1995.84: The Infant Krishna Floating on the Cosmic Ocean (painting, recto), illustration from the Bhagavata Purana

Identification and Creation

Object Number

1995.84

Title

The Infant Krishna Floating on the Cosmic Ocean (painting, recto), illustration from the Bhagavata Purana

Classification

Paintings

Work Type

painting

Date

mid 19th century

Places

Creation Place: South Asia, India, Rajasthan, Nathadwara

Culture

Indian

Persistent Link

https://hvrd.art/o/311090

Physical Descriptions

Medium

Opaque watercolor, gold, and metallic gray pigment on paper

Dimensions

actual: 31.1 x 21.6 cm (12 1/4 x 8 1/2 in.)

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line

Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Gift in gratitude to John Coolidge, Gift of Leslie Cheek, Jr., Anonymous Fund in memory of Henry Berg, Louise Haskell Daly, Alpheus Hyatt, Richard Norton Memorial Funds and through the generosity of Albert H. Gordon and Emily Rauh Pulitzer; formerly in the collection of Stuart Cary Welch, Jr.

Accession Year

1995

Object Number

1995.84

Division

Asian and Mediterranean Art

Contact

am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu

Permissions

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Descriptions

Description

This painting depicts the blue-skinned Hindu god Krishna as an infant, sucking his toe as he lies on a banyan leaf, floating in the primordial ocean. The imagery of a baby reclining on a banyan tree (vatavriksha) or leaf (vatapatra) is found in the texts of the Mahabharata, the Matsya Purana, and the Bhagavata Purana. In the context of the pictorial depictions of the theme in the Bhagavata Purana, the child is usually depicted lying on a banyan leaf.

According to the twelfth book of the Bhagavata Purana, the sage Markandeya gained immortality and swam across the cosmic ocean indefinitely. As he swam in the cosmic ocean, he came across the infant Krishna, who opened his mouth to reveal the creation of the universe. Krishna’s infancy represents the formation of a new world cycle. The rich blue hue of Krishna’s skin and heavy, dreamy eyes are characteristic of paintings from Nathdwara. The ‘Vatapatrasayi Krishna’ or ‘Bala-Mukunda’ became an important theme starting in the 18th century in the paintings of Nathdwara in Rajasthan, a great center of Vallabha Sampradaya, a religious sect devoted to the worship of Krishna. Rajput, Rajasthani, Nathdwara School.

Publication History

• Stuart Cary Welch and Milo Cleveland Beach, Gods, Thrones, and Peacocks Northern Indian Painting from Two Traditions, exh. cat., Harry N. Abrams, Inc. (New York, NY, 1965), page 114/figure 80
• Michael Brand, The Vision of Kings : Art and Experience in India, exh. cat., National Gallery of Australia, Canberra (New York, NY, 1995), Page 39/Figure 19

Exhibition History

• Hot as Curry - Subtle as Moonlight: Masterpieces of Rajput Painting, Harvard University Art Museums, Cambridge, 11/02/1991 - 12/20/1991
• Rajasthani Miniatures: The Welch Collection at the Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Harvard University, The Drawing Center, New York, 04/16/1997 - 06/07/1997
• A Decade of Collecting: Recent Acquisitions of Islamic and Later Indian Art, Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Cambridge, 06/08/2000 - 09/03/2000
• 32Q: 2590 South and Southeast Asia, Harvard Art Museums, Cambridge, 04/19/2018 - 11/07/2018
• A Colloquium in the Visual Arts , Harvard Art Museums, Cambridge, 09/04/2021 - 01/02/2022

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