Ustad Mansur

Ustad Mansur (flourished 1590-1624) was a seventeenth-century Mughal painter and court artist. He grew in acclaim during the reign of Jahangir (r. 1605 - 1627) during which period he excelled at depicting plants and animals. He was the earliest artist to depict the dodo in colour, apart from being the first to illustrate the Siberian crane. Towards the end of Akbar's reign, he gained the title of ustad (=master) and during the reign of Mughal Emperor Jahangir his masterpieces earned him the title of Nãdir-al-’Asr ("Unequalled of the age"). Although largely known for his natural history illustrations, he also portrayed people in various manuscript illustrations.

The year of Mansur's birth is unknown. His name was suffixed in some early miniatures as Naqqash, which can refer to an artist, painter, or carver, indicating that he came from a family that was in an artistic profession. A single miniature showing 'Babur meeting his sister' (folio 8, National Museum) is attributed to Mansur but he otherwise finds no mention in Babur's memoirs (Baburnama). He was associated with other artists of the period including Basawan, Miskina and Nanha. During Akbar's reign he appears to have been involved only as a colourist in the plates for the Book of Akbar (Akbarnama) and his name is not mentioned by Abu'l-Fazl among the list of artists. Akbar followed the principle that all artwork should include the name of the artist on the margin. The British Museum's copy of the Akbarnama (1604) includes some folios (35,110a,110b and 112a) where his name is prefixed with "ustad" (=master), indicating his rise to excellence.

Early works included parts of portraits and other scenes. The earliest works were made as part of the Baburnama (1590–95) and most of these are as an assistant or a colourist. His Veena-player (c. 1595) and coronation portrait of Jahangir (c. 1605, made along with the artist Manohar) are early works. In 1612, Jehangir received a turkey cock from Goa and this was illustrated by Mansur. In 1619, Jehangir received a Barbary falcon as a gift from Shah Abbas of Persia; Jehangir found it rare and beautifully patterned and ordered that a likeness be made of the bird. In 1620, Jehangir visited Kashmir and spotted a brown dipper which he described in his memoirs (Tuzk-e-Jahangiri) translated as:

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