Nanda and the Elders in Council with the Cowherds, from a Bhagavata Purana
Unknown Artist
c. 1690–1700
Medium
Gum tempera, silver, and gold on paper
Dimensions
page: 30 × 38 cm · miniature: 22.5 × 31.1 cm
Classification
Painting
Department
Indian and Southeast Asian Art
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
Purchase and partial gift from the Catherine and Ralph Benkaim Collection; Severance and Greta Millikin Purchase Fund
Accession Number
2018.192
About this artwork
The glowing hues and exquisite treatment of the figures and vegetation transport the viewer to the mythic realm of the Hindu god Krishna. Nanda, the lead elder of the cowherder village, sits amid the village council, larger than the others. After witnessing the divine and superhuman activities of Krishna, the cowherders approached Nanda and asked him for an explanation.