Jatayu hinders Ravana’s chariot, trying to prevent the abduction of Sita (recto), from a Kalighat album
Unknown Artist
c. 1890
Medium
Gum tempera, graphite, and tin on paper
Dimensions
painting: 30.4 × 25.5 cm · secondary support: 47.8 × 29.4 cm
Classification
Painting
Department
Indian and Southeast Asian Art
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
Gift of William E. Ward in memory of his wife, Evelyn Svec Ward
Accession Number
2003.109.a
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
With his colossal u-shaped beak and green wings, the ruler of the vultures, Jatayu, appears assured of victory against the multiheaded demon lord Ravana. This scene, the battle between Jatayu and Ravana, was especially subject to variation. In the Bengali Ramayana, Jatayu initially swallows Ravana—aerial chariot and all—but vomits the villain when he realizes Sita, the wife of his friend Rama, is also aboard. Later, Ravana fatally wounds Jatayu and takes Sita as his prisoner. Doing so sets in mo...