Admirers of art belonging to the Deccan sultanate can have a glimpse of the magnificent era at an exhibition being held at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, United States of America.
The exhibition opened on April 20 and will continue till July 27 under the title, ‘Sultans of Deccan, India 1500-1700: Opulence and Fantasy’.
“For those passionate about art, it is a great opportunity to peep into the rich history of the Deccan sultanate,” Rehaman Patel, faculty, department of studies in visual art, Gulbarga University, who is also a researcher in Islamic art of north Karnataka, said.
He said that of the 200 exhibits, 60 are from the then Bijapur district.
Navina Najat Haider, a person of Indian origin, has organised the exhibition. Dr. Patel said that the artefacts being displayed were the ones which were taken away from India, before or after Independence. Most of the objects belong to the 16th and 19th centuries.
“Some of the paintings taken from Bijapur during the reign of Ibrahim Adil Shah-II are among those being displayed. One of them depicts a hunting scene. It is one of the best-known masterpieces,” he said.
Other rare artefacts displayed are a 16th century dagger, with its cast copper hilt chased, gilded, and inlaid with rubies. Portraits of Sultan Ali Adil Shah of Bijapur show him carrying similar zoomorphic hilt daggers. In the ruby-studded hilt, a dragon whose tail wraps around the grip, attacks a lion, which is attacking a deer.
Dr. Patel said he was happy that these artefacts were still available for art admirers, but he expressed concern that they were no longer available in India.
“These are our property which is stolen by foreigners years ago. The government must do something to bring them back. Just look at the irony of Indian art lovers that they have to visit far off places to see and do research on our own history,” he added.
