Krishna quells the serpent Kaliya (verso), from a Kalighat album
1890
unspecified
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
1890
unspecified
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
Krishna quells the serpent Kaliya (verso), from a Kalighat album is a 1890 unspecified by Unknown, a Patna School of Painting work, depicting Bengal, held at Cleveland Museum of Art.
You see a bright blue river, a coiled snake, and a boy dancing on its head while women with fish tails beg for mercy. This painting comes from Kalighat, a neighborhood in Kolkata where artists sold cheap, colorful pictures to pilgrims. The style is bold and simple—no shadows, just flat shapes—so the story pops at a glance. Krishna’s blue skin and the snake’s many heads make the scene feel alive. To see more paintings like this, look up kalighat.
The serpent Kaliya was poisoning the water of the Yamuna River near the residence of the cowherding community, where Krishna spent his youth. The animals were dying of the toxins. Krishna wrestled the mighty serpent then emerged from the water to dance on his head. Pleading with Krishna to set him free, Kaliya’s wives are shown like mermaids.
Kaliya is one of the few foes whom Krishna did not kill, but permitted him to relocate to an island in the ocean.
Read the full account in the museum source.
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