cambridge, 09/04/1993 - 10/31/1993
  • Indian Harvest: Part 1, Harvard University Art Museums, Cambridge, 11/30/1995 - 01/21/1996
  • Indian Harvest: Part 2, Harvard University Art Museums, Cambridge, 02/17/1996 - 04/28/1996
  • A Decade of Collecting: Recent Acquisitions of Islamic and Later Indian Art, Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Cambridge, 06/08/2000 - 09/03/2000
  • The Sport of Kings: Art of the Hunt in Iran and India, Harvard University Art Museums, Cambridge, 01/22/2005 - 06/26/2005
  • 32Q: 2590 South and Southeast Asia, Harvard Art Museums, Cambridge, 11/16/2014 - 01/01/2050

Subjects and Contexts

  • Google Art Project

Verification Level

This record was created from historic documentation and may not have been reviewed by a curator; it may be inaccurate or incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of Asian and Mediterranean Art at am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu