![]() The principal conclusion of this thesis is that the artistic concerns of each ruler and the image they wished to convey – the image of the legitimate, immortal, semi-divine, all-powerful ruler of the temporal and spiritual worlds – are strikingly similar and equally effective, despite the differing cultural, traditional and artistic backgrounds, methods of production, and even the intended audience, proving that the most successful artistic form for the ideal imperial image for the early modern ruler was the allegorical portrait. The aim of this thesis is thus to shed light on the common themes, devices, techniques and motifs which characterise the allegorical portraits of Jahangir and Elizabeth, expanding on prior literature which deals with the influence of Elizabethan (and European) painting on the development of Mughal portraiture, by also analysing the extent to which Mughal artists took this influence and adapted it to something completely original to that court. The reasons for the similarities pervading in the allegorical portraiture of both rulers are examined here, as are the means by which allegory is employed by each to emphasise the grandeur and power of the ruler and their realms, in the search for the ideal imperial image. The utterly original and often strange and mystifying allegorical compositions of the Elizabethan period arguably find no closer match than those of the studio of the Mughal Emperor Jahangir, despite the distance separating the two rulers in space and time. Ī comparative study of the allegorical portraiture of the Mughal Emperor Jahangir and Queen Elizabeth I of England is deserved for several reasons, not least because the reigns of each represent a prolific and innovative period, a golden age even, in the field of allegorical portraiture. The paper will examine how the complexities of this concept was reflected in portraits of Queen Elizabeth I: by using royal portraits from each decade of her reign as examples, we will demonstrate how the naturalistic portraits from the first years of her reign were eventually replaced by her political public image, that of the ever-beautiful, semi-divine Virgin Queen. The aim of the present paper is to offer a practical analysis of how the theory of the king's two bodies functioned during the Elizabethan era and, specifically, how it may have influenced artistic practices of the time. In fact, their mutual relationship tended to be highly problematic: political body cannot be separated from the person of the king, yet it is not synonymous with him. However, one should not believe that the king's two bodies complemented one other harmoniously, creating a firm and stable unity. By granting a sovereign the status of a supernatural being, the body politic effectively allowed a king to transcend his human limitations and frailties. When crowned and anointed with sacred oils, the king was no longer just a mortal ruler, but also the figurative 'head' of the mystical body of the commonwealth (and in some cases the Church). Throughout history, the idea of the king having two bodies has been used as a tool to strengthen royal authority. ![]()
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