Artwork
Jatayu hinders Ravana’s chariot, trying to prevent the abduction of Sita (recto), from a Kalighat album
Jatayu hinders Ravana’s chariot, trying to prevent the abduction of Sita (recto), from a Kalighat album is an unspecified painting. It dates from 1896 and is held in the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art.
About this work
Overview
The work is a small painting from a Kalighat album that depicts a mythological episode in which a golden eagle, identified as Jatayu, confronts Ravana’s chariot. The bird’s green‑tinged wings are spread over the vehicle, whose red body and black wheels carry an armored rider on a white horse, accompanied by two attendants inside the carriage.
Subject & Meaning
The scene draws on the Ramayana narrative in which Jatayu, a giant eagle, attempts to rescue Sita from Ravana’s abduction. By interposing itself between the chariot and the ground, the bird symbolizes heroic resistance, while the aggressive posture of its open beak suggests a warning or a cry of alarm.
Technique & Style
Executed in the characteristic Kalighat folk style, the painting employs bold, flat areas of color and simplified outlines. The palette is vivid, gold, green, red, and black, creating a stark visual contrast that heightens the drama. The figures are rendered with minimal detail, emphasizing gesture over naturalistic rendering.
History & Provenance
The piece originates from a series of portable albums produced in 19th‑century Calcutta for a market of pilgrims and tourists. Such albums were often sold at the Kalighat temple precincts, where artists adapted popular religious stories for a broad audience. The painting now belongs to the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art.
Artist & collection
- Jatayu hinders Ravana’s chariot, trying to prevent the abduction of Sita (recto), from a Kalighat album
Ravana, Sita and Jatayu
Ravana, Sita and Jatayu
Jatayu, Ravana and Sita
Jatayu, Sita and Ravana
Jatayu, Ravana and Sita
Leaf from a Kalighat album: Jatayu hinders Ravana’s chariot, trying to prevent the abduction of Sita (recto); Dushyanta watching his son Bharat playing with the tiger at the end of the Abhijnanashakuntalam (verso)
Leaf from a Kalighat album: Jatayu hinders Ravana’s chariot, trying to prevent the abduction of Sita (recto); Dushyanta watching his son Bharat playing with the tiger at the end of the Abhijnanashakuntalam (verso)
Garuda Carrying Balarama and Krishna (verso), from a Kalighat album
Kali Dancing on Shiva (recto), from a Kalighat album
Jatayu hinders Ravana’s chariot trying to prevent Sita’s abduction (recto), from a Kalighat album
Krishna Steals the Clothes of the Cowgirls (Gopis) (recto), from a Kalighat album
