Research & Article

One of the most celebrated Ayutthayan works of art is the gilt-lacquer manuscript cabinet that features two human figures, one identified as King Louis XIV of  France  (reigned  1643–1715),  the  other  most  commonly  considered  to  represent the  Mughal  emperor  Aurangzeb  (reigned  1658–1707).  The  cabinet  has  been  dated  either  to  the  period  in  which  diplomatic  connections  with  France  were  at  their  most  intense, during the reign of King Narai, who ruled from 1656 until 1688, or to shortly thereafter.1 In shape and function, the cabinet resembles many manuscript cabinets, but it is one of the earliest, and in decoration it is exceptional. Although the Louis XIV figure occurs subsequently on doors in image halls, there are no other cabinets depicting historical figures.