Iranian painter in the court of India's Mughal emperor. Abu'l Hasan was the son of the Iranian painter Aqa Reza, in the service of the future Mughal emperor, Jahangir. Abu'l Hasan grew up in the prince's household and became so valued as a court artist that he was called 'Nadiru'l Zaman' - Wonder of the Age. This reflects painting's high status at Jahangir's court. Jahangir wrote: 'My liking for painting and my practice in judging it have arrived at such a point that when any work is brought before me, either of deceased artists or those of the present day, without the names being told to me, I say on the spur of the moment that it is the work of such and such a man.'