Rama and Sita enthroned (recto), from a Kalighat album

c. 1890

Eastern India, Bengal, Kolkata, Kalighat

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Medium

Gum tempera, graphite, and ink on paper

Measurements

Painting: 31 x 25.6 cm (12 3/16 x 10 1/16 in.)

Credit Line

Gift of William E. Ward in memory of his wife, Evelyn Svec Ward 2003.134.a

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Location

Not on view

Did You Know?

Hanuman, Rama’s monkey devotee, prostrates himself before Rama as a sign of his humility.

Description

Rama has been crowned king upon his return to Ayodhya at the end of a 14-year exile, having rescued his wife Sita from imprisonment on the island of Lanka. King Rama still holds his signature emblems of bow and arrow. His brother Lakshmana, here shown as green like Rama, holds the insignia of royalty, a flywhisk. Another brother holds the royal parasol. Hanuman, Rama’s semidivine monkey general, prostrates himself before the couple.

Devotees who travel to the Hindu temple at Kalighat could purchase a painting of this type to commemorate their visit and to adorn a domestic altar.