From the biography: How Babur’s daughter Gulabadan and her companions made a pilgrimage to Mecca

Seated upon a tent-shaped palanquin, its silken cover held firmly with clasps of gold and silver, Gulbadan was primed to take the road to Mecca. Brocade and soft linen textiles from India were spread on the single hump of her brownish-yellow dromedary, also called the Arabian camel, an elegant being with black eyes, a long body, and long hair on its neck. A red steering cord was fastened around its mouth.

Gulbadan was dressed in her classic flowing attire and a finely stitched muslin stole. A pearl-and-cornelian-embedded gold necklace graced her neck. When the day got hot, she could wrap her face with the soft muslin. Similarly dressed, Salima and other women would ride upon their finely decorated Arabian camels.

As royal guests, it was expected that the Mughal women would ride the mamiyya, the best dromedaries with excellent pacing, so smooth that “one could easily go to sleep while riding such beasts.” For the distinguished aunt of the Great Mughal of India, it is also certain that the special laissez-passer – called yol emri in Ottoman Turkish – was arranged. The document was an important part of Ottoman practice in easing the travel of eminent guests and ensuring that no interruption took place. Local jurists...

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