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Celebrations of Krishna's Birth, from a Bhagavata Purana

c. 1730

The Cleveland Museum of Art

The Cleveland Museum of Art
Cleveland, United States

The Hindu kingdom of Mankot in the western foothills of the Himalayas developed a bold style of painting in which figures in strict profile stand out against an intense yellow ground. Musicians enthusiastically proclaim the arrival of infant Krishna at the village of Vraj, where he was brought
as a newborn to grow to maturity in safety among the cowherders. He was secreted away from the
evil king Kamsa who wanted to murder the child on account of a prophecy that foretold his own death by Krishna. Krishna’s adoptive father Nanda, the village headmaster, receives tufts of grass as tokens of congratulations from a well-wisher, while a soldier salutes him.

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Details

  • Title: Celebrations of Krishna's Birth, from a Bhagavata Purana
  • Date Created: c. 1730
  • Physical Dimensions: Image: 22.9 x 15.2 cm (9 x 6 in.); with mat: 49 x 36.3 cm (19 5/16 x 14 5/16 in.)
  • Provenance: Ehrenfeld, Mr. Ramesh Kapoor, New York, Ehrenfeld; (Mr. Ramesh Kapoor, New York).
  • Type: Painting
  • Rights: CC0
  • External Link: https://clevelandart.org/art/1988.70
  • Medium: ink and color on paper
  • Department: Indian and Southeast Asian Art
  • Culture: Northern India, Jammu and Kashmir, Mankot, 18th century
  • Credit Line: Edward L. Whittemore Fund
  • Collection: Indian Art
  • Accession Number: 1988.70

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