The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of December 13, 2025

Women Play Music for Radha and Krishna: Chitrini Nayika, from a Rasikapriya

c. 1650

Central India, Madhya Pradesh, Malwa

gum tempera, ink, and gold on paper
Page: 22.9 x 16.2 cm (9 x 6 3/8 in.)
Purchase and partial gift from the Catherine and Ralph Benkaim Collection; Severance and Greta Millikin Purchase Fund 2018.132
Location: Not on view

Did You Know?

Krishna wears a translucent yellow tunic (jama), tied under the right arm, which is usually the convention for Muslims.

Description

The idea of aesthetic appreciation as explored by the poet Keshavdas (Indian, 1555–1617) in the excerpt from his Rasikapriya written on the back of this painting is envisioned as the appreciation of music. With their arms around each other, Radha and Krishna enjoy the performance on a stringed instrument (setar), cymbals, and drum in the forest.
  • 1989–2001
    Ralph Benkaim [1914–2001] and Catherine Glynn Benkaim [b. 1946], Beverly Hills, CA, by descent to Catherine Benkaim
    2001–2018
    Catherine Glynn Benkaim and Barbara Timmer, Beverly Hills, CA, partial sale and gift to the Cleveland Museum of Art
    2018–
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • {{cite web|title=Women Play Music for Radha and Krishna: Chitrini Nayika, from a Rasikapriya|url=false|author=|year=c. 1650|access-date=13 December 2025|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/2018.132