What is the name of the richly illustrated encyclopaedia from sixteenth-century Bijapur?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 1
The correct answer is Option (1) → Nujum al-Ulum
Option (1) Nujum al-Ulum — Correct. The Nujum al-Ulum, dated 1570, is this encyclopaedia, with 876 miniatures.
Option (2) Nauras-nama — Incorrect. This is the book on Indian music written by Ibrahim II of Bijapur.
Option (3) Diwan of Hafiz — Incorrect. The earliest five Golconda miniatures were bound up in this manuscript.
Option (4) Tarif–i–Hussain Shahi — Incorrect. This is an Ahmadnagar manuscript, with the painting King sitting on the Throne.
Note: This topic was not named in the CUET 2026 syllabus, but it was part of the NCERT chapter. In 2025 and 2026, NTA also asked questions on topics in NCERT that the CUET syllabus did not name. So our mocks have questions from every part of the NCERT chapter, to give you enough practice. Read the whole chapter, not only the sub-topics named in the syllabus.
NCERT (2026-27): “Bijapur School of Painting Paintings from Bijapur in the sixteenth century have a richly illustrated encyclopaedia known as the Nujum al-Ulum dated 1570. Among the 876 miniatures, which adorn this remarkable little volume, many illustrate weapons and utensils, while others the constellations. The women are shown in south Indian dress, tall and slender as those in the Ragamala paintings. The school of Bijapur was patronised by Ali Adil Shah I (1558–1580) and his successor Ibrahim II (1580–1627), both patrons of art and literature. The latter was also an expert in Indian music and author of a book on this subject, Nauras-nama.” |