A Mughal Songbook: Art, Music and Empire

This display reveals the treasure of the Plowden songbook, a rare manuscript of 77 songs in Persian, Urdu, Classical Hindi and Punjabi, brought to life through detailed illustrations of musicians, dancers, singers and courtesans.

Image: Page (detail) from the songbook of Sophia Elizabeth Plowden, with lyrics of Rekhtah ghazal by Asaf al-Dawlah, Nawab of Avadh. Punjabi tappah, ink, opaque watercolours, and gold on paper, Lucknow, India, 1787-88. © Fitzwilliam Museum Cambridge