![Illustration of a Nilgai (Boselaphus tragocamelus) - Mughal Painting, Circa 1640](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAFAOieDn53eI5F6DJPmAdUKNhQU4E4LIdWKn_dpKttr3XJtNzA3XhL0Q7J84_ugQ0-Qty54Bya77OD0nH0eRoFZ7V0scsUXKWUo0ZYfqoXrnzbnDZd5qDvsege-t30GvA1PllWiVBmeCd/s800/Painting-of-a-Nilgai-%2528Boselaphus-tragocamelus%2529---Mughal-Painting%252C-Circa-1640.jpg)
This painting of a nilgai (also called a blue bull or Boselaphus tragocamelus), which is an antelope indigenous to Asia, is attributable to the reign of the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan (r. 1037-1068 AH / 1627-1658 CE). Such animal studies were popular commissions among the Mughal emperors, who showed a marked curiosity about the natural world in their royal histories. Patronage of paintings of flora, fauna, and animals received a particular impetus under the Mughal emperor Jahangir (r. 1014-1037 AH / 1605-27 CE) and was continued under later Mughals. The detailed foliage in the foreground and the light green background are comparable to other studies of single animals dating to c. 1049 AH / 1640 CE.
Credit: thedigitalwalters.org