2014.10: Asavari Ragini, illustration from a Ragamala (Garland of Melodies) series

Identification and Creation

Object Number

2014.10

Title

Asavari Ragini, illustration from a Ragamala (Garland of Melodies) series

Classification

Paintings

Work Type

painting

Date

1780-1790

Places

Creation Place: South Asia, India, Andhra Pradesh, Hyderabad

Culture

Indian

Persistent Link

https://hvrd.art/o/349939

Physical Descriptions

Medium

Opaque watercolor, gold, and tin on paper

Dimensions

24.3 x 15.2 cm (9 9/16 x 6 in.)

Provenance

Recorded Ownership History

Dr. Konrad Seitz, Munich, (1969-2013), sold; through [Simon Ray LImited], to; the Harvard Art Museums, 2013.

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line

Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Richard Norton Memorial Fund

Accession Year

2014

Object Number

2014.10

Division

Asian and Mediterranean Art

Contact

am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu

Permissions

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Descriptions

Description

The Asavari Ragini, is commonly represented by a female heroine (nayika) that charms snakes either through her dance or through her music. In this painting, the female figure sits on an outcropping of lilac-colored rocks, between two silvery bodies of water. She plays a pungi, a type of wind instrument, to charm the snakes. The snakes spiraling down the tree and coiling around the figure’s limbs.
Contrary to the stereotypical presentation of Asavari Ragini as a dark-skinned tribal woman garbed in leaves or feathers, she appears in this painting as fair-haired and fashionably dressed, with fingertips colored by henna. Her upswept topknot signals that she should be viewed as a yogini—a woman who follows the Hindu ascetic path. Conventionally, Asavari Ragini is a solitary figure, but here she is accompanied by a semi-clad ascetic, who stands at left. The standing ascetic is attended by a dog and holds a fan and a meditation crutch, all of which symbolize that the devotee is of the ascetic Nath order. This painting is a pictorial metaphor for a raga, a musical phrase that is used as the basis for improvisation). Deccan.

Publication History

• John Seyller, Mughal and Deccani paintings: Eva and Conrad Seitz Collection of Indian Miniatures, exh. cat., Museum Rietberg Zürich (Zürich, Switzerland, 2010), p.140, cat. 48, ill. p.142
• Indian and Islamic Works of Art, auct. cat., Simon Ray Limited (London, 2013), pp. 122-123, cat. 46

Exhibition History

• Dazzling Visions: Indian Paintings from the Seitz Collection, Museum Rietberg Zürich, 11/30/2010 - 04/10/2011

Verification Level