The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of December 17, 2025

Taking of the toll, Dana-Lila

c. 1760

Northern India, Pahari kingdoms

Gum tempera and gold on paper
Page: 26.2 x 19.9 cm (10 5/16 x 7 13/16 in.); Image: 21.2 x 17.9 cm (8 3/8 x 7 1/16 in.)
Purchase and partial gift from the Catherine and Ralph Benkaim Collection; Severance and Greta Millikin Purchase Fund 2018.86
Location: Not on view

Did You Know?

One milkmaid points to her mouth in a gesture of surprise.

Description

Radha, the blue god Krishna’s beloved, raises one hand, reddened with henna (temporary natural dye), to strike him. Cows and her companions look on. This interlude is based on a devotional poem written by Dev Datt (about 1673–1745), in which he imagines this scene. Radha has dressed up as a soldier of the evil tyrant Kamsa. She shouts, “You are accused of taking the toll from milkmaids. . . . You are a traitor!” In the distance at the top of the painting, Krishna’s friends, who do not know that the couple is playing, run away in fear.
  • ?–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
  • Indian Gallery 242 Rotation. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (September 10, 2018-April 7, 2019).
  • {{cite web|title=Taking of the toll, Dana-Lila|url=false|author=|year=c. 1760|access-date=17 December 2025|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/2018.86