Who is believed to be the artist of the early Mughal painting Princes of the House of Timur (1545–50)?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → Abd us Samad
Option (1) Mir Sayyid Ali — Incorrect. Mir Sayyid Ali was the other Persian artist whom Humayun invited along with Abd us Samad. This painting is not given to him.
Option (2) Abd us Samad — Correct. The painting is probably by the Safavid artist Abd us Samad.
Option (3) Basawan — Incorrect. Basawan belongs to Akbar’s time; he painted Madonna and Child.
Option (4) Bihzad — Incorrect. Bihzad was a master of the Persian school at Herat, mentioned in Babur’s memoirs. He did not paint this work.
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): “Early Mughal Painting …When we look at an extraordinary Mughal painting from the early period, Princes of the House of Timur (1545–50), probably by Safavid artist, Abd us Samad, in opaque watercolour on cotton, we are surprised by its size and complex structure and display of historical portraits. A prized possession of the imperial family, it has portraits that were painted over the original to register the portraits of successive members of the Mughal dynasty.…”
“Princes of the House of Timur, Abd us Samad, 1545–50, British Museum, London” |
