Romantic Verses, folio from an album made for Shah Jahan

The five lines of Persian poetry, likely copied in the 16th century, are extracted from a ghazal (a short lyric love poem) by Jalal Azad, a 14th-century Persian poet and a contemporary of Hafiz and Khwaju Kirmani. The verses read: With his amorous glance, he sent no scent to the world that did not send a caravan of sorrow where he went. Since his forelock brought dusk to the day of the world, from the moon of his cheek to the earth no light was sent. From the hand of the east wind, the scent from that heart-ravishing lock . . . This dispersed folio once belonged to an album compiled in the 17th century for the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan (r. 1628–58). It would have contained paintings as well as calligraphy compositions, each framed by an illuminated border. Here, the border is filled with oversized flowers and among them are 11 pairs of birds, each comprising a male and a female. The exquisite details of these birds attest to the reputation of Mughal painters for their close observation of the natural world. Emperor Jahangir (r. 1605–27), father of Shah Jahan, was a bird connoisseur. In his memoirs, he recorded the birds he saw and occasionally had his master artist paint their likeness. His interest in nature was shared by his son, Shah Jahan, patron of this work. The imaginary symphony of bird calls and heady blend of floral scents create a rich sensory experience for the “visitor” to this virtual garden. The realistic rendering of the birds also aided their identification (clockwise from the top left corner): spotted doves; probably Blyth’s tragopan; probably Indian golden oriole; Bengal florican; [unidentified]; Indian pittas; possibly Kalij pheasants; probably Great Indian bustards; Sarus cranes; possibly Great Indian bustards; probably Western tragopans.