IMAGE 8: Creating relationships with local South Asian rulers was an important strategy for East India Company servants. ‘Miniature. “A Mounted Prince Hunting with a Falcon”, India, Deccan, Golconda [?]; 1680-1700, Leaf: 29.9 × 19.8 cm’. Description: “Although it was painted in the period just around the time when Golconda – the last of the independent Deccan states – was forced to surrender to the Great Mughal Aurangzeb in 1687, this miniature still features the splendor and intense colors that characterized earlier painting from this region. … The splendidly rendered prince reflects the formal portraiture of Mughal Delhi that at this point had also made its mark in the Deccan, but the radiant colors of the textiles against the stallion’s refined, light-blue tone reveals the painter’s southern origins. … In the distance, behind a diminutive city, the army is marching with horses, elephants, and camels, fluttering banners, ensigns, kettledrums, and trumpets. … the men are also accompanied by two angels, one holding a sword, the other a trumpet. There is no information at present about the identity of the artist and the elegant prince, but the painting’s fascinating richness of detail and high quality are indisputable.” Inv. no. 13/2015. © The David Collection