#medieval indian history

[kaalbela]

Detail from Squirrels in a plane tree attributed to Abu'l Hasan, ca. 1605-1608.

[h0bg0blin-meat]

Things I wanna see more emphasis on in ancient, medieval and early-modern Indian period dramas:

1. LESS ROYALTY AND BOURGEOISIE

2. ATHEISTS (positive representation)

3. Working class families and people

4. Marginalized groups (LGBTQ+, marginalized castes etc.) and outcasts.

5. LESS ROYALTY

6. Working class WOMEN who worked their asses off just like the working class men

7. Did I mention LESS ROYALTY and BOURGEOISIE?

8. ATHEISTS (positive representation)

9. Bar and restaurant scenes

10. Market scenes

11. NORTHEAST INDIA (and no, Bengal doesn't count) (Istg everything is just North and South-centric all the time)

12. TRIBAL PEOPLE

13. I feel like I haven't mentioned LESS ROYALTY AND BOURGEOISIE

14. Did I mention ATHEISTS (positive representation)?

[pierrotsoup]

everyone who's a late roman republic or french revolution head needs to also hop on the late medieval early modern central and south asian train 😓😓im so alone (on tumblr that is)

[itsybitsy-arthistory]

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

[notwiselybuttoowell]

Detail of The First Rains in Paradise, German manuscript c. 1410

Detail of Maharana Fateh Singh Crossing a River During the Monsoon, Shivalal c. 1893

[subspacehiway]

Art Museum Inspo

[augustsappho]

'Luxury Foods' in Medieval Islamic Societies by David Waines from World Archaeology, Vol. 34, No. 3, Luxury Foods (Feb., 2003)

"We may begin with the work entitled The Meadows of Gold written by the famous historian al-Mas'udi (d. AD 956). He was born in Baghdad and died in Cairo, having, in between, travelled widely in Persia and India in addition to Iraq, Palestine and Syria. The Meadows of Gold contains a number of anecdotes related to food. One involves the Abbasid Caliph, Harun al-Rashid (d. AD 809), of 1001 Arabian Nights fame. He was invited to dine by his brother Ibrahim b. al-Mahdi (d. AD 853), a noted poet and culinary expert, of whom more later.

Harun was served a dish of what appeared to be small and delicate slices of fish arranged in the shape of a fish. When informed that the dish was made from more than 150 fish tongues, the Caliph demanded to know its price and commanded that an equivalent of 1000 silver dirhams be distributed to the poor. This was in expiation, he said, for his brother's wastefulness. Moreover, he ordered a servant to take the fish on its plate, itself an expensive item worth five times as much as the fish preparation, and give it to the first beggar he met in the street.

A second anecdote involves another Caliph, al-Mutawakkil (d. AD 861), who was relaxing one day with his courtiers and singers beside one of the many canals that traversed Baghdad. He smelled the aroma of cooking drifting from a pot being prepared by a sailor on his boat. The Caliph ordered the pot - a beef sikbaj, a sweet and sour stew dish, brought immediately to him. The Caliph sampled the stew with a piece of bread, as did his courtiers and singers, until the pot was empty. He then ordered the pot filled with 2000 dirhams and returned to the boat; the coins that did not fit into the pot were placed in a pouch and given directly to the cook. In the Caliph's judgement the dish was the best sikbaj he had ever tasted."

I found this excerpt incredibly lovely and highly recommend you check out the whole thing on JSTOR (free to access when you make an account but also on scihub). Doing a short article review on it for my Global Connections module - covering Islamic history briefly has really touched me especially when I covered it quite begrudgingly as a child/pre-teen through Saturday-Sunday school. It was always a tug of war with my mother to make me go until at 16 I finally just refused outright and there was nothing she could do. Admittedly out of all the classes taught at the mosque Tahrikh and Seerah always engaged me. I'm glad I can revisit it with a warm heart and with no expectation to be something I'm not so I can love share and appreciate it with fresh eyes.

[nickysfacts]

You could say that the builders of these beautiful temples at the Ellora caves were huge stoners!😂

☸️🇮🇳🕉️

[bibliobibuli25]

This excerpt is from the journal left behind by Emperor Babur, founder of the Mughal Empire in India.

