Lovers Embracing (c. 1630): Art, History and Details

Lovers Embracing (c. 1630) is in the Cleveland Museum of Art collection.

The work and its context

The museum's open-access catalogue describes the work:

The twining and coiling of the patterns on the carpet and large floor cushion mirror the interlaced bodies of the amorous couple. The clinging grapevine also references the wine they share from one cup. Such a carpet was not to be walked on, so the lovers do not wear shoes. It provides a luxurious furnishing to the intimate outdoor space. Here, the floral patterns evoke the pleasures of paradise. The textile patterns have been rendered with such precision that they appear like colorful enamel work or inlaid jewels. A covered golden box at right contains aromatic betel nut treats (paan) that freshen the breath.

Object facts

• Title: Lovers Embracing
• Date: c. 1630
• Culture: Mughal India
• Type: Painting
• Technique: Gum tempera and gold on paper
• Dimensions: Image: 14.9 x 10.1 cm (5 7/8 x 4 in.); Overall: 24 x 16.8 cm (9 7/16 x 6 5/8 in.); with mat: 35.5 x 25.4 cm (14 x 10 in.)
• Collection: Indian Art
• Department: Indian and Southeast Asian Art
• Accession number: 1971.91

A detail from the museum

Erotic metaphors in visual poetry: bees fly to blossoms as rain clouds approach.

Collection credit

Andrew R. and Martha Holden Jennings Fund

Further reading listed by the museum

• Leach, Linda York. Indian Miniature Paintings and Drawings. Cleveland, OH: Cleveland Museum of Art in cooperation with Indiana University Press, 1986.
• Tōyō kaiga no seika: tokubetsuten: Kurīvurando Bijutsukan no korekushon kara [東洋絵画の精華: 特别展: クリーヴラント美術館のコレクションから= Highlights of Asian painting from the Cleveland Museum of Art]. Nara, Japan: Nara National Museum, 1998.

View the collection record

See the museum's photographs and full catalogue entry. Catalogue text is reproduced from the Cleveland Museum of Art's open-access data, with HTML formatting removed. This object and its supplied image are designated CC0.