Arjuna and His Charioteer Krishna Confront Karna
Final Battle of the Mahabharata
Artist/maker unknown, Indian
Geography:
Made in Himachal Pradesh, India, Asia
or Jammu and Kashmir, India, Asia
Date:
c. 1820Medium:
Opaque watercolor on clothDimensions:
60 inches × 10 feet (152.4 × 304.8 cm) Framed: 67 1/4 inches × 10 feet 6 inches × 3/4 inches (170.8 × 320 × 1.9 cm)Curatorial Department:
South Asian ArtObject Location:
1975-23-1Credit Line:
Purchased with the Edith H. Bell Fund, 1975
Made in Himachal Pradesh, India, Asia
or Jammu and Kashmir, India, Asia
Date:
c. 1820Medium:
Opaque watercolor on clothDimensions:
60 inches × 10 feet (152.4 × 304.8 cm) Framed: 67 1/4 inches × 10 feet 6 inches × 3/4 inches (170.8 × 320 × 1.9 cm)Curatorial Department:
South Asian ArtObject Location:
Currently not on view
Accession Number:1975-23-1Credit Line:
Purchased with the Edith H. Bell Fund, 1975
Social Tags [?]
arjuna [x] army [x] battle [x] bhagavadgita [x] blood [x] chariot [x] elephant [x] epic [x] flag [x] horse [x] karna [x] krishna [x] mahabharata [x] war [x]The final battle of the Mahabharata epic emerges in this large painting. The protagonists, painted in huge scale, confront one another across a gory battlefield. On the left the Pandava hero Arjuna sits behind Krishna, his charioteer. On the right is Karna, commander of the Kaurava army. The actual function of this oversized painting is not known, but it might have been a backdrop for a bard's sung rendition of the battle, perhaps acted out by a dancer who would use the painting to help tell the story.
