Shri Raga: An Illustration from a Ragamala Series
1740
unspecified
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
1740
unspecified
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
Shri Raga: An Illustration from a Ragamala Series is a 1740 unspecified by Unknown, a Baroque work, depicting Mughal, held at Cleveland Museum of Art.
You see a blue-skinned man on a golden throne, surrounded by flowers and jewels. A musician with a vina (a stringed instrument) sits at his feet, while a horse-headed figure claps nearby. This painting is part of a *Ragamala*—a set of images that pair music with visual art. Each scene matches a specific melody or mood, like a song turned into a picture. The verse written for this one describes the man as a divine figure, loved by poets and scholars. To see more like this, look up 18th century Indian art.
The verse associated with Shri Raga corresponds closely with this scene: His body, bluish in hue, is marvelously built. He is always graced with the company of auspicious Shri Lakshmi. He sits on a throne of gold, and before him Narada sits playing on his vina. He has decorated himself with garlands of flowers, and also with ornaments set with jewels. Shri raga is thus conceived in sentiment, of whom all learned men sing praises. The horse-headed figure claps his hands and accompanies the sage, wearing saffron garments and playing on the stringed instrument called a vina. He may be derived…
Read the full account in the museum source.
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