page_title: Peacock Throne
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Peacock Throne / History
caption_attribution_description: English: Portrait of Shah Jahan on the Peacock Throne(?)
context_page_description: The Peacock Throne was a famous jewelled throne that was the seat of the Mughal emperors of India. It was commissioned in the early 17th century by emperor Shah Jahan and was located in the Diwan-i-Khas in the Red Fort of Delhi. During the invasion of 1739, Nader Shah, the emperor of Iran, looted the precious jewels attached to it. In 1783, Sikh Sardars Baghel Singh, Jassa Singh Ahluwalia and Jassa Singh Ramgarhia conquered Delhi and hoisted the Nishan Sahib on the Red Fort. He came to the throne on horseback in protest of the persecution of the Sikhs, it was dragged to the Golden Temple, Amritsar. Where it is still present in the Ramgarhia Bunga. It was named after a peacock as two peacocks are shown dancing at its rear.
context_section_description: Shah Jahan ruled in what is considered the Golden Age of the vast Mughal Empire, which covered almost all of the Indian subcontinent. He ruled from the newly constructed capital of Shahjahanabad. The emperor was the focus around which everything else revolved, giving audiences and receiving petitioners. The ruler's court was to be a mirror image of paradise on earth, in the very centre of the empire; and such a ruler would be worthy of a Throne of Solomon (تخت سليمان, Takht-e-Sulaiman) to underscore his position as a just king. Just like Solomon's throne, the Peacock Throne was to be covered in gold and jewels, with steps leading up to it, with the ruler floating above ground and closer to heaven. Said Gilani and his workmen from the imperial goldsmiths' department were commissioned with the construction of this new throne. It took seven years to complete. Large amounts of solid gold, precious stones and pearls were used, creating a masterful piece of Mughal workmanship that was unsurpassed before or after its creation. It was an opulent indulgence that could only be seen by a small number of courtiers, aristocrats, and visiting dignitaries. The throne was, even by Golden Age Mughal standards, supremely extravagant, costing twice as much as the construction of the Taj Mahal.
  The appearance of this new throne was in stark contrast to the older throne of Jahangir, a large rectangular slab of engraved black basalt constructed in the early 1600s, used by the father of Shah Jahan.
  The new throne was not initially given the name by which it became known. It was simply known as the "Jeweled Throne" or "Ornamented Throne" (Takht-Murassa). It received its name from later historians because of the peacock statues featured on it.
  The Peacock Throne was inaugurated in a triumphant ceremony on 22 March 1635, the formal seventh anniversary of Shah Jahan's accession. The date was chosen by astrologers and was doubly auspicious, since it coincided exactly with Eid al-Fitr, the end of Ramadan, and Nowruz, the Persian New Year. The emperor and the court were returning from Kashmir and it was determined that the third day of Nowruz would be the most auspicious day for him to enter the capital and take his seat on the throne.
  Muhammad Qudsi, the emperor's favourite poet, was chosen to compose twenty verses that were inscribed in emerald and green enamel on the throne. He praised the matchless skill of the artisans, the "heaven-depleting grandeur" of its gold and jewels, and included the date in the letters of the phrase "the throne of the just king".
  Poet Abu-Talib Kalim was given six pieces of gold for each verse in his poem of sixty-three couplets.
  The master goldsmith Said Gilani was summoned by the emperor and showered with honours, including with his weight in gold coins and given the title "Peerless Master" (Bibadal Khan). Gilani produced a poem of 134 couplets, filled with chronograms, the first twelve couplets giving the date of the emperor's birth, the following thirty-two the date of his first coronation, then ninety couplets giving the date of the throne's inauguration.
  Towards India he turned his reins quickly and went in all glory, 
  Driving like the blowing wind, dapple-grey steed swift as lightning. 
  
  With bounty and liberality, he returned to the capital; 
  
  Round his stirrups were the heavens and angels round his reins. 
  
  A thousand thanks! The beauty of the world has revived 
  
  With the early glory of the throne of multi-coloured gems.
  After Shah Jahan's death, his son Aurangzeb, who had the regnal name of Alamgir, ascended the Peacock Throne. Aurangzeb was the last of the strong Mughal emperors. After his death, in 1707, his son Bahadur Shah I reigned from 1707–1712. Bahadur Shah I was able to keep the empire stable, by maintaining a relaxed religious policy; however, after his death the empire was in inexorable decline. A period of political instability, military defeats, and court intrigues led to a succession of weak emperors: Jahandar Shah ruled for one year from 1712–1713, Farrukhsiyar from 1713–1719, Rafi ud-Darajat an
caption: Shah Jahan seated on a minor throne, which probably shared some stylistic elements with the Peacock Throne
exif: {}