Artwork
Battle Scene at Kurukshetra from the Mahabharata War (verso), from a Kalighat album
Battle Scene at Kurukshetra from the Mahabharata War (verso), from a Kalighat album is an unspecified painting. It dates from 1896 and is held in the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art. The work is a painted sheet from a Kalighat album, depicting a frenzied combat episode drawn from the Mahabharata’s Kurukshetra war.
About this work
Overview
The work is a painted sheet from a Kalighat album, depicting a frenzied combat episode drawn from the Mahabharata’s Kurukshetra war. Rendered on the reverse side of the folio, the scene fills the surface with densely packed warriors, horses, and fleeing onlookers, set against a backdrop of low, curved-roofed structures and fluttering flags.
Subject & Meaning
The composition illustrates a moment of intense conflict between the two rival factions of the epic, emphasizing the chaos and violence of the legendary battle. By crowding the picture plane with armed figures and terrified civilians, the artist conveys both the scale of the war and its disruptive impact on ordinary life.
Technique & Style
Executed with bold, black outlines and flat, saturated pigments, the painting employs a rapid, almost graphic approach characteristic of Kalighat folk art. The figures are rendered in stiff, stylized poses, yet their dynamic gestures and overlapping forms generate a sense of movement and narrative urgency.
Context
Kalighat albums were popular in 19th‑century Bengal, serving as portable visual narratives for a largely illiterate audience. This sheet, like others in the series, translates a canonical Hindu epic into a visual format that could be easily shared, reflecting contemporary devotional and entertainment practices.
Artist & collection
