Krishna
Painting
ca. 1590 (made), 18th century (made)
ca. 1590 (made), 18th century (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
The Mughal emperor Akbar commissioned translations into Persian, the court language, of the great Hindu epics in the 1580s and 1590s. The royal copies were illustrated in the royal atelier. This painting is an illustration to the Harivamsa, or "Genealogy of Hari", the story of Lord Krishna.In its Persian translation, it was an appendix to the Razmnama ("Book of War"), the Persian version of the great Hindu epic the Mahabharata. The volume was completed in about 1590 but its pages were dispersed at an unknown date. The V&A has 6 folios from the manuscript (IS.2-1970 to IS.-1970). They were all given additional borders, probably in Lucknow in the 18th century, for moounting in an album.
In this illustration, the infant Krishna (identifiable by his blue skin) has been tied by his foster-mother Yasoda to a tree to prevent him from playing pranks, using a heavy mortar to anchor him. The baby easily crawls away, dragging the mortar and in doing so uprooting a pair of giant Arjuna trees. The trees were, in fact, the demigods Nalakuvera and Manigriva, sons of Kuvera, who had been cursed by the sage Narada. As soon as the trees fell thundering to the ground, they were freed from the curse. Yasoda, her husband Nanda, and the inhabitants of the village rush to witness the incredible scene, while daily life in the village continues peacefully in the background.
In this illustration, the infant Krishna (identifiable by his blue skin) has been tied by his foster-mother Yasoda to a tree to prevent him from playing pranks, using a heavy mortar to anchor him. The baby easily crawls away, dragging the mortar and in doing so uprooting a pair of giant Arjuna trees. The trees were, in fact, the demigods Nalakuvera and Manigriva, sons of Kuvera, who had been cursed by the sage Narada. As soon as the trees fell thundering to the ground, they were freed from the curse. Yasoda, her husband Nanda, and the inhabitants of the village rush to witness the incredible scene, while daily life in the village continues peacefully in the background.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | Krishna (generic title) |
| Materials and techniques | Painted in opaque watercolour and gold on paper |
| Brief description | Painting, Harivamsa, infant Krishna uprooting a pair of giant Arjuna trees, opaque watercolour and gold on paper, Mughal, probably Lahore, ca. 1590, borders added later, probably Lucknow, 18th century |
| Physical description | Painting, illustration from the Harivamsa, opaque watercolour and gold on paper, the infant Krishna uprooting a pair of giant Arjuna trees. The composition is dominated by the trees being dragged by the blue-skinned baby Krishna depicted in the foreground at the centre. His mother and the villagers are mostly on the right, in the lower half of the composition, expressing through their gestures their amazement. In the upper part of the painting, village life continues, with women carrying food and large urns between their dwellings and bullocks in a nearby paddock. The borders were added later, probably in Lucknow in the 18th century. The Harivamsa, or Geneology of Hari, is a supplement to the Mahabharata and deals with the life of Krishna. |
| Dimensions |
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| Content description | The infant Krishna uprooting a pair of giant Arjuna trees. |
| Styles | |
| Credit line | Bequeathed by the Hon. Dame Ada Macnaghten |
| Object history | Originally an illustration to the Harivamsa, the Persian translation of the Sanskrit text done as an appendix to the Razmnama, the Persian version of the great Hindu epic the Mahabharata, and commissioned by the Mughal emperor Akbar |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Summary | The Mughal emperor Akbar commissioned translations into Persian, the court language, of the great Hindu epics in the 1580s and 1590s. The royal copies were illustrated in the royal atelier. This painting is an illustration to the Harivamsa, or "Genealogy of Hari", the story of Lord Krishna.In its Persian translation, it was an appendix to the Razmnama ("Book of War"), the Persian version of the great Hindu epic the Mahabharata. The volume was completed in about 1590 but its pages were dispersed at an unknown date. The V&A has 6 folios from the manuscript (IS.2-1970 to IS.-1970). They were all given additional borders, probably in Lucknow in the 18th century, for moounting in an album. In this illustration, the infant Krishna (identifiable by his blue skin) has been tied by his foster-mother Yasoda to a tree to prevent him from playing pranks, using a heavy mortar to anchor him. The baby easily crawls away, dragging the mortar and in doing so uprooting a pair of giant Arjuna trees. The trees were, in fact, the demigods Nalakuvera and Manigriva, sons of Kuvera, who had been cursed by the sage Narada. As soon as the trees fell thundering to the ground, they were freed from the curse. Yasoda, her husband Nanda, and the inhabitants of the village rush to witness the incredible scene, while daily life in the village continues peacefully in the background. |
| Associated object | IS.2:2-1970 (Verso) |
| Bibliographic references |
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| Collection | |
| Accession number | IS.2-1970 |
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| Record created | June 25, 2009 |
| Record URL |
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