Akbar II in darbar with the British Resident Charles Metcalfe
Attributed to the Mughal court artist, Ghulam Murtaza Khan (active 1809–30), this painting depicts British Resident Charles Metcalfe (1785-1846) in attendance at the court of Akbar II, who ruled Mughal India from 1806-37. Depicted in a monochromatic outfit with a European-style hat, Metcalfe's figure stands in sharp contrast with the colorful outfits of the court's other courtiers. Despite the... Read More »
"...Climb Down and Get to Work!"
In Spring 1990, Czechoslovak artist and cartoonist Vladimir Rencin sends this message that is was time to stop the flag-waving euphoria surrounding the revolution's victory and to get to the hard work of rebuilding the country. The caption reads: "It's high time for you to climb down and get to work! The garden is neglected, the latrine" (actually a Czech word for an open-air refuse pit) "is... Read More »
"The Royal Orgy" (1789)
In 1789, with the collapse of old regime censorship as well as a sense of liberation from traditional moral constraints, printed libels against the Queen became both more common and more intense. An example of this greater intensity is this light opera, with raunchy lyrics set to popular tunes. Not intended to be performed, the pamphlet spoofs the Queen’s great interest in opera and her... Read More »
A History of the World in 100 Objects
A PreColumbian Portfolio: An Archive of Photographs
Abuses to Suppress
This French Revolution era print depicts the Third Estate—represented by the peasant at the rear of the chariot, the worker leading the horse, and the merchant driving—delivering to the National Assembly a petition listing "abuses" to be remedied.
African Activist Archive
America Invertida (Inverted America)
We generally expect maps to convey the location of oceans and land masses accurately. But why do almost all maps and globes position North at the top and South at the bottom, when there is no up or down orientation of the universe? Furthermore, items located at the top of an image are usually understood to have more importance than those at the bottom, creating a hierarchical ordering of the... Read More »
American Centuries
