Artwork
King Siddhartha and Queen Trishala with the Dream Diviners, from a Kalpa-sutra
King Siddhartha and Queen Trishala with the Dream Diviners, from a Kalpa-sutra is an unspecified painting. It dates from 1494 and is held in the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
Rendered as a religious painting in 1494 in Gujarat, the work uses traditional iconography to convey spiritual significance rather than literal storytelling.
The scene portrays King Siddhartha and Queen Trishala alongside diviners interpreting auspicious dreams, a pivotal moment in the pre-enlightenment narrative of the future Jina. Their presence underscores the divine foreknowledge surrounding his birth and destiny within Jain cosmology. Rendered as a religious painting in 1494 in Gujarat, the work uses traditional iconography to convey spiritual significance rather than literal storytelling.
History & Provenance
King Siddhartha and Queen Trishala with the Dream Diviners, from a Kalpa-sutra, dates to 1494 and was produced in Gujarat, according to the work's cataloguing data. It is a religious painting created as part of a Kalpa-sutra manuscript tradition. The work is held in the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art, where it is catalogued under accession number 1932.119.9.
No details of a specific commission, patron, or earlier ownership chain are recorded in the available sources beyond its current institutional home and its date and place of manufacture.
Legacy
The painting depicting King Siddhartha and Queen Trishala with the Dream Diviners, originating from a Kalpa-sutra manuscript, was created in 1494 in Gujarat and classified as a religious artwork. It is held in the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art, where it remains part of the institution's holdings of religious art. The work contributes to scholarly understanding of South Asian manuscript illumination and devotional imagery in Jain cosmology.
Overview
The work titled King Siddhartha and Queen Trishala with the Dream Diviners, from a Kalpa‑sutra is a painted composition that places the royal couple at its centre. Both figures are dressed in blue and gold garments, set against a deep red backdrop that heightens the visual intensity of the scene.
Technique & Style
Rendered with vivid pigments, the artist employs contrasting colour blocks, rich blues and golds for the royalty, varied hues for the attendants, and a saturated red field behind them. The composition balances symmetry around the central throne, while the distinct attire of each diviner suggests individualized roles within the narrative.
Context
Although the precise date and origin of the painting are not recorded, its subject matter aligns with the visual vocabulary of South Asian Buddhist manuscript illustration, where courtly figures and supernatural agents are frequently depicted in elaborate, colour‑rich panels.
Artist & collection
