San Diego Museum of Art - Lava and Kusha battle Lakshmana and Rama's army

☰ Open Filter >>

Lava and Kusha battle Lakshmana and Rama's army

Showing 1 of 1

Print this page

Bookmark: https://collection.sdmart.org/objects-1/info/5141

Lava and Kusha battle Lakshmana and Rama's army

Makra, Indian, b. 16th century

Creation date: 1598

Creation place: India

Other Information

Type: Watercolor Painting

Medium and Support: Opaque watercolor on paper

Credit Line: Edwin Binney 3rd Collection

Accession Number: 1990.306

State/Province: Uttar Pradesh

Dimensions: 11 3/16 x 6 17/32 in. (28.4 x 16.6 cm)

Provenance

Sotheby's, London, England (December 12, 1966 - December 12, 1966)

Fowler, London, England (December 12, 1966 - December 12, 1966)

Edwin Binney 3rd, San Diego, California (December 12, 1966 - August 27, 1990)

San Diego Museum of Art, San Diego, California (August 27, 1990 - )

Label Copy

Sonya Quintanilla (Seattle) 2012

Hanuman's monkey army, Rama and Lakshmana in front of the castle in Lanka, ca. 1590
Opaque watercolor and gold on paper
Northern India, Delhi
The San Diego Museum of Art, Edwin Binney 3rd Collection

Ravana himself returned to the battlefield to face Rama and Lakshmana once and for all. He struck Lakshmana down, and Rama hurled a dreadful missile at Ravana, causing him to retreat. Rama held his seemingly lifeless brother and began to despair, until Hanuman flew to a mountain in the Himalayas to bring healing herbs that caused Lakshmana to regain consciousness. Ravana then returned, and the battle continued.

This painting was made for the ecumenically minded Mughal Emperor Akbar. Although he was a Muslim whose family was from the Ferghana Valley of present-day Uzbekistan, he took a keen interest in the religions, literature, and customs of the people whom he ruled in India. He commissioned the artists of the imperial workshop to produce illustrated manuscripts of important Sanskrit texts, including the Ramayana. It is presented in the vertical format favored by Muslims and displays the use of shading and perspective that lead to a sense of naturalism that Akbar personally favored.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
In 1582 the translation bureau at the court of the Mughal emperor Akbar began the monumental task of translating the Mahabharata into Persian; the result was an abridged, but still lengthy, version of the text, known in Persian as the Razmnama (Book of Wars). The copy of the Razmnama from which this folio comes was completed in 1598–99, probably for a member of Akbar’s family or of his court. This painting, representing a battle scene, is typical of those found in Mughal manuscripts, aside from the two bare-chested figures in the middle ground. They are Lava and Kusha, the sons of Rama, who fight the army of Lakshmana.

Last Updated: 9/5/2017

Exhibition

This object was included in the following exhibitions:

Islamic Art Across the World Indiana University Art Museum , 6/18/1970 - 10/1/1970

The Mughal and Deccani Schools: Indian Miniature Painting from the Collection of Edwin Binney, 3rd The Portland Art Association , 12/2/1973 - 3/7/1976

Epic Tales from India: Paintings from The San Diego Museum of Art The San Diego Museum of Art , 11/19/2016 - 6/12/2018

Bibliography

This object has the following bibliographic references:

Dr. Edwin Binney, 3rd. The Mughal and Deccani Schools Portland Art Museum. Portland, Oregon, 1973
Page Number: 44, 48-49, Figure Number: 25b

Dr. Edwin Binney, 3rd. The Mughal and Deccani Schools Portland Art Museum. Portland, Oregon, 1973
Page Number: 67

Theodore Robert Bowie. Islamic Art from Across the World Indiana University Art Museum. Bloomington, Indiana, 1970
Page Number: 38, no. 131

Catalogue of Western and Oriental Manuscripts and Miniatures, Sotheby & Co.. London, England, December 12, 1966
Page Number: 12, Lot no. 53, Figure Number: 53

Ms. Marika Sardar and Ms Neeraja Poddar. Epic Tales from Ancient India San Diego Museum of Art. San Diego, California, 2016
Page Number: 131, Figure Number: cat. 73

Submit a question or comment about this object

Showing 1 of 1

Your current search criteria is: Object is "Lava and Kusha battle Lakshmana and Rama's army".