A study of the arts of Mughal, Rajput and British India in the social and cultural context of their time. The text also offers information on over 200 of the finest treasures from the Victoria and Albert Museum's Indian collection. The book begins with a survey of the visual arts in pre-Mughal Rajasthan, the Deccan and the Punjab. The European intervention is studied through the great textile trade and the impact of Indian arts on European taste is assessed through the Great Exhibition of the late 19th century.