Artwork

King Dasharatha sends his chief minister Sumantra to summon Rama, from the "Shangri" Ramayana

King Dasharatha sends his chief minister Sumantra to summon Rama, from the "Shangri" Ramayana is an unspecified painting by the Baroque artist Unknown. It dates from 1712 and is held in the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art.

Accession no.: 1996.361
Credit line: Gift of Norman Zaworski in honor of Sherman and Ruth Lee

About this work

Overview

The painting illustrates a moment from the "Shangri" Ramayana in which King Dasharatha, seated on a throne, gestures toward his chief minister Sumantra, who bows deeply. Flanking them are two of Rama’s younger brothers, positioned in a palace courtyard, suggesting a formal royal setting.

Subject & Meaning

The scene captures Dasharatha’s plan to announce Rama as his heir after his own retirement. By dispatching two of Rama’s brothers to visit their maternal grandfather, the king seeks to ensure a quiet environment for the succession proclamation, reflecting themes of duty and strategic familial arrangements.

Technique & Style

These toxic colors appear only on the main image, leaving the top border unpainted, indicating the piece was left unfinished.

Executed on a long narrative scroll, the work employs opaque mercury‑red and arsenic‑yellow pigments, substances traditionally used in the region to deter insects. These toxic colors appear only on the main image, leaving the top border unpainted, indicating the piece was left unfinished. The number 18, rendered in the Takri script of the northwest Himalayas, marks the scene’s sequence within the epic.

History & Provenance

Originating in the Pahari kingdoms of present‑day Himachal Pradesh, the scroll belongs to a broader tradition of miniature paintings that visualized episodes of the Ramayana for courtly audiences. The use of Takri script and regional pigments situates the work firmly within the artistic practices of these Himalayan hill states.

Context

Created during a period when miniature narrative scrolls were a primary means of storytelling, the painting reflects the Pahari courts’ interest in Hindu epics and their patronage of detailed, color‑rich compositions. The inclusion of specific script and numbering demonstrates a systematic approach to organizing the epic’s visual narrative.