Krishna in the company of Balarama and the cowherd boys. Punjab Hills, Jammu or Kangra. Opaque pigments and gold on paper. Last decades 18th century

Krishna in the company of Balarama and the cowherd boys. Punjab Hills, Jammu or Kangra. Opaque pigments and gold on paper. Last decades 18th century

A page from the Bhagavata Purana series. Seated under the shade of blossoming trees near the banks of a lake filled with lotus flowers, Krishna converses with Balarama. Among the trees and across the meadow, the cows rest while the herd boys chat, listen to Krishna, and play the flute.
Narrow black border, red margins with two white rules. Legend in Devanagari script on the back of the sheet.
30.2 x 40.4 cm (leaf); 26.1 x 37.4 cm (miniature)

Provenance

Private collection, Northern Germany, acquired 4.9.1979 at The Arcade Gallery, London (copy of the invoice available)

Literature

Cf. a miniature of similar style in: William George Archer, Indian Paintings from the Punjab Hills, London 1973, vol. II, p. 159, no. 69