Krishna and the Gopis, Leaf from a Bhagavata Purana Series

Title

Krishna and the Gopis, Leaf from a Bhagavata Purana Series

Date

ca. 1540

Geography

Place made: Delhi-Agra region, Uttar Pradesh, India

Medium

Opaque watercolor on paper

Classification

Painting

Dimensions

sheet: 6 7/8 x 9 1/8 in. (17.5 x 23.2 cm) image: 5 3/8 x 8 7/8 in. (13.7 x 22.5 cm)

Inscriptions

Recto, In top border. Caption in Nagari script at top border identifies the subject. In another hand: "Hirabai" Verso, "And in their very midst appeared Lord Krisna, the descendant of the King Sura, with his lotus-face beaming with a smile, wearing a yellow garment, adorned with a wreath of flowers, capable of fascinating the god of love (Cupid) himself (with his charm.) Seeing their beloved most Darling arrived, all those women, though emaciated and weak at once sprang to their feet, with their eyes wide open with rapturous delight, even as the limbs of the body do on the return of the vital principle (Prana)...." (Bhagavata Purana, Bk. 10, ch. 32, vv. 2-4 and first line of v. 5)

Credit Line

Gift of Mr. and Mrs. H. Peter Findlay

Accession Number

80.41