f.220b: Shah-Jahan hunting lions (plate 46)

A lion hunt was a statement of imperial power as lions were symbolic of kingship and could only be hunted by the Emperor. At this hunt in July 1630 the Emperor is shown in the act of shooting a lion. He is accompanied by his three eldest sons - Prince Shah-Shuja at top centre, and by the right margin Prince Awrangzeb (on a partly obscured elephant) behind Prince Dara-Shikoh, the heir apparent. This illustration is the first known representation of a lion hunt to show a bëdar (net). This was constructed of white rope and stakes that typically extended some 8,200 metres (5 miles) and was almost five metres high. In the painting it serves both as a device to separate the imperial family from the group of huntsmen in the foreground, and to give a sense of perspective in the composition.

The text recounts a similar lion hunt: 'Several lions seen in the hunting grounds were reported to the Emperor. By imperial order the ferocious beasts were surrounded with a bëdar, which is a very strong net with thick poles [then] the lion-hunting Emperor mounted on an elephant entered the hunting ground and shot a lion with his gun. Four lion cubs were caught by the mace-bearers.'