A figure from a point in history when matters related to homosexuality were looked down upon greatly; Babur had fallen in love with a boy he saw in the bazaar. Only two pages out of his journal pay attention to Baburi while all other prominent authors of that time choose to ignore his existence.

[kaalbela]

Wall paintings in Amer Fort in Rajasthan, India.

This is the main entranceway to the private areas of the fort, and it is entirely covered in beautiful wall paintings. It is called the Ganesh Pol due to an image of Ganesh painted directly above the doorway on the outside. Built during the reign of Mirza Raja Jai Singh (1621-67 AD), Amer fort was home to one of the most influential of the Rajput royal families during the time of the Great Mughals. The Mughal emperor Akbar's marriage to the Rajput princess Mariam-uz-Zamani, popularly known as Jodha Bai, places this court close to the heart of the history of the early Mughals, whose palace spaces were continually adapted by successive rulers.

Via Jordan Quill

[pierrotsloop]

John richards the Mughal empire was decent but he didn't read any of the vernacular languages like ONLY court persian so there was like nothing about normal people or theology or visual art so that was a negative😭 also the economic stuff was SOOOO dry im afraid .. .still good but lowkey some inconsistencies were present .. made me want to read standalone books Abt the marathas and various nayaka like not in relationship to a crumbling imperial giant just what they were up to within their structures yk . Still informative .. I get very invested in wars of succession even though I don't ACTUALLY gaf . made me miss reading abt bhakti saints .. also want to read abt the intermediary period between muhammad shah and the british empire cuz I think intermediary periods are always the most interesting anyway . (Like archaic Greece yum)

[pierrotsoup]

anyway I heart medieval and early modern vijayanagar 🙏shoutout to the nayaka and I heart public works and diverse society

[iasguidance]

Port Blair renamed as Sri Vijaya Puram

Context: Port Blair has been renamed ‘Sri Vijaya Puram’  by the Government of India in an effort to move beyond its colonial legacy. The new name pays tribute to the region’s historical ties with the Srivijaya Empire. This renaming also symbolizes the triumph of India’s freedom struggle, recognizing the unique and vital role the Andaman and Nicobar Islands played in that historic fight for…

[mrsonvsyoutube]

What Was Life Really Like In America Before Columbus? | 1491 | Chronicle

[heroineimages]

Reblogging for later...

Ancient Indian Warfare

War was the chief means by which territory was annexed or rulers defeated in ancient India, which was divided into multiple kingdoms, republics and empires. Often one empire predominated or different empires co-existed. The Vedic literature (1500 – 1000 BCE), the two epics Ramayana and the Mahabharata (1000 - 600 BCE), Kautilya’s Arthashastra (c. 4th century BCE) and Banabhatta’s Harshacharita (c. 7th century CE), all key texts regarding warfare in ancient India, testify to this. Troops were recruited, trained and equipped by the state (maula). There were many communities and forest tribes (atavika) that were known for their military skills and prized as such. Such people lived by the profession of arms (ayudhjivi). Villages providing soldiers were called ayudhiya. Mercenaries (bhrita) also existed in large numbers as did corporate guilds of soldiers (shreni) and they were recruited whenever required.

Attitudes to Warfare

The king or emperor was supposed to be a great warrior, capable of vanquishing enemies on the battlefield and subduing their kingdoms. The idea of digvijaya (Sanskrit: ��victorious campaign in all directions”) so that a ruler could become a chakravarti samrat (Sanskrit: “emperor whose chariot wheel rolls unobstructed”) was always emphasized. Religiously, the Hindus favoured war as a means of furthering royal ambition and even advocated the concept of dharma yuddha or “just war” to avenge injustices or claim one’s justified right to the throne. Buddhism and Jainism, despite their advocacy of non-violence, also understood the role of war and warfare in the prevailing political system and especially for the defence of one’s kingdom against invaders embarked on a digvijaya. The Buddha himself advised the minister of Magadha’s king Ajatashatru (492 - 460 BCE) on how difficult it would be to conquer Vaishali. Alongside all his humanitarian work, the Mauryan emperor Ashoka (272-232 BCE) also did not disband his army but continued to maintain efficient means for the security of his people, which he considered as part of his duty as a Buddhist ruler looking after the welfare of his subjects. Throughout the ancient period, many of the most notable emperors, kings, warriors and even individual soldiers continued to be devout Jains.

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