The great variety of manuscripts and paintings in this exhibition reflect the rich and diverse cultures of South Asia, the area encompassing modern day India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka.

Manuscripts and paintings from South Asia are typically small in scale and executed using water-based mineral and plant pigments, the earliest on palm leaf and later on handmade paper. A thriving manuscript tradition endured well into the nineteenth century, and even then printed books often retained many of the design elements of earlier manuscript and painting traditions.