2002.309: Radha Talking with Her Sakhi on a Terrace, drawing from a Rasikapriya (Handbook for Poetry Connoisseurs) Series

Identification and Creation

Object Number

2002.309

Title

Radha Talking with Her Sakhi on a Terrace, drawing from a Rasikapriya (Handbook for Poetry Connoisseurs) Series

Classification

Drawings

Work Type

drawing

Date

17th-18th century

Places

Creation Place: South Asia, India, Rajasthan, Kota

Culture

Indian

Persistent Link

https://hvrd.art/o/99354

Physical Descriptions

Medium

Ink and opaque watercolor on paper

Dimensions

24.9 x 16 cm (9 13/16 x 6 5/16 in.)

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line

Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Gift of Stuart Cary Welch, Jr. in honor of James Cuno

Accession Year

2002

Object Number

2002.309

Division

Asian and Mediterranean Art

Contact

am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu

Permissions

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Descriptions

Description

The drawing depicts Radha, the consort of the Hindu god Krishna, on the terrace of her palatial abode. Her chin rests on her hand as she listens to her female companion (sakhi), who sits across from her. Beyond the palace walls are trees and birds. Dots of color throughout the drawing act as guides for the colorist to fill in that area with that specific color. The drawing is for a Rasikapriya (Handbook for Poetry Connoisseurs), a sixteen-century poetic treatise on love for aspiring poets and connoisseurs by Keshavdas (b. c. 1555). Through sixteen chapters, the work celebrates aspects of love using the Hindu deity Krishna as the archetypal hero (nayak), and his consort, Radha, as the heroine (nayika). Rajput Style, Kota School

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