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Photo © President and Fellows of Harvard College
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Identification and Creation

Object Number
1973.168.A
Title
Rama, Lakshmana, Bharata and Shatrughna in the arms of their mothers, while their father Dasharatha converses with priests (painting, recto; painting, verso), illustration from a Ramayana series
Classification
Manuscripts
Work Type
manuscript folio
Date
18th - 19th century
Places
Creation Place: South Asia, India, Rajasthan, Sirohi
Culture
Indian
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/216293

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Opaque watercolor on paper
Dimensions
25.7 x 30.6 cm (10 1/8 x 12 1/16 in.)

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Gift of John Kenneth Galbraith
Accession Year
1973
Object Number
1973.168.A
Division
Asian and Mediterranean Art
Contact
am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu
Permissions

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Descriptions

Description
The painting depicts the joyous moment of the birth of King Dasharatha’s three wives’ sons – Kaushalya’s Rama, Kaikeyi’s Bharata, Sumitra’s Lakshmana and Shatrughna. The dark-skinned Rama is seen with his mother Kaushalya on the far left, while the dark-skinned Bharata, and the light-skinned Lakshmana and Shatrughna are on the far left. In the lower register, king Dasharatha of Ayodhya sits opposite the group of sages and priests who performed the ritual which helped him obtain sons. According to the text of the Indian Epic Ramayana, he donated cows to the priests as a token of his gratitude. On the reverse of this painting, is another depiction of the new mothers with their sons.
This double-sided folio possibly belongs to a Ramayana manuscript produced in Sirohi. Other folios from the same manuscript in the Harvard Art Museums’ collections are 1973.164, 1973.165, 1973.166.A, 1973.166.B, 1973.167, 1973.168.B, 1973.169, 1973.170.A, 1973.170.B, 1973.171. Rajput, Rajasthani, Sirohi School.

Verification Level

This record was created from historic documentation and may not have been reviewed by a curator; it may be inaccurate or incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of Asian and Mediterranean Art at am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu