Vasudeva and Devaki thumbnail 1
On display
Image of Gallery in South Kensington

Vasudeva and Devaki

Painting
ca. 1520 - ca. 1540 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

The scene depicts the marriage of Krishna's parents, Vasudeva and Devaki, before the Vedic priest who performs the ceremony over the sacrificial fire. It is from a dispersed Bhagavata Purana manuscript of some three hundred folios recounting the exploits of Krishna. It was probably painted in ca. 1520-40 and, as few Indian miniature paintings of this relatively early date survive, the folios from this manuscript are of considerable historical interest. The style, with its bold blocks of colour, lack of spatial perspective and depiction of faces in profile, predates the introduction of Iranian influences to Indian painting during the reign of the Mughal Emperor Akbar (r.1556-1605).

Object details

Categories
Object type
TitleVasudeva and Devaki (generic title)
Materials and techniques
Painted in opaque watercolour on paper
Brief description
Painting, Bhagavata Purana manuscript, marriage of Vasudeva and Devaki, opaque watercolour on paper, Rajasthan, possibly Mewar, ca. 1520-1540
Physical description
Painting, opaque watercolour on paper, from a dispersed manuscript of the Bhagavata Purana, depicting the marriage of Krishna's parents, Vasudeva and Devaki. Slightly to the left of the centre, against a red background, stand the couple; Vasudeva in the high white head-dress of a groom and Devaki wearing a dark pink, diamond-patterned sari and black tassel ornaments at her wrists. Before them the hotri (Vedic priest) performs the marriage rites over the sacrificial fire. He pours ghee (clarified butter) from a long-handled libation spoon into the fire. To the left, similarly dressed in blue, pink and white patterned saris stand three female attendants, one of whom bears a ewer. To the right sit a white-bearded Ugrasena and his son Kamsa, attended by a priest and a chauri-bearer. The skin tones vary from yellow to light brown. Above the assembly a yellow pandal with green awning has been erected, supported by slender, torch-lit columns, and hung with delicate white festoons and fleshy leaves. The roof of the pandal together with an outer wall divide the picture horizontally so that the upper area contains the architectural features of a palace: a white central dome, two chhatri with pink interiors, castellations against a black background which forms an undulating horizon where it meets the dark blue and white sky. Below a row of ritual vessels in the foreground of the picture is an area of red, rubbed and worn around the edges, on which is an inscription in nagari. On the reverse is another inscription.
Dimensions
  • Maximum height: 17.5cm
  • Maximum width: 23.5cm
Content description
The marriage of Krishna's parents, Vasudeva and Devaki.
Style
Marks and inscriptions
(Inscribed on an area of red in the foreground, in Nagari)
Transliteration
'Sa mitharam'
Gallery label
(1990)
THE MARRIAGE OF VASUDEVA AND DEVAKI
Gouache on paper
Possibly Mewar
c. 1520-40

IS 1-1977
Given by John Bachofen von Echt

The scene depicts the marriage of Krishna's parents before the Vedic priest who performs the ceremony over the sacrificial fire. From a dispersed Bhagavata Purana manuscript of some three hundred folios recounting the exploits of Krishna.
Credit line
Given by John Bachofen von Echt.
Subjects depicted
Literary referenceBhagavata Purana
Summary
The scene depicts the marriage of Krishna's parents, Vasudeva and Devaki, before the Vedic priest who performs the ceremony over the sacrificial fire. It is from a dispersed Bhagavata Purana manuscript of some three hundred folios recounting the exploits of Krishna. It was probably painted in ca. 1520-40 and, as few Indian miniature paintings of this relatively early date survive, the folios from this manuscript are of considerable historical interest. The style, with its bold blocks of colour, lack of spatial perspective and depiction of faces in profile, predates the introduction of Iranian influences to Indian painting during the reign of the Mughal Emperor Akbar (r.1556-1605).
Bibliographic references
  • Welch, S.C. and Beach, M.C., 'Gods, Thrones and Peacocks', New York, 1965, cat.3a, 115 p., colour plate frontispiece
  • Archer, W.G., 'Rajput Miniatures from the Collection of E. Binney 3rd', Portland, Oregon, 1968, Cat. 1a, b, c.
  • Khandalawala, K.J., and Chandra, M., 'New Documents of Indian Painting', Bombay, 1969, figs.199,200.
  • Krishna, A. (ed.), 'Chhavi', Bharat Kala Bhavan, Banaras, 1971, col. plates.
  • Welch, S.C., 'A Flower from Every Meadow', Asian House Society, New York, 1973, 26 p., cat. 6.
  • Sotheby's Catalogue, 10th December, 1974, lots 194, 195.
  • Khandalawala, K., and Mittal, J., 'The Bhagavata Mss. from Palam and Isarda' in Lalit Kala, no. 16.
  • Lee, Sherman E., 'Rajput Painting', New York, 1961, cat. 3
  • Skelton, Robert. 'The Indian Collections: 1798 to 1978' in The Burlington Magazine, vol. CXX, number 902, May 1978, pp. 297-304, Fig. 62 and p. 304.
  • Topsfield, Andrew, An introduction to Indian Court Painting, H.M.S.O., London, 1984, 0112903835 p. 11, cat. no. 4
  • Swallow, D., Stronge, S., Crill, R., Koezuka, T., editor and translator, "The Art of the Indian Courts. Miniature Painting and Decorative Arts", Victoria & Albert Museum and NHK Kinki Media Plan, 1993. p. 92, cat. no. 78
  • Ayers, J. Oriental Art in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London 1983, ISBN 0-85667-120-7 pp. 66-67
  • Irwin, John; Indian Art: Victoria & Albert Museum departmental guide, H.M.S.O. ISBN 0 905209117, 1978 Back cover
Collection
Accession number
IS.1-1977

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Record createdMay 14, 2008
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